Page 39 of The Kingdom of Eternal Ice
“That’s not a bad idea,” Endellion nods. “Let’s make a trip to go ice-fishing with Aza. What do you think, Caelan?”
Caelan looks flustered, but then he shrugs. “If we can make time for it,” he says gruffly.
“Grizzly,” Flinn whispers, making the table chuckle.
“I want to come too,” Eibhlin exclaims excitedly. “Let’s go and kill fish!”
“Eh, sweetheart, they are going to fish, fish; not kill, fish,” her father tries to reason.
Eibhlin is dressed in a black puffy dress with a dreamy pink hair bow, making her look like a doll. Now, however, she blinks at her father. “Where is the difference? I mean, we are eating fish here. We certainly didn’t pet it to death.”
At her words, Simin snorts, immediately angling for her napkin to hide her face and suppress her giggles.
“Sometimes you say really disturbing things,” Ita says with a grin. “Good thing I know you well enough to know that you aren’t a psychopath, or I would have difficulties falling asleep at night.”
“Don’t worry, I’d never kill you in your sleep.”
Ita smiles brightly. Now that I have visited her mother, I notice her resemblance to Doreen. Just that Ita wears her hair shoulder-length and is more athletic than her mother, but they look very much alike. They also have a similarly kind aura. “That’s very reassuring, Eibhlin, thank you.”
“I’m good at hunting,” Eibhlin says proudly. “You know, Aza, I was once outside, playing, and got attacked by a bear. I won against it.”
“That’s true,” Gillean says, and I can see a hint of pride in his eyes. “And, she was only twelve then.”
“Our crazy little sister,” Nevyn says with a gentle smile. Despite calling her crazy, though, he looks at her in an endearing way. He is always nice and warm towards his siblings, I have noticed.
“And, Nevyn here got his wolf on his eighteenth birthday,” Endellion explains to us.
Shayan eyes the young boy with interest. “I’ve heard that’s very rare.”
“It is,” Flinn explains. “None of us got our wolves so early.”
“Technically, you can receive your wolf spirit at the age of eighteen, at the earliest,” Caelan says. “But, it rarely happens.”
Nevyn blushes. “I don’t know why my wolf spirit woke up so early, but well… he is here now.”
“You truly have very special children,” Shayan says to the king, who looks like he is about to burst with pride.
The table gets a lot livelier after Shayan’s compliment, with everyone playfully boasting about how awesome they are. Simin and I just exchange an amused glance, and Royan, who is sitting next to me this time, keeps telling me funny little anecdotes from the siblings’ childhood.
Eventually, the chatting dies down, and we soon talk about other things. Shayan and I ask questions about the kingdom and the lands that surround it, and everyone at the table is eager to answer.
“I really like Flinn’s suggestion about taking you to go ice-fishing,” Gillean muses before he looks at his triplets. “Maybe you should really plan that, boys?”
The three brothers exchange a gaze, their eyes glossing over. “We will think of something. Maybe we can take Azadeh on a trip,” Endellion offers. “Of course, General Shayan and Simin would be invited, too.”
“I think if it involves horse riding, I better stay at home,” Simin proclaims.
Alana laughs heartedly. “But you already made so much progress today.”
“Yes, here… in the safety of the training hall,” Simin says shyly. I’ve noticed her shyness has become less, but talking in front of the whole family still seems difficult for her.
“We won’t force you,” Flinn assures her.
“I think it would be a good idea if I stay back, too,” Shayan says, to my surprise. “It will give you the chance to really learn things from the wolves, Azadeh. What do you think?”
If I’m honest to myself, I like the fact of being alone with some of the werewolves and getting to know them better without a chaperone with me. “I think I like the idea.”
“Then, it’s set,” Endellion smiles at me, and again, seeing his genuine smile warms me up inside.
