Author's Note: you mentioned I never show you the edited chapters. So here's the edited, Tsu's'di-added Midwinter morning scene with the gifts. There's more of Tsu's'di now, because in your comment on the original chap, you said I needed more of him. So here he is! Hope you enjoy!
.
.
Dressed in a fresh shirt and trews (the ones he'd worn were badly wrinkled from tossing and turning) the night before, Nuada sank down on the sofa in Dylan's sitting room, his truelove curled up on the seat beside him.
"So," Dylan murmured, "today is Midwinter Day, and that means presents, right? Like this." She lifted the soft robe, silk-and-lamb's-wool of heather blue. She hadn't noticed when she'd put it on, but her initials (minus her surname) were embroidered on the lapel in royal-blue silk thread—DRSN. "Thank you, by the way."
Nuada nodded.
"Well, that's good," she murmured. "I figured there would be gift-exchanging or something, so I brought some of the presents from the house. I hope you like them."
The prince jolted. "You…bought me…a gift?"
She shrugged, smiling. "Gifts, plural. One of them might not have turned out how I wanted it to, but hopefully you like it. You wanna open them?"
He stared at Dylan as if he'd never seen her before. With everything going on, it had never occurred to him that she might take time to prepare solstice gifts for him. He'd done so for her, but…but that was different.
How long had it been since he'd received a Midwinter gift from someone other than Wink? Oh, sometimes Lorelei or another friend bequeathed something, but only if he was actually staying with or near them for the holiday. Well, he remembered, the húli kit, Yun Fei, always sent a gift; she never forgot the prince who'd saved her life as a toddler. But other than that, only Wink had consistently remembered his birthday and Midwinter. Even his father and sister were conservative with gifts, though Nuada made a point always to send things to his family.
"I…" It was such a small thing, gifts, and yet…and yet it wasn't. "I would be honored to open any gifts you might bestow upon me, milady."
With a sunny smile and a quick kiss on his cheek, Dylan bounced off the sofa and scampered into her bedroom. She returned with her arms full of packages. She set a few aside—"For the kids," she said, "when they wake up. I don't want them fetching these particular things from my closet."—but laid three parcels before him on the low sitting-room table. Nuada glanced at her. Dylan perched on the sofa beside him, wriggling like a child with suppressed excitement. It must've been contagious; Nuada found himself strangely nervous as he unwrapped the largest package.
Folds of blue cloth appeared beneath crinkling paper, glinting in places with gold thread. The moment Nuada lifted the material, he knew what it was: a quilt, like the one his mother had made for him before her death, fashioned with love in the heart of the maker. Without quite realizing what he did, Nuada pressed a square against his cheek, a patch of blue suede so soft it could've been velvet. Dylan didn't need to ask if he liked it; she could tell.
The second parcel surprised him even more; it was a greatcoat. A very nice greatcoat. Just as good as the mink-lined velvet cloak he'd given Dylan as a courtship gift. Butter-soft black leather lined with smooth, burgundy Elven silk; slitted back-panels for ease of movement when walking, riding, or even fighting. When Nuada tried it on, it settled around him as lightly as a wisp of cloud, the rich aroma of good leather enveloping him. How had Dylan been able to afford such a gift? Had she made this as well? But no, he knew she lacked the skill. Where had the coat come from?
"A jorōgumo in the East Village made this for me," Dylan murmured, "to pay me back. I'd healed her daughter of an illness that might have killed her if left untreated. The local healer refused to help, because they were spider fae. Probably afraid of the daughter biting him while delirious with fever. Anyway, d'you like it? I figured, since you're always buying me stuff, I should return the favor."
"It's marvelous," Nuada murmured. A jorōgumo? The spider fae, native to Onibi, were incomparable weavers. Even Themba, Master Tai
lor of Findias, couldn't compare with their skill. Prince or not, this sort of article was beyond his grasp unless he knew one of the man-hating Japanese arachnoids personally—which he didn't. That also explained why it fit perfectly even though he'd never been measured for the garment. Just one of the talents of the unearthly jorōgumo seamstresses.
