"I said....What are you doing here?" Jolrael's lips pressed together in a thin line as he heard the question. He turned about and looked up at the elf that had asked the question. Sure enough it was Glithoniel. At sixteen, Jolrael looked about three years older than the elf, but he was human. Glithoniel was probably three times his age, and rather unhappy about the "mere human's" rapid growth. Unfortunately, Gourry's level of social maturity also far outstripped the elf's.
"I'm reading," the dark-haired human answered tightly. He looked back down and started turning pages again.
"You call that reading?" the elf taunted. "All your doing is looking at each page for a second or two."
"Actually, its more like half a second," Jolrael corrected him.
"What's the matter, the pictures not interesting in that book?" Jolrael looked up, honestly puzzeld.
"What pictures?" Then he turned back to the book, he was almost finished and he really didn't want to be interrupted at the moment. The elf blinked in surprise.
"Just like your father," Glith laughed. "Too stupid to even recognize an insult." Jolrael yawned, closed his book and looked up. Glith scratched his head.
"Don't you have anything better to do?" Jolrael demanded. Glith's hand moved from scratching his head to scratching his shoulder.
"I'm doing my civic duty making sure you Gabrievs don't clutter up the Grove," he was scratching his arms now. "Somebody has to, even if you savages breed like roaches. At least you don't live much longer."
"I seem to recall that the original Gabriev lived longer than most elves," Jolrael pointed out. He stood up, overtopping the elf by at least two feet, and looked down.
"One freak out of the lot of you," he muttered, scratching frantically now. "Just a bunch of savage idiots."
"And this 'savage idiot' is already quite a bit larger than you," Jolrael pointed out. "Nasty itch by the way, perhaps you should see my mother about it."
"Jolrael Gabriev!" the young human winced and turned to see his mother standing there looking mildly irate. Though he could tell that she was in fact rather amused. "That is certainly no way to behave."
"Sorry mom," Jorael apologized quietly. Glithoniel, who had been scratching with greater desperation, blinked as the maddening itches suddenly just stopped. He looked about in confusion before his gaze settled on a slyly grinning Jolrael.
"That's better," his mother nodded in satisfaction. "Now, I'm sorry about that, he sometimes isn't as patient as he should be. Now, I believe your sister was looking for you." Jolrael looked up at the mention of the young elf's sister, Glithoniel noticed and grumbled irritably. Jolrael shrugged, as if bored and walked away from the scene, towards home.
"Don't let me catch you around my sister, Gabriev!" the youthful looking elf shouted before leaving, trying to stomp as much as an elf could stomp.
"That boy certainly needs to grow up and learn some manners," Sylphiel commented. "Jol, back here, now." Jolrael sighed and walked to his mother.
"I wasn't doing anything, mom," he pleaded. "I was just reading."
"In the Grove," she noted. "Where even your father's elven relatives aren't entirely welcome. Seriously, they're bad enough in this part of the city without provocation."
Sylphiel was amazed anew at just how Gourry had managed to grow up with these arrogant elves and not turn out rather bad tempered and paranoid. Then again, she had to admit that the elves on the Gabriev side of the city weren't anything like the older elven families. Her own position as a priestess and powerful worker of white magic accorded her great status even among Glithoniel's relatives, but she was the exception among most of the humans.
"I wasn't provoking anybody," Jolrael protested. "I was just sitting and...."
"Waiting to see if Tinuviel would walk by?" Sylphiel asked.
"Mom...."
"That's enough reading for now," she commented. "Its time you got home, then I can start dinner."
"Chili?" he asked hopefully, Sylphiel sweatdropped and cleared her throat.
"Not tonight," she said.
"You know, we don't have to live here," Gourry said, after hearing the story later. "There are plenty of human kingdoms in the world."
"Please, dear," Sylphiel rolled her eyes, he did this everytime. "I love your family, and most of the elves are no problem. Its just the odd few that need to spend some time outside the forest."
"Are you sure?" he asked. She reached up and playfully swatted him in the back of his head.
