sorry

 No more story, I just don't have the energy anymore :(

Karma, Part 15 - Distance

They holed up at the House of Grace. What else were they going to do? Ruune had work to do, and while it was now calm on the surface, it didn’t feel safe to wander around the city. Even if Tikka very much could take care of herself. Even though she had most of the use of her arm back, she was still healing, and Ruune didn’t want her getting into unnecessary fights that might set the healing back.

Besides, and more importantly, Tikka needed to put some distance, or at least some sturdy stone walls, between her and the world, and her and the eyes following her out there in the city.

So while Ruune worked on the House tapestries and ryas, she heard the story. It was odd, working while someone was talking to her. It wasn’t that many days since she’d been uncomfortable having Tikka in the room making any sounds while she was working. But something had changed. Shifted. She was perfectly comfortable working while letting Tikka’s voice paint a picture of her past.

It had been a long time. Her mother had gotten sick. Very sick. Tikka was a teenager at the time. She had helped her mother, any way she could. She had taken care of her. She had tried to find a cure. She had gone to every doctor in Kaskia. None of them could help her. And the ones who could, said it was too expensive. That there was a remedy they had heard of for the illness, but that it could only be gotten from far away. It was expensive there, and sending someone to get it or paying a merchant going that way to bring them some was too pricey. For Tikka and her mother, certainly, but also for the doctors, even if they had been willing to help with little to no pay out of the goodness of their heart.

But knowing there was a cure had made it worse. Tikka had almost left for the medicine herself, but she had been told she, a teenager alone on the road, never having left the city before, would likely not have made it back in time with the medicine and would lose what little time she had left with her mother. And besides, mother had begged her not to go.

So Tikka had done the only thing she could think of: she had gone to the richest person in the area. He would have the money to send someone fast, to get the remedy. To save her mother. She had taken Karma. Her mother had told her many times during her childhood their family had had the sword for generations, and that it had magic.

She had asked the lord to save her mother. She would swear her allegiance to the lord. She would be his servant. She was good with a sword, even if she was a skinny teenager, and she would get better. She was a quick learner, she would learn any skill the lord wanted of her. She would serve him for the rest of her life. If only the lord saved her mother.

The lord had agreed. Tikka had sworn her life, not knowing what she was doing, to the lord. She had been just as surprised as the lord when the bond had appeared between them. She had not known that was possible. But it had been okay. The lord would save her mother, and she would gladly serve him for as long as she lived.

Her mother had died anyway, a couple of short months later. Even the lord’s men, for all they had been paid, had not made it back in time. Though over the years, Tikka had started to suspect maybe the lord had never sent anyone for the remedy in the first place, even if he had promised he did.

She had left Kaskia for the first time with the lord only days after her mother had passed. He had already started to train her as a warrior, a guard. He kept her close, always close. There was no other way. After a couple of years, he had tried sending her off on an errand to a neighboring town, and it had not gone well. He had tried once or twice again after that, but it had soon become clear it only ended badly if their distance grew too big.

Over the years she had learned him. He was strict. It had become second nature to her to at all times keep tabs on how he was feeling. She had learned when to keep her mouth shut, which was most of the time. All she had needed to do was to obey his orders. Any complaints about not wanting to do a job had been useless, and also had made things worse. He owned her. She had sworn her life. She would do as she was told.

Over the years she had learned herself too. There had been no fully hiding from him, as he had been able to feel her emotions through the bond, but he didn’t seem to care much. As long as she had done what she was told, it hadn’t mattered if she was happy about it. In those years, she had seen a lot she didn’t like, and had done a lot she didn’t like, and the lord had known that. Of course he had. There was no way he hadn’t. It just hadn’t mattered to him. But there had always been a wish for rebellion, of not having him completely own her: after all, he had not kept his end of the deal. There was no hiding the rebellious feelings, but he hadn’t cared about them. As long as she had done as she was told, and hadn’t brought them up. But they meant there had been a part of herself she had intentionally and carefully hid away. She had known it was there, but it had been buried so deep he didn’t have access to it. And if that had meant she didn’t too, really. That was okay. She knew it was there and it was hers and only hers, and that had been enough.

For a decade she had served him. And then the fire had happened. It had been her fault. She didn’t even remember exactly what had happened. Had she knocked over a candle? Forgotten to put out the fire in the fireplace? The night was a blur, and she simply didn’t remember.

The lord’s mansion had been almost completely burned down, and what had remained had to be taken down. The lord had been furious. She still wasn’t sure how he had done it. Somehow, he had broken the bond. Shattered it. She had felt the moment it broke. It was pain, and grief, and emptiness. She had suddenly been all alone in the world in which she had never been alone. She had felt like suffocating, the emptiness not even having the air she had needed to breathe.

The lord seemed like he barely noticed the break. He had told her to go. To never show her face in front of her again. That she was so much more trouble than she was worth. That she was useless, and he not only didn’t need her, he was much better off without an anchor he needed to drag around lest the heavens started throwing obstacles in their way.

So she had run. With just the clothes on her back, and Karma strapped to her waist, because that was literally all she owned, she had run and put as much distance between herself and Kaskia as she could, as fast as she could.

It had been years now. She had been floating around in the world, going wherever her feet took her. Until Ruune had found her, and saved her.

