| Aurok |
He's a weird kid. The guards went up to me this afternoon and brought a child with them. He looks like a young adult. I showed him around the house and couldn't get him to say a word. When I showed him the runes, his face lit up. He looked curious. He looked happy. Making this kid happy made me happy.
I've always wanted a family. My parents were loving and cherished me. During all of my childhood, I would always be accompanied by them. Until one day. That day. The day my parents were killed.
It was a few years back, about 10 to 15. My parents took me to go see the capital for a few days. My parents friend was getting married and they couldn't possibly miss this. During the wedding, a girl around my age asked for my name. I've never seen a girl like her. She had beautiful hair and her smile was radiant. It's as if she was an angel descended upon our realm and blessed the world with happiness. We spent the whole day together. We ran around, played together, talked together and enjoyed our time together. At some point, she leaned it closer, uncomfortably close, kissably close. I was young at the time and as a teenager, I couldn't resist her charm. She kissed me. On the cheek. She chuckled and said "You are mine now". I didn't think much of it at the time. I should've. I really should have.
Eventually, the day came to an end and so did our time together. I was a shy kid, but I felt the need to ask her for her name. Lumalia. The way she pronounced her name made it feel like a song. It sounded harmonious and calm. When we embarked on the carriage. I saw her face. In front of the car. In the middle of the road. She had a grin on her face. It didn't fit her at all. She yelled "You are mine, mine only". I heard some splashes. From behind me. Where my parents are. Where my parents were. I turned around. I saw piles of flesh. On my parents' seat. The piles were capable of conversation, barely. They wailed, wept and cried. The pile at my father's place had an eye. A single one. It stared at me.
"T-this"
It started to talk. I could recognize my fathers voice but not his tone.
"I-it's"
I looked over to my mom, or what was left of her.
"A-all"
"Your fault"
I could hear laughter, uncontrollable laughter. Coming from behind me. I slowly turned, expecting the worst, not that it could become much worse than it already is. Lumalia. She's the source of the horrible sound that haunts me to this day. She was the source of the laughter. She was the source of my parents death. I thought that way. But I remembered. My parents said it was my fault. I shouldn't have trusted her. I didn't even doubt her intention. She gained my trust. And crushed it, destroyed it.
She kept staring at me. With her crimson pupils. The pupils I fell in love with. The pupils who watched me play into her plans. The pupils that made me kill my parents.
"You are soooo foolish"
Her voice still sounds as good as it did before, if not better.
"Did you really think anyone would ever come up to you wishing you good things in life?"
Her voice still sounds as good as it did before.
"You are gullible, your lack of judgment made it so easy to control you"
Her voice sounds as good as it did.
"You killed your parents with your insolence"
Her voice sounds good.
I loved her.
They say love makes one blind. They couldn't be any more right. I didn't doubt her intentions. I didn't doubt her. I was blinded be what she made me feel. She made me feel loved, cherished, but not as a parent, as a lover. I fell in love with the feeling. And she used it.
From that day on, I never forgave myself for my mistakes. I never accorded anyone my trust. I only made them think they did. The more I pretended, the more I felt like her. The more I hated myself. To forgive myself, I helped. I gave to people what I couldn't have. I gave them food, services, help. But I never gave them love. I never wanted to. Even though I was helping, I wasn't helping myself. I left. I isolated myself. Made myself a house. Brick by brick, rock by rock. It stood proud. After years of living alone in peace, I made peace with the fact that I killed my parents. I accepted it. Learnt to leave with it. But never forgot about it. It always lingers into my mind. I finally came back in contact with a village. They didn't know me. They didn't know what I did. They didn't want to know what I did. They liked me, they appreciated me. I felt at home, for the first time in a long time. Way too much time. I helped, and it helped me.
They offered me a house. After all the work I had done for the village, the mayor felt like he owed me something. But I humbly refused. I didn't need a house. I needed to help and feel good. Whenever there would be a problem people would come to me. Not expecting help. Just trying to get help. And they would get it.
The boy reminded me of myself. I don't know anything about his life or conditions, but I can safely assume he didn't have parents growing up. I know the importance of having a parental figure to inspire you, and I want to be his. So he matures right.
He looks talented in Runic. I'll teach him so he gets a head start. I even got the chance to name him. Ito. My parents wanted to call me that. When they saw my face. They immediately changed idea and went for Aurok because they used to say "You looked sturdy as a kid and Aurok sounds sturdier than Ito". I never understood what they meant by that. It was so dumb. But it just made me love my name even more.
I'll head to sleep. I'm sure the kid will be fine when he wakes up, I have a feeling he's gone through much, much worse.