"Don't worry about me I'm fine," she said. "And Jol would be too, if he didn't go looking for all the really arrogant elves to annoy."
"I don't think he's looking for trouble," Gourry protested, rubbing the back of his head.
"I agree, that he'd grow out of," she agreed. "Actually he's been rather smitten with that Tinuviel girl, perhaps he should talk to your uncle."
"That's no good."
"Why not?"
"Uncle Rand met Aunt Liriel when he rescued her from an orc slaver," he said.
"She seems nice enough, and she's always talking to Jol about some book or another. I wouldn't think it would take a grand adventure to convince her that he's worth a chance."
"No but, Uncle Rand rescued Aunt Liriel a couple weeks away from here. They had a long time away from her family to get to know each other."
"Well, maybe he'll find some way to get her attention," she yawned and snuggled closer to him under the sheets.
"Well I know you have my attention."
Jolrael was in his room packing. All he had heard in passing his parents room was the bit about going on a grand adventure to impress Tinuviel. Of course, his parents weren't likely to let him go on a grand adventure, but that was easily solved.
"What are you doing Jol?" Jolrael turned around and looked at his younger sister.
"Kyrie, what are you doing up?"
"Up where?" Jol rolled his eyes, apparently his father's intelligence went hand in hand with his hair coloring. Still Kyrie was a lot smarter than she acted, just like their dad.
"No, what are you doing awake?"
"I heard you getting dressed and wanted to see what you were doing," she said simply.
"I can't sleep," he said. "I was going to go practice my katas."
"Why do you need the backpack?"
"Ummm," he paused, considered, and then made eye contact with his sister. "You're not awake, this is a dream, go back to bed so you can finish sleeping and wake up in the morning." As he spoke he saw her eyes glaze over slightly until they blinked clear when he finished.
"Why am I dreaming about you running away, Jol?" she asked him.
"I don't know," he said. "Ask me in the morning." She thought about it.
"You didn't hypnotise me did you?"
"Do you feel hypnotised?" She thought about it.
"No."
"Well I guess not then."
"Okay, see you tomorrow."
"See you tomorrow, Kyrie." She yawned and walked back to her room. Jolrael smiled, and sighed with relief.
"Good night, mom," Kyriie yawned as she closed the door behind her. Jolrael winced and turned around slowly. There was his mom again, yawning and looking half asleep. Of course, hypnotising her was out of the question, she'd been practicing magic for far too long to fool her mind so easily.
"Mom, I can explain," he started.
"Why don't you wait until tomorrow morning," she said. "At least say goodbye to everyone first."
"You're not going to stop me?"
"Right now, yes," she said. "But you'll only leave later when I'm paying attention. Besides, I like it here, but you could do with some time in the human world."
"So you and dad will let me leave tomorrow?"
"Properly equipped, yes. I don't think he'll be too much of a problem, so do we have a deal. You'll wait until the morning, I'll make chili."
"Okay mom," he smiled. "I'll wait until tomorrow." He went back to bed still smiling, Sylphiel watched him and shook her head sadly as she went back to her own room.
"I hope that girl appreciates this," she muttered wearily.
The next day went pretty much like his mother said, after many frustrating explanations to his father. There was only one thing that he didn't expect. At some point, just before he was leaving, Jolrael's father came out of his parents' bedroom carrying a sheathed sword. The magical blade that he had found to replace the lost sword of light.
"You'll need something a little better than that practice blade of yours," Gourry commented.
"Thank you, dad," he said a little in awe. "I'll try to use it well."
"Hope you don't have to use it at all," his mother lectured. Jolrael grinned sheepishly. "Good Luck." She hugged her son and then backed away a step, tears in her eyes.
"Bye, Jol," Kyrie sad quietly, waving. He hugged her, suddenly glad for this chance. "Quit it Jol!"
"Remember to travel south and west," Gourry reminded him of their plan. "You should reach Sailoon in a couple of months. If you're lucky, you'll find Filia along the way."
"Okay, Dad, I'll be back," he promised seriously. "Just watch me." Then he walked off down the path, into the world.