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[Weyoun]

This one is a bit bittersweet...

 
Growing Up Prologue : Growing Up

"Parry... parry... defend... backpaddle... attack..." Karis muttered as he watched his daughter spar with Minsc from the Balcony of the master-bedroom. He noticed, to his relief, that Vierna had caught on perfectly to the lessons he and Minsc had been giving her for the past few years. She had learned to recognize and make use of openings in her opponent's combat maneuvers, as well as prevent her own from occuring...

"Backpaddle... block, block!" He muttered to himself when he noticed Vierna had allowed a slip which, in a real combat situation, could have cost her her life... True, these mistakes became less frequent with every session, but still she would need much more practise, if she was to be prepared for the Life...

"Look at his eyes, not his weapons, Vierna..." Karis muttered softly. "Read his moves before he makes them..."

The clanking of steel on steel rang through the courtyard again when Vierna's dual swords slammed on Minsc's twin maces, blocking the large ranger's assault.

"Good girl..." Karis muttered proudly, after which Vierna backed away from Minsc, out of range of his weapons and took a defensive stance once again.

Karis' keen ears heard light footsteps approaching him from behind, undoubtedly coming from his Drow lover, Viconia...

"Ssinsrig?" Viconia asked him, with a half-smile on her beautiful face. "From the smile on your face, I gather Vierna's fighting prowess has improved."

"Very much so, my love," he replied. "See for yourself..."

Viconia looked down from the balcony just in time to see her daughter take advantage of an opening in Minsc' twirling maces. One of her sheath-covered swords scraped against his armor causing Boo to squeek in surprise.

"She fights well," Viconia said impassively, making it obvious Vierna's fighting skills wasn't the subject of her conversation.

"Extremely well..." Karis added anyway. "She's also quite fierce..."

"The time," Viconia began, "the time that she'll leave for adventures draws closer..."

Sensing his mate's discomfort Karis put his hand on her shoulder. He had never realized that this was the reason why Viconia rarely watched Vierna spar. Perhaps the confrontation with the fact that Vierna would some day leave, was something she still wanted to avoid, even could still be many years away...

Viconia took another look at her daughter. It seemed to her that Vierna would be able to handle herself very well in combat soon. At least she could take solace in the fact that Vierna would be able to take care of herself. It did not relieve her worries much, though. She considered how much Vierna had grown in such a short time, admittedly more physically than mentally, but still... Instead of the tiny girl, now stood, well, a slightly less tiny girl! Vierna was still rather short, even for a Drow, but then again, she would not be fullgrown until the passing of several more decades. Vierna was becoming a little bit muscular, albeit everso slightly. Her long hair, tied in a thick braid, whipped in the air as the match continued, and it seemed Vierna had also been developing in areas of interest to the local boys.

And with the prosperity these lands had achieved, new families with children were moving in all the time, and barely a day passed by without Vierna receiving the attentions of a new would-be suitor. To Viconia's amusement and Karis' intense relief, Vierna didn't seem to be interested in any of them. Or at least not yet... Of course, many of the would-be suitors lost convidence, seeing young boys often lose their nerves if the father of the girl they want to court walks into the room with a pair of longswords, under the pretense to oil them before putting them back in the displaycase...

No, Vierna was more interested in riding her horse. Sometimes, however, her horse, 'Windwalker', would return without her... Then Vierna would stay out in the wilderniss around the keep for days on end before returning home. It was obvious to all just what kind of career the young Drow was considering. Only the set of amulets the red dragon Arokh had given to both Vierna and Viconia would prevent Vierna's mother from sending out the all the guards to find her precious girl...

"Is Valas taking his nap?" Karis asked.

"Yes..." Viconia smiled. "At least I don't think our son will leave home as quickly as Vierna will. They are very different from each other, after all."

Karis smiled as he thought back to Imoen's words a year earlier. She had joked to him, that the personality of their children was dependant on the length of Viconia's labour. The birth of Vierna was relatively short and free of complications, while Valas' birth had lasted over 40 hours and seriously threatened to end Viconia's life... That's why, according to Imoen, Vierna was sweet, but a little hellion and Valas was sweet, but very calm and quiet.

Karis laughed to himself as he thought back to Viconia's words when she held her newborn son in her arms for the first time. 'Trust a male to be difficult,' she had muttered, but the radiant smile on her face betrayed her true sentiments.

"What are you laughing about, ssinsrig?" Viconia asked with a smile as she noticed her lover's amusement.

"Oh, just at you..." he replied.

"I see," Viconia chuckled. "That is a dangerous thing to do..."

"I like living on the edge," Karis grinned in reply.

