-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Princess Casiama IV of Tor Valliya
Catriona, Imperial County of Catriona
17
th
of Zenith, 1282
D.f.
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The city of Catriona was bustling with activity this day, just as it was on every other. The docks were filled with a hundred ships, dockhands loading cargo destined for ports all over the Empire of man, and even beyond the seas.
There would be a hundred and two girls practicing their gods-given gifts of magic at the college on an isle in the bay, and a hundred merchants would be selling their wares to a hundred customers at any one instant. Everyone in the city would be awake at this hour. Everyone, but one.
An elven princess laid in slumber in her townhouse by the bay, curled up fetally on the couch in it's main hall. She had been left alone with an infant for just over a week, and had found herself utterly overwhelmed by his incessant crying and demands for her attention.
Casiama's lids fluttered open, her deep green eyes meeting the morning sun beaming through the windows. She yawned, stretched, and smiled, pleased that she had been given a chance to sleep even for an hour. She shifted her gaze to the corner of the room, where she had left the babe Talos last.
... Or, where she had remembered leaving him last. The crib was there, just under the window, but a babe was there no longer. She shot up in a panic, her eyes darting about the room.
"Talos?" she whimpered, bounding for the stairs in the corner of the hall. Perhaps she had left him in the bedroom? Yes, assuredly she had. She ran up those stairs faster than any had before, swinging the bedroom door open in a panic. She entered, scanned the room, even knelt to look under the bed, then left as quickly as she had entered.
"Talos!" she shouted, knowing the babe wouldn't respond. He was too young to recognize his name, or even recognize his own existence in the world. She checked the upstairs den, the balcony, then strode down the stairs as hastily as she had ran up them.
"Talos!" Casiama cried, running for the kitchen. She had just cooked him a meal of mashed peas and carrots, surely she had merely forgotten to take him with her when she napped. She slid on the smooth wooden flooring as she entered the room, whimpering desperately when there was no sign of him.
Her ears perked up when the front door to the townhouse opened.
Oh gods, not now!
"Hey Cass! We're back," she heard Alanna shout from the doorway. Casiama audibly gulped then ran towards the door, hiding her hands behind her back.
"Hello, A-Alanna," Casiama stuttered, her words dripping with guilt. "How was the trip?"
"It was amazing, Cass!" Alanna replied happily, shutting the door behind her and entering the hall beyond the front antechamber. She must have spied the empty crib in the corner of the room, for her next words would have made no sense otherwise.
"Where's Talos?" Alanna asked thinly, spinning towards the frowning elf.
"Uh, he's... uh..."
"Cass..." Alanna glared, "where is-"
Fortunately, by the grace of all that is great and miraculous in the world, Alanna's words were cut off by the whining cries of an infant. Alanna turned towards the noise instantly.
"You left him in the
privy
?!" Alanna exclaimed, running to soothe the crying infant.
Casiama exhaled sharply and leaned against the wall, the greatest guilt and worry she had ever felt in her lifetime now behind her. She supposed she
did
leave him in the privy, for one delirious reason or another. Alanna came out with the babe Talos cradled in her arms a minute later, with a brow raised as she glared at Casiama.
"Was everything okay here?" Alanna asked with a hint of worry, her words far calmer than they had been a minute ago. Casiama nodded.
"Yeah, everything was fine Alanna," the princess replied with a nod. "Sorry about... that. I guess I was just a little tired, and it must have slipped my mind for a moment."
Alanna's brows fell, and she pursed her lips with a smile. "You do look awfully tired, Cass. Go upstairs and get some well-earned rest. And... thank you, for caring for my son. And letting me have some time alone with Talos... I really needed that," the sorceress sighed.
Casiama nodded again, finally smiling as well. "You're welcome. I think I'll wait here until Talos returns."
"He's putting the horses away. He might be some time," the auburn-haired sorceress explained as she rocked the babe in her arms.
"It's no matter. I'll wait."
Alanna frowned. "He'll be here when you wake."
"It's no matter," Casiama repeated with a squint of her eyes and a shake of her head. Alanna shrugged.
"Suit yourself, Cass," Alanna sighed, walking towards the main room to sit down on the couch with her child in her arms. She cooed at him sweetly, asking of his week with no expectation of a reply.
