Southern Water Tribe :: Southern Water Palace ~ Twins x2

| Prince Castiel |

Spoiler:

Castiel started walking again, elated at the prospect of food. He also intended to accomplish Kael's wish to see Roman and Kihana, but that notion was singularly dwarfed by the promise of food. "We were just on our way to the kitchens," he told her, fondly. "My brother and sister are already there. Care to join us? This is Roman's first time here. I'd like to introduce him to all of you."

Roslyn looked the same, if not, like Kaida, just a little taller. Her blonde hair, with the bangs almost outgrown, certainly dispelled any illusion of an angular face and instead softened the girl's cherubic features. Her favorite dress augmented her slim frame. It was obvious she was becoming quite the young lady. When she was younger, Castiel found that it was somewhat difficult for her to learn to walk and talk, very much like Roman, and it was the thought of Roslyn that allowed Castiel to hope his brother would outgrow his impediments and become strong.

Castiel paced on, in the direction he believed the kitchens would be. He had enough memory to venture a rough estimate, despite the many times he stole away to the kitchens to steal food and eat in his younger days. His memory had been quite faulty then. Anuk was always worried he'd get fat. How could he, with all the training he and Cassian went through? Anuk forbid fat children.

"Are you guys keeping up?" he called over his shoulder. Cassian seemed exasperated.

"Rest assured, Your Highness," he told him dryly. "We're having no problem at all maintaining an acceptable distance. Not even in excitement could your feet move any faster."

Castiel, offended, threw his brother a glare. He pressed onward.

Kaida kept close pace with Cassian. Her gaze drifted from her younger sister to Cassian to Castiel to her twin brother to the floor. Artistic effort had even been put into the floor. Fragments of the palace were carpeted, but not a lot of it. The carpet would get wet easily and the fabric would be ruined. But that hadn't deterred Kael one bit. Oh no, he had gone on to hire artists to etch wonderful designs in the encased ice and tile walkways. He had even done some of it himself. Scenes of old tales had been etched, drawn, and painted under her feet. She walked on them, walked through them. A year ago she would have pretended that she was living these stories and walk through the halls emerged in her fantasy. Kaida wouldn't be caught dead doing that now. She pulled her gaze away from the floor and glared at the bickering twins.

Kael merely laughed. "You always have been a sucker for food, Castiel. Don't worry, I told the chefs to prepare a wondrous meal for tonight. We can have a tasting right now though." He smiled and extended his hand to the side, out of his robe, beckoning for Roslyn to come up to him. He had missed his sister dearly and had an urge to have her near him.

Roslyn goes up to Kael and smiles. He must have been so worried about me, I bet Kaida wasn't. Roslyn thinks. "Food does sound good." She adds. Roslyn rolls her head around, neck cracking. Cringes slightly hearing that.

| Prince Cassian |

Spoiler:

Cassian certainly appreciated the decor of the palace. The Southern Tribe leaned more towards darker blues and white, whereas its northern counterpart consisted of powder blues. The greater contrast brought out much more detail, but the decoration was not superfluous and Cassian wondered why he'd never noticed it before. He, Kaida, Kael and Cassian used to play in these halls when they were little. The twins could always appreciate the great interior design, but Cassian never stopped to think how it all tied together. A painted 'banner' indicating the tide melded and flowed with an arch they passed under. The arch was embossed with an image of the moon. The moon and the tides.

Cassian looked at Kaida. She was just as silent as he. As his brother and Kael coddled Roslyn, the other two were left to their own devices, and Cassian was perfectly fine with that. Talking would be entirely unnecessary at that moment. He was not inclined to delve down that path nor indulge in it.

Cassian's nose twitched. The scent of food was getting stronger and stronger. He could smell cinnamon, tapioca, vanilla, chicken and fish, among other things, all whirling in the air like a cacophony of aromas. Castiel noticed as well (in all due honesty, he would have been the first to notice) and urged them along.