In the final package, Nuada found a matching pair of black leather riding gloves. They fit perfectly when he tried them on. "Thank you, mo duinne."
She smiled. "You're welcome. You've got other presents, but those are for Christmas. I know the kids have gifts for you, too—somewhere—and they'll want to see—"
"Presents!" The high-pitched, overjoyed cry had both adults twisting around to see A'du'la'di and 'Sa'ti scrambling out of their room, rumpled in their pajamas, each clutching a wrapped parcel. Tsu's'di emerged as well, moving somewhat stiffly and stifling a yawn. Speaking in unison, the two younger ewah cried to their prince and mistress, "You guys slept forever!"
"I couldn't hold the savages back any longer," Tsu's'di added, grinning.
Dylan grinned back. "Sorry about that. A'du, can you get the rest of the packages from my closet, please?"
The little boy shoved his package into his sister's hands, shot Dylan a salute, and raced to obey. 'Sa'ti skipped over and handed one present to Nuada, the other to Dylan. Then she plunked herself on the floor. At a nod from the prince, Tsu's'di slumped into a chair. A'du came back dragging an assortment of wrapped items on what looked like the blanket from the boy's bed. Nuada raised an eyebrow. A'du'la'di stopped next to the sofa, panting.
"Couldn't (pant) carry 'em (pant) all. Had to (pant) drag 'em," the boy said.
"Bum," his older brother replied, shaking his head ruefully. A'du merely stuck out his tongue before continuing his task. Tsu's'di took a good-natured swipe at his little brother, who ducked and launched himself sideways at his brother. The two wrestled on the chair, mock-hissing and scuffling, laughing. Dylan shook her head, grinning. Nuada rolled his eyes, but found himself smiling despite himself. When A'du found himself pinned to Tsu's'di's knees, the cougar youth demanded, "Give up, midget?"
"Never!"
Tsu's'di grinned. "Shouldn't have said that! Death! Epic death!" The cougar youth growled with mock-ferocity and started tickling his brother, ruffling his hair. "Face it like a man!"
"Help, Your Highness!" A'du giggled helplessly. "A'ge'lv, help! 'Sa'ti!"
That was all the prompting the cougar girl needed. With a yowl, she launched into the fray, climbing on Tsu's'di's back. Tsu's'di grunted from the extra weight and shook himself like a dog. 'Sa'ti slipped. Ended up dangling upside down as her eldest brother tickled A'du with one hand and started tickling her with the other. It was only when a grinning Dylan propped her chin in one hand and called, "Hey, guys—presents?" that they froze, stunned, before settling down, and A'du finally brought the gifts to their proper spot in front of the adults and flopped onto the floor.
"They came," Tsu's'di murmured, grinning. "They fought." He draped an arm around his little sister's shoulders. "I conquered." 'Sa'ti laughed and clambered into her brother's lap. "Who's the best?"
'Sa'ti nuzzled his shoulder with her cheek, purring. "Us. We're a team."
Tsu's'di held up a hand. His sister high-fived it. "That's right, all five of us, just like A'ge'lv Dylan said. Except when A'du gets too big for his britches."
"Then we tickle him!" 'Sa'ti cried.
A'du gave her an affronted look. "Hey, you're supposed to be on my side!"
His sister smiled sweetly. "I love Tsu's'di."
The cub huffed. Folding his arms across his skinny chest, he muttered, "Women. Can't trust 'em, can't throw rocks at 'em." Nuada snorted and Dylan dropped her face in her hands and laughed helplessly, while A'du demanded, "What? What's so funny?"
Then to Dylan's surprise, Brádach and Étaín—two of Nuada's guards—knocked and entered from the prince's suite, bearing more gifts (the two Butchers had been under orders to deliver said parcels upon the cubs' coming in to see Nuada and Dylan). These were deposited with those from Dylan's closet. Dylan glanced at Nuada, wondering how many of those were for her, and hoping the answer was "not many." He bought her so many things already, things she didn't deserve. The mortal hoped her prince intended most of the packages for their children.
