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 Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2021 1:37 pm
Faisal had adjusted to his long Matori vacation, the man growing fond of morning walks along the beach with the relaxing sounds of the ocean making up for the distant chatter of the Oban markets. He wasn't certain how it had occurred but somehow a whole year had passed and the boys would be turning one. Their very first birthday. Faisal was almost in disbelief that such a thing was possible. Where had time gone? The man shook his head before finally leaving his study to wait by the foyer of the manor. His mother was thankfully around to watch the boys this time and so Faisal had suggested that Sariza come with him so that they could pick out the perfect gifts for the twins.
[Faisal 1]
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2022 2:04 pm
Sariza never expected to be in Matori for this long, but as much as she really should be she wasn’t complaining. She’d been able to spend some much needed down time learning how to be a wife and a mother, both of which she was a bumbling novice at. They were away from the courts and prying eyes who might dissect every little movement she made which helped. And now…now a year had passed and her sons were close to celebrating their first year!
After saying goodbye to the boys – and Arima as well – Sariza made her way down the stairs. Gods, it didn’t even feel like they should be DOING this so soon! “Ready?”
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2022 2:04 pm
[Sabra via Discord]
"Ready." Faisal smiled warmly at Sariza before holding the door and walking onto it the bright sunlight. It would be nice to have a fun celebration for the boys before going back towards Oba. Despite the celebration there just felt like a shadow was looming behind their family because of the upcoming trials. Still, Faisal wanted to focus on the now and worry about everything else later. "There's apparently a few traveling merchants in town this week. They're moving through before the season changes again." He mentioned to Sariza as he glanced back at her. "Any idea of what we should be looking out for?" They would have plenty of time to piece it together considering town was a good walk away. Faisal knew that they could ride there but wouldn't it be better to stretch their legs after being cooped up in place for so long?
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2022 2:05 pm
Their last big hoorah before going back to Oba…It was as unsettling as it was momentous. Surely others had started to talk about their prolonged absence, so Sariza knew their time was coming to an end, but still…”Well, I had an idea and I wanted to run it by you first. Before the wedding one of the ladies was expecting a child of her own and she talked about a ceremony they were going to have when the child turned a year old. They would put out several gifts and whichever the baby chose then that’s what was supposed to guide them in life.”
Perhaps she was more religious than she originally thought. “Little ones this small really don’t need much, but I thought a gift like that would be something they could keep close.”
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2022 2:06 pm
[Sabra via Discord / 3]
"It's interesting." Faisal admitted after pondering the idea. "We should try it then. What items should we pick out for the boys? Is there a standard array like..." His words trailed off as he tried to imagine what he would personally pick for such a ceremony. "Maybe like a quill or parchment, a wooden familiar or wooden weapon as options?" Was that something along the right lines for the idea?
Faisal smiled as he started walking down from the manor and along the path, his sandals warming up as he purposefully moved towards the white sands. "Or is it like a talisman, a token of some sort?" Would it make sense to have wooden carvings to represent different paths or the gods? His mind was already spinning with the possibilities but Faisal kept quiet before spewing more questions to give Sariza room to explain.
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2022 2:07 pm
As they walked Sariza raised her hand and ticked the items off on her fingers. “A quill was one, as was a weapon, and I think she said a spyglass too? An abacus too, oh and an instrument!” Spirits help them both if either of the boys decided to become musicians. The result might not be so bad, but the years of audio abuse would be difficult…
“I’m sure we could tweak it if we wanted. Talismans could work if we had them blessed beforehand; sort of like protection from the gods and a sign of their futures.”
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2022 2:08 pm
Even Faisal winced at the idea of an instrument. He had been a hellion at times growing up but neither he or his twin had dared to touch an instrument. "It would only be fair if we covered all of our bases." He managed with a small grin towards Sariza. "Should we keep the symbols similar or are they supposed to be completely unique? There's a woodworker in town that's good at making toys. We could ask him to make wooden versions of everything or to do the carvings on similar blocks or round talismans so that the boys aren't going for the biggest thing they see." Or the shinier option. Faisal could easily imagine that one happening.
"Regardless of the shape there's a type of local tree that makes good wood. They say the goddess blessed it and the scent is nice while warding off evil. That seems like a good blessing to me."
