Staring into his eyes, I see them open up in shock as he looks directly at me and says, "You're my daughter."
The music playing in the background comes to a halt, and all of the dancing folk quickly turn to look at both of us in the middle of the tavern and stare.
The tension within the room becomes so thick that I can feel my bones rattle at the force of all their stares towards me. I try to open my mouth to speak, but fear of everything around me hits all at once.
I don't know these people; they're all stronger than me, my mother doesn't know where I am, if I were to run, I would lead them all back to my home. Will I die today?
The fear born from all of these thoughts paralyses me in place, leading tears to form in my eyes, yet before they can fall, they are wiped away, and I am soon lifted up even higher in the air, and Clifford says, "No way! I didn't know I had a daughter. This is amazing."
The cheers and screams in the room ignite once again, and as the music starts playing, the fever that once existed rises to new heights unknown to the tavern at the time.
Feeling all the pressure around me relieved in an instant, I feel tears run down my face like a waterfall, and start sniffling rapidly. Holding me, Clifford says, "Ehh, are you okay?"
"I, was, so, scared!" I say while the tears take control of every inch of my face. "I, will, try, to stop."
He pulls me close into his chest, and says, "Don't worry little girl, everything will be ok. Just rest now, we will talk a bit later. You don't need to keep on crying."
His chest is hard and warm, his hand is strong yet firm, his voice is tough but filled with joy. Right now, I feel a sense of comfort within him, only rivalled by what I feel with my mother.
"Let's go find somewhere to sit down."
-Break-
As I lay my body on a bed, my father sits on the floor beside me and says, "Everything okay now?" With a big smile on his face.
Looking at his jolly demeanour, I say, "I feel better, but my body still shakes a bit. I am sorry about that."
"Don't worry at all, it's normal to shake when you get involved in new things. God knows I have done my fair share of it."
"Really? Why?"
"Oh, because I am an adventurer."
"What's an adventurer? Mom has brought it up before, but I don't really understand it."
"Adventurers, or by our old name, Hunters, are a group of people registered with Cordum's hunters/adventurers guild. Together, we take on a series of odd jobs that we are given by the guild all over the world, and use them to gain influence and wealth. Lots of famous adventurers went on to become heroes of great renown or even famous kings/queens."
With my heart beating faster, I say, "That sounds awesome!" While jumping up a bit from my bed!
He quickly uses his two fingers to push my head back down into the pillow and says, "I thought the same thing as a kid, so I became one."
"That must mean you've travelled around the world quite often, doesn't it? Have you become a hero of great renown?"
He gives me a smile while rubbing the back of his head, and says, "Well, at least half of that is true. I have yet to join any of the Rainbow Clans."
"Rainbow? Like the thing that appears in the sky. Mother told me you become one with the rainbow when you die and fly through the sky like an angel."
"If only it were that easy. Clans are groups of adventurers who work together under a contract, and the Rainbow are the 7 strongest groups of adventurers. They have all shown themselves to be experts of their craft, and they can receive ridiculous amounts of funding from Cordum through the guild. Everyone's star destination."
"Do you plan on joining them?"
"It's probably a little too late for an old man like m-."
"No, it isn't. I, I think you're really cool and kind. I have been feeling calm this entire time I was around you. I get scared really easily, yet you where able to calm them, I think anyone would love to have you around."
"Thank you," he says with a soft smile on his face. He rubs my head and ruffles my hair, and I feel the tenseness of his hand fall upon my head, causing me to reach over and rub his head as well.
As I do this, he starts to burst out in laughter, and my embarrassment surges within me, causing me to say, "What's so funny!"
"It must be genetic, because your mother always used to do that to me."
"Really? You'd want that brute ruffling your head."
"What has she done to get her little doppelganger to go around calling her a brute?"
"She is always raising her voice and yelling whenever I try to help. Like she thinks she can do everything by herself, and never wants to accept my efforts towards her!"
"Well, isn't that funny."
"Why would it be funny?"
"No reason, but you should make an effort to lay off of her because sometimes things like receiving help from someone you're meant to protect can make you feel worse than anything else in the world."
Seeing the sadness in his eyes, I blow a kiss towards him and say, "Everything will be fine!"
He giggles and says, "Where did you learn that move? Do you have a man already, my little girl, or is your mother's boyfriend a real gentleman?"
"Mother has no man, and my little brother enjoys receiving my kisses towards them."
"Little brothers? I have sons!"
