#mealla

They haven’t even been here for a full year yet, and Nenae’s work is getting them transferred again. Always to a new base, never at the same spot for more than a year at most. This is the fourth home they’ve lived in they can remember, and they’re pretty sure there are more because there are pictures of places they don’t recognize – but they’re all there, Nenae and Papae and Babae.

They sniffle and fall asleep, settling uneasily into a dark and drifting dream. The next day is normal. Nenae kisses them when Lasvala first wakes, telling them to have a good day before leaving for their work at the base. Babae helps Lasvala get ready for school and then walks them out to the bus stop.

School is normal, even if they feel sad that they’re going to have to leave again. They were just getting used to this school too.

When they get home, it begins. Papae starts showing them pictures of the city they’re going to move to, saying all the fun things the city has. Lasvala knows the drill by now. When Nenae gets home, they’re supposed to be happy and excited about the city they’re being sent to, but right now it’s just hard.

I don’t want to move, they sign at dinner. All three of them frown at Lasvala at once, hands rising to sign back.

I’m tired of moving, all we do is move, they continue, then retreating to push their green beans around their plate. Babae’s hands move to catch their attention and they look up automatically as he signs, brows knit together in concern and understanding.

I understand, da’len.

Don’t encourage them, Nenae scolds Babae. He gets his sassy look and sips at the wine he poured earlier.

I am simply saying that I understand their reluctance to move, Babae replies.

They start arguing about it again and they sigh. Papae moves his hand in front of Lasvala’s face, then drags his hand back to in front of his body.

Babae and I told Nenae no more after this, this is the last one. We know this isn’t good, and we are sorry for putting you through it. He signs, reaching for Lasvala at the end.

Thank you. They pick their fork back up and nibble on their potatoes. Nenae and Babae start actually talking after a while, making Papae frustrated enough that he takes Lasvala away to go into the office.

This is how it has been with the last two moves. Babae hates it, he keeps saying that he wants to put down roots, which Nenae doesn’t understand. They ask but aren’t you Dalish? It’s the same fight, but at least it’s the only fight they have. Lasvala hears from other kids that their parents fight about everything, and some are even divorced. But Nenae and Babae love each other, Lasvala knows that, even if they argue.

The move doesn’t happen right away. Nenae goes ahead and transfers to the new city ahead of the rest of them so Lasvala can finish the semester in their current school. They do take a long weekend to go house hunting though. Babae pushes for a place with land because he wants his chicken coup at long last. Papae doesn’t mind so much as long as he has a good internet connection so he can work from home.

Lasvala doesn’t particularly care as long as they have a bedroom with carpet. Luckily for them, they end up getting their wish – plus their own bathroom! Babae seems very excited about that since this is their “forever home” and it will be good for when they’re a teenager.

Babae gets what he wants too – four whole acres that makes him very happy. Nenae seems most pleased with the school district, citing its care for both academics and mage friendliness. That’s important too, Lasvala thinks, they would not like to be somewhere that doesn’t like them or Papae or Babae.

They return home, or…what is now temporary and the wait begins. Every weekend, they pack and sort through the things that they don’t need. It hasn’t been so long since they’ve moved, so there isn’t much stuff they don’t need. Luckily they have a lot of the boxes they used last time.

Their class holds a little going away party at the end of the semester for them. Mrs. Uenfel even bakes some cookies for them! Their friends say goodbye and hug them a long time, sniffling and crying about never seeing each other again. They’re probably right, Lasvala hasn’t seen any of their friends from previous moves.

The ground is covered in snow when they begin the move. The truck’s loaded up and on the move, and they’re on their way to the airport. It’s not a particularly good day for them. Their skin itches and crawls like it does when they want to shift, and since they can only manage full body shifts into a caracal right now, they can’t really do anything about it. Their shirt feels heavy and wrong, their pants are constricting and they want to wriggle and whine.

