2892 P.C., the twenty-second of Spring, Hylicia’s Vale.
The first clear sign of the approaching storm, before the rain starts, is the distant rumble of thunder in the clouds above. The storms in the vale are seasonal; There aren’t always thunderstorms in spring, but it is not a rare occurrence, either. That was good, since the lightning and rain were beneficial for the planting of new crops in the growing season.
Alunya stares out the window at the flashing lights and arcs of lightning occasionally echoing out, his eyes wide in wonder. The rain was picking up now, complete with howling wind. The center of the village often flooded during storms like this, but up on the slope where they live, Alunya’s family's house was fairly safe from such danger.
Antares throws an arm around Alunya’s shoulders, squeezing up to be beside him and watch the spectacle unfold. There is a devastating flash and crashing sound, as a bolt of lightning strikes a tree not too far distant from the house, momentarily illuminating the valley, otherwise dark and dusky from the heavy clouds overhead. Inhaling deeply, he can faintly detect the scent of ozone from the nearby lightning strike.
Antares closes his eyes and focuses on the feeling as the rumbling thunder passes through him. “You feel the thunder in your bones, too, right Alunya?” Antares asks, smiling. Alunya looks up at him, tearing his gaze away from the thunderstorm for a moment to nod, before quickly looking back up at the sky in rapturous enchantment.
“It feels so powerful, like how I always imagined a dragons roar would feel!” Alunya comments, as another twisted arc of lightning branches through the sky, highlighting the dark and light contours of the stormclouds above. There was something mystical about the experience, it felt like so much more than just pretty lights and rainshowers.
“You know, mom tells me that you were born on a day like today.” Antares affirms. “She told me last time there was a storm. You were probably too young to remember it.”
Alunya looks curious. “Do you remember when I was born, Ari?” Alunya cocks his head to the side curiously.
Antares scratches the back of his head. “Um, sort of. I remember holding you, and being there. I remember Mom freaking out about something, but I was really young, so it's really blurry.” Antares explains.
Alunya nods in understanding. “Oh, I have memories like that too! Like I remember waking up with you on the top bunk one time when you were still taller than me, but I don't really remember anything else about it.”
While the two of them were talking, Reia came up from behind, frowning as she stares outside. “I hope the storm lets up soon. It’s going to keep us from planting until it does.”
Alunya frowns. Is that all she ever thinks about? Good thing she doesn’t control the weather, it’d be so boring…
“But we’ll have Alunya to help us out this year, right mom?” Antares points out. “So we don’t need to rush as much!”
Reia looks unsure and shrugs. “I suppose… I just hope it clears up by tomorrow.”
As it turns out, Reia’s prayers would be answered, and she would not need to wait long. By an hour or two after midday, a gap in the stormclouds had appeared towards the west, and by dinnertime the sun had appeared in the western skies.
“Antares, look!” Alunya points out the window eastwards. Where the eastern side of the valley was still being hammered by rain and illuminated by infrequent tongues of lightning, the sky was illuminated by multiple crescent bands of colors above the mountain peaks, contrasting with the dark stormclouds. “What is it?” The young boy asks his older brother, looking at him in ecstatic amazement.
“What, you’ve never seen a rainbow before?” Antares asks Alunya incredulously. “Whenever there's rain and sun together in the sky, Hylicia weaves them together for us into a rainbow.” Antares explains.
“It's so pretty!” Alunya whirls around to face Antares and takes his hand in his, beaming eagerly. “C’mon, let’s go for a walk! It's such a nice day! With the rainbow and thunder clouds and sun in the sky, it's just perfect!”
Antares looks to Reia, who shrugs noncommittally. “Go on ahead, you two, it's too late to get to work anyways. But watch your step out there, the rain will make it muddy and slippery. And do try not to get too messy.”
Not needing any further encouragement, Alunya tugs on Antares’s hand, leading him out for a romp around the village, the effervescent scent of petrichor in the air. Their moccasins quickly beome clogged with mud, so the two remove them before they get far, and continue on barefoot.
Alunya lets go of Antares’s hand to prance up ahead, leading the way up the large hill near their house, the same one that the two of them go sledding on in the winter. The crown of the hill some ways above was rocky, poor soil with few trees, giving it a view of the valley second only to Antares’s favorite boulder on the far side of the village. But the slopes here below are covered in a light cover of underbrush, birch trees, muddy slopes and rocky outcroppings.
Alunya smiles, spreading his arms wide like soaring wings as he runs up the slopes, feeling the loose mud and gravel under his soles as he scampers uphill, toes digging into the fresh mud. Given the slippery, potentially treacherous terrain, it was a good thing that he was barefoot, where his feet could feel the ground beneath and maneuver to find purchase on every bit of rock, root, or firm soil he can navigate.
