A Little Lord, Lost (part 1)

Writers: Eimi, Yvonne
Date Posted: 25th November 2008

Characters: Thalia, Kiomo, Aslian
Description: Thalia faces every mother's worst nightmare
Location: Garnet Valley Hold
Date: month 12, day 16 of Turn 4

As Thalia placed the red seven on the black eight, Kiomo leaned in, his
lips tickling her ear and his breath caressing her neck as he whispered,
"I think you should have played the other red seven and seen what card
lay beneath it. The cards in your pile are running a little low."

"I already asked you if you wanted to play, Kiomo, and _you_ said no, so
_I_ asked if you minded if I played by myself. And now here you are,
trying to play for me." Thalia tut-tutted and flipped the third card in
the pile in her hand: a black two. Behind her there was a crash as
Aslian threw the blocks he'd been playing with to the floor. "Make up
your mind, silly!"

He looked over his shoulder at the little tot throwing blocks around the
room with a slight frown. The child sure was ruining the mood, but
Thalia had insisted on having the brat there. Kiomo was sure it was
another move to discourage them from enjoying each other's company,
which was annoying. He should have had her in bed months ago! "But if
I was playing I'd have to concentrate on my cards." His hand slipped up
her back to the base of her neck, gently kneading the muscles there.
"I'd much rather concentrate on you."

"I rather think... what is it, Aslian?" Thalia turned her attention from
her erstwhile admirer to her son, who was tugging on her skirts.

"Booo? Booo?" Aslian said.

"Yes, boo. Go play with your blocks, son." The Lady picked up her cards
again but Aslian continued to tug at her skirts.

"Booooo!" the little Lord said.

Thalia laughed. "All right, boo!"

Aslian grinned and tottered off on his fat little legs, and Thalia
rolled her eyes at Kiomo. "I will be _so_ glad when he learns to speak
like a proper adult. His nurse says that he's doing well for his age,
but I am impatient!"

"I think he's adorable," Kiomo lied. He found all the baby talk even
more annoying than Thalia since it was certainly cramping his style.
However he wasn't having much luck with the forward approach and so
another was called for. "You know, you are doing an amazing job raising
him all on your own. I don't know how you do it. Not many women could
do that you know."

"Yes, well, I _do_ have a lot of help." Not many women could afford a
full-time wet nurse for their child, but then again, Aslian _was_ heir.
Thalia felt a little flush of pride anyway. "And he is a good boy."

"Of course he is," he smiled, reaching out to brush the backs of his
fingers down her cheek. "He comes from good stock."

Thalia smiled and glanced away shyly. Kiomo was such a blatant flirt!
...if she wasn't a widow, and if he didn't make her feel as good as she
did, he'd be quite the cad. Luckily for them both, he wasn't! "I don't
know if its because my late husband isn't here to compare him to, but I
do believe that he takes strongly after my side of the family. He looks
very like the eldest of my brothers..."

The last thing Kiomo wanted to do with Thalia was get an explanation of
her family tree. Words were highly unnecessary, and one of these days
she would realize that they just took up time when they could be doing
something much more fun than using their mouths for verbalizing.
Leaning in, his lips brushed against the side of her neck teasingly, and
then with light, feathery kisses. Kiomo was determined get her mind off
her son and on _him_ where it belonged!

**It's a good thing I'm sitting...** The thought drifted through
Thalia's mind even as she found herself distracted by the feel of
Kiomo's lips on her own. Nerves coiled in her belly even as she leaned
toward him, and a tiny sigh escaped her lips as she was kissed. She felt
herself flush, as suddenly she remembered her boy and drew back. "I--
can't. Not here. I--"

"Shhh, Thalia," Kiomo murmured, reaching out to pull her close once
more, "It's all right. It's just us..."

"Where is Aslian?"

Colourful expletives flashed through his mind. Just them... and that
sharding brat hanging on them like a stone! If that boy wasn't going to
be Lord Holder one day... "He's playing with his blocks. Just
relax..."

"No, he's not." The carpet was strewn with toys - but there was no boy,
and it was far too quiet. Thalia frowned. "Aslian, love?"

Kiomo sighed inwardly. Another perfect moment ruined. Thalia was
driving him nuts on purpose, he was sure. But if he let his frustration
show, she'd just get even more upset, and he would much rather calm her
fears and get back to what they were doing. "Aslian?" He peeked under
the table in case the tot might have crawled there while they weren't
looking.

The boy wasn't there, nor was he beneath any of the chairs or behind the
couch. "Honestly!" Thalia sighed and set her cards aside. Aslian had
handed her the perfect excuse to create a little distance between
herself and Kiomo. While the attention was flattering and certainly not
unwelcome, he could be very... intense, and difficult to convince that
when she said 'no', she meant it. She stood and looked around the room,
hoping for the glimpse of a heel or the hem of a sleeve. "Aslian?
Aslian, where are you?"

"Could he have opened the door by himself?" Kiomo asked, pointing to the
front door that seemed to have been left slightly ajar.

A trickle of fear traced its way down Thalia's spine. It wasn't that
long ago that Lord Benaroy's daughter had been snatched from the Gather,
and Aslian was much smaller than a teenage girl... "Kiomo, help me look
for him. Check the hall," she commanded as she picked up her skirts and
fled from her sitting room to the nursery. Perhaps he was hiding behind
his crib, or behind his dresser... but he wasn't there, nor was he in
his toy box or behind any of the tapestries that previous Lords of
Garnet Valley had grown up surrounded by. Thalia's eyes began to blur
with tears as she tore the room apart, then raced back into the sitting
room. "Did you find him!?"

"No," he answered with a shake of his head. Now even Kiomo was starting
to feel a little worried, and not just because all his future plans
centred on the child.

Her breath caught in her throat and she gave Kiomo a look that was
half-accusatory, half-pleading as she raced into the hall. It was empty
save for a drudge carrying a basket of laundry. Thalia grabbed her arm.
"Did you see Aslian coming down here?"

"No, m'Lady." The drudge shook her head, her eyes wide.

"Go- go fetch Penryn for me. And Liddy. She's got the evening off but I
need her."

The woman looked down at the neatly-folded laundry in her hands, sighed, then nodded.
"Yes, m'Lady. You just wait right here."

"Thank you." Thalia watched the woman scurry off, her skirts swaying,
and wished she hadn't said anything at all. It was obvious that the
woman thought she was over-reacting _again_, but... what if she wasn't?
What if her son _had_ been snatched? She bit her lip and wrapped her
arms around herself as she stood in the hall, wishing desperately
that she'd never let herself be distracted by Kiomo, that Aslian was
just hiding somewhere, and that she knew what to do.

Last updated on the December 4th 2008

Welcome to Triad Weyrs!

A Little Lord, Lost (part 1)