As usual, I don't own anything, I'm just a fan writing some fiction. Please enjoy!

Dwarven Vow 33:
Is minig a thainig comhairle ghlic a ceann amadain.
Often wise counsel comes from a fool's head.

49-

Professor Low's hand slammed onto the desk, rattling the pens and nearly knocking over the stack of papers.

"How many brilliant scientists were burned at the stake during Tethe'alla's declining periods just because of legal spats? Are you telling me you're siding with those who would persecute someone who's merely trying to obtain knowledge-?!"

Genis couldn't even watch, having long since covered his eyes. "Professor…" he muttered, knowing she couldn't hear him, "...getting expelled from university is nowhere even close to getting burned alive…"

"Professor, please." The man at the desk began rearranging his papers, making sure they were all in order. "I mentioned expulsion only to show how serious the offense is. If he had been charged with a crime of this nature, the university system would have no choice. However, the captain made it clear that they would not be pressing charges. Therefore, we believe that academic suspension for the remainder of the semester would be a more fitting punishment, considering that Mister Sage has no previous disciplinary offenses."

"But pulling him from his work? That's absurd!" Professor Low didn't move, still keeping her palm against the desk.

"My colleague at the Palmacosta University did suggest a partial suspension, due to the nature of Mister Sage's research. He would be removed from his classes for the semester but would be allowed to continue research under Professor Sage provided he remains in good standing with her and the department."

"My classes…" Genis finally spoke up, having uncovered his face and stepped forward to join the conversation. "...will I be failed or just withdrawn?"

"Withdrawn with no credit awarded- though, looking at your transcript, even failing all your current classes would not affect your GPA enough to hurt you."

"Of course it would hurt him!" Professor Low corrected. "Instead of graduating summa cum laude, he'd end up graduating cum laude!"

Genis rolled his eyes. "Oh, how would I be able to live with myself?"

"Are you really okay with this, though?" Professor Low's voice had turned serious again. "You wouldn't be able to graduate in two months as you'd planned."

"I think it's a lenient punishment, considering the seriousness of what I did. If the university system is willing to grant me partial suspension instead of full, I'll happily accept it. After all, being able to continue my research means that Raine won't be punished for my actions too."

The man nodded, pulling out another stack of forms and beginning to fill them out. "I will contact the Palmacosta University and let them know that you agree upon the partial suspension. They will perform the class withdrawals. I hope you will learn from this experience, Mister Sage. You are too valuable a student for us to lose to misconduct."

"Yes, sir! Thank you for saying so, sir!" Genis bowed before making a beeline back toward the hall. Professor Low was slower in following, but she finally joined him outside the office and closed the door behind her.

"I can't believe them! Academic suspension! After you made such an important breakthrough-?!"

"Professor," Genis spoke calmly, placing a hand against her arm, "I don't want them to give me special treatment, and they already kinda are. Besides, I'm way younger than the others I'd be graduating with in May. More time to spend working on research and being with my sister will be… nice."

Professor Low's expression softened, and she examined him for a long, silent moment.

"Then why do you look like you're about to cry?"

Genis stiffened and turned his back to her. "Th-that's not true! I'm just sorry I interrupted your meeting and messed up Bianca's tour, is all!"

"Genis…" Low approached him and reached up to place her hand on his shoulder. "You're a good kid, Genis. They recognize that too. All you want is to help people. So don't beat yourself up over the occasional mistake, alright?"

"But it wasn't a mistake… I did it intentionally… I lied, lied elaborately, even… and for what? For the sake of my dear friend Colette, who would've died if her Cruxis Crystal hadn't protected her? By helping my friends trespass, I… I almost… I almost killed Colette…"

There. All the questioning had finally cut through to the root of his emotions. He felt Low's hand pull away from his shoulder, but he didn't turn around to look at her. He just stayed where he was, listening for her voice. It took a while, but she finally broke through his suppressed sobs with a question.

"You love Colette very much, don't you?"

"Yes."

"How do you think she would feel, seeing you blaming yourself for something that didn't happen?"

Genis spun around on his heels. "What would you know about how other people feel?"

"Nothing." Her firm expression didn't change. "That's why I'm asking you, a person who does seem to be able to tell what others are thinking. What would your friend think of your pain? Would she also be angry with you for endangering her life? If so, then your feelings are justified and you probably won't feel better until you apologize to her and do something to make it up to her. But if she doesn't feel that way, then what you're feeling is pointless and only hurts you."