"You have six of them, sextuples."
He puts his hands against his face, and says, "Is you're mother okay? How did she even push their six big heads out?"
"Mother is quite a beast, you would know that when she smacks you on the head."
"Oh boy, do I. How is life for you guys? What do you guys do on a daily basis? Is she doing alright?"
Putting my finger in front of my dad's face, I swing it from side to side, and say, "Ah, ah, ahh! If you want some answers to those questions, I will need something in return."
"A businesswoman, I like that. Do you want some candy?"
"No, I would like to learn about your life."
He stares at me, surprised for a moment before saying, "Really? My life doesn't sound that interesting to a child like you."
"IT DOES!" I say constantly shaking my hands in excitement. Calming down, I say, "Sorry, that wasn't really ladylike."
"Surprised you turned out as ladylike as you already are, considering who raised you. But moving past that, I would be happy to share whatever story you need. What do you want to hear about?"
"Oh! How you and your mother first met."
"That's a good one. Well, I was part of a group of young would-be adventurers in Enotita, since many of Enotita's countries have regulations against the actions adventurers can take, we all hoped to move to Cordum and make it big. During our little petty adventures, we spent a lot of time in really cheap villages where I was able to meet your mom."
"How was Mom in her youth?"
"She was a dreamer, I think even a bigger dreamer than any of us could ever be. Her eyes were filled with expectations for the world, so intense that looking at them too long could make you feel like you're drowning. Though at the same time she met those expectations, she put on people and the world around her."
"Really? My mother was a dreamer."
"She is the kind of woman who'd do something reckless and foolish if her emotions felt like it, though she was smart enough to get herself out of it. Picking a fight with strangers, but making sure to poison them beforehand. Asking to be sent to school, but already showing the benefits of her education to everyone beforehand. Asking to join an adventurer on a journey, but caring and entertaining him for so long that deep in his heart, he knows he could never be apart from her existence. She's a woman who wanted a handsome, famous husband, the knowledge to be able to hold her own in conversation between intellectuals and higher-class individuals, and the home and clothes that could only be afforded by those who stand at the top of society. She was ambitious, and I am sure the big home you all live in is full of excitement and fun."
"We don't live in a big home, we live in the forest."
Confused, he says, "What?"
"Since my younger brothers were born 9 years ago, we have lived in the forest by the village. I think it's cause Mother wanted to watch over you. I always wondered why, but it's because she wants to keep you near to us."
He freezes, then smiles for a moment and says, "That feels really good to hear. Žudrė, you're a good girl, you know that?"
I twiddle with my hair while blushing, and I say, "Really? Can I hear more?"
"Of course, but I need to get those stories for myself."
"Alright, what else do you want to know?"
"How about funny things that have happened in and around where you live!"
"I see, so where will I begin?"
-Break-
Standing in the middle of the forest, I wave my hand towards my father standing by the village, and turning, I start to run up the forest towards my house perched on top of the hill.
I move as quickly and as nimbly as possible, filled with so much joy and excitement that I can feel my body move forward on its own with barely any input from me.
I rush towards home, and I say, "We can't leave, we can't leave yet."
Arriving, I see the front door of my house, and rush inside, before my mother's room to see she is snoring with the force to shake the very ground into pieces.
Quickly, I turn and head to my room, and use the six ogres lying across my bed as covers, which I hold tight. Under my breath, I say, "It turns out we might have a really good reason to stay here after all. I will make sure we all get to see him, and if everything turns out ok, we might even get to be a big family again. I can't wait."
-Break-
Struggling in his arms, I say, "LET GO OF ME!"
And in anger, the man bashes me against the ground, causing cuts and bruises to appear across the right side of my body. Looking up in pain, I see the flickering orange flames that light up my home grow even further, and as tears fall from my eyes in pain, I hear all six of my brothers crying and screaming, "MOMMMY!"
Gathering strength in my neck, I turn my head and look towards my brothers, held to the ground with a series of grown men restraining each of their muscly arms, and on her knees, I see my mother surrounded by a series of men as blood rushes down from her cuts.
What's going on? Why are the villagers here? I need to find some way out of this!
My mother raises her hands, and two swords appear and impale them into the ground. Then a voice says, "Keep her arms down; if you don't, she will be able to turn her mental anguish into a shield."
Hearing the voice I have played in my head over and over, standing above my mother, I look at the man holding the swords, and say, "Daddy?"