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Lioq wrapped one slim finger about his staff and waved it gently back and forth before him. The simple seeking spell blossomed into a viewing window and he was given the image he asked for. In the cloud-like viewing window he could see his daughter, Comriel. She was in some strange place he didn't recognize, and there seemed to be a very brightly colored dragon with her. With a wave of his staff he ordered the viewing window to pan out and allow him to see more of where she was.
It was a school! My daughter was intelligent enough to enroll herself in school, was she? Well, I might as well visit her. It's not often I see my smartest daughter and any school would benefit from my presence, he thought to himself. Yes, that sounds like a wonderful idea. If only I could teleport, that would make it so much easier!
Nevertheless he did have his magic and he was highly proficient in its use, definitely moreso than his daughter who disdained to use the magic she inherited from him. He gestured with his left hand, dispelling the viewing window and immediately began a complex gesture with the staff. Up and down, back and forth, side to side, around and around he gestured until a portal barely large enough for him to squeeze his skinny 14' tall frame through appeared. He squeezed his way through and found himself in a very dusty world, standing before the school.
Disgusted by the amount of dust and the hot dry air he hurried inside and demanded to know where his daughter was. After much confusion and a great deal of shuffling about they finally figured out that he was looking for Comriel Mansiq and they directed him to her. Comriel was seated in a room, her stones cast on the floor before her. She had one three-fingered hand tucked under her chin while the other ran gently over the stones on the floor and her brow was furrowed as she tried to decipher the reading. Leaning over her was a bright pink and purple dragon who had aqua blue feathers growing from her head and on her wings. Neither of them seemed to notice his entrance so he cleared his throat loudly.
"Still playing with rocks, I see."
Comriel looked up in surprise, her hand and jaw dropping as she saw who was standing in her doorway. "Dad," she asked incredulously, "what are you doing here?"
"Hmph, some greeting for your old man. I came to make sure you were learning worthwhile things in this school."
"I'm not enrolled in the school, father-dear, I'm just staying here while Gueti finishes her studies." She smiled at the dragon who was staring back and forth between the two of them as if wondering if she should introduce herself or leave them be. "Gueti, this is my father, Lioq Mansiq. Dad, this is Eduguetica Selamputo, she latched onto me when I came here and decided she wanted to stay with me."
"You bonded?" his tone was incredulous as he looked down at his daughter.
"No, we didn't bond, we just discovered we're kindred spirits and we compliment each other nicely. That's why I'm willing to stay here, and besides, Gueti's interested in my divination powers and she actually inspires them a bit." Comriel's dark purple face reddened slightly at that and Lioq gave the furry dragon a sharp look, but her look was completely innocent and she returned his gaze boldly, but not threateningly.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Sir," she said, her voice light and active with a pleasing quality to it that made him want to be completely at ease with her. This of course put his hackles up and he determined that he had to stay long enough to find out more about this place and this strange Eduguetica child who his daughter seemed so attached to.
"Nice to meet you too, Eduguetica," he said though his tone betrayed the lie. He turned to Comriel who was giving him her typical 'be nice' look and he drew up his head and rustled his wings, his staff responding to his agitation by vibrating slightly from its place tucked under one wing. "Well, I'm going to go find out more about this place. Perhaps they need a professor in Gesture Magic."
Lioq turned, just barely glimpsing the roll of Comriel's eyes as he did so, and left the room without another word. There was definitely something odd going on here and he intended to find out what!
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