Hey Ez,
Please tell me the baker hasn't run out of jam, because I'm going to need a mountain of jelly tarts as soon as I get back. Moonberry juice is fine and everything, but there's no crunch! I seriously need some pastry. I hope the elves aren't giving you any trouble, or anyone's giving you trouble about the elves. Especially that last one, because we're bringing Ethari back with us. He's really excited to see his husband the assassin, so I've been teaching him some sign language on the way home. I think he'll still need a translator for a while, but he can at least say hi now. Rayla's helping.
So, I guess this is where I tell you that Rayla was right about me.
Ezran put down the letter and stared at Bait. "Do you think he means that she was right about him needing more time to study magic or…" He abruptly remembered the other thing Rayla had said about Callum and his eyes widened. He held the letter right in front of his face and kept reading.
The whole 'guys getting pregnant' thing isn't just an elf thing, it's a mage thing. So, congrats! You're going to be an uncle!
The letter hit the desk hard as the young king stared at his pet with wide eyes and a slightly agape mouth. Bait's expression was pretty much the same. Suddenly, he is very glad he chose to read Callum's letter in his bedroom and not at the breakfast table where the arrow landed. He bent over the letter and smoothed it out before continuing.
There's a lot we'll need to talk about when I get back to Katolis, like getting a midwife for Ethari and… well…me.
That made Ezran smile. He could practically feel his brother's embarrassment radiating from the paper. He turned to his amphibious friend. "How do you think we're going to explain that? Maybe we can pretend Ethari's a woman?" He laughed at the idea. As much as it might have worked for the elf, that idea wasn't going to work for his incoming niece or nephew. He drew in a breath. "I'm going to be an uncle," he articulated carefully. A wide grin split his face and he kept reading.
And also how to tell the rest of the Human kingdom that this is a possibility, especially when I start training new mages once we finally get some more Primal Stones. Any luck with that? Anyway, we should be back in hopefully a week. We're having to travel a little slower because Ethari can only ride for so many hours in a row and, well, Rayla's demanding I do the same thing. Not that I'm complaining! If that's what I need to do, I will, but I still think she's overreacting a little. I mean, Ethari's having twins, and he's a lot farther along than…
There was a massive ink smudge.
He's just farther along. So we'll be back before the month is out.
See you soon, Ez.
Callum
After he reread the letter a few times to let his brother's news sink in, Ezran carefully folded it and tucked it away in a drawer. He straightened the other papers on his desk, got up, and walked over to Bait. "Well, we should probably get ready for them," he said to the toad who moaned back at him. "You're right. We should talk to Opeli, at least about Ethari." And so boy and toad went in search of his adviser.
With some help from one of the servants, Ezran found the dignified woman in the courtyard walking amongst the flowers. "Opeli," the young king shouted.
Quickly, she turned to him and bowed slightly. "My king, what do you require?"
He put Bait down on the ground near a flowerbed and asked, "Can we have one of the long term guest quarters cleaned out and prepared?"
With another small head bow, she asked, "Of course. Might I inquire as to whom it is for?"
Cautiously, not wanting to spill any beans before he had a chance to talk things over with Callum, he answered. "Do you remember Callum and Rayla leaving for Xadia a while ago?" She nodded. "They were going to get a friend of ours, Rayla's guardian. They wanted to ask him to be our ambassador from the elves, and to help teach Callum Moon magic. They actually convinced him to come and they'll be here before the end of the month. I was hoping we could have a place ready for him before he got here."
The noblewoman nodded. It was a good idea, having an elven representative around to help with negotiations. Yes, they had Rayla, but many of the other elves claimed she was biased and other such nonsense. And if this Ethari could also help their only mage currently, so much the better. She smiled at her young charge and king. He was learning so fast. Of course, she didn't know the real reason they wanted him around, but Ezran wasn't going to enlighten her about that without talking to his brother first. "Of course, my King. Shall we go select a suite for him?" Ezran nodded eagerly.
For Opeli, this actually meant sending for the head of the castle staff and leaving him with Ezran to talk over what their Elven guest would need. Caspar, the man in question, was five times more knowledgeable about the guest rooms than anyone else. Caspar immediately bowed to Ezran upon the young king's arrival and asked, "What is it that you wish, My King?" He explained the problem to the older man once he'd stood straight again. Stroking his beard, he asked, "Are there any particular requirements this guest might have?"
Ezran touched his own chin. "He doesn't need anything to grand, but at extra room for his crafting and magic would be nice." Also, we can easily turn it into a nursery. But he wasn't about to say that part out loud. "It should be pretty close to the room with the captive elves since he's married to one of them. Oh, and a window or with a way to get outside close by. Those elves really love their nature." His mind went back to their return trip from the Spire and the short time they'd stayed in Rayla's home. "You should see their houses in Xadia."
Obviously, this was a difficult combination, as Caspar hadn't lowered his hand from his facial hair. "Well traditionally, all foreign guests have been housed in the western part of the castle, which is a far ways from the throne room and the room with the captive elves, as you called them. But we should have a few empty rooms closer, for discussion and other purposes. I'll see what I can find, My King." The man bowed again and walked away. Behind him, Ezran breathed a bit easier. Well, that was one thing taken care of. Now, he just had to wait for Rayla, the new guy, and…
Ezran gulped.
His magically pregnant brother to get back.
First, I was really happy the font for the letter transferred to the site just fine. Second, I think Ezran would take the news a bit better than Callum because he's not the childbearing one, he halfway expected it, and he's younger and his mindset is still flexible. If anyone likes my OC, I might keep him around. I have a habit of creating characters that wind up with a much bigger role than I planned fo them.
