If Stratagor Ziras doesn't kill me, my training program will!
Every day I wake up and go through the motions, but they've figured out that I'm not a Knight. I can't ride, I can't fight, I can't do magic, and worst of all, I can't see whatever it is...
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"Catawampus," Kyrbast mutters to himself through gasps of air as we climb the winding staircase. Not only is it steep but the risers are uneven. It's because the house is meandering around its neighbors, but still this is not only catawampus, it's dangerous.
Trelix greets us with a happy smile when we safely reach the parlor. "Come in. So glad you came. I think you'll like what we're having for dinner." He leans over and whispers in my ear, "Please don't mention the devil thing to my wife."
I nod my head. I want to ask why, but it's probably because it would upset her. It's sweet that he wants to protect his wife's feelings.
He quickly rises to his full height and ushers us into the cheery room where we sit opposite each other on two overstuffed sofas. The furniture is huge and soft, which probably adequately suits its hefty owners. I'm nervous, so I focus on the oddly-placed and oddly-shaped windows that peer out on various views of the village. I try, unsuccessfully, to orient them to the exterior of the house.
"This is my wife, Nolain," he says when she hands me a fizzy drink that tastes like butterscotch, then sits next to her husband.
Nolain is almost an exact replica of Trelix, only her horns have ribbons and Trelix's have gold rings; some of the rings wrap completely around his horns and others pierce through.
"And these are my children," Trelix says proudly as two other hemots walk hesitantly into the room. "Felger and Gertra."
Felger looks to be about grown but not yet filled out. He's only slightly shorter than his father but considerably thinner and his horns only go down the back of his head. Gertra is about my size and acts quite young. Between her stubby horns is a black tuft of hair tied in a pink bow that matches her poofy dress.
I greet everybody and struggle to hide my discomfort while awkwardly placing my drink on the dainty coffee table that seems more out of place than I do. Trelix's family is friendly, but I'm not good at talking in groups and I've never been invited to someone's house for dinner before.
"Your English has improved greatly since the last time we spoke," Kyrbast says to Nolain. I wonder how well they know each other. He rarely leaves his lab so I assume not well.
"I have wanted to practice English for myself for a long time," she says with a smile. Both she and Trelix have an accent that sounds like Irish when it's spoken fast. I can almost make it out, but I struggle with some of the words.
"You speak good," I say slowly.
We chat awkwardly for a while, until I relax. Kyrbast carries most of the conversation by gossiping with Trelix about various castle intrigue that I can't follow. Once I become accustomed to the accent my conversation flows better. I find out that Gertra just lost a tooth and Felger plays a sport that loosely translates to smashing. They both speak English to some extent, and all of them want to practice with us.
