“Did you just kill Cali's latest animal friend?” Sabrinda's husband sighed. Meryndor had been married to her for the best part of three hundred and fifty years now, and was quite used to his wife's high-strung nature. All the same, it was usually him who had to deal with the quiet tears afterwards, first with Haldyn, then Liriel and now little Ancalime, sniffling quietly behind her mother.
Sabrinda glared at him, not in the best of tempers. She'd just got off a cramped boat after a long sea journey during which she'd recalled why she'd not left Alinor since returning home from the First War – she did not travel well by sea – only to find cold weather despite it being Second Seed, surly and unhelpful humans everywhere and now her daughter nearly getting arrested by some idiot guard.
“It was a seagull, Meryn,” she snapped. “I think a young lady of Alinor can do a little better than a common gull. Especially since they apparently attack people. Cali, stop snivelling, you'll ruin your dress. Oh for Aedra's sake, here, have a handkerchief. Now where are those dockhands – you there! We need these cases transporting up to the city, I'm told there's a carriage available for hire there. I suppose you want paying...” Sabrinda was off, snapping at the local Nords and leaving Meryndor alone with his little girl.
“I'm sorry,” Ancalime whispered, staring at her feet. “I didn't mean to.”
“I know, caradiel,” Meryndor whispered, using a traditional, if slightly old-fashioned, Aldmeri term of affection. “But we're in a foreign country now, among humans who won't understand us any more than we always do them. We need to be careful, and you need to stay close by us, all right?”
Ancalime nodded, subdued. “But Mamma always says Altmer are better than humans,” she whispered. “So why do we need to worry about them hurting us? Didn't she go off and fight in the First War to prove that?”
“Well, yes,” Meryndor said carefully, always a little bit guarded discussing the war with Ancalime, and for good reason. Not a defeat, certainly not, but not a victory either and things were still delicate. A topic best avoided by sensible mer. “But you see, iell-nin, the humans? They don't all know that yet. And it's bad manners to tell them. So we need to tread carefully, right?”
Ancalime didn't entirely understand but she nodded anyway. She knew what good manners were, and she was used to being around beastkin. Humans probably weren't much different, right? Even if they did look a bit odd with their pale or brown skin and stubby round ears and not a lot taller than her. Especially Nords with the face-paint and braids and the beards that all the men seemed to have. Beards were terribly savage, everyone knew that, and even rebellious young Altmer men trying to look stylish only had a bit of a beard around their chin. Nords had lots of it.
It was all very strange in Skyrim. Ancalime wondered if the Reach would be any better.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I swear, Elenwen, here five minutes and some idiot guard tried to arrest my daughter!” Sabrinda sighed as she sipped her brandy. “What sort of country is this? I knew about the cold, but dear Aedra, the people are animals!”
“I know, dear, I know,” Elenwen murmured sympathetically. Meryndor was off putting Ancalime to bed in the Embassy's guest suite, their last night of the comforts of home before a carriage awaited, and not the luxurious type the great and good of Alinor all had, with roofs and curtains and padded seats, oh no. This was an open wooden cart with no padding, where anyone could see them. The fact they'd be travelling through wilderness with no one to watch was no consolation. “We make do however we can and make what compromises we must. Such is life outside the Dominion, we all know this.”
“How do you stand it,” Sabrinda said, shaking her head. “I don't think I'd last five minutes out here.”
“Don't be so hard on yourself, you survived the Oblivion Crisis and the First War, you would cope with Skyrim,” Elenwen scolded gently. Her smile faded as she steered the conversation round to the next topic, the one elephant in the room they'd so far all managed to avoid. Sabrinda's other daughter.
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timeasmymeasure
Re: Thicker Than Blood 1.3
Date: 2014-01-20 09:30 pm (UTC)Sabrinda glared at him, not in the best of tempers. She'd just got off a cramped boat after a long sea journey during which she'd recalled why she'd not left Alinor since returning home from the First War – she did not travel well by sea – only to find cold weather despite it being Second Seed, surly and unhelpful humans everywhere and now her daughter nearly getting arrested by some idiot guard.
“It was a seagull, Meryn,” she snapped. “I think a young lady of Alinor can do a little better than a common gull. Especially since they apparently attack people. Cali, stop snivelling, you'll ruin your dress. Oh for Aedra's sake, here, have a handkerchief. Now where are those dockhands – you there! We need these cases transporting up to the city, I'm told there's a carriage available for hire there. I suppose you want paying...” Sabrinda was off, snapping at the local Nords and leaving Meryndor alone with his little girl.
“I'm sorry,” Ancalime whispered, staring at her feet. “I didn't mean to.”
“I know, caradiel,” Meryndor whispered, using a traditional, if slightly old-fashioned, Aldmeri term of affection. “But we're in a foreign country now, among humans who won't understand us any more than we always do them. We need to be careful, and you need to stay close by us, all right?”
Ancalime nodded, subdued. “But Mamma always says Altmer are better than humans,” she whispered. “So why do we need to worry about them hurting us? Didn't she go off and fight in the First War to prove that?”
“Well, yes,” Meryndor said carefully, always a little bit guarded discussing the war with Ancalime, and for good reason. Not a defeat, certainly not, but not a victory either and things were still delicate. A topic best avoided by sensible mer. “But you see, iell-nin, the humans? They don't all know that yet. And it's bad manners to tell them. So we need to tread carefully, right?”
Ancalime didn't entirely understand but she nodded anyway. She knew what good manners were, and she was used to being around beastkin. Humans probably weren't much different, right? Even if they did look a bit odd with their pale or brown skin and stubby round ears and not a lot taller than her. Especially Nords with the face-paint and braids and the beards that all the men seemed to have. Beards were terribly savage, everyone knew that, and even rebellious young Altmer men trying to look stylish only had a bit of a beard around their chin. Nords had lots of it.
It was all very strange in Skyrim. Ancalime wondered if the Reach would be any better.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I swear, Elenwen, here five minutes and some idiot guard tried to arrest my daughter!” Sabrinda sighed as she sipped her brandy. “What sort of country is this? I knew about the cold, but dear Aedra, the people are animals!”
“I know, dear, I know,” Elenwen murmured sympathetically. Meryndor was off putting Ancalime to bed in the Embassy's guest suite, their last night of the comforts of home before a carriage awaited, and not the luxurious type the great and good of Alinor all had, with roofs and curtains and padded seats, oh no. This was an open wooden cart with no padding, where anyone could see them. The fact they'd be travelling through wilderness with no one to watch was no consolation. “We make do however we can and make what compromises we must. Such is life outside the Dominion, we all know this.”
“How do you stand it,” Sabrinda said, shaking her head. “I don't think I'd last five minutes out here.”
“Don't be so hard on yourself, you survived the Oblivion Crisis and the First War, you would cope with Skyrim,” Elenwen scolded gently. Her smile faded as she steered the conversation round to the next topic, the one elephant in the room they'd so far all managed to avoid. Sabrinda's other daughter.