Viconia simply smiled as they drew closer together for a passionate kiss.

---

"Mom and dad are kissing again..." Vierna chuckled as she put down her swords and splashed some water in her face.

"Ah," Minsc said. "'Tis a wonderful thing when friends are in love, right Boo?"

"I'm sure Boo agrees, Uncle Minsc..." Vierna smiled,."But I can't stay. I want to ride Windwalker for a while to get the cobwebs out of my head. And I haven't visited my friends for a while..."

"Ah, the forests call to you like a whistle a dog, or a wizard her familiar, or an angry customer the waiter, even!"

"Maybe," Vierna responded, and got that faraway look in her eyes again as she imagined wandering through an endless forest, enjoying the serenity of the place as the sun shone through the treetops and a soft breeze rustled through the leaves on the branches. "But not today, uncle Minsc. I'm going to see my friends..."

"Ah, friends are important, yes? Just look at Minsc and Boo! A finer pair of friends there never was!" Minsc announced proudly, while an agreeing squeek sounded from Minsc' pocket.

Vierna chuckled and wiped the water off her face with the towel. After giving her Uncle Minsc a goodbye-hug and Boo a goodbye-petting, she went over to the stables to collect her horse and sped off into the fields of the De'Arnise lands...

---

A beautiful day outside, or so Shivon thought. The young elf had decided to read up on his magical studies ouside, partly to enjoy the weather and partly to avoid his demanding mother Sis'rayna... If it was up to him, he would have become a merchant, a traveller, a mapmaker or even a greengrocer... But it seems her mother had decided he should become a mage and not even his father Valandis could talk this out of her head.

Still, it was not all bad. He had an impressive magical aptitute and with proper training he would be able to become a mage of impressive power...

'Big deal...' Shivon thought to himself, 'but if I get really powerful with my magic my mother won't be able to run my life for me anymore.'

He was disturbed in his studies by the sounds of hooves slamming into the ground. A horse was approaching and he knew exactly whose horse it was. He stood up and held the book open with one finger as he walked down the hill. From his viewpoint, Shivon could get a good look at the rider. It was her Drow friend Vierna, riding her horse much faster than he would have thought to be safe. He noticed she was wearing her black leggings again... The skin-tight ones. Shivon gulped. 'Ah, I see Vierna is wearing her leather tunic again. The one with the laces and... AH, Bad Shivon... BAD SHIVON!!!' he shouted in his own mind. But he could not help but notice Vierna's femininity had blossomed over the past few years...

Vierna stopped her horse at the foot of the hill, tied the brown gelding to a fence and ran up to the young elf approaching her.

"Hi!" She greeted...

"H-Hello," Shivon stammered at first, but then regained control of his faculties, "A-Are Rowen and Clarissa waiting for us at the river?"

"Yep..." Vierna cheerfully announced. "It's a perfect day for a swim!"

'Oh no...' Shivon thought as utter despair set in. 'That means... she'll be wearing the swimsuit... The one which reveals her midriff...'

"My mother..." Shivon tried an excuse to get out of this swimming-trip, "My mother wants me to study today..."

"What is it with you lately?" Vierna chuckled."If I didn't know any better, I'd say you've been trying to avoid me! And since when do you do what your nutty mom says?!"

"Well, urmmm, wellllll..." Shivon stammered again, but was unprepared when Vierna suddenly made a grab for the book.

"If I take the book, you can't study and you have no choice but to come with me to the river!" Vierna reasoned with a broad smile.

"Hey! I need that to become a mage," Shivon said, trying to avoid the inevitable.

"Catch me if you can, then!" Vierna chuckled and took off with the book...

"HEY!" Shivon shouted and ran off after her.

The chase continued through the fields of many a farm. A giggling Vierna sped through the wheat with a very young elven would-be mage in tow. After a while, Shivon began to enjoy his plight and started to laugh as well. He considered his predicament, and decided it would be a much better way to spend the day with his friends, rather than reading a boring book of incantations! The two elves finally came to a halt when Vierna realized they had run halfway to the river already! The two friends stood at the edge of a wheat-field, recovering from their run. It was also abundantly clear that Vierna was in a far better shape than Shivon was...

"So," Vierna asked, "are you coming with me or not?"

"Okay," Shivon replied sheepishly.

"Good," she smiled. "Here's your book back..."

Shivon smiled and put it into his satchel. Unfortunately, in doing this, he did not notice Vierna making a move which would change his young life forever.

Vierna picked up a small piece of paper which she saw fall out of the book. Just as she was about to speak, just as she was about to tell Shivon he had dropped something, she noticed some of the words on the paper. Gasping when realization hit her, she read the words on the paper.

