[Closed] Familial Bonding Experiences

[Nauleth Siordanti]

39th of Intas, 2720
The Stacks | Early Morning

It had snowed furiously a few days' before, and while Nauleth had half-expected to wake up to see more snow flurries swirling behind the curtains of his bedroom, simply so he could have the excuse to linger in bed a little longer with the petite form of Athrym—of his wife—curled up against him on this nine without classes, instead he was awakened by the bright glare of the sun. Not that he was ungrateful for it—so much time beneath the mountains of Gior, trapped in Qrieth like a prisoner, had given the eldest Siordanti a very new and very strong appreciation of that clocking bright light in the sky. He'd overslept, however, squinting at the clock on the mantle of the hearth in his spacious shared bedroom, quite aware that he'd made some promises the night before while watching the fat, wet snowflakes pile up everywhere in his quaint little neighborhood in the Stacks.

The best hills, he'd promised.

For what, Leyenak had wondered.

Today, the young girl who'd not understood why anyone would ever want to play in the snow at all was about to find out.

Lips against pale skin and murmured assurances he'd be back for lunch, Naul slipped from the comfortable warmth of bed to dress for the winter outside, remembering an extra layer because he knew that he'd mostly end up just as wet as he would cold, even if almost a year in Gior had at least made him a little more tolerant of such frigid temperatures. He took his time, considering what tea to have with breakfast and which sled he'd choose out of the three he kept in the garden shed for just such a snowy occasion—usually with his students instead of with a Gioran fugitive-turned-ward.

Still quite tangled up in how he wanted his eggs, he opened the door to his bedroom and almost crawled out of his own skin in surprise, stopped short there in the threshold. Staring at him with her albino eyes, just barely shorter than him despite being half his clocking age, the former youngest daughter of the Da Huane's matriarch was waiting for him, arms crossed over her chest, dressed and ready to go out with just a hint of quartz dust gracing her pale, refined cheeks. She was pouting.

"Oh, gods—h-how long have you been standing there, seedayar?"

"Half an hour." Leyenak's Estuan was deeply accented, her rich voice dwelling on all the vowels in a way Naul coouldn't ever hope to reproduce, "You said we would leave an hour ago, Nauleth."

"So you just—you've just been—" The redheaded professor waved his hands in helpless frustration, indicating for the passive child to step back so he could close the door and give Athrym more time to sleep if she wished. Where he was flustered, the albino girl finally smiled, gracing him with some mockery of a bow,

"—I have been praying. Standing here. It is fine. Now, are you ready for this—what did you call it?—sledding you have promised me? I do not understand how you can be telling the truth about it being entertaining to do anything in the snow."

"Begads, I was going to eat breakfast, but—shi—fine. Can I at least make some tea?"

"There is some waiting for you. Kaelum is as good a friend to you as he is a brother to me."

"Uh-huh." There was something mischievous in Leyenak's voice, some hint of chiding that he'd come to recognize from the former priestess. He rolled his gold-rimmed eyes and shuffled down the hall, aware that she followed him, gliding like some beautiful little pale ghost, all full of carefully-contained sass, cultivated cunning, and well-bred intelligence. She was, despite being born non-magical, just as much a brat of a child as other galdori children—perhaps more-so because she'd been the daughter of one of the most powerful galdori families in the Six Kingdoms, because she'd been told she was worthy to worship the gods themselves—something no Anaxi would ever allow a passive to do.

Escape half a year ago had taken its toll on all of them, it was true, but out of each of the fugitives, the youngest of them weathered it all with enviable cheerfulness. She'd been a bright, warm light of confidence and poise, a voice of prayerful hope, even when Nauleth had felt at his lowest. Was he still uncomfortable with what she was? With his decision to offer her is guardianship despite knowing she wasn't even born a galdor?

Perhaps a little, but perhaps he'd just come to realize he wasn't as sure about the defectiveness of her kind now that he'd spent so much time so close to others like her, worked along side capable, educated passives in the University of Qrieth who were just as quick with their calculations as he'd been.

Those memories of his experiences made him dizzy, and he didn't look over his shoulder to see how close Leyenak was behind him, vaguely aware that he'd begun to note her presence in ways he hadn't thought possible but had been told by a particular monic theorist—by Professor Moore himself—was something to look out for. In the kitchen, Kaelum was waiting. The middle Huane would have been tall and imposing had Nauleth not known him so well, folded so carefully into a dining room chair with a still-steaming tea kettle and one empty glass, waiting for the Anaxi.

