March 30, 2010

In Which Alina's Story Is Interrupted

February 16, 1166

Alina watched through narrowed eyes as Viridis crawled onto her cousin's bed. The girl had taken a slight, childish fancy to Searle during his previous visit, one that had reemerged with his return. When Severin had asked her what she found so interesting about the young man, she had replied, "He's so mysterious and sad and handsome--like a fairytale prince!"

As much as she privately disagreed, Alina figured that with four girls, it could only be expected that one of them would be the type to hang onto those old stories throughout her life. Riona was almost done with them, and even Vera had begun to lose interest; Raia, of course, had never cared much for them in the first place. Viridis, on the other hand, was still a believer, the possessor of a spark of innocence that Alina no longer saw in her other daughters. Perhaps it was because of this that she was the lone member of the household who had managed to make any progress with the wayward cousin.

In turn, Alina was relieved to notice, Searle didn't seem to mind the little girl. Nearly nineteen was an age at which she might have expected a young man to find a seven-year-old rather tiresome, but he tolerated her--indeed, he may have even been fond of her. Maybe he found her somewhat refreshing after three years that had been monopolized by adults and babies. She might have hoped that Viridis would spend more time outdoors while she could--she had just recovered from yet another spell of illness, and Alina was past the point where she could convince herself that there wouldn't be another one in the near future--but she had to admit that the girl's visits with her cousin did seem to benefit them both.

"I take it you want another story?" he asked as she settled herself, his voice taking a neutral tone--knowing Searle, neutral was the best one could hope to hear.

Viridis shook her head. "No. You tell the worst stories ever."

Alina raised an eyebrow. "That's not a very nice thing to say, Viridis."

"But it's true, Mama," she insisted. "All his stories are so sad."

Beside her, Searle shrugged. "If you know such great stories, why don't you tell one?"

"I will!"

She opened her mouth to begin, then promptly closed it once more--only to open it again. Closed... opened... closed...

Searle drummed his fingers expectantly across his midsection. "I'm waiting..."

"Mama," Viridis ventured, shifting her gaze from Searle to Alina, "can you tell us a story? Please?"

Frowning, Alina's eyes flickered to her nephew. He reclined with his legs crossed, boots still in place, just as apathetic as ever, his brief emotional peaks seemingly only spurred by the presence of his little dreamer of a cousin. She wondered if he'd ever been told a bedtime story in his life--knowing his parents as she did, she doubted that either of them could have ever been bothered. "Fine. Any requests?"

Viridis bounced in her excitement. "A love story!"

There were few love stories that Viridis didn't know by heart; Alina would have to make up something as she went. "All right. Uh... once upon a time, there was... a princess."

"Was she pretty?" asked her daughter instinctively.

Alina nodded. "Beautiful. Anyway... her kingdom was at war with another kingdom, a kingdom with whom her own shared a deep animosity."

Frowning, Viridis turned away. "I thought this was supposed to be a love story, not a stupid war story."

"Oh, but it is a love story!" she promised. "So... one day, the princess and her brother were out on their own, relieving themselves from the pressures of royal life, when they were, uh... taken hostage by enemy soldiers!"

Her daughter yawned; perhaps she should have introduced the romance at the very beginning. "They were taken to the opposing kingdom... and who should the princess meet there but a handsome, mysterious man!"

Now she had the girl's interest, she could tell from those wide brown eyes and that giddy grin. "Oooh! Was he a prince? Was he? Was he?"

"No." She didn't know where the answer had come from--it hadn't been the one she had planned--but somehow, it just seemed to fit.

Viridis, of course, seemed to think otherwise. "Well, that's not right! Who ever heard of a princess falling in love with anyone who wasn't a prince?"

Alina sighed. "Sometimes people fall in love with people they aren't supposed to; Lord knows your father and I were never--Searle? Are you all right?"

As she had spoken, her nephew had grown rather tense. She watched as he closed his eyes and exhaled, his foot twitching all the while. "I'm fine, Aunt Alina. Sorry about that."

"Searle--"

"My lady!"

She was cut off as Falidor burst through the door. "Excuse me for not knocking, but... you have guests."

Alina tilted her head, a frown growing with each degree; they hadn't been expecting anyone. Was it a messenger? Had something happened back in Dovia? "Who is it?"

"Your sister and her husband, your ladyship," Falidor replied, casting a wary glance Searle's way. "Your parents, sir."

NEXT CHAPTER:

12 comments:

Van said...

Sorry that this is sooooo late. And sorry about yesterday's missing THIV--I was just not feeling it for some reason. Will try again tomorrow.

Anyway, extras won't be updated until tomorrow. I feel like I'm saying that far too often lately. Sorry :(

And for the record, since Alina has way too many kids to keep track of, Viridis is the exact middle child, right between the young, couch-jumping Searle and Lonriad.