"At the end of this hall, right? Oh, Kael the food smells scrumptious!"

Kael nodded, his coy smile never wavering. "Yes," he said simply. "But don't go eating it all now, we'll need some for tonight's feast. We even brought in some Northern delicacies that you'll enjoy, no?" Kaida noted his habit of saying 'we' for everything he did. He liked to think of himself, herself, Roslyn, and the entire tribe as one person. This encouraged the people to work together and sometimes it even worked on her, but nonetheless, she found it irksome that he credited everybody to something he thought of on his own. She always thought Kael should be more selfish.

As if reading her mind, Kael glanced over his shoulder at Kaida and Cassian. He chuckled as he turned back and walked into the elegant kitchen. Unexpectedly, he said,

"You two would make a good couple." Kaida's footsteps faltered and she stared, mouth agape, at her brother who merely laughed. "It's true," he added. She closed her mouth, then opened it again as if to say something, then shut it tight. She strode over to a marble counter at the end of a line of stoves and ovens, where there was a platter of food. She set it on the small table behind them all and more or less presented it to Castiel.

"Let's eat, shall we?" she said curtly, her face flushed.

Roslyn giggles, watching her brother and sister. But, she did agree that Cassian and Kaida would make a good couple, both silent and all. "Brother is right you now." She whispers to Kaida, before taking her seat.

She turns to Castiel, "How are things up in the Northern Tribe?" Roslyn was often curious about their sister tribe.

| Prince Cassian |

Spoiler:

If Castiel were looking (but he wasn't, because the damn idiot was very much preoccupied), he would have doubled over himself in laughter. Cassian was not prone to moments of emotional expression. It was so common to see him or Kaida brooding or ignoring everyone else (in some cases, Cassian was completely blank-faced). If Castiel were looking, he would have thought his brother had been stabbed. It would've been the only forthcoming explanation.

Cassian grunted. He diverted his eyes to the wall, and walked silently, maneuvering to some nearby counter advertising spices. Hell no. He did not just hear that. Him and Kaida? He had put thought into a considerable partner. Kaida was on the list. But that was very much in the far future. He had other things to attend to. Mentally, he applauded Kael. The boy certainly had guts to say such a thing aloud. He'd managed to catch the prince completely off-guard, something Cassian won't be forgetting for a long while.

Kaida dealt with the situation more or less obstructively -- she found a plate to hand to his ravenous brother. Castiel commenced devouring his meal with the appropriate grace and manners. Roslyn leaned over to tell him something. Cassian utilized this time to work on steeling his expression and instead busying himself with the sudden bundle of cloth and hair that just collided with his solar plexus.

"BROTHER!" Kihana made her introduction typically: noisily and unexpectedly. She appeared from nowhere. Hell, maybe she teleported. All he knew was that she was being extremely obtuse, and she was pissing him the hell off.

"Brother, brother!" the child went on whining (or was she just prattling) incessantly. "There is so much different food here! I love the Southern Tribe. How come we don't live here? It'd be nice if we did. We can go penguin-sledding a lot maybe. There seems to be more snow and less ice here. Are those the princesses? They're all so pretty!"

Yes, Kihana was definitely prattling. Sometimes Cassian regretted ever establishing such a close bond with the little imp. He spent so much time with her and Roman when they were younger, they never wanted to leave him the hell alone. And now no matter how cross he looked, Kihana pestered him. She pestered him to no end. At least Roman was quiet.

"Hmph. One of those 'princesses' is the king. King Kael."

Kihana screwed her face up. "Which one?"

Cassian sighed. "The one without the red on."

Kihana's eyes lit. "Oh! Can I go say hi?"

"You should have already done that. Don't forget to be polite." He barely had time to finish his sentence before the rambunctious eight-year-old scrambled over to Kael ("Hello, my name is Kihana .."). She had met them before, but she was four, stupid and therefore too young to truly remember.