He even smiled, but his blue eyes were cold, equally thick accent deriding the other Physical professor like he was just another sibling, "She's been waiting for you."

"I'm aware." Naul grunted, pouring tea, murmuring his gratitudes in Gioran while he fixed it how he liked, not even bothering to sit down, "Some of us are catching a bit of sleep after our first month of classes again."

"Where did you lose it to?"

"Shut your head." The pair laughed and he heard Leyenak make some soft noise of impatience. Grabbing his cup of tea and shoving a piece of toast between his teeth, the redheaded sorcerer tilted his head and made his way for the foyer, leading the pair to get ready for the out of doors. Between eating and sipping too-hot liquid, he tugged on boots and wound himself up in a scarf and pulled on his coat and a knit hat. He shoved gloves in his pockets and held the door open, mouth full of buttered bread without the luxury of jam because he'd been in a hurry, steaming cup held delicately over his head, pinky out, in some hilarious display of propriety,

"Let's go choose your sled, hmm? Come on. To the garden—"

Leyenak slipped out beneath his arm as if she already knew exactly what she wanted, barely bundled as he was against the weather, skipping across the crusty snow with a giggle. Before he even met her at the shed, she'd retrieved the blue-painted sled that had once been his sisters, violet eyes bright and eager,

"This one."

"Perfect. So you are excited."

"N-no. I am not convinced this will be fun at all, but I know this one is heavier and I hope it goes fast."

"Clocking hell. C'mon." Out of the gate to the home he'd once rented and now owned, comfortable as it was just at the edge of the old red walls in the shadow of the aqueduct, Nauleth hefted the sled and led them both out onto the street. This neighborhood was always one of the last to be cleared of snow, anyway, and with the amount that had fallen a few days ago, it probably wouldn't be shoveled until the first, just in time for the professor to get to class.

Down another block, a couple of other faculty children were having a snowball fight, laughing and catching Leyenak's quiet attention. She'd hardly been given a chance to be a real child, even before it was discovered she was a passive, considering she'd been practically born into the Gioran equivalent of royalty (that and Giorans never did seem to good at relaxing enough to have a good time in the opinion of one Anaxi). The going was slippery and the snow was deep, but it felt good to be out in the early morning, watching their breath in little puffs of clouds and crunching along in contented silence.

"We can certainly toss some snowballs later. It's no fun either, mind you, but perhaps we can calculate velocity and impact based on size or something challenging like that."

He heard some stifled giggle again, there next to him, and he smiled, face mostly hidden by his scarf and unwilling to fully admit how much he'd come to enjoy her company as if Leyenak was just as enjoyable as any of his other students.

Welcome to Brunnhold. Now go home.

[Antranig Borna]

Intas 39, 2720

The Stacks, early morning.

Taniel had been up before him. That didn’t happen often these days. He was usually the first one awake, making breakfast before chiding the boy out of bed. The boy and his bander, really. They slept together, a habit which had been cute when they were both small and was no less adorable now that the two of them together almost didn’t fit in Taniel’s bed. This morning, however, Antra awoke to find them both in the kitchen already, with Taniel already dressed and reading a book and Darcie very patiently curled up under the table.

It had snowed heavily the last few days. It would likely be the last heavy snow they would see before the spring thaw and the rains came. Taniel had all but begged him to take the day off so that they could go out to the Stacks, where the best snow hills were, to get in one more day of sledding. He had agreed in the end. By this time next year, Taniel would be in school, and would have far less time to spend galavanting in the snow.

Taniel looked up as he came into the kitchen. “Good morning!”

“Good morning, love,” Antra replied, “have you eaten?”

Taniel nodded. “I had one of the muffins,” he replied, “I fed Darcie, too!”

Antra fought a grin as he set about making himself tea. He took his time on purpose. He knew the boy was excited. He had been excited since the night before. Antra would have wondered if he had slept, if he hadn’t checked on him before going to bed himself. He picked away at the last one of the muffins as the kettle boiled and Taniel grew more and more impatient, fidgeting in his seat and with the pages of his book.

