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 Posted: Fri Oct 13, 2023 12:39 pm
Zev 4
"Put it in the vase; the flowers are fake anyway. Don't tell Mama, but Papa overwatered the last ones." Zev shifted to the edge of his seat and hopped down, holding his little arms out to his sides for balance. Most days it was just a dramatic little thing that brought a smile to his face, and when he needed the boost it was a way to keep him grounded in a happier moment. Grabbing the last bits of his meal, Zev motioned for Yona to follow him toward the window.
'The vase' as a pretty little thing that kids were definitely not supposed to touch. Papa said it was because if they broke it the glass was so thin it might cut them bad and he wouldn't be able to get all of it out. Zev thought it wasn't like that, though. He saw the way his Papa had beamed when one of his clients gave it to him and how much he cherished the piece. It was fancy, a lot fancier than any vase Zev had ever seen, and normally he would just look at it.
Any plant that went into it died, though...which was why Papa always touched it's stem in the morning, giving a little bit of magic to help it. Zev reached for the stem, just as he'd seen Papa do hundreds of times before, and lifted it up. Then he motioned for Yona to come over, "Quick, drop it in the bottom. Papa can just magic it away with all the extra water and no one will know."
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Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2023 10:58 am
(5/7)
Nim hated to see his husband distressed. If he could just... pretend to have noticed, he would have; but Callum was painfully good at hiding when he wasn't feeling his best, and for it to become so obvious was concerning. Of course, Nimueh conceded that him jumping on Callum to explain himself the one time he DID show his emotions was probably not a good thing, but he just - he just!!
He wanted to help. And, thankfully, Callum was forthcoming in explaining what happened. It had never crossed Nimueh's mind, not once, until Callum said it - and then his eyes widened in realization.
"Having Aishan eyes probably made it easier. It was different enough." Nimueh said, softly, taking a moment to dotingly card some flyaway silver hairs behind Callum's ear. "... We can play with some things, see if we can make it better." He considered for a long moment, then offered a small, sad smile. Maybe makeup? Although, he didn't want to force Callum to stare into her eyes as he applied eyeshadow for her...
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2023 11:10 am
(5/7) "Really?" Yona looked up from her attempts to shuffle the glass over to watch Zev land with a bounce, giggling in delight. She wanted to try it too, but getting down with the glass would be hard enough, and she didn't know if she'd feel like climbing back up into her chair twice. So, she continued to move the glass over, transferring it to the chair next to her as she clambered down out of the chair.
She spilled a bit as she walked over, but did so largely with success - dumping the glass into the vase, while managing NOT to clink it against the fragile ceramic.
"What about the mess YOU made?" Yona asked, a bit obnoxiously, flashing her eyes towards the mess of oatmeal he'd dropped on the floor under the table.
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Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2023 1:27 pm
Callum 5
"...Probably..." He murmured, flinching despite the all too familiar touch of his husband's fingers. Catching himself in the act, Callum grit his teeth and tried to release some of the tension with an exhale which very obviously did nothing of the sort.
"You can't tell Ygraine. Promise me you won't." There was absolutely no way that his daughter could know. She had enough worries on her heart without him adding another. "It's not Yona's fault." It was his own. That cursed blood had passed through him.
He stayed quiet for a few long moments just to get his breathing under control and his mind in order. Once Callum had sufficiently calmed, he turned his eyes up to Nimueh with a tired smile. "Come, we shouldn't leave them for long. We can...work on the particulars later." And, without waiting for Nimueh's leave, Callum strengthened himself, gathered up their presents, and waited for his husband to join him on the way back to the kitchen.
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Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2023 1:33 pm
Zev 5
"Stop bringing it up and we won't have to worry about it!" Zev hissed, his little cheeks puffed up with a flash of color. "I can't fix everything! We don't have time." Their grandfathers would be back any minute now, and if they were caught they'd be in even bigger trouble than they would have been if they'd just left the plates alone!
Zev adjusted the flowers just so back in the vase, marveling a little at the weird way they shuffled in the glass now that it was fully of ooey gooey oatmeal before deeming it satisfactory. He gave Yona a bright smile, one that actually managed to give some light to his eyes, before jolting. The door to the other room was opening!
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Posted: Mon Nov 13, 2023 6:17 pm
(6/7)
There was a moment where Nim wanted to pull his hand away, to correct for making his husband blanch in the first place. But he remained stoic, not letting his face betray more of his worry. He finished the motion of brushing at Callum's hair, then pulled his hand back, waiting as his love got his emotions under control again.
"Of course, I promise." Nimueh rumbled quietly, turning his face away so his husband could recover in peace. Of course it wasn't Yona's fault. But... Nimueh had also long struggled to understand Callum's concerns when it came to bringing more children into the world with his bloodline. Thoughts of 'cursed blood' didn't plague him, only the knowledge that it must be painful to see the eyes of someone who had hurt you so badly, passed along to an innocent grandchild.
As for leaving the kids alone - Nimueh, blinded as we was for love and doting towards his sick grandchildren, had completely failed to clock on to their mischief. He expected them to still be sitting like little angels when they returned - a foolish thought, considering how chaotic the rest of their family was.
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2023 12:20 am
(6/7) Yona's nose wrinkled in distaste at the sight of the food in the vase, but she would trust her clever brother on this one. It was better than getting another serving of breakfast. She stuck her tongue out at him in response, huffing with a petulant roll of her eyes (rolling her eyes was her favorite thing to do, it never failed to annoy her mother since she couldn't roll her OWN eyes--). She eventually smiled back once Zev had calmed down and finished fixing up the flowers.
