Chapter 30 – Sharing the Journey.
Relationships were still hard. Well, not with Uriah. Everything with him had always been easy. They fitted together perfectly, and now more so. Julia... Julia was complicated. She was both easy to read, and at the same, hard. Maybe... maybe she was just jealous of how forward she could be at times, that she knew what she wanted, and now that there was nothing holding her back, took it. And they all reciprocated. Even she did, and she enjoyed it, a lot more than she was willing to admit. And that was ignoring her feeding, and the effect that that had on them all.
Callie looked down at her hand, at the finger on which she had the fox ring. She smiled at the memory, of how Uriah had proposed to her. It had been so clumsy. But very Uriah, and very sweet, and it still made her heart flutter. That area of her finger was now a mess of lines that wrapped around both it and the ring in almost impossible ways, clearly signifying their relationship. One for each of them, vibrant in the patterns that were woven into them. Not that it wasn’t also clearly displayed on other areas of her mark as well. The bond, connections. More than a little bit important, her mark almost a novel at this point.
Lovers, and more. It wouldn’t stay as just that, that much she knew. She could see hints of that in her mark already. There were real feelings there, and perhaps a lot more than that too.
Julia was quite attracted to Uriah. She’d stated as much the first time they’d met, and that hadn’t changed in the slightest. In fact, perhaps she’d become more so? Julia flirted with Uriah, a lot, and he back with her. It was something that Callie, frankly, sucked at, and it both amused her, and hurt a little as well. And now that she was allowed to do so, Julia had gotten close and personal with Uriah. More than just a kiss. More than just some intimacy. They had made love too, and Callie had felt how good it had made the two of them feel.
She’d been jealous. So much so. She’d just lay nearby, snuggling with Felicia, burying her head in her friend’s hair, trying to ignore it all. Felicia’s human form really was so beautiful, her hair silky and smooth, without any effort at all. A benefit of being her familiar, she guessed.
She just sucked at sharing him, didn’t she? Even if she had also gotten rather intimate, and more, with Julia.
They were in this relationship now after all, a polyamory. And there were very real feelings between them all. More than just a side effect of Julia’s feeding. She loved Uriah so very much. But, as they had continued to travel together, she had come to realise that she also loved the others as well. Felicia and Julia. She saw them as more than just friends. Perhaps that was a repercussion of having formed the bonds with them, but to her, the feelings were very real. Feelings that she treasured. They were in this together, sharing the journey, their lives.
It was just difficult at times, and she was a lot more emotional than she’d ever been. Something that she was more than a little happy about, but it wasn’t without consequences. A witch, the Witch, perhaps? In love with all of her companions. She refused to see it as a weakness, even though she knew that Riddling had already exploited it once already. And would probably try and do so again.
And all those feelings? They were mutual too.
The winds that blew down from the mountain were cold. Callie shivered, and leaned into Uriah as he sat there beside her, an arm wrapped around her. He was warm. He always was. A feature of him being him, and of his magic. His ethereal flames were always there now, and the features too. The tail, and ears. She wasn’t sure if they’d stick around when they eventually returned, if they were just a side effect of this realm, or something else, but they were very much him. It’d almost be a shock if they did disappear. She smiled at that, at how much she liked them.
The seasons were definitely changing too. The days were a lot shorter, their progress starting to slow down. Getting up in the mornings was getting a lot harder, not just because they were all snuggled up together. Well, okay, that was probably the main factor, but still. The nights were getting significantly colder as well, and it was a necessity as much as a desire. One of them staying up as a watch wasn’t really a thing at the moment. The only threat here was the shadow creatures, and they only appeared after an earthquake, and there had yet to be any at night. They were always during the middle of the day, when the sun was nearing its highest, and within a predictable frequency, just like the tainted moon had been. Usually every week to week and a half.
That first earthquake had had the largest amount of shadows appear, every one since had been a lot smaller. No more titans either, and just a handful of predators, the rest being scouts or hunters. Callie wasn’t sure why she still used those designations. They just fit, she guessed. Not having the larger and more dangerous ones made the mess easier to deal with, and also meant that Julia was able to get in some real practice at fighting. She was getting a lot better too. She was kind of... brutal, and feral, when she fought. It was somewhat alluring too, and very much fit in with her vampiric nature. But it also made her hungrier. Callie was pretty sure that Julia fed more than she needed too, but she was never going to deny her.
She had also noticed that her aspects and alignments had changed a little. There were hints of the others’ magic in hers now as well. She’d always been strongly aligned with lightning, and decent with fire, but there were aspects of the others now. Of Uriah’s ethereal fire, of Felicia’s multicoloured barriers. And air, and blood, from Julia. It had made her lightning storms... beautiful. As to if the blessings that she had had any effect, she had no clue. Most of them had always been a part of her life after all.
It had taken them a month and a half to reach the mountains, crossing over a couple of smaller rivers that had fed into the larger one, which had progressively shrunk in size the closer that they had gotten to the peaks. She could no longer swim in it, and she was missing that already. She had grown very fond of that activity, even if she had largely been the only one to spend extended amounts of time in the water. She suspected that in a few days, or perhaps a week, they would have to stop following it as well, and they would need to stop being so dependent on it for their daily needs. They weren’t going to be trying to cross over the mountains. That would be suicide, as they lacked pretty much any of the gear that would be required. They would either have to find a pass that went through, or walk around it. As to which was better, or would get them to the totem faster, she had no idea. Arianna’s location was still somewhat vague, and she hadn’t said anything since she’d given Callie her blessing. But at the least, Callie could feel her as well, her sense of the direction aligning with Uriah’s. She just hoped, that for whatever direction that they took, they’d be able to find another river quickly.