"Just think," she murmured to Nuada. "When we have children, they'll jounce us awake on Midwinter and Christmas morning yelping about opening presents." The prince smiled. Then he lifted two packages from the pile and handed one each to A'du and 'Sa'ti. He fixed A'du'la'di with a stern gaze as the boy accepted the parcel.
"A'du'la'di," the prince said. The boy instantly straightened up. "From this moment forth, you may no longer carry my knife."
The cub immediately deflated. "But…but…" His eyes were wide and despairing in his small face. Dylan cocked her head, eyeing her prince. "But, Your Highness…what did I do? What'd I do wrong? I won't do it again, I promise!"
"You did nothing wrong," the prince replied. Dylan frowned, but waited for Nuada to add, "Open your gift."
Uncertain, A'du obediently pulled the string and peeled back the paper, revealing a box of polished white wood the length of the child's forearm. Lifting the silver latch and propping up the lid, he peered at the contents. His eyes widened and a deliriously happy grin broke across his face. His gaze darted to Nuada, down to the box, to Nuada again and then back to the box. With trembling hands, he lifted out a knife in a silver-chased white leather sheath. A moonstone etched with his mistress's crest sat in the pommel of Elven silver. A'du expertly thumbed the sheath's catch and reverently drew the knife. Silver shushed against leather. An intricate flowering-vine detail was lightly etched along the length of the slender, shining blade.
"Oh, wow," 'Sa'ti whispered.
Tsu's'di leaned forward and propped his elbows on his knees, examining the knife from his chair. He let out a low whistle. "That," he said, "is a real warrior's knife." He clapped a hand on his little brother's shoulder. "That is a real weapon, A'du."
"Like the one the prince gave you, Tsu's'di," A'du whispered, staring in delighted awe at the blade.
Finally he raised his eyes to his mistress and whispered, "Look, A'ge'lv. Look what the prince gave me." Then he focused on his hero. "Thank you, Your Highness. I'll try to be worthy."
A warm smile spread over Nuada's face. "You already are, A'du'la'di. You're old enough to have a blade of your own, one that serves as a declaration of your loyalty. Bear it well."
The child nodded, trying to look solemn but unable to suppress his exultant grin. "I will."
Next to him, 'Sa'ti gave a cry of delight. Dylan wondered if Nuada had given her a knife as well, but no. She was a bit young for a weapon as well-crafted as the one Nuada had gifted to A'du'la'di. A practice knife, maybe, but that wasn't what she'd unwrapped. Instead, 'Sa'ti held a doll. It was made of fluffy spotted cloth to give the illusion of fur, with a feline face and bright turquoise eyes identical to the little girl's. A blue velvet dress—very similar to the cougar girl's favorite church dress—adorned the figure. 'Sa'ti stared with avid joy at the doll, then looked up at the prince, squirming with happiness.
"I've never seen anything so pretty in my whole life!" She cried, squeezing the doll and raining little kisses on its fluffy head. "I love it, I love it!" Scrambling madly, she lurched to her feet and ran to the prince, throwing her short arms as far around his broad shoulders as she could reach, and hugged him. "Oh, thank you, Your Highness! Thank you! I love it!"
Nuada stiffened briefly, then remembered to return the little girl's embrace, patting her awkwardly on the back. Then, as if she'd suddenly recalled that he was a prince and she was a servant, 'Sa'ti stepped back and offered a quick little curtsy that Dylan found utterly adorable, still clutching the precious doll. Then she ran to her brother. "Tsu's'di, Tsu's'di! Look at my dolly!"
"Awesome," her brother said, smiling. "What're you gonna call her?"
"Um…A'wi'u'wa'yi!"
"Little Paw," he replied. "Nice. Totally fits."
