 “My bill will get in your way in a minute, mister” Nico warned Solarius, puffing himself up in mock indignity until he vaguely resembled a black and yellow ball. “Just watch it!” said the feathery ball, “I’m billed and dangerous!” Content with his little skit Nico hopped off Danny’s shoulder onto the floor and hopped across the floor to sit at Sol’s feet so that he too might get a better look at the sketches again. He too was having a hard time choosing his favourites. Renn watched them all scramble around with a fond smile on her face, remaining stationary in her place on the floor in the centre of the room. Of all her brothers Danny was the most sensitive. She remembered vaguely when Flynn had been the same, before everything had happened, and she prayed to Aura that this time fate might let her keep Danny the way he was. He was innocent and pure hearted, kind, gentle and forgiving. Their Dad would be so proud of him.
With her smile broadening into a grin she held out her hand to accept the sketches Danny had chosen, listening to his explanations with a thoughtful expression, her head tilted to one side in consideration. Renn wanted her brother to know that she really did value his opinion. Finally she nodded.
“You have a good eye,” she praised him setting the pictures of the ladies Nimueh and Morgana, and Prince Tristan down on a ‘chosen’ pile. Having done so, she returned her full attention to Danny as he appraised the pictures of the king and his younger brother. What he said about Arthur stirred something in her mind.
“Hold on a sec,” she said lying out on her side and stretching out across the floor for a sketchbook. It was just beyond the reach of her fingertips, so she stretched a little further, feeling the muscles of her side strain a little as she walked the drawing pad closer.
Renn sat up again and flicked through the loose sheets she had pushed inside the book. She held up a drawing triumphantly and held it out to Danny.
“How about this one?” she asked him, tipping her head again. It showed the king with his head turned a little to one side, his eyes turned towards a window as he looked off thoughtfully into the distance. He was standing, one hand resting casually on the pommel of his sword, and the thumb of the other tucked into his belt on the other side. He looked strong, but it was softened a little by thoughtfulness and wisdom. “The best of both worlds?” she wondered out-loud. “The style’s a bit different, so I put it to one side...but it might work best?”Finally Renn nodded, glancing back at the remaining sketches of the Lord Chancellor. Aesthetically speaking he was an artist’s dream; Renn could have drawn his face all day, it was like he had stepped out of one of the great renaissance paintings from Earth. His himness was more difficult to pin down. He was graceful and modest but with a power and enigmatic streak bubbling just beneath the surface that she had noticed after his first couple of sittings. “I will ask Flynn,” Renn announced in agreement, “if I can get him to sit down for five minutes.”
She giggled. “I didn’t know cats liked syrup,” she said, reaching out to scratch the tiger affectionately behind the ear, “aren’t you guys supposed to be carnivorous?” Monifa had always had a sweet tooth, Renn recalled, she could distinctly remember their Dad telling his familiar off for sticking her tongue in the sugar bowl. Perhaps that was where Sol got it from.
“Oh well,” beamed Renn, clapping her hands together enthusiastically, “if anything ever happens I’ll be lucky to have you around.” She wasn’t much for blood herself – the sight of it usually made her feel a little woozey.
“Khasekhemwy” she repeated slowly, trying to get the pronunciation right. At least Aura’s name was easy. She couldn’t imagine having to try and pray to Khasekhemwy. It hardly rolled off the tongue.
“Sure thing!” Renn enthused holding out her hands and making little grabby motions with her fingers until Danny slipped the sheet of paper into her hands. She turned it so that it was the right way up and studied the little picture-like characters.
“Have you ever noticed...” she asked, “that all our names have the letter ‘n’ in at least once?” Renn glanced up at her brother quickly before looking back at the names. His handwriting reminded her own someone else’s...and when she noticed he was absent from the list, she realised too. Henry. Sadness twisted her stomach anew and she tried to fight it back the best he could. Had he really been gone so long that Danny knew so little of him that he didn’t consider him part of their little family. Hastily, and as subtly as she could, she flicked away the tears from the corners of her eyes with the side of her pointer finger.
“You should write out the royal family’s names for me,” she said to Danny, forcing another smile, “I could put them in small in the corner of each picture. It seems appropriate since three of them are related to Mallos.”
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