Heirs of the Gods

Ch 23: Welcome home, young one

It was only by late evening that Ella had reluctantly deigned to come out of her room, heading to Callan's study. Two hesitant knocks on the large double doors were met with Callan's call for her to come in.

"Elowen, you came. I was beginning to think you'd decided to put off your lessons for another day," Callan greeted her from his large mahogany desk, where he was leafing through papers, an elegant crimson quill in hand.

"I didn't want to bother, I thought you might be busy," Ella shuffled into the study a bit stiffly, unsure of what to do.

"Elowen, I told you, my evenings are left open from now on so you can come here and work on your lessons. It's no bother," Callan frowned. He waved a hand, making the papers disappear, and he tucked the quill inside a carved silver holder. "Please, let's sit down," Callan made his way towards two wingbacked armchairs in front of a stone fireplace.

She sunk into her plush leather seat, admiring the cosy atmosphere of the study.

Dark wood panelling, crimson pile-woven rugs and large bay windows. On one end of the room, the massive mahogany desk dominated the sector, behind which spread two stained glass cabinets and floor to ceiling bookcases teeming with hardbacks, leather folders, ancient artefacts, tiny crystal pots and shiny boxes. A framed heraldic symbol of a winged wolf hung on the wall, as well as an old-fashioned map of Faerie and what she supposed was an up-close of Gerrathea. A grandfather clock chimed softly in a corner, and the bronze sconces on the walls bathed everything in a subdued amber shade.

"I didn't know if you preferred tea or coffee, so we have both," Callan waved a hand towards the two steaming pots, cups and small pastries set on the little table between them.

"Both. Tea I drink everyday, but I do drink quite a bit of coffee as well," Ella filled her mug, pleased that they were proper sized, not the dainty cups more suited for tea. She scooped in her usual four spoonfuls.

Callan watched her with an amused expression as he filled his own mug.

"I use a lot of sugar as well," Callan admitted, spooning in an equal amount into his own coffee. "Healer Sulimona has ineffectively been on my case for many years, telling me I should cut back on my sugar consumption."

"Aedion goes on about the same thing. Something about health," Ella made quotation marks around the word and Callan let out a huff of mirth. "I rather think he's just too boring to appreciate proper flavour."

"Don't tell him I said anything, but you might be right." He took a sip of his coffee and took a pasty thick with cream and jam. Ella followed suit, appreciating the treats and no Aedion in sight to make faces at her sweet tooth.

"I didn't know faeries had coffee as well. I was surprised when I first came here, I always thought you'd all be more for tea," she commented, nursing her mug between her hands.

"It's definitely a human developed drink, but it caught on with faeries as well. I think it dates to when we cohabitated in the same space, although many faerie culture purists still reject coffee as a very human notion, opting for tea only," Callan said thoughtfully. "I suppose that despite the barrier, many aspects from either culture have seeped into one another."

Once, when he'd been upset, Ella was sure he'd hated humans, much like the rumours said. Now that he was in a more relaxed state, she wasn't sure about that. Callan held no malice in his tone, no revulsion. She'd heard human-hating faeries before, such as Lord Aster or others she'd encountered. The difference in words and voice was stark.

"So, tell me. How did you find your first day with these new changes?"

Ella let out a sigh, shifting and further sinking into the leathery chair. "It's different... I'm still getting used to it. I may have accidentally crushed some silverware," she grimaced and Callan only nodded sympathetically.