***

“He’s the one who’s been following us,” Ruune said quietly.

“I guess the bond is never completely gone,” Tikka looked down at her hands in her lap. The emotions coming from her were a whirlwind, but on the outside she was more still than ever. “It must have been him. We never saw him, because he was too far away. But remnants of the bond in me knew he was there, coming after us.”

“But why?” Ruune said. “And why now, after all these years?”

“I don’t know. But I think… I think someone at the Kaskia house of Grace told him.”

“The information request.”

“I haven’t been anywhere where anyone would care all this time. Nowhere that would leave a trace of a name behind. There was nowhere to start looking.”

They were quiet for a long time after that. Tikka completely still in her chair, Ruune stitching, listening to the turmoil inside Tikka.

***

They wanted to get out of the city as fast as they could. The whole place felt unstable, even if there was only minor trouble on the streets in the coming days. The House of Grace was bustling with people making repairs. All House guards were working as long hours as possible, it seemed. Not that they saw them much, because so was Ruune. Get the work done as soon as possible, get out of the city.

They stayed in as much as possible. They didn’t want to go out there. Not with Tikka feeling like there were eyes on her the whole time out in the open. And not with the riots possibly starting up again. But after two days Ruune needed fresh air and to feel space around her. Her eyes were hurting, and staring out the window in their room was doing little to help. Tikka was not a fan of the idea. She didn’t want to go out.

“We have to go out to leave the city anyway. We can’t stay in here forever,” Ruune pointed out. “But if you don’t want to come, you can stay. I, however, am in a desperate need for a walk. I will be back soon.”

And so Tikka relented. Apparently letting Ruune go out alone was worse than having to go out herself.

They walked along the narrow streets of the city, heading towards the sea. There were wounds from the riot everywhere. The city still smelled faintly of smoke, even though the long-raging bridge fire had been finally put out by noon the previous day. It got better, though, as they got to the shore. The wind was blowing in fresh air from the sea. Ruune took a deep breath of cold, salty air.

“See,” she said. “Don’t you feel better, getting out a little bit?”

Tikka had only just opened her mouth to answer when a voice came from behind them.

“Hello, Tikariina.”

_______________________________________________

The topic for tomorrow is Ear.

~matleena

Karma, Part 14 - Bridge

 The air was wrong. Very wrong. More ash than air, it was thick with smoke and the smell of burning wood, filled with shouting and the clash of weapons. People were running, yelling, lashing out indiscriminately. Throwing things, shoving others, destroying property. It was a full-blown riot.

And the Grace Bridge was engulfed in flames.

It was not what Ruune had expected, waking up in the small hours of the night to the alarm being sounded and the scent of smoke all the way in their room deep in the House. Hastily grabbing their belongings and rushing out, she had been ready for the unrest, violence, and even for someone breaking in, but this…? This? The main bridge connecting the north and the south, This side and That, burning like a midsummer bonfire, flames reaching up and up and up, licking at the Heavens, its roar deafening, its heat scorching, its brightness blinding as it lit up the city that should be deep in peaceful slumber.

It was horrifying.

It was… magnificent.

“Ruune!”

Tikka’s shout reached over the clamour, pierced right through her heart, and she startled out of her stupor. She spun around to find Tikka, who parried a hit from a coal rake, before kicking the man wielding it in the stomach and sending him flying. She turned, found Ruune’s eyes, and it was like she had been kicked in the gut too.

Tikka was frantic. And desperate. And so, so scared.

She held out her hand, reached for Ruune but also… Also for someone else.

“Let’s go!”

With her heart in her throat, Ruune grabbed the hand, clutched it tightly in her own, and they ran. They ran and ran, first along the esplanade, then ducking onto the narrower side streets to hide from view. They ran and ran and ran, until the sounds of chaos started to fade away and Ruune could run no more.

They found one of the many parks dotting the northern side of the city, and promptly she collapsed onto a bench to catch her breath. It came out in puffs of white as she heaved, finally filled her lungs with clean, crisp air once more. Compared to the cacophony of sound at the House of Grace, the park seemed almost eerily quiet, only a distant echo of noise and the glow of the fire against the sky above the buildings any indication that anything was amiss.

“We should keep going,” Tikka said. She was pacing in front of the bench, glancing this way and that, her entire body tense and on the verge of snapping. She had her sheathed sword in her hands, hugging it tightly against her chest, her knuckles white from how hard she gripped it. “We need to leave the city immediately.”

“Heavens, let me breathe,” Ruune whined, closing her eyes and dropping her head against the backrest. “We don’t need to leave, the rioters won’t come all the way here.”

“Just like they didn’t go that far?”

She pressed her lips tightly together and gave Tikka a look. She wanted to be annoyed at her back-talk, but with how miserable she clearly was, she didn’t have the heart. Instead she said, “Their gripes are with the Matriarch and the House of Grace. And that is where they will direct their ire.” Tikka opened her mouth to argue, but Ruune held up her hand to stop her. “But,” she continued, and stood up, “if it makes you feel better, we can keep going and find a small inn somewhere near the city walls.”

Tikka bit her lip. Clearly it didn’t make her feel better, or at least not as much as she would like it to. “Fine,” she eventually agreed. “I suppose you have a duty to fulfil, or something, so we can’t just… go.”

