“Meryndor, dearest, please explain what you said to our darling daughter and her admittedly unstable lunatic of a husband to ruin their marriage overnight?” Sabrinda said sweetly. While she couldn't say this was a necessarily unwanted development exactly, she really didn't like seeing her little girl in tears either.
“I don't know!” Meryndor cried, racking his brains to think what set her off. What sent her off in tears and shocked her... well in hindsight that was obvious. “Wait... I think it was me telling her about Kaie.”
“What about her,” Sabrinda said tersely, too busy glaring at her husband to notice Liriel sitting up, stunned.
“You knew he had a human ex-girlfriend?” Liriel said, confused. “And you didn't mind?”
“Of course, but there wasn't a lot I could do about it,” Sabrinda said with a shrug.
“It meant nothing,” Meryndor said quickly. “It was just a fling, it was over centuries ago, Madanach himself said she was a long-dead hero to them. She's dead and buried, just as he will be one day, and Liriel will have moved on and found someone else and will barely remember him.”
“What, like with you and Kaie?” Sabrinda snapped. “Meryn, you still have that locket with her hair in it. And you still go to a shrine of Arkay every ten years on the anniversary of the day you first met.”
“What?” Liriel whispered, dazed, but neither parent paid any attention to her.
“A man can have a few regrets, can't he?” Meryndor shot back. “And you have some nerve, you still have all Valiriel's old love letters and you take chrysanthemums to her grave every year on her birthday!”
“They were her favourite!” Sabrinda protested, and at this point, Liriel was staring at the table in utter disbelief.
“Valiriel,” she said quietly. “That was your friend, the one that assassin killed by accident at that party. You named me after her. And she was your lover all along.”
“Betrothed,” Sabrinda said, face turning tight and sad at the memory. “We grew up together. Joined the guards together. Did everything together. Couldn't imagine being apart. She was like the other half of me. And then she died. I must have spent years mourning her.”
“Tell me about it,” Meryndor sighed. “Two years she let me try and court her before admitting she was in mourning for her dead fiancee still. Want to know why it took so long before we got married? That's your answer, one of us was still grieving. Aedra, we both were in our own way. I was still angry at Mara for giving me feelings for a human and taking her away so quickly.”
“Better to have loved and lost,” Sabrinda said, quoting an old Altmer poem. “I still miss her, but I'm glad I met your father. He was kind and compassionate and understood and even offered to leave me in peace... but I'd got used to him by then. So I said he could keep me company while I mourned. Three decades later and I realised he looked cute when he smiled and then I realised you could love again after all. So will you, sweetie. Sweetie?”
Liriel was shaking her head, fingers clutching at the table, looking horrified.
“It was a lie,” Liriel whispered.
“What was?” Meryndor said, confused. “Yes, I know we never told you, but this was years ago! We didn't think you'd ever need to know.”
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timeasmymeasure
Re: Thicker Than Blood 7.4
Date: 2014-02-21 08:24 pm (UTC)“I don't know!” Meryndor cried, racking his brains to think what set her off. What sent her off in tears and shocked her... well in hindsight that was obvious. “Wait... I think it was me telling her about Kaie.”
“What about her,” Sabrinda said tersely, too busy glaring at her husband to notice Liriel sitting up, stunned.
“You knew he had a human ex-girlfriend?” Liriel said, confused. “And you didn't mind?”
“Of course, but there wasn't a lot I could do about it,” Sabrinda said with a shrug.
“It meant nothing,” Meryndor said quickly. “It was just a fling, it was over centuries ago, Madanach himself said she was a long-dead hero to them. She's dead and buried, just as he will be one day, and Liriel will have moved on and found someone else and will barely remember him.”
“What, like with you and Kaie?” Sabrinda snapped. “Meryn, you still have that locket with her hair in it. And you still go to a shrine of Arkay every ten years on the anniversary of the day you first met.”
“What?” Liriel whispered, dazed, but neither parent paid any attention to her.
“A man can have a few regrets, can't he?” Meryndor shot back. “And you have some nerve, you still have all Valiriel's old love letters and you take chrysanthemums to her grave every year on her birthday!”
“They were her favourite!” Sabrinda protested, and at this point, Liriel was staring at the table in utter disbelief.
“Valiriel,” she said quietly. “That was your friend, the one that assassin killed by accident at that party. You named me after her. And she was your lover all along.”
“Betrothed,” Sabrinda said, face turning tight and sad at the memory. “We grew up together. Joined the guards together. Did everything together. Couldn't imagine being apart. She was like the other half of me. And then she died. I must have spent years mourning her.”
“Tell me about it,” Meryndor sighed. “Two years she let me try and court her before admitting she was in mourning for her dead fiancee still. Want to know why it took so long before we got married? That's your answer, one of us was still grieving. Aedra, we both were in our own way. I was still angry at Mara for giving me feelings for a human and taking her away so quickly.”
“Better to have loved and lost,” Sabrinda said, quoting an old Altmer poem. “I still miss her, but I'm glad I met your father. He was kind and compassionate and understood and even offered to leave me in peace... but I'd got used to him by then. So I said he could keep me company while I mourned. Three decades later and I realised he looked cute when he smiled and then I realised you could love again after all. So will you, sweetie. Sweetie?”
Liriel was shaking her head, fingers clutching at the table, looking horrified.
“It was a lie,” Liriel whispered.
“What was?” Meryndor said, confused. “Yes, I know we never told you, but this was years ago! We didn't think you'd ever need to know.”