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 Posted: Thu Sep 06, 2018 8:18 pm
 Avalon stood in front of the portal nervously, wringing his hands. He hadn't been home for more than a weekend in months and he was starting to seriously feel the homesickness. This civilisation was awful - he missed spending all his time in nature, observing the different flora and playing his harp. Taking a deep breath, he stepped into the portal, appearing at one of the edges of the city. His father said he'd meet him here to take him home, as he'd always done, but this time felt more of a homecoming than normal. He was hoping to convince his father to simply let him stay and not send him back to the Academy, feeling like anything he was learning there didn't make up for his feeling of isolation. "Unless Ten gets to him first," Sabera mumbled bitterly, suspecting his other father would be far less easy to sway.
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Posted: Thu Sep 06, 2018 9:57 pm
 Avalon was always happy when Sabera came home. He wanted to make sure the boy was doing well. Had he made any friends? What new things did he learn? Sabera waited at the portal, looking around. As soon as he saw the boy, Avalon wasted no time in reaching out to him and scooping the boy up in his arms. "Hello my little bear!" He hugged him tightly in his huge arms. "I have missed you." The hybrid smiled at him. Though, as he looked at the child, it seemed as though maybe he wasn't... very happy.
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Posted: Thu Sep 06, 2018 10:50 pm
Sabera's dark thoughts were immediately lifted when he saw his father. Eyes and face lighting up, he let out a joyful giggle as Avalon lifted him in his large arms. His comforting words and warm smile reached all the way to the freshling's heart, making him ache even more to stay with him, to turn his vacation into a permanent stay. "I have missed you too, my father," he responded genuinely, looking into Avalon's face with a soft smile. "Tell me all is well and the same at home, I have longed for the forest again." He had been part of society for a while now, but the formality still hadn't seemed to leave his speech mannerisms. Just another thing that made him stand out at the Academy, another reason he couldn't go back.
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Posted: Thu Sep 06, 2018 11:31 pm
"Indeed." He shifted his hold on the boy to hold the freshling on his hip. "Though there's a new nest that I think will be hatching soon. I can't wait to show you." He kissed the boy's forehead as they started walking away from the portal, heading back into the wilderness where Avalon was most comfortable. "I can't wait to hear what you've learned this week." He loved going over Sabera's lessons with him, and seeing what homework he brought home. Avalon was so... so very proud of the boy.
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Posted: Fri Sep 07, 2018 1:34 am
Sabera felt more at home being carried by his father than he ever could at the Academy, watching the approaching forest with eager eyes. Hearing his father mention a nest, he pictured the various wildlife living in the forest, hoping to find some of the more recognisable animals he had observed in the years - he wondered if the vixen he'd seen every year would return once more, perhaps with new pups in tow. "That sounds wonderful!" he exclaimed, "There aren't nearly as many animals near the Academy, father... the civilised folk scare them away." Sabera always tried to paint the Academy and its people as negative when he spoke to Avalon, but he knew the hybrid saw through him.
"I rarely learn anything of value," he grumbled in response to Avalon's comment. It wasn't true, of course; Sabera particularly liked learning about other cultures that he didn't even know existed before he went to the Academy. Most of his other classes, on the other hand, seemed rather pointless to him. Remembering something that had interested him, however, he looked up at his father, "Father, did you hear of the new species? What started as farmed animals have become sentient creatures - Slimefolk!" He exclaimed. Sabera suspected his father knew everything but it was possible this recent news hadn't reached his ears yet.
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Posted: Fri Sep 07, 2018 1:31 pm
"Now now little bear..." Avalon smiled. "Remember, the larger animals often scare off the smaller ones. It isn't just people." Soon, a slightly modified cave came into view. Ten and Avalon had put in quite a bit of work to make the cave warm and dry, and there were what Ten called 'creature comforts' as well. There were beds to raise everyone off the cool floor, and warm blankets with soft pillows. There was also an assortment of cooking pots and a fire pit. It was far from what city folk called 'habitable' but for Avalon it was perfect. Even Ten seemed ok with the state of things, even though the elf/fallen much preferred city living. "Mmmh, so you don't learn much at all then?" Avalon asked as they entered their home and gently set his son down. "All knowledge has value, even if it is not something you use daily." He gently tapped Sabera's nose. "I prepared some snacks for your homecoming." There was a cloth spread on the ground with some covered plated so they could have a picnic. "Now, what is this about slimes? You say they've evolved into a new race?" He had heard something about it from Ten, but even he didn't have much information on it. "Have you made friends with any of them? It sounds fascinating." He sat down and invited Sabera to join him, lifting the plate coverings to reveal many of Sabera's favorite snacks. "Come, tell me what you've learned."
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Posted: Fri Sep 07, 2018 6:48 pm
Sabera simply sighed in return to his father's comment. He may be right, but even the larger animals don't stray too close to civilisations. 'Maybe they should... it would benefit from a population decrease.' He thought cruelly. Still, his thoughts couldn't help but turn brighter when the cave - his home - came into view. Every week when he returned it was a whole new magical experience as memories of his young childhood flooded into his mind. He could hear the sounds of wildlife perfectly now, no interruption from passing carriages or crowds of people. Here, one could truly meditate and reflect on their environment without feeling rushed. It was home. Now all he needed was to find his Bunyip, Aurum.
"I do learn, father. I just don't see the use of mathematics and sciences," he explained. After all, what use do subjects like that have in nature or creativity. Sabera scrunched up his face lovingly at Avalon's touch, and eagerly sat down at the prepared area. His father always knew how to cheer him up and the freshling always made sure to take some homemade food with him when he returned to the Academy. He began to reach for some snacks but stopped when his father asked him more questions of the Slimes. There were few things Sabera loved more than sharing new information. "There are only a few at the Academy right now," he began somewhat hesitantly, trying to dodge the issue of makings friends, "We're told those Freshlings from the farm are the only ones, but it seems there was a whole community of them living in the wild. Like us, father! I wonder if they ever roam near here.."
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Posted: Fri Sep 07, 2018 8:27 pm
"Mmmmh, perhaps as you get older, you will learn how these skills can benefit you, even out here." Avalon smiled as Sabera sat down and reached for the snacks. "A community of them? That's fascinating. If they lived in large numbers, I would have thought they'd have been discovered before now. Unless they only evolved recently..." Avalon got a smile on his face. "Sabera, you should learn more about them. Then perhaps we can go looking for them together; see if they do live around here or not. I would like to invite one in for snacks... wouldn't you?"
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Posted: Sat Sep 08, 2018 5:52 pm
Sabera wanted to retort and ask how Avalon used math out here, but quickly bit his tongue. When did he get so presumptuous that he would sass his father? 'A disturbing habit picked up from the Academy, no doubt.' He convinced himself. Listening to his father's ponderings, Sabera tried to recall the other small amounts of information he had heard about Slimes; a professor from one of the universities had come and told them about the new culture. "It was recent, father. Something to do with the war the savag- civilisations had," he explained, trying to quickly gloss over the mistake he slipped out - Avalon never appreciated him calling the city-dwellers savages. "It left magic, and the magic helped them evolve... I believe."
When his father suggest he learn more, Sabera couldn't deny it immediately grabbed his interest. Learning about other cultures and peoples was one of the freshling's favourite points of study, but inviting an outsider here... "Yes, father. I suppose I can seek out the freshlings at the Academy," he mused. The only other real avenue would be talking to that university professor - Clare, was it? - and seeing if she knew any communities in the area. Regardless, Sabera pulled himself away from these ideas and grabbed another snack. The Slimes could wait, he wanted to spend more time alone with his father - this father.
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