“That’s right,” Ruune said, picking her pack back up. “I wouldn’t want the Matriarch to think something happened to us during all this. So we’ll wait for everything to settle, and then…” She waved her hand and sighed. “Then we’ll see what we can do.”

***

They did eventually find a place that accepted clients at four in the morning, though it wasn’t… exactly the kind of establishment that Ruune typically frequented, especially under circumstances like this. But it was very discreet, out of the way, and charged by the hour, which was actually quite convenient since they were only staying half the night.

The blonde woman at the front desk told them that if they needed anything, anything at all, to call on her and then wished them a pleasant night. Ruune smiled at her, internally bracing for the snarky comments from Tikka, but none emerged. She just kept staring at the front door absently, barely aware of what was happening around her. Even when they got to the privacy of their room, and Ruune closed and locked their door, it was still the same.

She stood in the middle of the room, still clutching her sword, still staring at the door. She was not seeing it though, her eyes glazed over, the slight frown on her face directed at whatever thoughts were coursing through her mind.

Ruune sighed. She set her bag aside, pulled off her coat and her boots and her woolly shirt, and laid them all down. And then she smiled.

“Tikka.”

She called the name as soft as she could, but Tikka still startled. She turned to look at Ruune, a mote of focus returning to her eyes, and blinked. Ruune held out her hands and gingerly stepped closer.

“May I?”

Tikka blinked again, her mouth forming words that didn’t escape into the world, until she took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and nodded, a barely there movement.

Gently, so, so gently, Ruune closed the distance and took a hold of the sword. Tikka hesitated for a fraction of a second, before releasing it, and followed as Ruune led her by the hand to the foot of the single, large bed in the room. She set the sword to the side, then returned to Tikka, who simply stood there with her eyes still closed. She reached over again and pushed the coat off Tikka’s shoulders, pulled the shirt over her head, unclasped her leather armour. She let her fingers slide along Tikka’s legs as she knelt, and Tikka drew in a shuddering inhale. She still hadn’t opened her eyes.

Ruune untied her boots and helped her pull them off, tossing them somewhere in the direction of the door. As she rose, she again kept her fingers close enough to brush against the sides of Tikka’s legs, to feel the muscle underneath the fabric. Tikka really had such a remarkable physique… She still remembered the first night they met, of seeing that physique laid bare and bloody before her on a table, of feeling the heat of her skin as she stitched her whole again.

She’d thought it all a dream for one foolish moment, but could you really blame her? It was all so unbelievable, for a woman like this to not only exist but for her to bind her life to Ruune? And yes, it could be annoying at times ― heaven knew it was annoying at times ― but beyond that it was… utterly inconceivable.

That I would be so lucky…

“It’s not luck,” Tikka breathed and finally, finally, opened her eyes. They burned with her determination, but unlike the raging, destructive inferno on the bridge, it was a warm and steady fire, dangerous, yes, but not malicious. And it set Ruune’s soul aflame. “It’s Karma.”

So what else could she do, but grab a hold of her face and kiss her?

***

“I… really didn’t mean for it to go like this,” Ruune muttered into the crook of Tikka’s neck, filling her lungs with her scent, musky yet sweet. It was warm under the covers, warm where she pressed into Tikka’s side, warm skin against warm skin. She ran her finger down Tikka’s torso, tracing along faded scars from years of fighting.

“You didn’t?” Tikka asked, overly dramatic, and gripped Ruune’s side, making her jolt. “Could have fooled me with the constant lust that has radiated off of you since we met.”

“Stop that,” Ruune huffed, grabbing a hold of her wrist before she decided to start tickling. “And I meant today. I won’t pretend I haven’t been attracted to you this whole time, but…” She hesitated, but then propped her head up, resting her chin on her hand on Tikka’s shoulder, and looked up at her as genuinely as she could. “You were clearly upset by the crowd and the fire, and I just wanted to comfort you.”

“You certainly did that,” Tikka said, bringing her other hand up to cup her jaw. Her thumb brushed over Ruune’s bottom lip, and her eyes followed the movement hungrily. “I am exceedingly comfortable right now.”

“Is this a joke to you?” Ruune asked, then caught the tip of the thumb between her teeth. Tikka snickered.

“I think you know the answer to that.”

She did. Everything was a joke to Tikka. Except actually nothing was.

She let the thumb go as she sighed and rested her head back on Tikka’s shoulder. For a moment they lay there in comfortable silence.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Tikka tensed.

“Not if I have a choice,” she said.

“I understand,” Ruune assured. Absently, she fidgeted with the pendant around Tikka’s neck. The pendant she gave her. “I just thought it might make you feel better. I know I do whenever I put to words all the things that weigh on me.”

It was slightly hypocritical of her, she knew, since she hadn’t really told Tikka about her family situation either. At least in detail.

Tikka didn’t seem interested in commenting, so Ruune shook her head and said, “If you don’t want to, that’s fine. It seems like something quite difficult for you.”

“If you want me to, I will,” Tikka said then, which made her frown. “But I would prefer not to.”

“I…” she started, then paused. Why did that sit so wrong with her? “Of course I want you to tell me,” she said, and Tikka had already opened her mouth when she continued, “But only if you want to.”

