(2025-06-26) A Building with a Roof

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Author:	Alli
Summary:	Concerned for their friend, Silvestre and Cressidha meet up with Alysson to offer him something he seems to be missing. ~2400 words.
Rating:	T for Teen

It's a pleasantly warm June afternoon in Stormwind, with an infrequent, teasing breeze that keeps the air feeling fresh. Some of the scars of Deathwing's attack over a year ago are still visible on the city, but in the wake of his death, something in the city's spirit seems to be springing back to vibrant life.

Sil Silenstep sits by one of the many footbridges of the city, his legs dangling over the canal below while sunlight filtered through the leaves of a tree overhead dapple his hair. This particular canal is the one that separates the Dwarven District from Oldtown. He takes another bite of the red apple resting in his hand as he scans the path for the people coming to meet him.

Cressidha approaches, dressed in a much simpler outfit than normal - a purple short-sleeved shirt and silver pants, and although they are accented with some flourishes, it's far from one of her heavily enchanted mage robes. Her hair is braided into a long braid down her back, an unusual compromise between the combat bun and having her hair down this close to summer.

Sil looks up as she arrives, and a warm smile spreads over his face, his eyes brightening. "Hello, Sidha! Want an apple?"

"Good afternoon, Silvestre. Certainly. Would you care for some water?" She traces a water-conjuration sigil in the air as she approaches, smiling faintly.

"I'd be delighted," Sil says. He retrieves a shiny red apple from his bag, which he then offers in exchange for a bottle of water. "I think I found a good place — canal side, Dwarven District. We'll see what he says, yeah?"

"Just so." Cressidha completes the trade and takes a small bite of her apple.

Sil takes a sip from his water, smiling at the bottle like it's done something impressive. "It'll have plenty of room for his crates, unless they're a lot bigger than I thought."

Alysson approaches from the Old Town side, juggling four pairs of folded socks. He's quite good at it, though occasionally he has to dodge a person or two as his path meanders along the canals. When he sees Sil and Cressidha, he stuffs the socks back into various pockets, greeting them with a wave.

"Ho there, Sil, Cress!" he calls.

"Alysson, good afternoon," Cressidha says, conjuring another bottle of water to offer out to him.

Alysson takes the water, and promptly dumps it over his head. "Thanks! I was just thinkin' it was gettin' warm out," he tells her, as water drips from his hair. The socks are probably soaked now.

Cressidha makes a faint noise of amusement. That's a legitimate use for water, though. "Would you like some to drink as well?"

"And an apple?" Sil adds, pulling a third one out of his bag.

"Sure," Alysson says to both, his gaze alternating between them. "I got some bananas back at the ol' crates. Or socks. If you want."

"That's very kind of you," Cressidha says, and smiles at him. "Silvestre and I were wondering… if you would prefer to live in a building with a roof, assuming it was all paid for."

"You could keep the crates, of course," Sil says hurriedly. "This would be in addition. Or maybe I should say on top of, because of the roof."

"Someone's plannin' to stick a buildin' on top of me?" Alysson instinctively looks up. No, no building there. He frowns. "Is this another permit issue? I was tellin' that fellow in the guard the other day, I still haven't found his contact in the Permit Approval Board. Have you seen 'im? Dark haired beardy fellow, goes by Lathrik?"

"Lathrik?" Sil asks, and shakes his head. "I don't recall — no, wait. He was part of that whole murder investigation, yeah. You're looking for a… permit?"

"I don't believe I have," Cressidha says. "Actually, Silvestre and I have worked together to find an apartment where you could live in. We would pay for it, and you could stay there, if you would like."

Alysson blinks at them, a bit of color rising to his cheeks. "I uh. That's… awful nice of you," he says. "Both of you. Now, I know I'm not the sharpest pear in the candle box, an' you fellows probably know it too, so I'll just ask. Why're you doin' this? Snack tradin' I get, I've got lots o' those, but roof tradin', with apartments an' all that is… An' before you say anythin' about Cobalt an' how we're makin' good money an' all that, I gotta tell ya, I lose track of most of it."