Antra made his cup of tea, sat down, and then said, “I think I’ll read the paper before we go.”

That was the breaking point it seemed, and Taniel groaned. “Dad!”

Antra chuckled. “Alright, alright,” he said, “let me finish my tea, at least. You go get ready.”

Taniel was up and off, Darcie following close behind. Antra finished his tea quickly, knowing he wouldn’t have much time before Taniel was ready and after him to get going again. Before long they were out of the house and on their way, bundled up against the weather. It was a nice day, sunny but cold, especially in the early morning. They weren’t the only ones out to enjoy the snow, and passed a number of other children enjoying snowball fights and other games. Taniel was determined, though, carrying his sled along at a brisk pace, undeterred by the deep snow. Antra trudged along behind him, smiling all the while, the paper he had wanted to read over tea tucked under his arm.

They arrived at their destination, and Taniel wasted little time finding the biggest hill he could. Darcie ran after him, leaving his father to sit on a nearby bench and watch as they ran about. Taniel went down the hill first, with the bander bounding behind him, barking and jumping as she did. Antra was content to sit and listen to the joyful noise as he read. He glanced up every so often, and at first it was only the two of them, but he soon caught sight of another pair on their way to partake in the fun, and sat up a little straighter, watching them as they approached. Darcie had spotted them too, stopping in her frolicking to stand and watch them with her intense blue eyes. She wouldn't make any move towards them, but she would watch until she had decided they weren't a threat, which generally happened rather quickly. Still, it was a bit off-putting to see the large white wolf on guard, even if she wasn't as big as some of her kin.

[Nauleth Siordanti]

39th of Intas, 2720
The Stacks | Early Morning

Nauleth had never been afraid of animals until he'd been almost murdered by mythic beasts that weren't supposed to exist. His father had always kept hounds around, had always enjoyed hunting, and while he had never considered himself one to keep pets once he lived on his own, he'd always appreciated the animal companions of others. Sort of like how he'd once been thankful that he could send students out of his classroom at the end of the day, though admittedly he'd thought more than once about children of his own since returning to Brunnhold a married man—

Not that he was at all ready for such things.

No.

Just like he wasn't ready for the large white banderwolf at the top of this particular neighborhood's nicest of hills, watching them with bright eyes before it broke away to chase a boy and his sled down the slope, barking and wagging its tail.

The panic was very real and very instantaneous, totally out of his control—and even if the young Siordanti knew what he was looking at, knew the friendly creature for what it was, his chest tightened with a sharp inhale of cold air. He still held a now mostly tepid cup of tea, the warmth having long since seeped into his gloves while he drank and walked. The passive girl next to him felt the sigiling of his field, the snapping of all those physical particles to attention, heavy like some barrier of thick glass, and while she'd been looking at the albino man on the bench, knowing his tall, lanky form for what it was, also—Gioran, that's what—the pair of them stood awkward in their trauma with the sun sparkling off the snow. The boy playing? Gioran, too.

"It's just a bander." The once-priestess attempted to tease her guardian, breathless.

"They're just strangers." Naul retorted, telling himself to relax while he shifted the sled from off his shoulders and onto the ground with a crunch. He offered a smile as the man on the bench straightened, still murmuring to the girl next to him, "Neither spies nor a hatcher."

"Exactly." Leyenak finally grinned at him, cheeks pink from the sun and the cold, her eyes bright. It was easier for the child to let things go, the redheaded professor mused, watching as her face softened and her hands reached for the sled, wanting to tug both the vehicle and the Anaxi man up to the very top of the hill.

He felt his pulse still racing, looking away from the man to the wolf to the boy and finally to his passive ward, a girl he shouldn't even have taken responsibility for but now couldn't imagine anything otherwise. The thought of her in blue on campus was absolutely wrong, but that kind of gut reaction made him wonder why he'd never felt that way about anyone else like her before.

Perhaps because he'd only almost died in the Deep with this passive. Perhaps because he'd only almost died in the mountains of Qrieth with this one daughter of the Huanes.

"Alright, let's show you how it's done, hmm?" He blinked, casting one more glance in the Gioran man's direction, this time more friendly, more convivial. Then he made his way up, dragging the sled and watching the banderwolf, slowly dampening his field because he knew what it must have felt like, a powerful force with a life all of its own, practically it's own center of gravity with him stuck in the middle.

