(2023-02-07) Looking At Details And Telling Yourself A Story About Them

Details

Author:	Athena
Summary:	Oranna and Lireen meet outside the Valgarde settlement and talk about the potential patterns to start looking for the beginning of a trail for a survivor, how different people have various ways they find happiness, and the nature of relationships between children and parents. 4k-ish words.
Rating:	T for Teen

On the edge of the Valgarde settlement, by the water facing out the boats moving supplies along.

Oranna seems focused, her eyes on the water, staring out as she watches some of the boats passing by, as though marking the patterns they're making.

Lireen approaches and sits quietly down beside her, not saying anything right away. The wind lifts her silvered hair away from her face as she gazes out over the water too.

Oranna glances over. "Oh. Lireen. Hullo." Oranna sounds quiet, her eyes going back to the boats.

"Oranna." Lireen smiles a little, and then just leans back on her hands, seeming to enjoy the frigid breeze.

"Ye doin' alright?" Oranna asks, as she watches the path of the boat, a frown creasing her forehead.

"Oh aye, it's very peaceful here, when flamin' harpoons aren't landin' between me boots."

Oranna nods seriously. "Oh, aye. Regular war zone." That sounds a bit hollow. She tears her eyes from the boats long enough to look back at where the line of defense is. "I'll do another shift o' th' watch. Later."

"I think Cobalt's been a big help out here. Given them giants pause. What do ye make of 'em? What are they?" Lireen peers at Oranna curiously.

Oranna swallows, and pulls her arms in tighter against herself. "The giants? Dinna rightly know. The wolves they have dinna seem familiar ta me. Winter like, aye, but there's something strange."

"Aye. Everythin' up here seems… I dunno. Primal. Old. Strange." She looks up, up, up at the rocky cliffs. "Beautiful country, though. Maybe even beats the Hinterlands."

Oranna glances around as though she's not looked at the place at all, not in a way that seems to have been actually seeing it. "Oh." It's written all over her face as she takes in the view. "Oh, aye. It's…pretty."

"When I was doin meditations earlier, I went and found a quiet spot near those waterfalls… just gorgeous."

"Waterfalls?" Oranna looks over for them. "Any paths around them coming up from the water?"

"I havenae been able t'find a safe path up yet. I just sat at the bottom an' looked up. Livin in Ironforge I imagine youre used t'lookin' up, aye?" Lireen smiles. "For some reason Wildhammers always build so we're mostly lookin down. Like feelin' like we're up in the air, I suppose."

Oranna nods, and looks away back to the boats. "Oh, aye. Not…I've only lived there fer a year recently, an'…a year once afore."

"Oh is that so? I guess tha's true, not all Bronzebeards are city folk."

"Ah, no. I…we were from the mountains an'…that's where I was, mostly. I'm no'…" Oranna watches the water with a frown. "I know this terrain mostly only through books."

"It's all new t'me as well. I'm nae even one fer books, mostly. But this is where the winds blew me, so here I am."

Oranna looks down, a flush on her cheeks that doesn't seem to be from the cold. She looks guilty. "Oh, aye. I'm…" She sighs heavily. "I hope it's no' been too much o' a burden."

Lireen laughs lightly, looking up at the cliffs with a slightly dreamy expression. "Do I look burdened to ye, lass?"

"Well." Oranna smiles shyly. "No, but…well." Oranna shrugs. "Ye always seem ta find yer feet back under ye."

"Me bairns're all grown… trainin' warriors in Ironforge was fine and all, but it's nice t'be outdoors again."

"They dinna have accurate maps out here," Oranna says. "Been hard ta know where ta go, but…a tracker an' a warrior might get further, as scouts."

"That we could!"

Oranna nods out at the boats, the worry line deep in her forehead. "Been tryin' ta figure out what route they usually take, but I dinna think it's th' same. There's wreckage down in the water."

"Aye. Cobalt was pokin' around down there fer somethin, before."

"Those seem older, from afore, when th' boats werena comin' back."

Lireen nods. "I trust yer eyes on tha'. I've never been much fer … what would ye call it. Deduction."

Oranna sighs, holding her arms around herself as though she's cold. She doesn't seem to be though, from the state of her furs. "Bargrimm…Bargrimm says I've got an eye fer patterns. They've always come easy fer me."

