Here Goes Nothing
10th of Saun, Arc 717
The varieties and the sheer amount of the food sprawled upon their dinner table was enough to make Velaine Krome pause as she entered the room. Her mother did say their family was going to celebrate her return, but she had expected a simpler dinner – a much simpler one. The assortment of cuisine ranged from an entire chicken to bowls of soup to colorful cakes and fruits. It would take more than a dozen people to finish it.
Yet, the only person in the dining room was her. Sophia Krome had warned her not to be late, but her mother was nowhere in sight. Not that it was a surprise.
It was nothing like the dinner she was used for the past few arcs. All she had was Elrik and no servants or slaves. Neither of them had really known how to cook when they had first moved in together, but after a fair amount of convincing, her partner had relented and volunteered for kitchen duty. Needless to say, the food had been awful in the beginning.
She wondered if he thought about her. It pained her, thinking about him. They had fought and argued for trials when the Krome told her intention of returning to Rynmere. She never expected him to agree, but the arguing had been a lot more exhausting than she had expected. In the end, Elrik simply gave up. Do whatever you wanted, Vel. You always have.
It had been a terrifying blow. Velaine remembered how her lungs seized up and her eyes watered as she watched him walk away into the night. He did not returned until the next morning. All night, the young woman lay curled on their bed, sleepless with the thousands of thoughts racing through her mind.
Stop. Just stop right there, Velaine. She was the one who decided to leave Ne’haer. To abandon perhaps the one person she truly trusted to take her place as an heir, to prove her family that she was better than all of them. That was all she needed to think about right now. Nothing else.
She was home now. Back to the house where she had grown up in, the land which she would inherit one day. Returned to her own people, her blood – as meaningless as it was to her.
Velaine let her eyes wander to the fireplace, noting a particular marking on the stone. She remembered where it came from. Back when she was ten or eleven, the young woman recalled her brothers fighting over a stolen sword. No one got hurt, but the ensuring squabble caused the blade to scratch the otherwise flawless granite. Velaine had only been sitting by the table, eating a piece of bread, but she was dragged into the punishment as well. Definitely not the best memory of her family.
For the first time since she returned, the young woman felt a relief seeing her parents approaching from the halls. Finally, instead of getting spiraling down in her own thoughts, she could start what she had planned the moment her heart was set with the desire to rule Krome one day.
Yet, the only person in the dining room was her. Sophia Krome had warned her not to be late, but her mother was nowhere in sight. Not that it was a surprise.
It was nothing like the dinner she was used for the past few arcs. All she had was Elrik and no servants or slaves. Neither of them had really known how to cook when they had first moved in together, but after a fair amount of convincing, her partner had relented and volunteered for kitchen duty. Needless to say, the food had been awful in the beginning.
She wondered if he thought about her. It pained her, thinking about him. They had fought and argued for trials when the Krome told her intention of returning to Rynmere. She never expected him to agree, but the arguing had been a lot more exhausting than she had expected. In the end, Elrik simply gave up. Do whatever you wanted, Vel. You always have.
It had been a terrifying blow. Velaine remembered how her lungs seized up and her eyes watered as she watched him walk away into the night. He did not returned until the next morning. All night, the young woman lay curled on their bed, sleepless with the thousands of thoughts racing through her mind.
Stop. Just stop right there, Velaine. She was the one who decided to leave Ne’haer. To abandon perhaps the one person she truly trusted to take her place as an heir, to prove her family that she was better than all of them. That was all she needed to think about right now. Nothing else.
She was home now. Back to the house where she had grown up in, the land which she would inherit one day. Returned to her own people, her blood – as meaningless as it was to her.
Velaine let her eyes wander to the fireplace, noting a particular marking on the stone. She remembered where it came from. Back when she was ten or eleven, the young woman recalled her brothers fighting over a stolen sword. No one got hurt, but the ensuring squabble caused the blade to scratch the otherwise flawless granite. Velaine had only been sitting by the table, eating a piece of bread, but she was dragged into the punishment as well. Definitely not the best memory of her family.
For the first time since she returned, the young woman felt a relief seeing her parents approaching from the halls. Finally, instead of getting spiraling down in her own thoughts, she could start what she had planned the moment her heart was set with the desire to rule Krome one day.
