Coming Between Us

Writers: Chelle, Eimi
Date Posted: 4th August 2011

Characters: Parale, Ioven, Syren, Venrys
Description: They have a disagreement about who knows best.
Location: Sunstone Seahold
Date: month 13, day 5 of Turn 5

Supper was finished and she moved to gather up the plates and began to
wash them. The leftover food went into storage to keep for another day.
Parale hummed while she worked, giving the girls this time with their
father.

Ioven had worked the kiln schedule so that he could be home just in time
to tuck his daughters into bed, something he hadn't had a chance to do
for over a sevenday. It had never been a short process, but this
evening seemed to be taking especially long. Finally he emerged from
the girls' bedroom, Syren clinging to him with her arms and legs. "I'm
just going to put this little one down in our bed for a while," he said
by way of explanation to his wife as he passed through the living area
towards their sleeping area.

Parale's brow came up. "Is something the matter with her? She didn't
look ill."

"She'll keep Venrys awake if she stays in there." He didn't offer any
more explanation as he carefully opened their door and moved into the
darkness. After some whispering, he turned the glowbasket on low and
then came back out into the living area without her. "She's on my side,
so don't worry."

"So you're sleeping on the couch then?" Parale half smiled as she
wondered if he had really thought about what he'd just done.

"We'll fit in the bed just fine," he assured her, wandering into the
kitchen area to pour himself a glass of water.

She turned and finished what she was doing. When she finally put
everything away, she turned to get ready for bed. Parale was looking forward to a nice, long sleep since the day had been long.

Ioven caught her hand as she turned, not only stopping her but gently
pulling her a little closer. "I'm sorry about Syren. I would have
liked to have the bed to ourselves, but..."

"No, it's not that. I understand from time to time they want to cuddle,
but I always did it by going into their beds with them. My mother....she
never brought us into her bed." She didn't know if that was a holder
thing since her parents had been told to make children what with the plague
and all, which would have made it impossible.

"She's used to coming to my bed. Venrys did the same. I see no reason
to change that." He certainly would sleep better in his own bed.

"You're not the only one in the bed now, Ioven. And if you get her used
to that, she might..come into it when she shouldn't." Parale's brow
rose, thinking of the last time they had found her in their room in the middle of the night without knocking. "Like before."

Ioven crossed his arms over his chest, seeing that this might become a
sticking point. "Narys always let the girls sleep with us and we all
slept fine in the bed. It never became a problem with Venrys. I don't
see why it should be a problem with Syren."

"Syren and Venrys are two different girls. And Venrys had her mother
until recently. The little one doesn't have the same amount of memories,
so she clings to you more." Parale looked off in the direction of where
the girls were. "Not only could this create problems for us, but it will for her as well. What she needs is not to sleep with us. She needs to see
you more during the day. I understand it's hard right now but..in time it
will pass. It's just now that it's difficult with everything changing."

"I don't see how this will create problems," he said with a defensive
shrug. "It's a phase, that's all. She'll grow out of it." Ioven
decided diplomatically not to mention the fact that her arrival had lead
to him having the harder schedule, and her desire for him to get his
Master's knots would only ensure long days in the future.

"Yes, she'll grow out of it, but it could take turns longer to do that
if you encourage it, but that's what I think after all the children I've
raised. You do what you think is best." She said the last bit very
quietly, but she was watching him.

"Maybe it's different when they're your own." In his mind, there was no
way she could really understand. "Venrys was raised the same way and
she grew out of it within months. Syren will be the same. You've known
my girls for less than a Turn. I've raised them since the moment of
their birth. I don't need you to give me parenting tips when it comes
to my own daughters."

"Allright goodnight to you and your daughters." Parale shook her head,
then grabbed up her knitting and quickly left the room. She headed into the corridors of the Hold, intent on finding a quiet place where she could
sit and think and knit the entire night if she needed to because otherwise she was sure she was going to either cry, ask to go home, or say some very nasty things.

Ioven was dumbfounded. Just where did she think she was going? She
wasn't really _leaving_, was she? Where would she go? Would she be
back? She was being thoroughly unreasonable! **Shards, it's like
having a third child!** Shaking his own head, he quietly slipped into
the bedroom they were supposed to share.

After changing into his pajamas, he pulled back the thin covering to
crawl in next to his little girl. She and her sister were the reason he
worked, the reason he smiled, the reason he breathed. Soon, Syren would
be too old to fit in his lap, to want to sleep next to him, to light up
every time he walked through the door. One day, he knew, they would
leave him to lie in the arms of another man and make a home of their
own. Couldn't she just let him enjoy being a father just a little
longer? When Syren turned to nestle into his arms and he felt the
tension melt away, he knew that Parale would never understand how it
felt to be a father.

Last updated on the November 6th 2011

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