Chapter 9 - A Father's Thoughts
Her father's keen eyes watched his daughter as she sniffed warily at each shadow they passed, ears constantly moving to hear the slightest of sounds. She was aware that other Faelyn might be about and, though he was certain the thought did not distress her, it was a shift in the reality she was used to. She would settle before long, though likely not until Alnus taught them that their regular senses often wouldn't be enough to locate Ghostwalkers.
He watched with idle curiosity, though, as her violet eyes shifted to one of the village guards that was keeping pace with them. She spent a few moments looking at the invisible Faelyn, frowning to herself as her mother often did when faced with something that did not quite make sense, before sighing softly and letting her gaze move back to the task at hand. She was a good girl, understanding that her curiosity was less important than their family's dinner.
The silver fur of her tail was beautiful, hinting at powerful magic. His daughter would join the ranks of the Mystics one day, of that he was certain. What he was curious about, though, were her affinities. They were said to show in the personality, though only in small ways.
She did not have the kind of fiery passion expected of a child with a fire affinity nor the serenity overlaying a wild core that came with water. She was not stoic and steadfast, hard to change like someone with an earth affinity. She showed some small signs of mischief and playfulness, like someone with a wind affinity but never enough to make him certain of it.
She was also prone to fits of quiet introspection as one with a dark affinity, a possibility that made it hard for him to not let his ears drop back with fear for her future. Still, she was not nearly so prone to such introspection that he worried about her having a very strong affinity with it. Everyone knew the Raven's guild came for children with dark affinities and they did not take no for an answer so far from the capital.
Thinking of the Raven's guild, his mind moved to the last affinity, light. She was kind and gentle, always willing to help others in need. While the White-feathered Hawk's guild was supposed to be a far kinder place for young ones, they too did not ask permission so far from the capital. If his daughter showed either affinity, they would take her and neither he nor her mother would stand a chance.
He had a forty-percent affinity with the darkness element, not near enough to draw the Ravens to him, and a thirty-percent to wind. That advantage was how he knew she walked their foraging paths during the Ghostwalking training and the reason he did not count that finding against her. It had been discussed with Alnus and he had nodded his agreement. Failing by following old habits was not the same as failing by a lack of training.
Her mother also had a low wind affinity as well as the same percentage of affinity as he had but in light rather than darkness. Most Faelyn had at least a thirty-percent affinity with a singular element. More than seventy-percent was considered a high affinity and generally was reserved for the Mystics. Silaira's mother had a seventy-percent affinity with water magic that she rarely spoke of. Silaira would make a good Mystic, though it would mean quite some time away in the royal capital. Mystic Alnus would not take on her training himself beyond as an apprentice. She would be enrolled in the royal academy of magic and would learn there alongside the Faelyn royal family and other important figures.
Silaira touched her father's hand gently, drawing him out of whatever thoughts he'd fallen into. It was a habit of his, one he normally did not let affect him when they were out of the house doing chores.
He looked down at her with a warm smile, "You've grown so big I cannot carry you anymore," he said with a small sigh, "I miss those days sometimes."
Silaira looked away with a frown, "I can't be a child forever," she grumbled.
"No," her father agreed readily enough that her anger dissipated immediately, "But it is a parent's wish both to see their child grow swiftly as well as to hold them safely forever. Your growth makes us happy but we also miss the small moments when they've come to pass. I miss carrying you when you tired yourself out, running and playing too much when we went out to forage. Your mother misses brushing your tail for you, watching the fluff of anxiety ease with the love of family. But never doubt, little love of ours, that we are so very proud of all you've learned and look forward greatly to all you'll become for our people."
Silaira frowned again, "I'm not the only one with high magical affinity," she complained, knowing that was what he spoke of, "Someone else will likely end up Mystic Alnus' apprentice while I apprentice to one of the Divers."
"Your mother's fur will go grey if she hears you talk like that," he chided slightly, though he was smiling warmly at the thought of their daughter following in his footsteps.
"If mother's fur didn't go grey at living through all the stories the Divers tell of you," Silaira quipped back, in one of her rare moods where she would do so, "I doubt she'll grey over me doing much the same."
He laughed and ruffled her hair and ears slightly, "True enough, true enough, your mother's ever prone to hope rather than worry," his face fell slightly at the one time her hope had fallen short, his injury when out hunting a wild beast with a group of other Faelyn, "And her hope's pretty much always seen me through, so let's believe it will for you too."