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Queen thanked him for the bacon and Surtr merely dipped his head softly accepting her praise and happy to pay her handsomely for her assistance. "It's the least I can do. It'll be nice to have someone watching my back for a change." Surtr said softly, he was sure to not sugar coat their journey but he wouldn't attempt to scare her family either. After all he did need queen and she seemed plenty capable. "Your wife insists on addressing me as such, she knows I don't much enjoy the title and does it to mock me. I am by no means an excellence." He said attempting to prevent Queen from joining in on the fun making. The last thing he wanted was for her to join in on this cruel running joke Misty had. When Queen mentioned his curse he turned to her and nodded. "Progress does not come without sacrifice." He said rather plainly. He knew the cross her bore he would not hide who he was or what had happened though he would conclusively draw the lines of what occurred. Surtr was redefining what was conceived and as most who try to reach the stars he bit off more than he could chew and now he accepted the consequences.

The little pup spoke up mentioning she wished to see some magic. Surtr smiled softly unable to resist such a cute request. He knelt down and scooped up some dirt cupping it in both hands. "Are you watching closely?" He inquired softly and playfully intentionally drawing the little one in. His lavender eyes peered at her waiting for her intention to be on him. Once it was he would bend over slightly so that the dirt cupped in his hand was around 6 inches from Snow and Misty's face. Surtr would blow gently on the soil and within a few moments a sprout would wriggle from the dirt growing into a bud. A few moments later that bud bloomed into a beautiful blue rose. Surtr moved his left hand to take the rose and give it to snow. There were no thorns on the rose stem and its blue color contrasted wonderfully with the white snow that had begun to fall. "Magic, at your service." He said with a playful smile glancing to Misty as if to brag a bit with his look.

Then came Misty, sassy and defiant as ever. She insisted upon calling him Excellence which meant Surtr would stop trying to deter her from it and just accept the title. As she spoke of Surtr having a soft spot for Queen and Surtr shrugged. "I tend to be fond of all those within the town.... though as of right now Snow is my favorite." He said winking to the child. If Surtr was being honest he would have had likely just as much fun with just Snow.

She paused and inquired about the position and Surtr smiled playfully obviously excited that her piqued her interest. "As I said before a specialist with potions is very rare to come by. I'm unsure if the discipline is difficult or it just doesn't attract many practitioners but either way you are quite the commodity." Surtr said beginning to explain his train of thought, he was scrupulous in his diction picking his words carefully so that he would at least sway Queen. With both present he knew if he swayed one he could likely sway the other. "I have been working on a side project, something to improve Karst. The land here despite the fertile volcanic soil is harsh and unsuitable for most plants." Surtr said taking a step back now realizing he was still a bit close to Misty and Snow from his little display of magic from before.

"I have been designing a greenhouse, it has taken quite some time to find the right area and so on but I am about to finish it. The only trouble is I have no one to take care of it once it is set up. You being a potions expert are very familiar with all the plants inside, their needs, when they are ready to be harvested, and how to do so without destroying the plant." He said concluding the idea of the job. It seemed like a golden idea to him. Not dangerous, giving her access to all the ingredients she could ever want, and best of all she was around so much life in such a desolate place.

"I'm sure you want to talk about compensation and such, Karst is willing to pay you for your work and with it being a pivotal position so necessary for the college and our land that I imagine it should be satisfactory." He said openly conceding that she would be able to reasonably name her price with no problem. He stood waiting looking between the three wondering if they would like to discuss or just accept the offer outright.

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Snow would giggle as her mother lifted her up and nuzzled her nose against her. Yush I wanna try magic!! She cheered, knowing she had to be good and wait till they were home to do so. Her ears perked when she said she found a ribbon for her, one that was lovely. Oh Give me give me She held her hands out in a grabbing manner. She loved gifts and ones that made her pretty was one of her favorites, next to stuff animals of course. The pups attention shifted to Surtr and she watched him with her big yellow eyes. They grew bigger as a bud formed than a flower as blue as the sky Pretty... She took the flower and stared at it in awe.

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Queen seemed unsure what an archmage was and Surtr merely pointed at himself. "Me, there's only one archmage and that person is tasked with protecting Karst as well as ensuring the progression of magic. I am the archmage" He said hoping his explanation was clear. He wasn't sure how else to describe it. He wasn't a king and would steer clear of trying to explain the difference between an oligarchy and a monarchy. "It will most certainly be interesting. You've claimed to clear a bunch of dungeons so I'm intrigued to see it in action." He said playfully as if teasing her a bit to say that it would be nice to see her back up her talk.

She called him a showoff and Surtr chuckled before batting it away. "Making a flower is hardly showing off. I could do far more if I wanted." He said glancing to her almost daring her to tempt him to show a glimpse of his capabilities. "Well she should stop by the college sometime. I'm always happy to fan flames no matter how small they are." He said referring to snows young age and demeanor. It didn't matter to him he could show her the wonders of the world all she needed was a desire to learn. Which it seemed she had.

As she took the flower and smiled Surtr seemed to light up a bit excited that she enjoyed the trick. He normally wasn't one to do such things but for a child he would do just about anything. The hard sell came next Misty being a stickler asked about the schedule which cause Surtr to chuckle his grin widening. That was it? The only stipulation she had? Wonderful. "I care not of the hours you work so long as the job is accomplished." He said looking to her intently. He meant what he said, if she could perform her upkeep in 4 hours then she only needed to work 4 hours. Surtr cared not, he didn't wish to work her like a slave he merely needed someone he trusted. Despite the playful tension between the two Surtr knew if she accepted she wouldn't fail him. Else she would be helplessly teased for the rest of her time here. Something Surtr would enjoy should the opportunity arise.