Leyenak was far more eager than she'd pretended to be, smiling now, watching the boy who'd just gone down the hill with interest but unsure of how to greet him—in Estuan? in Gioran?

"Hello!" The physical sorcerer greeted everyone for them, offering a wave before he aligned the sled and indicated for his ward to take a seat, leaning to explain to her the best way to position oneself and how to hang on.

"This still doesn't sound that exciting."

"Did you hear the other boy? He had a great time. The only way to know something truly is through empirical evidence. Off you go!" Naul exhaled his exasperation in a cloud of breath before he gave the sled a shove, sending a squealing young passive down to the bottom with a smile.

Welcome to Brunnhold. Now go home.

[Antranig Borna]

Intas 39, 2720

The Stacks, early morning.

For just a moment, the air was full of tension. Antra could feel it even where he sat on the bench some distance away. Then there was barking and laughter once more as Tan went barrelling down the hill, Darcie running after him, and the strange tension broke as quickly as it had come. The two strangers were an interesting pair. An Anaxi man and a young albino girl. Though not every albino person was a Gioran, it was clear to him based on her stature and how young she looked that this one was. Very unusual, indeed. Antra leaned forward slightly, his paper forgotten, watching as the two of them made their way up the hill, wondering to himself what their connection was. The man gave a wave and a cheerful hello. Antra smiled, waving back.

"Good morning," he called. He still bore an accent, even after all his years in Anaxas, though it was much less pronounced than it had been when he was a young man. He sat back on the bench, watching the pair curiously.

It wasn't long after that that the man pushed his young companion down the hill on her sled. She squealed the whole way down. It was the squealing that got the attention of Taniel, who had just reached the bottom. He turned to watch as the girl came down the hill. Darcie was watching as well, her tail wagging excitedly. Taniel picked up his sled and made his way over to where she had stopped, Darcie trailing along behind him. The bander was trained well, sitting obediently at her young master’s side when he stopped near the other sledder, regarding the girl with curiosity.

"Are you alright?" Taniel asked, peering at her with his ruby eyes from behind his large, round glasses. "You were screaming the whole way down!"

Unlike his father, he spoke with a clear Anaxi accent. In fact, most everything about him was very typically Anaxi, from how he dressed to how his hair was cut. It was only his unusual height and his colouring that gave him away as Gioran. He tilted his head to one side as he realized that Leyanak looked rather a lot like he did. There was a spark of recognition on his face, and he smiled.

“My name is Taniel. What’s yours?”

[Nauleth Siordanti]

39th of Intas, 2720
The Stacks | Early Morning

The sound of Gioran-laden Estuan wasn't a comfort, something about the vowel-focused lilt still twisting some sore place inside the Deep of his mind. He smiled, though, lopsided but not disingenuous, for if Nauleth had honed any social skills over the past twenty five years, one of them was certainly false placation.

The hill was an easy enough climb compared to windswept cliff sides outside of Qrieth, and there was something terribly satisfying about shoving doubting Leyanak down to the sound of a surprised squeal of delight. Well, hopefully it was delight. The eldest Siordanti had to admit his ability to be empathic was somewhat of a growing thing, still lanky and awkward and not at all well-developed, but from what he knew of the youngest once-Huane, of the former child priestess, the loud sounds were not of youthful terror but of genuine enjoyment.

The girl came to an abrupt stop at the bottom with a grunt and a spray of snow. She slumped over, grinning and giggling and red-cheeked. Her hood had flown from the crown of her head somewhere along the way down, careful braids and metallic glittering stays that kept it all in place with near ceremonial precision barely managing to maintain any semblance of such decorum by the time the young passive chose to sit up, brushing snow from herself with more musical laughter,

"Oh yes, I'm quite fine. Thank you." She instinctually replied in Gioran to the equally albino, obviously Gior-born boy in front of her. She waited, panting, flushed cheeks blooming into some deeper shade of embarrassment, but unaware the boy in front of her didn't speak the language of their shared homeland, "I wasn't screaming—was I?"