Genis wiped his eyes. "Funny, you sound a lot like Raine when you talk like that."

"Do I?" Her voice was hushed, a hint of pain in her eyes. Genis realized he needed to tread lightly with his answer, not wanting to get her hopes up.

"What I mean is, you sound like an older sister. Like Raine or Nika."

"I… see." It looked like the answer had disappointed her, but Genis figured that was probably for the best. He spoke up again before she could get carried away in self-pity.

"And besides being sisterly advice, it was good advice. You're right that Colette wouldn't be angry with me over this. I think, instead, she'd want me to keep doing my research so that no one else is ever endangered by the NV Zone. If I can protect others, that's what would make her the happiest. So that's what I'll do."

Low smiled. "Well, now I look kind of self-serving, like I was just trying to get you to focus on your research the whole time."

"No, I wouldn't give you that much credit," Genis said this and then paused, realizing how harsh it'd come across. "But, uh, are you… actually trying to think more about other people's feelings?"

"Trying is the right word, yes." Professor Low started walking down the hallway, motioning for Genis to follow. He did so, staying in line beside her so that he could keep eye contact while she spoke. "It's not easy. People aren't like machines that work in logical ways. Their emotions are strange, sometimes even cryptic. I've started with my parents and moved onto my coworkers, like Zelos-"

"Oh, you don't want to get into Zelos' head. Trust me."

Low stopped, a confused frown passing across her face. "He speaks highly of you, Genis. And yet you don't…"

"Hey! You could tell just from that one comment that I don't like him! That's a good start!" Genis moved around so that he was standing in front of her. "Let's get back to the others and you can watch the way they interact. I'm kinda curious to see how Presea has been getting along with those two. Okay?"

Low nodded, and the two continued silently back to the cafeteria. It was much emptier than usual, but still had a fair number of student milling about and occupying tables, so it took them a few minutes to survey the floor and pick out their friends' table. Presea was the first to see them, and she waved.

"That took twenty-seven percent longer than I had expected. Was there an unforeseen problem?"

"N-no, everything's fine!" Genis replied. "Sorry to make you wait."

The girls' plates were empty, save for a few last traces of whipped cream on Bianca's. She smiled up at him with a big, toothy grin.

"Sorry, Genis! I was gonna save some of my crepes for you, but I ended up eating it all."

"That's okay. I'm not that hungry anyway." Genis waved his hands. "I'm just glad you enjoyed it. Are you full and ready for that tour now?"

"Am I ever!" Bianca hopped to her feet, almost knocking over her chair in the process. "I made a list of all the places I wanted to see- the library, the dormitories, the biology labs, the-"

"Slow down there, Bianca." Nika reached over and placed a hand on her shoulder. "We need to take our plates back to the kitchen, and-"

"I will take care of those for you. Worry only about your tour with Genis."

Nika's eyes lit up. "Presea, are you sure? You paid for it and everything-"

Presea held up a badge with an insignia and ID number on it. "Lezareno Company paid for it. And besides, Genis seems to be in low spirits. It would make him happy to spend time with you."

"Low spirits?" Nika turned around in her chair and stood up. "What happened? You're not really in trouble, are you?"

"Wha-? N-no, Presea's mistaken!" Genis gave a nervous laugh. "I just, uh, got off with a warning is all. And hey! I actually get to take the rest of the semester to focus on research with Raine! No classes to worry about! Isn't that great? Now I can pick Bianca up from school so she doesn't have to walk alone!"

Nika examined his face for a moment and then moved to hug him. "I-I have no idea what happened, but to think that you got scolded and kicked out of your classes… and all you can talk about is taking care of Bianca."

"Genis got kicked out of his classes?!"

"B-Bianca, no, it's not like that!" Genis pulled away a little. "See, my friends and I were able to find a way for people to safely enter the NV Zone. So they want me focusing just on helping Raine with research for right now."

"You did?! That's amazing! Can I go to the NV Zone, then?"

"What? No, you can't. It's still dangerous."

Nika started to giggle, her arms still around Genis' waist. "So that's why you couldn't talk about it- it was research stuff. But then you're not in trouble, you're a hero! I'm so relieved!"

She leaned in to kiss his cheek, and Genis's face went red. "H...hero… that's not… uh…"

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Presea carrying the plates and silverware away. She was staring at the two of them with a teasing smile, and it only intensified his blush.