It was Tikka’s turn to frown.

“I don’t want you to do things you don’t want to, just because I want you to,” Ruune said, and the frown deepened.

“I am constantly doing things I don’t want to because you want me to,” Tikka pointed out like it was no big deal. “Like coming to Karinne.”

“No, but that’s… That’s different.”

“Not really,” she said, and something sank in the pit of Ruune’s stomach. “You own me. And a directive is a directive, whether it’s something emotional or physical.”

“You… you’re not a slave,” she tried, but Tikka made a face.

“Not in the traditional sense,” she agreed and then shrugged. “But in a way…”

Ruune sprang up and pressed a hand to her mouth.

“Oh heavens,” she muttered, feeling quite sick suddenly. “It’s like I brought a sex slave to a brothel.”

Tikka all but purred at that. “Was I a good sex slave at least?”

And then she ran a finger down Ruune’s spine. She shivered, couldn’t help it, but spun around and snatched her wrist to stop her.

“This is not funny, Tikka!”

Tikka’s eyes widened slightly, caught off guard by the movement and the outburst, and Ruune screwed her own eyes tightly shut. She loosened her grip, but didn’t let go yet, until the hand shifted, and Tikka laced their fingers together.

She took a deep breath to calm down, then opened her eyes again.

“This is now a directive,” she said, locking Tikka in place with her gaze. She nodded, breathless. “Answer my question truthfully, without jokes and without hiding. A simple yes or no.” She nodded again, and Ruune nodded back. “Did you want to get physical with me?”

Tikka opened her mouth and inhaled, sudden and raspy. She blinked, her lids stuttering, her eyes roaming over Ruune’s face, and then, like a butterfly emerging from a cocoon, the walls around her crumbled, a tension she had always carried inside her melted away, and she smiled.

“Yes.”

Ruune could not look away.

“Yes,” she repeated and then laughed. “I did want that. Ruune.”

And with the way she said her name, tender and wondrous and full of life, what else could Ruune do, but lean down and kiss her again.

***

Afterwards she made Tikka swear that she wouldn’t let her do anything to her that she didn’t want. They had a consensual partnership here, magically binding life-owing be damned. Tikka seemed very amused about the whole thing, but didn’t argue or make jokes, simply promised that she would always make it abundantly clear when they were doing something she didn’t like. Ruune had a feeling that would backfire on her spectacularly, but she needed to be sure. She did not want to add to the burden Tikka was already carrying all on her own.

By morning, news of the riot had reached all throughout the city, and it was the only thing people were talking about. Of course it would be, the main bridge had burned and the House of Grace had been attacked! There had been looting! And street fights! Something like that simply didn’t happen.

Not on This side anyway.

Ruune tried to pay them no mind as they made their way back through the city towards the House. It did seem like the city guards had eventually managed to quell the mob and though some windows had been smashed and the front doors busted down, there had been no casualties. Small blessings.

The square in front of the House was a mess. Rubble and trash littered the streets, broken glass and pieces of wood. The Grace Bridge was even worse for wear, fully collapsed in the middle. It would take ages to fix it, though luckily it wasn’t the only bridge in the city. A number of guards milled about, looking out for any further troublemakers, and the members of the Household had already begun slowly clearing out the square.

Ruune spotted the Matriarch by the broken front door, talking to what looked like a general.

“Come on,” she said, nudging Tikka slightly. “Let’s go tell her we’re fine.”

She started to walk over, but a hand gripping her sleeve stopped her. She turned to look back at Tikka, whose eyes were downcast and face ashen.

“I feel it again,” she whispered, and Ruune was immediately on high alert. She glanced around as discreetly as she could, but Tikka shook her head. “Not here. I don’t know where, but I feel him watching us.”

Wait…

“Him?”

Tikka was shaking, her breathing ragged, her whole body tense. She clutched her sword by her side in one hand and Ruune’s sleeve in the other, like lifelines to keep her from sinking into the dark abyss.

“I finally recognised it,” she managed. “That icy stare…” She did not move a muscle, but her eyes flicked up to find Ruune’s, burning with anger and regret and fear.

“It’s him.”

__________________________________

This part is dedicated to my bestie ica, for listening to me rant about the struggles of writing, and for giving me a banger opening line! Cheers!

For the two missing scenes, please subscribe to my onlyf-- *shot*

Anyway lmao, finally the tension broke, right? Took them long enough! But let's not get too cosy just yet, we still have 10 more parts to really fuck everything up :):):):):):) 

Next topic is "Distance"

Pede out.

Karma, Part 13 - Bloom

The walk through the city was always nice, though it was nicer during the summer, when there were blossoms in all colors at every corner of the city. It was one of the things the House of Grace took care of here. The Matriarch was a huge fan of flowers, and it wasn't a secret. What was a secret was her secret garden, which Ruune had accidentally stumbled upon the last time she was here.

Well, half-accidentally. She had started to wonder about the architecture of the House; there seemed to be space in a certain spot, but she never seemed to figure out what was there. And then, she had found a door in the basement that led to a small courtyard with practically no other way to access it. The courtyard was filled with all possible types of flowering plants, and in the middle of them, the Matriarch. She had seemed incredibly embarrassed about it, though why she would be embarrassed was beyond Ruune. Sure, she cultivated a strict and professional persona, but that didn't mean she couldn't enjoy gardening in her free time, even if that meant she would be covered in dirt when she was done.