"We're friends," Cressidha says, rotating the apple in her hands. "And I know I cannot provide for everyone - I have been taught this by my family ever since I was old enough to understand the concept of money. And the number of people who go cold, or hungry, saddens me every time I think about it. I cannot give everyone a place to stay, I cannot help everyone that I want to help. But if I could at least help my friends… that would be something."

"It's also a thing I've done for a friend before, and it worked out pretty well," Sil says, nodding in earnest agreement with Cressidha. "And I know you lose track of things sometimes, Alysson, which is why people who care about you ought to look out for you. We can't help everybody, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't help out when and where we can. And you're Alysson Mondragon, Random Hero, friend of Thrall, and… friend of me and Cressidha, yeah?"

Sil pauses, watching for Alysson's reaction. "I've already found a place, so you don't have to do anything besides look at it, see if you like it, and say yes if you like. Then it's yours. No hassle."

"I didn't mean to make anyone sad about it." Alysson shifts awkwardly. "Y'know, I've never owned a place before, just crates. What if I don't do it right?"

"You can always ask for help if there's something you don't understand," Cressidha says.

"I don't think there's a right way and a wrong way," Sil offers. "Just like… the way you want to do it? But yeah, you can always ask. Want to go see the place?"

"Well, I s'pose there's no harm in lookin'," Alysson says. "An' if questions are fine, then… What do I do if I catch the place on fire?"

"Uh… depends on the kind of fire," Sil says, turning to Alysson. "Different sorts of fires you've got to put out in different ways. But also, probably, contact the firefighting people?"

"If the fire is caused by oil from cooking, you should cover the pot with a lid," Cressidha says. "And then leave the apartment and call for help."

Alysson looks at Cressidha blankly. "What's a pot got to do with cookin'?" he asks. "Is this some sort of… magic pot I gotta get?"

"How do you normally cook?" Sil asks, looking over in curiosity.

"A campfire an' a stick," Alysson answers with a smile. "Ever had toasted banana?"

"Ah. Well." Cressidha glances at Sil. "I do not believe I have."

"I have," Sil nods. "And yeah, that's a real useful way to cook. The thing is, once you've got a house, there'll be a… machine for making heat, so you don't have to light a fire. Then, instead of a stick, you can put stuff in a metal pot, and the metal heats up all the stuff inside it. But come on, we can show you!"

Sil smiles encouragingly, and starts to head over the bridge.

"A fake fire warmin' gadget?" Alysson settles in pace behind him. "Sounds like magic."

Cressidha falls in next to Alysson. "I am not a good choice to explain the details of cooking, as I have done very little of it myself," she says. "Ivrianna Atley is the best cook I know; I might recommend her as a teacher."

"Ivri is amazing, you should definitely meet her," Sil seconds the idea. "In the meantime, I can show you how to do the same sorts of food you might with a campfire. I bet you can get about the same quality."

It isn't that long of a walk, until they find themselves in front of a cozy building of grey and white stone, supported by thick wooden beams. There are windows — two squares of panes with a little paned half-circle above, which look openable. Sil moves towards the front door, and looks back to Sil and Cressidha. "I found you a room on the ground floor, because it seemed… safer."

Alysson immediately moves to the windows to try to open them from the outside. Maybe he intends to enter that way. "I'll take your word for it on the magic pot business," he says solemnly. "Do I put the stick in the pot too? For the magic?"

"No, and it isn't magic," Cressidha says. "Silvestre will show you. We're going in through the door, Alysson."

Sil moves over to unlock the front door with a key, like a person who is a pro at living in a house. "Over here, Alysson. This is the easiest way in."

Alysson sheepishly joins them at the door.

Sil opens the door, opening it to reveal a simple rectangular unfurnished room beyond, with a smooth wood floor and light filtering in through the front windows. Along the far wall is the kitchen area, with all the basic appliances one might need in a kitchen but nothing too fancy. The rectangle is only broken by walls in one corner, enclosing a room accessible by an interior door — the bathroom.

