Flowering crown [https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/ABLVV85towh9kd-W-1yPrZHuKJXI3IowNvWyMu1c1XZthAVYJ0Jig6jKa215ue24nuyhgKO4eBghUR8WI5HrpnowUaKVlmVl8MHqhJLlkan6nZqZmpyhHzpfAjp3ABcFYg0JQnb4OM_EBNw9OWtggUkJRHJG=w621-h931-s-no-gm?authuser=0]
“You asked to see me, Lord Wayland?”
Paul looked up from his journal at the gemite peeking his head through the study doorway he had left cracked open in wait for the young man. After finally finishing going over every single report and viewing every Sense Stone that had been used during the expedition King’s Dream had taken part in, Paul had finally realized that he needed to make something clear to Dazien.
“Don’t forget what This One said about positive reinforcement,” Orebela’s voice interjected. He swore she was somehow researching various parenting techniques behind his back. Maybe during the hour he slept? “No, Wayland. This One has been paying attention to Little Flower’s techniques. She is much better at this than Wayland.”
He internally groaned but spoke aloud to the Defender, “Yes, please shut the door and sit.”
The amethyst gemite did as he asked and began speaking before finishing getting seated, “I want to reiterate how sorry I am for Phoenix getting injured before. I know she can come back but it would have brought much more trouble upon your entire House and I should never have let her be put in that position to–”
“Stop, kid,” Paul interrupted with a raised hand, “I already said you didn’t need to apologize for that. You did your best and that’s all I could ask for. I called you here to discuss a few different things with you, some regarding the party… others regarding you personally.”
Dazien fell silent, which was rare and Paul appreciated it as he continued, “We’ll start with the more immediate topics. Has it gotten around to the lower Caste party leaders yet that the army of Soul Reapers you discovered has begun moving this way?”
The Defender shook his head and confirmed, “No, sir, but everybody has been assuming so since the Call-to-Arms went out. We’ve been scrambling to figure out where everyone is going to be placed. Some parties are requesting to go to Souja while others would rather stay here, it’s been a bit of a mess honestly.”
“Well, King’s Dream will be in the middle for now. I’m accepting the request that you all be placed on clearing the expected battlefield on our side. Monsters are still spawning and we want to send a counter-assault on the enemy before they get too close to the city. You’ll be keeping the path clear until then.”
“Yes, sir,” the young leader agreed, “Rayna will be glad to hear that. She was afraid we’d end up on the wall away from the fighting.”
“Don’t forget to say the thing to Little King,” his Familiar reminded.
He mentally rolled his eyes but took a deep breath and said, “I also wanted to let you know that I’m proud of how you performed on the expedition.”
“I’m sorry?” Dazien replied in confusion, glancing around the room as though there must have been someone else present that he was referring to.
The Paladin clarified, “The reports and recordings were all very clear that you led admirably when others faltered and didn’t put chances for personal glory over the safety of your team. You communicated well with everyone, were professional with the other parties, and upheld the values of being both an Adventurer and a Noble, despite not being the latter. By doing so, you’ve brought honor to my House, whose heir has chosen to follow you. So, I am both grateful and proud of you.”
Amethyst eyes blinked at him, uncertainty still filling them. Then the young man gave a nervous laugh, “You sound like you’re practicing for Phoenix. Is this you trying to be a father to our little band of orphans?”
“Is that something you would want?”
“What?”
Paul considered the gemite seriously and asked, “Would you want to join House Wayland as a scion under me?”
That caused Dazien’s jaw to actually drop open in speechlessness.
After a few moments of silence, the Paladin offered him an out, “Unless you don’t want something like that. I know it’s a sudden and unexpected idea.”
“No! I mean, I–” the young man cut himself off, shaking a silky queue falling past his shoulders while staring down into his lap, and seemed to restart, “It is sudden and not something I ever considered…” Then Dazien looked up and asked with quiet disbelief, “Are you actually offering to adopt me… as your son?”
He nodded, “You’re a talented young man, Dazien. Putting aside the fact that you’re already leading the party Phoenix is in, you would be a valuable addition to House Wayland. You have a bright future ahead of you as an Adventurer and have shown the aptitude for politics that even I lack at most times.”
“So this would be more of a political arrangement to build up House Wayland?” the gemite asked with a slight frown, crossing strong arms over his black and gold tunic, “What expectations would there be?”
“You would be brought in as my son but not my heir, like Phoenix, since she has already been declared as such. You would continue leading King’s Dream, whether you accept the title of scion or not.
“We would offer a place on the House Council, unlike Phoenix whose lack of cultural knowledge due to being a Wayfarer made the other members veto for now. The Council helps make family-wide decisions, things like who we publicly ally with, our stance on political debates, etcetera. Patricia would help guide you with how all that works.
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
“I would be made your official Mentor with the AOA as well. You would still be free to join a temple’s clergy of your choosing, so long as they are not part of the Voidsworn Syndicate obviously. Other organizations, like the OOM, would need to go through the Council for approval.”
“You’ve already planned out that much?” the gemite asked incredulously, “You really think I’ll be that great of an asset?”
“Don’t forget the personal reasons you thought of too,” Orebela chimed in, “Don’t make it seem like Wayland thinks of Little King as only a tool for status.”
“You’re not just an asset, Dazien,” Paul clarified and could sense the small wave of relief in the aura that had become much improved during their time training together, “I already see you as another Protégé. I’m hard on training all of you because I want to see you flourish. Because I care about your success towards your own goals, not just Phoenix’s. The fact that you seem to genuinely care for her just makes it all the easier for me to want to include you in our family.”
