With a full stomach, the wavy haired brunette leaned ’lazily’ against her ’fortress’ as they sat together on the Goltbred sitting room’s sofa. The cook had also been delighted by the young miss requesting his service the mont she returned - and prepared more at than was reasonable!
’I’m sorry for saying I was starving... but it was also good. Hurp~’
The worst part for her was the slow and inconspicuous rate of energy conversion, so that it wasn’t obvious that she was a Primalist to her parents. The things she did to remain their sweet, ’slight above average’ girl...
"I’m sure that your mind is mostly on a closer event, but have you given any thoughts on joining the competition?"
Ondua tried to gloss over the wedding. Normally his daughter would ’punish’ him for that, but she left it alone. For now. She would savor bringing it up constantly starting tomorrow!
"I don’t know... maybe as event staff?"
The spiritualist noted the ruffle in her sitting support. As though a slight ’hope’ had been dashed. It distressed the smaller party enough to try and quickly explain in a roundabout way
"I don’t really like fighting and I wouldn’t want for our family na to lose."
Her choice of words only made the ruffle worse! Her eyes turned up towards the one making it so *hard* on her. Pigeon blue matched with the return to her black hair t the searching look.
’What was wrong?!’
"But...uhm... uh..."
"We can talk another ti, El. I’m fine with what you want."
The Yecine knew that it was because of her uncontrolled reactions that those mint colored eyes were shaking with uncertainty. The taller girl leaned down after she spoke and planted a short kiss on the edge of forehead and scalp. This caused Yatrel to chuckle aloud.
"You’re certainly a lot more comfortable around us than you used to be. I’ll have to let Onya know when she grows up who owes her so thanks, Elua."
While one’s spiritual sense moved across the estate and checked on the once more sleeping child, the other shook ’his’ head. She knew the woman was just teasing her daughter, but the premise had a major fault.
"Both of you are... also the reason. You’ve always treated kindly and were more than accommodating when I needed it. Thank you."
Hearing that her Qat had *needed* sothing while she wasn’t around to provide it irked the illusionist. Her eyes ticked towards the set of parents with a bit of possessive jealousy radiating in them.
"Dear, I’ve told you that thanking us isn’t necessary. While it’s not good to take people for granted, making them feel too special just for acting like themselves feels unnatural... especially among family."
"Yes. At least look a little less formal when you say it or else it feels like you owe us. We don’t want you to think of us like that."
Seeing the pair treating her husband-wife even better than before she left slightly confused the reborn cultivator... but stomped out the jealousy. She knew her father was ridiculously friendly to the point he could be tricked by bad people (like a rascal daughter). The girl also knew her mother was fiercely protective of those she was loyal to, with Ondua being far at the top of that list.
’I... I didn’t think they would actually care for Qat this much. Though I’d hoped it would co eventually after the wedding...’
She could feel it in their spirits and see the shy tendril or two that wanted to move away from her ’fortress’ in their direction. Knowing at least a little that the tall girl would tell her about her family environnt, seeing her begin to truly gain a set of warm parents made the brunette *emotional*.
"Then maybe I should be thanking you."
Her monotonous voice and apathetic gaze scanned the pair of ’older’ cultivators. She hadn’t known that today would be the one that her father might get a taste of her *real* self twice. Then again, she also hadn’t had a static ho and parents to return to like this...
"Thank you, Dad. Thank you, Mom. I don’t know what happened yet because I’ve been trying to be your ’good’ daughter - and not sequester myself in a room with my fiance to ask all the questions I have. Whatever it was, the result is clear. Thank you for treating Qatrand so well in my absence."
The brunette stood and curtsied in a formal manner before turning her eyes down to the floor. Now that she said her heart, she needed to help control the situation just a little.
"If you haven’t already told him, then maybe later you can try and explain in your words what... is happening right now."
"I know what it is, don’t worry. Do you think I was so unobservant earlier when you were holding Onya?"
It was a good thing that her face couldn’t display her real thoughts at the mont.
"I told him about everything when you left, just in case you abandoned your training and ca back to kidnap your Qatrand."
Elua felt this was entirely reasonable. She might have had complaints if she didn’t just show her own hand, but as it was it helped! Hearing for the second ti the worrying phrase ’kidnap’, the swordswoman cleared her throat.
"Why do you keep saying that word?"
"Oh, I’m sorry. Were you keeping that part hidden, dear?"
The one whose facade had not taken hold quite yet opened her mouth, then closed it.
’Technically yes, but I did imply at one point that her acceptance of my *owning* her wasn’t needed...’