It’s only a five-hour flight of them trying to get comfortable and not freaking other people out. Their magic wells in them, pressing at the edges of their mind, and things start happening. There’s no way to say it’s because of their magic, but they feel their magic leaking out in a way that makes them think it is their magic. The overhead containers for the luggage pop open several times on the flight, a drink across the aisle spills, a tray refuses to come down, and one of the movie screens goes on the fritz. They try to keep their magic in, but their body is small and not feeling right.

They are grateful when the plane lands and they can begin the process of getting home. Nenae picks them up in their large SUV and Lasvala wastes no time in letting their body expand the way it wants to. The relief! Oh the sweet relief. Their body expands then contracts with their magic, finding a calm in their caracal shape.

Lasvala curls up in Papae’s lap for the ride, letting him hold them close as Nenae drives carefully to their new home.

“You really needed to shift, huh?” Babae asks, reaching over and scratching their ears. They nod, suddenly feeling very tired. Nenae turns on some music and their ears tune into the hum of the engine, the rolling of the wheels and it lulls them into an easy sleep.

….

“Lasvala, da’len, time to wake up. We’re home,” Babae’s voice is nice as he slowly wakes them up. They’re still in their caracal form, their magic clinging to it as it tries to find some way to settle more happily with their elven form.

Lasvala’s claws flex from their paws as Papae carries them out of the car then lets them down into the grass. It is cold out, even with the thick coat of fur on their body, so they bound up quickly towards the house. Nenae lets them in and they run in only to sliiiiiide across the slick wooden floors. Their claws don’t manage to find purchase and they keep going until their body hits up against a wall.

“Lasvala!” Nenae shouts, chasing after them. They’re up in their Nenae’s arms before they know it.

“Are you okay?” They ask and Lasvala wriggles around in response.

“Yes! I’m fine!”

“Can you shift back and help us unload? You can bring your stuff up to your room.”

“They may not be able to,” Babae says, lugging in a large suitcase, “Mystery said that their magic may be working in a way that it needs them to be shifted right now. It’s okay, baby, we can take care of it.” He takes Lasvala from their Nenae’s arms, holding them close and rubbing at their left ear.

A purr escapes them before he sets them down and returns to helping Papae unload the car. They spend the rest of the evening running around the house, room to room, learning the floorplan and the best route to just run.

Moving in is always chaotic, but fun in a way. Their parents are always exhausted by the end and they end up ordering pizza. Since the furniture has yet to arrive, they dine over a particularly large cardboard box that had held many of their books.

The rest of winter break is spent getting everything unpacked and set up. The furniture arrives two days after they arrive, so the sleeping arrangements are…weird. Nenae’s been sleeping in a guest room since all three of Lasvala’s parents tend to share a gigantic custom-built bed. Papae and Lasvala end up sleeping on the guest-room bed while Nenae and Babae sleep on large inflatable mattresses from a nearby super-store.

When the furniture does arrive, the day is spent cracking open old manuals and their parents trying to convince them that no, they do not swear. Papae swears he doesn’t cuss, but Lasvala knows those signs, and they are bad.

Still, by the end of winter break, the house is nearly set up. The house is a lot bigger than their previous apartment, a five-bedroom instead of a three-bedroom, so there are more places to furnish. Babae is thrilled at the extra space, he talks about how small his aravel had been growing up and now he has all this space.

With the end of winter break comes a new stress for Lasvala, though. A new school, and once again they have to introduce themselves and go through that whole mess.

The school is nice, it sits in a more suburban area than the little piece of country their parents managed to find. Nenae mentions something about weird but fortunate districting that they don’t quite understand.

It’s a sprawling one-story brick building. Large trees frame the driveway up to the main entrance and the road that leads around back to parking. There is the normal school traffic of buses and other cars full of families dropping their kids off for the day. Despite having done this many times before, it’s always nerve wracking for Lasvala to be new. And it’s a mixed bag when it comes to reactions from the kids. Sometimes it’s fine, the other kids just roll with it, sometimes they get bullied. It…is uncertain and they do not care for that at all. Babae drives around back to park, then walks Lasvala up to the front office.

“This is Lasvala Vallavhen-Somer, I’m their Babae, Irathar Nelaniel.” The human woman behind the desk blinks for a moment before handing Babae a notepad and pen.

