In Which Lonriad Invokes the Other Name

June 10, 1179

"Look, Sevvie!" Lonriad nudged his eldest as Ashe pushed through the door, little Yvanette in his arms. "It's your future wife!"

Sevvie glanced up for the briefest of seconds before returning to his toys, Yvanette's wondering blue eyes a little late for contact. Lonriad himself was on the receiving end of a green glare. "I don't think so."

Chuckling, Lonriad put down the doll he'd been handling and stood, ruffling his son's hair on the way up. "Hear that, sweetheart? Papa says no boy is good enough for his little girl."

Ashe's grip on his daughter tightened as if he feared he might drop her. Yvanette continued to take in the room, blue eyes wide and blond curls abounce. She was such a happy little thing. Lonriad couldn't guess where she got it from. "She was eager to go for a ride. I think she wants to show off her new boots."

"And she should; they're very nice boots." Grinning, Yvanette stretched one leg, the heavy leather grazing her father's torso. They weren't quite what Lonriad would have guessed Rona deemed suitable footwear for her baby girl, but if Yvanette had seen them in town and looked and reached and smiled, he struggled to see her saying no. "Sevvie has a pair like that, but they're prettier on you."

Yvanette beamed, then turned her head and smiled down at Lonriad's son, still thoroughly occupied with his own private play. "Aren't you going to say hello?"

"Hello, Eve'net," Sevvie muttered as Ashe set Yvanette down by the castle. The little girl crawled to her playmate's side and he offered her a doll; she wasn't old enough for the sophistication of play he preferred, but a kid didn't grow up with as many frequently-visiting cousins as he did without learning to share.

"Cute, aren't they?" Lonriad dropped to floor and slid back until stopped by the couch. He'd once overheard Asalaye lamenting that Sevvie took after her side, but it was a fact that he privately relished. He doubted he'd find his son half as adorable had he been some eerie miniature of himself. He wondered if Ashe felt the same about Yvanette. "I have to say, though--if anyone ever asked me to guess the parents of the cutest little girl I'd ever meet, I can't say I would've pegged you as her father."

Ashe sniffed, shooting a wayward glance at Sevvie. But no need; the kid was occupied and engrossed and at his age, he'd never remember any conversation long enough to make sense of it. "Uh..."

"But hey--between you and Rona, you know she's bound to be pretty."

A little queasy, Ashe shuffled to the couch and let himself fall back onto the cushions. God, it was hard to get a laugh out of him. Even Isidro knew a joke when he heard it. Even Sparron could choke up a snicker if he thought it was expected. It was almost to the point where he might as well have stopped trying. "I'm not pretty."

"Well, you used to be." Again, nothing. Perhaps another angle was merited. "You didn't take your boots off, I see. Finally learning?"

That derisive snort was probably the closest to laughter he was ever going to get. He supposed it counted. "I wiped them off when I came in."

"Well, one step at a time. Soon you'll be almost as manly as my sister." As if to prove his point, an open-handed slap landed on the back of his head. "Use a fist next time."

"Noted."

Odd. Comments like that usually merited some form of protest. "You all right?"

For a minute, nothing. Then-- "Yvanette coughed a couple times on the way here."

And seeing as she'd been around for the better part of a year, that was hardly news. "Yes, kids do that. Sevvie had a cough a couple weeks ago; maybe she picked up something from him."

"Or maybe she didn't." Ashe kicked the pillow by the arm of the couch and let his foot drop with as much of a thud! as the cushion would allow. "What if there's something wrong with her? I mean, the way she was conceived and all..."

Oh, brother. "The way she was conceived? Ashe, trust me--if you didn't have the required organs, Jadin would've told me."

"I don't want to talk about my organs!" Sevvie's doll fell headfirst into the castle and Yvanette whimpered. Ashe took a few seconds to collect himself before whispering. "But seriously, what if something's wrong with my... organs, and it affected her? What if she's sick? What if she gets sicker and sicker and dies horribly? Oh God--what if she ends up like me?"

"Ashe..."

"At least I was nobody. She's the duke's niece, for Christ's sake; people wouldn't let her just disappear. And what do you think that would do to Rona? Or if some boy was courting her, how do you think he'd react? And that's all assuming she doesn't die of shock after looking in a mirror. I never should've done this. I shouldn't have won that tournament. I shouldn't have pursued Rona. I shouldn't have--"

"Aspen." That seemed to shut him up, a few rasping breaths aside. Lonriad waited until the kids resumed their play before turning his head. "Aspen, listen to me: there is nothing wrong with Yvanette."

"But--"

"No." Whatever concerns Ashe had, Lonriad didn't see them. What he saw was a sweet little child sitting right in front of him, blond curls springing every which way as she bounced the doll in her hands. He didn't need to see anything else. "She's a very healthy, very normal little girl--and she's going to lead a miserable life if she doesn't know that you see that. So shut up and stop acting like she's about to explode."

A few more shallow gasps leaked out from Ashe's mouth. One last look at Yvanette, Lonriad turned himself to the side. Ashe's eyes were skyward and unblinking, almost like he was praying. "She's the only perfect thing in my life. If something happens to her--"

"Nothing will happen to her."

"But--"

A small, quick-crawling form brushed past Lonriad and pulled herself up using the couch, tiny fingers reaching for her father's beneath the back of his neck. "See?"

The angle wasn't ideal, but nonetheless he thought he saw a hint of a smile. "You can pull yourself up? Has Mama seen this?"

Yvanette continued to paw at him. Lonriad smirked. "I think she's trying to tell you that she's fine."

"Or maybe she's trying to tell me to get my boots off the couch." Ashe turned on his side and stood, scooping up his daughter and kissing her on the cheek. "I'm sorry, baby. I didn't scare you, did I?"

Her giggles were as good a 'no' as any. Not quite sure if he was satisfied, Lonriad watched as Ashe nuzzled her little dab of a nose with his own and let her wrap her arms around his neck. "You're all right. You're all right. Please be all right..."

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