Chapter Text
A few birds fluttered near the window, heralding the arrival of dawn with their soft songs. However, the sun remained hidden behind a sky covered with gray clouds—the kind that foreshadowed the arrival of the cold months, when the trees begin to shed their leaves and frost blankets the gardens in white.
Qifrey, oblivious to the approaching cold, deftly flipped the slice of sweet bread that was browning in the skillet. A soft hum escaped his lips as he admired the beautiful golden hue it had taken on. Agott loved toast, especially when it was still warm, so he made a point of preparing it for her whenever he had the chance.
He was so focused on breakfast that he didn’t notice the tiny footsteps approaching down the hallway. They were clumsy, shuffling, and slightly uncoordinated, accompanied by the soft creak of wood—small sounds for feet that were still far too small.
"Dad..."
Oh, Agott had woken up.
Qifrey turned just in time to see her appear at the kitchen entrance, at the top of the stairs. His little daughter was rubbing one of her eyes with her fist, still half-asleep, while the other was barely open. She was wearing her pajamas, and her cheeks were slightly flushed from the warmth of the blankets. One of her cheeks still bore the delicate imprints of the sheets.
She was simply, utterly adorable.
Qifrey smiled tenderly. He had always thought that Olruggio had something particularly charming about his face, especially when he looked at him with those big, bright eyes—so expressive that sometimes he found it hard to resist his whims. And, much to his misfortune (or not, really), Agott had inherited precisely that look. Seeing it reflected in such a tiny face, accompanied by chubby cheeks and a sleepy expression, was more than his heart could bear at that hour of the morning.
It wasn’t the first time something like this had happened to him.
He especially remembered one morning when Agott was barely a year old. Olruggio was sitting on the living room rug, with the little girl nestled on his lap, teaching her to stack some multicolored wooden blocks that he had made by hand. He took the task with endearing seriousness, guiding his daughter’s tiny hands every time she tried to place one piece on top of another. Agott, for her part, seemed fascinated by the game and paid close attention to her father’s instructions, although every now and then she would end up knocking the little tower over amid giggles.
Qifrey, who had entered the room looking for something, stood motionless in the doorway.
The sight of the two of them, so absorbed in each other, stirred a pang of tenderness in his chest. Olruggio possessed an innate patience, with which he was always willing to help others (no matter how much he denied it), and which, nevertheless, seemed to multiply extraordinarily when it came to his daughter. And Agott, with her little hands clasped around her father’s fingers, looked at him as if there were nothing else in the world more interesting.
Qifrey had had to make a considerable effort to remember why he’d come into the room. In fact, for a few seconds, he considered staying there, enjoying the scene without interrupting them, but if he did, the soup would get cold.
“Olly.”
His voice was enough to startle them both.
Olruggio and Agott gave a slight start; they’d been so absorbed in their game that neither had noticed his presence. They turned their heads almost simultaneously and looked at him with identical expressions of surprise: their eyes large and bright, their eyelashes long, and their lips slightly parted.
Qifrey felt that pang of tenderness return, this time even more strongly.
It was unfair, he thought, that two people could look at him that way and expect him to keep his composure. Qifrey had to look away.
Oh, for heaven’s stars.
He brought a hand to his face and turned his back on them, lifting his head as he took a deep breath, as if that were enough to restore what little composure he had left.
“Damn cute …” he muttered to himself.
“Qifrey, what’s going on?” asked Olruggio, whose voice betrayed a mix of confusion and curiosity.
“Nothing’s wrong. Dinner’s ready.”
Qifrey turned toward them with a smile that was meant to be carefree. However, when his eyes met his family’s once more, he had to make a superhuman effort not to let out a cry of pure adoration. Olruggio continued to look at him with that bewildered expression, while Agott, oblivious to her father’s minor emotional crisis, amused herself by playing with one of the blocks.
Sometimes he wondered what he had done to deserve them.
Perhaps, in a past life, he had saved countless people. Maybe he had performed some extraordinary feat that the stars, in their infinite benevolence, had decided to reward by granting him such a wonderful family. He could find no other explanation for such good fortune.
He even wondered if the star-shaped scar near his eye was some kind of reminder of that supposed past. A small mark that, in some way, reminded him that everything he had now was a gift.