Lireen nods amiably. "I suppose a hunter like yerself, ye get used t'lookin' at details an' tellin yerself a story about 'em. Fer trackin' an' the like?"

Oranna nods, a slightly jerky motion. "Aye. Especially once ye know what yer looking fer. The boats…they're taking th' same paths fer the most part, but they keep adjusting further out. The ice shifting. So it's no' exactly the same."

Lireen nods. "I've got certain things I pay real close attention to. The rest… sometimes slips by me I'll admit. I'm glad I'll have ye along out here." She gives Oranna another smile.

Oranna looks over and tries for a smile. It almost makes it. "I'm righ' glad yer here. It's…" She looks again at the scenery as though she hasn't been seeing it for the past two weeks. "It's been awhile since I've been traveling."

"Other than the journey t'Ironforge, same fer me, t'be honest. I got a bit set in me ways, fer a while there in Aerie Peak."

Oranna frowns down at the water again. "Ha' ye seen anythin' around here that ye migh' have…if ye were familiar with gryphons, think could be tamed fer th' skies? I keep thinkin'…this place wouldna have looked safe from afar, but…"

"Might could be made safe, in time. I admit I'm real curious about them… dragon things. That the giants are ridin."

"Aye, but if ye were wounded, or…or comin' in from th' water, ye migh' have taken a turn away, lookin' from afar. An'…if ye did, would ye try ta find somethin' ta ride."

"I wouldn't mind havin' a try at one o' them. What did they say they were called? Pro- somethin. But they've got a reptile mind, not sure if I know how t'connect with it right."

"'Proto-drakes.' S'what they've called them."

"Proto-drakes, aye, tha' was et."

Oranna sighs, reaching out a hand to smooth over her braid. "I ne'er had much luck with such myself."

"Look like a real thrill t'ride, but I wouldna know where t'begin tamin' one. Gryphons got a warmer heart, like a person's."

"Supposedly it's all about bein'…straight forward. What ye are, no illusions. Tha's what they say, anyway. Bein' verra deliberate."

"Tha' makes sense. I reckon ye know a lot more about a lot more kinds o' creatures than I do."

Oranna shrugs, blushing pink. "Aye, but it's all hypothetical. Ne'er been able ta do it in practice, but…I'll say tha' I havena tried much. Th' lass here has a…"

Befound yawns, stretching out her claws on the ground. Sure, bring her a big snake. She will be good. It's not a trap.

(It's a trap.)

Lireen laughs softly. "She's a beauty. I can see why ye keep her at yer side. I'm partial t' all kind of cats meself, in fact."

Befound licks a giant paw, blinking slowly at Lireen. A woman of taste, obviously.

"Aye. I've been workin' with others, but I always seem ta come back ta wha' I knew first."

"One o' me middle sons, his da used t' say I was a cat."

Oranna chuckles. It's a little weak, but it's a laugh.

"Said I'd come when I wanted pets an' then jus' wander off like I never knew 'im."

Befound purrs. This is the way.

Lireen nods sagely at Befound.

Oranna laughs again, a little brighter. "Oh, aye. Befound here's been tryin' her hand at playin' house cat. Dinna be fooled. She's only play actin'. She may be a companion, but she's nae more tame than any other wild cat."

Befound looks affronted. Excuse you, she is DEFINITELY a house cat. Pet her.

"I reckon it's a game t'her… wild cats are good at lurin' wee things closer. She's been watchin how the little cats get people t'come to 'em. Just in case she ever needs t'eat one of us. Aye, Befound?"

Oranna nods, with a warm smile at the cat. "I'm fair certain she'd be more like ta drag us off ta the nearest portal. She's a righ' smart lass. Smarter than I, sometimes."

Befound settles down next to Oranna, setting her head on her own tail as a cushion.

"We all need someone smarter'n us around. Tha's why I'm hangin' out near you, lass." She smiles beatifically. Well, an' Befound, too, I guess. I'm not much fer math but I did learn tha' one. If she's smarter'n you an' yer smarter'n me, stands t'reason she's smarter'n me too."

Oranna laughs, blushing a bright enough red that it might be casting a slight glow around the whites of her shoulder pauldrons' fur. "Oh, well. No' tha's not…I mean, yer a right smart one, Lireen. I'm just…there's things I…well. I have ta know now."

"I'm at peace wi' not bein' the sharpest tool in every shed. I'm sharp enough fer some uses anyway. If everyone were good a' the same theng we'd only need one of us, aye?"