'So close, yet always so far,
My dark angel,
Your blue eyes so deep, I could lose myself forever,
My dark angel,
A friend all my life, but more some day I hope,
My dark angel,
I ache for you with every fibre of my being,
My dark angel,
One day, will you be mine?
My dark angel?'

'Oh No! The poem! Why did she have to find it!' Shivon thought as he turned around and noticed Vierna holding the parchment. He suddenly felt the whole world crashing down on him...

"It's... it's..." he stammered, "it's something I... wrote to make sense of... to make sense of... the feelings... I... Just give that to me!" He grabbed the parchment and looked upon Vierna's mask of disbelief.

"I'm... I'm sorry," he sniffed, "i'll... I'll deal with these... odd feelings... I... I hope we... can remain... friends...and... I'm babbling now, aren't I?"

Vierna said nothing, but silenced him by leaning her head forward and softly pressing her lips on his.

A few moments passed, but it seemed like an eternity to both of the young elves. Then, they finally broke apart.

"Wow..." Shivon stammered.

"Yeah..." Vierna replied in agreement. "Now I know why mom and dad kiss so much!"

"Wow..." Shivon stammered again. "Does... does this mean I'm your boyfriend now?" he asked carefully.

"Yeah," Vierna whispered softly, "But that also means you'll have to stop pursuing my mom..."

"Vierna, I was seven!" Shivon chuckled. "You are never going to let me forget that crush I had on your mom, aren't you?"

Vierna smiled and shook her head, 'No'...

"We should keep this a secret..." Shivon suggested. "My... mother will not."

Vierna nodded in understanding, "We won't tell anyone then. Not our friends, or our parents. It'll be... our secret..."

----

Three months later...

----

"Mom, it's only..." Vierna pleaded...

"I won't hear of it!" Viconia shouted. "I will not allow you to disfigure yourself in such a manner!"

"It's only a ring through the side of my nose!" Vierna added, wondering why her mother was being so difficult about this...

"We're talking about poking a hole through your body!" Viconia retorted. "Earrings, maybe. But nothing more than that!" she conceded.

"This is not fair!" Vierna tried, "Clarissa has seven piercings!"

"Clarissa also painted her face white and started worshipping Kelemvor!" Viconia pointed out. "Are you planning on doing that too?"

"Wha..." Vierna said in surprise. "No! Of course not! But... only a little ring... Daddy?" she tried.

"Listen to your mother..." Karis added.

"I know what this is all about, mom!" Vierna said angrily. "It's all about that eternal Dark elven purity, right?"

"Vierna..." Viconia started angrily, making it obvious Vierna was walking a dangerous path right now.

"Ah, yes it is!" Vierna continued. "My father is part human, which means that so am I! And you don't want your already impure child to become even more impure!"

Viconia did not reply, but from the way she was staring at her daugher it was painfully obvious she was approaching her breaking-point. Viconia was breathing sharply, bristling with as-of-yet controlled anger...

"VIERNA!" Karis shouted, seeing the coming storm. "You've gone too far this time, young lady! Go to your room!"

Vierna grimaced. She realized she must have really gone too far if it was her father who sent her to her room, instead of her mother. Without a second thought she walked out the dining hall and up the stairs. Being out of earshot of the dining-hall, she did not hear her mother's fist pounding repeatedly on the table.

---

Having flung herself on her bed, she buried her face in her pillow. Just as she thought to herself how she might have been a little too harsh on her mother, she heard tiny footsteps approaching her room from the other side of the corridor... She smiled to herself as a tiny head popped around the door peek into her room.

Vierna smiled to the boy, who smiled back in reply.

"You're in trouble," the boy said matter-of-factly.

"As usual..." Vierna added.

"Then... You have some time to play with me, 'Na?" The boy asked hopefully.

"Hey," Vierna giggled when she heard the nickname her little brother Valas always used for her. "I always have time for my little brother!"

The little boy smiled happily as he stepped into the room. Vierna could see he had already brought the board with him... Figures...

"Let's play checkers!" Valas announced happily.

As Valas sat himself on Vierna's bed, Vierna scooted over and put her arm around her three-year old brother, pulling him close to her.

"It's not that late," Vierna suggested. "How about we go to the stables, take Windwalker and ride through the countryside together! We could ride to the end of the world, you and I! We'll have amazing adventures along the way, we'll be the toast of many towns, we'll be the biggest heroes of the world! You and I, brother and sister!" Vierna giggled...

"But... but..." Valas stammered, "I wanna play checkers..."