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"I Just wanna be as awesome and pretty as you are mommy She responded back towards Misty while making cute noises from the petting. She ate the last of her apple before looking at the three as they talked about who knows what but the little pup did understand some of what they were talking about. The big man was saying something along the lines of a job for her mother as well as some college she could visit, probably a mage college which had the pup all excited. Me want to go... me want to go She cheered, giggling.

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Surtr smirked looking back to Queen as she teased him. "I'll admit the forbidden magic part was before I took up this role. Though yes often times in order to progress you must push the boundaries, and typically boundaries are what is off limits." Surtr said in rebuttal informing her that his job actually mandated him to perform such magic. It only made sense considering he was the one who oversaw all magic he had to decide what was allowed and what wasn't.

"Quick and efficient? Wonderful. I could always use efficiency. I'm sure we'll breeze through this dungeon then." Surtr said with a smile turning back to snow and listening to her speak of her mother. Then talking about how she wished to go, what an exuberant little girl. Surtr would certainly make an effort to ensure this little kit got the knowledge she needed.

Then came Misty, the hard sell. Surtr had laid out his terms and now waited to see what she would say. His pupil less eyes watched her and as she blushed her smiled rather deviously. "My my Misty, better be careful blushing like that. Hard to find you so rigid and intimidating with such a cute hue of pink about those cheeks." He said gently poking her nose in the process. He couldn't help but press his advantage she was flustered at least somewhat and Surtr couldn't allow such an opportunity to slip from his fingers.

Then she suddenly shifted, her disposition, her smile, all of it took a turn and Surtr could only infer it meant some idea had crept up into that devious mind of hers. She took a few steps closer even being so bold as to lean against Surtr. When she mentioned her final stipulation Surtr smiled brightly before scooping Snow out of her arms and holding her in his now. He would be warm and soft his feathers and skin likely being far more comfortable than the clothing Misty wore. "Snow can accompany you to work, though if you'd like me to watch her I will happily accept." He said looking down brightly at the little fox. "We can get into all kinds of magical mischief.." He whispered to her a very playful and soft tone in his words. Unlike what the two would have seen from Surtr. Though the way he held her, the way he spoke to Snow, all of it spoke experience as if Surtr had gone through this process before.

Truth was Surtr had, he had a daughter. Few knew the connection but his actions seemed to scream that he had done this before. After a few moments of adoration for the little ball of energy in his arms he looked up to misty. "So I am to be in charge of this one until your wife and I depart? Are you sure you wish to leave her in my arms? Sounds like we'll be flying a lot and doing a lot of magic." Surtr said intentionally naming fun tasks as if to entice Snow to join his side.

It seemed everything was going according to plan. Surtr was very excited now, he didn't get to enjoy his own daughters childhood. Perhaps he could enjoy this ones.

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Snow would begin to play with the seam of her dress as the three continued to talk about work and daycare, stuff she did not care to hear. She was however excited that someday she would be able to go to the college, that if her mother does not forget by the time she was eligible to attend or visit that is. She lifted her head from the seams of her dress when Surtr whispered something to her. She giggled in response before kicking her feet back and forth.

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As Queen spoke Surtr merely nodded. "Correct, I'm sure this dungeon will give us little issue. The two of us seem quite capable." Surtr said confirming Queens thoughts as well as preemptively stifling any worries Misty may have. When Queen mentioned Misty being able to experiment Surtr nodded yet again. "I did forget didn't I? You will have access to all the ingredients within reason. Besides what the college needs which isn't too much the rest is yours to distribute as you see fit. I would recommend some to traders to bolster the economy a bit but overall you have full autonomy over this area." Surtr said enlightening Misty to the fact that this was to be her domain and not even Surtr could command her otherwise. So long as she respected the area and maintained the growth that is.

As the pup in his arms kicked her legs about with excitement Surtr chuckled softly. "We will explore the college together my little snowflake and see what piques your interest.... who knows maybe we will discover what your first magic shall be and teach you a few tricks to mess with your mommies." Surtr said with a playful smirk enjoying the notion of giving such a rambunctious little creature some magical tools for mischief. "We can go flying too if you like. High above Karst we can soar, riding the winds throughout this land." He said perhaps getting a bit carried away but Misty had said he was to watch her so Surtr intended to fill the child's mind with wonder.

As Misty dispelled his notion predictably so Surtr merely shrugged. "Suit yourself." He said with a playful smile unaffected by her little tease. In truth Surtr could very well be a risk. He was a mage who knew so much about magic that perhaps leaving a child with him wasn't the right choice. Regardless she had already agreed and Surtr wouldn't allow her to go back on the deal. As Misty and Queen seemed to have a brief moment of romance Surtr would ignore the duo giving them some brief privacy. Misty would return her attention to Surtr insisting upon using that title, it no longer affected the man he knew her little trick and she'd have to shake it up if she still wished to get a rise out of him. Repeating the condition of their deal Surtr nodded in agreement. "Then it is settled. Your area of work should be finished soon. Then you may begin work at your leisure." Surtr said with a smirk glancing back to Queen. "You and I got the better end of the bargain." He said in a teasing tone, those the jest was aimed at Misty not Queen. He could tell she was a bit jealous and dammit he just couldn't help but rub it in a little whenever Misty was around. She just brought that side out of him.

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Snow just smiled at the ideas Surtr suggested to her. The thought of learning things that would help mess with her parents and even fly sounded so wonderful to the young pup. She could only imagine the hassle she would cause her parents with such talent the man was speaking of. The young pup continued to rock her feet back in forth as she went into deep thought on whatever kids would think about. For her, it was stuff animals and food.

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