Beldaruit had never explained to him how he’d gotten that wound. When he found him, his eye was already damaged, and that was all he knew. No matter how hard he’d tried to piece together what had happened, his memories offered no answers. There were too many gaps in his past, too many unresolved questions.
But if there was one thing he didn’t need to remember, it was how happy he’d been back then, alongside Olruggio and his master.
A gentle tug on the hem of his tunic snapped him out of his thoughts.
Qifrey looked down and saw his daughter, who had been trying to get his attention for a while. Agott, now four years old, was holding a fold of the white fabric (from his skirt) between her tiny fingers, tugging at it with the persistence of a little girl who had something important to ask.
A yawn interrupted her efforts. She rubbed her eyes once more and lifted her head to look at him, her eyelids heavy with sleep. “Where’s papa?”
The question, spoken in that sleepy little voice, brought a smile to his face.
Qifrey bent down to pick her up and settled her on his hip. Agott quickly wrapped an arm around his neck and rested her head on his shoulder, instinctively seeking the comfort of his embrace. He held her with his arm draped over his hip, while with his free hand he took the bread out of the pan before it burned.
“Papa went out to meet with a client, sweetheart” he explained gently.
Agott let out a small sound of protest, barely a murmur that was lost against her father’s shoulder. Qifrey kissed her on the temple, gently tucking a lock of curly hair that had stuck to her cheek back into place.
“But he’ll be back soon. How about we have breakfast together?” Qifrey said, and Agott nodded.
Lately, Agott had resumed the habit of sleeping with Olruggio. Although she had her own room, the approach of winter had brought increasingly colder nights. So it was no surprise that, in the middle of the night, the little girl would sneak out of her bed and show up in her parents’ room, claiming she was cold.
Her destination was always the same: Olruggio’s arms, where she would soon curl up and fall into a deep sleep.
Olruggio’s body temperature was higher than Qifrey’s, so for Agott, it must have felt like sleeping while hugging a warm pillow. Qifrey couldn’t blame her for preferring that little refuge. After all, he, too, loved sleeping in his husband’s arms, even though his husband never missed an opportunity to complain about the heat whenever he did.
However, they hadn’t always had to deal with those nighttime escapades.
During Agott’s early years, neither of them had had any problem sharing their bed with her. On the contrary, they enjoyed having her snuggled between them, especially when she was still so small that she barely took up any space under the blankets. However, they decided to set some boundaries when, about two and a half years ago, Qifrey discovered the real reason their daughter used to sneak out of her room.
That night, Agott had fallen asleep in her own bed. However, sometime in the early hours of the morning, she woke up and decided she’d rather be with her parents. With the determination typical of a little girl, she left her room and made her way to theirs, where she settled down next to Olruggio, who was sleeping peacefully.
Qifrey wouldn’t have found anything strange about this, were it not for the fact that, as he approached, he discovered that his daughter was nursing at his husband’s breast while he remained fast asleep, oblivious to what was happening.
Ah. So that was the reason she was sneaking out at night.
At that time, Agott was barely a year and a half old. Although she was still small, she no longer needed to feed that way. Besides, Olruggio had been producing very little milk for some time, so the girl’s attempts to feed were unsuccessful. Her tiny teeth, searching for something she could no longer find, ended up hurting his nipples.
Qifrey didn't mind that Agott wanted to sleep with them. In fact, he loved waking up to find her curled up between them. The problem was the situation with Olruggio.
His husband could no longer sleep with her, not only because of the discomfort it caused him (the pain in his nipples from breastfeeding her), but also because they had both worked hard to get their daughter used to sleeping in her own room. They took turns every night staying with her until she fell asleep, so her constant trips out of the room not only disrupted Olruggio’s rest but also affected Agott’s own sleep.
The next morning, Qifrey decided to discuss the matter with his husband.
“But, Qifrey, what if she cries? Or what if she gets scared?” asked Olruggio, visibly concerned, when his partner explained that Agott couldn’t keep spending every night in their room. “Besides, it doesn’t bother me. I’m still producing milk!”
Qifrey looked at him seriously, though without losing his patience.
“Sinocia told you that Agott shouldn’t keep doing that anymore, right?” he replied. “Besides, I’ve seen how you rub your chest when it hurts. She bites you, Olly.”