Dylan's gifts to the children were fairly standard—more picture books, as requested, for the cubs, and a box of fae candy to split between them. For Tsu's'di, there was candy, too (when Dylan remarked, "Because growing guys are always hungry," the cougar youth grinned); a trio of books he'd admired from the Troll Market; and a pair of white leather vambraces tooled in silver that Dylan had picked out at the Floating Night Market in Manhattan.
"Whoa. Oh, A'ge'lv," Tsu's'di whispered, caressing the leather. "I…I…wow. Just…wow. Thank you. They're so…cool!" With 'Sa'ti's help – she was getting good at tying laces, from helping Dylan with her gowns – the youth put on the vambraces. They looked very fine gracing his wrists and forearms.
From Nuada to the children came the rest of their formal livery—including their last changes of Midwinter finery for the rest of the winter festivities. He'd also bought 'Sa'ti a knife, but hers was a simple practice blade. Tsu's'di received his own elegant blade, identical to A'du's, but larger, obviously sized for him. He gave a truncated bow to his prince and murmured, "Thank you, Sire. I'll try to be worthy of this blade, too."
Both young ewah were also gifted with leather slings, which Nuada informed them they were expected to master quickly (the stable-lads would no doubt enjoy teaching them the use of the country weapons). Second only to the knife and doll and candy—at least in A'du and 'Sa'ti's estimation—was the pair of small bows carved with beautiful knotwork, each sized specifically for their small owners. 'Sa'ti—and her doll, whose name had been shortened to U'wa—admired the polished length of her bow, made of white yew. Tsu's'di received an appropriately-sized bow, as well, more than half as tall as he was, and carved with stylized hunting cats prowling along the curving wood.
"Thank you, Your Highness," the young guardsman murmured. "Thank you so much."
A'du inspected his own bow with more maturity and a sharper eye than Dylan would've expected from the child. Then he looked over at Tsu's'di and tugged on his sleeve. The older boy bent down. A'du whispered something. Tsu's'di's brows shot up and he glanced at the two adults before replying to his brother sotto voce. Dylan looked at Nuada, who gestured for her to wait. A'du said something else, Tsu's'di replied. A'du made a gesture. Tsu's'di wrinkled his nose, his ears flicked, and then he nodded. A'du pointed at himself and Tsu's'di nodded again. A'du shot the adults a nervous glance.
"Hey," Tsu's'di said, loud enough that Dylan and the prince could both hear. "You want to do it? You wanna be the grownup? Go be the grownup. You've got a good point, A'du. You're old enough. It's okay." His brother gripped the little boy's shoulder reassuringly. "You're a Child of the Cougar. If you think you're ready for this, you need to do it."
The cub nodded, raking his claws through his hair. "Yeah. Yeah. Okay." Swallowing hard, he got to his feet and went to kneel before his prince, hand over his heart. Dylan and Nuada exchanged surprised looks before Nuada focused on the kneeling boy.
"A'du'la'di?" Nuada questioned cautiously, one eyebrow raised. The child raised his head. His expression was remarkably solemn.
"Your Highness…you're giving me a warrior's weapons, so…so I want to promise that you can count on me," he murmured. "For anything. I promise I'll always be loyal to you and A'ge'lv Dylan. I…you know that oath Tsu's'di made when you found us? 'Sa'ti and I didn't make that oath. Just Tsu's'di. But I feel like…should I do it now? You gave me a knife and a bow and you said I'm old enough to have one, so…and people have been saying stuff."
The prince frowned. "What have people been saying?"
"That we're not really your vassals; we're just normal servants, because we didn't make the right oath or something. That when you and the a'ge'lv…when you break up…that you're gonna get rid of us. I want to say the right oath. I want to be yours and A'ge'lv Dylan's vassal."
Nuada glanced at the cougar youth in his chair. Tsu's'di nodded, eyes hard and face solemn. So…someone had been saying things either to or within A'du's hearing. Idle gossip? Or something else? Giving away nothing of his thoughts, the crown prince of Bethmoora inclined his head regally.
