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Aurin holds his mother's hand as she leads him from the street to his aunt and uncle's house. He's been here only a couple of times, and can't remember most of them distinctly; they're sort of awkwardly related, his dead father's half-brother and the wife thereof. But now they have a baby parunia, and that means there is a dragon related to Aurin who is not too far from his age, only thirty-one years younger. This is apparently the sort of relation that it will be particularly enriching for Aurin to meet. They can do this now instead of waiting a month, because parunias don't die when they're babies; this one is safe, unlike the miscellaneous cousins on his mother's side he's never met because they are all in too much danger to get attached to (and have all succumbed to that danger). So here they are. Even though it was a very long flight and he couldn't ride his mother for takeoff and landing when she had to be a heron, only for the middle part.
Alys knocks on the door.
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Mial has been to a few plays, but this is the first one he's liked this much. Acting, it turns out, is really cool.
He marches right back to compliment the elf's performance and ask for her autograph. She was the best one and someone should tell her so.
He marches right back to compliment the elf's performance and ask for her autograph. She was the best one and someone should tell her so.
No elves here! (Well, some elves, but Western ones.)
Turns out with her wig off her hair's awfully sparkly.
Turns out with her wig off her hair's awfully sparkly.
...well, it's not like Mial has a problem with dragons. It's not like he even knows for sure she is a dragon. She's pretty clearly dragonish, but that doesn't matter to his agenda here, does it? No it does not.
"Hi!" he says, in Leraal as is his habit. "You were the best one in the play! Can I have your autograph?"
"Hi!" he says, in Leraal as is his habit. "You were the best one in the play! Can I have your autograph?"
"Of course!" she says with a beaming smile.
Kimmetleuly she writes for him. Four Draconic characters and a Leraal approximation.
"But now you know my name and I don't know yours!"
Kimmetleuly she writes for him. Four Draconic characters and a Leraal approximation.
"But now you know my name and I don't know yours!"
"Your name's pretty," he says. "I'm Mial!"
It doesn't quite occur to him that his name does not match the language he is speaking. It's just his name. His mother doesn't have trouble pronouncing it or anything.
It doesn't quite occur to him that his name does not match the language he is speaking. It's just his name. His mother doesn't have trouble pronouncing it or anything.
"Are you an immigrant like my character?" wonders Kimmet. "Your Leraal's perfect."
...Oh. Darn.
He shakes his head. It is technically true that he moved to Esmaar as a baby, but he moved from Imilaat, which speaks the same language. The reason he has a name like Mial and speaks perfect Leraal is that he is dragonish.
His sudden hesitation, and the half-conscious lowering of his silver eyes, probably looks a lot like an outbreak of shyness.
He shakes his head. It is technically true that he moved to Esmaar as a baby, but he moved from Imilaat, which speaks the same language. The reason he has a name like Mial and speaks perfect Leraal is that he is dragonish.
His sudden hesitation, and the half-conscious lowering of his silver eyes, probably looks a lot like an outbreak of shyness.
(Kimmet signs somebody else an autograph and smiles at them and accepts a compliment on her touch of Avehali accent that she put on for the play.)
This helps jar him out of it a little. What is he, ashamed? Scared?
"Thanks for the autograph," he says firmly, raising his eyes again and giving her a big smile. "You're really cool!"
Not going to turn and bolt back to his mom. Not going to turn and bolt back to his mom. Not going to turn and bolt back to his mom. He is not scared of her just because she's probably a dragon.
"Thanks for the autograph," he says firmly, raising his eyes again and giving her a big smile. "You're really cool!"
Not going to turn and bolt back to his mom. Not going to turn and bolt back to his mom. Not going to turn and bolt back to his mom. He is not scared of her just because she's probably a dragon.
"Thanks!" says Kimmet. "I'm only here for a few more weeks and then my family's going back to Rannde so it was really lucky there was a play I could fit into our trip."
"Oh, Rannde's nice!" he says. "Have you been to that park with rides that go right over the side of the world? What's it called - 'Edge Park', that's it!"
...oh, oh no, he was doing so well, why did he have to go and give the name of the park in fluent Munine like an idiot shren.
