She'd made a change, she knew. In and of itself, she had shifted her attitude. Vega had been badly injured two trials before, one leg snapped at the femur, the other shattered at the knee. It wasn't the injuries, though, or not only them which swirled around in her head. Because, two trials ago, after the elemental 'hands' had grabbed her legs and broken her, snapping her left knee at a 90 degree angle to the side, she had been dragged through the ground and then, placed on an altar sort-of-thing and burned alive. Really, she considered, it was the whole burning alive thing which baked her biscuit and she needed to snap out of it. Arlo was hurting, too; he'd seen it happen and his words to her rang in her mind. 'What good is it to you or me either one, to tell you that Lyova gave me a blow by blow description, and then I saw it all just like she told it? How's it going to fix anything to say that whenever I'm still or at the edge of sleeping I can still see, hear and even smell it and can't help my mind racing with what it must have felt like, like I felt it myself.' It wasn't just her that needed to heal, it was him, too. Of course, he'd said that at a time when frankly, she was behaving like a lunatic. She understood this, recognised it and felt the flush of embarrassment. She'd more or less suggested, she had suggested really, that he slept with Fi. The sister in law to her cousins, member of their clan. Was it any wonder, Vega considered that Arlo had questioned what she thought of him. That she believed he didn't want to talk about it because he didn't care enough about her. Did she think, he'd asked, if she believed he didn't love her enough and it had hurt as much as her legs to hear that from him.
But what it also did was force her out of her pitty-ditty, as she considered it to be. She had to get herself moving, had to get herself well and better. For her, for him and for them. So, two trials after meeting the twins Pier and Pre, Vega had decided to stop flopping around like a mop and to get on with it. So, she was sitting up at the small desk in their cabin. Her legs, which were splinted together, were on a chair, but she was dressed, not in a nightgown and she was not getting back in that bed until it was time to sleep. No more laying in bed, although she had to admit that it was so much more comfortable there. Still, she was busy.
Vega lifted her head when there came a tap at the door and she called out. "Come in," with a slight frown. It wasn't Arlo, he wouldn't knock the door, it was their cabin, although he'd slept down the hall the last two nights and intended to for the duration of this. Vega's face broke into a smile as her cousins, first Reese and then Shon walked into the room and, with them, possibly the most beautiful woman Vega had ever seen. She was about to speak, but suddenly she was engulfed in a hug from two of them, the twins she had grown up with both of them ran over and wrapped arms around her. "A'righ', you pair, gerroff me," she said, sounding as gruff and unhelpful as ever she could and did. "You pair of pillocks, whatcha doin'?" But for all that her words said one thing, she grabbed both their hands and kissed first Reese, then Shon, on the cheek and her eyes shone with tears which she would not shed in front of a stranger any more than she'd try and stand just for the heck of it.
"Eva, how are you, you look... should you be up and out of bed?" Shon asked and Vega smiled. "I'm fine, so long as I don't bump my legs. Then I'm as cantankerous as a cat in custard. An' yeah, why would I stay in bed." Glancing up she saw Arlo in the doorway, just checking that she was alright and she smiled to him, over the shoulder of the cousin she was hugging. "Got to keep movin', means I heal quicker." He'd heard, she reckoned, as he closed the door and left them to their reunion.
"Are you in pain?" Reese enquired and Vega looked at him like he was the stupidest person she'd ever met. "No. I shattered my knee an' broke my thigh an' then, cos it didn't 'urt enough, I had surgery on both legs. Why would that hurt, you dweeb?" He had the good grace to look shamefaced and then he grinned back at her as she gave him a thump on the shoulder. "It will bruise tomorrow. A girl did it," he said and Vega beamed in delight. "Now, stop bein' so emotional you pair, an' introduce me."
They didn't need to, as it turned out. As soon as she turned to look at her, the woman with her cousins stepped forward and smiled, offering a hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Eva, my name's Fi." Vega smiled and shook her hand. "Vega. My name is Vega. This lot call me Eva, but frankly, I wish they'd stop. It's right good to meet you, Fi. You're gonna be stayin' on the Wanderlust a while?" Fi nodded and the boys got about pulling around chairs and sitting. Fi perched on the bed.
"So come on then, you two, how's married life? I hope yer sisters are not too un'appy, Fi?" Vega looked around at them and realised that, for Reese and Shon, there was a tension in the air that was only going to be broken with the truth. "Right, so you pair look like yer about to get chucked overboard in yer underpants an' there's a bunch of 'ungry sharks down there who like nothin' better than spotty, quiverin' man-flesh. Out with it, wot?"
The twins looked at each other and Fi gave a slight smile. She had heard tell of the fierce redhead who was Joq'an's daughter but she had rather thought that her sisters had been exaggerated to by their husbands. It seemed not. "Well," Reese said, after the inevitable glances back and forth as they tried to work out who would ask it. "Huw says that you died?"
"I did, yeah." Vega answered and raised an eyebrow. "And?"
"Well, what was it like? Are you alright? Are you all the way back? What did you see?" Shon almost literally stopped himself and Vega turned a steely gaze on him. "Alright you pair of pine-ends, I'm gonna say this once an' once only. In answer to yer questions, Shon, it was cold. Yeah, I'm fine. Wot rubbish are you talkin' all the way back? Of course I am, you idiot. An' I saw yer smilin' face in front of me, beckonin' me to the light. Which is why I came back. A'right?" They looked at her and Shon glared, just slightly.
