Niviene Larethian

A medium sized crate arrived at the Larethian home, addressed to the head of the household, it’s shipping label marking it’s origin as Aerie Peak. The children circled the box throughout the day, their curiosity driving them to pepper Niviene with questions to which the priestess would only shrug with a knowing smile.

She set about cooking dinner, taking special care with the dishes, fretting over the results. Everything had to be just right but the cake had fallen when she took it from the oven, the meat was a little over done, and she hadn’t had time to clean up before she heard Braghaman’s footfalls on the front porch.

She took a quick moment to smooth her hair back from her face and pat some color into her cheeks before...

Niviene peered down from her office window, watching as the young woman who’d just left her office stepped out onto the back lawn of the academy.

She was a beautiful creature, quite exotic in appearance. Her hair seemed to glow with the iridescence of a raven’s wing, dark and ever changing, from deep forest green to dark, ocean blue. She was an elf, void elf is what they were called. And though she was taller than Niviene the priestess couldn’t help but attribute the word petite to the woman.

She watched the woman approach Banny and Korissa as they played in the garden, waiting to see how the children would respond to the strange woman. The boy seemed a bit hesitant but the little girl turned a bright smile on the woman and...

Every surface was coated with a light dusting of white, almost as if it had snowed indoors. Two blonde heads bent over the table, using cutters to make animal shapes of the dough. “Did you know I used to not know how to cook?” Niviene asked.

Korissa looked up, her blue eyes narrowed in disbelief, “Nuhuh. Really? Did daddy teach you?”

The priestess laughed and shook her head, “You think daddy’s a good cook?”

The girl nodded as she brushed a strand of hair from her face, leaving a trail of flour behind, “He makes the best pancakes ever.” She replied.

“That is true.” Niviene agreed. “Actually Madam Eva taught me a long time ago.”

“Madam Eva?” The girl’s eyes had grown round as saucers, “You...

Late Night Visit

She sat with her hands folded neatly in her lap, head bowed, her honey blonde hair falling forward to obscure her face. She glanced up, peering through the curtain of gold to watch him as he paced in front of her, his own dark hair,shot with silver and falling to his shoulders.

“You disappoint me my love. You have become quite domesticated. I would never have thought it of you and yet you’ve stayed, willingly, whilst he races off to war.” He paused, peering down at her, his brow creased with an all too familiar smirk, “It’s almost as if he can’t wait to get away from you now that he has chained you to his hearth. I can’t say that I blame him. Look at you, the model of subservience. Where is your fire?...

Niviene glanced around the room one last time, making sure that everything was in place.  The entire house was bathed in the warm glow of candlelight and shadow, giving it an air of mystery and promise. The silence was almost deafening and she gave a small sigh of relief when the cicadas began to sing just beyond the window.

She glanced at her reflection in the darkened window, startled and then a little embarrassed. Her sky blue gaze drifted down to the dress she wore, her cheeks flaming at the amount of exposed skin and the thin lacings of the bodice. Not for the first time she wondered why she had allowed Venibeth to talk her into wearing such garments… again; reminding herself that it had been a condition of the mage watching...