Don't you say a word!

Nika pulled away from Genis' cheek and moved her arms to clasp his hands and give them a squeeze. "Let me go get my bag, and we can go on our tour, okay?"

"Y-yeah! Right! Sure!"

As Genis watched Nika and Bianca gather their things, Professor Low approached him and tapped him on the shoulder.

"I'm heading back to my office to discuss Presea's report with her. But am I right to assume that Presea is getting along well with the Wilburs?"

Genis looked over toward the kitchen and then back at Low with a sigh.

"A little too well."

"But Dad!" Lloyd protested. "It's been so long since you've seen another Dwarf! Doesn't the idea of finding a whole village make you excited?"

"If anythin', th' idea jist makes me nervous."

"Nervous?" Anna repeated. "To see your own people?"

"Dwarves arenae a cultural monolith, Anna. Nae all clans are friendly tae one anither. An' e'en if this village is inhabited by my clan ay their allies, they micht nae recognize me as a fellow Dwarf in this state."

Lloyd frowned. "This state?" he asked. "What do you mean? You seem fine to me."

"Aye, fine enough with my skin tanned and my eyesight startin' tae fail frae sun exposure. Cataracts, premature agin' ay the skin, physical effects ay insomnia and other sleep disturbances- these're all th' marks ay a Dwarf who's been livin' on th' surface tay long. They'll tak' jist one look a' me and know exactly where my home is."

"Dad, if you…" Lloyd stammered, his voice cracking a little. "...if you're that sick, why haven't you said something before? Why have you stayed on the surface?"

Dirk paused a moment before letting out a frustrated sigh. "It's nae like 'at. I was jist caught up in my ain insecurities fer a minute. I'm doin' fine- a bit ay blurry vision here an' there, an' certainly a nice tan tae show off, bit I'm nae gonnae keel o'er an' die on ye anytime soon. Nae in yer lifetime, certainly. It's jist…"

"You're scared of what Dwarves will think of you, living on the surface," Anna finished.

"I came tae th' surface abit a hundred-an'-thirty years ago. At th' time, it was considered taboo tae e'en visit th' surface, much less set up home there. After more'n a century ay life aboveground, I might as well be a human or elf as far as 'ey're concerned."

There was a moment of silence. Anna put her lantern down on the floor of the cave and moved to place her hands on Dirk's shoulders.

"What does it matter how long you've lived on the surface? You're a Dwarf and always will be. Lloyd and I… we get all excited over just having a great-great-great-something Dwarven grandmother. If we're bold enough to think that these Dwarves will accept a couple of humans strolling into their town speaking broken Dwarven, you have to be confident that they'll recognize you as one of their own."

Lloyd had put his lantern down beside hers, standing beside them with his arms outstretched as though he were asking permission to join the circle. "Mom's right," he agreed, "have faith in yourself. No matter how long you've been on the surface, you still had hundreds of years of experience living with Dwarves- there's no way they'd shun you."

Dirk's uneasy expression finally faded into a smile as he laughed at Lloyd's statement. "Jist how auld d'ye 'hink I am, lad?"

"I-I don't know, like, five hundred or something?" Lloyd lowered his arms. "Dwarves can live to be a thousand, right?"

"Aye, bit rarely. It's more common 'at dwarves bide tae about eicht hundred, eicht hundred an' fifty years."

"So it's kinda like…" Anna stepped back and started to count on her fingers. "...ten human years equal one Dwarf year."

"Nae, 'at's nae quite right-"

"Oh, yeah! So a Dwarf who's five hundred would be like a fifty year old human! And Dad living on the surface a hundred and thirty years is like thirteen years for us!"

Dirk sighed, picking up the two lanterns and holding them out to the pair. "C'mon, then. Ye want tae gang off tae th' Dwarven village sae badly? 'en let's be off."

Anna and Lloyd both turned to stare at him.

"You really want to?" "Wha-? For real?"

Dirk grinned. "I'll lead th' way. An' while we're walkin', I can tell tell ye twa all abit how Dwarves age."

"Will you tell us how old you are, Dad?"

"Now, where's th' fun in 'at?"

The path was dimly lit, the darkness seeming to squeeze their lanterns into tiny pricks of light that barely touched the walls around them. Dirk, however, could see better in the low light, and he led the way along the descending path.

