There will be scars, Straia.

[Erebor]

We are at war. There will be scars.

This is what it feels like to be endlessly interested.

Erebor finds himself sleeping little, instead preferring to spend his time learning his land. And yes, it is his, a little bit moreso than it is for the average resident of the Chamber. He takes his responsibilities as Prince seriously; he considers himself to be more responsible for what happens to the Chamber, more invested in its future because of the title he holds. He would push himself like this even if he were not born to this, but with the added pressure of his birthright, there's really no question.

He is so terribly young, and yet so terribly precocious. He wants to know everything, to learn everything there is to know about the Chamber, about Beqanna, about family history, the history of other kingdoms, how to fight, how to be a diplomat – it's like he's decided that he's going to give himself the education of any good prince.

And part of that education is to speak at length with his mother.

He is with her frequently, but not constantly. He is not a dependent child in the slightest, despite being so young. But he enjoys her company, likes the knowledge she has to share and the stories that she can tell him. And so today he seeks her out, looking (always) to know more, to be more, to be better because the Chamber deserves no less.

He finds her in the first place he looks, among the pine forests. They share a love of this place, and it makes him happy to see that it is regrowing a bit more each day. He has no memory of the forces that ripped it apart, but he can recognize that the forest was wounded, and he longs to see it at its full strength. He knows it would be magnificent.

He falls in line with Straia, nodding to her quietly. "Mother." he greets, his voice flat. He is not a sentimental one, he does like his mother, but he knows she knows that, and therefore it isn't efficient to say it. He doesn't need to take time on pleasantries with his family; he is sure that he will waste enough time being charming to those outside his family, the last thing he needs is to waste even more being charming to those within.

He looks at the trees that loom like statues around them, and then he speaks. "Mother, I was wondering about the pine forests. What were they like before they became this? And what made them this way?" His voice is bright with curiosity, but his demeanor is not excited. He is stoic in all situations – a trait that will no doubt serve him well in his life.

And with uncharacteristic poise for a less-than-yearling colt, he calmly awaits her answer.

Erebor

Native Prince of the Chamber

warship x straia