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Lilia took a shuttered breath in as he laid his head against the cold shower wall. The warm water that hit his back wasn't relaxing him the way it should.
Shouting, the sounds of metal clashing against metal, the smell of damp dirt, smoke from fires, and a faint scent of iron overwhelmed him. He took a few deep breaths and ran his hands through his soaked hair. The steam made every breath feel thick, like he was breathing in the smoke from the past that was replaying in his mind. With a shaky hand he turned the facet to a colder temperature and opened the curtains slightly so that the steam could escape faster. He opened his body wash, a gift from a friend, and an overwhelmingly sweet and fruity smell wafted throughout the bathroom. With every shaky intake of breath, the fruity scent chased away that of the wet dirt, smoke and iron. He lathered up his wash cloth and ran it over his body, paying no attention the scars on his arms and torso as he did so. After his body was clean he worked on his hair. He was careful not to look at the water falling towards his feet, mixed with the pink hair dye that towards his feet, mixed with the pink hair dye that looked a little too red when it pooled near the drain.
His heart beat was still quicker than normal when he exited from the bathroom to return to his room, but he was better able to tunction now that his head was not completely in the past. Within a few minutes of returning to his room he heard a knock at his door.
"Father, will you be joining us for tea this evening?"
Silver called from the other side of the door.
Lilia glanced at the clock on his bedside table and realized he was in the shower longer than he was expecting. Being late to Diasomnia's tea party wasn't out of the ordinary for him, however missing it entirely without notice was another matter. It was his idea to have these get togethers in the first place.
"Yes, I will be down in a minute." Lilia replied.
When he went downstairs Sebek's eyes seemed to sparkle as he got up hastily from his seat. His chair nearly toppled over in the process.
"LILIA, WE HAVE WAITED FOR YOU!" He exclaimed, a large smile displayed on his face.
He was nearly 30minutes late, yet Silver, Sebek and Malleus were seated where they normally were at the small table near a large window. The tea kettle was set on a pad in the middle of the table, and the tea cups were stacked up off to the side. Malleus raised one of his eyebrows in question once he made eye contact with Lilia, but didn't push it any further once his action received no acknowledgment. Silver glanced at Lilia and promptly set out one tea cup and tea spoon for each person.
"I did well to teach you manners along with your training," Lilia said with a smile.
"I WILL WARM THE TEA NOW," Sebek declared proudly, not even registering the blatant self praise from his instructor.
"Father, shall I bring the honey?" Silver asked.
Lilia chuckled.
"No, that's quite alright. Despite my mesmerizing performance last night, my throat is still intact. I guess I can amp it up next time, as Cater says," Lilia replied.
"THOSE HUMANS SHOULD BE GRATEFUL TO SEE SUCH A MARVELOUS SPECTACLE," Sebek butted in from the kitchen.
"I will tell Sebek to quiet down," Silver said.
Silver headed towards the kitchen without waiting for a reply. Malleus took this time alone with Lilia to look at him questioningly again.
"Are you alright Lilia?" He asks looking over the smaller fairy's facial expression while waiting for an answer.
There was no waver in his content smile.
"Yes of course. There's is nothing ailing me," Lilia replied.
Malleus looked unsure over whether to accept his reply.
Lilia clapped loudly and exclaimed that he had a great idea before disappearing in a cloud of lime green sparkles. He returned to Malleus at the same time as Sebek and Silver.
"YOUNG MASTER, LILIA HAS BROUGHT ICE CREAM FOR US," Sebek said excitedly.
Sebek set the tea kettle in its rightful place in the center of the table and Silver set out small ice cream glasses.
"Affogato!" Lilia exclaims with no prior introduction.
"You pour espresso onto ice cream. But we already brewed the tea so we will use that instead. It would be easier for Sebek to digest as well." Lilia explained.
"That sounds delicious," Malleus said.
"A DESSERT SUITED BOTH FOR YOUNG MASTER AND I. WHAT A WONDERFUL CREATION," Sebek nearly sobbed with delight.
"Have you tried this before father?" Silver asked.
"Yes! Actually I had this while traveling in the Rose Queendom. They still called it affogato despite it being made with tea and not espresso. It actually originated in the Shaftlands, in a large southern town with a booming coffee industry. It is said that travelers from the Rose Queendom were fascinated with the simple dessert but often found the espresso to be too bitter for their tastes even with the ice cream adding sweetness to it." Lilia said.
"Oh, so they decided to substitute with tea, as it is more suited to their tastes?" Silver asked.
"Exactly!" Lilia exclaimed.
The improvised affogato was well received by the other three members. They ate and chatted about their days and what they were going to do for training the next day.
Lilia took time to observe the proud smile on Sebek's face as he talked about polishing Malleus' school shoes, the bright smile on Malleus' face as he mentioned how his favorite gargoyle still dripped water from the previous night's rain, and the fond smile on Silver's face as he recounted seeing a game that he knew Lilia would love at Sam's shop. He was so grateful that times were peaceful enough now to allow him to share these moments with the ones he loves.