Olruggio opened his mouth to reply, but ended up staying silent. He lowered his gaze and nervously rubbed the back of his neck with his hands before murmuring:
“I… I just don’t want her to feel lonely.”
Qifrey sighed softly. He knew his husband too well to fail to understand that concern. Olruggio had always been especially sensitive to Agott’s needs, even when he tried to hide it. All it took was hearing a small sob from his daughter for him to get out of bed, no matter how tired he was. And, though he sometimes found it hard to admit, he found it practically impossible to deny her any show of affection.
Moved by his words, Qifrey stepped closer and wrapped his arms around him, planting a tender kiss on his forehead.
“I don’t want to leave her alone in her room either, darling. But her rest is being affected too, and she needs to learn to sleep in her own bed.”
Olruggio sighed against his chest. He knew Qifrey was right, though that didn’t make the idea any less unpleasant.
“Sometimes I forget that she’s growing up…”
Qifrey smiled with a touch of melancholy. It happened to him, too. It seemed like only yesterday that Agott could barely hold her head up and needed to be carried everywhere. Now, however, she already had her own preferences and an increasingly strong will.
Time was passing too quickly.
“Let’s do this,” Qifrey suggested, stepping back just enough to look him in the eyes. “If Agott comes into our room during the night, we’ll let her snuggle up with you. When she’s asleep, I’ll take her back to her bed. What do you think, love?”
Olruggio remained thoughtful for a few moments. It wasn’t exactly what he would have wanted, but at least it would allow him to continue comforting his little girl whenever she needed it.
Finally, he nodded.
“All right. Let’s try it that way.”
To make things easier, they cast a spell on their bedroom door. It emitted a faint sound every time someone opened it—just enough for Qifrey to wake up without disturbing Olruggio’s sleep too much.
During the first few nights, Agott continued to appear with her usual determination. She would carefully open the door, climb into bed, and curl up next to Olruggio, who, even half asleep, always found a way to make room for her in his arms.
Most of the time, the little girl fell asleep right away. However, on some occasions she would start searching for her father’s chest, still clinging to that old habit.
When that happened, Qifrey would gently step in. He would pick her up, cradle her against his chest, and tell her to sleep with dad. Sometimes it was enough to rock her for a few minutes; other times, he needed to stroke her hair and whisper soothing words until she closed her eyes again.
Once she was asleep, Qifrey would carry her back to her bed, tuck her in carefully, and stay by her side for a few moments, making sure she was comfortable before leaving.
As the weeks went by, Agott eventually got used to the new routine. Little by little, the nighttime visits became less frequent, until she finally stopped showing up in her parents’ room—at least for most of the year.
Because when the colder months arrived, things changed again.
At first, Qifrey suspected that his daughter had resumed that habit for the same reason as before. Sinocia had mentioned that some children continued to drink breast milk until they were two years old, so it didn’t seem entirely far-fetched to think that Agott still had that habit. However, after several nights, he realized that wasn’t the case anymore.
His little girl simply wanted to sleep next to Olruggio.
And, in truth, he couldn’t blame her. He, too, would have preferred to spend his nights cuddled up with his husband rather than under a mountain of blankets, though he would never say that to Olruggio without expecting some grumbling in return.
Unfortunately, that morning the circumstances weren’t on her side.
Olruggio had had to leave very early to meet with a client, so Agott had been left without the warmth of her papa during the cold hours of the early morning. And, apparently, she wasn’t too happy about the situation.
Qifrey finished preparing breakfast while the little girl remained nestled in his arms. After boiling the tea, he dispelled the fire spell and turned to her with a smile.
“Today I’ve made your favorites; toast with a red egg.”
Agott’s eyes lit up immediately. She was so excited that she began to wriggle in his arms, her fluffy hair brushing against his cheek.
Qifrey chuckled and gave her a little kiss on the head before gently setting her down on the floor.
It didn’t take long for the little girl to run over to her high chair. She settled in with obvious enthusiasm, resting her little hands on the table as she waited—with impatience she could hardly hide—for her father to serve her breakfast.
