Looking at the figure and then Temperance she says, "She looks kinda.....big."
"She's still pretty far away if she's human-sized with wings, and coming in quickly." Sig says looking at the approaching figure.
Frostine just nods and stares in wonder at the person coming toward them. It so surreal to her, meeting someone that they only saw in their dreams. She was excited, but also a little nervous.
A moment later, the woman touches down, her black wings folding back. She carries two earthen jugs and her ruby eyes fall on Temperance, then the rest of the group. "Who are you?"
Taking a deep breath Frostine takes a step forward, "I am Frostine, this is my husband Thorgr, and these are our friends. Sig, Jerrica, Dagmarr, and Rosa. You must be Arista, and you're a lot bigger in person than you were in our dreams. I...I believe we were sent here to help you. We all had the same dream a couple of nights ago, and when Woden assured us that he was not the one who sent it...we could only assume that someone else sent us the message so we would come here and help you....I guess with whatever you need help with, since the dream wasn't really very specific."
Arista narrows her eyes, then sighs. "Temperance, show them to the empty house and get them situated. I'll talk to you all at dinner. Six o' clock sharp."
She turns and takes the earthen jugs into her home. Temperance shakes her head. "I suppose that's as much approval as you're getting."
She shuffles up to the abandoned home and pushes open the door. "The door doesn't lock, but that's not much of concern here."
You can see that the house is in good repair and there's a fair bit of furniture. "There's only two bedrooms, though. Should be a bed in each of 'em."
She makes her way to a chair and plops down, taking heavy breaths. "Sorry, I'm a bit out of shape. Happens when you don't do anything for a long time."
"It's better than a 'no'," Jerrica says offhandedly.
Thorgr merely nods.
She nods while letting out a sigh of relief, "Yes, well that certainly could have gone worse I suppose. I don't really do "no" though....but, we'll make sure to be there on time for dinner." Looking over at Temperance she says, "Thank you for showing us around, but you can just rest here for a little bit while we put things away if you like. We just have to figure out which of us will take a room, and which will be sharing space in another part of the house. I mean...I know there's six of us, but maybe we can do it on a rotation so that everyone gets to use a bedroom? I don't know...we'll figure it out." She says as she starts taking things out of their bag and putting them away.
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"At least we didn't have to get into an argument right off the bat. The situation probably has her more than a little stressed, so we kind of have to tread a little carefully and make sure not to act like we're just telling her what to do, or that she doesn't have a say in what's going on. I just....I don't know, I just don't want to make her feel like we're just gonna come in and assume control of things....because that's not why we're here. We're here to help her, and even if she doesn't think she wants or needs it...we have to be careful in our approach." She looks around from her girlfriend to those around them, "Does that make sense? Do you guys understand what I'm trying to say?"
Seeming thoughtful for a moment she says, "Yeah...I think so. In our desire to help, we need to be careful not to push her away. Is that what you're trying to say?"
"Mmmmm....something like that, yeah I guess so."
Dagmaar instinctively moves in front of Rosa as they watch the woman approach.
"Since Frostine is pregnant, I think she and Thorgr should have one of the rooms for as long as we're here," Jerrica says. "I really don't mind sleeping in the living room."
Rosa nods, "Yeah, no pregnant ladies on the floor."
Thorgr laughs. "Well, that wasn't a hard decision."
"Not at all, It's settled" Sig says with a grin.
Frostine sighs, "Yeah whatever."
Hearing the tone in their friends voice she goes to Frostine and rubs her arm comfortingly, "Hey, don't get all sulky now just because we're looking out for you. If we didn't care, we'd just let you do whatever you wanted to....but we do, and that's why we say stuff to you sometimes. I think it's really sweet that you want to take turns sharing who uses thed beds.....but, it's completely impractical since you're pregnant and your body requires more rest than all of us. So, put away that bottom lip and straighten up, cuz that cutsie pouty stuff don't work with me. We can finish putting stuff away down here, but we've been through quite a bit and you're looking a little tired. Why don't you go to your room and take a little nap, and Thorgr or one of us can come get you when dinner is ready?"
Frostine opens then closes her mouth as she looks slightly down at the shorter yet visually stockier woman, that was probably stronger than she was. At the very least she seemed a bit more athletic looking than frostine. Did she really want to talk back to her? She was a grown ass woman wasn't she? She could make her own decisions right? She didn't have to listen to some darkhaired pipsqueak tell her what to do.