"I don’t know what she is talking about."
She spoke raspily knowing full well that two of them would know it was a lie!
"Alright, we’ll talk about that later as well. Co sit back down."
As slightly concerned over the term as she was, the Yecine was prepared to let it slide... as long as the cute girl returned to being physically close. The ride in the carriage had been comforting to that need she felt from weeks ago, but being apart while El held her sister and ate had only made it obvious that it hadn’t been enough.
"Well, the unspoken plans of our eldest aside, you fully intended to join the competition at the Descent Festival, correct?"
The black haired ’young man’ nodded to the mint eyed woman at the sa ti the smaller version holding those sa colored orbs was getting comfortable on her side once more. The shifting one paused for a mont when noticing a sharp spike of ’pain’ in the sword wielder’s spirit. Her own brushed heavily at hers with ’anxiety’ and ’preservation’.
The face on Qatrand was calm as she reached a hand over and rubbed Elua’s full stomach, in an attempt to calm the predator so ready to growl at the world around them. She didn’t want for her unintended reaction to their words to make anyone else knowledgeable about *that* side of her.
Ondua took it as his turn to clear his throat, trying vainly to dissuade their behavior. He knew that soday it would be ’worse’, and that they would do the things that would probably lead to that stomach... protruding for a *different reason*, but that didn’t an he had to see things that brought it to mind. She was still his little girl!
A hand grabbed at the back of his neck in reproach before the wife spoke mysteriously, but loud enough for everyone in the room to hear.
"By the way, I know sothing you don’t know, husband."
"O-oh? What is that my love?"
She squinted with a knowing smile. It was news she’d been waiting to share with their eldest around, so that she would see the man’s reaction.
"The identity of the master of ceremonies for the festivities for our particular multi-regional event. It’s soone you admire very, very much - to my constant annoyance."
"The Frozen Duskblade is going to be there!?"
The man jumped up from his seat in excitent, but he... was not the only one! While one mint eyed woman watched her partner with exasperation, a mint eyed girl looked on at the Yecine in betrayal as she fell sideways onto the forr’s spot. She had just been told to sit back down a minute ago and then-
"She is?! Really? You aren’t making it up, are you?"
With just as much fervor as the brunette man, the tall girl was standing and asking the woman. Yatrel turned her attention and saw how her information had caused more chaos than she intended. Her face beca sympathetic to her daughter, knowing what it was like to have her partner be a sincere fan of *another woman*... even if it was rely due to the fa of that person in combat.
"No, I’m not joking, dear. The Earthen Fellowship received a build request for the event that was signed and stamped by Corde hez Iralev herself. She wanted a warehouse of sorts... I imagine for storing ice based on its design."
"I have to start sending letters. They’ve been so hesitant to co and see Onya, but this should get them here at least around that ti!"
The hero of the last war *danced* in place before sprinting out of the room, leaving a wife that knew exactly what he ant, a daughter that had a small suspicion, and a ’son-in-law’ that didn’t really care what he just said because ’his’ eyes were still filled with stars. As a young sword user, Qat was enamored with all of the famous wielders of heirloom blades.
The Yecine family’s own had been useless for many generations, but the Duskblade that belonged to the Iralev house had ’written’ stories during that ti. Especially the past three, after the then adopted youth beca the next wielder and carved her way through three Descents. If the Goltbred had been ’lucky’ and well supported in his assault, Corde was one who rushed alone into the invader strongholds and made a path to their leaders almost entirely on her own skill.
Frowning visibly at the teenager that was so covered in ’admiration’, the reborn cultivator shifted targets to the mother who suddenly wouldn’t et her gaze directly. Shows of sympathy could only last so long when you were *probably* about to be made out to be the enemy.
"Is he trying to get the Talcres husband and wife to co and visit still?"
"Yes. Your father is stubborn, you know. They were around before the last war and made a special trip to see you, so he feels like they should repeat themselves."
The mother tilted her head and placed her thumb on her temple.
"It’s not that I disagree. I would love to catch up with them, but I understand why they wouldn’t want to co just to visit another child of ours. It was already pushing it that we wanted them to be happy for us with you."
Logically, Elua shouldn’t have been able to rember what she was talking about. However, since she was quite a bit more ’intelligent’ as an infant, she did recall the conversations that her two parents had around that ti. They were about a childless set of husband and wife, whose imdiate family situation looked otherwise perfect on the outside - while being quite strained in private.
’Forcing that man to look at Onya with the sa sad eyes as he used on ... my father may be friendly, but he really is heartless sotis.’
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