Chương 1518: [1427] – Y06.327 – Troublesome Children II

Jirot dug the fork into the potato, in search of the treasure that was such a fine food, and offered it to her brother's lips. The boy ate from her fork, sucking from his own spoon a moment later, the boy glancing aside, pushing the cup of juice closer towards little Damrot. Adam held the image for a long moment. He lost his appetite, but he couldn't refuse the food before him, not in front of the pair. He slowly ate, bits and pieces of his meal, tasting nothing in particular.

A hand on his eased his heart, stopping his thoughts, and he let out a gentle breath.

"It must have been tiring to cause so much trouble," Vonda teased, hooking a pinky around her husband's.

"How could it be tiring, when I am the grandson of my grandfather, and the father of my daughter?" Adam joked in return, a small smile blooming across his lips, the shadows flickering across his face from the nearby fire. Vonda stared at her husband's face for a long while, admiring his sharp features, though his solemness did cause her heart to ache, he was also quite handsome in his melancholy.

"If you stare at me like that, darling…" Adam warned. Vonda smiled, lifting Xarot onto her lap, the boy secure against his mother with an arm wrapped around his back.

"Xarot, your father will not allow me to rest."

"Is it my fault?"

"Are you saying it is my fault, darling?"

"How could I say such a thing, when Jirot is within earshot," Adam said, already feeling the girl's eyes set firmly against his face, though he dared not to look.

"No, how could anything be your fault, when your husband is a fool among fools." Vonda reached up to pinch his cheeks, for though she was a Ray of Life's Rose, even Adam could push through her patience.

"Why are you pinching my cheeks, when Xarot is the one bullying me? Isn't that right, my baby boy? You, you're bullying daddy, is it because Virot taught you while I was gone?"

"No!" Virot called, seeing how much attention her mother was giving her father, the girl reaching up for her mother's hand, her mouth covered in bits of food. Xarot smiled wide towards his father, sucking his dummy lightly, and as his father reached out for him, the boy pulled away to his mother, giggling with delight.

'That's right. You should be full of joy, my boy. Leave the rest of it to this fool of a father of yours, just grow up happy and healthy.' Adam reached over to rub his son's ear, causing the boy to squeal with such force, his dummy slipped out of his mouth. Monarot opened her mouth, allowing her father to feed her bits of the soft vegetables, the girl chewing it slowly, before swallowing.

'My children eat so-,' Jurot thought, but cut off the thought instantly, for he could not think of such any longer. The girl turned her head slightly to notice that her father was staring at her so intensely, pulling back towards her mother, who brushed her hair gently.

"I will fight greater foes," Jurot promised, for then his daughter would wish to remain within his strong arms, certainly? Pam wanted to say that wasn't what the girl would want, but since she held the blood of an Iyrman within her, it might have been. At the very least, the baker half of her was very evident, the girl eating from her father's fingers so eagerly. Jitool tore a piece of bread for her sister, who accepted the bread, only for Kitool to redirect the flow of bread back into her mouth.

Jitool felt something was wrong, but how could something be wrong when she was eating such delicious bread? She was her cousin's cousin. Kitool also fed Maool, whose brother was currently indisposed, keeping an eye on her cousin. There was also Kavgak, who she did not need to worry about, for though she was Jaygak's sister, she was more like Taygak, and Tavgak, who was shy and sweet, who Kavgak took good care of.

Minool remained sitting beside Kitool, sipping her soup lightly, letting out a soft sigh of satisfaction each time, the girl pausing between each sip long and hard, as though considering the merits of the spice. Jazool sat beside Larot, the girl revealing her own thoughts about the bread she had torn apart for them. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

"Yummy," Jazool said.

"…" Larot replied. Kitool looked towards the younger children, each of whom were so much like their elder siblings, so much different, all so young and innocent. Maygak was still considered large for her age, even with the presence of the blue child, Faygak sat beside her, eating as well as a child with her stature should. Mokan sat beside his sister, who was already so tired, but she didn't want to fall asleep yet, not when her cousins had recently returned.

Damokan and Kalokan sat on either side of Alykan, while Minakan was all by herself, though nearby to the twins, who kept a keen eye upon her. Gurot sat beside his younger brother, who ate peacefully, the pair eating as peacefully as one might expect. Murot chewed his food slowly, turning to face his brother to discuss about something important, like mentioning someone was around, or the variety of fruit he was eating.

