Re: Frolicking Through Friesia (119 4A)

[Kara Winters]

Miyuki blinked at that, "What did you tell him?"

She wondered exactly what the two had been disagreeing about that would make Lancaeriel say I told you so later on.

[Nara-pyon]

Lancaeriel smiled softly at her pupil. "He claimed that it was impossible for her to receive a soul. I told him to wait and see. I never pretended that I could do so, but I did believe it was possible."

Then she rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "Though I must admit, even I did not think that the Valar would appear specially for her, to do just that."

[Kara Winters]

"Well... Kyrie did say there were legends that the Valar visited this country still," Miyuki murmured, "And really this shouldn't surprise me after a while."

She had a thrice reincarnated teacher, her aunt use to be a dragon, her mother was an angel, her brother could see magic as easy as breathing, two Gaians fell through a tear between worlds and there were all those major events they seem to keep stumbling into.

Really this was only a matter of fact.

[Nara-pyon]

"Considering everything else that happens to us?" Lancaeriel laughed. "True. Very true. Still, it is rare that the Valar reveal themselves, even if they do mingle with the people. This is the first I have heard of it happening since ... well, since the creation of the people of this continent. It is good to know that they are still watching over us."

Clearly, she did not yet know about Rhea's origins.

Though everyone was excited for Iorlas, she could stand only a few more minutes of the attention before she went inside for a hot bath to warm herself. Daeron and Amir went with her, and as soon as the three of them were inside the tent, Mailon announced that he was going to go hunting and hoped that Daenis would prepare a celebratory meal for them, if he came back with anything.

Daenis agreed cheerfully, though she still didn't fully understand what was going on. Still, she recognized that something momentous had taken place and that it needed celebrating, and after all she had promised, several times over, to prepare a meal for everyone at some point. When better than now?

[Kara Winters]

If Miyuki had known about Rhea's origins she would have probably blinked at her teacher blankly, but since she didn't know, she could only agree with her teacher.

Now that Iorlas had gone to get warm and Malion had gone off hunting that left everyone else to putter about.

Lin looked to see if Kaito had returned during all of this chaos, since he had gone off skiing when Iorlas went missing.

Meanwhile, Miyuki went to see if Daenis would need anything or any help to prepare the coming meal.

[Nara-pyon]

Kaito still had not returned, though he could be seen coming down a nearby mountain at a tremendous rate of speed, and when one listened carefully one could hear the occasional cheer echoing from his general direction. Clearly the neko was making every moment count, and making his time on the mountain last as long as possible.

Daenis was in the storage room with Wren when Miyuki found her, and Wren was in the process of showing her where all of the herbs and spices were located, as well as the various cooking tools.

"Hello, Miyuki," the White Elven girl greeted her warmly the moment she noticed her. "Are you looking for something too?"

[Kara Winters]

Miyuki shook her head, "No, I was just checking to see if you needed anything."

Even though Wren had shown Daenis where everything was already.

[Nara-pyon]

Daenis smiled. "Well, Wren is showing me where things are," she murmured, looking at Wren briefly before turning back to Miyuki. "But if Mailon comes back with as much as he said he would, I would really appreciate some help with the preparations, too."

"I'm going to spend a bit of time in the greenhouses," Wren explained. "I had actually started something this morning before we stopped here, and I don't want to leave it too long."

"And with so many people to feed, I really don't think I would be able to keep up on my own," Daenis concluded sheepishly. "I know I volunteered to make this dinner, but I'm afraid I didn't quite think that far ahead."

[Kara Winters]

"That's okay," Miyuki chuckled, "I'll help, and if you need help just ask. I'm sure there will be others."

Though they were waiting for Mailon to get back now, so that might be a while.

[Nara-pyon]

"Well, it depends on how much Mailon brings back," Daenis smiled, "but I'm accustomed to preparing things on my own, regardless of how many people for whom I'm preparing the meal. I'm sure the two of us will be enough. It depends, also, on what animals he brings back. Some require more watching than others as they cook."

