As I recall, the days in Forochel were clear, but cold, and the nights colder. Our expedition, led by my wife Seregrian, explored relentlessly across the frozen landscape. The intense sunlight reflected off snow and ice and would nearly blind us at times, whereas the night skies treated us to spectacular glowing green curtains drifting across an unbelievable field of stars.
Huddled together in our tents to rest, Seregrian and I embraced to share our warmth, and often our passions, and again our sacred vows called forth another child. In the following May, a son joined us. We named him Ardanion, and the House rang full and joyously with the sounds of children and laughter. The frigid memories of the frozen north stepped back, bowing to the warmer and happier days of Spring and family, and a mirthful House filled with the fresh hope that children herald.
Where Bainiel favored Seregrian in Her form and will, Ardanion resembled me more, poor lad, and shared my ease with the natural world. Seregrian insisted on being tutor to both children, with respect to their book studies, and I had no objections; much of what they would need from such works were of my wife’s own hand, either as author or transcriber. Rarely would she need to look outside her own libraries, and when she did, we would make a pleasant tour to Duillond. If the intellectual objective of the journey was one of the few topics Bainiel favored, she could not get there fast enough; otherwise, she would dawdle and complain. In either case, there would be yet one more point of contention between mother and daughter. As for Ardanion, he would always enjoy the trip more than the destination, for he was ever curious about what would be found around the next bend or over the next hill.
In these early years, while they were five and four respectively, I offered to teach them what I knew of living in the wilds. Ardanion took to anything I would show him, from fishing to tracking, gathering herbs and berries, making a camp and a safe fire pit. Baniel was entertained by all this but had little interest in anything other than picking berries and eating as many as she would save for home.
As is natural for mortal children, our daughter matured much quicker than our son, and in this began to show an interest in boys and how to get them to pay attention to her. She would always be keenly interested in any show of affection between Seregrian and I, no matter how subtly offered and received. We wondered what their teen years would bring.
