Born to his newlywed parents (Aberie Ferrin and Med'lenan Ferrin) in the fringes of Haelun'or, it was clear from the start that Aruan wasn't quite what his parents had expected -- although they hadn't expected a child in the first place. His parents resented the true Mali’thill, and have been attempting to hide the fact that they have a Wood Elf ancestor many generations back, out of fear for their lives. His parents kept him from the most famous and recognizable places in the state, in an attempt to get him to dislike the Mali’thill as much as they do, but it just made him wonder what he was missing. This turned into a deep love + longing of sorts for academia, but his parents refused to let him visit the College or the Library. They believed that Mali'thill's love of knowledge was what made the family's ancestry a danger, and so tried to keep Aruan from places of learning.
Most of Aruan's childhood was spent scrounging what knowledge he could out of borrowed books. His parents didn't ever have more children, and he cared more about other things as a kid, so he never had many close friends. Most of the kids his age found him sort of weird, and he had a hard time building any sort of long-term relationships with anyone.
His family emigrated from Arcas when he was in his early thirties, mostly at Aruan's insistence. His parents were reluctant to leave their old home behind, but eventually Aruan convinced them that they would be safer on the new continent. Aruan's father Med'lenan had managed to avoid fighting in the war, but their town had been ransacked and they had very little money left. Eventually, Aberie and Med'lenan agreed that it would be wise to make their way to Almaris, using the last of their money to get there.
As soon as his parents deemed him old enough to leave home on his own, Aruan left, taking his few personal possessions with him. He had planned to travel to the College and study there, but he soon realized that while he didn't agree with his parents' values, they were probably right that his blood would make it difficult. He deemed it worth the risk, though.
Aruan froze, avoiding the gentleman's eyes. "Well, I, uh. I'm just passing through?" He looked out at the sea of people and grimaced. "I'm sure any of those things would be lovely, but, uh. I don't exactly know who you are? Um..." The crush of people disembarking the ship pushed Aruan away from the gentleman, and when he looked back, he couldn't find him any longer. With a shrug, Aruan continued on his way. It would probably be more trouble than it was worth to track him down.
Recommended Comments