Either way, her orders filled the city with flowers every summer. They lined a lot of the streets, especially close to the House of Grace, but wherever you were in the city, you couldn't turn around without seeing at least some flowers growing in the flower beds in parks or boxes on street corners. And they were all possible colors, seemingly all possible kinds of flowers. Their scent filled the summer heat, mixing in with the cool wind carrying the smell of the sea. It was beautiful, and made the whole city feel happy and alive.

But the lanterns in the winter were nice too, making the city feel cosy instead. And on a cold day like this, cosy was just what you wanted. So Ruune was fully enjoying the walk through the narrow streets, even if she was starting to feel the distance they'd walked already today.

Tikka, however, kept getting more and more tense as the House got closer.

“You really think something’s off here?” Ruune asked, and then they rounded the corner to the square in front of the House of Grace.

The square was full of people. Full of angry people.

They stopped in their tracks. Tikka’s tension immediately changed. It went from weariness to something more eager. How it was possible Ruune hadn’t managed to distinguish the noises of a mob from the bustle of the city was beyond her.

“What is happening here?”

“Let’s go ask!” Tikka said, almost cheerfully, and skipped over to the edge of the crowd. She tapped a man on the shoulder. “Excuse me, hello, we just arrived in the city, and we’d like to know what’s happening here.”

“What’s happening? What’s happening is that we’ve had enough!” the man shouted. “It may have started small, but enough is enough. It was all well and good when the Matriarch wanted to take responsibility for guarding the city gates, but then she started to put all these other rules in place too. There’s barely anyone allowed to take passengers across the River now, and half the bridges are closed. The pubs haven’t been open past midnight for months! And now they’re asking for more tithes? I don’t think so!”

Tikka looked almost excited.

“Come on,” Ruune said, pulling her away before she got too invested. “We’re not staying here.”

“In Karinne?” Tikka asked, hopeful.

“In the crowd. I have work to do inside, there’s no point in lingering out here.”

“And how do you plan to get in? There’s no way they’ll open the front doors with this crowd here,” Tikka answered, but followed as Ruune made her way around the crowd.

“Through a side door, obviously. The Houses are all but identical, remember? We can find the northern side door easily.”

“You think someone will…” Tikka’s voice faded away. It took Ruune a few steps to realise she had stopped.

“What is it?” she asked. Tikka was staring over the crowd.

“I…” Tikka said, then shook her head. “I thought I saw someone I knew. But I guess I didn’t. Let’s go.”

The side door was exactly where expected. Ruune knocked. They waited for a while. Nothing.

“Maybe no one is home?” Tikka suggested. “ Or, you know, they don’t want to open any doors right now?”

“Or maybe no one happened to be nearby.”

Ruune knocked again, aiming for a gentle but firm knock. One that would say, I would like to get in, but I’m not with the angry crowd. It took a couple more tries until the door cracked open, and the face of a young acolyte peeked carefully at them.

“Good evening,” Ruune said as pleasantly as she could. “My name is Ruune Norja, and I have been requested here by the Matriarch to do some work for her. Would there be any chance I could get in and talk to her?”

The boy narrowed his eyes at them.

“I will go ask,” he said. He disappeared, and the door was closed again.

“Smart kid,” Tikka said, “not letting just anyone in. Then again, he did open the door. If we really wanted to get in, we could have easily forced it. So maybe not that smart after all.”

It took a while before anyone showed up again. This time, when the door opened, there was a proper priest behind there.

“Miss Norja?” she asked.

“Yes, that’s me. I believe we’re expected.”

“You are. You alone,” the priest said as she stared knives into Tikka, who wasn’t even trying to look like she was harmless and not at all on the crowd’s side.

“This is Tikka Metso,” Ruune said. “She is my travelling companion.”

The priest narrowed her eyes.

“If we’re both not welcome, I suppose we can leave,” Ruune said with an exaggerated sigh. “The Matriarch has been waiting closer to two months for me specifically by now, but I’m sure you will find someone…”

“Fine,” the priest interrupted. “Come in, then.”

She opened the door just enough for the two of them to slip in, then closed it behind them, making sure to lock it.

“...someone in to calm the crowd,” they heard from the Matriarch’s room as they got within earshot. “Someone to be the voice of reason from the inside. They will not listen to us, but they might listen to each other.”

The priest they were following knocked.

“Yes, come in,” came the voice, and they stepped into the room. “Ah, miss Norja.” She gave the priest she had been talking to one last look of very clear “you know what to do” and waved him away.

“Welcome back to Karinne, miss Norja,” the Matriarch said. “What a day you’ve chosen to arrive.”

“I did not choose the day, exactly, your Grace. Today is simply the day I finished the journey,” Ruune replied.

“Of course. I trust the roads have treated you well?”

“They have, your Grace. And as you can see, I am no longer traveling alone, at least not for the time being.”

“Ah, yes, it is nice to have a companion on your travels. Welcome to you as well, miss…”

“Metso, your Grace,” Tikka said with impressively little sarcasm at your Grace. She even gave a small gratitude gesture, though it was doubtful anyone believed it. The Matriarch gave her the blessing in return and quickly turned back to Ruune.