The morning sun has never felt better than it did today. It felt warmer than the other days, indicating that it was soon going to be summer, the season of crops, the season of hard, manual labor. I rush to go see Ito, when I get to the cellar, he is already awake and well. He sat at a table, by himself. Looking out the window, contemplating the morning sun. I joined him, he looked so glad to see that I was there. It made me smile.
"Good morning, the sun sure does feel nice doesn't it?"
I don't expect an answer. I didn't get him to talk yesterday so I doubt it'll happen to day.
"Want to go for a walk? I'll show you around the plantation"
He smiled. With a bright look in his eyes. A look of happiness. I brought him outside and started showing him the fields. After a couple minutes, I notice that he is wearing the same clothes as yesterday. I suddenly feel extremely dumb. I didn't give him any clothes or shoes.
"Stay here, I'll go get you something for your feet"
He seem to have understood what I meant and let me leave him without reacting much. As I get inside the house I quickly make my way upstairs to go grab sandals that don't fit me anymore and exit the house as fast as I left. I see him standing in the same spot as where I left him and feel relieved.
"Here, try these on, they might be a bit big but I hope they at least protect your feet a little"
He tries to put them on and eventually manages to buckle them nice and tight.
"Are they comfortable?"
He looks at me and his eyes say a thousand words. From what I can deduce, they fit him well and he likes them. I start making my way towards the potato farm. Once we get there, he falls on his knees and starts analyzing the plant. He can see the leaves and try to touch them. When does, he looks mesmerized. I remember the first time I've ever grew a plant. My parents wanted a tree in our yard. They bought a big tree seed at the market. We watered it every day, gave it fertilizer and we saw progress, it started to sprout. As days, weeks, months and years passed, it grew bigger and bigger. I can still feel the emotion from when I first saw it come to fruition, I was so ecstatic to find a fruit in it that I ate immediately. Ever since that day, I've been growing my own food and enjoying meals that I fully prepared.
After finishing up the tour we started to head back inside. On the way, I picked up five potatoes and 3 tomatoes. I handed a tomato to Ito and we arrived to the house. I started started a fire and took a pan. I cut the tomatoes into 14 thick slices and put them in the pan. I prepared water to boil the potatoes. I go look in the pantry and realize that I don't have any more spices.
"Hey kiddo"
"Could you keep an eye on the stove ? I'll go buy some spices for our meal"
The only thing I get as an answer is his belly rumbling.
"Follow me for a second"
I lead him to the pantry and hand him a basket of apples. He takes one and bites in it. He likes it and takes another one.
"Stay put alright?"
He walks to the stove and starts staring at it. I gently close the door and make my way to the village. After a few minutes of walking, I get to the market. Spices are expensive so I walk around to find the best offer. I find a stall with low prices and inspect the merchandise. They have chilli. It's really rare to find in this area of the continent. I talk to the merchant. I buy his product and head back home.
When I get back, I can find Ito standing at the same spot as when I left, I also notice the basket of apples is now empty. I chuckle and put the spices on the counter. I go check the stove and it's now hot enough. I cut the tomatoes in half and put them skin up on the pan. I go get a garlic clove, oil and an onion in the pantry. I chop the onions and the garlic into small pieces and add them to the pan. I sizzle with oil and put the pan on the stove. I let it rest and remove the peels from the tomatoes and keep them aside. After a few minutes of cooking, I take the pan off the stove and bring it on the counter. I bring the mixture to a stone grinder and add some water to make a soup. Ito is looking at it very intensely. Noticing that he is still hungry I take the tomato peels and put them on the pan. After a bit of cooking, they're ready to be eaten. I hand him one and he hesitately brings it to his mouth. I can hear a crunch and he seems to like the taste and texture.
"You sure do seem to like these"
He looks at me and nods. I am so happy that he is making progress. With every passing day, I feel like he understands more and more. I give him the plate containing the tomato peels and go back to the soup. I think I added too much water, the soup is very liquid and the consistency is not very pleasant. I put it in the pan and bring it to a boil to evaporate a bit of the water. I am now very proud of the result. The texture is nice and creamy, precisely what I wanted. I put it in a container and let it rest on the counter. I cut some bread and serve us.
He doesn't seem like a talker kind of person. More like a listener. I ask him how it went looking over the fire and, as expected, he doesn't answer and nods.
"How about we try something"
"When you nod your head it means yell
I slowly nod my head whilst saying that sentence.
"And when you want to say no, shake you par head sideways like this"
He looks at me and nods. It seems he understands.