Vierna snickered softly and ruffled her brother's white hair. She then realized how truly different they were. Valas was quiet and calm, much unlike her when she was that age. And daresay smart as a whip... Even at his young age, he could already read simple texts and both Vierna and their parents had a lot of trouble convincing the boy to play outside once in a while! In all the games of checkers they had played, Vierna had only won a single match. And she suspected Valas had let her win to cheer her up at the time... Valas had a remarkable insight in people's moods, she mused.

Valas wore a small gnomish 'seeing device' on his nose, since it was not secret that Valas could not see very well without it. Uncle Jan had fashioned special types of magical glass in a metal frame to help the boy see, seeing her mother could not heal this type of affliction until Valas was full-grown. And eighty years is a long time to be as blind as a bat!

From what little things her mother as of yet had told her about the Drow in the Underdark, it was obvious that the worshippers of the Spider Queen would not have allowed the boy to live, even for such a minor imperfection, a fact which saddened Vierna to no degree.

Vierna then thought back to the words she had spoken to her mother only a few moments earlier. She knew her mother loved both her and Valas dearly, and she had undoubtedly hurt her mother profoundly with her careless words. And for what? A stupid nose-ring Clarissa had suggested! she thought with bitter regret...

"Are we gonna play now?" Valas asked impatiently.

"Sure," Vierna said, interrupted in her musings. She decided she would apologise in the morning. To both her parents...

After seven matches and some pleasant talk during those matches, which Valas all won, by the way, Valas suddenly slid from the bed and walked towards the door.

"It's bedtime!" Valas told his sister, when he saw the surprised look on her face.

"You're crazy, Vallie!" Vierna giggled. "Children are supposed to wanna stay up late!"

"But 'Na, daddy promised to tell me a story!" Valas said excitedly. "And momma says little boys and girls must sleep lots!"

"Well, goodnight, then." Vierna replied with warmth in her voice. It seems there were al least two things they had in common. They both liked stories and their mother fussed about them in the same manner...

"'Nite 'Na!" Valas greeted cheerfully and walked into the corridor.

---

"I snuck away from the Keep, but why did you want me to meet you here?" Vierna told her young suitor. Only a few hours after nightfall, Vierna had snuck out of her room and made her way into the darkness of the forest. The letter Shivon had sent her worried her a bit. He wrote he had grave news and that he wanted to see her at 'their spot' as soon as she could.

'Their spot', a beautiful grove, it's existance only known to the two of them. Fragrant flowers, bright green and soft grass at the daytime, made way to the immense beauty of the light of the moon reflecting on the surface of the small pond on the side of the small grove. A small flush crossed her face in the dark as she thought back to the gentle kisses and lovetalk they had shared here...

"I... I..." Shivon stammered, close to tears."I... Me and my family... We're... We're moving to Suldenesselar..."

"What?!" Vierna practically screamed as the news hit her like a ton of bricks. "You... you can't..."

"My mother says... she says... it's for my mage studies, but... but... I think she... knows about us," Shivon added.

"How?" Vierna asked.

"I caught her... going through my... diary... She only read... one page, but... Oh, DAMN HER!"

Vierna felt her own tears welling up. They had been friends their entire lives, yet only lovers for three months and there was a good chance they would never see each other again.

"Couldn't you... stay here?" Vierna tried. "You could stay with us...at the Keep... I could ask my dad..."

"My mother hates Drow, Vierna..." Shivon stammered, "and she especially hates your mother. She'd never allow it... She'd never allow her son to love a Drow..."

"When?" Vierna asked.

"Tomorrow morning," Shivon shivered as he brought the devastating news.

"We were... going to be adventurers! Together... You and me! You the mage, I the ranger! We were going to..." Vierna cried, and fell into Shivon's embrace.

"I love you, Shivon..." she whispered.

"I love you too, Vierna..." he replied, through his own tears.

They kissed. Gently at first, but they deepened their kiss after a few moments, while they lay down in the soft grass.

---

Vierna snuck back into her room, still devasted by the news. She threw her cloak through the window first and then lifted herself through the window... She hoped no one had noticed her, seeing it was almost morning since she and Shivon had fallen asleep in the grove. Despite her grief, a small smile tugged at the corners of her mouth as she thought back to...

"About time you got home," she heard the voice of her mother behind her, interupting her musings.

"How did you know I was..." Vierna asked her mother.

"Vierna," Viconia smiled, omitting to mention the powers of the amulets the Red Dragon Arokh had given to both of them. "I am your mother. Let's just say I have a sixth sense regarding such things."