'course - by the time the two noticed the adults returning, Yona was sure it was far too late. That didn't stop her from jumping and hurrying back to their seats, clambering up into it with the difficulty of the tiny thing she was, primping her hair in a last ditch effort to appear nonchalant.
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Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2023 3:56 pm
Zev 6
Getting back into his chair quickly and 'casually' was a hard task for Zev. By the time he'd pulled himself up into the seat the little thing was barely covering a wheeze by pinching his lips closed and sweat had popped out along his skin. So long as he didn't cough then he'd be fine - Oh, but the more he tried to cover it the more it started to bubble up -
And of course by the time his Grandfathers entered the room one had slipped out. He was quick to cover his mouth with his hands, doing his best to keep it to one cough and not a whole round. His effort left him with tears in the corners of his eyes, but Zev was mostly successful and that's all the really cared about.
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Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2023 4:06 pm
Callum 6
"Were you both good while we were go-?" Callum's false smile dropped when he caught sight of Zev's cough. It was small enough that he didn't immediately panic - not like he had when the children had been infants - but he did keep an eye on him. The other went to Yona and for the first time he actually looked at her face. As much as he wanted to avoid those eyes if she were getting sick then he needed to know.
"This one's for you, Yona," Callum held out a wrapped bundle to his granddaughter. It was wrapped in a flurry of silks and fabrics, each as bright and varied as the last, with a golden ribbon keeping it all together. "And maybe we should have some tea after our breakfast?" He turned toward Nimueh. Maybe some of the herbal tea just to make sure Ygraine didn't come back home to a scene.
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Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2023 5:23 pm
(7/7)
They were both children, so instead of fixing her brother with a concerned or worried look when he coughed (or worse, the heartbroken sad-eyes their parents tended to look at them with), she nudged him under the table with her leg to get him to HUSH-- despite the fact he was trying his best already!
Thankfully, their grandfathers didn't rush over in a flurry of concern today. Instead, NOW Callum was peering at her, as if trying to figure her out. Immediately she put on the most innocent look she could, blinking at him, sitting primly straight in her seat. She was pink cheeked and a bit breathless from running to her chair, but had fared better in that she wasn't wheezing or coughing because of their antics.
"For me? Thank you, gram-pa" She might have bounced in her seat, if she wasn't feeling tired, but that didn't stop her eyes from glittering with excitement as he presented a beautiful bundle. She was no stranger to fine things, thanks to her father... but because of the way they lived, he'd also instilled in her a healthy appreciation for these nice things. So she touched the silks with reverence, tugging the ribbon with great anticipation, then gasped in delight when, inside, she found a beautiful dress. It was a little big - but it was probably better than something too tiny, right?
"It's so pretty! Can I go put it on? Can I--" She stopped, blushing, and instead looked at her brother, trying her best to be patient as he received his gift too.
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2023 5:35 pm
(7/7) What on earth had they been up to? Nimueh lingered behind Callum as his husband moved closer to the kiddos, but after a moment he forced himself to dismiss it. The two looked like well behaved angels, and what mischief would they get up to in a tiny room? They'd even finished their breakfasts! Poor Zev though - had they pushed him too far?
"Tea. Of course." He set Zev's present aside for a moment to go set the kettle on, during which Yona excitedly opened her own gift. It had been a gamble, since they were never sure how big the kids would get while they were gone, but... well. Nimueh had never been able to deny the daughters of their family pretty things. (Or the sons, as Morain and Casimir could attest).
"I hope it's to your liking." Nimueh said, warmly, as he passed the wrapped bundle to his grandson. It was more boxlike than Yona's gift had been, a bit bigger but not ridiculously so. It was tied with a matching gold ribbon to Yona's gift.
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Posted: Wed Nov 15, 2023 6:03 am
Zev 7
A little part of Zev was miffed that he didn't get his present immediately, but his little coughing stint had caused his nose to go sniffly and he was taking care of that. That look though from Yona caused his nose to scrunch up, a little bit of snot dribbling down and completely ruining his entire 'put out' look.
Seeing Yona's excitement over her dress though made it a little better. She looked so happy....buuuut that also just made him all the more eager to get to his gift! He made eager reachy fingers towards it when his grandbaba handed it over, but then there was the tea. One quick, hasty sip and he had it!
"Thank yooou!" Manners were first! He opened the box eagerly and squealed when he saw what was inside. It was a book, written entirely in yaeli, with a cover that had been decorated in iridescent scales. When he opened it there were depictions of mountains, volcanoes and strange worlds. He couldn't read Yaeli just yet, but Zev knew enough to make out the title, "A....collection of...flora and f-faun? ...fauna...Wait I missed one...oh! This one says legendary! Legendary flowers, Yona!"
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Posted: Wed Nov 29, 2023 7:58 am
"Of course you can." Callum gave into a chuckle and exhaled. It was all so very conflicting and he doubted his next meeting with Yona would go any smoother. There was just too much trauma associated with those eyes for him to push past it, even if it was for the sake of his granddaughter, but Callum would try. Or...maybe he wouldn't. He was good at faking things, had come to be a master of it even, and if he could keep those feelings buried deep until he no longer walked this plane then wouldn't that be enough?
He'd faced enough in his lifetime and digging through the past sounded as distasteful now as it did then. So long as he could keep that smile on her face that would enough.
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