Mulrot poked their cheeks, telling the boys they needed to finish their food, the pair not noticing the old woman had slipped bits of fruit onto their plates.

'They are people too,' Tanika thought, noting the grandmother teasing her grandchildren, all without them knowing, Her own father must have done the same, the sand giant thought. Her eyes fell upon a particular family, in which one of the children reminded her so much of herself.

"Dahddy, I will read to you!" Jirot declared, not leaving any space for the half elf to refuse, the girl darting off to find a book, little Jarot following after her. Tanika wondered if perhaps she was quite as passionate about adoring her father when she had been… not her size, but her age? Little Jirot read to her father, as well as to many others, speaking one of the many tales of the Iyr.

Meanwhile, Lani, Tanika, and the other guests spoke with the various families within the Iyr, currently only those they were familiar with, but a few older Iyrmen from the nearby families approached.

"Ah?" called a voice as Jirot almost finished her chapter, the bald man with the thick beard distracting her for a moment, causing her to scramble onto her feet.

"Babo! Dahddy is back!" Jirot said, as though her babo hadn't seen him return, and hadn't spent the last few minutes nearby waiting for her to finish the chapter before he approached, thankfully he hadn't needed to wait too long, since his greatniece read so well.

"Aha? My grandnephews have returned?" Malfev mused, approaching the pair, placing a hand upon each of their heads, ruffling their hair, feeling how short Jurot's had become.

"How have you been, granduncle?" Adam asked, allowing the old man to mess with his hair.

"I have been well," Malfev admitted.

"Babo is stretching his old bones so much," Jirot said.

"Jirot, you can't be saying that!" Adam gasped.

"What!" The girl flushed, her mouth a tiny circle.

"Babo said it, babo said it, dahddy!"

"Ooooh!" Adam chuckled, picking the girl up, nuzzling her nose, melting away her worry.

"I thought you were bullying babo, but babo is just bullying you?"

"No! Babo does not bully me! Does he have such courage?" The girl side eyed her father incredulously, before cackling, the girl wrapping her arms around her father's neck, pulling him close.

"You're right, my dear Jirot, for who has courage to bully you?" Adam asked, distracting the girl by planting squeaky kisses along her cheek and neck, swaying from side to side. He winked to little Jarot, leaning in so they could nuzzle too, for he couldn't show affection to one half of the twins without showing affection to the other, that was the rule of life.

"How was your journey?" Malfev asked, smiling warmly towards the pair.

"Taygak will speak the tale to you," Adam replied, his lips forming a mischievous smile.

'That troublesome?' Malfev thought, though he waited for Taygak to speak her tale once the children were taken to bed. Adam assisted Xarot in brushing the tiny teeth peeking through, the boy squirming, but eventually he grew tired and fell asleep, taken away by his greatfather, while Jirot and Jarot assisted Virot, and waited for their father to settle down so they could finally pin him down.

Malfev listened to the tale alongside Gangak, who smiled at all Taygak revealed, from the trouble her grandson had caused, to Taygak's own feats. She, who was still not an adult, had managed to do what Gangak could a decade her senior. Malfev smiled too, closing his eyes as he listened to little Taygak. Once the tale had passed, and they praised Taygak for her wonderful tale, perhaps surpassing any other Iyrman at her age, Malfev walked out towards one of the fields.

He stood, surrounded by nobody, but not no one, for he was within the Iyr. He looked out towards the fields, illuminated by the stars and moon. He clasped his arms behind his back, but after a moment, the field around him shifted under the assault of his blurred hands. Gangak stood under the moonlight, the sabre glittering so brightly under the stars. She held it in hand, not yet daring to swing such a blade.

As she thought of the reason she did not wish to swing it, she furrowed her brows, and after berating herself, she swung it in front of her.

'What a beautiful blade it is,' Gangak thought, for it was only the her of today, not the her of yesterday, which could appreciate its true beauty. As she stared at its edge, noting the dancing fire upon its edge, she wondered. Was it this blade? Mulrot, too, could feel her heart tighten. It was that kind of tightening, the kind full of anxiety. Her brother had sighed so often, but today she understood the reason for his sighs.

The woman thought of her greatchildren, each of whom were the loveliest little children, and yet they were destined for a struggle even beyond the typical Iyrman. As the moon sparkled brightly, Adam lay under the five children, pinned as he always was. He stared at the grey ceiling, as Jirot and Jarot claimed each arm, his eldest daughter his torso, his youngest triplets each of his legs.

'Should I…'