"That's true of all of us, isn't it?" Oranna glances over at the water. "Aye."

"It's why I've always taken care t'make as many friends as possible, and lose no more'n I can help losin'."

Oranna smiles slightly. "It's harder than I thought it'd be, with humans. They move so..fast sometimes. I'll be thinkin' it's no time at all, an' then they'll say, oh it's been ages! And it's been jus' a year."

"I just treat em like children, mostly. Sometimes it's best just t'pick yer battles, let 'em have what they want if it willna hurt 'em" She chuckles. “I've not had any humans liked me well enough t'miss me. But I guess they're like children that way too, turn yer back fer a few minutes an' they're sure ye've abandoned em forever!"

"It's new, fer me. I never knew much o' any at all until two years ago."

"Same, same."

Oranna seems to be considering that one, the frown on her face deepening a bit. "Aye, it's a bit like it. When I was in the thick of it afore, it was easier. I felt like I was movin' along with them. But the moment I stepped away, back inta my own time…it was as though I'd just lost them off in a race I didna know we were holdin'. Fair strange."

"I guess they have reason t'move things fast, bless 'em. Can ye imagine havin' only… what, seventy-eighty years? T'do everythin?" Lireen shakes her head slowly, pondering.

Oranna chuckles in some memory, a fond smile on her face. "Oh, aye, in more ways than one. Tha' walk of mine when I'm movin' along, that's the pace I learned ta keep up with them, long legs."

"Ha! I confess I'm terrible slow on foot. Used t'havin a gryphon t'do the travelin fer me. But… I gotta cut back on flyin. Somethin with me ears."

Oranna looks over, curiosity and concern written on her face. "Yer ears? Somewhat goin' wrong?"

"Tha's what the healer said. Said it happens t'some when they get old. I get awful dizzy real easy now."

"Oh. I'm sorry ta hear it. I…I still canna do it well. Flyin'. I canna stop thinkin' of fallin' from up so high."

"Even just one o' them hired gryphons, by the time I get there I'm a bit woozy. I can ferget about the aerobatics I used t'do. It's a disappointment, but, y'know, I'm still here, there's still thengs I can do."

Oranna nods vigorously. There's a look of almost pain on her face. "Bargrimm…Bargrimm said much th' same. He canna fly s'well, with his leg as it is. Too much interference with th' gryphon."

Lireen nods. "Aye, I can imagine. Just one thing goes a little wrong an' the whole theng becomes bloody dangerous!"

"I know it's a little…more comin' for a Wildhammer but, I dinna see it the same. There are other things ta do, aside from ridin'. Yer raisin' them up, fer example. Tha's a righ' deed ta accomplish."

"Oh aye, watchin one grow from a tiny fluffy theng to a majestic beast soarin' through the clouds… nothin' like it in th'world.”

Oranna gives her a warm smile. "Oh, aye."

"Oh I suppose raisin' bairns was all righ' too," she says with a wink. “Though some o' me own offspring, I'd maybe prefer they'd been gryphons, much grief as they gave me!" Lireen laughs.

Oranna blinks. "Ach, well." She glances off to the right, a slight faraway look in her eyes. "I…I suppose it can be like tha'. Fer any family."

"Trouble is, I'm drawn t'stormy men, an' some o' their children take after 'em a bit much. I prefer things a bit calmer in me day-t'day, but there's no walkin' away from a child like ye do a man. Or like I do a man, anyway." Lireen winks.

Oranna nods, her right hand going to her left arm. "Aye. Ye ne'er…tha' is, ye ne'er regretted any of them, did ye? Yer bairns."

"I love every one of 'em. Even the ones gave me gray hair. Can't imagine any of 'em not bein in this world. Includin' one that en't, anymore. I still have a hard time imaginin'."

Oranna's face dips into sadness. "Oh, ach, I didna… I wasna…I'm sorry. I didna mean ta remind ye o'…" She trails off, looking away, a bit of color on her cheeks of embarrassment.

"Ach, he's fifty years gone now, lass. It don't pain me the way it used ta. I'm surprised, many as I had, that I only lost the one. He got t'grow up too, an' have many fine adventures."

Oranna inhales sharply, but she nods, trying for a slight smile at Lireen. "Tha's…I'm glad o' it. I'm still sorry tha' he's gone. Wha' was his name? If ye dinna mind…talkin' o' him."

