per admirabilem ascensionem tuam

[jovahs_heiress]

Peninnah is now five, and her wingspan should be sufficient to carry her aloft; she's just having a little trouble with the necessary coordination. Isabella has worked with her, and so has Rinnah, but Peninnah is impatient and has given up on both of them in favor of asking Damaris for help, on the poorly articulated theory that Damaris, at age thirteen, is closer to Peninnah's own size and might make more sense.

Comments

[campanas]

Whee!

[inherpiety]

It is a couple of months later when Keziah can be found sort of moping in her room, lying on her front on her bed with a book open that she isn't reading.

[yovahs_kisses]

A knock on the door.

[inherpiety]

"Come in?"

[yovahs_kisses]

Her father steps inside and closes the door.

"What's got you glooming, my lovely?"

[inherpiety]

"Oh, just - stuff?"

[yovahs_kisses]

He perches on the edge of her bed, out of the way of her wings.

"Anything you want to talk about?"

[inherpiety]

She squirms. "I dunno. Just - I have a crush on a person."

[yovahs_kisses]

"Aha," says Micaiah. "Everything is explained."

[inherpiety]

"Really?"

[yovahs_kisses]

"Well, maybe not everything. A lot, anyway."

[inherpiety]

"Oh. It's complicated," complains Keziah.

[yovahs_kisses]

"I'm good at complicated," he assures her.

[inherpiety]

"It's Junia."

[yovahs_kisses]

"Ahh," says Micaiah. "Yeah, that's complicated all right."

[inherpiety]

"I told you!" Keziah puts a pillow over her head and groans.

[yovahs_kisses]

Micaiah pats the pillow gently.

"Does she know?"

[inherpiety]

"Nooooooo."

[yovahs_kisses]

"Do you want her to?"

[inherpiety]

"She'd think I was gross for one reason or the other or both!"

[yovahs_kisses]

"Maybe so," Micaiah agrees. "Or maybe not."

[inherpiety]

"But if she does that would be awful."

[yovahs_kisses]

"It would," he says. "Awful things happen sometimes."

[inherpiety]

"And - and maybe she'd tell everybody, and everybody in the whole hold would also think I was gross."

[yovahs_kisses]

"There's plenty of people around who know you're the furthest thing from gross," he says. "Me. Your mother. Your sisters."