Anonymous said...

Glad to know that Searle and Lonriad are carrying on the family traditions.

Now as for the post -- EEP. Searle, you're screwed!!

Although if his parents have shown up because Danthia "forgot" to cover him this time, that girl deserves serious kudos.

And poor little Viridis, being sick all the time. I hope she's not one of the ones you grew up and encountered fug ...

S.B. said...

oh this was so sweet and sad, and so typical and funny at the same time! Of course the princess always falls in love with a prince, that a rule every 7 year old girl knows LOL!

and yeah...the parents arrive. That must be part of the 'war story' Viridis didn't want to hear.

This was beautifully done.

Van said...

Morgaine: Couch jumping does run rampant in this family. It's almost as commonplace in their gene pool as hypersexuality :P

We haven't really seen Searle's parents before--I think we saw his mother once, back when his older sister got married in 1157--but from a few things that have been mentioned, it can be inferred that they're not the most understanding of folk. But yeah, Danthia already went after him once--he didn't learn his lesson, so if she's the one who sent in the big guns, then good for her.

Viridis grows up all right. She looks kind of weird in the teen stage (apparently Alina's nose plus Severin's chin is not the most flattering combination of features on a teen girl), but she looks passable as an adult.

Hmmm... now that I think about it, the only character I ever killed because of ugliness was Thetis's son Byrn. By this point, I think my founders have enough offspring for me to allow any hideous babies to just fall off the radar :P

However, I do roll my death dates these days, and Viridis rolled up a rather short lifespan. That's not to say that I might not save her via Tavrin or some other means, but so many of my deaths are so sudden and now that I know they're coming from several years beforehand, I might as well use that knowledge and implement things like Viridis's frequent illnesses :(

Beth: Heheh... they do love their fairy tales :P

Yeah, Viridis is young, but she's probably sensitive enough to realize that this isn't the best case scenario for Searle :S

Thanks Beth :)

Penelope said...

*LULZ* I was waiting for Alina to get to the part about the lascivious king and his conniving mistress.

Penelope said...

Come to think of it, it's probably for the best that Alina didn't get to finish. That story's not fit for a seven year old!

Van said...

You can tell I was feeling too lazy to go through the trouble of actually making up a new story :P

Heheh... both Alina and Severin are pretty lax when it comes to sheltering their kids. Recall Raia at five. Viridis is definitely the innocent one of the lot of them, though, so it is probably for the best. She might have been scarred for life.

Penelope said...

I'm 25 and I still shudder when Ustelian walks into a room. :D

Phoenix said...

LOL!! That story sounds familiar Van!:P

Viridis is such an innocent little girl. And out of the mouths of babes! I can't imagine listening to anything Searle's would have to say! *shudders*

Van said...

Pen: Viridis would definitely be having nightmares about Ustelian :P

Phoenix: My laziness knows no bounds :P

Viridis is a sweetheart, but her wild siblings probably tear her to shreds sometimes without even realizing it :S

I know, hey? Fortunately, Searle doesn't really have all that much to say, or at least not aloud.

Verity said...

Hehe... supercute idea. Loving the overlap with Ashelia at war :). Do you ever get the urge to just... you know... have the characters meet and see what happens? It would be fun to write some sort of crossover.

I like to imagine which of my characters would get along well with yours and Lothere's. For some reason I think Florian and Steen would be good friends. Florian would make all these wise cracks and Steen would grin at his jokes and let him. I would like Alina as a friend for Morven actually. For some reason I think they would get along really well. And I think Severin and Eallair would be great friends.

Van said...

Thanks :) That's one of the advantages to having multiple stories (in fact, there have been a few Naroni cameos in Ashelia--Adonis played a groom, Florian played a peasant being shipped off to war, and the nobles appeared as guests at a party), but it does get to be overwhelming :S

I do that too when I read other people's stories :) I think Florian would like Steen--he does seem like the type that would silently encourage his antics while still keeping him somewhat in control. And Alina and Morven would probably get along too--it seems to me that they both spend a lot of time alone with their thoughts, and the interaction would probably do them well. And Severin and Eallair probably have similar enough politics and ideas in general that they would probably get along swimmingly. They could also bond over the fact that they both own the same tunic :P

I imagine Holladrin and Madlenka would get along, perhaps. And maybe Noah and Adonis, or Thetis and Cindra (Thetis would probably be well-equipped to handle Cindra's pranks, seeing as she's married to Florian). I have to wonder who would be a good friend for Radomir--Aldhein maybe? They'd either bond over their bitterness and anger and daddy issues, or completely hate each other from the minute they meet :P