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Uvlo Gahjewesfv heard their approach before actually seeing them. He stood still, arms passively at his sides, as three other Viera descended from separate rocky outcroppings to surround him. Each mirrored his own armor consisting of a revealing leather jerkin and multiple layers of protection for their legs via a thick skirt, pants, and clawed metal greaves designed to help traverse the Skatay Range. Two of them were armed with large, heavy spears, while the third aimed a nocked arrow at his chest.
"Kurt. Ejnar. Orvar. Taidama!" he greeted each of his fellow guardians in turn with a cautious smile, only to be met with faces as cold as their alpine home.
"Look who it is! The 'emissary' gracing us with his presence once more!" Kurt sneered, refusing to speak the traditional welcoming back of their people while closing the distance between them. The slight was a new one for Uvlo and he did his best to conceal how much that hurt. The four of them had all grown up and trained together as "wesfv," sharing meager meals and surviving the harsh conditions of the Mother Mountain under their elders' tutelage. It had not been much, but was still filled with fond memories for the Veena. Everything then changed when Kuguma, the matriarch of their village, had tasked him with learning more about other cultures in Othard and beyond. Every two winters he returned to share his knowledge and each time the reception of the border guard grew more frigid.
While their weapons eventually lowered, the trio's attitudes remained hostile, prowling around him with suspicious and judging glances. Ejnar leaned in for a cursory sniff before pulling back in disgust. "Hmmph! You reek of the outside world, Uvlo. Have you become so shameless in your cavorting with foreigners as to forget yourself?"
"Have you become so disrespectful that you forget I am carrying out the Matriarch's will?" The emissary's terse response earned him a retaliatory shove from Orvar. It was not enough to come to blows, but the meaning behind it was abundantly clear.
"We follow Kuguma's wishes, but her belief that our village's preservation lies in learning the ways of outsiders is merely a flight of fancy. Our people have endured for countless winters by virtue of our own strength free of any foreign interference. As wesfv, it is our sacred duty…your duty…to keep our lands safe from intruders!" the leporine snarled accusingly.
"And now you enter and leave our borders so casually, each time returning a different, unrecognizable man. The Veena are as indomitable as our Mother Mountain; we have no need for change!" Ejnar joined in as Kurt tried to stealthily lay his hands on Uvlo's pack containing many of the items collected from his latest journey. That was the last straw and, although the emissary kept his two cleavers sheathed, he leapt out of their midst and stared angrily down at them.
"None of you are my elder, so I will not take this harassment from you. Just you wait! I'll show you all this isn't the only way our kind does things!" He swore before spinning on his greaves and running towards the village. Despite his outburst, he took no pleasure in yelling at those who were once his friends, the sharp winds biting at his face and freezing the tears that welled up there.
****
"Ignorant jerks…" Uvlo muttered sullenly to himself at the unwelcome memory. He was currently sweeping the floor of the house, kicking up small clouds of dust that irritatingly tickled his nose.
"What was that, Skybun?" a voice called back from the neighboring room.
The Veena's ears flopped in embarrassment that his grumbling was overheard. "Nothing! Just thinking a bit about home and why I'm here, Master Shunye…"
The Shetona walked over to join him, a warm smile immediately putting the gatherer in a better mood. "Are you feeling homesick?" he asked kindly, placing a halting hand on the swishing broom.
Uvlo sighed heavily. "I don't really know. Even though I travel back there fairly often, it feels like each time I'm less and less welcome."
His elder frowned. "Why would they do such a thing? You are one of the kindest, most selfless people I have ever met and are taking this long journey on behalf of your village, yes?"
The wesfv averted his gaze. "While it is true I am acting in the name of our matriarch, there are plenty of Viera who see no point in changing our way of life. We have outlasted both empires and wars and this is frequently attributed to our reclusive natures. What can we, long-lived as we are, possibly have to benefit from other perspectives and cultures that could disappear in a couple hundred years?"
The red-haired leporine nodded in understanding. "Sometimes it's hard for me as well to fully understand the passage of time for other people. It feels like like Tuliyollal has sprung up around me overnight, when in fact it has been a full 50 summers."
The Veena clutched his broom in determination. "The point is that, when I heard about the Shetona, I knew I had to learn more about them. I wanted to show everyone back home a different path that wasn't so set in its ways and that it could work for us!"
Master Shunye reached out to stroke his arm. "And? How has that been going so far?" he asked.
Uvlo wrapped up the shorter man in a hug and kissed the top of his head. "Better than I could have ever dreamed. While there are similarities between our peoples, I have also seen the Shetona thrive in the major cities of Tural alongside everyone else. It's also helped that I fell in love with one…" he blushed.
"Oh ho. Should I be jealous?" Master Shunye teased, his slender hands sneaking up under the Viera's skirt to play with his athletic ass.
"Mmmm. Not at all. This wesfv has eyes only for you," Uvlo promised with a happy wiggle of his ears.
"Good answer!" the apothecary replied before looking up at him coyly. "Perhaps the emissary would like to learn more about the lovemaking customs of the Shetona?"
"Oh!" The taller rabbit blushed and looked around them. "The house, um, still needs some cleaning?"
Master Shunye scowled. "The house can wait, Uvlo…" he said firmly.
"O-okay!" the blue-haired rabbit nodded seriously and scooped up his lover into his arms, bearing them to the bedroom for another expanding of his horizons.
Whoever had said "ignorance is bliss" had clearly never met Master Shunye!