01.Jul.13, 11:23 AM
M'din nodded appreciatively as Isscer brushed off his compliments, thinking it was certainly more pleasant to spend time with humble company than some of the less capable braggarts at Katila. The brownrider had no qualms diving back into his discussion about Impressing- Isscer seemed quite curious, after all- and continued with a smile, "Well, I think you do a great job, so you'd probably be a great rider too." He waved the remains of his brown shirt at Edik, hoping the little flit would be enticed to come play on his ample lap. "I must've stood a dozen times before Armath hatched, you know. None of the other eggs wanted me because I just wasn't the right fit. Granted, I didn't see it that way at the time. I was too dejected about it to think clearly, but it finally happened when I was twenty-three and my sister was twenty-six."
A twang of guilt struck M'din's heart when Isscer mentioned his own family, separated by both time and distance, back in the North. It would tear him apart to be Stolen from his life, his friends, and especially his children, but it had never been his decision to carry off the Crafters and Candidates, and his opinion counted for less than a flit's as far as Katila's leadership was concerned.
"I'm sorry, Isscer," M'din apologized sincerely. "No one deserves to be ripped from their home unwillingly, but I'm very glad to have met you." He scratched at his beard as he changed the subject from something tragic to something unintentionally worse, "I read a book about Telgar recently, but I've never visited. I'm originally from Fort, though I doubt my remaining family members there are alive. My siblings and father were riders like me, so we were all banished during the Plague." He cleared his throat, quietly reprimanding himself for further darkening the already somber mood of the conversation.
Cracking his knuckles, he floundered trying to find a better question for the Crafter before finally settling on, "Did you have any riders in your family? Impressing was a very big deal for me, and I know I made my sister and mother proud." For once, M'din tactfully neglected to mention that his mother had died before he Impressed Armath, but he was quite certain she was proud of him regardless. At least, Khindra had always said so.
A twang of guilt struck M'din's heart when Isscer mentioned his own family, separated by both time and distance, back in the North. It would tear him apart to be Stolen from his life, his friends, and especially his children, but it had never been his decision to carry off the Crafters and Candidates, and his opinion counted for less than a flit's as far as Katila's leadership was concerned.
"I'm sorry, Isscer," M'din apologized sincerely. "No one deserves to be ripped from their home unwillingly, but I'm very glad to have met you." He scratched at his beard as he changed the subject from something tragic to something unintentionally worse, "I read a book about Telgar recently, but I've never visited. I'm originally from Fort, though I doubt my remaining family members there are alive. My siblings and father were riders like me, so we were all banished during the Plague." He cleared his throat, quietly reprimanding himself for further darkening the already somber mood of the conversation.
Cracking his knuckles, he floundered trying to find a better question for the Crafter before finally settling on, "Did you have any riders in your family? Impressing was a very big deal for me, and I know I made my sister and mother proud." For once, M'din tactfully neglected to mention that his mother had died before he Impressed Armath, but he was quite certain she was proud of him regardless. At least, Khindra had always said so.