Qifrey took a small plate from the cupboard and placed a slice of freshly toasted bread on it. He drizzled a light stream of honey over the golden surface and then picked up the frying pan to arrange the scrambled eggs he’d prepared next to the bread.
Once satisfied with the presentation, he carried the plate to the table and set it in front of his daughter.
“Eat slowly” he said gently.
“Hm!”
Agott nodded enthusiastically, already too busy admiring her breakfast to pay much attention to her father’s words.
Qifrey couldn’t help but smile when he saw her pick up the wooden cutlery he’d left next to her plate. They were the same ones the adults used, and Agott insisted she was old enough to use them. Every time Qifrey offered her the small children’s cutlery, she would frown and protest, convinced she no longer needed them.
Of course, he had no intention of arguing over something so trivial. After all, seeing his daughter so proud of her little achievements was one of those everyday pleasures he would never get used to.
While Agott ate, Qifrey poured his tea and sat down beside her with a book in his hands. Every now and then, the little girl hummed as she chewed and smiled whenever she noticed her father was watching her.
“Do you want to help dad study?” Qifrey asked her when Agott finished eating.
The little girl looked up at him. She had a tiny breadcrumb stuck to her cheek.
“Study what?”
“I’m studying to become a master." Qifrey wiped her cheek with his thumb. “Papa already told you that, remember?”
Agott furrowed her brow, deep in thought. She seemed to be trying to remember. A few days ago, Olruggio had explained to her that Qifrey was very busy studying when she’d asked him why he (Olruggio) was in charge of making dinner.
“Oh! I remember!” she finally exclaimed, smiling, pleased that she’d remembered. “How long do you have to study?”
“Hmm, that depends on how hard I try,” Qifrey replied. “But if my lovely daughter helps me, I’m sure I’ll be able to finish much sooner.”
Agott nodded enthusiastically. Her little curls bounced with the movement, and one of them ended up covering her eye. The little girl huffed, trying to brush it away from her face.
“Ugh, come here. First, let’s brush your hair.”
Once Agott was ready and dressed in her loungewear, Qifrey settled in with her in the living room and opened his study books. The little girl sat down beside him, curiously examining the pages filled with notes and illustrations.
“How can I help you, dad?”
“Well, I’m going to tell you a story, and you’ll tell me what you understood from it. Okay?”
Agott nodded, ready to listen.
One of the greatest challenges for a master was learning to explain complex concepts in a way that even the youngest minds could understand. That’s why one of the first steps in training to become a master was learning to convey knowledge in a simple and practical way, adapting to each student’s age and level of understanding.
Qifrey began by explaining how magic worked, what seals were, and what the different runes were used for. That part turned out to be fairly straightforward, as these were concepts Agott was already familiar with. After all, both her parents were witches, and from a very young age, she had grown up surrounded by magic. Even so, Qifrey made sure to simplify his explanations and omit the most complicated details. His daughter was only four years old, and as eager as she was to learn, there were still many things she needed to discover little by little.
In the end, however, they barely managed to study for a little while. Agott soon grew bored of all the symbols and circles, so she ended up flipping through the pages of the books in search of the illustrations that caught her eye the most.
Qifrey didn’t mind. He knew his daughter loved magic, especially Olruggio’s, which often featured small, glowing animal figures. Every time she saw one of those creations, Agott’s eyes would shine like stars, and she couldn’t help but lean in to examine them closely.
The little girl loved magic, but it was still too early to expect her to take an interest in its more technical aspects. At four years old, there were many other things that piqued her curiosity, especially those she could see, touch, or experience for herself. Perhaps, when she grew older, she would begin to take an interest in studying magic with the same seriousness as her parents.
They took a break for lunch, and after resting for a while, Qifrey resumed his studies while Agott kept herself busy drawing.
The rest of the afternoon passed peacefully in the common room, by the fireplace. Agott alternated between her drawings and playing with her dolls, while Qifrey remained engrossed in his reading. From time to time, the little girl would approach him, intrigued by an illustration or a word she found in his books, and ask him questions that her father answered patiently, gladly interrupting his studies to attend to her.
When the sky began to turn orange, the front door opened and a hoarse voice echoed through the entryway.
“Ugh, it’s so cold out here!”
Agott looked up immediately. She recognized that voice at once and put down her toys to run toward the entrance.
