Swashbuckling

Writers: Eimi, Paula
Date Posted: 8th February 2007

Characters: Corowal, Erassa
Description: Corowal tells Erassa about little about his dreams from his youth.
Location: Emerald Falls Hold
Date: month 2, day 3 of Turn 4
Notes: Follows "A little handful"

Corowal returned from the Miranek's office with the baby. She had finally stopped crying and fallen a sleep. "It's official, she's got colic," he told Erassa and gently lowered the baby to her craddle.
"Miranek checked her up."

"I thought so," Erassa sighed. She had known colic all too well when her own son was about that age. It was the strain that finally broke her relationship with his father. She just couldn't take his wandering ways on top of a screaming baby. And maybe wandering into another's weyr seemed a welcome relief from coming home to a screaming child.
Erassa shook her head and cleared it of that old familiar feeling of lonliness that had enveloped her then. "All right. I will watch my diet more carefully. Perhaps something I'm eating is making it worse."
She walked over and stroked the baby's cheek softly. "Poor little dear. She's in for a rough month or two."

"Yes, two of her older siblings had colic too. Runs in the family or so it seems. Let me know if you need help with the children and I arrange something," Corowal said. He had his own experiences on the matter. He had ended up sleeping few nights in his office when Corofel's had been it's worse. Luckily his mother had been there to help Ofelia.

"If you have no objections, I could always ask my mother," Erassa offered. After all, she had helped Erassa with the children before.

"That's fine with me," Corowal replied. He had already met her, so he knew her somewhat.

"You look tired," Erassa frowned. "Let me brew up some klah for you. Are you hungry?"

"I'm not hungry, but I should eat something anyway. I have long evening ahead, to invite all lords to the conclave."

"I'll make you something." And perhaps she should send down to the kitchen to be sure they send him up a more substantial meal later. Corowal was likely to work himself sick if he didn't take care of himself. They certainly couldn't have that. Not when he was all but acting Lord Holder already.

"Thanks," Corowal replied.

She gently wrapped her fingers around his elbow. "Come and sit down for a while. You need to rest."

Corowal let her guide him to the seat. He hid a smile from her. She thought he needed to get his mind off work and the children for a while if he was truly going to have a chance to relax. "Has there been any news from Master Aivorn's daughter? The one who Impressed from the Stands?" she asked as she busied herself.

"From what I have heard, she's busy and happy with her new life-mate," Corowal said.

"What a surprise that was," she commented, slicing warm bread to go with the cheese and cold meat cuts. "It happens so rarely. For one to come from Emerald Falls... How lucky was that for her, eh? Being at Hatching as a spectator and leaving a dragonrider."

"I believe master Aivorn has relatives in Weyr, dragonriders, so maybe it wasn't such a surprise after all," Corowal commented.

Erassa couldn't help but chuckle as she turned to look at the Steward over her shoulder. "Are you trying to kill a young girl's fantasies, Steward Corowal? Were you always so serious that you never daydreamed about being found in the Stands as a child? It doesn't matter if it was statistically more possible. Lightning struck. Do you really think your own daughter didn't think 'That could have been me' when she heard it?"

"She probably did," Corowal grinned. "I wanted to run off to the seas when I was kid, I never wanted to be dragonrider. Of course, at that time, they didn't have to glory they now have."

"You were always looking for glory?" she asked, not quite surprised. "So if you _had_ run off to the sea, you probably would be a pirate captain by now, eh?"

"I would, probably," he gave her a cockish grin. "Seducing young innocent hold maids and sweeping them off fromt their homes."

**Pirates are not the only ones guilty of that...** She turned back to arrange the cheese and meat on the plate to cover that uncomfortable thought. "The sea certainly is beautiful. I wish we were closer to it."

"I miss it sometimes," Corowal sighed.

**Me too...** "The river just isn't the same, is it."

"No, it isn't," Corowal agreed and accepted the plate from her. "Perhaps you will get back there to see it someday."

Corowal just nodded thoughtfully and started eating.

Last updated on the February 9th 2007

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Swashbuckling