...oh, oh no, he was doing so well, why did he have to go and give the name of the park in fluent Munine like an idiot shren.
Kimmet tilts her head. "I've never gone, no - are you a dragon? Oh! Of course you are, I didn't get a good look at your eyes before."
"I'm a shren," he says. His voice only wobbles a little bit, but his smile is gone, gone, gone.
Kimmet shrieks and backs up against the theater wall. Heads turn. Everyone's looking at Mial; the director, who's been supervising the audience interactions of the child actors, starts towards them.
greatcomposure
Koridaar starts towards them too.
Mial is caught in a storm of conflicting urges - to yell at Kimmet, to cry, to rip up her autograph and throw it on the ground, to turn and run back to his mama. Instead of any of those he just squeezes his eyes shut and hunches his shoulders and clenches his tiny fists.
Mial is caught in a storm of conflicting urges - to yell at Kimmet, to cry, to rip up her autograph and throw it on the ground, to turn and run back to his mama. Instead of any of those he just squeezes his eyes shut and hunches his shoulders and clenches his tiny fists.
"Kimmet, is this kid bothering you?" the director asks.
"He - he -" she stammers. "He's -"
"Look, being allowed to talk to the actors is a privilege, Aaran," says the director to Mial, "you can't disturb them. Get out of here."
"He - he -" she stammers. "He's -"
"Look, being allowed to talk to the actors is a privilege, Aaran," says the director to Mial, "you can't disturb them. Get out of here."
greatcomposure
Koridaar thinks of scooping up her son, and then thinks better of it. She crouches down and puts a hand on his shoulder. "Do you want to go home, Mial?" she murmurs.
"I—I just," he sobs, and then draws a deeper breath and yells, "I JUST SAID I WAS A SHREN IS ALL, I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING," and clings to his mother and bursts into tears.
She picks him up and teleports home.
"I—I just," he sobs, and then draws a deeper breath and yells, "I JUST SAID I WAS A SHREN IS ALL, I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING," and clings to his mother and bursts into tears.
She picks him up and teleports home.
Finnah had a flag dance related conflict with the first act of the play, but she's home now, at the kitchen table poking a lump of clay.
She looks up when Mial and Koridaar come home.
"What happened?"
She looks up when Mial and Koridaar come home.
"What happened?"
greatcomposure
"Mial went to ask one of the actors for her autograph," says Koridaar, hugging her scooped-up Mial, "and she turned out to be a dragon, and when he said he was a shren she screamed and the director told us to leave."
Mial is crying too hard to add anything to this.
Mial is crying too hard to add anything to this.
"Oh," says Finnah, brow furrowed. Mial is already being hugged, but she can turn into a cardinal and land on him and give him beaky nuzzles.
Mial sniffles. It is probably safe to assume he appreciates his supply of beaky nuzzles even if he cannot say so at the moment.
That's generally a pretty safe assumption with Mial, yep.
greatcomposure
Koridaar goes and sits on the couch, and Mial cries on her. For quite a while.
Finnah's patience for this activity is not infinite, but she goes and brings him some of her latest penly before she returns to playing with clay. It's chocolate sesame.
greatcomposure
Miles eats his candy and cries. He finishes the candy before he finishes the crying. His mother continues to hug him until he falls asleep in her lap, and then she puts him to bed.
The next morning he does not emerge from his room. Koridaar brings him his breakfast. He is pretending to sleep, so she leaves it next to his bed. When she brings him his lunch, some of the breakfast is gone. She judges this a moderately good sign. But it's about the only good sign available. He continues to stay curled up in bed, refusing to open his eyes or talk to anyone, eating only halfheartedly and only when there is no one in the room so he can go on pretending he is never awake.
The next morning he does not emerge from his room. Koridaar brings him his breakfast. He is pretending to sleep, so she leaves it next to his bed. When she brings him his lunch, some of the breakfast is gone. She judges this a moderately good sign. But it's about the only good sign available. He continues to stay curled up in bed, refusing to open his eyes or talk to anyone, eating only halfheartedly and only when there is no one in the room so he can go on pretending he is never awake.