“Would you like to get started on the work tonight?”

“If it is okay with you, I think I would rather get to work rested tomorrow morning,” Ruune said, smiling as politely as she could for the both of them. “I will gladly take a look at what exactly you want me to do, but as well as the roads have treated us, they have been long. So tonight, if it is alright, we would much appreciate a wash, a warm meal, and a good rest.”

“That is fine, we do not need the work done this minute,” the Matriarch said and turned to the priest who had escorted them there. “Annie, I believe you can see that they get everything they need tonight?”

“Yes, of course.”

They were already heading out of the room when the Matriarch’s voice called back their attention.

“And please, do not worry about the crowd outside,” she smiled, not quite able to hide the tenseness of it. “It is perfectly safe here, in the House of Grace. That crowd is loud, but it is not dangerous. They have not tried anything more than banging on the doors, and I do not believe they will. And even if they did try to force themselves in, they would not be successful. The House is well-built, and I have guards at the front door. But as I said, they won’t go that far. They will get tired of making noise in the cold and dark soon, and will return to their families and warm homes.”

Ruune nodded. She was hopeful, but not delusional. She gave her another gratitude gesture, and then they left, washed and ate and settled in for the night. She did not unpack her bag that night.

It was a good call. The Matriarch turned out to be wrong. The crowd, indeed, did not go home. They stayed in the cold and dark making their noise. And then, during the night, their anger blossomed into violence.

______________________________________________

The topic for tomorrow is Bridge.

 ~matleena 

Karma, Part 12 - Horizon

The following day Ruune finished her work in a few hours and they spent the rest of the day exploring the small town of Lautee. There wasn't much to see, to be honest, since they were at the heart of the woods, and the most exciting thing around was the local sawmill, but they did manage to find the general store and stock up on supplies for the rest of their journey to Karinne.

Ruune went ahead and bought Tikka both a suitable backpack and a winter coat while she was at it, since the days were getting colder and Ruune did not want to find out if Tikka's hot-headedness was enough to keep her warm through the freezing cold nights. Tikka was hesitant to accept the gift at first, trying to insist she didn't need anything like this and that Ruune shouldn't bother with her, but after a pointed look, she quickly shut up.

They probably could have found a nicer one for cheaper at Paraaja, but they had both been so eager to leave the place that it hadn't even occured to Ruune that they could take a few hours to go shopping for essentials. She was fully stocked up, after all, and usually she didn't have to worry about other people's essentials.

Given their situation, she would have to get used to that pretty quickly though, before her negligence caused Tikka to get hypothermia. Or worse.

Back in their room that evening, Ruune was repacking their things, dividing them between the two packs -- somewhat unevenly, since Tikka's shoulder was still bandaged -- when her fingers caught on the edge of a small box. She paused, considered, and slowly pulled the box out. It was still as pristine as the day she'd received it.

"What do you have there?"

She drew in a shaky breath and turned to find Tikka lounging on her side on her bed, staring directly at her. She gave Ruune a lopsided smile, an undercurrent of an apology in her demeanour.

"I got a huge wave of melancholy from you just now," she explained, tucking her hand under her chin. "Couldn't help but be curious."

"It's... nothing big," Ruune said, glancing down at the box in her hands. She ran a finger along the smooth surface. "Something my mother gave me before I left home."

"Oh."

The melancholy was mutual now.

Ruune sighed and scooted over to the bed, opening the small clasp on the box. "It's a charm, I suppose," she said and pulled out a simple pendant on a long silver chain. "For protection and luck." She gazed down at it, the small sheep etched to the cover of it. The shepherd, though never present, loomed heavy over her. "To make sure I don't lose my way."

"That's..." Tikka started, before trailing off. Ruune blinked and looked up; the smile on her face was clearly forced. "That was quite nice of her," she said.

"I... suppose," Ruune agreed, averting her eyes to give them both a moment. "Though truthfully, I never had a great relationship with my mother. She was always so overbearing, going on and on about our responsibility to the family, never... never seeing me as me, but always as a legacy." She shook her head, to clear it of the tears. "It's the main reason I ultimately decided to leave."

"Wait, you ran away from home?"

"No!" she protested, mock offended. It had been enough to break the sombre mood, so she turned back to Tikka, who was grinning again. She pressed a hand to her chest and said in her most haughty voice, "I got a profession for myself. One she could not argue against." She let the hand drop down again. "She's the one who pushed me to study all these old weaving techniques, and yet she was so surprised when I told her I intend to make use of those skills."

"Typical parent," Tikka agreed with a chuckle.

"Anyway," Ruune continued after a moment of silence, "she gave me this when I left. Told me to always wear it, though I haven't. I've just kept it in my bag, since... I don't have the heart to sell it either."

She blinked as a thought occurred to her.

"That's understandable," Tikka was saying. "She is your mother after all--"

"Here."

Her eyes widened as she fell silent. She looked from the pendant shoved in her face to Ruune and then back.

"What?"

Ruune could feel her cheeks heating up, but ignored it. "I, well," she said, then cleared her throat. "I'm not wearing it, but it feels like a waste to just keep it in the bag. So, I just thought, maybe you could..."

"You want me to wear it?"