Alunya glances back to see Antares jogging up after him to try and catch back up. “Oy, Alunya, wait up!” Antares calls out, hiking up towards him. But Alunya just waggles his head from side to side, grinning ear to ear, and winks back at his brother.
“Nu-uh, just try to catch me!” Alunya shouts back, springing back up the hill at full sprint. Narrowing his eyes competitively, Antares gives chase, half-running, half-climbing up the slope wherever he can find purchase.
Alunya ducks through the underbrush as he runs past another stand of white trees, bark scarred by myriad holes from woodpeckers, the leafy green of new shoots starting to poke through the scraggly bare branches from winter.
While Alunya has a good head start, and maneuvers the rocky terrain with finesse, Antares was not one to back down from a challenge, pulling himself up by the root of one tree and then, as soon as he has gotten to his feet again, taking off in pursuit of his white-haired quarry. Alunya’s attempt at going up one muddy slope fails him as the ground slips back down underneath him, and he is forced to attempt to go up another way, affording Antares a precious few meters of gain on his target.
Antares pushes through the pain of his lungs struggling to keep up with the strain he was putting on his body, coupled with the discomfort of running on the occasionally uncomfortably rocky ground, as he gains on his target near the top of the hill. He was right in his sights, now, there was no way he wasn't going to catch him.
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Even Alunya is a bit tired- sprinting full-stop uphill for a prolonged pursuit had that effect. But seeing that he was basically at the summit of the hill, where a small indent in the poor soil of the hilltop had allowed the ground to turn into a soft bed of mud, Alunya suddenly pivots on one foot, forefoot digging into the mud as he whips around, sloshing to a halt in a crouch, and then springs back into motion in the opposite direction, pouncing on Antares just as he enters range.
Antares lets out an unearthly screech just before Alunya suddenly collides with him, knocking the wind straight from his sails. The sudden impact makes Antares’s posture fail him, and his feet lose their grip on the ground, slipping up from under him as he lands on his back on the thankfully soft, squishy ground.
Alunya was hovering over him, expression sparkling and eyes shining with excitement. “Good job Ari, you caught me!” Alunya announces, before flopping down onto his brother's chest, just as Antares had started to regain his breath.
Antares’s vision swims as the blood rushes through his head, leaving him dizzy as he breathes heavily, trying to recuperate from the exhilaration of their chase up the hill, arms lazily draping over Alunya as he snugly fits on top of him, smirking with the characteristic satisfaction of a habitually spoiled younger brother. Antares reluctantly pushes Alunya from his chest onto his back to make it easier to breathe, Alunya landing back with an ungraceful ‘oof’ as he lies side-by-side with Antares, staring upwards at the sky.
The heavens had turned a brilliant spectrum of blue to pink as the sun shone dimly from behind the western mountains, leaving the only trace of its presence in the scarlet hues on the edges of retreating storm clouds. The previously brilliant rainbow which the two of them had kept in their sights ascending the hill had faded to a barely visible red arc on the horizon, only barely recognizable against the clouds. Although twilight had begun, it was not yet very dark, especially as the moon was waxing gibbous in the skies above; Even so, some of the brightest stars had begun to appear in the skies above, twinkling high above them, far beyond the world the two of them knew.
As his lungs finally stop aching for more air, Antares raises one hand up to the sky as if reaching to grasp at the moon. It had been a while since he’d gotten to look up at the night sky like this, the hilltop summit was a good place to see the sky above, far enough from the village that there was no light or noise to speak of to distract from the sublime silence.
“I’m glad you’re here with me, Ari.” Alunya is smiling innocently at Antares, as he rotates his head to see him, resting his cheek on the muddy soil. Alunya is covered in mud, staining the fabric of his tunic and soaking into his brilliant white hair, but somehow the bright exuberance that the boy always displayed still shines through, as he places his hand on Antares’ and interlaces their fingers.
“Me too, Alunya…” Antares trails off, feeling the declining temperature of the air on his skin. After a moment of soaking in the dead stillness of the night, eyes gradually marking more and more pinpricks of light as stars pierced the dark veil of space overhead, Antares clears his throat. “Hey, Alunya?”
Alunya looks at him again, propping up his head with one arm to look over at Antares. “Hm? What is it, Ari?” Alunya asks.
“What do you think it’ll be like when we grow up?” Antares responds, dipping his head over to look at Alunya.
