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(I think any of those could work! Some tension in the relationship might be good. We could maybe have one of the people who used to own sage show up maybe? Somehow maybe the girl survived his attack and is showing up for him and since she legally owns him it causes issues there?) |
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(awesome! Does it matter who starts?) |
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(sure!) Sage had spent the next few days letting Lyra tug him all over the island, exploring it with her and letting her help with some more of the chores now that she was getting a little older. He'd promised that on her 7th birthday, he'd let her help him gather the plays from the woods and teach her which ones were safe to eat and which ones weren't. She did need to know it, but he also needed her to be old enough to understand the difference between some very similar plant species. It still made him a little nervous, but he knew of she wasn't absolutely certain a plant was safe, she wouldn't eat it. They were on their back back to the house now, baskets full of fruit and other lush plants from the island for lunch. Lyra had run ahead, presenting her basket to Jora happily, and he'd wandered behind her slowly, just watching her and her mother greet each other happily. It wasn't exactly an uncommon sight to behold, but it never seemed to get any less special. They'd slipped back inside after a moment, no doubt to start getting lunch together. He was nearly to the cabin when a dark spot on the horizon caught his attention. He frowned, narrowing his eyes as he tried to make out the dot in the distance, pausing on their front porch. There was no doubt it was a ship....still pretty far away, but ships didn't normally stray off their normal courses and appear near their islands. In the years they'd been here, the only ships aside from jayce's when his crew occasionally visited and the odd visit from selene or joras mother, there hadn't been any ships so close to home. And this wasn't a ship he recognized. It made him a bit uneasy. It was still far away though, and he could barely see it ...so he'd go inside. Have lunch. See if the ship had gotten any closer later. If it was coming to their island, they'd have to figure out what to do. He slipped inside though, greeting Jora with a warm grin and peck on the lips as he set his basket down on the counter beside Lyra's, which was in the process of being emptied and everything washed off to prepare it for a meal. |
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(What if...to add to the drama, Jora finds out she's pregnant again? I'll reply shortly though!) |
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(oooh, that could definitely work! They did previously start trying for a sinking I think so it goes well with the plot lol) |
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Jora turned at the sound of the door opening, the familiar creak of it bringing a small, instinctive smile to her lips. Lyra was already halfway through telling her all about the morning’s adventure—how she’d found “the biggest mango ever” and how Dad had let her climb the low fig tree to grab it herself—her voice spilling over itself in excitement. Jora laughed softly, reaching to brush a few leaves from her daughter’s curls before turning toward Sage. “You two are going to run the whole island out of fruit if you keep this up,” she teased lightly, her tone warm. His presence filled the space easily, the scent of salt and greenery clinging to him as always. But when he leaned in for a kiss, she could feel the faint tension in his shoulders—the kind that came when something outside caught his attention. Still, she said nothing just yet, letting him settle. As she turned back to the counter, washing the last of the fruit, a subtle wave of dizziness rolled through her. She caught herself on the edge of the table, blinking. It wasn’t the first time that had happened these past few mornings, though she’d been ignoring it—blaming the heat, the long hours, or the early mornings with Lyra. But now, with Sage and their daughter laughing softly behind her, something in her chest tightened with realization. Her hand stilled over the sink. The faint nausea she’d brushed off the past few days wasn’t just the weather. The exhaustion that clung to her even after full nights of rest… the ache beneath her ribs… the unmistakable feeling of something shifting within her. She looked up, catching Sage’s reflection in the glass window—his easy grin, his calm steadiness—and suddenly her heart was pounding. She turned toward him slowly, her lips parting as if to speak, but the words came out quiet, almost uncertain. “Sage…” she murmured, stepping closer, one hand unconsciously pressing against her stomach. “I think—” She paused, swallowing, eyes flicking briefly toward Lyra before back to him. A soft, almost disbelieving laugh left her. “I think it’s happening again.” There was wonder in her voice, but also that familiar tremor—the one that came from remembering just how fragile and miraculous peace could be. |
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Sage had settled down at the counter, helping to sort out the fruit and start cutting up the washed things. That was one thing he was still really cautious about Lyra doing ...they let her explore, do a lot of things that might test her limits. But the knives were sharp, and his dagger wasn't something he wanted her to accidentally hurt herself with. He did glance up with a slight frown when Jora paused at the sink, knowing that wasn't normal for her. It had been happening often...little pauses through the day... But Jora had told him she was fine. He went back to cutting the fruit up, but kept an eye on his wife. When she turned around and spoke though, he froze, head snapping up towards her as he realized what she meant. "You mean...," he sort of trailed off, eyes moving to look down at the hand resting on her stomach. "Really," he asked with a small smile and laugh, sitting back in the chair. He was clearly happy about it. Excited. He could barely believe it, really. They'd been trying for a while now, so for it to finally be here....it was exciting. Of course, they had to wait for nine months, and they'd need to somehow get Jora to a city where she had a doctor there in case things went bad when the time came....but that was in the future. A long way in the future. It did make him nervous though. Last time they'd left the island, things hadn't turned out well for them. They could send message to jace though, possibly use his ship. They might be safer there than anywhere else. It did come with risks of course, but so did any large vessel. So for now, he just let himself be excited, and held his arms open to embrace Jora, pressing a happy kiss to her head. |
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Jora couldn’t help the quiet, shaky laugh that slipped past her lips as she stepped into his open arms, letting the warmth of him steady her. His reaction—so bright, so immediate—chased away some of the anxious flutter that had taken hold of her chest. She pressed her face against his shoulder, feeling the gentle rise and fall of his breath, the way his excitement trembled right beneath his skin. “Really,” she murmured softly, her voice muffled against him. When she finally leaned back, there was a small, radiant smile tugging at her lips—equal parts joy and disbelief. “I wasn’t sure at first. I thought it was just the heat… or maybe I was overworked. But…” She let out a breath, one hand still resting protectively over her stomach. “It’s happening. We’re really doing this again.” Her gaze flicked over toward Lyra, who had started stacking the fruit pieces into a tower on the counter, utterly oblivious to the storm of emotions swirling between her parents. The sight made Jora’s chest ache with a bittersweet tenderness. “She’s going to be such a good big sister,” she whispered, smiling faintly. “Gods help us, though—two of them running around this island might be too much for even you to handle.” But as the thought of what came next crept in—the possibility of having to leave, of the unknown beyond their safe little world—her smile softened into something more thoughtful. She met Sage’s gaze again, eyes steady but full of quiet worry. “We’ll figure out what to do when it’s time,” she said finally. “I don’t want to think about leaving yet. Not when this…” her hand brushed against his chest, feeling his heartbeat beneath her palm, “feels so good right now.” She tilted her head up, brushing a soft kiss against his jaw. “Let’s just have this moment. Just us.” |
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Hot and Humid