Food was still a bit of an issue, but Callie and Uriah had discovered that they didn’t need as much as they used to. Neither had lost any weight, as far as she could tell. If anything, she had put on a little, but her body shape had changed after all, and there was more to her. She was fitter now as well, given how much they were walking, and she wasn’t getting sore feet any longer. Berry bushes had become a bit more common, as well as a smattering of other edible plants. Very much wild variations, given how much time had passed since they were last cultivated, but still recognisable. Enough to give them some variety alongside the fish, and keep them from being hungry. Winter was going to be an issue, and she had no idea what they were going to do there. She was missing some of the staples that they’d taken for granted. Bread, potatoes, rice. She’d probably never get the first of those here, even if they managed to find some wheat, or an equivalent. They just didn’t have the necessary tools. They were pretty much stuck on a Paleo diet. She missed home. Well, the world, the realm. And her apartment, when they’d had it. It really was gone, wasn’t it. Other things, she could well do without. But here, at least, they had each other.
“You’re always so deep in thought, my Callie.”
Callie grinned, wrapping one of her arms over his. He didn’t say that very much, but it always sounded so special when he did. “How long do you think we’re going to be here, Uri?”
Uriah shrugged. “A year or more perhaps? It’s hard to judge, and who knows if Arianna is capable of moving location.”
Callie looked at the landscape around them. It had changed colour a bit as well. The plains were a deeper green than they had been, and she could see the beginnings of some forests as well. The land was steadily rising, stones having replaced mud at the edge of the river. The water was still just as clear, reflecting the image of Felicia and Julia as they cleaned up. There were a few clouds in the sky, wispy white ones that only served to annoy them when they blocked the sun. They had yet to have any rain. And most animals were still scarce.
“We’re going to start having issues before we even get close to that point.” Heck, there were some issues even now, but they were making do the best they could with the situation that they were in.
“We’ve survived it thus far.” Uriah gave her a reassuring hug. “But that’s not what you were thinking of.”
She blushed a little, staring at the ground. Of course he could tell. They all could, probably. Bonds. “I’ve just got a lot of learning to do, Uri.” She leaned up, and gave him a kiss. A proper one, on the lips. Which he returned, with passion and love, pulling her closer to him. His face was a little rougher these days. They all probably were, given that they spent all day and night outside. He was still shaving though, keeping the facial hair to a minimum with a blade. She appreciated that.
“We all do, my Callie. We all do.”
She blushed again at that, and then went all quiet as she contemplated if she wanted to ask. She was sort of committed now though. He’d be able to tell. “Is she better than me?” she finally said, her voice barely above a whisper. Yes, she could have just thought it to him, but this felt like the right way.
Uriah sighed, silent for a bit as he seemed to stare at the clouds, then down at Julia and Felicia. “I...” he started, and then sighed again. “There... isn’t a good answer to that one.”
“I know... I shouldn’t have asked.” Callie buried herself more into Uriah. It hadn’t been a fair question at all. She knew that, but even so. She was new to all of this, and Julia... well, she had experienced what she was capable of. Heck, they’ve even done things together, the three of them, and it had been... amazing. But... she was inexperienced in comparison.
“Julia... she has an unfair advantage.” Uriah was sending her all kinds of warm feelings. Reassurances. Like them all, he’d gotten rather used to the bond and how it all worked. Especially since you couldn’t stop the impressions from flowing through. “She’s a creature of passion. It’s her nature. What she makes us feel when she feeds, that is only a part of it. But you, you mean the world to me. You’re my everything. Always have been. Always will be. Nothing will change that. I’m the luckiest man in the world, to have you. To have always been with you.” He brought up his ring, placing his hand so that the two rings lay beside each other. “I was so nervous, at the time. It really wasn’t that romantic, was it? Yet, you still accepted, in your cute way. And we’ve made it so very real since then. What we have, between all of us, it’s ours, Callie.”
“It was very you, Uri.” Callie smiled at the memory. “I... that time, that event, it meant the world to me. You were so adorable. It was so adorable.” She had cried. Happily.
Callie looked up at the sounds of stones crunching underfoot, Julia walking back up, Felicia back in fox form and held in her arms. That had become a habit too, not that Callie could fault her at all.
Julia had a seductive smile on her face, stopping in front of them and then crouching down. And that hungry look too. “You know, I’d be more than happy to teach you things. I’m sure he’d appreciate it.” The glint in her eyes said it all. “I’d appreciate it too,” she added with a purr.
Callie went all shades of red and then some. She just wanted to curl up and hide. Of course Julia had heard it all. But... that had been part of the reason she’d voiced it out loud in the first place. How had she’d thought it would go? “I’d.. like that,” she managed to squeak out, sending her embarrassment to Julia at the same time. Who just laughed. There were very good reasons that she’d fallen for her.
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I'm so glad they are communicating
This little polycule is so adoreable
Also when uri called her "My Callie" (you referenced that on purpose didnt you)
Me too. Communicating is so very important. And it is ^^
Also when uri called her "My Callie" (you referenced that on purpose didnt you)
*Looks innocent of everything*
Yes, very deliberate ^^
Totally understandable feeling inadequate next to Uber sexy vampire. But they seem to be working thru it
Julia is... certainly something, and the vampiric changes have only enhanced that.
But they are working through it slowly and trying their best. Relationships are complicated, but it is something that they all want. ^^