Valerius sighed, running a hand through his hair as he stared at the child before him. He had found the mischievous little being sneaking around market. Though he never found any enjoyment outside, he had decided that there was no harm to be done. What was the worse that could happen?

“No— No, get away from that!” he hissed, snatching his wine bottle away from your grubby hands. He grimaced at the sight of dirt smudged around what used to be a clean glass. Taking care of a child wasn’t hard, he thought. Oh, how he was wrong.

“Be quiet, will you?” he wanted to throw this thing out of the window, but he restrained all of his temptations from doing so. You had simply cried because he took away his wine out of your hands. He simply sat down, what used to be his braided hair was now a mess.

His head, resting against the palm of his hand as he listened to your cries. Valerius took a sip of his wine, not even surprised that you had cried for this long. “Just take it, you little pest.” he pushed the bottle against your chest, causing you to fall on your back.