Her cheeks were fully on fire now. "Well. Yes?"

"I... couldn't possibly..." Tikka tried, her voice oddly high. Ruune's eyes were glued to the ground so she had no idea what kind of expression accompanied such a voice. "It's a gift from your mother."

"I know!" She braved a peek up. Tikka's face was equally red as she imagined her own to be, and her mouth moved around words she couldn't get out. "But now it's a gift from me. To you."

The mouth snapped shut with an audible clack. For another few seconds Tikka sat there in silence, her whole body rigid, before she let out a short breath and lowered her head.

Ruune's heart hammered in her chest as she slipped the pendant over Tikka's head, then reached behind her to pull her hair from under it. The skin of her neck was scorching when her fingers brushed against her accidentally, and she wasn't entirely sure which of them was the one to inhale sharply at the contact, but as quickly as she could, Ruune pulled her hands away and sat back.

Tikka couldn't meet her eyes afterwards. "Thanks," she muttered, placing a hand on the pendant before sliding it inside her shirt and out of view.

"No problem," Ruune's mouth said, and then she turned away and continued to pack.

***

They were able to get a ride to the next town over on a log carriage, which saved them probably a day's worth of travel, but after that it was back to walking. Ruune didn't really mind it, especially now that her pack was lighter, and the weather had stayed clear and cold and snowy. Tikka seemed much cheerier too, though if it was because she wasn't constantly freezing, she never admitted to it. It also helped that they managed to keep their pace up and didn't need to stay the night outdoors again.

After a week of travel, they had made it to the next Neighbourhood and, since it was on the way, stopped at Soulio to visit the local House of Grace. They were once again welcomed with open arms even though they barely had any work for Ruune at all. Only one of their tapestries needed any work, which took only a few hours, so getting two nights of stay and five free meals out of it was almost ridiculous. They even tried to offer her some extra payment, but Ruune adamantly refused; it's not like she was hard up on money.

Finishing her work so quickly meant that this time she joined Tikka at the acolytes' common room and got to hear first hand the many complaints about the new tithes they had to collect for the council. The acolytes at Soulio had no more insight into what the money would be used for than those at Lautee did, but as an even smaller Neighbourhood they were very worried about how it would affect the locals.

The changes would not take effect until the New Year, at least, so they still had a few months to try to advocate for a repeal, and, if nothing else, start saving up their money in advance. They might have to raise the price of their lumber, which would probably not go over well, since Soulio wasn't a coastal town and as such couldn't sell directly overseas.

All throughout their complaining, Tikka sat at their table in silence, her face a mask of neutral intrigue. But on the inside she was fuming, it basically radiated off of her, leaked over to Ruune through their connection. She wondered, absently, if Tikka had started to let down her walls more, or if she was simply getting better at picking up her moods.

Not that it really mattered, though. The next morning they were on the road again, and Tikka was as closed off as she had been in the beginning, utterly unreadable.

Except... not exactly. This brand of guardedness was familiar now.

"Tikka," Ruune said, and Tikka flinched slightly. "Remember what you promised me at Paraaja?"

"What's that?" Tikka said, glancing behind them.

"That you wouldn't hide the big things from me anymore."

She flinched again, much more noticable this time. "I... I did, didn't I?"

"I don't know how you managed to convince yourself this isn't something that would affect us both," Ruune said with a disappointed shake of her head. "If someone is following us again."

"They're not!" Tikka objected and then grimaced as Ruune gave her a look. "Not anymore. I... I felt someone watching us just before we left Soulio, but only for a moment. It's driving me crazy!"

"Did you feel it before we got to Soulio?"

She shook her head. "Only that one evening in Lautee, and now this morning. No other times."

Ruune considered that. They didn't have a lot of options, with no idea who it was nor why they were watching them -- or even how. As annoying as it was, there wasn't really anything they could do to stop it. They'd just have to stay vigilant and keep their own eyes open.

"The next time you feel it," she said, and Tikka nodded, "tell me immediately."

They walked the rest of the day in silence, too preoccupied to make small talk. Even as they made it to an inn and settled in for the night, neither of them said more than a few words. Ruune's mind was too filled with endless possibilities of what might be behind their constantly disappearing wasp, but without anything to go on, her thoughts just kept going in circles, until she finally sank into the depths of her dreams.

***

"You were right, that was... very easy," Tikka said as they stepped into the city proper of Karinne. She scratched her head as she glanced back towards the guardpost they'd come through. "The guard barely acknowledged my papers before letting us in. He didn't even ask to see my sword!"

Ruune chuckled. "I told you. The bureaucracy doesn't matter if you have your things in order."

"Are you sure it isn't just your name you're coasting on?"

The smile on her face fell. She knew Tikka meant it as a lighthearted jab, but... it did still jab. "It probably doesn't hurt," she said tersely. A sense of apology trickled through the connection. "But really, as long as you work within the rules you're given, there's no need for things to be difficult."

"You say that, but the last time I came here the guard looked through our things with a magnifying glass," Tikka said, crossing her arms. "Even though everything was in order, it took us almost fifteen minutes to get in, and that's not counting the several hours we had to queue to even get to the guard."

