#uuuggggh

Prompt: foster | Master Post | On AO3

This party was sooooooo boring.

Rereha sighed and tugged on her mother’s skirts. “Mama, may I go get something to drink?”

Mama diverted her attention from whichever merchant king she talking to this time to look down and pat her on the head. “Go ahead, dear,” she said.

“Thank you, Mama,” Rere replied, and toddled off in the direction of the refreshment table.

(“Such lovely manners your daughter has,” Lord Lolorito said.

“Only in public,” Shushuha Shuha quipped back.

The two exchanged viciously polite smiles.)

Rereha wove her way through the crowd with the expertise of someone who had done this before many times already—and as a ten-year old, that was saying something. It helped, of course, that in Ul’dah, people knew to look down. She reached the refreshment table quickly, at least, and climbed one of the step stools placed out for lalafellin guests.

“A glass of cactus pear juice, please,” she said primly to the server behind the table. He bowed to her, and turned away to fetch her the drink.

As she waited, Rereha rocked back on her heels (not particularly ladylike, but she was ten, allowances would be made) and looked around. The crowd parted for a moment, and she thought she saw another kid—a hyur?—before the too-tall adults all moved back in.

Hmmm. Someone her age at least?

Rereha thanked the server once he brought her the chilled glass cup of cactus pear juice, and she hopped down from the stool with drink in hand, weaving her way through the crowds once more. Instead of heading back to Mama, though, like she probably should, she headed in the direction she’d seen the other child. Maybe they could complain together about how boring being dragged along to these things was.

She successfully found the other kid, and it was hyur—a girl, even, yes! The other girl was taller than her, but that wasn’t hard to be, and looked maybe seven or eight. Ish. Rereha wasn’t good at these things. The little hyur was wearing a pale grey taffeta dress, skirts poofed out by tulle petticoats, and her brown hair had been pulled into two pigtails, each one tied with a grey silk ribbon.

Rereha mentally wrinkled her nose. Who had dressed her? This was a travesty, even Heron’s career Sultansworn parents knew how to dress for their complexions. That was an awful color on her, it washed her out completely. A darker storm grey would have been nicer, at least, or maybe something blue to make her green eyes pop. She had very pretty green eyes.

She also was doing a very good job of pretending to not be scared.

Oh, that would not do! Not at all!

“Hi!” Rereha said, popping into the other girl’s line of sight. The hyur jumped, eyes widening. “I’m Rereha! What’s your name?”

“Um, I’m—I’m Synnove,” the hyur said, hands fidgeting with her dress. “Nice to meet you, Rereha.”

“Nice to meet you, too, Synnove!” Rereha beamed. “Do you want to get something to drink? They have fresh cactus pear juice!”

Synnove looked around cautiously. “I—I shouldn’t, I need to wait for Mother.”

Rere tilted her head curiously. “Did she say to stay here?”

“No. No, she saw one of her business partners and went to talk to him, I lost her in the crowd. And, um, I don’t know anyone here and, um, I didn’t know who to ask for help.”

“Well, now you know me!” Rereha said with a smile. Synnove tentatively returned it. Rereha continued, “So let’s get you something to drink and something to eat, they usually have some proper snacks for the kids that get dragged here by their parents. Nothing like caviar.”

Rereha and Synnove made matching disgusted faces.

“Caviar is gross,” Synnove said.

“So gross,” Rereha agreed with a nod, and held out her hand. “Come with me!”

The other girl took her hand, smiling for real now, and Rereha skipped through the crowd, tugging Synnove behind her.