Suddenly she squealed slightly and jumped back as something landed on her feet, and when she looked down she saw Ira looking up at her innocently, his tail waving back and forth. Daenis giggled. "Someone's in a good mood."

Wren chuckled softly. "Well, between Ira and Miyuki, you're in good hands, Daenis, so I'm going to head back to the gardens. If I'm not around when dinner's ready, that's where I'll be. Have fun, girls."

With a grin, she left the two of them in the storage room and headed off on her own.

[Kara Winters]

Miyuki waved bye to Wren as she left before turning her attention back to Daenis.

"Since we're waiting, why not get the spices and fruits or vegetables that you might need for this?" Miyuki suggested.

That way they could work on the animal right away.

[Nara-pyon]

"Well, you would have to help me with fruits and vegetables," Daenis admitted ruefully. "I had never had any before meeting all of you, so I'm not sure what they all are."

She would pick the spices herself, though. While she was familiar only with the ones she had grown up with, which were few, she had no trouble with the idea of testing those that the group had to see what she could do with them.

[Kara Winters]

"I'll help where I can in that," Miyuki replied, "There's a lot of ways to prepare them."

Depending on where you were, sometimes fruits were eaten as part of the meal, instead of just prepared for desert, and same thing with the vegetables.

[Nara-pyon]

Daenis smiled gratefully at Miyuki. "Thank you. That makes me feel much better."

It was a while before Mailon returned, and when he came back he had to ask Kyrie, Shoneah, Lin, Cael, Earendil and Andarien to come with him to bring back the animals he'd hunted - Andarien came only so that Ponydash could help carry some, since the Rapidash was much stronger than the youth. While he was there, Mailon told Daenis what he had caught so that she could begin her preparations right away.

It seemed that adult seal, caribou and ptarmigan, a fair-sized bird, were to be their dinner, and Daenis began to plan the meal accordingly. She sampled what spices she didn't know, chose the ones she would use, and asked Miyuki to help her choose fruits or vegetables that would go well with those sorts of tastes. As soon as the others were back and the meat was ready (at least enough that Daenis was satisfied with the quantities), they began to cook the meal.

While they were working, Iorlas emerged from the bath, finally warm but wrapped in a blanket anyways, with Daeron by her side, holding Amir in his arms, and Kaede skipping along behind them. Eventually Kaito returned as well, none the worse for wear, his face red from the wind and exertion, but cheerful and happy.

Finally, very late, the meal was ready, but of course because the sun didn't set that far north at this time of year, it was still as bright as noon. There were all kinds of dishes: each meat was prepared several different ways, whether braised or stewed, steamed, roasted, or sautéed; some with vegetables, some without; some glazed, some with sauces on the sides. With Miyuki's help, there was also some fresh fruit for dessert, some chopped into fruit salads and others left whole. With all of it on the table, there wasn't room for people to sit, so they ended up leaving it on the counter for people to help themselves, buffet-style (a new concept for Daenis, but one that she liked).

[Kara Winters]

It said something about Daenis' ability to cook if she could use spices and other food items that she wasn't normally familiar with. Even if Miyuki's help, it took someone who really knew about cooking to step outside the recipe like that.

Some people wandered into the living room since it could be expanded due to the play area that was made for Amir. That way the kitchen wouldn't be too crowded. Really, it amazed Miyuki how many people had come to stay with them so far.

"This is really good," Miyuki told Daenis.

[Nara-pyon]

"Thank you," Daenis smiled at Miyuki, a blush rising in her cheeks.

"And this time you get to enjoy it as well," Mailon spoke up, chuckling as he helped himself to seconds already. "I'm sure that makes it even better in your own estimation."

Daenis' blush grew more pronounced. "Well, you could have left me something the last time," she murmured, sopping up some sauce with some meat. "I never did get the chance to eat that night."

[Kara Winters]

"You didn't get to eat anything from the last dinner you made?" Miyuki asked looking between the two of them.

While it sounded kind of weird, somehow Miyuki wasn't surprised considering how Daenis was treated back there.

