Shikan poked the wood, adding in another wedge to the fire, his sweat sizzling against the opehe crag of the fire gave way to the chattering of the nearby Iyrmen, who ehe st day of the festival calmly. They ate the food they had brought from the nearby stalls, all save otle boy, who ehe meal of crisps and milk.
“You must from my fioday,” the old Iyrman said, feeding his greatson from his fingers. The boy alternated with his sister and his greatfather as the trio ate their crisps and drank their milk. “My greatchildren, they eat so well.”
“You eat so well, Jarot,” Jirot said, brushing her brother’s hair tenderly, kissing his forehead.
“Do I eat well?” the older Jarot asked.
“So well, babo, so well,” Jirot assured, patting his stomach gently, causing the old man to snort slightly, sitting up taller. “Babo, you have same name as Jarot, and you eat as good as Jarot.”
“That is right, since I am Jarot.”
“That is right,” the girl agreed sagely.
Meanwhile, Adam y on the ground, staring up at the clouds, holding the tiny form of Inakan, who also stared at the sky. The sun was still rising, but was thankfully hidden by the rge estate wall.
“Is a bird,” Inakan said, pointing at the cloud.
“Oh yeah? I see that.”
“It is not a bird, it is a cloud,” Inakan stated before she cackled with delight.
“Ah, of course.”
“Kaza Adam, you are so silly.”
“That I am, cousin Inakan,” Adam replied, ruffling the girl’s hair, which had been freshly cut for the festival.
“Kaza Adam?”
“Yes?”
“When I am big, I am big as you, but I am not going and I will stay all day, and I will not see the sky, because I am drawing.”
“Ah, of course,” Adam said, brushing her hair.
“When I am big, I will be big?”
“I think so.”
“Not small and cute?”
“You’ll always be so small and cute to me, my Inakan.”
“Silly kaza Adam, how I be small, when I am big?”
“Ah, of course.”
“Of coas,” Inakan agreed.
Adam could feel how small the girl was still, not quite as small as his twins, but about as small as the youoddlers. His eyes fell to the other children, each who zed around together, with his triplets leading the zing by snoozing away during noonval.
“Kaza Adam?”
“Yes?”
“Where is kaza Jaygak and kaza Kitool?”
“I don’t know.”
“You do not know?” Inakan asked.
“I do not know what I do not know,” Adam replied.
Inakan blinked. “Do not know what I do not know…” The girl thought upon her cousin’s words. “How I know when I do not know?”
“Exactly.”
“Yes,” the girl replied, nodding her head slowly. “How I know when I do not know? But! But! But kaza Adam!”
“Yes?”
“I know!”
“What do you know?”
“I know what I know!”
“Ah. Of course.”
“Of coas!” The girl gasped, reag up to hold her forehead. “Mama going to be so worried! I am so smart!”
“Oh dear, oh dear.”
“Oh dia!” Inakan rubbed her face, pletely perplexed by her sudden realisation. “What I am to do, kaza Adam?”
“You should be smart and not worry your mother.”
“Kaza Adam, how you be so smart?” Inakan asked, her face full of surprise.
“I be so smart because I be so smart.”
“Ah, of coas.”
“Ah, of course.” Adam let out a small sigh, leaning down to rub his cheek against hers. “Of course.”
“Of coas.” The girl rubbed her cheek against his, filled with such joy, one might have thought she would explode.
The dang soon began, with the Iyrmen donning masks of wood, each styled to a different animal. It was mostly the Gak family which danear the fire, sometimes bringing forth their magics to add to the fire, or to expand it. Even Jogak joined in, dang he fmes, his body taken by an unseen force, the Iyrman’s sweat dashing against the fire, the Iyrmaing rid of his pent up anger.
“I daoo!” Lanarot said, only to find herself hoisted up by her mother, the nting firm kisses all over her forehead.
“You dance away from the fmes.”
“No! I dah the fire!”
“You ot.”
“I ot?”
“You ot.”
The girl pouted, gng towards her elder brother, looking to him for support. She threateo cry, but stopped when Jurot held out his arms, and the girl gnced away from him, not wanting to be put to sleep. “I ot.”
Pam let out a soft sigh to the side, gng to the young half elf woman to the side, her skin dark, not like those of Aswadia, but molden. She wore attire simir to the Iyr’s typical wear, but in dark green and brown, rather than grey. Laying beside her was a long staff, made of dark wood, which curled around a gem at the top. She wrote within her book, before revealing the tents to Gangak.
“He was difficult to defeat, but she was more terrifying,” Gangak said, tinuiale, before stopping, allowing Tariel to write another question. The Iyrman’s patience was as rge as Baktu’s, and while Tariel wrote down her question, Gangak brought a cup of water to Larot’s lips. The boy allowed the young woman to quench his thirst, though he remained as bored as ever.
“Cousin Adam,” Raygak called.
“Yes, cousin Raygak?” Adam replied as the young Iyrman formed a shadow over him, with Inakan’s eyes darting towards Raygak with judgement.