Nauleth, sledless and somewhat disappointed by this truth, slid his way down without any grace along one side of the hill, mostly slipping, half loping like an animal, mostly staying upright. He was at least smiling about it all, making attempts to ignore the wariness that wanted to creep into every thought, the deep scars of his time of more or less imprisonment in Gior invisible but no less venomous than the jaws of that hatcher had been. At least, he humored himself in some attempt at banishing his worries completely, at least these two strangers were men. Had one or or of them been Gioran women, powerful and confident in their position, Naul might not have quite been able to even pretend, Lomenak da Huane’s shadow long enough to cross kingdom borders and cast dark doubts about his sanity into his thoughts from even this far away.

It was a ridiculous sort of feeling, really, and even he knew it somewhere inside, but there it was. A seed planted in the cold that happened to grow. Here in Anaxas, it was a particularly uncomfortable thing to worry about, but the son of an Incumbent already knew his general opinions on equality by magical prowess weren’t as popular as the current gender norms that still seemed to grip galdor society rather tightly. Just couldn’t get away from finding more ways to categorize and subdivide, his galdorkind.

Meanwhile, Leyanak waited for a few extra moments as if expecting some response from the boy in anything but Estuan. When he smiled, when she saw some hint of what she thought was going to be recognition in the form of familiar words, she smiled back.

Only the boy answered again in Estuan.

"Uh. You may call me Leyanak." She finally returned, her own accent very thick and fresh despite having studied both languages practically from birth. Long before she'd even tested as a passive, that was for sure. She hesitated, indecisive about whether she wanted to attempt speaking in Gioran again or not. Choosing the best path, she stated slowly in the same words he'd used instead of the words she would've thought more natural between them, "This is my first time sledding." She gave a very dramatic pause, huffing pale hair from her face almost defiantly, "Ever."

The ginger professor noted a hint of confusion in her tone, dusting snow from the knees of his trousers and admittedly looking from the girl to the boy to the large dog,

"Seedayar, not everyone who looks like you here in Anaxas understands what you're saying. Did you want to give it another go? You know, for empirical reasons. Just in case you aren't sure you enjoyed—" Naul offered Taniel an actual smile, perhaps offering to help them both if they wanted. Instead of looking to Leyanak for her response, however, he looked back toward the man on the bench in conversational curiosity. Meanwhile, the former priestess squeaked her delight loudly:

"Oh, yes. I mean—oh, no. I very much enjoyed myself. Yes. I would like to go down the hill again."

Welcome to Brunnhold. Now go home.

[Antranig Borna]

Intas 39, 2720

The Stacks, early morning.

The girl had laughed, which Taniel took as a good sign. When she spoke, it was in a language that he didn't quite understand. He caught one or two words, and recognized it as Gioran. She spoke quickly, and well, and he only knew a few words that his father had taught him. He caught "thank you", but not much else. At least she seemed to have understood him, but they couldn't really have a conversation if he couldn't understand her. Thankfully, though, when next she spoke, it was in Estuan. His smile, which had faltered at the Gioran, came back full force.

"Leyanak," he repeated carefully. "It's nice to meet you."

He looked over at the hill she had just come down, watching as her companion ambled down the side. He turned his attention back to her. "Have you really never been sledding before?"

Antranig watched as Taniel and the young girl conversed, smiling faintly. The boy was quite good at making friends, very social, and chatted easily with just about anyone. He perked up as he heard the unmistakable sounds of the language of his homeland. His assumption was proven correct, and the girl was, indeed, Gioran. How strange, then, that she was here in the company of a man who was clearly Anaxi. Said man was making his way down the snow hill now, towards the children. Darcie didn’t move as the man approached, sitting obediently by her young master’s side, her tail wagging behind her and cutting a path through the snow.

Antra got to his feet, tucking his newspaper under his arm, as the man looked over to him. He began to make his way over as well. It would only be polite to properly introduce himself to both of the strangers now that the children were familiar. Darcie was the first to notice him, making her way over. He patted her head, and she followed him as he picked his way through the snow carefully, coming up on the group just as the girl gave a delighted squeal and voiced her desire to go down the hill again.

“Making friends, I see,” he said, placing his hand on his son’s shoulder before addressing the two strangers. “Good morning again, sir, miss.”

He gave a bow and a caprise, his soft field brushing the imposing wall of mona that was the other man’s ramscott. “I am Antranig Borna,” he said, his smile warm and friendly, “and this is my son, Taniel.”