[Sabra via discord / 4]
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2022 2:09 pm
“I…suppose.” Did they really have to? “Maybe we could get by with a paint set instead? It’s artistic, but also quieter.” Or maybe even a book of songs, if they had to go that route? At the very least their sons wouldn’t be able to use that one until they could read.
“Round talismans might be best. If it’s in the shape of an animal they might grab it instead of something smaller.” Children were simple that way. Anytime she needed to distract them she just waved a shiny object in front of their faces and no matter if it was clearly the lesser trade they always went for it. “Seriously? That would make a perfect gift, especially considering everything. A protective charm and one with a god’s blessing. I can’t think of a better birthday gift, really.”
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2022 2:10 pm
[Sabra via Discord / 5]
"You know we could also swap in a theater mask if they need more options." Teased Faisal even though he agreed with Sariza. It seemed they would go with art, theater, weapons, a familiar for a rider or tamer, a sword, quill and a few other things then. It would give the boys plenty to pick from and they could always store the rest of the tokens for something else later.
His gaze was bright as he nodded. "Right? I think we have a perfect plan as long as we can find the wood when we arrive at town. I just hope the boys only decide on one instead of trying to run away with all of the pieces. Should we make any duplicates in case they both end up with the same one or should it be whoever grabs their token first gets it?" The idea made him frown. Would it be more fitting to call it fate if one of the twins just happened to reach for the same piece before his brother grabbed it?
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2022 2:11 pm
“Duplicates would probably be a safe bet and maybe do them one at a time? That way they aren’t fighting over it.” Of course she was talking about Qaisan because when was he not trying to take things that didn’t belong to him. If Calix was using a blanket? Well, then he wanted that blanket or that toy, even if he had the exact same thing of his own. If his brother cried he would inevitably let it go, but those hands…they had to be touching everything!
“I would love to invite father, but it would draw too much attention. I also doubt that he could break himself away from work to come.”
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2022 2:12 pm
[Sabra via Discord / 6]
Faisal nodded. "That would probably be a wise decision. We should something else so that one can have that while the other picks. Even if it's just a slice of cake." He offered with a chuckle. Distractions usually worked for a few seconds at least with the boys. Maybe he would buy a couple of stuffed alol or something for the boys as well.
Faisal let out a soft sigh at the statement. "It will be the same for grandmother. I guess my mother is the only one who really could sneak away." He shook his head at the realization. "But once we return to Sulburi there will be no hiding so we can always hold another celebration then." He offers even though Faisal worried it wouldn't have the same meaning as this particular occasion.
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2022 2:16 pm
"What is it with your family and cake?" Sariza teased, knocking her hip against his. Sweets had always been a special treat before joining his family and now Sariza had to fight twice as hard just to keep her figure.
"They'll probably want a bigger ceremony once we get back to Sulburi. Two sons, an heir; Faisal, they'll be talking about this all year." She couldn't help curling her lip at the thought. The fact that he'd gotten married had been buzz enough to draw eyes her way, but now they wouldn't stand a chance. "I don't know who likes trouble more; you or me."
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2022 3:41 pm
"We just like going for what we enjoy." Faisal quipped back, playfully bumping Sariza back in return. Honestly the sugar made up for all of the energy he burned doing his work, at least that was what he would tell himself as his mother had told him when he caught her with sweets while growing up.
Faisal's gaze softened and he found himself reaching out to take Sariza's hand, his fingers lightly squeezing her hand as they walked along. "They will most definitely want that." He admitted quietly. "But it'll be for the best and eventually things will settle....eventually we'll run out of trouble to find, right?" At least he hoped so. Faisal shook his head at the thought. "Let's just focus on the boys for now. I'm sure they're going to love this present." And if anything else they'll definitely have some cake to enjoy because his family did love their sweets.
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2022 3:47 pm
Sariza looked down at their joined hands and gave his a squeeze. She never would have imagined being this close to her betrothed when she'd first been told about him, but now she couldn't imagine any other life.
"One day our biggest worries will be keeping the family in line." For now they had the threat hanging above their necks, but it would pass, wouldn't it? And then there would be the worries of the nobility, military obligations, etc. They would likely only rest when they were dead, but Sariza was okay with that so long as they were able to keep giving their sons the sort of lives they dreamed of
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