Ediann wanted to show Aleci every picture he drew. The red chalk was now a sad shadow of its former self, having been used to scribble out what looked like a sunset or a sunrise.

"Your home?" Aleci signed, and Ediann shook his head, pointing to the picture again.

"He means the sea," said Edon, coming over and kneeling down next to them. He pointed at the black waving lines, "That's waves. He likes drawing them."

"Ah," Aleci nodded his head solemnly, with Edon's explanation the crooked half circle in red and the jagged lines underneath it made sense. "The sea," he signed to Ediann.

He wasn't sure if Ediann understood, but the boy repeated the sign. He clumsily placed them on the table, standing on tip toes to reach. The two boys piled onto the bed, and after some coaxing from Finne which involved a story drawn to Ediann and told to Edon, both were asleep. Finne extracted himself from both of them, carefully checking on Ethain slept on the floor in the makeshift cradle.

"You should try signing the story," Aleci suggested, looking at the drawings Ediann had made from his seat on his camp bed, moved a distance away from the other one. "If it's a story he knows, he wouldn't need pictures."

Ediann had presented him with several pictures, most of them require an interpretation, thought Aleci. He wasn't certain what a circling black cloud meant, and the lines that were drawn next to it. One picture caught his eye. It was of a man with red hair, mouth opened and showing too many teeth. His oversized hands grabbed at a similarly sized figure. Finne, thought Aleci, and winced at the red chalk that Ediann had used to color in Finne's lips.

"He's very imaginative," Finne said quickly, taking the drawing away from Aleci.

"He was very accurate with drawing me," said Aleci quietly.

"He is very imaginative," Finne repeated.

It was one of those times where, if Aleci was in the presence of his mother, she would have no doubt pinched him to keep him from blurting out his 'uncouth thoughts'. But she wasn't there now, was she?

"You needn't lie to yourself," Aleci said, "or to me. Does Edon know?"

"No," Finne replied, not meeting Aleci's eyes.

So that explained Edon's short temperedness, Aleci observed. But he was a child and children were impatient creatures anyway. The anger towards Finne when he didn't get his way though, that might have been learned.

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"Would you like to play for me?" Aleci said, gesturing towards his open chest and the fiddle that lay within it. "I'd like to hear you play."

"It'll wake him up," Finne insisted, glancing at Ethain in the makeshift cradle.

"I can hold him," Aleci said, nodding, "I would like to hear you play. Please."

There had been a fiddle when he visited Maera and the other Imrukian women, but none of them knew how to play it. Or if they did, they didn't want to tell him. Maera had insisted that it was a man's instrument, that it was unladylike to crane one's neck like a bird.

"Are you certain?" Finne gave Aleci another uncertain look.

"Yes," Aleci grinned. "Very certain, I want to know what it sounds like."

That was a lie, Aleci could barely tell the difference between any stringed instruments, nor singers' voices, nor drum beats of a marching army. He would never admit it, but that was one reason why he didn't retreat in Jochu. The Magister in charge had his drummers send out a drumbeat for retreat, and Aleci, in his deafness to song, had mistaken the notes. It was why he thought of signing, even if he knew nothing of music, he still had his eyes to see.

The other reason… Aleci swallowed, the other reason was fear of disappointing his father.

"What song would you like to hear?"

"Hm?" said Aleci, startling him out of his thoughts. "What song? I… don't know. Whatever song you like. Maybe not a loud one?" he glanced at the sleeping children.

"A loud song," Finne repeated, then huffed, amused. "That's a funny way to describe it."

It sounded like nothing Aleci had ever heard before, the fiddle. Finne's fingers moved on the strings, his hand guiding the bow back and forth to coax out soft notes. Like a lullaby, thought Aleci, maybe it was the very same one Finne hummed to Ethain. Finne's brow was furrowed in concentration, his eyes on the neck of the instrument, on his hands as they pressed down on the strings.

Finne is very handsome, Aleci observed, and immediately heard Kaeso's triumphant laughter. Fine, fine, he conceded, half upset, half amused, perhaps Finne would want a courtship. They needn't… have sex. The realization was a pit in his stomach, he didn't like the thought of consorting with others if he'd promised to be faithful to one. That was what he would have settled on, if he'd married a woman with certain tastes as well, the two of them would reach an agreement with each other where they would both have dalliances. But those women were far and few in between, they were too clever to settle for just a Praefect. And why would they shackle themselves to a man when they can simply promise themselves to a Goddess and seclude themselves away with other women? He wanted a family, a happy one, better than his own with his absentee father, but-

"Did you like it?" Finne asked, sounding hopeful, a half smile on his face. "It was your song to Ethain earlier. I think I missed a few notes."

"It was?" Aleci said, open mouthed. "It was? I didn't realize."

Finne let out a laugh, "You didn't?" He raised an eyebrow, "Really?"

"No?" Aleci shook his head, bemused, "I had no idea."

"You want me to play for you but you have no… ear for songs?"

"Well it was a rather spontaneous suggestion on my part," Aleci shrugged. "I was curious, I wanted to know what it sounded like, the fiddle. Now that I have, I like it. Do you have to be a swordsman to know if someone's got a terrible form? Similarly, do you have to be a cook to know if something tastes good?"

"Are you very fond of asking questions?" Finne smiled again, the light of the fireplace dancing in his green eyes.

Like a nymph, thought Aleci, mesmerized. He quickly shut that thought down as well, "Perhaps. Why shouldn't a man ask questions?"

Finne surprised him by sitting down next to Aleci on the bed, "A man likes to keep his secrets."

"I suppose so," agreed Aleci. "But a man also likes solving riddles and opening chests. They often require asking questions."

"Of the one who's holding the secret, not the one wanting to pry," Finne pointed out.

"I have not met a sphinx," Aleci agreed, "but I am sure, if I am to meet them, they would either devour me out of spite or let me in out of curiosity." He mirrored Finne's smile, "As I am such a charming man, you see."

"How would it be certain that eating you won't give it indigestion?" said Finne, and clapped his hands to his mouth.

Aleci chuckled, "Perhaps it could ask me if I tasted good."

This had Finne blushing, turning his head away from Aleci. His skills weren't bad after all, thought Aleci, impressed that after all these years he could garner such a reaction.