Ruune frowned. Sure, during the busiest days, like around harvestfest, midsummer, and new years, she too had had to queue for closer to an hour, but never had anyone scrutinised her papers like that before, at Karinne or any other City-state. Still, it didn't seem like Tikka was lying or even exaggerating too much, so why...?

"Ah," she breathed as she understood. "Which entrance did you use?"

Tikka gave her a weird look. "We were travelling up the eastern coast, so the southern-most one, probably. Why does that..." She trailed off as she, too, realised why.

"You were on That side of the River," Ruune said, and Tikka scoffed in frustration.

"That's ridiculous," she said. "It's the same bloody City."

"That's true," Ruune agreed, gazing down over the city opening before them. "But it's also not."

Karinne was an anomaly among the City-states. One of the oldest, if not the oldest, settlement in all of Mantu, it was built right on the mouth of the River, back when it had a proper name and its sides made no difference. It had thrived, naturally, as a central hub for commerce; access to an easy route inland down the River, a reasonable sea voyage East for foreign trade, and all the bounty of the sea imaginable. Not even Paraaja, which had arguably grown into a more important City-state, was in as good a position as Karinne, since all land routes for foreign trade had to go through the mountain range that separated Mantu from the rest of the continent.

But the years had not been merciful to Karinne, and now one of the keys to its success was the thing tearing it apart. Figuratively and literally.

The River.

From its spawn somewhere in the mountains, it ran north-to-southeast across the entirety of Mantu, dividing the lands in two. Not cleanly, though, by any metrics. This side of the River was smaller but richer, with mines full of metals and woods full of lumber and an easier access to the foreign countries to whom to sell it all. That side of the River, though significantly larger in area, was mostly farmlands, marshes, and fishing villages along the coast. But even with much speculation of what lie across the oceans to the west, it certainly wasn't anything close enough for any kind of commerce. And so, everything had to go through This side of the River.

And Karinne, like a miniature version of Mantu itself, was likewise divided by the River.

The northern side had the artisans' and the merchants' quarters, the town square, and the governmental buildings. The southern side had the fishers, the industrial area, the common folk, the... less savoury folk. A point of contention within the identity of the citizens. Both on This and That side of the River.

"You know," Tikka's voice cut into Ruune's thoughts, and she blinked as she returned to the present. Spotting the sly smile on Tikka's face, she was fairly sure she wasn't going to like whatever was about to come out of her mouth. "The first time I heard the Norjas were from Konnavuo, I was so shocked."

She was right. She didn't like that.

"I know that it's along a sidebranch of the River, but it's still on That side," Tikka continued. "I didn't know that people from That side could become so wealthy."

Ruune said nothing, just gave her a tight smile and turned to continue down the road. Tikka let out an amused huff, but hurried after her.

"I still don't like this place," she said, settling into step next to Ruune. "In fact, I think I like it less now."

Ruune rolled her eyes, and again, said nothing. She quite liked Karinne, despite its... complex situation. It was a quaint place, a big City with the charm of a small town, the older architecture shining through in the design of the houses and the layout of the streets. It was built on an incline and had a circular structure, all roads leading down towards the water's edge and the House of Grace, which sat at the very mouth of the River, in the heart of it all.

The Matriarch had requested for her, specifically, it seemed. She'd gotten the message a few months ago, and had immediately let them know that she had several jobs to take care of first and was rather far away, so it might be wise to see if there was any other weaver closer by. But she must've made an impression on the Matriarch the last time she was here, since she had been told they'd wait for as long as they needed. They really wanted her, for whatever reason.

Not that she minded. She didn't get to visit the seaside often, since Karinne had one of only four Houses of Grace that were along the shore. Generally speaking, the Houses were built near the center of the area the Neighbourhood consisted of, which meant somewhere inland, especially on That side of the River, where the Neighbourhoods could get quite large. That's why she was so elated that the room they always gave her had a view out to the sea, and she could stay in bed and stare off into the distance.

During the winter the sea wasn't quite as exciting, but during the summer months when the heat settled over the city, the cool, wet sea breeze on her skin was wonderful, especially accompanied by the sound of crashing waves and the smell of salt in the air. But the rest of the city more than made up for it, with decorations in every window and colorful lanterns lighting up the narrow, cobbled streets. It really elevated the festivity during the dark winter months.

"It's not about the city."

Ruune suppressed a sigh and glanced at Tikka. Her posture was tense, guarded, and she had spoken in a hushed tone.

"There's something wrong here too," she said. "Just like in Paraaja."

"It's just a few days," Ruune assured her, but it did nothing to ease her. If anything, the frustration leaking through their bond intensified.

"Not as bad as Kostava," she muttered and then fell quiet again.

Ruune felt bad for her, but there wasn't really anything she could do, so she opted to let it be for the time being. Instead she looked out over the city, the sea of snowy rooftops and then the actual sea, stretching out into the horizon. It was endless before her, and yet she felt that if she just tried a little harder, she could see the opposite shore in the distance. She couldn't, of course, the continent was further away than that, but still the sensation persisted.

Both infinite and just barely out of reach.

_____________________________________

We're halfway through aleady? Wild. Let's crank up the heat, then~ 

Bonus thanks for matu for this part, because I ended up cannibalizing some of her text into the ending scene here ^^' Sorry and thank you~

Next topic is "Bloom"

Pede out.