Hello Sunshine

Eirik looks up as his parents walk over. "Uh. Hi again Dad. Mom-Dad."

 

"Hey kiddo, you ready to continue?"

 

"Uuuuh. Maybe?" Eirik scuffs his foot on the floor.

 

Baldur rolls his eyes and motions back towards the mouth of the cave where they were standing.

 

"...do we have to go there? I wanted to help Corrie take pictures...." Eirik pouts.

 

"If you really want to do that right now go ahead, but you still owe us a conversation mister."

 

"Can I skip out on it?" He smiles cutely.

 

The one he learned that trick from glances away. Kid still hasn't figured the subtle part of that trick out. Welp.

 

" No." Baldur answers his voice allowing no argument.

 

"Sorry if this is out of line," says Corrie, who isn't sorry. "But maybe consider why a thirteen-year-old thought roughing it in the desert was preferable to, you know, not doing that. I've had the impression he's been feeling really smothered."

 

Grendel's lips curl up just a bit at the corners.

 

Baldur turns his head to look at her when she speaks and as he does his eyes shrink in diameter. Even under all the corpse paint one can see him turning a bit pink. " Corrie." He licks his lips and pauses a moment. " I understand that you have some feelings about this but I'm not going to make my family drama into an episode of Maury."

 

Corrie spreads her hands placatingly. "Just trying to help. I'll let you guys get on with things."

 

He nods " thank you."

 

She's said what she had to say, anyway.

 

Eirik groans. "I really have to?"

 

"Apparently," Grendel catches him up by the back of his shirt, bundling him into one lanky arm like a baby, much to his embarassed squawking.

 

Corrie manages, with effort, not to add insult to insult by laughing. Instead she stows the tickets in her bag and grabs a snack instead. It's been a while since what was apparently a pilfered breakfast.

 

Grendel nods to the tickets. "You going to come?"

 

"Hmm? Oh- yeah, I'd love to see you guys, and this stuff-" Corrie gestures to her gear- "isn't exactly time-sensitive. I can take a night off."

...she really does want to see this ancient being in action. Like, a lot.