When Siel woke up after his night out with Idunna and Roque he wished he hadn’t. It wasn’t the first time he’d awoken outside, but it was the first time he’d done so since becoming a father. The hybrid gingerly rolled over with a groan, then immediately regretted it. His stomach rebelled, his head throbbed and – Gods above why was the sun so bright?!

Siel rubbed at his face with a groan. His hair was loose and hung down over his face in a mop of tangled, sticky tresses, but at the very least he had most of his clothing. No less than what he remembered having, anyway. He was sitting against the base of a tree so….a park? Looking up, Siel squinted and noted that it wasn’t a tree at all; rather, a metallic sculpture meant to look like a tree. Curling his lip, he rolled his eyes and pushed to stand.

It didn’t take him long to figure out where he was. They’d somehow ended up on the dock, and now that he looked about, taking in the sea faring vessels, Siel noted Idunna and Roque by the water. The pair were no better off than he, though Idunna was holding her head. Roque, however, was holding onto something else and when Siel got closer he discovered what it was.
Idunna’s flute; cracked in half.

Memories came to him in pieces. Jostling one another on their way to the water, singing into the night and having a few guardsmen chase them away. It had all been in good fun until the sword fight and now…now Siel was wondering if it had been a sword fight at all. He’d been the first to lift a ‘blade’ and…now it was dawning on him that it hadn’t been a blade at all.

“Idunna…I’m so sorry.” While he hadn’t meant to break the flute he’d done it all the same. “I was careless; I shouldn’t have taken it.”

She shook her head, then seemed to regret it as her hand went from her head to her mouth. After a moment and some careful breathing she felt confident enough to speak. “It’s okay…we were all a little-“ She waved her hand in a ‘so-so’ gesture. “I know you didn’t mean to.”

“Doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.” He gingerly took the flute from Roque and looked it over. No amount of repairs could fix what had been done. Siel sighed. “I’ll pay for a replacement after I go home and get the gold.”

“No, no, don’t worry about it. It was just a cheap little thing anyway.”

“Idunna, he’s going to do it anyway,” Roque cut in with a murmur. He gave her a soft little smile and patted her knee. “You might as well let him.”

“Well…alright then. Just don’t go spending more than it’s worth.”

Maybe this is why Siel didn’t party as much anymore? It was all fun and games until it wasn’t anymore. Not to mention that as he got older the side effects were so much worse, both in body and the damage it caused. He knew he wouldn’t be able to eat anything for the rest of the day and he could have sworn his skin was crawling. Still, he needed to head back soon, not just for the gold but to check in with Quiana.

“I’ll come back as soon as I can.”

“No, don’t rush yourself. I’m not planning on playing tonight anyway. I need some water, a tonic and a proper bed.”

“I hear that.” Relief slipped out on his tongue as he turned away from the two. Now that he didn’t have to return as quickly Siel could properly rest – as much as one could with four children, anyway – before making the trek back. This time, however, he wouldn’t stay the entire evening lest he make a repeat offense.

Looking down at the broken remains of the flute in his hand only caused his heart to clench. It felt oddly reminiscent of when Sienna had crushed his handpan, except this must have been how she felt. While it didn’t make it any better it did put him in the headspace of his little girl.

Maybe she could help him pick out a new one? He could take Quielle too, and make a day of it, if they wanted. Maybe he should invite Tsisia too, though these days she had her own friends to spend time with and Quetzal…Well, it wouldn’t hurt to try. His son did have an eye for art.

[757]