A Raven in the Wind (Sylus)

It's Monday morning in September for us, but for our daughter Raven, it's the first day of school. She spent the past 2 weeks announcing to everyone on the Onychinus base that she is starting kindergarten, and that Sylus, her daddy, got her the best clothes and supplies just for her. She even made sure her backpack was completely prepared every 2 hours because she wanted everything to be perfect when she walked through the doors of the school. Her excitement in the morning made sure to wake us up as well, jumping into our bed and landing right between us. 

"Wake up! It's kindergarten!" Raven squealed excitedly, rolling around in our bed like a puppy. Sylus didn't want to get up at all, hiding his face with his pillow while allowing our daughter to hit against his chest to wake up. "Come on, daddy! We gots to go!" 

"5 more minutes, princess.. Daddy is tired." Sylus peeked his eyes, looking at the almost mer copy of himself staring at him with a cute pout. "Why don't you get dressed and go eat breakfast first? You don't want to be tired when you get there, now do you?" 

Raven sat there, thinking for a moment before realizing the words she was told before that breakfast makes sure you have energy for the day. She got off the bed fast with her tiny feet hitting the floor, and her loud tapping toes rushed out of the room. 

"How did you know that was going to work?" I asked, turning to look at Sylus, who already looked more comfortable before she woke us up. 

"I didn't." His morning voice was low. I started to laugh, whacking him with my pillow to get him up, and was instantly pulled into his hug before my feet could hit the floor. "I said 5 more minutes." 

I rolled my eyes, accepting my fate of his laziness. 

After our couple more minutes of warmth, Sylus and I got ready for the day. Brushing our teeth, our hair fixed, our clothes for work, and our shoes.  We got to the dining area, and both of us stopped in our tracks when we saw Raven's face covered in makeup that she obviously put on. Raven's eyes locked onto ours, her smile getting wider with cereal in her mouth and milk dripping from her lips like she was proud of what she did. 

"Um.. sweetie?" Sylus stuttered, trying not to laugh. 

"Yes, daddy?" Raven's voice was happy. 

"Did you get into mommy's makeup again?" He hid his mouth, snickering behind his palm, but made sure she didn't notice. 

"Do I look pretty?! I did it myself!" Raven wiped her mouth of the milk, making the heavy lipstick smear across her cheek. 

"I hate to break it to you, sweetie, but school doesn't allow makeup on kids." Sylus grabbed a napkin, getting it wet, and started wiping the makeup off her face. Raven looked at Sylus, her happiness turning sad after her father's words. 

"They don't?" Her voice sounded small. The disappointment in her eyes made Sylus look heartbroken, but he made sure to keep himself level. 

"It's a pity, I know, but when you come home, we can have a dress-up day together. How does that sound?" Sylus finished cleaning off her face, moving a small strand of Raven's white hair behind her ear. Raven instantly changed back to joy, excited to have another fun time with her father, jumping around the dining room as she chanted "Daddy Day" over and over. 

Sylus and I finished eating breakfast, listening to Raven guess what they might do for the first day of kindergarten, and helped her out of the house to leave. The car ride wasn't so different either. She kept talking about the possibilities and hoped she would make a lot of friends. When we reached the school, Sylus made sure to park the car close to the entrance and helped Raven get out of the car. I watched her excited face turn into nervousness as she looked at the building and all of the other families watching their kids walk inside. Her tiny hand gripped onto Sylus's, and her whole body was shaking slightly. 

"Nervous?" I asked, bending down to be at her level. Her little head nodded, gripping her father's hand as tight as she could. "You got this, Raven. We'll be with you until the bell rings for it to start, okay?" Raven nodded again, using her free hand to hold mine, as we walked into the school together. 

While walking through the hallway to find Raven's kindergarten room, everyone around us was surprised when they saw Sylus. Some of the older kids looked amazed, but the younger ones weren't sure what to do while watching him. Parents were amazing, telling the kids that some people can be super tall for eating their vegetables, and their hair being white was just from being so lucky, that every time they said something, my cheeks turned red with satisfaction. 

"Here's the classroom," Sylus pointed out. We stopped to stand away from the door so we weren't in the way, and both of us crouched in front of Raven to be at her level. "Are you gonna be okay, princess?" He asked. 

"You know, if you need anything, you can always ask your teacher." I smiled at Raven, noticing she was still slightly nervous to go inside. The bell started to ring, signaling that it was time for class, but it made Raven even more nervous to move her feet. She was looking at the door, seeing all the other kids already inside, and was talking to each other before the next bell rang. The teacher walked over, crouching in front of Raven, and her face lit up from the familiar smile. 

"Hi there, Raven! Remember me? We met during orientation," Her teacher's voice was soft and welcoming. She seemed to be familiar with nervous kids. 

"I 'member you. We made a rainbow." Raven got excited again, probably from remembering the time we met her teacher, but in a different classroom. 

"I have that rainbow in our classroom. Wanna go see it?" She asked, extending her hand to our little girl, who instantly nodded and grabbed her hand. The teacher stood up, bowing her head to Sylus and me before they both walked inside, and the door closed behind them. I turned to look at Sylus, noticing he rubbed his eyes slightly and walked away from the classroom without saying anything. I rushed to keep up, already out of the building and into the car. Sylus was quiet, just gripping the wheel like he wanted to say something but couldn't. 

"Babe? Are you okay?" I rubbed my fingers against his arm. He softly nodded, releasing a long breath like he was holding one for a long while. 

"She got big too fast.." His voice was low, sounded depressed almost. I pressed my lips, our feelings being mutual, but I guess with Sylus, it's hitting him harder than it is for me. Sylus started the car, driving out of the parking lot, and off to work we went.