Kiyna (prime)/Vignette: Small Packages

"So this one is... home, then? Home..."

Squinting at the neat little tome in her hands, Truefolk Tongue: A Primer, Kiyna couldn't help but feel the letters were half the size as well, irritation growing ever faster.

"Yewc... Hewc... how do you make this sound? Agh, sod it!"

She dropped the book to the small table with more force than was necessary, slightly disturbing the other objects upon it. She pinched the bridge of her nose and let out another sigh. The young halfling had barely known Common but a few short years ago, let alone the language of her kin. A childhood spent parentless in squalor was not the best for the purposes of literacy.

She gazed down at the cover of the primer with consternation. 'Truefolk'... what an interesting term. A point of pride? Perhaps a desire to escape the suggestion that they are "half" anything. Small, yes... but small has its advantages.

Kiyna put her finger to the book's cover, tracing it idly over the illustration of a portly truefolk man, pipe in hand, blowing smoke rings in the shape of the letters of their alphabet. She absently ran a hand through her long, red hair, pulling out some mild tangles. Her wavy, unruly hair resisted every attempt to tame it, though she fought valiantly.

Could ask one of the other halflings to help teach me... She groaned and cast the idea out. She would feel self-conscious, like every other time she had to explain to them that she didn't already speak their language. Didn't already understand their culture.

Could ask Vaemyr... Kiyna grimaced. Vaemyr would help her. He'd drop just about anything he was doing, she was sure. Which would make her feel bad about her own inability, and worse about stealing his attention away from his own important work.

No, it would have to be alone. Wouldn't be the first time. She took a deep breath to recenter herself, straightened her slouching posture, and picked the book back up.

"Okay... Home... hewc... is that a 'ch' or a 'k'...?"

I'll be there, Kharusa. You see if I'm not.