Meribia Mansion: Just the two of us?

[gorgonfondness]

"Now you're going to be a good girl while we're gone, aren't you pumpkin?" Mel asks, holding Rachel with his arm and huge hand as they play in his office.

"A'course Gramps!" the small beastgirl coos in agreement. "Will I get a treat?"

Mel chortles before going, "You'll have to eat all of your supper for that."

Their conversation is cut short when a maid approaches. "Master Mel? Majesty Lemia's assistant is here to watch your granddaughter."

Comments

[herr_bookman]

Ah-ha, Autor thinks as he approaches, adjusting his glasses. He'd read the statistics on this beastman, true, and he'd seen a picture, but to actually stand in front of him and be easily dwarfed four times over... well.

More of interest to him is the girl he's clutching so effortlessly. Five? Or six? He notes that her dark-skin likely stems from her father, Kyle. The fair hair and fangs, on the other hand, are clearly her mother's.

Cute, he thinks, in a strange way. He adjusts his glasses again and waits.

[gorgonfondness]

"Hello," Rachel says first, looking over Autor. He looks so different from everyone she sees usually, so different from Daddy or Gramps.

Different and therefore interesting.

"Evenin' lad," Mel greets, offering his free hand to shake Autor's.

Entire arm.

"I'm Mel de Alkirk, governor of Meribia. And this's my granddaughter Rachel. And I'll make this clear right now: dare to make any sort of trouble here and I'll pop yer tiny little head off yer twiggy little neck and mount it on me trophy wall."

"Oh Gramps," Rachel sighs. "Y'say that t'everyone."

[herr_bookman]

"Consider me thoroughly intimidated," Autor says smoothly, "and your trophy wall preemptively unadorned."

He shrugs, reorienting his clavicle with the ball of his shoulder after Mel's manhandling. "Though from what I've heard, isn't a granddaughter the one a grandfather should be telling to behave?"

He doesn't actually grin or wink at the two of them, but he may as well have.

[gorgonfondness]

"I behave!" Rachel says defensively. "I'm good!"

"Bwahahahaha! That ya are, girl," Mel agrees. "Handful that you are."

Literally in Mel's case. He carefully lowers his granddaughter to the floor, who suddenly finds herself shy now that she has to look up at Autor. Her hands softly wring into her skirt as she sways left and right.

[herr_bookman]

And Autor, who has seen this before, crouches slowly to meet her eyes.

"Hi," he says softly, offering his hand. He'll try to make it clear that whether she takes it is up to her discretion. "I'm Autor. It's a pleasure to meet you, Rachel."

Mel, for all of his size and presence, may as well not even be in the room anymore.

[gorgonfondness]

Rachel does carefully take his hand.

"D'ya live with Auntie Mia an' Uncle Draco?" she asks.

[herr_bookman]

He smiles and squeezes her hand, and then shakes his head. "I'm just a visiting student. I work with Lemia, and stay in the dormitories."

Then he glances about, but not so quickly that she can't follow. "So," he whispers, grinning, "where are your favorite places to get into trouble?"

[gorgonfondness]

At this, Rachel begins to tug him out of Mel's office with both hands.

"We can go see Gramps's training gym!" she insists.

Mel laughs again and goes, "It looks like yer gettin' the full tour. Yer mom and dad and me will be back later tonight, Rachel."

"Okay," she agrees amiably.

[herr_bookman]

Autor manages to nod at Master Mel before the beast girl jerks him out the door. She's so strong! He's fairly certain she won't accidentally break his wrist. He hopes not, anyway.

The boy tries to catch up to her as quickly as he can. "What is your favorite part about this gym?" he asks, curious. "This is for the guards, correct?"

[gorgonfondness]

"There's a spot up high where you can watch everybody an' there're hiding places an' stuff."

She drags him down the hallway, around the corner, and up the stairs. Guards are posted all along the way, watching the pair with bemused smiles as they pass.

The gym itself is a split-level room with a sort of balcony, a few guards sparring down below despite the hour.

[herr_bookman]

"Hiding places!" Autor says, grinning conspiratorially. "Those sound just about perfect to explore."

Once they've settled down up high--with the appropriate appreciative humming made for Rachel's bringing them there--Autor notes the speed of the two combatants.

"It's a marvel they don't knock each other out in one blow. Will you be here someday, then? Are you a woman of weapons or a lady of silks?" he asks, and then blinks. "Or both?"

[gorgonfondness]

"Uhhhhh, I dunno," she answers.

She is still quite young, after all.

[herr_bookman]

Autor reaches over and pats her on the elbow. "That's all right. You have time to think on it, if you even want to."

Then he gestures down at the guards. "Do you have a favorite style of fighting that you like to watch? Bare-handed? Weapons? Magics?"

[gorgonfondness]

"I like watching Daddy and Gramps fight the allcomers. Say, what's that mean, anyway, allcomers?"

