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Kal walks through the city, bored. There’s not much to do and he can’t even see any hot noble boys. Now what’s he supposed to do? Not like Dad’s ready to make him a full Crow, and his siblings are all busy with their own things, and Dad’s busy ‘fixing’ everything like he has been for the last several years since Lorenzo died.
He passes a shop, watching someone walk out with rings and gems stuck in their ears. He blinks. Those look cool! He wants some, too! It seemed like he just needed to get some nice thin metal and then shove it through his ears! That shouldn’t be too hard! Besides, he heals fast and there’s always Aloe!
He looks to the side. Oh! Several unused needles! And they’re only slightly rusty! They should be easy enough to bend! Hmmm. But should he shoot a bit of magic through first? Or add a bit of a magical blade to it? It’ll work better if it’s sharp, right?
Swiping up his supplies, Kal moves to find something to find a reflection in. The water’s nearby, and it’s pretty well lit right now. He grins, staring down at himself even as that stupid tight feeling in his chest springs to life at how close he is to the water.
Hmmm. His hair’s in the way. He should try to get them pretty even, right? So He’ll need to be able to see better than this. Oh! He knows! He still has Lonely’s supply of hair ties in his magic pocket!
Getting his hair tied back and out of his way, Kal looks back down at his reflection. He grabs one of his rusty sewing needles, using a small amount of magic to give it a proper point. He can use his magic to shape it after.
With a grin, Kal gets the first one in place in his left lobe. It doesn’t even hurt. Not like clothes do. A bit of magic, and it’s in a proper shape to stay in. A few moments, and he’s got another one next to it. The third needle breaks with the application of his magic. He thinks, deciding to match them on the other side before he goes any further. Two more needles break, leaving him with just the one by the time he gets the fourth one in place.
He’s still got one solid needle left. Yeah! That’ll do! Going back to his left ear, he puts it in along the bottom near the tip of his pointed ear. He loves it!
Kal strolls into the Villa far more pleased with himself than he’s been in a long time. Dad’s nearby. He sighs when he sees Kal. “Kalias. What have you done this time?”
He cocks his head. “What do you mean?”
Dad looks like he wants to start drinking again. “Kalias. I understand you sometimes do things on nothing but a momentary whim, but do you have any idea how stupid it is to stab yourself with a rust covered blade?” He blinks innocently. “Right. What was I thinking. There’s no thoughts in that head.”
“ESHARI!” Dad calls.
Esha appears on one of the balconies. “What? You know I’m busy preparing for my contract.” Esha gets a contract? That’s no fair! Kal wants a contract, too!
“Deal with Kalias.” Dad walks off rubbing at his face, mumbling something. He watches his sister hop over the balcony, storming over to him.
“Kal! What on earth did you do this—“ She spies his ears and sighs heavily. “Kalias de Riva! Why?!?”
He shrugs. “Wanted to.”
“Right.” He doesn’t really understand why she’s so exasperated, but it’s not like he understands most emotions to begin with, so… “Come with me you idiot.” He grins, following her into another room. Oh, look! It’s Rosa! “Rosa?”
“My Lady? My Lord? Is there something I can help you with?”
“Do you or one of the other servants have some clean, proper jewelery for this idiot?” Rosa blinks at him, looking thoughtfully. “I don’t, but Lucas should. I’m sure he’d be happy to help the young Lord.” Esha thanks her, dragging him through the Villa and into the kitchen.
“Lucas?”
The dwarf dwarf turns to them. “Lass! Lad! What can I do fer ya?”
“Rosa mentioned you might have some extra earrings for my brother?” Lucas looks at him curiously.
“Ya didnae hafta do it yerself, lad. I woul’ave helped if ya asked.” Just just shrugs. “’Scuse me fer a moment.” Lucas rushes off at a much faster speed than a two-foot-tall man should be able to. He’s back a minute later, shoving his bounty into Esha’s hands before waving them off. “I’ll be sure ta have yer favorite’s tonight, so get the lad fixed up.”
Ehsa drags him back to her room. I’ll take care of this for you, but then you need to go see Allona just to be sure there isn’t anything harmful going on.” Huh. Why’s she sound so annoyed? “Sit.” She demands, pointing towards the bench in Esha’s room. He does, waiting for her to come back with a few things.
“Kal. I need you to take these out.” He blinks at her pouting. He just put them in, though! “You’re going to keep them, we’re just going to make sure the sites are clean and that they have proper jewelery that’s not going to hurt you in the long run. You can even do it one or two at a time if your that worried.”
Hmmm. He supposes that makes sense. “Kay.” He takes the pair out of his right ear, waiting for his sister to do her thing. The antiseptic she uses stings a bit like clothes do, but it’s not nearly as bad as the worst fabrics. It’s a few moments of that cool feeling before she takes a few of the little silver studs and shoves them in the holes Kal made earlier.
Esha sighs. “Alright. Lets do the other ear.” He nods, taking the rest of the rusty needles out and letting her do what she wants. He sits mostly patiently while she works. The last one she puts in pinches a bit, but it’s not too bad, all things considered. “There.” She glares at him. “Go see Allona. She should be in her library.”
“Kay!” He hasn’t seen Aloe today. Wonder how he’s going to tease her now!
Esha pokes into the kitchen a week later, returned from her contract, holding a small box in her hands. “Kal?”
“You’re back!” He holds out a cookie for her. It’s fresh, and tasty!
She takes it, nibbling on the sweet as she holds out the box. “Here. Made something for you.” Esha smiles, backing off quickly and vanishing before he can open it. Kal cocks his head, staring at the box. Putting down the tray in his other hand, Kal wastes no time in cracking open the gift.
He smiles at the set of handmade dangle earrings. He’s got the best sister!