“Could you write all of that down, please? I just want to make sure I put in the correct letters,” she says. She sounds nice enough and Babae continues to smile as he writes down Lasvala’s and his names.

The lady then types it all in and smiles.

“Alright! Lasvala, yes, you’re new. Welcome to Brent Bridge Elementary, we are happy to have you! I hope you come to love being a Brent Bridge Beaver as much as we love having you here. I’m Cindy Rosner, and you are heading to…Mrs. Aedel’s class. Oh she is the best, you’re going to love her. Hetti, watch the desk while I take our new student to their class?” She steps out from behind the desk while a dwarven lady sits down where she was.

Babae bends down to Lasvala’s height, smiling and unnecessarily adjusting the strap on their backpack.

“Okay, da’len, have a great day. I know it’s hard, but…it’s the last time. You are going to do great, I just know it.” He kisses their forehead before Miss Cindy takes their hand begins to lead them down a bright hall.

The tiles are alternating blue, green, and beige, and there is lots of Beaver paraphernalia on the walls. They like that it’s brighter than their last school, at least. They pass by the library and computer lab before turning down a hall that has more class specific art covering the walls.

Miss Cindy guides them to a room with a small elven woman sitting inside.

“Mrs. Aedel?” Miss Cindy calls and the woman’s head pops up from whatever she’s reading. She’s short, like a lot of elves, but not like Papae or Nenae who are very tall. Her brown curly hair bounces as she makes her way over.

“Hi Miss Cindy! And who is this?” She asks in that teacher voice, her face crinkling up into a big smile. Lasvala blushes and shifts from foot to foot, suddenly feeling very shy.

“This is Lasvala, they’re your new student.”

“Oh! Wow that is so exciting. Hi Lasvala, my name is Mrs. Aedel, and I am so excited to have you in my class.”

They blink at her, and try to remember how to do this, “Hi.” They manage.

Mrs. Aedel holds out her hand and Lasvala cautiously takes it, letting her guide them into her room. Her room is bright and cheery, but so were the last two classrooms they’ve been in, and at this point, they all sorta look the same. The alphabet poster is a little different, green polka dots on some of the letters instead of pink stripes, and the names on the assignments on the Wall of Outstanding Work are different, but it’s largely the same.

Mrs. Aedel shows them around the room, where to hang up their bag and talks idly about when snack and lunch are. Recess is after lunch, then it’s art class.

A bell rings and Mrs. Aedel tells them that means that the students gathered in the cafeteria and gym are to be taken to their classrooms by the hall leaders. And soon enough, the class begins to fill and all the kids look at Lasvala with strange, curious eyes.

“Alright class, settle down, we have some exciting news!” Mrs. Aedel begins, ushering all of the students to their desks. She then gestures for Lasvala to stand up and go to the front of the room.

“We have a new student! This is Lasvala, they’re from Cumberland! So why don’t we all work to be friends with Lasvala, they’re very nice. Why don’t you tell us about yourself, Lasvala?”

Mrs. Aedel and the class blink at them and their skin itches. It’s normal to want to shift and run, they tell themselves, they read about it in a book once.

“I…can turn into a caracal. A caracal is a type of cat, it lives in the desert,” they say. A girl at the front of the class perks up and she smiles before shooting her hand up in the air.

“That’s really fun, Lasvala! Yes, Mealla, is there something you’d like to say?”

“I can shift too! I can turn into a fennec fox, and a kestrel, and one time I got sharp teeth like my Nanae –

“I have a Nenae too,” Lasvala says, perking up. They haven’t met another kid shifter yet! The doctors and specialists all said that it was rare that they could shift so young, so they never thought they would meet someone like them. It’s…new and different.

“It sounds like you have a lot in common! You have a lot to talk about during lunch and recess. Go sit down, Lasvala, we have so much fun planned for today!” Mrs. Aedel instructs, and Lasvala reluctantly returns to their seat.

It’s way too long to lunch, but when it does come, they’re full of energy – hungry energy, but energy still. But when it comes to actually sit next to Mealla, they’re unsure. That is until a hand suddenly takes their elbow and starts directing them to the end of the table. They look down to see Mealla, much smaller than they initially thought.