[herr_bookman]

"All comers just means all who come, or 'anyone who is interested,' especially in sparring," Autor says. He bites his lip, smiling.

"I bet your father and grandfather are really quite strong, though," he says, glancing down at the ring.

And kids are loyal.

[gorgonfondness]

"Yeah, they're prolly the strongest ever now," she states without a hint of exaggeration. "Sometimes Gramps's friend Laike comes over to fight with Gramps an' they have a real good time. He an' Uncle Alex're prolly next strongest."

Rachel sits to watch, wiggling so that she knocks her knees together.

[herr_bookman]

"I believe it!" Autor says, laughing. And he does. "I've read all about them, but it must be so much more of a thrill to see them in action."

After a bit of time spent sitting in a companionable silence, the boy leans forward to look at her again. "Are you hungry?"

[gorgonfondness]

She sticks her tongue out.

"I don't gotta eat roast ant surprise, do I?"

[herr_bookman]

Autor wrinkles his nose. "Of course not. That sounds horrid. What is it with all of the ants around here?" he says, shaking his head as he withdraws a leather-bound journal from his pocket. "Well, we'll not be eating giga ant eggs, either."

Then, after flipping to a page in the book, recites a couplet. "Thus do I pine and surfeit day by day, or gluttoning on all, or all away*."

Out pops a bag, which he rummages through to produce apples, cheese, and a couple of homemade chocolate croissants.


*Shakespeare, Sonnet 75

[gorgonfondness]

"Daddy likes roast ant surprise," Rachel grouses. "He an' his friends eat it all the ti-Oh!"

Rachel is suitably impressed by your Bag of Holding, Autor.

"Auntie Mia's got a bag like that, too! But she only has t'say one word to get what she wants."

[herr_bookman]

"Does she really?" Autor says coolly, and files that away for future reference. It's good to know what other people have on their person, though from what Mia has explained about her life, it makes sense that she'd have something akin to the troll's technology.

He draws a plate and a paring knife out of the bag, and begins slicing up the apples and cheese. The croissant, well. He hands that directly to her. "Dessert first, always. Right?"

Autor grins, thinking of Master Mel's boisterous threat. "But do make sure to eat all of your dinner, otherwise I may lose my head."

[gorgonfondness]

Rachel takes the pastry with both hands and doesn't hesitate to start in on it.

"I will!" she enthusiastically agrees between bites. "I promise I will!"

[herr_bookman]

"Easy, now. Don't choke," Autor says. He chuckles and pats her fingers. "It's a treat. Eat it slowly; it'll last longer. Or don't, but don't try to get me to share mine!"

That might be a challenge, Rachel.

[gorgonfondness]

She does pause at that and even takes a moment to just watch Autor eat his croissant.

She turns away again, suddenly shy once more and her cheeks might be the tiniest bit pink.

[herr_bookman]

And of course, Autor's oblivious to any manner of potential toddler crushes. He nibbles his treat to the halfway point and then lays it down on a napkin he pulls from the bag.

Then he sets the plate of apples between them and leans on the railing. "Can you read, yet?"

[gorgonfondness]

"Oh yes!" she answers. "I like reading to Auntie Mia's babies. She's got two, you know."

[herr_bookman]

"Oh, that's very kind of you," Autor says, elated by her not only reading, but passing it on as well. His students in the literacy class have depressed him a bit--not because they lack skills; they're actually doing wonderfully--but because of the alarmingly dismal literacy rate around Lunar.

Surely there's more than can be done on that front...

Then he focuses on Rachel again. "Hm, maybe next time we'll have croissants with Cepheus as well."

Autor is pretty amused that she refers to the three-year-old as a baby, given their short age differences. Then again, ages are always difficult for him.

[gorgonfondness]

"Are y'gonna babysit'em?" she asks.

[herr_bookman]

"I might, if someone asks me to. I know I wanted to play with Cepheus at any rate," he says, shrugging.

Then he grins. "But that doesn't matter much at the moment because I'm here with you, right?"

A sudden movement catches his attention, and he looks away. "Hoo, did you see that, Rachel? He knocked him clean out!"

[gorgonfondness]

"Yaaaay!" Rachel cheers and claps, prompting the victor to take a bow.

[herr_bookman]

Autor claps with her, though he does feel sort of bad for the one with the broken nose. They'll pray him back to health in short order, I'm sure.

He offers Rachel an apple slice. "How often do you come here?"

[gorgonfondness]

"Not much. Mom doesn't like me bein' in here."

She nibbles on the apple.

[herr_bookman]

Autor winks at her. "Then this is like treats before dinner. Our secret."

[gorgonfondness]

Rachel nods along.

"Our secret!"

Even though the guards know.

And Master Mel.

And she's definitely going to tell Cepheus and Scorpius.