"He was called Rory." Lireen smiles peacefully.

Oranna flinches. "Oh. Ruari?"

"Hair black as ink, like his da'. Couldna sit still… like is da'." Lireen laughs. “Died in battle. Troll got 'im. But he was doin' what he loved. … Killin' trolls." She sighs and shakes her head.

"Explorer? Or…jus'…adventurer?"

"More of a… purveyor o' violence. I suppose a long peaceful life was more'n I could've expected."

"Oh." Oranna looks away.

"Now I'm a warrior too… but not like my Rory was."

Oranna nods slowly.

"It was the fightin itself he loved. Not the reason."

"I…I've wondered if it was th' same. Fer my brothers. At least…at least some o' them."

"If there were no trolls, no enemies, he'd jus' pick bar fights, tha' one. So many gray hairs…But it's like I said in answer t'yer question. I never fully understood him, an' we disagreed all the time, but I loved him an' I'm proud of him, an' I can see he was meant t'be in this world, for the time he was."

"My brother Copperun…was like tha'. Start fights ta ha' them. I've…I've known others since, like Dane. He doesna shy from a fight, but he doesna start 'em like tha, no' anymore."

"Dane, I know tha' one. So he's one o' yer human friends then?"

Oranna smiles slightly, nodding. "Aye. He's a good friend ta me. It's…sometimes when yer around him it's easier to think o' how a sword and shield do protectin', no' jus'…fightin."

"An ye say he doesna start fights anymore? How did that come about?"

"Oh, when we first started out, jus' a while ago, he got inta a wee bit o' trouble. Jus' tempers risin', and fists used ta solve them."

"What do ye reckon changed 'im?"

Oranna frowns in thought. "Ivri, maybe. A bit. But maybe th' Company. Afore, I think mebbe he was driftin' a bit. We all were, I think. Afore Elo pulled us in tow."

"Aye. Bein' part o' somethin', havin' meanin', tha' can help. I thought bein' part of our family would calm Rory, but… he had peculiar ideas. Well, more like, he didna subscribe t'my peculiar ideas."

"Dane, he used ta talk about it like he'd ne'er be able ta stop. But, he's a knight now." Oranna says this with pride in her voice. "An' married. An' he's got a house an' all. He has things now that if he wasna fightin', he'd still have 'em."

"Ach, all that just since ye knew him? Just like ye said about humans!" Lireen laughs softly. "But it's good. If he doesna get wise now, maybe he'd have no time t'get wise at all."

Oranna laughs, and it's a warm sound. "Well, Bargrimm an' I — " The laughter fades, and her face goes blank as she lowers her eyes to the water. "We've had a whirlwind romance."

"I've had one or two o' those in me own time, so no judgment here." She smiles warmly.

"When ye met us afore, in the Hinterlands, we'd scarce known each other six months. An' been together jus' two."

"One o' me daughters, her da' and I were like tha'. Within maybe a month I was over the moon."

"I…I ne'er had any other. Afore him."

"So brave of ye t'fall so fast yer first time! I was guarded as anythin'."

Oranna chuckles weakly. "Well, ah. It took me 92 years ta get there. I'm no' certain tha's no more guarded. It was jus'…from th' start, it felt right. He makes me feel safe, an' like…I matter."

"Aye, tha's just how it was wi' Donnall. Almost the second we met, I knew he got me. He just understood all the stuff tha' everyone else argued with an' tried t'change."

"How did it….tha' is…yer no' together still, aye?"

"I'm never really t'gether with any of em, not in the sense ye mean. We still see each other now an' then. Less since I moved south."

Oranna's face clears. "Ohhh, aye. Cookies," she mutters, like that makes any sense at all.

"I never married though, or even planned on et. I jus' loved who I loved. An if they moved on, I let 'em. Donnall never really did."

"Friend o' mine used ta talk about it th' same way. Tha' she jus' appreciated a lot. I…I've ne'er been able ta see it, no' like tha'."

"Aye, I'm a bit unusual tha' way."

Oranna smiles, but there's a look of sorrow in her face. "I always thought it was me tha' had it the wrong way around. It always felt like tha'. Tha' people thought it odd o' me."

"Some men got mad about it, even though I told 'em straight up. But Donnall an' a couple o' the others understood. One of 'em ended up marryin another, so I let 'im go fer her sake. But aye, I just… love who I love, like a cat wi' several 'owners.'"