“You don’t think I’m in love with her like Uriel seems to think?” the gemite asked and almost seemed grateful for a second opinion.
Paul chuckled, “No. Not like that. Is that what you think I feel towards her?”
“What? No. You’ve never behaved like that towards any of us,” the Defender objected.
“There are many types of love, Dazien,” the Paladin pointed out, “I do care for Phoenix, truly like a father. One of the other Adventurers in your last mission had a Sense Stone recording for the duration of that last fight. After seeing the damage you took trying to protect Phoenix, I realized that I care about you like that as well. I don’t want to see you become some forgotten orphan lost to history. You’re worth so much more than that.”
The gemite fell silent, placing his face into both of his palms only supported by elbows on his knees as he almost seemed to tremble in the chair across from him. After a few shaky breaths the young man managed to get out, “Sorry, I just need a moment.”
Paul gave a gentle smile, “Take your time. There’s no rush.”
“See, this is going much better with Wayland listening to This One,” Orebela somehow managed to say in a smug monotone.
“Yes, Bela, you were right as usual and I’m glad I listened,” he mentally pandered.
“Thank you, Lord Wayland. Those were some of the kindest words I’ve ever received.” Another shaky breath later the young warrior asked, “Is there anything else I would need to consider about joining your House?”
“Yes. You would be expected to live and train here. You would be well provided for, just like Phoenix–”
“What about Uriel?” Dazien interrupted, obvious concern on his face, “He’s not just a party member–”
“I’m aware,” Paul said with a slight smile, “I’ve been in your home, remember? In my experience, most roommates don’t share a single bed.”
The young man’s dark cheeks flushed a deeper shade of brown as he asked, “Will there be rules against him staying with me? Do you also think it would be… unbecoming to have his connection with me be linked to your House?”
The Paladin considered this and asked, “Did he tell you everything about himself? About his past? About how we first met?”
The Defender nodded slowly, “Yes. He told me the truth about his years of torture and spiritual abuse at the hands of cultists. About what really happened with his parents and sister. And both the impetus and results of his raging talent. I’ve seen the same secrets you have and kept them between us.”
“Yet you keep him by your side?”
“I stood up to a god to keep him there,” the gemite retorted, sitting up straighter, “It’s how I got my title of Loyal Friend.”
Paul raised an eyebrow, “I don’t remember that in your background report. Which god?”
Dazien gave a small smirk, “Warrior. Before he agreed to train me.”
The Paladin laughed, “And he still agreed. I admit that’s surprising.”
“I don’t care how much wealth or prestige you offer me, Lord Wayland,” the Defender said, dropping the smirk for complete sincerity, “I’m not going to abandon Uriel for it. He’s also worth much more than that.”
“Well, part of even offering to adopt you means that I trust you,” Paul said in equal seriousness, “You’ve proven to be a rather decent judge of character so far, so until Karislian hurts you or Phoenix, I’ll try to keep an open mind.”
The gemite seemed to relax at that but fell silent in thought, looking down at his lap again as if trying to solve a puzzle that only he could see, “When do you need an answer? I want to talk to Uriel about all of this.”
The Paladin nodded in understanding, “There’s no rush. We’ll be busy with this new threat at our door so we can talk more after the city is safe. Once the blood moon is over, however, I plan to take Phoenix out of Tulim to keep progressing both her abilities and her divine quest. Are you planning to join us on that either way?”
Dazien looked up, refocusing on him, “Yes. If she’ll have me. I agree that leaving the tundra after the blood moon is for the best. I’ll likely be Sapphire before the moon ends and won’t be able to progress much further here.”
Paul leaned back in his chair to reach into a drawer of his large desk, “In that case, I have some things to share with you.”
The Paladin lifted a large book that was revealed to be a scrapbook when he opened it up and said, “This is all the information I’ve gathered so far about the current situation in Tyrand, the three royal artifacts of the Tyrandian monarchy, and the current heir. I’ll admit it’s not as much as I’d like but, considering how busy we’ve all been with the blood moon and traitors to the world, it’s a decent start and I wouldn’t mind some help with it all.”
Dazien gawked at him, “You’re trusting me with all of this?”
He chuckled, “How else would a father or mentor help you learn and grow? I’m here to guide and support you, Dazien. By showing you a bit of trust with this, I’m hoping you’ll return it. I’ll still beat you into the mat when you need it too.”
The young warrior finally laughed and said sarcastically, “Oh, wonderful. I was hoping not everything would change so dramatically.”
“Oh! Now! Give Little King the gift now!” his Familiar urged.
He grinned and pulled out a small book from another drawer that was bound in green leather. On the cover was a sword wrapped in a purple flower and he offered it to the young man.
“What’s this?” the Defender asked curiously as he took it, opening it to reveal blank pages, “A journal? What for?”
“It’s for the future,” Paul said warmly, “If you plan to be a king one day, the historians will love you all the more for putting your journey on paper. Plus, I find it helpful when trying to work through a problem or release the emotions that you don’t want to inflict on others.”
The Paladin was startled by the gemite standing suddenly and walking quickly around the desk that separated them. He reactively stood, wondering if something was wrong, and was enveloped in a strong hug.
Dazien didn’t say anything, just squeezed him tightly as if afraid he might disappear, and Paul relaxed, patting the young man’s back and saying, “You’re welcome, kid.”