Taniel gave a quick bow to the other man, remembering his manners. “Pleased to meet you, sir!” he said. Darcie resumed her place at his side, and he patted her head, which led her tail to wag with a bit more intensity. “This is Darcie. She’s also pleased.”

[Nauleth Siordanti]

39th of Intas, 2720
The Stacks | Early Morning

"No, I have not, Taniel." The once-priestess was obviously blushing, the pink color on her pigmentless, quartz-dusted cheeks growing darker than the sun and the cold had already kissed them with. Still obviously confused why the boy who resembled her couldn't speak Gioran, Leyenak smiled anyway when the boy returned her greeting, "I wasn't allowed to leave Qrieth—it's inside of a mountain, you know. Until, uh—until recently."

She tried her best not to sound haughty—she was far from the Temple and farther still from her position of power—but really she just came across flustered once she realized how much she hadn't seen and how much she hadn't done and how different it was here in Anaxas altogether.

Wrinkling her nose and attempting to pretend she knew exactly what she was doing as a child even if she'd never really felt like one, she eventually found her smile again once she felt the powerful weight of Nauleth's physical-laden field grow closer. It reminded her of her brother's, really, both Kaelum and Mister Siordanti belike in their magical and academic interests to the point that she understood why they quibbled so much—they were just too similar. It was humorous sometimes and annoying the rest of the time.

If the ginger professor at all felt a clenching uneasiness in his stomach at the loping gait of the large dog approaching himself and Leyanak, he did his clocking best to hide it. Maybe his eyes widened. Maybe he took a half step back. But, other than that, he did keep his welcoming expression while his heart fluttered against his sternum, nervous and afraid at some trauma that had been left behind months ago. Well, the scars remained—but still.

"Nice to meet you, Mister Borna. Taniel. And Darcie. I'm Nauleth Siordanti—"


"Professor Siordanti." The former Huane child next to him who was nearly as tall as the above-average height Anaxi interjected, grinning.

He smiled, nodding politely, catching himself from replying in Gioran almost out of instinct, much like his young passive ward. The albino girl did glance at him as if she thought she'd catch him in the act, but he chewed on the inside of his cheek for just a moment, keeping all hints of the language he now knew fluently from his Estuan greeting. He returned the caprise with well-practiced gentleness, not here to intimidate a dueling opponent or impress a stranger so much as simply enjoy the snowy day. His sense of control was admittedly for appearances only, the former duelist and rehabilitated troublemaker aware of his own weaknesses,

"Do you live in the neighborhood or did you just walk here for the fantastic hill?"

Leyanak reached for her their sled again and shoved it at Naul before he could get too far into normal, adult conversation, eager to go back up the snowy mound in question with Taniel for the sheer thrill of sliding back down.

"Were you going to carry this for me?"

Welcome to Brunnhold. Now go home.

[Antranig Borna]

Intas 39, 2720

The Stacks, early morning.

Darcie was a very obedient dog. Antranig had gotten her many years ago, when Taniel was just a toddler, after they had moved to Brunnhold. He had wanted the boy to have a companion other than his father. Finding one that was such a pure snowy white was a stroke of luck. He had liked the fact that she matched Taniel and himself, though her eyes were a piercing blue instead of red or pink. Though she surely wanted to impose herself on these new strangers, sniffing and demanding their attention, she sat at Taniel’s side and did not move, past fidgeting slightly. She was quite well trained. Part of that training had been to stick to Tan like glue, especially when they were out and about. When the boy had been younger, it was a method of ensuring he was safe and protected on the odd occasion he was left alone. It soothed Antranig’s nerves to know that even if he wasn’t with the boy, Darcie would do her level best to ensure no harm would come to him. Not that he expected harm to befall his son, but he did worry. Too much, he imagined.

He smiled as the man’s young charge corrected him. A professor, that would explain the imposing wall of a field that surrounded him. Antra would not be surprised to learn that he taught Physical conversation. He wore it like a shell. “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Professor Siordanti,” he replied. “We came for the hill. It’s a bit of a walk from home, but it is the best sledding hill in the city.”

He chuckled and added, “That’s one thing that hasn’t changed since I was a boy.”

He was about to say more before the young girl interrupted and asked the professor if he was going to carry her sled for her.

