Word count: 461 // +3 points
If there’s anything different you want him to teach her, just say the word
Alduin watched closely as Aoi recreated the letters before her, and he found that couldn’t hide the smile that popped onto his lips as she moved the pencil with more grace than most of his former beginners. He had expected her to go off the page like the others had, but she at least kept the lines within the edges of the paper. He truly believed it to be a great accomplishment for her, and he would have nothing less than for the girl to believe it. So when she commented that she was nothing to be proud of, he shook his head and lifted a paw to pat her gently on the shoulder opposite of her writing hand.
“You have already done very well, my dear,” he stated confidently. “Allow me to prove it to you.”
With great care the Alaskan wolf opened the velvet pouch at his neck and pulled a small, worn piece of parchment that was folded many times. It crackled lightly as he carefully undid the folds, but the paper was sturdy and did not break despite it looking like it would. It was a while before he finished unveiling what was on the page, but it was surely worth the wait. Scrawled nervously across the page was the letter ‘A’—though most would call it a collection of faded wiggly lines in some failed attempt at post-modern art. The letter was huge, taking up the page in its entirety; and needless to say it was hideous.
“This was my first letter,” he admitted proudly. “I tried to copy what I saw in an old human book, but as you can see I was not at all successful.” He laughed softly, recalling the awkwardness of trying to learn on his own. “I was nervous and excited at the same time. Clearly, you can see it in what I hope someone would call lines.”
He stared fondly at the page, recalling quieter times spent in the ruins of human libraries. So many days had come and gone as he sat in the wreckage of books, far too intrigued by the torn and somewhat burnt papers. It was such a shame that most of the information was missing from the books, but Alduin learned what he could from them. With a smile still resting peacefully on his lips, he folded the memory to its original state and placed it back in the pouch.
“You are something to be proud of, Aoi,” he told her. “I will not allow you to tell yourself otherwise.”
Or anyone else for that matter, but it seemed the young wolf needed more self-confidence than anything right now. What kind of teacher would he be if did differently?
“Now,” he continued, “try the rest.”
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