"...though 'ey're fully grown at age sixty, 'ey tend tae remain apprenticed tae a professional until th' age ay one-hundred. It's rare tae see one operatin' his ain forge until age one hundred an' fifty at least. One hundred an' fifty is considered a prime marriageable age tay, bit some lovebirds will marry younger."

"That's still only, like, fifteen in human terms," Anna responded after some thought. "Imagine a human getting married at fifteen… eugh, I can't even think about it!"

Dirk let out a groan. "Th' whole point ay this conversation was tae get ye tae throw away 'at silly tenatae-one notion. It's a false equivalence."

"False equivalence…?" Lloyd repeated.

"It means it's nae th' same, Lloyd."

"Ah."

"But even so…" Lloyd had been trying to do the math in his head, and he'd finally come up with an answer that sounded about right. "...if Dwarves begin adolescence at about thirty and are fully grown by the age of sixty, that's still like… thirty years of puberty."

"That's gotta suck!" Anna gasped. "Like, for real! Now I'm kinda glad I'm not a Dwarf after all."

"I've got a whole new respect for you, Dad."

"Ye twa…" Dirk sighed and turned back to them. "Ye're tryin' tae put Dwarven experiences intae a human context, an' it's ne'er gonnae fit. Can ye nae accept 'at humans an' Dwarves are different?"

Lloyd and Anna glanced at each other and looked down in embarrassment. "S-sorry," they both said in unison. Lloyd continued, saying "but we just don't have anything else to compare it to. You've lived among humans long enough to see whole lives pass in front of you. But you're one of the only Dwarves we know, and you look the same as you did when we first met."

Dirk was quiet for a moment, his expression softening as he considered Lloyd's words.

"...aye, I suppose I didnae 'hink ay it like 'at. It's harder fer ye than it is fer me. In 'at case, I shouldnae be so hard on ye fer tryin' yer best tae understand. Jist- keep an open mind, 'kay? Especially if we meet Dwarves in th' village."

The two nodded. "Yes sir!"

"Good," Dirk nodded and turned back to guiding them. "An' perhaps I've been tay serious, tawkin' abit physiology this whole time. Why don't ye ask me abit Dwarven culture instead?"

Lloyd was quick to reply. "Ooh, I have one! I noticed that Altessa has a long beard that he's styled, but you keep yours short. Is there reasoning behind the length and style of a Dwarf's beard?"

"Hm, I 'hink it used tae be, lang ago. Now it's jist personal aesthetic. Smiths have tae keep their beards short o' braided back fer safety, but other than 'at, it's up tae th' individual. I keep mine short 'cause it's aye easier tae deal wi'. Bit many prefer 'em lang sae they can style 'em."

Anna skipped along ahead of Lloyd so that she was next to Dirk. "My grandmother said that her Dwarven great-grandmother always braided flowers into her beard. Is that common?"

"Common in 'at flowers are prized fer their rarity underground, sae any adornment 'at incorporates flowers is a sort ay status symbol. I'm sure a Dwarf livin' oan th' surface would'a taken full advantage ay 'at."

Lloyd stumbled forward to catch up, slipping a little on the slick floor. "Do Dwarven women style their beards more than men do?"

Dirk shook his head. "Nae necessarily. Bit women's beards grow faster than men's, an' come in earlier tay. Both ay my aulder sisters said they had full beards at th' age ay fourty-five, and I barely had more'n peach fuzz at th' same age."

Anna laughed. "I guess puberty is an awkward time for everyone, even if it's stretched out over three decades."

"Aye, 'at's one thing 'at is th' same between humans an' Dwarves."

By this point, they'd reached the creek bed that had been mentioned in the directions. It was a long step down from the path they'd been on, so Dirk went first, jumping down into the water with a splash.

"It's only up tae my ankles, bit' it's movin' fast. Ye'll easily be swept off yer feet if ye're nae careful. Step lightly."

Lloyd sat down on the edge, reaching down to take Dirk's hand and sliding off into the water. He handed his lantern off to his father and turned around to help his mother. She followed his lead, sitting down on the edge and sliding down into Lloyd's arms. He gently lowered her down into the water.

"It's almost a straight shot to the village now, right?" he asked.

Anna smiled and nodded. "One kilometer along the streambed and then a turn north, the directions said. We're so close!"

Dirk sighed and nodded.

"A real Dwarven village aifter aw this time… I wonder…"