Take the baby.

The crackle of Auresae's voice lights in your ear, low and inviting. "Cirtaleo."

You have emoted: Arbre looks up sharply. Her tail is flagged high, her tattoos bright, and her hands tremble slightly. "Ralehao?" she returns in a whisper.

"It is time," comes the response. No sooner does the word settle in your mind do your surroundings shift and dissolve.

You are transported by the power of the Divine. (Divine Transport)
Atop the Pillar of Auresae. (Nowhere.) (11343)
A white chaise longue is here, its dark frame gilded with ornate golden accents that glimmer brilliantly in the firelight. Intense waves of heat bathe the area, radiating from the presence of Auresae, Goddess of Fire.
There are no obvious exits.

Set upon Her throne, Auresae lounges in a familiar sight if ever there was one--the oddity, however, comes in the form of a bundle swathed in Her arms. The Goddess cradles it to Her chest, a convincing imitation of a mother, and only shifts Her attention up to you after several long moments. Although She says nothing, a smile quirks at Her lips.

You have emoted: Arbre blinks a few times, focusing on Auresae. Her eyes slowly move down to the bundle in Her arms. She stares for a long moment, confused, and as a prior emotion releases her, her tail begins to lower to a more normal height. She's enraptured by this thing she knows is there but can't see, her eyes not even moving back to Auresae's as is habit for her.

Auresae's head cocks to the side, and you feel read as easily as an open book. "Do you shy from your daughter?" Her voice comes suddenly, and though it is spoken softly enough, a gentle tease, the veil augments it as ever, Her words slightly warped as they echo in your ears.

You have emoted: Arbre takes one hesitant step and then another, never looking up at Auresae, never taking her eyes away from the child. "My daughter?" she questions, as if she needs confirmation to something she obviously knows the answer to.

Forgoing words, Auresae merely lifts the bundle--and there, it shifts, a soft little mewl coming from it.

You have emoted: Arbre exhales and then inhales sharply at the child's sound, and all hesitation is lost. She takes the final step forward, reaching her arms out to take her from Auresae, wonder, excitement, love, adoration, and a thousand other emotions raging through her expression.

Though She keeps a close eye upon the child, Auresae does settle with more comfort upon Her throne once you have taken the covered parcel, draping one leg over the side and settling an elbow upon the opposite arm. She touches Her hand to Her cheek, propping Her chin against the heel of Her palm. "As was said--time is a different beast for Us," the Goddess offers in vague explanation.

You have emoted: Arbre wraps her arms around the girl gently but possessively. She still doesn't look up at Auresae, though she attempts to give Her enough focus to converse. "A different beast," she repeats, tugging a bit at the bundling to see the child in full.

The cloth parts easily beneath your fingers, impossibly soft, at last revealing the child. Almost immediately upon the reveal, your tattoos arc toward your baby. And there is no doubt she is yours, the spitting image of you and though she is young, her eyes are open, bright and curious, and already her bearing is quiet and well-behaved. The only oddity is the marking on her flesh, a thin stripe of golden skin of oscillating sheen bisecting the child's lip and following the contour of her chin and throat, finally coming to a head at the hollow between her clavicles where it pools.

You have emoted: "She's..." Arbre says, contractions coming to her alongside a strong Salurian accent. Her eyes water just a bit as they widen, swallowing hard before a beaming smile crosses her face. "She's not.. just You," she says, finally dragging her gaze up to Auresae with some effort.

Auresae's thumb rubs beneath Her chin and Her voice resonates back, bemused, "Of course not. She is of you, too. And she must know the humility of mortality, first."

You have emoted: Arbre only manages to keep her gaze on Auresae that long before bringing it back to the child. "I had thought.." she begins, and then shakes her head, "it does not matter what I thought. Have You given her a name, Ralehao?" Her voice is airy and she seems on the verge of crying, but on her face is a beaming smile. She shifts slightly, an instinct she didn't know she had kicking in to have her more easily hold the child, looking much like the mother she had no faith that she could be.

"I have not," Auresae confesses, still keeping a lazy watch on the reunion. "I had thought, perhaps, you already had one in mind and I did not wish to take that privilege from you, Cirtaleo." Where before there was nothing in Her free hand there now sits Her pipe, from which the Goddess takes a lengthy drag, golden eyes fluttering shut in savouring it.

You have emoted: Arbre reaches up with her left hand, stroking her fingers gently over the child's cheek. Tiny sparks fly from her skin toward the child, making her giggle at the tingling on her skin. "Ixena," she says softly, looking back to Auresae for confirmation.

Auresae's chin dips and smoke curls from Her mouth and nostrils in a viscous, roiling cloud when She responds, "As you so desire." Her body slackens against the throne and the Goddess shifts minutely, sending ripples of motion playing over the fabric of the stola.

You have emoted: Arbre gives something of a soft laugh, unable to keep the smile from her face. "Thank You, Raleha," she says, "she is.." She shakes her head, unable to come up with further words.

"Ours," Auresae supplies easily. One eye opens just a sliver and Her gaze sweeps over you, the mouthpiece of the pipe resting against Her bottom lip.

You have emoted: "Ours," Arbre repeats, looking back to the girl, "perfect." She moves her thumb over the child's face, who instantly tries to bite down on it. "Ixena," she coos to her, unconcerned.

Auresae breathes a soft noise, taking another drag from the pipe and exhaling at length. "You may tell where she has been, if anyone is to ask. But as I said, she must grow as mortal first," She explains patiently. "That she is Touched by Me will go unspoken for now. Do you understand?"

You have emoted: Arbre brings her eyes up to Auresae once more, her look sobering. She nods slowly. "My Raleha had her for a time," she says solemnly, as if in example, "but she is mine."

A pleased smile curls slowly over Her lips and Auresae's chin lifts, Her head tilting back against the crook of the throne and baring the flesh of Her throat, cords of muscle pronounced beneath the black flesh. "Good."

You have emoted: Arbre nods again to Auresae. "I am not afraid anymore," she says, the words holding strong meaning for her, "I will not disappoint You."

"No, you will not," Auresae returns, the nonchalance with which She speaks belying the imperious weight of what is most certainly a promise. "Go well, Arbre Aquila."