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Tranquil Waters: The Lead Crown Ch 6.2b, The Brightest Blossom

The Stone Tribe had always been an oddity to Runs-on-Air, but that became increasingly clear the more time he spent with them. They had great difficulty traveling through the beauty and generous, life-giving bounty of the natural lands and yet they seemed so at ease in the cold, hard, alien, surroundings they called home. That same juxtaposition seemed especially true of his newfound friend, Rhys-Barlow.

Men and women of the Yew Tribe usually fell into one of three groups when it came to dealing with others: they did well with strangers, they did not do well with strangers, or they managed well enough around strangers. The one thing all members of the Yew Tribe were the same on, however, was that those who were known to them were held in high esteem and brought with them a comforting presence. Strangely, Rhys seemed to exact exactly the opposite; the better they got to know one another the further away the Rat kept him.

Considering the size of their group and the limited available space at the healer's home, Runs-on-Air and Rhys ended up sharing a room. The Buck enjoyed the thought of spending time with the Rat and hoped to find the time to know him better, and yet, more than ever, Rhys seemed to treat him as a stranger. Finally willing to put his hoof down, the young scout invited himself over to take a seat on the bed beside the Rat. When Rhys stood up to move, Runs-on-Air and reached out to grab his wrist. "You leaving now?"

The Stone Tribe tongue was still not easy for the Buck but he was fairly sure he got the words right. Rhys stood where he was without walking away, then glanced down to him, "No... I was just--"

"Then sit."

Runs-on-Air was surprised when the request was honored. Rhys sat back down where he was, looking away from him, "Alright... I just thought--"

The Buck realized that he would have to control the conversation if he was going to get anywhere with the Rat, "This... your first time at Vallara?"

Rhys nodded, "Yes. I live in Newport."

It was one of the first personal things he'd ever heard the Rat say about himself. Runs-on-Air pushed to continue the trend, "Your home?"

The rat nodded again, "It's where I live."

"You born there?"

The Rat seemed uncomfortable to continue the discussion and Runs-on-Air didn't miss how quickly he pushed the topic away from himself, "No. I was born in Graddin. What about you? Is this your first time to Vallara?"

Runs-on-Air nodded, "Yes. I born at Yew Village."

"Oh."

Silence prevailed for many long moments until the Buck tried again to get the Rat to open up, "Why you leave Gray-Den?"

As anticipated, Rhys redirected the question, "It's pronounced Graddin."

Runs-on-Air considered himself patient, and he tried again, "Why you leave Grad-in?"

The response was confusing, "...reasons."

The Buck never considered dried fruit a purpose behind leaving one's place of birth. "Raisins?"

If there was something funny about the situation Runs-on-Air must have missed it, but Rhys began immediately laughing. The Rat clarified, "REASONS... not raisins... I left because--"

The sudden lack of humor and the following silence caught the Buck's attention. He looked at the Rat, who's left paw was fiddling inside one of his pockets. Runs-on-Air pointed at the pocket, "What you have?"

Rhys jumped, as if he were a young foal who got caught with a hand in a berry jar, "Nothing... just... nothing."

The scout gave him an appraising gaze before offering up an age old piece of wisdom he'd heard from the elders on more than one occasion, "Man with nothing have no thing to hide." Runs-on-Air realized a moment later it sounded better in his own language.

It appeared as though it took great strength of will for Rhys to withdraw his paw from his pocket but, when he did, the rat opened it and revealed a small metal necklace. Like many of the things the Stone Tribe made it did not have a natural look to it, but it was beautiful nevertheless. Gazing at the gleaming piece of jewelry, he asked the obvious question, "It yours? Why it not being weared?"

A bitter-sweet smile spread across Rhys' muzzle, revealing more than the Rat had ever spoken aloud. Finally, however, he offered a direct answer. "It... was a gift."

The Rat had only returned to the room from the bathing chamber a few minutes before their talk and the Buck could smell the strong, perfumed washing bar that he'd used but the Rat's scent was all but gone... which let a fainter one through. Runs-on-Air looked down at the necklace, trying to formulate a question without knowing the right words. "He... was... to you?"

Rhys seemed to understand enough of what was being asked, "He was a good friend."

"...only 'friend'?"

The observation seeemed to make the Rat uncomfortable, "I... uh..."

Rhys' paw went right back into the pocket, necklace and all. Runs-on-Air reached after it, taking hold of the Rat's wrist and pulling it back out; surprisingly, Rhys did not resist. The Buck used his other hand to take the necklace and he let go of his room mate's arm, slowly unwinding the metal chain until he could access the entire thing. It took a few tries, but he managed to unfurl it, and then place it slowly over Rhy's head, "If he was good friend you should wear it."

The Rat shook his head, reaching up to take it off. "It's... complicated."

Runs-on-Air grabbed the Rat's paw, "If he was good friend you should wear it."

Rhys shook his head again, "I--"

Not entirely sure what came over him at that exact moment the Buck leaned forward, silencing the Rat with a kiss. It was a quick peck, and then it was over. A moment passed before the Rat even registered a reaction but, rather than objecting, the rather boisterous man suddenly became much more withdrawn, ears lowering with a powerful redness ot them. It was not, Runs-on-Air noticed, an unreceptive kind of withdrawn. The Buck reiterated, "Wear it."

Suddenly, and much to the young scout's surprise, Rhys began talking, fingers playing across the metal necklace, "His name was Lucian... he was my... lover."

The admission carried with it a lot of weight. Runs-on-Air knew that relationships between a man and a man were not well regarded among the Stone Tribe. The Buck slowly sat back, feeling a strange break in the tension between them. He actually felt alright asking the question, though he had trouble finding the words, before cursing at his lack of vocabulary "How long... ah... What time after... when did you.... beké."

The Rat looked at him curiously, mind obviously attempting to decipher Runs-on-Air's poor attempt at asking the question. "How long since...?"

The Buck knew it was the right word, and he pointed at the necklace. "Yes. Since. How long since... since Lucian?"

Rhys fondled the necklace thoughtfully, "He gave me the necklace for our anniversary... our... uh... a celebration of how long we'd been together... but... he's gone now."

The faint wilt to the Rat's ear and the way his eyes gazed downward told Runs-on-Air that their separation had not been purposeful, "I am sorry."

Still holding onto the necklace, Rhy's gaze remained on the floor, but the Buck had no doubt that the Rat wasn't actually looking at it. Slowly, gently, Runs-on-Air removed Rhys' fingers from the neklace and pulled the Rat's robe open just a little, "You should wear it... it... should be right there."

Rhys' paw dropped the moment the Buck pulled at the robe and Runs-on-Air didn't miss the way the Rat's tail kinked. Although the young scout tried to convince himself that he only leaned closer to inspect the necklace he didn't do a very good job of it and, before long, he was nibbling softly at Rhy's shoulder fur. The Rat let out a gasp, but didn't so much as attempt to resist. The Buck turned fully toward his room mate, and nibbled his way up the side of Rhys' neck.

Pushing his luck, the Buck slipped a hand into the half-open robe and shifted it further aside; yet again, there was no objection. Runs-on-Air was surprised at how compliant the usually uptight Rat was being and, in that moment, he wondered just how far they could go. The answer, as it turned out, was 'very'. He awoke the next morning with Rhys' back against his chest and the Rat's tail curled languidly around his leg from knee to hoof.

The Buck's vest and loin cloth were on the floor on top of Rhy's robe but, by that point, the Rat was no longer shy about being naked... not after the night they'd spent together. For the first time since arriving, Runs-on-Air didn't much mind being in the Stone Tribe village; it had its... advantages.