Taking a step back, Frostine pulls away from Rosa and crosses her arms over her chest. Shaking her head she says, "No, I'm not tired and I don't feel like laying down right now and you can't make me. You're not......my mother." She pouts, her voice whiny and tired sounding as she yawns near the end.
Rosa just smiles and takes another step towards Frostine. Putting a hand on her arms she says, "You're right about one thing, I'm not your mother. I haven't even known you as long as some of the others, but I care about you too much to let you put yourself, or that baby at risk. I didn't feel the need to say anything before, because your baby was under Lord Women's protection....but we're not with him anymore, and your baby is no longer under his protection. Which means, you are now responsible for the welfair of your child. You simply can't keep pushing yourself like you were before."
Taking in Frostine's body language and the pouty set of her lip, Rosa sighs. This was not going to be easy, and Frostine's willful and defiant nature was making it hard to get through to her. Rosa was afraid that Frostine would just wear herself out though if she didn't do something about it now. Taking a deep breath she says, "I'm not trying to be mean, I'm just trying to help you look out for yourself and your baby."
Frostine's lower lip trembles slightly as her eyes start to become watery, "No, I don't wanna lay down." She didn't even care how she sounded, she didn't like being told what to do, even if Rosa was right.
Rosa sighs, "Okay, I tried to be gentle and nice about it, but since you are being willfully stubborn about it, fun time is over." Turning Frostine around to face the stairs, she gives her rear end a couple of good swats before gently nudging her towards the them, "Now, you get up there to your room and rest, before I give you something to really cry about." She had tried talking to Frostine like an adult, but if she wanted to act like a child, she would treat her like one.
The sting in her behind from those couple of swats is enough to keep her from talking back further. Rubbing her behind, Frostine swallows the sob she feels coming up and runs up the stairs to her room, slamming the door behind her before throwing herself on the bed and crying. No one had ever done that to her before, not even her parents. Mostly they just ignored her and let her do what she wanted as ling as she wasn't doing anything to embarrass them, otherwise they'd either just lock her in her room, or drop her off with Sugarsnap, and tell everyone that she was "ill".
This was something completely different and she didn't know what to do with it. Thinking of Sugarsnap makes her miss Corey even morw, and she cries a little harder for a few minutes. Finally, her body gives into her exhaustion and she falls asleep.
Unphased by Frostine's reaction and resulting tantrum, Rosa gets the rest of the rations and things out of the bag she took from Frostine, and continues putting them away.
Looking up at the others she shakes her head, "Don't look at me like that. Someone had to do something, and it might as well have been me. I don't have the attachment to her that you guys do, but she needs someone to be the grown up, since she's obviously in denial about what she needs right now. It's okay, I'm fine with being the bad guy, and she'll feel better for having rested."
Seeing the looks she was getting especially from Sig and Thorgr she holds up a hand, "I'm respectfully asking that you trust me on this. I didn't hurt her, I was merely getting her attention. If you go up there now to comfort her, it will be for nothing. I didn't enjoy doing it, but it had to be done, and hopefully the next time I ask her to do something...she'll do it. She has to understand that she can't be so reckless here, and I'll do whatever I have to, in order to get that through to her. I'll go speak to her when I get her up from her nap, but I'm asking you for now, to just leave her be and let her think about things."
It all happened too quickly and was too unexpected for Sig to react until it was over, but for a brief second, she almost considered drawing a weapon. Glaring at the little dhampir, the skald considers her words, weighing the danger to Frostine and the truth about the sorceress' stubbornness.
She shares a befuddled look with Jerrica before turning to Thorgr. She would most likely follow his lead in this.
Dagmaar's looks at her love in a mixture of shock, understanding and something akin to being a little impressed at the entire exchange. For the moment a bit speechless.
Rosa doesn't shrink back from Sig, even after the scathing look she gave her. In her heart, Rosa felt that what she did was in Frostine's best interest. The others would never do what clearly needed to be done because of their attachment to Frostine. This was not the time to coddle her, and Rosa really didn't want to do that again. It brought back too many painful memories. It's not like she used a belt or a switch on her though. It was just her hand and a couple of swats to let her know she meant business.
