“Enunciate properly, Elijah - come on.” His tutor coaxed gently, his voice losing its firmness as it mixed with the summer air that drifted leisurely into the stuffy library. The man was tall, languid, and had a hair of sandy blonde curls that fell just below his ears. His blue eyes sparkled with thinly veiled amusement and his expertly crafted fingers were curled around the book that he’d been reading from in English, hoping that the narratives that his pupil responded so well to at bedtime would somehow help him grasp the language that eluded him since he was a child. It amazed the young scholar. The boy could chatter away about anything and everything in Bulgarian but for some reason, he found English a challenge. Micah, which was the name of the Krum heir’s tutor, suspected that the boy was just lazy - though he daren’t report that to Viktor; that was not something the man would want to hear.
Elijah sighed heavily and swayed from side to side, his arms flopping uselessly. Micah mirrored the exhale of breath and lifted his head to look at the woman that had elected to sit on the patio outside the French doors that they’d pushed open. A book was open in her lap, one leg crossed over the other, and her face was a picture of thought as she chewed on the nail on her index finger. Micah felt his lips twitch upwards at the sight of her impossibly dark, curly hair and the bright, floral summer dress that accentuated her child-bearing curves. Micah looked back down at the boy and pursed his lips, unsure as to what to do with him. Elijah looked up through his eyelashes, a cheeky smile on his face, and Micah chuckled, the deep rumble in his chest explain to the boy that no, he was not in trouble.
“I don’t understand it!” Elijah protested, his voice low even for his age. It was a deep, warm baritone that would surely become something very beautiful when he was older. It always struck Micah dumb and he knew it did the same to Stelladora, Elijah’s nanny; especially when he sang. “It’s difficult! It’s...it’s...hard.” He finished lamely, shrugging his shoulders in his robes. “And besides, The Little Mermaid isn’t the same in English.”
Clearly they needed to try something new.
“Alright,” Micah said decisively, peeling off his outer robes. He draped them over the back of the desk chair and looked at Elijah before smirking. He picked his wand up and tapped it against the wireless. Music began to emerge from the speakers and Elijah brightened visibly. Micah swept their books off of the table and lifted Elijah up onto the top. He grinned mischievously and jogged over to the doorway. He put his hands on Stelladora’s shoulders and gestured for her to get up. She closed her book and jumped to her feet. Micah kissed her cheek and pulled her into the library. He picked her up and set her on the table with Elijah.
“Dora!” He exclaimed, wrapping his arms around her legs. She laughed and Micah turned his wand at the radio, changing the song. “Are we going to dance?” Elijah asked; a hopeful look on his face. Micah laughed and nodded.
Elijah slotted his hand into Stelladora’s and slowly, began to chip into some of the words of the song. Then, slowly but surely they began to dance across the tables, jumping from each one. Then, miraculously, his words began to come out in full force - correct too. Micah’s lips parted and widened into a smile of joy. He clapped his hands in time to the music and Elijah turned, taking Stelladora’s other hand and beginning to dance ‘properly’ with her.
Then, as quickly as the music began, it ended. It cut off so abruptly that at first Micah didn’t notice. He turned, his lip coming between his teeth, and he narrowed his eyes at the disturbance that was in the form of Marina Krum and, much to his delight, her daughter. Neither looked particularly pleased and Marina held Cecilia out, as if she were passing over a bag or a coat.
“Take this. My husband and I have no time for petty disputes or whims. See to it that she gets a cat, Stelladora. I don’t want dogs in this house. We’ll be leaving later tonight.” She said coldly.
“Where to, Marina? You just got back after all.” Stelladora asked carefully.
“Nuremburg if you must know!” She replied shrilly.
“How long for?” Elijah asked gently.
Marina huffed. “Not long enough.” She released Cecilia and swept out of the room, slamming the door behind her before the girl had a chance to follow.
(I hope you didn’t mind the godmod there. I just wanted to highlight the disdain from both Viktor and Marina...and sort of, that they were never or rarely there. Just come up with Marina & Viktor’s reactions, actions and words -- go nuts!)
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