"Very well. Oath or not, you will always have a place with us, A'du'la'di—you and your family. But as you wish, so shall it be. 'Sa'ti is not yet old enough to make this oath, but you and your brother are." And he would find out who'd been spreading this story of dissention between himself and Dylan later. "Tsu's'di, do you wish to swear the formal oath of a vassal?"
The youth blinked, startled. "I thought I did. Sir."
Nuada shook his head. "You swore service to my lady. It isn't quite the same thing. Do you wish to swear this oath?" Tsu's'di nodded with hesitation. The Elven prince allowed himself a small smile. "Then
both of you, retrieve your blades and kneel before me." After obeying, the cougar boys looked up at their prince. "Repeat after me."
He walked them through the formal oath of fealty, which outlined the duties and responsibilities of a vassal. At the end, he asked both of them, one at a time, his voice ringing with princely authority, "Art thou willing to become entirely mine and my lady's man?"
Tsu's'di nodded and gave the ritualistic reply. A'du'la'di, looking strangely adult, kept his eyes fixed on his hero as he said, slowly and carefully to keep from fudging the words, "Verily, I am willing."
"Then we accept your fealty with gratitude and love," the prince replied.
Tsu's'di nodded again, but the adult aura around the cougar child fell away, and A'du grinned. "Awesome."
"When will I be old enough?" 'Sa'ti asked in a plaintive voice. "I wanna be a real vassal, too!"
Nuada quickly calculated. "In nine years." Ewah aged one year of maturity for every five chronological years, and 'Sa'ti was thirty-one. When she was forty years old, she would be old enough to swear an oath of fealty.
The child looked horrified. "But that's forevers!"
Dylan smiled at the little girl. "In the meantime, you're still my favorite handmaiden."
"Yay!"
"What about me?" A'du asked, smiling. "What about me?"
Smoothing back some of his wild mane, Dylan murmured, "You are my favorite pageboy."
"Awesome!"
Tsu's'di raised both eyebrows and smiled—a smile Dylan had seen on countless teenage boys trying to win favors from their mothers. "And, uh…what about me?" The cougar youth asked. "Are you gonna leave me out in the cold, A'ge'lv?"
Dylan rolled her eyes. "Oh, for heaven's sake. Fine. You are my favorite goofball."
His smile morphed into a grin. "Better than nothing!"
The three ewah, Dylan, and Nuada went on to open the rest of the gifts. The remaining gift from Dylan to the prince was a delight—somehow in her spare time (what little of it she possessed) she'd managed to put together one of the two miniature armies from the clockwork chess set they'd purchased at the Troll Market. He'd been able to put half the secondary army together before this, so if he took some time to finish, they would soon be able to play chess with the clockwork set.
From Nuada for his truelove was more jewelry—a princess, he explained to her when her eyes widened at the sight of a broach made of dark emeralds and amber seed pearls set in gold, needed jewels to help give the proper impression—as well as a set of leather-bound books containing legends from Bethmoora, which Nuada knew would she'd love.
But the thing that delighted Dylan the most was the socks. She cooed at crimson footwear patterned like ladybugs; snuggled exquisitely soft amber-colored cashmere stockings; sighed deliriously over green and brown socks like fuzzy turtles. Her favorite pair, however, was the socks that looked like #2 pencils. Dylan kicked off her slippers, stripped off her socks, and stuffed her feet into the pencil-socks. She wiggled her toes, rapturous. Then Dylan flung her arms around her prince and kissed him soundly on the mouth ('Sa'ti sighed about the "romanticalness" and A'du cried, "Ew!").
The children's gifts to Nuada and Dylan were something of a surprise.