"Did you meet the twins? Vri?" Reese asked and Vega nodded. "The twins, yeah, they judged me. I asked them so many stupid questions that they let me back. I was pretendin' to be you. Not Vri, no. Are we done now?" They looked at her and nodded, and for a moment Vega gave in. "I'm a'right, honestly I am. I got given another chance an' I jus' wanna grab it, not live in that place. Can we do that?" They both nodded again and Vega guffawed with laughter and spoke to Fi. "Wow, I don't know what yer sisters 'ave done to them, an' come to that I don't wanna, but they've turned into obedient puppies!"
Fi nodded. "Never underestimate the power of regular sex," she said and the twins both blushed simultaneously. Vega's laugh deepened. "So it seems. Right, well, enough of that. I was hopin' you'd be able to 'elp me with somethin'
But what it also did was force her out of her pitty-ditty, as she considered it to be. She had to get herself moving, had to get herself well and better. For her, for him and for them. So, two trials after meeting the twins Pier and Pre, Vega had decided to stop flopping around like a mop and to get on with it. So, she was sitting up at the small desk in their cabin. Her legs, which were splinted together, were on a chair, but she was dressed, not in a nightgown and she was not getting back in that bed until it was time to sleep. No more laying in bed, although she had to admit that it was so much more comfortable there. Still, she was busy.
Vega lifted her head when there came a tap at the door and she called out. "Come in," with a slight frown. It wasn't Arlo, he wouldn't knock the door, it was their cabin, although he'd slept down the hall the last two nights and intended to for the duration of this. Vega's face broke into a smile as her cousins, first Reese and then Shon walked into the room and, with them, possibly the most beautiful woman Vega had ever seen. She was about to speak, but suddenly she was engulfed in a hug from two of them, the twins she had grown up with both of them ran over and wrapped arms around her. "A'righ', you pair, gerroff me," she said, sounding as gruff and unhelpful as ever she could and did. "You pair of pillocks, whatcha doin'?" But for all that her words said one thing, she grabbed both their hands and kissed first Reese, then Shon, on the cheek and her eyes shone with tears which she would not shed in front of a stranger any more than she'd try and stand just for the heck of it.
"Eva, how are you, you look... should you be up and out of bed?" Shon asked and Vega smiled. "I'm fine, so long as I don't bump my legs. Then I'm as cantankerous as a cat in custard. An' yeah, why would I stay in bed." Glancing up she saw Arlo in the doorway, just checking that she was alright and she smiled to him, over the shoulder of the cousin she was hugging. "Got to keep movin', means I heal quicker." He'd heard, she reckoned, as he closed the door and left them to their reunion.
"Are you in pain?" Reese enquired and Vega looked at him like he was the stupidest person she'd ever met. "No. I shattered my knee an' broke my thigh an' then, cos it didn't 'urt enough, I had surgery on both legs. Why would that hurt, you dweeb?" He had the good grace to look shamefaced and then he grinned back at her as she gave him a thump on the shoulder. "It will bruise tomorrow. A girl did it," he said and Vega beamed in delight. "Now, stop bein' so emotional you pair, an' introduce me."
They didn't need to, as it turned out. As soon as she turned to look at her, the woman with her cousins stepped forward and smiled, offering a hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Eva, my name's Fi." Vega smiled and shook her hand. "Vega. My name is Vega. This lot call me Eva, but frankly, I wish they'd stop. It's right good to meet you, Fi. You're gonna be stayin' on the Wanderlust a while?" Fi nodded and the boys got about pulling around chairs and sitting. Fi perched on the bed.
"So come on then, you two, how's married life? I hope yer sisters are not too un'appy, Fi?" Vega looked around at them and realised that, for Reese and Shon, there was a tension in the air that was only going to be broken with the truth. "Right, so you pair look like yer about to get chucked overboard in yer underpants an' there's a bunch of 'ungry sharks down there who like nothin' better than spotty, quiverin' man-flesh. Out with it, wot?"
The twins looked at each other and Fi gave a slight smile. She had heard tell of the fierce redhead who was Joq'an's daughter but she had rather thought that her sisters had been exaggerated to by their husbands. It seemed not. "Well," Reese said, after the inevitable glances back and forth as they tried to work out who would ask it. "Huw says that you died?"
"I did, yeah." Vega answered and raised an eyebrow. "And?"
"Well, what was it like? Are you alright? Are you all the way back? What did you see?" Shon almost literally stopped himself and Vega turned a steely gaze on him. "Alright you pair of pine-ends, I'm gonna say this once an' once only. In answer to yer questions, Shon, it was cold. Yeah, I'm fine. Wot rubbish are you talkin' all the way back? Of course I am, you idiot. An' I saw yer smilin' face in front of me, beckonin' me to the light. Which is why I came back. A'right?" They looked at her and Shon glared, just slightly.
"Did you meet the twins? Vri?" Reese asked and Vega nodded. "The twins, yeah, they judged me. I asked them so many stupid questions that they let me back. I was pretendin' to be you. Not Vri, no. Are we done now?" They looked at her and nodded, and for a moment Vega gave in. "I'm a'right, honestly I am. I got given another chance an' I jus' wanna grab it, not live in that place. Can we do that?" They both nodded again and Vega guffawed with laughter and spoke to Fi. "Wow, I don't know what yer sisters 'ave done to them, an' come to that I don't wanna, but they've turned into obedient puppies!"
Fi nodded. "Never underestimate the power of regular sex," she said and the twins both blushed simultaneously. Vega's laugh deepened. "So it seems. Right, well, enough of that. I was hopin' you'd be able to 'elp me with somethin'