“Papa!”
Olruggio barely had time to put his things down before the little girl threw herself into his arms. He greeted her with a laugh and held her close to his chest, savoring that effusive welcome. However, Agott’s joy turned to a shriek when her father’s beard brushed against her cheeks.
“Ouch!”
“I’ll be more careful next time, sweetheart.” Olruggio apologized, laughing as he kissed her on the cheek.
“Olly, welcome back,” Qifrey greeted him, stepping closer to help him take off his coat as Agott finally climbed down from his arms. “Did everything go well?”
“A little tricky because of the blizzard, but in the end, the client was satisfied.”
Olruggio let out a long sigh before collapsing onto the couch. No sooner had he settled in than he began unbuttoning the collar of his shirt and frowned, annoyed by the heat he was starting to feel. “Isn’t the fireplace a little too hot?”
Before Qifrey could answer, Agott appeared in front of him with a sheet of paper in her hands.
“Look what I drew!”
Olruggio took the drawing and examined it carefully. On the paper were several colorful scribbles that, at first glance, looked like two humanoid figures. He stared at them for a few seconds, trying to figure out what his daughter had meant to draw.
“Um…”
Agott’s smile faded. Her lips began to tremble, and her expression crumpled so much that she looked as if she were about to burst into tears. She had put a lot of effort into that drawing and hoped her papa would recognize what she had done.
Qifrey, who had witnessed the scene, decided to step in before the little girl lost heart.
“Don’t you think she’s drawn us really handsome, Olly?”
“Oh, yes! Of course!” exclaimed Olruggio, finally realizing what he should say. “You’ve made me look really handsome, Agott. And Qifrey looks great, too.”
The girl’s expression changed immediately. A proud smile spread across her face as she pointed to one of the figures, drawn with thick black lines.
“I made you taller because you’re always complaining that you can’t reach the cabinets.”
“Oh… Thanks, Agott.”
“You’re welcome!”
Olruggio snorted affectionately. “I’m not that short, you know? It’s just that my back hurts.”
“Maybe it’s time for you to get some exercise,” suggested Qifrey, who had positioned himself behind the couch. He rested his hands on his partner’s shoulders and began to massage them gently. “How about some morning walks? The sunrise is beautiful in the hills.”
Olruggio let out a sigh as he felt Qifrey’s fingers release some of the tension built up in his shoulders.
“Hmm... I'll think about it.”
It didn't take long for them to get caught up in a conversation about Olruggio's work. He told them about the disagreements he’d had with the client and the difficulties of working in the middle of that blizzard, although, fortunately, everything had turned out well. Qifrey, for his part, told him how Agott had helped him with his studies and how hard she had tried to understand the explanations, even though in the end she would have preferred the illustrations in the books.
The little girl, delighted to be the center of attention, was quick to chime in with her own comments. Between one story and the next, afternoon gave way to evening, and, almost before they realized it, it was time for dinner.
Despite Qifrey’s insistence that he should rest after such an exhausting day, Olruggio offered to help him with dinner. He had no intention of just sitting around while his partner took care of everything, and, after spending so many hours away from home, he also wanted to enjoy a moment by his side.
As he was chopping the vegetables, he suddenly felt hands slip around his waist and a familiar weight press against his back.
“You’re adorable,” Qifrey whispered in his ear.
“Q-Qifrey! Agott is…”
“Shhh… She went to her room.”
“She could be back any minute.” Olruggio tried to push away the hands wrapped around his waist, but Qifrey clung to him even tighter, with no intention of letting him get away. “Qifrey!”
Qifrey let out a little chuckle and kissed the nape of his neck before pulling back just enough to gaze at his partner’s flushed face.
“I was just kidding.”
Olruggio snorted, pretending to be annoyed, though the blush on his cheeks gave him away. In reality, it had been quite a while since they’d had a moment to themselves. Since Agott’s birth, between the responsibilities of raising a child, the work that had piled up during Olruggio’s pregnancy, and Qifrey’s studies, they had barely found any opportunities to enjoy a little intimacy. When they did, those moments were usually rushed encounters, stolen from what little free time they had left.
Qifrey, who knew his partner all too well, quickly noticed the change in his expression. “You’re thinking the same thing I am, aren’t you?”
