It was less painful and more confusing, being reminded of the stark difference in his family dynamic now that Eve was gone. Bell had never taken much time to think through it all, honestly, and so it was more that he wasn't sure what to think of this now that it had suddenly been brought up. Nevermind that he wasn't entirely convinced she was really gone for good. It was like she'd gone away for a while and might appear at any moment around the next corner. The idea that she had left forever was too much to wrestle with.
But whatever had been playing out on his features must have made Hermia-daughter-of-Anselm uncomfortable, because she'd changed the topic rather than try to talk about it, and now they were back on something he thought they'd already covered. Had she not heard him when he answered before, or did she simply not think his answer was sufficient?
"I didn't," he said again, but continued on with slightly more detail this time. "I was tutored by different people. People all over the world," he explained. He personally thought this was preferable over a boarding school, and not only because the boarding school required them to stay in one place for the entire year. His education had been different from his siblings', because it had been guided by his own interests; he'd been able to devote special attention to the charm work behind moving portraits, for instance, that would have bored Eden or Val, and they'd gone more deeply into other subjects that he had very little interest in. Who wouldn't choose that over some standardized curriculum?
But whatever had been playing out on his features must have made Hermia-daughter-of-Anselm uncomfortable, because she'd changed the topic rather than try to talk about it, and now they were back on something he thought they'd already covered. Had she not heard him when he answered before, or did she simply not think his answer was sufficient?
"I didn't," he said again, but continued on with slightly more detail this time. "I was tutored by different people. People all over the world," he explained. He personally thought this was preferable over a boarding school, and not only because the boarding school required them to stay in one place for the entire year. His education had been different from his siblings', because it had been guided by his own interests; he'd been able to devote special attention to the charm work behind moving portraits, for instance, that would have bored Eden or Val, and they'd gone more deeply into other subjects that he had very little interest in. Who wouldn't choose that over some standardized curriculum?