Almost more afraid of Sig than the burly warrior, Rosa turns to face him. "I'm sorry Thorgr, I really have her best interest at heart. You know how stubborn she can be, and I just....I don't want her to do something that she might hate herself for later. Better a little discipline now, than a whole lot of heartache later. Listen....she's already quiet, and I'm sure she's worn out and asleep by now. You can be angry at me if you want to, but please try to understand why I did it." She says, hoping that her words as well as her intentions could get through to him. She also hoped that she could convince him not to give her a beating in return, but if that's what it took to keep Frostine safe, she would take whatever they thought she deserved. After all, she was used to it.
Jerrica merely stands beside Sig, confused by all that happened.
Thorgr sighs and keeps his gaze fixed on Rosa. "We are all friends. Friends look out for each other. However, what you did does not solve the problem. Frostine is not a toddler who will learn right from wrong with a few swats. She is going to have to understand the risks that she is taking like an adult. You're going to have to find another way to reach her if you want to make your point."
Temperance cackles. "I find the most effective way is to establish a desire to keep a baby and then go into excruciating detail about what happens if you don't take care of yourself. A good dose of fear hasn't steered a would-be mother wrong in my experience."
"Have you ever taken care of a pregnant adventurer?" Jerrica asks out of curiosity.
She sighs, "I'm sorry, I was in a...moment I guess and I didn't know what else to do to get through to her. No one else seemed to be saying anything at all though....so I felt like I had to. We've been through a lot these past few days and then all the popping here, there, and everywhere...all you have to do is look at her to see how tired she is.
And while I may know the basics of what she should or shouldn't be doing according to some health classes I took while at that place....I don't exactly know the details of what can happen to her if she doesn't do them. I just know that she should be resting more, drinking more water, and eating better....but I don't know the specifics of what can happen if she doesn't...so I don't know how to reach her on that level."
"A couple," Temperance answers. "Nasty pains in the arse, they can be. They usually are stubborn know-it-alls until they start bleeding and don't know why or throw up all over the place. At least, they have the sense to give up alcohol."
She thinks for a moment, "Well....Woden had the baby in a kind of stasis so that it wouldn't be in danger...but I never saw Frostine drink any kind of alcohol, but I've also seen her barely pick at food, and push herself until she's run ragged. I guess I don't have the experience to fully express to her just how bad that can be on the both of them. I'm sorry I worry, I can't help it."
"Maybe Arista can reach her," Thorgr says. "She's lost a child and had one as well. Perhaps we can broach the subject after we get to know her a bit."
Temperance shrugs before getting up off the couch. "I'm going waddle back home for a bit. I'll come get you before dinner."
Rosa nods, "Yeah, I don't think that's something we should bring up after first meeting her either. Like I said, I've never seen it or gone through it first hand, I've only ever read about it, been lectured about it and so forth. She sounds like the right person to talk some common sense into her though, at the very least maybe Frostine would benefit from Arista's experiences and knowing someone that's gone through it might help her feel not so alone."
Rosa walks Temperance to the door, "Thank you, for showing us around and everything. We'll see you in an hour or so then."
After Temperance leaves, Rosa finishes getting the rest of the stuff that Frostine had packed in the bag put away and the house straightened up, even though it really wasn't that bad, she didn't want Frostine worrying about having anything to clean.
Thorgr sits on the couch and scratches his beard. "Arista must have had the same dream if she didn't really protest."
She stops her cleaning and looks at him, "You really think so?" She thinks about it for a moment, "Come to think of it, she didn't really seem all that surprised did she?"
Shaikng her head, Sig sets her things down in a corner of the living room area beside Jerrica's.
"Huh....that's almost kinda creepy when you think about it in the reverse." She says offhandedly, as she wonders just what Arista might have dreamed about for her to look at them the way she did. She shakes her head to stop thinking about it.
"I don't know...it's likely," Jerrica says. "We'll just see what this evening brings."
Dagmarr nods, considering the implications, and noting the tension in the room.
Rosa finishes up quietly in the living room, before heading into the kitchen to clean and organize things. As she passes by Dagmarr, she pauses and stretches up to give her cheek a kiss. Looking into her eyes she says softly, "I love you." Rosa then continues on into the kitchen. She wanted everything put away and looking nice before Frostine got up from her nap, so the mommy to be could just relax and not worry about anything.