[Nara-pyon]

Daenis looked back at Miyuki. "It is custom that when the meal is set, the men eat first," she explained with a soft smile. "They eat their fill while the women serve, and if it so happens that everything is eaten before they are finished ... well. Then that's the end of it. I could have prepared something more for myself after cleaning everything up, but by that time the night was half over, and I was just focused on making sure I did not forget anything when I left the next morning."

She shrugged one shoulder. "With just my father and myself, we usually did not hold to that custom, as you do not amongst yourselves. But that night, with Feraïs and Mailon there, I would never have had that opportunity."

[Kara Winters]

"So is that a custom for just formal occasions or does it vary from family to family how strict that custom is followed. Do you know?" Miyuki asked curiously.

She knew Daenis kept to herself, so she might not know the answer to that question. It was just... Miyuki found that interesting.

[Nara-pyon]

"It's standard," Daenir affirmed without hesitation. "It's just that after my mother died, it was just me and my father, and so he allowed it to become a bit lax, though never when we had people over."

She paused for a moment as if thinking about something, and then added, "You know ... for all his faults ... and for all the practices of the people there ... I believe my father really did love me, even if he didn't show it."

"Well, he was proud of you, to say the least," Mailon murmured. "And protective. We can say at least that much."

[Kara Winters]

It sounded like Mailon certainly gave Daenis' father more credit for that chase than Daenis did herself. Though, maybe it was because Mailon saw things a bit differently.

"People show love in different ways," Lin murmured, "He might have but it might not have come off like an action of love."

Her father had done a number of things that were kind of embarrassing (maybe over the top), but it was out of love. Threatening boys with tasers no less, though now that she thought about it, it was interesting that he never did that to Earendil.

[Nara-pyon]

"Well, for being protective, he certainly had an interesting way of showing it," Daenis smiled softly. "Threatening to force me into marrying Feraïs? I don't know how that would have been protecting me."

"It would have protected you from the other men of the village, and from the threat of becoming a widow," Mailon spoke up in a tone that sounded on the one hand as if he were tryng to comfort her, but also as if he were ashamed of the idea of it nonetheless. "As strange as it sounds, Feraïs would have been quite safe as a husband. You said that your mother died when you were young-"

"Only a few years ago," Daenis interjected.

Mailon chuckled. "Well, you are still young. But I'm sure he knows the pain of losing one he loves. I'm sure he didn't want the same for you."

Daenis frowned. "Well ... that's one way of looking at it, I suppose," she agreed reluctantly. "I don't know if I'm convinced yet."

[Kara Winters]

"Can't blame you," Lin admitted, "I hate the idea of forced marriages, even betrothals, myself. Though I also will admit the concept isn't as unheard of as I would like..."

The King of the Eastland if she recalled once at a betrothal, and at one point it was quite common among certain clans in Gaia. Sometimes it was just for power, but other times it was for the well being of the children involved, even if it wasn't out of love. In truth, she also knew not all marriages were done out of love, sometimes it was a business agreement, pure and simple.

[Nara-pyon]

Daenis smiled. "Thank you. I share your opinion, as strange as that might sound for one of my people. When I marry, it will only be because I love the man, and no other reason."

"Hear, hear!" Daeron chuckled, raising his mug as if in a toast. He grinned at Iorlas, who was beaming back at him.

"Well, I hope that you find the love you wish for," Mailon told Daenis sincerely.

A slight blush rose in Daenis' cheeks. "Thank you," she murmured. Then, eager to divert attetion away from herself, she looked at Iorlas and asked, "Now ... I'm confused ... rather. What exactly are we celebrating? I understand that something happened, but ... I'm not sure I understand what ... it was ..."

[Kara Winters]

"Hmmm...." Miyuki paused and looked between Iorlas and Lancerieal since they were the major players involved.

There was a lot of backstory to it, and the situation was a bit... confusing. Though not as confusing as the family tree, nothing could top that.

"You should probably explained," Miyuki murmured to Iorlas, "Since it's your story and past..."

And it was Iorlas who had every right to explain if she wanted to.

[Sponsored content]