Casiama waited by the front door for the better part of thirty minutes, leaning against one of the wooden beams. Her eyes were fluttering shut occasionally, and she might have fallen asleep entirely if the door hadn't opened when it did.
A man -- her man -- grinned at her from the doorway. Casiama's ears perked up instantly at the sight. She bounced towards him, wrapping her arms around his neck as he shut the door. She gave him a flurry of kisses against his cheek until he tilted his head towards hers, kissing her deeply.
"Gods, it's
so
good to see you," Casiama declared as she pushed off from him with the world's widest smile.
"And you honey," Talos replied with a grin. "How'd you fare?"
Casiama swayed side-to-side, counting the world's limitless blessings. "It was good! We...
I
did a lot of reading. Aloud."
Talos beamed, shrugging softly. "You think he even knows what you're saying?" Casiama shrugged as well.
"Probably not..." she answered with an exhausted chuckle. Talos' smile began to wane as he glanced over Casiama's darkened eyes, and he brought a hand to her cheek to wipe a stray lock of hair away.
"You look exhausted, Cass," he said full of worry. The elf nodded meekly, feeling her strength being sapped as Talos' sympathy overwhelemed her.
"I must, by now. By the Lady..." Casiama murmured with a deep sigh and a frown, "how does a single mother even raise a babe?" Talos shrugged at her ask, smiling warmly. "All he does is cry... and then when he wasn't crying, I would try retiring for a nap. And then he would cry
again
!"
Talos stepped forward, wrapping the overwhelmed elf in his loving arms. Casiama held onto him tightly, her face burrowing into his shoulder. She was so very glad he was home again. Casiama had never felt loneliness until last week, as she and Talos had been inseparable since they'd met last year. Before that, being by herself for extended periods of time hadn't bothered her in the slightest.
"Shh, it's okay, Cass," he reassured her softly, bringing a hand up to stroke her hair, "It's Alanna's turn to take care of the babe. Let's get you to bed, okay?"
Casiama nodded into his shoulder, then lifted her face away to look him in the eyes. "Okay," she agreed wobbly, "but... you are coming with me, right?"
"Yeah," Talos nodded, smiling warmly as he gazed into her tired eyes. "We'll go together." Casiama smiled, matching his expression.
"And you will tell me of your adventures?" she asked dreamily.
"Of course. I'll tell you all I can before you sleep."
"And then... you won't leave when I do, right?" she asked with raised brows. Talos shook his head, replying to the elf's brittle words softly.
"Never. I'll lie with you until you wake, no matter how long that may be." Casiama's lips started to quiver at her lover's most generous offer, and she soon fell atop the man. She smooched him lovingly on the cheek.
"Oh, Talos... thank you! I have missed you
so
much," she exclaimed wholeheartedly, choking on her words.
"And I you. More than you know. Come on," he said, grabbing the elf's hand delicately to lead her up the stairs, barely sparing a glancing smile towards Alanna and his offspring as he passed them by. Casiama, even in her sleep-deprived state, knew the pair were likely conversing telepathically regardless.
Talos released Casiama's hand to lift the bedsheets for her, an offer declined by the elf with a shaken head and a smile. She ran a hand down her dress, banishing it in a flash of light so she stood in only her smallclothes. She pointed at the bed with an exhausted smile, a wordless ask for Talos to lay down. He did, settling in the middle.
Casiama took her place next to him, although not to make love. There would be time for that later, and she only wanted to hear is heartbeat as she laid her head atop him, and wrapped an arm around his chest. She smiled dreamily, her eyes fluttering shut soon after.
Talos softly regaled her of his excursion to Dun Aysla, and meeting the self-proclaimed princess of Tor Remilla. He clearly figured Casiama would appreciate that story most, and she found it interesting enough to stay awake for even in her exhausted state. He almost began speaking of his trip to Featherton before Casiama interrupted him with soft voice.
"Maybe... maybe you can tell me of the other adventures later, Talos," Casiama said drowsily. Talos ensured his useless arm was wrapped around her shoulder before she fell asleep, squishing the gorgeous elf closer to him. He kissed her on the forehead.