Daily Writing Challenge – February 2026 – Day 3 – Pompous/Blur
“Dad, dad, DAD!” Sendanis exclaimed, shaking Aeri awake. Cracking his eyes open, the elder elf could see that it was barely dawn. He groaned and reached for his glasses, putting them on so he could actually see his fiery-haired son.
“Sendanis, is the house on fire?” he asked, but he already knew the answer to that question. The house was not on fire, quite the opposite. It was winter and their little cabin was surrounded by the forest, and covered in snow.
“Greatfather Winter came! There are tons of presents! How do you think he knew where we are? Did you tell him? Was it mom? Come ON, dad! Eli’s gonna open everything before we get there!” The boy tugged at his father’s hand, trying to drag him from the bed.
“You better hurry up and go, Eli might open everything before we get there,” Kalira’dia said from his other side, a soft chuckle following. Aeri sighed and threw the blankets back, shoving his feet into his slippers. He grabbed his robe from the end of the bed and tugged it on while heading into the next room.
This little getaway during the holidays had been a present from his in-laws, and Light, it was so needed. They hadn’t been anywhere as a family since shortly after Sendanis was born, Elizara had been just a toddler. He wasn’t sure about taking time off from work, but Kalira had insisted, and he was glad that she had.
Stepping into the tiny combination living room and kitchenette, he saw his children huddled around the tree, the fire simmering low, but the joy on their faces unmistakable. He went over and put a few more logs on the fire, making sure they caught, and then filled a tea pot with water they had kept in a large skin inside, to keep it from freezing. Once the pot was hung over the fire, he sat in one of the two large, overstuffed chairs and waited for his wife.
“Where is moooommmmyyyy?” Eli whined, eager as ever to start opening presents.
“She will be here in just a minute, darling. I promise you, the presents are not going to disappear in just a few moments.” His daughter did not look convinced, and pouted at her father, as if he could make Kalira move any faster.
But, as promised, just a few minutes later, she joined them, and the kids proceeded to tear into wrapping paper, opening boxes and bags as quickly as their tiny hands could.
It had been a wonderful day.
All of that seemed a blur now, such a distant memory that Aeri could scarcely remember the sound of Elizara’s voice. He didn’t remember what was in the presents that day, or what Kalira had worn, or what they’d had for breakfast.
He did remember it was one of the last holidays they spent together as a family, whole and unbroken.
Now, he sat at his desk, listening to the incessant, pompous droning of some dead noble’s executor. Thank whatever gods there might be for his assistant, because Aeri was not listening to the man. His good eye was likely glazed over behind his glasses, which, thankfully, were ones that were tinted so it was hard to see his eyes at all.
When the man finally stood and offered his hand out to Aeri, he shook his hand and nodded, glad that the meeting was finally over. Now he could go home, and lose himself in the bottom of a bottle, and try to not think about anything.
