New Sherriff in Town

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

Characters: Parale, Ioven, Syren, Venrys
Description: They speak to the girls about some changes.
Location: Sunstone Seahold
Date: month 11, day 25 of Turn 5

They sat down around the small table. Parale had put a
meal together after getting supplies from the Headwoman's
assistant. When it seemed everyone was almost done, she
waited for Ioven to broach the subject.

He hadn't really seen the need to rush into talking to the girls about
their new situation, but it seemed to be important to his new wife that
it was done sooner rather than later. Still, he hadn't wanted it to be
their dinner conversation. They were almost done now, and after Parale
had caught his eye yet again, Ioven cleared his throat. "Girls, I want
to talk to you about something. About... well our new situation now
that Parale is a part of our family."

Both girls looked up from their plates, curious, though Syren, always
the slowest eater, was still trying to stab a finger root with her fork.
Venrys looked between the two adults with that thoughtful look that she
often had when she thought something might be important to pay attention
to.

"Well, I know that you are both used to having just me around, but now
she's here, too, so I want you to remember that what she says goes, ok?"
There, it was done and that was all that needed to be said.

"Even for you?" Syren asked, pulling an orange root towards her mouth.

"No, of course not. I'm still the Daddy. I mean, she's in charge when
I'm not around," he corrected.

"Syren, he means as adults we don't have rules with each other. We talk
about things. You, as children do have rules since you're not grownups
yet." Ioven's last statement could likely erode whatever authority he
had just given her, so she felt the need for damage control.

Venrys was ready to pounce. "But Daddy says there are rules that adults
have to obey, too. That's why we can't steal things or break things
that aren't ours."

"Right, I said rules with each other. We all have simple rules as
holders, crafters, riders, or whatever we are like those. Do you
remember your holder duties you learned in harper class? _Everyone_ does
those and that includes no stealing and all of those good things. I'm
talking
about there being no special rules like what you have with us. Like when
I ask you to always brush your teeth and clean your ears at night before
bed.
I don't tell your Daddy that." She smiled, hoping Venrys would think that
was
funny.

Syren thought the image of Parale taking a rag to her Daddy's ear was
hilarious and snorted into her milk. Venrys was still trying to figure
out just what was going on. She could tell they were trying to explain
that there were changes coming, changes that would effect her, but just
how, she was trying to guess. "So, you mean I have to listen to you?
Even more than I listen to Daddy?"

"No, of course not," Ioven piped in. "You still have to listen to me,
but you have to listen to Parale, too. Just like before. If Parale
says you can do something, you can do it. And if she tells you not to
do something, then you shouldn't do it, that's all."

"And what if you tell me to do something and Parale tells me not to?"
Venrys grilled him, finding the loophole with amazing speed.

"Well, then... You do what I tell you," he shrugged, reaching out his
napkin to wipe the milk off his youngest daughter's face.

"Actually, I'd say come to both of us and ask. I might have information
that your Daddy doesn't." That had happened often with some of her
smaller fosterlings.

Ioven's eyebrow cocked slightly. "And won't you share that information
with me, then? I mean, if she asks you about something, and you have
information about that something, shouldn't _I_ know that information,
too, so I can give her an answer?"

"Might not always think it's important for you to know at the time."
Hoping they weren't getting Venrys even more confused, she turned to
her husband. "For example, if I am told by Mecha's mother that she's
being punished and unable to see any friends, then Venrys asks to see
her. I tell her no, but maybe I don't explain why. You might tell her
yes.. Honestly I don't think something like that is important enough
to tell you. You have so much to worry about with work." **Although
once she got an answer from me, she shouldn't go to you anyway which
is why we're having this conversation**

"Yes, but won't that kind of make me look the idiot in front of my
daughter?" he asked, fixing a smile on his face to try to hide his
annoyance at the thought from his daughters.

Venrys wasn't sure exactly what was going on between the two of them,
but she found it incredibly fascinating. She turned her head to look at
Parale, just waiting to hear her response. Syren looked too, just
because her older sister seemed to think there was something to see and
she didn't want to miss anything.

"No. All you have to do is say I'll check. Obviously if I told her no,
I'd have some sort of reason. And if you expect me to tell you every
little thing going on in their lives..well that's not reasonable. Just
as I don't expect you to tell me everything." She shrugged, knowing his
rational mind should see the sense.

"So I'm supposed to always check with you now? Is that how this is
going to work?" The smile was still plastered to his face. "I mean, why
don't _you_ check with _me_ first? Then you can tell me if there are
little things that I should know."

Watching Venrys' face, Parale decided this had been a public
conversation for long enough. "In the interests of not confusing the
children further, I think we can talk about this after dinner. For now,
I think it'll be good for them to know that they just need to understand
I'm not just their fostermother, but that I will be their second
parent-always
here for them and just as important as you are."

He gave a single nod for the sake to not continue to argue in front of
his daughters. "Syren, finish your finger roots."

Ioven was very quiet and thoughtful the rest of the meal, finally making
an excuse of needing to make sure the apprentice assigned to stack the
pots in the kiln had done so properly, leaving Parale to put the girls
to bed. She had made him so angry, and yet the further from the
conversation he went, he understood what she had really been saying, and
knew that it made sense. If she had been Narys, he would have supported
her wholeheartedly. Parale would never, and could never be her. But
she should be a mother to those girls.

It was quiet when he finally came back to their quarters. The girls had
long gone to bed, and he found only Parale in her small work nook. "The
girls are in bed?"

"Mmmmhm. They have harper lessons tomorrow and a small excursion
with the rest of the Hold children to pick wildflowers out past the
gates." She continued to stitch, fixing a button that had come off of
Syren's dress.

"Will you come here for a minute?" he said, gesturing for her to follow
as he made his way into their bedroom. Ioven didn't want to talk where
the girls might overhear.

She got up and set the needlework aside with the rest waiting for
attention. Parale was wearing shorter skirts these days to allow for
airflow. She followed him and leaned against the wall, waiting to hear
what he would say.

He sat down on the edge of the bed with a long sigh. Ioven knew he
deserved any angry words she might throw his way, though he hoped it
wouldn't come to that. "I'm very sorry for the way I acted at dinner
tonight. I guess I just didn't realize how hard it would be to share my
children with someone after being their only parent for so long. I will
clear up any confusion with the girls in the morning."

"I understand it's hard but..I can't be a wife if you won't let me. And..
you made me feel very small." She watched his face, wanting him to
understand just what he had done. "Venrys is smart and she saw that.
I want to teach her to be a proper holder, but I don't want her to think
it's all right to allow a man to step on her either. She watches us."

"And I said I will fix it. Of course if she is told 'no' by you, I
would find out why before I told her 'yes'." Though as the man of the
home, it should be his right to have the final say.

She nodded. "That's all."

"All right then. I'll talk to them first thing. Before harper classes."
That should be soon enough.

Parale nodded and turned to go back to her needlework, conscious of how
much time she had left before she needed to sleep.

Last updated on the November 6th 2011

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