Familiar's War

Xael looked on amber eyes flickering with the light of curiosity, as Maude pushed her slightly to the side as he stretched. Annoyingly, she was taller than he was, but he was at least taller than most. He stood as his back popped and he winced at the release, but continued with his quest to the kitchen. He figured she was probably ready for her evening meal since he was starting to get hungry himself.
"Xael come set the table, and then help me with the food. You'll need to know at least some cooking skills before you leave me when you graduate at sixteen." Maude called as he remembered when he had first gotten guardianship of the girl. She had been smuggled into the kingdom of Saorsa as a refugee. Her parents were killed in a revolt of the lower city, located on the outskirts of Saorsa. She had only been the young age of two.
Xael pulled herself up from the couch with a groan, choosing to pointedly ignore the sound of her stomach growling. If she ignored it, she could continue with the choice to not like helping with dinner. It was pulling her from curling up exhausted after her failed magic attempt after all.