Befound's head perks up at that. Wait, was that an option.

Oranna makes a scolding sound. "No' the same thing, lass."

"Befound don't go gettin' any ideas from me. Oranna's yer one an' only."

Befound sets her head back down with a feline huff. Just imagine. Fish from SEVERAL HUNTERS.

Oranna smiles warmly at Lireen. "I'm glad it's wha' ye found righ' fer ye."

"Aye! Tha's all I ever wanted. Just fer everyone t'be free t'be themselves. Some though, they seemed t'think tha' if one person did somethin' a different way, tha' made them wrong. Someone had t'be wrong. They didna want it t'be them, so had t'be me." She shrugs.

Oranna nods, shifting her weight, as she looks to the right for a long moment. "Aye. It's jus' like that."

"One o' me daughters came t'me…" Lireen shakes her head, laughing a little. “She was in tears, because she decided she wanted t'get married. She thought I'd disapprove! Bless her. Was me first daughter. I learned better after that t'be clear."

Oranna blinks in obvious surprise.

"She said, 'I dinna want anyone but him!' Like it was somethin I'd scold her for."

Oranna makes a soft sort of sound, reaching out a hand for Befound. As if on cue, the leopard rises up from her 'nap' to set her head under Oranna's hand.

"Sometimes if ye make an example fer yer children they assume they're expected t'follow it even if ye never say so. So now, I make sure t'say loud and clear they dinna have t' be little Lireens."

Oranna looks, abruptly, almost as though she might cry, but there's a wobbly smile on her face. "Tha's a real kindness o' ye. Tha's the righ' way ta do it." She sounds like she's saying it more to herself, than anyone else.

"Well, when ye have as many children as I do, ye make enough mistakes wi' the first two or three t'get good enough at it. Heh. My eldest are very forgivin."

Oranna looks away, and she seems sad. "I was my mother's fourth. I dinna think she learned th' same lessons ye did. I think she learned th' opposite."

"Ye know, I've seen that wi' some mothers, aye. Like… the more they have, the more they just… get tired. I'm sorry fer tha'. Ye must've had a rough go of it."

Oranna tilts her head up, looking at the sky for a long moment. "Aye. I did. An' I know…I know now wha' I didna know then. It didna have ta be tha' way."

"Were ye all close t'gether in age?"

Oranna shakes her head. "No, not particularly. My mother had us fair far apart, and I was a bit of a surprise."

"Huh! Well she has no excuse then, hmph." Lireen shakes her head gently.

Oranna sighs. "Aye, she didna. I used ta think…there was a reason fer it. But…I dinna think tha' any longer."

"Some people are just… mean-spirited I thenk. And we dinna get t'choose our parents."

Oranna smiles sadly at Lireen. "Aye, but I s'ppose it's true too tha' parents dinna choose their children, no' from the start. I wasna…righ' fer her, maybe. An' she wasna willin' ta see it. Instead o' seein' what she had, she saw what she didna, and I always thought it was me that were wrong." Oranna looks away at the water. "There was nothin' wrong with me."

"It's hard when there's a mismatch like tha'. Like me an' Rory. But the right theng t'do is find a way t'love tha' child fer who they are. That means openin up a new part o' yerself, learnin' t'love a kind o' person y'never did before. Yer ma didna choose t'do tha', and it's her loss as much as yers. She could've enjoyed and appreciated ye like I do, an' she cost herself tha' happiness. She hurt ye both, truly. Me, I'd've loved t'have ye fer a daughter."

Oranna smiles warmly at Lireen, a touch of sorrow in her eyes. "Tha's kind o' ye ta say." She sets her hands on her hips as she watches another boat, and glances up at the sun in the sky. "I think tomorrow…if yer willin', we can start around th' edges of this place. Lookin' fer ways out of th' water."

"Can do!" Lireen smiles. "I look forward to it."

Oranna tries to match the enthusiasm, but doesn't quite make it. She takes a deep breath. "I'll be out on th' wall fer a bit. I think it's time fer some ta see ta dinner, and they could use the break."

"I'm gonna see about dinner meself, an' then check in wi' Mister Hazan an' see what else needs doin' aroun' here. Take care, lass."

"You, too." Oranna steps away from the water, her eyes going focused onto the wall of reinforcements in the distance of the camp.