Alunya blinks at him, pursing his lips in thought for a moment, before perking up like he had just had an epiphany. “Well, we’ll go for adventures, of course! Maybe we can make the coppersmith make us swords and we can go slay a dragon, or even better I can make us swords and-”
“...Seriously, Alunya?” Antares cuts him off. Sighing heavily, he rubs his face, looking back upwards again. “Ah, I should have known you’d say something silly like that.”
Alunya looks offended, flopping over onto his side. “What's that supposed to mean, Ari?” he sounds offended, hurt. Antares just rolls his eyes at him.
“It means I’m being serious. There’s no dragons in Hylicia’s Vale. Where would you even go?” Antares’s voice softens. “I mean when we grow up and get our own households, get married. You know.”
Alunya doesn't respond for a long moment, and when he does, his voice comes out crisp with a tone of fear. “I don’t know, Antares, I don’t like thinking about it.” He shakes his head. “Growing up is scary. I don’t like thinking about having you get married and.. Being all alone.” He finishes darkly.
Antares frowns in sympathy. He could relate, change was scary. But it wasn’t a matter of choice, and thinking about the future was important. “Come on Alunya, you won’t be alone. I’ll still be your brother, and I’m sure you’ll get married too.” Antares tries to cheer him up, but Alunya wasn’t having any of it.
“No I won’t.” Alunya shakes his head and crosses his arms stubbornly. “And I don’t wanna start smelling weird and being gross, either!” He states firmly.
Antares was silent for a moment, before sighing in frustration. “I’m sure you’ll change your mind when you’re older.” He mumbles.
Alunya yanks his hand out of Antares’ and crosses his arms, pouting. Why do people always say that? Now even Antares is talking down to him!
Antares frowns, unsurely, feeling a twinge of doubt in his heart. But it isn't a question of what either of them wanted, anyways; Growing up was just a part of life, something he can no more stop than the rain and thunder. Kids grew up, then had kids of their own; It was just the way of things. So why not look forward to at least having people take him more seriously?
The silence hangs over them uncomfortably long, staring up into the firmament as it darkened further and further. The sunlight has vanished, the sky a blanket of tiny pinpricks of light; every moment, it seemed, Antares and Alunya’s eyes picked out more and more faint stars, while the brightest and most vibrant were readily visible. It was a good thing the moon was out that night, Antares thought; it would have been rather dangerous to try to get down the hill in pitch darkness.
“Well.” Antares finally broke the silence. “I imagine I’ll probably get married, then you’ll come live with us. Maybe if we’re lucky we could barter for some animals so we can have milk and meat on the table.” Antares suggests.
Alunya just looks over at Antares like he was an alien. Is that really all he aspires to in life..? Alunya shakes his head, sitting up. “Even if you’re not going to go on any adventures, don't you wanna do more with yourself than just that? I mean there's a whole valley to explore. And so many things I’d like to learn how to make, too.” Alunya affirms.
Antares frowns. Alunya was so naive, but then again maybe that confidence came with the territory of being so good at learning new skills. Antares was not so blessed, he probably couldn’t expect any more than just scraping by. “Easy for you to say, mister big shot hunter.” Antares says gruffly, feeling a hint of remorse though he isn’t entirely sure of why. “I don’t have alot of skills, I’m sure it's best for everyone if I just stick to what I know I can do. And not get myself killed, so my kids can grow up with a father.” Antares hadn’t even realized he was thinking about that, it just sort of came out.
Alunya frowns, looking at him for a long moment. “I don’t know what you mean, Ari, you’re great at learning new things. And we turned out great, father or not.” Alunya beams. “...You plan to have kids, then..?” Alunya follows up hesitantly, a hint of fear in his voice.
Antares hesitates again, blushing somewhat. “I-I mean, it’s my duty, right? I’m sure mom wants to have grandkids someday.” Antares says, unenthusiastically. What was with Alunya, anyways? Adults had kids, it was just the way of things. His own preferences didn’t seem like they figured into the equation. It was just the way of things.
Alunya just snootily puts his nose up in the air, crossing his arms. “Hmph. If she wants more kids she can have them herself.” He announces, self-assuredly.
Antares sighs. Alunya was always so self-confident. It could be annoying, but it was also charming.
But that was neither here nor there. The conversation had seemingly run its course, and judging by how the western mountains are pitch black and even the faintest stars plainly visible to the two siblings, it is well time for them to head back- Antares groans, thinking of the tongue-lashing they are sure to get for getting home so late after dark. “C’mon, Alunya, let's get cleaned off in the river then go home.” Antares says, hopping up to his feet.
Alunya pouts. “Aww, but the stars are so pretty…” Still, he reluctantly stands up and follows Antares as he begins descending the hillside.