“You’re sitting with us,” she declares and they move along with her. This is…unexpected, but they’re not opposed. They stop at the end of the table and Mealla points to a boy who is carefully removing his sandwich from his lunch box.

“That’s Fenasal, he’s cool too. He’s in Mr. Tanir’s class. Fenasal, this is Lasvala, they’re new.” Mealla sits down with her lunchbox and pulls out her lunch.

“Hi,” Lasvala says, smiling at Fenasal. He wiggles in his seat before returning Lasvala’s greeting.

“Hi.”

Lasvala sits down tentatively and opens their box – it’s the standard fare Babae makes. He did cut their peanut butter and jelly sandwich into a heart and each of their parents wrote a little note, like they always do on the first day.

Babae snuck in their favorite jello too – blue! He also put in carrots and granola bar for snack, but they think it’s okay to start with the jello today.

“So, what’s a caracal look like?” Mealla asks, taking out a thermos full of spaghetti-o’s. Lasvala would normally just show her and shift but school is one of the places that is not good for shifting.

“Bigger than a house cat, maybe like a medium sized dog?”

“A cat as big as a dog?” Fenasal asks.

“Yeah, with really tall back legs. They’re reddish brown and have really tall ears so they can hear prey in the grass,” Lasvala says.

“Mealla has big ears when she turns into a fox,” Fenasal says and Mealla narrows her eyes at him.

“Yeah, and they help me hear too.”

“My Nenae says they’re like…satellites?” Lasvala says, finishing their jello and starting in on the PB&J. Fenasal sucks on his juice pouch, brows all wrinkly.

“What’s that mean.”

“I dunno, but they said it was something good.”

“My nanae says that it captures sound because they’re so big…but they also hear better when they’re a hawk…and those have small ears.” Mealla’s face scrunches up in confusion and Lasvala understands. They don’t understand much about birds, the lack of big ears seems…weird.

“Maybe it’s magic?” Fenasal suggests.

“Yeah, magic, that makes sense,” Lasvala says. They eat for a little longer, getting through half of their sandwich before Mealla turns to them, nibbling on an apple slice.

“Does you Nenae shift too?”

Lasvala shakes their head, “No. They’re not a mage, but my Papae does. He turns into a bush baby sometimes, but not a lot. Babae’s a mage, but he doesn’t shift, he just uses his magic to make plants grow.” They devour the rest of their sandwich. Babae made it with strawberry jelly today which makes it even better. Grape is fine, but strawberry is the better jelly – no matter what Papae says.

“You have three parents?” Mealla asks.

They pause. Sometimes people don’t get having three parents, which doesn’t make much sense to Lasvala – they don’t think it’s that different from having two. And someone almost always asks whose they’re real parents, as if one of them can’t possibly be their actual parent. Normally it’s the humans or dwarves who don’t quite get it, elves and qunari understand a little more. But they’ve learned to be cautious all the same.

“…Yeah. I have a Nenae, a Papae, and a Babae…” they say carefully.

“Oh, okay.” She shrugs and…that’s the end of it. Lasvala perks up and takes out their juice box.

“Why did you move?” Fenasal asks.

“My Nenae works in the military and gets transferred a lot. We move a lot,” they say.

“That doesn’t sound like fun,” Fenasal says and Lasvala nods.

“Yeah. But Babae said that we’re not moving again, so that’s good.”

“Good! Because I don’t know any other shifter in this school, you need to stay here,” Mealla declares, pointing her finger down at the table. Something feels nice and warm in their chest, like it’s settling. Their skin doesn’t itch or feel like moving into a different form. Their ears twitch and they stop themselves from giggling.

Before, they just didn’t want to leave again, but now…they want to stay here. Mealla is nice and so is Fenasal, and they like the little differences in Mrs. Aedel’s room. And they like their new house, with all of its rooms and soft carpet and gigantic yard.

When Babae picks them up at the end of the day, they hold onto him for a long while, both happy and worried.

“Tell Nenae we can’t move again. I like it too much here,” they say.