“You…!”
Olruggio stopped himself and cleared his throat, struggling to regain his composure. He turned his attention back to the vegetables, as if they were suddenly the most interesting thing in the world. “You said you played with Agott today, right?”
“She was drawing almost the whole afternoon.”
“Good.” Olruggio nodded slowly. His ears began to redden as he searched for the right words.
“She might be tired enough to sleep through the night without waking up. So we could… You know…”
“Olly!” exclaimed Qifrey, unable to hide his excitement.
His reaction was so over the top that Olruggio looked at him in disbelief. It was as if he’d just offered a glass of water to someone who’d been lost in the desert for days.
“Hey! Don’t get so excited,” he scolded him, though embarrassment prevented him from looking directly at him. “And you have to cast the silence spell. But only from the inside out. If Agott wakes up, we have to be able to hear her, and—”
Qifrey leaned in to kiss him, interrupting his warnings.
“I know, love. We’ll hear her if she calls us. You just go lie down and get comfortable. I’ll take care of everything.”
“You’re incorrigible,” Olruggio murmured, completely embarrassed.
He ended up burying his face in Qifrey’s shoulder, unable to hold his gaze.
“...ve you.”
“Hmm? What did you say?”
“I-I said I love you!”
Qifrey’s smile softened. He stroked his cheek and kissed him again, this time more slowly. “I love you too.”
A sudden moan of indignation interrupted them.
“Are you two cuddling without me?!”
They both turned toward the door. Agott was standing in the doorway, her hands on her hips and a pout that made it very clear how little she liked this situation.
Qifrey and Olruggio exchanged a glance before bursting into laughter. It didn’t take long for the little girl to run toward them, claiming her place between them. Qifrey lifted her into his arms and held her close to his chest, while Olruggio wrapped his arms around them both, forming a hug that held all three of them.
However, Agott’s joy was short-lived. As soon as her parents began taking turns covering her cheeks with kisses, her expression turned into a grimace of disgust. She tried to push their faces away with her hands, and when she saw that neither of them seemed willing to stop, she began to kick her feet until they finally set her down on the floor.
“Enough already!” she protested, before striding indignantly off toward the living room.
The two adults laughed again, though Olruggio couldn’t help but wonder where his daughter had gotten such a temper.
Once they had finished preparing dinner, the three of them sat down at the table. Agott, who was already in a good mood again, enjoyed her parents’ company, and when they finished eating, she announced that she wanted Olruggio to read her a story.
He didn’t need to be asked twice. He settled onto the sofa with the little girl by his side and opened the book she had chosen. Agott snuggled up against his chest, searching for a comfortable position, while he began to read aloud to her.
At first, the little girl followed the story closely, asking the occasional question when an illustration piqued her curiosity. However, the fatigue that had built up throughout the day soon got the better of her. Her eyelids began to droop, and little by little, she stopped paying attention to her father’s words.
Olruggio continued reading, gradually lowering his voice as he realized that Agott had fallen asleep in his arms. When he reached the end of the page, he gently brushed a lock of hair from her forehead and gazed at her peaceful face.
He closed the book gently and rocked his daughter, who was sleeping peacefully in his arms. He was about to get up to take her to her room when Qifrey appeared beside him.
“I’ll take her to her room.” Qifrey said.
“That’s not necessary; I can do it. You should get some rest.”
However, when Olruggio made a move to get up from the sofa, Qifrey leaned toward him and whispered in his ear:
“I don’t think we’re going to be resting tonight.”
Olruggio blinked, taken aback. It took him just a few seconds to grasp the implication, but that was enough for his body to tense up and a blush to spread across his cheeks.
Qifrey, pleased with his reaction, took advantage of that moment of distraction to pick Agott up in his arms. The little girl barely stirred, instinctively nestling against his chest, and he smiled before heading toward her bedroom.
Once there, he gently laid her down and helped her into her pajamas, taking care not to wake her. Then he tucked her in and stayed by her side for a few moments, watching her steady breathing to make sure she was fast asleep.
Finally, he brushed a curl from her forehead, gave her a goodnight kiss, and left the room. He closed the door gently and headed to his own room, where Olruggio was waiting for him.