"It's unfurnished for now," Sil says, a touch apologetically. "I thought you could move your crates and stuff in here, and then we could see what else might be good to bring in. There's plenty of room for 'em, yeah?"

Cressidha steps inside and looks around. She produces a measuring tape, levitates it up in the air, and begins to measure the dimensions of the room. Maybe she's planning for furniture.

Alysson blinks and looks around. "It's like… an extra big crate with a lid an' everythin'," he says. He sounds impressed.

"Yeah," Sil says, with just a touch of uncertainty. "You could think of it like that. Maybe you don't even need the old crates at all?"

"I can get you some furniture," Cressidha says. "A bed, a table and chairs to eat at, a wardrobe to store your clothes in…"

"Why do I need to store my clothes?" Alysson asks. "I'm wearin' 'em. The Guard o' Stormwind aren't too happy when I'm not."

"So that you can have more than one set of clothes to wear," Cressidha says with great patience.

"It's pretty fun," Sil adds helpfully. "That way, you can wear one set, while you wash the other, see? You can even have different clothes for different situations, if you like."

"One for cat wranglin' an' one for chicken huntin'?" Alysson asks, eyes wide. "Speakin' o' chickens, say I were to find the wayward Sir Clackimus the Third. Can he live here too?"

"Oh, uh, yeah, but there'd be an extra…" Sil pauses, then smiles. "Just let me know if Clackimus is joining the household, alright? Though he might rather live out somewhere there's sky and grass, and just meet up with you on the regular. But yeah, one for cat wrangling, one for chicken hunting, and maybe an entirely different one for random heroing."

Cressidha looks baffled. She has never heard of Sir Clackimus.

"Sky, grass, an' trees on account of chickens eatin' clouds," Alysson says, nodding in understanding. "Say, since it's got a roof an' all, d'you think 'Randy might wanna live with me here? I tried gettin' her to live behind the crates with me, but she wouldn't. Oh! What about my rock family? I'm not plannin' on growin' any more elemental sons."

"Of course," Cressidha says. "Your sister and your, mm, rock family are both welcome."

Sil looks like he might try to address something about the cloud-eating, but he just lets it go. The sister and rocks is firmer ground. "Yeah! We'd just need to make sure to get an extra bed for Miranda. I haven't seen her in… gosh, it's been a while. How's she doing?"

"Well, y'see, it turns out she found some family she didn't know about, so she's been around the city more. Like my rock family, except people. Rock families are nice though, 'cause they don't run unless you accidentally drop them down a hill or somethin'," Alysson says cheerfully.

"Oh yeah?" Sil asks, his eyebrows rising in surprise. "Your family too, or only hers?"

"On her Ma's side, so just hers. I had an aunt, but she was one o' them dead-but-not-dead types, an' now she's dead-but-really-dead," Alysson says. "I don't think Pops had any other family."

"Ah. I see." Cressidha nods politely.

"Your aunt was… ah, right, from Voldrune," Sil says, wincing sympathetically. "Well, I'm glad you've still got your sister, and you never know. Families aren't always limited to just by blood. Think any of them are looking for a place to stay? That is, I think this place would be full up on humans with you and Miranda."

"S'pose I could try to find a gnome or two to fill the extra space," Alysson says. "Only, I don't know too many o' them. Cap'n's probably already already got a house."

Sil chuckles. "The Captain's probably got a place with her new husband, or will have soon if she doesn't. But you don't have to fill the place up, unless you want to. You can just have extra space, to… dance in, maybe."

"I do like a bit o' dancin'," Alysson says, considering. Then he ducks his head and turns to face Sil and Cressidha. "I uh, I don't know what I did for you bein' so nice to me. No one's ever bought me a house before, an' I really hope I don't break it. Thank you, is what I mean."

Cressidha smiles gently at him. "You're quite welcome, Alysson."

"Yeah," Sil says, a smile lighting his face as well. "You're welcome. We're friends, right? And friends look out for each other."