Viconia was suddenly worried when she noticed the redness of her daughter's blue eyes, "Have you been crying, ssinjin eoul?"

Vierna said nothing, but flung herself into her mother's arms. "Momma," she started, "I'm sorry about what I said to you earlier... I've been a real idiot..."

"'Momma'," Viconia mused, "you haven't called me that for years now..."

"It's a good time to start again," Vierna said as her tears started to flow. "I love you, momma..."

"I know, little one, I know..." Viconia replied gently, "I love you too... And..." Suddenly, a pensive look crossed her face. "Have you coupled with a male?"sShe asked as gently as she could. No magic amulet was needed to determine this fact...

Vierna broke off from her embrace and stepped back. She looked at the floor and slowly nodded, expecting another admonishment.

"Shivon?" Viconia asked, but seeing the flush in her daughter's face, answered her question...

"How... how did you know?" Vierna stammered.

"You could have done worse..." Viconia mused. "He's clean, desease-free and treats you very well. Even if he is a bit spineless..."

"Momma!" Vierna replied with surprise in her voice...

"I should have had this little talk with you a few years earlier, I think. I thought it could wait since you showed no interest in the local boys..." Viconia said to no one in particular and closed the door, ready to tell Vierna about the facts of life... The Drow version of it...

---

"I had no idea..." Vierna said while looking very dazed after the three-hour talk she just had with her mother...

"I was even younger than you when I started coupling with males." Viconia added, "But I suppose I have waited too long with this..."

"I had no idea..." Vierna said again, "and... do you and daddy do... all this, too?"

"No..." Viconia said, to Vierna's relief, which would soon be shattered again. "These were only the basics, the tip of the iceberg. Your father and I moved on to the, ahum, advanced techniques only a few years back..."

"Oh..." Vierna replied, "but I had no idea..."

"Anyway," Viconia continued, "with practise, you should be able to use these Drow techniques to make the experience more pleasurable and last longer...And speaking of your father," Viconia added. "I don't think he will be so accepting as I am, when he hears that you and Shivon are having a more physical relationship. He might like Shivon a lot more than the other boys who want you as their lover, but I still think he will viciously slaughter Shivon, if he hears..." Viconia joked.

"There IS no more relationship!" Vierna suddenly shouted in sadness. "His stupid mother won't allow us to see each other any more and is moving away to prevent it! She doesn't even know me! She doesn't even want to know me, only because I am Drow!"

"This won't be the last prejudice you'll encounter in your long life, little one," Viconia said as gentle as she could, "It's the plight of being a Drow on the surfacelands..."

"Does it always hurt this much?" Vierna asked.

"Sometimes it does," Viconia admitted, thinking back to the many betrayals in her past, "but not always. It's something you have to be prepared for, little one."

---

Vierna walked over to Shivon's house in the early morning, and she felt as if the gods had bound lead to her feet. As soon as she walked into the clearing where the cabin of Shivon's parents stood, she noticed Shivon and his parents loading their belongs in a cart. Shivon dropped what he was doing and sped over to her, while his mother shot Vierna the most poisonous look she could muster. Vierna, however, almost growled in return.

"Leave them be," she heard Shivon's father, the ranger Valandis, mutter to Sis'rayna. "Haven't you done enough?"

Sis'rayna huffed once and returned to the cabin to pack some statuettes. Valandis walked over to the two young elves and put his hands on both their shoulders. "I'm sorry..." he simply told them and returned to the cabin to give the two elves some privacy.

"I wanted to say goodbye to you, before the rest of our friends turned up." Vierna stated.

"Is that why you're here so early?" Shivon managed a half-smile, when Vierna nodded in reply.

"Per-perhaps it's for the best," Shivon stammered. "You deserve someone better than a nerdy elf who can't even lift twenty pounds..."

"You may be a nerdy elf," Vierna smiled, while a single tear ran over her cheek, "but you're my nerdy elf!"

"I'll never forget what we've shared the last three months," Shivon said, "Only three months..."

Vierna and Shivon embraced one last time, shortly after which, their closest friends turned up. And they all echanged their goodbyes. Vierna was staring with intense sadness, as the cart carrying Shivon moved out of sight, and out of her life...

"Ah, and there end another chapter in time," Clarissa states as solumn as a grave. "All things must end, as all life ends in a cold grave..."

Vierna and Rowen exchanged a look which contained a measure of both sadness and disbelief at Clarissa's odd new philosophies.

"Clar..." Rowen said with a smile. "Shut up..."

"Okay," Clarissa replied. "Let's just hang at the general store, then."

As the three friends left, Vierna shot one more look at the empty road behind her, before joining Clarissa and Rowen...