“Kavgak wishes to py with you.”
“Hoi hoi hoi,” Adam said, sitting up, holding Inakan in his arms so she didn’t fall. “If Kavgak wishes to py, I should py.”
“I also py?” Inakan asked.
“Let’s ask Kavgak,” Adam replied as Kavgak charged towards him with such mighty steps, before standing before him, her fists out oher side of her, her figure so fident, one might have thought she was a child of the Iyr.
“Kaza Inakan!” Kavgak held out her hand, helping the girl up. “Kaza Adam!”
Adam allowed the girl to take his hand, the girl huffing as she pulled Adam up, the half elf pretending tle as he stood. As she pulled him up, her fingers gripped around the half elf’s hand so tight, his hand throbbed. “Wow! Our Kavgak is s!”
“Yes,” Kavgak decred, before pointing up at the half elf. “You are Adam!”
“That’s right.”
“Good,” the girl said, nodding her head, while beginning to y down the maations of py.
It was almost idyllic, save for the darkness hanging in the air.
Adam eventually gave up pying with the children, realising he had grown too old, uo match the stamina of children who had not yet learnt what the word tired meant. He dropped down beside Vonda, the half elf panting for air.
“Hoo!” Adam poured water into a cup, bringing it up to his wife’s lips. She sipped it lightly, before allowing her husband to finish the rest of the water. “What wonderfully troublesome cousins I have.”
“Troublesome?” Vonda asked.
“I’m so troubled by how wonderful they all are,” Adam admitted, reag out to hold her hand within his own, almost melting into the chair.
Vonda gowards her husband, seeing the bags under his eyes, noting how heavy his breathing had bee. He was the kind of man to march twenty miles each day, and now pying with children tired him out. She said nothing, however, uanding that it would stress him out if she were to speak with him now.
“Should I get you something to eat?” Adam offered. “I cut some fruit.”
“Yes, please.” Vonda smiled even wider, allowing her husband to spoil her.
While Adam stepped away to cut some fruit, his eyes darted around the area, noting all the Iyrmen about. Yet, there was no Jaygak, no Kitool. They had yet to greet the twins or his you son. On his return, he scooped Larot into an arm, aled himself beside his wife, to feed her using the fork Jurot had carved for him. Vonda allowed it, only because she held Larot’s small red hand, feeling his warmth against her hand.
Once evening approached, the group gathered together around the fire, Jirot and Jarot staring up at their father, their aunt also pouting up at the half elf.
“I know, I know, but we have to, to guide them bae,” Adam said, noting how tightly the children clutched at the nterns.
“I make light and they e home, daddy,” Jirot offered.
“Normally you’d be right, my dear, but this time… it’s for the festival.”
Jirot looked up trandmother, pouting towards the woman. Sonarot met the girl’s eyes, and for a moment, she thought about relenting, especially sitle Jarot outing too. She dropped to her knees, pulling them both in for a hug, before also ing an arm around her daughter.
“We must burerns to guide the souls home,” Sonarot said. “If you do not, how Surot return?”
“Father?” Lanarot asked.
“Yes,” Sonarot replied.
“Baba?” Jirot asked.
“Yes.”
“I do it for baba!” Jirot said, her face t. Tears flowed down her face freely, but she tossed the ntern forward, while Jogak picked it up from he fire, tossing it into the fmes properly, helping little Jarot toss his oo.
Konarot tossed the ntern forward, but it nded right in front of her, the girl blinking at her ntern as though it had made a mistake, while Kirot and Karot’s nterns each fell into the fire.
“I did it!” Inakan said, having tossed her ntern within the fmes.
“Nana! You see?” Jirot asked, tears flowing down her face, the girl’s lips pushed out as she tio cry.
“I saw,” Sonarot firmed, brushing the girl’s hair.
“Silly baba! You must e home!” Jirot hugged her grandmht. “How baba do this?”
A smile slowly encroached upon Adam’s lips. “Of course he’ll e home, since my children wish for it.”
Jurot remained silent, staring at the fmes, hearing the sniffling of the twins, and his younger sister. Jurot reached down to tickle the back of Lanarot’s head, before he retreated away from the fire, pig up his son, and his niece, bringing the pair to his chest.
Tariel’s eyes fell to the twins, seeing how they cuddled up against their grandmother. Their amber eyes remained pletely focused on their grandmother, the pair brimming with adoration for the woman. She thought, perhaps, that goblins weren’t so bad after all.
Oh.
They weren’t goblins?
Adam tio stare at the fire, watg the nterns disappear into ash. It was deep within the night, the half elf holding Larot against his chest, his triplets sleeping nearby, his wife’s gentle breath breaking the silence. He thought of his twins, his precious little Jirot and Jarot, who were within the gentle embrace of their greatparents, of Jarot and Gangak. The half elf closed his eyes.
‘Bell?’
[…]
Uh oh.
