Ara couldn't really express just how grateful he was to Atha for helping him in this moment. He gave her the slightest of nods - very careful about Xahqoh, and turned to Ahweh'a, crouching as he gently untangled Xahqoh from his hair and setting her down on the sand. "Let's go in and get some real food, yeah?" Ahweh'a was clearly very unsure about it all as he cautiously approached and essentially glued himself to Xahqoh's side. Aragibal managed to convince the kids to get inside. He removed his armor and got himself down to his gambeson before returning to the kits. He convinced Ahweh'a to sit at the counter because it would allow him to watch what Aragibal was doing and make sure Aragibal wasn't going to try anything funny, and he convinced Xahqoh to sit there because she could snack as he cooked if she wanted.
The kids scrambled up into the chairs at the bar and watched closely. Aragibal would warn them before he would get a knife to chop, and he would talk through what he was doing. He'd take a bite of something, then offer a piece to Ahweh'a and Xahqoh - Ahweh'a passed at first, but eventually followed Xahqoh's example in taking little pieces and nibbling on them. Most of these interactions as he cooked were him running on autopilot as it hit him how exhausted he was and he realized the weight of what they had just done. He had helped to raise Monx, sure, but that was different than this. She'd always been the favorite of them, and he'd always had to look for ways to make up for it - be it through their races, seeing who could climb a cliff faster, their sparring. The last thing he wanted to do was create some sort of disparity between these two kids that would mirror his own upbringing and...
Oh, Atha said something to him. He gave her a little nod, though he wasn't entirely certain what she'd just said. Ara had made something relatively simple and lacking his normal flair for a lot of spices and interesting flavors. He didn't want to shock the kids and make them sick, so the flavors were pretty light. It was pleasant enough, though perhaps just a little boring.
It was Ara's turn to be distant and unusually quiet, his eyes not focused on anything around him as he waded through the memories of Monx spending so much more time with their father than he. Atha would have to work a little to bring him down from the clouds, where he'd blink at her blankly. Whatever she just said he hadn't heard and he wasn't entirely certain what the next thing to do was. It looked like everyone had finished eating, so maybe she wanted him to do dishes? Maybe she wanted help putting the kittens down? The silence grew longer as he stared at her.
no subject
The kids scrambled up into the chairs at the bar and watched closely. Aragibal would warn them before he would get a knife to chop, and he would talk through what he was doing. He'd take a bite of something, then offer a piece to Ahweh'a and Xahqoh - Ahweh'a passed at first, but eventually followed Xahqoh's example in taking little pieces and nibbling on them. Most of these interactions as he cooked were him running on autopilot as it hit him how exhausted he was and he realized the weight of what they had just done. He had helped to raise Monx, sure, but that was different than this. She'd always been the favorite of them, and he'd always had to look for ways to make up for it - be it through their races, seeing who could climb a cliff faster, their sparring. The last thing he wanted to do was create some sort of disparity between these two kids that would mirror his own upbringing and...
Oh, Atha said something to him. He gave her a little nod, though he wasn't entirely certain what she'd just said. Ara had made something relatively simple and lacking his normal flair for a lot of spices and interesting flavors. He didn't want to shock the kids and make them sick, so the flavors were pretty light. It was pleasant enough, though perhaps just a little boring.
It was Ara's turn to be distant and unusually quiet, his eyes not focused on anything around him as he waded through the memories of Monx spending so much more time with their father than he. Atha would have to work a little to bring him down from the clouds, where he'd blink at her blankly. Whatever she just said he hadn't heard and he wasn't entirely certain what the next thing to do was. It looked like everyone had finished eating, so maybe she wanted him to do dishes? Maybe she wanted help putting the kittens down? The silence grew longer as he stared at her.