Ep.36 - The Year Of The Bear
(Start at the beginning)
Julia couldn't help a smile as she relinquished her hand. Mariova, the shaggy dark haired man who spoke so boldly at the meeting of the Bears took it softly in his own. With her hand in his, the palm facing up, he began inspecting it closely.
“And your grandmother imparted this wisdom to you?” Julia asked, skeptical but feeling indulgent after the generous amount of mead she’d been fed.
“Oh yes,” Mariova assured her, “A tradition passed down the daughters of my family, a touch of magic said to run through our veins.”
“I never met a magic Bear, I thought your people to be wholly hardy folk, warriors, wielders of tools, not incantations.” Her voice quivered with humor even as she said it, the playfulness that lead up to this point still at the fore.
“Oh yes, surely you’ve heard of the Shamen? It’s said that somewhere in the annals of my lineage we mingled with one touched by their blessing. And for that we have a sight all of our own.” Mariova ran his thumb over Julia’s palm, turning the wrist to better capture the flickering torchlight. Intent, he leaned in, taking just one brief moment to look up into Julia’s eyes.
Julia was enrapt, not by any intrigue to do with the supposed telling, she held no hopes that Mariova had any such abilities. Instead she felt a flutter at the attention he’d been giving her, swept up in the moments where he was so tenderly holding her hand, and almost all but lost in his dashing features, his eyes of which held her captivated like some wayward soul adrift but with unfinished business. While he stared at her hand, she stared at his face, dwelling on the brief exchange of a glance he’d shared with her, imagining getting lost in that gaze for a lifetime.
“Ahh yes,” Mariova cooed as if he’d made some discovery. “Oh I see, this is interesting,” He pointed at something with his finger, ran it softly down a line so that it tickled. “Oh, wow, that’s a surprise.” He nodded, his features a genuine expression of the words.
It seemed too obvious not to be an act, though he did it well, and despite herself, Julia couldn't help but respond appropriately, “What? What’s a surprise?”
“I see a lot about you in here, I just wasn't expecting to see something about me, that’s all.”
Julia laughed, half flustered, half mockery, taking back her hand in the process. “Oh yes? And what did you see about yourself in my hand?”
Mariova righted himself, smiling mischievously and taking a drink from his cup but keeping one eye trained on Julia. “I could tell you, or instead we could see what you look like in mine.”
Julia felt butterflies, heat rushed to her face, a dizziness swam about her head, though the latter had more to do with the drink. She’d thought Mariova a stand out in the hall but speaking with him now it was apparent she’d underestimated just how much so. She could get lost in this man and likely already was, but with her wits still about her, was not about to trip so easily into love.
“You must excuse my ignorance, you said the tradition passed through the daughters of your family, I foolishly mistook you for a man.” It was a parry, a feint in a joust. An attempt to throw him off balance and garner Julia a moment to think, to breathe, and it worked. There was a moment's pause, hesitation, he had to take the time to consider. If Julia’s estimations were right, the mead wasn't helping him any either.
Mariova cross his hand over his heart and bowed his head, his other arm opened wide still with the cup in his hand. “Alas you have found me out, my Grandmother never taught me such tricks. She was however a possessor herself, despite my obvious shenanigans.”
Humility, recovery, an enduring sense of self confidence, if this were a test he’d passed with flying colours. Secretly she was impressed and the reward was her continued smiling. He lifted his gaze, his face marked by a striking grin, “You were right about the men of the north though, I’d gladly show you the work I can do with my hands.”
Julia turned bodily on her heel, blew out her breath, began fanning herself with her hand. So much for containing her feelings but to her surprise his final comment went straight to her head. Kodiak appeared in front of her, walking up with a look on his face that suggested he was parsing out the scene he’d just come upon. The surrounding area of town was host to a number of Bears mingling around campfires, drinking, telling tales, and sharing morsels of food. Kodiak had been doing the rounds for some time, in part to catch up with old friends, but also as a matter of business for the task ahead. Julia had tagged along for moral support but seeing Kodiak now, realised she’d strayed from her path some time ago.
“Interrupting something important I hope?” Kodiak moved his wild, disapproving eye from Julia to Mariova, the opposite of impressed by what he’d just seen, Julia realised.
Mariova shook his head, “A friendly exchange of no consequence, sorry to disappoint you.”
Like a large imposing bear, Kodiak gave a few slow nods to go with the grumbling sound he made. “Yeah, well, probably for the best,” He said as he stepped into the gap that had opened between Julia and Mariova. Another wave of feelings washed over her now as a very different story played out before her eyes. Kodiak towered, somewhat imposingly before Mariova, while Mariova stood his ground and stared back passively. Silence descended as nobody spoke a word and the moments drew out longer than was comfortable. As the tension grew, Kodiak spoke, the tone all changing as whatever joviality that had been blooming before was replaced by something entirely different.
“Mariova, word is you’ve got experience with the trade routes to the lands out West. A rare commodity among Bears if it’s to be believed, and a strange fortune given the times.
Mariova flicked his wrists, straightening out the hems of his sleeves as they came to rest down the length of his arms. “If my grandmother is to be believed, I’m nothing if not a man of strange fortune,” and for the briefest moment, his eyes flickered to Julia’s, along with the flickering of a smile at the edge of his lip.
She just couldn't help but do the same.
(Continue to Ep.37)
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