Part 2 ~ Eclipse
By
Ambyrhawke Shadowsinger
Copyright © May 16, 2001 Ambyrhawke Shadowsinger
All Rights Reserved
Subtext: This story depicts a loving relationship between two women.
Sexual violence: This story depicts attempted sexual violence. The operative word here is "attempted." The descriptions are very
mild, but be forewarned if this subject matter make you uncomfortable.
Violence: There is some violence in this story. That?s what happens to you when you attempt sexual violence on another person.
Pronunciation:
Hine: 'Hee-neh
Rona: 'Roh-nah
Arohi: 'Air-roh-hee
Gji: Jee
Yalungur: 'Yah-lun-grr
Bethus: 'Beh-thoos
I'd like to thank Mira for her term project assignment that resulted in The Jade People. If I hadn't had to create my own religion for
class, I'm not certain this story would have ever come to me. At the very least, it would have been a completely different beast. I'd
also like to thank her for allowing me to write Part 2 for the class final. This section was clamoring to be written since halfway
through the original story, but the second assignment gave me the opportunity to write it that much sooner.
All feedback is welcome at Ambyrhawke@ambyrhawke.com
at this hour of the day, the sunlight filtered through the leaves of the canopy high above creating a
patchwork of light and dark on the forest floor.
A patch of brown earth swelled and relaxed as if alive before erupting upwards. The little brown head of a
mole poked out and sniffed the air. Just then, a squirrel overhead dropped the uneaten part of a leaf bud
to the ground as it reached for the next bit of its meal. The discarded leaf landed with a soft thump right in
front of the mole. Unable to see clearly and not sure if the sky was falling, the mole ducked back down
into its tunnel where it was safe. He went back to the new area he had been digging all morning.
In a small glade off the edge of the path, baby rabbits wrestled with each other. A group of deer grazed
on the lush green grass while one doe dipped her head into a pool of cool spring water. In the distance,
the chirping of the birds became more excited than normal. All of the animals raised their heads to see
what the commotion was about.
A woman walked slowly down the path toward the glade. Though she wore a green tunic belted at the
waist, she traveled without boots on her feet. With each step that she took, she reveled in her connection
to the soil beneath her toes. Her lips moved slightly as she murmured greetings to everything she passed.
Her hands never ceased reaching out to brush across the leaves, bark or stems of the plants on the edge of
the path. In turn, the plants seemed to strain toward the woman to prolong the contact as much as
possible.
A large ray of sunlight streamed down through the air and cascaded over the woman, turning her hair into a
crown of the most beauteous gold. She stopped and smiled as she was enveloped in the warmth of the
beam. Turning her face upwards, her eyes sparkled with a thousand shades of green.
Hine's expression filled with joy at the sight of her daughter dancing in the sky. Arohi held her arm out
toward her mother, caressing the fair cheek with the sunbeam before taking up her dance once again. The
Earth goddess nodded in return before continuing along the path.
Upon entering the glade, Hine looked around and sank to her knees. A day-old fawn bounded up to her.
Just before reaching the goddess, his legs went the wrong way. Losing his balance, he tumbled into a pile
against the blonde. Her eyebrows arched up in surprise. Giggling, she wrapped her arms around the
wobbly fawn and cooed to him, "There, there little one, don't fret. We all take a wrong step on occasion.
The only thing to do is get up and keep going."
The fawn tilted his head back and bathed Hine's chin with a wet nose and tongue. Laughing, the goddess
placed a kiss on his forehead, blessing him. "Soon you will be strong and fleet of foot. Then you'll run
through the forest with my love." She lifted the fawn and set him on his feet, holding on to him until he
found his balance. With a scratch to his belly, she sent him bounding on his way.
Looking at the other members of the herd, Hine spied the doe that had been drinking at the pool. Her
belly was distended so far that it looked painful. Reaching out a hand, Hine called out to the doe. With a
lumbering gait, the animal slowly made her way over to the goddess. She lowered herself to the ground
and, panting, laid her head in the woman's lap. Hine stroked the doe's head and felt her swollen belly. She
spoke encouraging words to the deer, "I don't think it will be too much longer now, pretty one. You look
like you have three babies in there."
As Hine began scratching the doe's spine, the animal's brown eyes rolled back in delight. The woman's
voice murmured, "Yes, that must be a hard spot to get to right now. I do believe you're going to have
quite a surprise for Rona when she gets back in three days." The goddess kept petting and scratching the
pregnant doe while her mind went back to last evening's conversation with her love.
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