For Dylan, the children had made a beautiful mosaic of the cottage against a piece of old but soft, well-oiled leather they'd requested from Nils, the Master of the Stables, and framed so it could stand up on the fireplace mantel. The granite blocks of the cottage had been pieced together from small, gray stones they'd collected (with permission) from the public gardens; the door was bits of pinecone, which made the ensemble smell of spicy evergreens. Stiffened fragments of lace made up the curtained windows. Tiny pieces of blue and white-frosted glass represented the blue and white lights that had decorated the eaves and walkway when the cubs had first come to the cottage. Small, dried flowers and green and brown stones approximated Dylan's garden, dusted with glued-on flour for snow. Carefully arranged bits of clean straw served for the thatching of Dylan's roof, also sprinkled with the flour (also glued, to keep from making a mess). More gray pebbles and several twigs dipped in whitewash formed the garden walls and wooden gate, and shiny black buttons of varying sizes made up the sky. The moon was a single, shiny button the color of pearl. Flecks of river mica glued to the buttons served for stars.
"Oh, wow," Dylan whispered, brushing loving fingers over the mosaic. She looked at A'du and 'Sa'ti, who watched her with mingled trepidation and excitement. "Where on earth did you two get the idea to do this?"
"It was 'Sa'ti's idea," A'du said promptly with a grin. "I helped get the stuff and put it together. Tsu's'di helped with the leather."
"Because I am incredible," the youth interjected. "Made it myself at the palace tanners'. And I did the glass; I was worried A'du and 'Sa'ti would cut themselves."
"Wouldn't have, though," 'Sa'ti said.
Tsu's'di shot her a look. "You might have." He grabbed her hands and brought them to his mouth. "And if you cut your little fingers off, what would I do for snack food when I get hungry for little sister bits? Om-nom." He pretended to nibble on her fingers and 'Sa'ti giggled. "Yeah, that's what I thought. Nothing. I'd have nothing. And then I would starve, waste away to a skele-kitty. These are delicious, by the way. Om-nom-nom." 'Sa'ti laughed and hugged him around the neck.
A'du chimed in, "This way,
it's from all of us. You don't get your Christmas present until Christmas, though."
Dylan raised her eyebrows. "I get a Christmas present, too?" The cubs nodded. The mortal grinned. "Well, now I'm really excited."
The cubs' gift to the prince was a carved wooden statue. The statue was a (somewhat messily) painted shield leaning against a sword thrust point-down into the ebony base. The device on the shield was a pair of crossed, black-handled lances, blades colored with shining silver and with golden grips, set against a crimson field. The wooden longsword had been painted silver, the hilt and cross-guard black and gold. It was a (rather amateurly rendered) recreation of Nuada's own blade. Gold paint on a bas-relief on the wooden base made it look like a trophy with a plaque. Words had been carefully etched into the plaque and filled in with black paint: Honor and Valor.
"It's like a trophy," 'Sa'ti piped up when Nuada simply stared at the medium-sized carving. Nervous, she directed her remarks to Dylan. "For the prince. Because he's brave and stuff." She and A'du'la'di exchanged a glance, then looked up at Tsu's'di.
"We thought maybe you could keep it on your desk, Your Highness," the older boy added.
"Tsu's'di carved it," A'du added.
"Yeah," the cougar youth confirmed, eyeing the prince. He sank just a little in his seat at the sight of the statue-like prince. "And the cubs painted it."
"Is…is it okay?" A'du asked when the prince didn't speak. Nuada simply turned the carving over and over in his hands. "Do you like it?"
Uneasy, 'Sa'ti mumbled, "We're sorry we can't paint very good. We tried really hard. Don't you like it?"
After a moment, Tsu's'di ventured, "Your Highness?"
The prince took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He closed his eyes, brow furrowing, and brushed his thumb over the words carved into the base. Then he opened his eyes and looked at the children.
"This is a very good gift," he said softly. The cubs grinned. Tsu's'di smiled; he'd been feeling uneasy, too, in the face of the prince's silence. Nuada added, "I'm honored by it." He would, he decided, keep the statue on his desk as 'Sa'ti had suggested.
"Yes!" A'du and 'Sa'ti high-fived each other, then high-fived their elder brother.
"Milady," Nuada murmured, catching Dylan's attention. "There is something else I wish to gift to you. I'll fetch it, shall I?"
No comments:
Post a Comment