Roman was with his nurse, across the hall. Cassian recognized the shock of blue air, moreso accentuated by the kid's painfully small stature. The nurse was encouraging a spoonful of soup past the little boy's lips. Roman's eyes were somewhat listless, but he accepted the soup. Cassian politely excused Roman and helped him stand, before walking him slowly over to where the group was having their little meeting.

((OOC: Damn. Long post. O_O Well, I'm posting as Castiel next so nobody reply before me!))

| Prince Castiel |

Spoiler:

Castiel swallowed a mouthful of steamed mussels and answered Roslyn, "Everything is very fine, Roslyn." His voice was very soft. "In fact, due to the peace and prosperity of the nation, we were allowed to come visit you all this year."

Castiel turned soon enough to catch the flying little imp known as Kihana in his arms. She squirmed around a bit. When she was comfortable, she placed her head on Castiel's shoulder, and looked Kael square in the eyes. "Hello. My name is Kihana. It's an honor to meet you." And she held out her hand.

Castiel blinked. "Kihana? Aren't you getting a bit too old to be on my lap?"

Kihana huffed, but got off, allowing Castiel to return to his much-appreciated, long-awaited meal. Not long after, Cassian approached with Roman toddling after him, and Castiel remembered with great clarity that the Southern prince and princesses had not met him yet.

With great care, Castiel reached past Roslyn and hoisted the semi-struggling four-year-old into his lap. He was small enough to cradle. Roman's eyes were a little unfocused; he was tired. Cassian stood off mutely to the side. And Castiel wondered, with no little concern, if either of them had eaten enough. "You." He pointed his chin towards his twin. "Grab a plate and join us. Brunch cannot take forever." Cassian snorted but complied, heading off in the direction of the displays.

"Everyone," Castiel began gently. "This is Roman, our little brother. He turned four last summer. He'll be five this summer. Roman, say 'hello'."

Roman blearily lifted his head off Castiel's shoulder. Mutely, he lifted his small hand and waved. Seemingly satisfied with himself, he pressed his face in the folds of his brother's collar and fell into a half-sleep.

"Roman gets sleepy a lot!" Kihana supplied. She had stolen a cheese stick and was nibbling on it. Cassian returned no more emotional than he had been when he'd left. In his hand was a single platter of smoked salmon and halibut. He placed it on the table and sat beside Kael.

Kael laughed and shook Kihana's hand. "Nice to see you again, princess. We've met before but you were just a baby then." He lifted the child onto his lap and allowed her to sit there and eat with him. Kihana was a little ball of energy and Kael simply adored her and had always wished for another sister. Kaida needed help that he seemed unable to give, and Roslyn was growing up. She wasn't his tiny little sister anymore, and a part of him missed that dearly. It was hard to shake himself out of the strong, protective older brother he was used to. But he had to let her go at some point.

Ever so gently, Castiel lifted up a small blue haired boy and set him on his lap. To Kael, the boy looked sick. He had an unfocused gaze and looked weak in the limbs, like a gust of wind could topple him over and that would be the end of him. Castiel introduced him as little Roman, and the boy wearily waved to Kael before resting his head against Castiel again. Kael frowned. Something wasn't right with this child.

"Roman gets sleepy a lot," chimed Kihana as she nibbled on some cheese. Over by the dishes of food, Kaida froze and looked over to the company of tribesmen. She grabbed a warm piece of bread and sat down next to Castiel, staring at Roman.

"Oh dear," she whsipered. She looked at Kael, eyes filled with worry for once, and then glanced at Roslyn. That's who Roman reminded her of. Kaida remembered way back what had happened. For a while Roslyn had looked sickly like this as well, and it had scared her. Scared her more than it had scared Kael. "He's like Roslyn," she said softly, mirroring her thoughts.

Roslyn smiles at Kihana. "Nice to meet you Kihana, I am Roslyn but you may call me Rose." She introduces herself.

Then Roslyn looks to her sister. "What do you mean? That he is like me?" She asks. Roslyn doesn't get what she means, even though it could be figured out by her asking

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