Playdate [Close Companions]

[Kender Bard]

(Talen'sul, Autumn 1018)

A servant approached Alyssa within the palace on one of the last warm, crisp autumn days left of the year. The servant bore small piece of parchment. "My lady, Lord Penrose would like to extend to you an invitation to his estate," he informed her.

[Northen Light36]

Alyssa looked up at the servant and smiled happily. She'd been very bored at the moment, with her baby brother taking a nap and Dami in extra lessons as punishment for being checky to the children's tutor. (Privately Alyssa couldn't blame her friend, the lessons bored her senseless as well. But she'd had the sense to keep her mouth closed.) Accepting the parchment, she politely thanked the servant for bringing the message and went in search of Lya.

Finding the queen alone in the study, she knocked and waited to be acknowledged before asking, "Auntie Lya? Lord Penrose has invited me to his estate to visit Nox. May I go? Please?" She gave her 'aunt' a slightly pleading look, hoping to show just how desperately bored she was. If Alyssa had one fault, it was that she struggled to find ways to entertain herself when she was alone, being entirely unused to not being surrounded by other clan children.

[Kender Bard]

"I see no trouble at all with that," Lya remarked, putting her quill down. She glanced at the guard stationed outside her door. "Faris, will you send send someone to escort Alyssa to the Penrose estate?" The guard saluted and walked off, returning in short order with another palace guard, who bowed to Alyssa. "There you are dear. Have a good time and be sure to return home in time for dinner."

[Northen Light36]

"I will," Alyssa promised, though her happiness dimmed for a moment at the reference to the palace as 'home'. She pushed the thought away along with a wistful thought towards her true home, and turned her mind to the more cheerful thought of playing with Nox.

Taking the guard's hand, she allowed him to escort her to the Penrose estate, pausing along the way to collecr her heavy coat. She still felt the cold harshly, despite all the time she'd spent here.

[Kender Bard]

Once at the Penrose estate, a servant went to announce their arrival. Before long, Nox was running down the hall and stairs to greet her.

"Young lord, do NOT run!" an older woman shouted, following Nox.

"Sorry, nanny," Nox said and slowed to a brisk walk until he was before Alyssa. "I'm so glad you came!" The young boy's eyes glittered with delight and a grin stretched his face. "I was worried you'd be busy!"

[Northen Light36]

Alyssa giggled and shook her head. "I wasn't busy at all," she assured Nox. "Thank you so much for inviting me. I'm sorry if you wanted Dami to come too. He has lessons now, so he couldn't come."

[Kender Bard]

Nox smile slipped momentarily, replaced with a sympathetic look. "Oh, yeah I was kind of hoping... Well that's too bad." He grinned again. "But you and I can still have fun." He held out a hand to her. "Come on, let me show you everything!"

[Northen Light36]

"All right," Alyssa replied, grinning happily as she took Nox's hand. "Where to first?" She looked around curiously.

[Kender Bard]

"My room!" Nox laughed and walked briskly, almost pulling her along. He would have run again if he thought he could get away with it.

His room was well furnished with fine furniture and, of course, plenty of toys. Noel seemed to enjoy getting his son many of the things that he himself had never had as a child.

Nox pointed out his most beloved toys--the majority of them being toy soldiers and even a doll he'd gotten from his aunt somehow. Currently they were all arranged in pairs on the floor. "We were having a ball," he explained.

[Northen Light36]

Alyssa looked around with slightly wide eyes. She was used to the sheer number of toys that Dami had, but she'd thought that was just Lya and Shadow spoiling him. It hadn't really occurred to her that other children might have as many things as the young prince. "You have as many toys as Dami does!" she murmured, voicing her surprise aloud. "Wow..."

[Kender Bard]

Nox grinned happily. "Yeah. Auntie says father spoils me." He scooped up a stuffed bear and held it out to her. "But it's more fun to play with them with other people. Sometimes Daddy plays with me... But not usually."

[Northen Light36]

Alyssa stroked the soft fur of the teddy and smiled. "It seems so strange to me," she admited. "Fire children don't tend to have much in the way of toys. I have a bear, a few dolls and a couple of other things, but nothing like all this." She giggled and added, "Which makes it all the more fun to play with you and your toys."

She glanced thoughtfully at him. "You said your daddy plays with you sometimes? What about all your other friends?"

[Kender Bard]

Nox bit his lip a moment, worrying it with his teeth before answering. "Well there's my cousin Bryant," he said slowly, reluctantly. "But he's older than me... And so are all his friends. I kind of like Tristan, but all those kids are too old to play with toys with me. There was one boy from a merchant family, but my father said they were up to no good and then I couldn't play with their son anymore."

[Northen Light36]

"That's a shame," Alyssa replied, then smiled. "Well, I'll play with you while I'm here and so will Dami, once he's not in trouble anymore." She picked up the doll and smoothed down it's hair. "I like playing with toys. Mummy came to visit yesterday, just for a little bit, and she brought my two dolls. I can bring them to play with yours next time I visit, if you'd like."

[Kender Bard]

Nox nodded eagerly that, grinning. "I'm glad your momma got to visit you. Will she be seeing you again soon?"