“I can help you pull it up if it’s too heavy,” Taniel offered. It didn’t look too much heavier than his own, but maybe it was. Maybe Leyanak wasn’t as strong as she looked. She was certainly taller than him, almost as tall as the man -- the professor, he reminded himself -- that she was with, but he supposed that didn’t really mean anything. He expected he’d be that tall soon. His father towered over all three of them, and Taniel had always fancied the idea that he'd be the one doing the towering someday.

[Nauleth Siordanti]

"Borna—you're not a professor that I recognize, but, then again, not everyone that lives in Brunnhold actually teaches there. Do you have a business, then?" Nauleth didn't miss that the other man'd said since he was a boy, nor did he miss the Gioran's lack of a strong accent. Perhaps it was because the young Siordanti had just spent way more of his time in Gior than he'd ever planned on or perhaps because his home was currently, literally, inescapably, full of other Giorans.

"It was not a short walk for us, either." Leyanak interjected with a red-cheeked smile. It was her own way of attempting to determine where these other Giorans were from; the former priestess might have even sounded wary for a brief moment, even if she did her best to smile at Taniel, "It is not heavy. I just—"

Called out a little on her own once-royal expectations, the young girl shifted uneasily on her feet for a moment, looking away from the other boy toward Naul. She did often make demands of the Anaxi, but he was a man, after all.

What else was he good for?

Here she was, surrounded by men. With a huff, she snatched her sled back, "—thank you, but—but—uh—nevermind. I will do it myself ... but only if we go together."

Offering the shyest of chagrined smiles at the other child, she immediately turned and began to navigate her way back up the hill, unwilling to be shown a weakling or a stranger.

The ginger professor, on the other hand, both longed to pet Darcie and also felt that writhing sense of caution crawl through his stomach like too many eels in a barrel. Something about how quadruped creatures moved, even if they weren't at all much like Hatchers, haunted him strangely. He tilted his head away to watch Leyanak with an almost parental smirk on his face, willingly relinquishing her sled and letting the passive go with a huff of steamy breath.

He could teach children, but that didn't mean he always understood them.

Especially not ... this one.

Grateful in a selfish and self-conscious sort of way that this Antranig Borna wasn't a professor and wouldn't be spreading gossip about Nauleth Siordanti taking a passive child sledding in the middle of Brunnhold-clocking-Anaxas, he let his smirk ease into a more casual smile and immediately said the first thing that came to mind in order to make conversation,

"I don't think anyone was expecting this much snow this year."

Oh gods. Godsdamnit. You really are a married man now.

Welcome to Brunnhold. Now go home.

[Antranig Borna]

Intas 39, 2720

The Stacks, morning.

Taniel’s face lit up as Leyanak insisted she would only go if they went together. He shifted his hold on his sled and nodded emphatically. “Of course!” he replied.

Antranig smiled as he watched his son take off after the girl. Darcie seemed to waffle for a moment between following the children or staying with him to see if she could wring some pats from this stranger, but ultimately she decided running through the snow was more fun and loped off after the children. Left by himself, standing in the snow with the professor, a stranger, he felt a bit awkward and at a loss for conversation before the young man brought up the most tried and true topic of small talk — the weather. He couldn’t help but chuckle quietly.

“Yes,” he replied, “we did get rather a lot quite suddenly, though I don’t expect it will be with us for too much longer. I promised Taniel I would close the shop today so we could come here and enjoy it while it lasts.”

He turned his head to watch as Leyanak and Taniel climbed up the hill, his expression shifting slightly. “He deserves to have a bit of fun. He’ll have much more to concern himself with than good sledding by this time next year.”

He hoped. He refused to acknowledge the gnawing pit of worry in his stomach that had settled itself in quite firmly since the new year. Taniel would be ten in only a few months, old enough to be tested, and — Gods willing — would be off to Brunnhold next spring. He was not looking forward to it, either the testing or the boy being away from home. They had scarcely been apart for more than a week’s time since coming to this city. He imagined Darcie would take it quite hard as well. Banders were not on the list of allowed school pets.

He shook off the morose turn his thoughts had taken, turned his attention back to the professor and smiled warmly. “Speaking of, which form do you teach, Professor Siordanti? Perhaps you’ll be seeing more of my boy, come next spring.”