Bonding
Waking up again the smell of food fills my nose. Lifting my head from mama’s lap I look around and find a huge assortment of food spread out on different picnic blankets around me.
“Good morning, dear. Did you sleep well?”
“Yeah…What is all this?”
“Our chefs made some food, feel free to eat as much as you want. Anything you don’t eat I will eat, so don’t be afraid of anything going to waste. Just eat to your heart's content and make sure to drink plenty of fluids.”
“Okay.”
Crawling on a giant blanket in a giant room and being surrounded by tons of normal sized food feels very surreal. Looking around, I see some flavored milks so I drink a big mug of chocolate milk and already feel kind of full. Craving something salty I eat a handful of fries covered in cheese and lay down again.
“Are you done already, dear?”
“Yeah, I’m not really that hungry.”
“I see…”
Walking over to me, mama sits down right next to me and gently pets my back, “Does this feel good? I was told you don’t like your back touched but it’s okay when there is a layer of cloth in the middle.”
“The warmth is nice but I don’t really feel the touch.”
“Would it be alright if we try something, my dear? I’d like to try touching the skin of your back in a way that doesn’t hurt.”
“I-I dunno. I guess we could try.”
“Thank you for trusting me so far, could you take off your shirt please.”
“S-sure.”
Taking off my shirt I lay back down on my belly.
“I’ll start now.”
Suddenly feeling warmth traveling down my back I feel no touch but I still feel weird.
“Wh-what are you doing?”
“I’m just slowly moving my hands above your back. What you’re feeling right now is just my body heat. Does it hurt?”
“N-no it f-feels nice but also w-weird.”
“Can you describe what you mean when you say you feel weird?”
“I- no not really. My teeth are chattering a little…I-I think I’m a little scared and I feel the urge to make weird sounds.”
“That’s alright, let out those sounds all you want. There is no need to feel embarrassed in front of me.”
After some hesitation I let out a weird mix of whimpering, sobbing and moaning sounds.
“I-I’m sorry, this-I shouldn’t be doing this.”
Trying to stand up I feel her warm hand on my shoulder, “It’s alright. You’re not making me feel any less of you by letting out those sounds. They’re just a mix of sadness, pain and uncertainty that has built inside you. You don’t need to hold them in anymore. You can tell me anything, my daughter. Whether it is through language or sounds, just let out those feelings.”
“Ar-are you sure? Don’t you feel disgusted or embarrassed by it?”
“Not at all. I feel glad hearing it because it means you have less of a burden to carry by yourself. So please lay back down, my dear and just let it out.”
“O-okay.”
Laying back down, mama continues and I let out all those sounds that I was too scared to let anyone hear before until I feel like I’ve let them all out. And now that they’re all out, those noises that I was holding in don’t need to come out anymore so I can just enjoy the warm feeling on my back.
“Are you feeling better now, my dear?”
“Yes…I still feel a little weird but you were right. I feel better now that all those noises are out.”
“Then are you okay with going to the next step?”
“Th-there is more?”
“Only if you trust me and want to try it.”
“I…Okay let’s continue.”
“I’ll lay one of my fingers onto your back now, are you ready?”
“Yes…Eek!”
Feeling her finger touch me feels almost like a needle piercing my back so I let out another disgusting sound.
“Are you okay? Was it too much?”
“It-It hurt a little but we can continue.”
“No, let’s stop here for now. We can try again tomorrow, until then just enjoy the warmth on your back from my body heat.”
“O-okay. I’m sorry for being weird.”
“Pfft Don’t worry, everyone in this family is a little odd. You’ve been around Scarlet enough that you should know she is a bit weird as well.”
“That’s true, haha.”
“Say, was she flirting around while you were traveling together?”
“No? I don’t think manya has much of an interest in dating.”
“Ooooh~ So she hasn’t told you, huh?”
“Told me what?”
“That she’s kind of a notorious flirt. It’s like every decade she brings home a new partner.”
“Really? I didn’t think she’d like that sorta stuff.”
“It’s almost like ever since she started puberty she only has love on her mind.”
“Can you tell me more about what Scarlet was like here and as a kid?”
“Of course! Let’s see…Oh! Before I start, did you experience Scarlet as more of a calculating person trying to keep up their image or as a bit of a goofy person that just does what she wants?”
“Definitely the second. Though sometimes she is very calm and competent around other people.”
“Then you’ve already gotten to know her pretty well! You see, Scarlet always had this weird personality where she’s dumb, honest and kind when she’s with her friends and family but gets quite calculating and ruthless when it comes to strangers. I’m glad she treated you like family from the beginning.”
“When you say ruthless, what do you mean?”
“Well, Scarlet has always been a bit of a bully. She’s the sort of person you want as your friend but not as your enemy. That’s why she always got those ridiculous nicknames in the academy, like ‘The Black Rose’, ‘The Bloody Tongue’ or ‘The Maneater’. She definitely has the makings of a villainess. Chuckle.”
“Hey! Don’t call her that! Scarlet is a good person!”
“Of course she is. Personally I don’t think being a villain is a bad thing, I’d rather you and Scarlet become villains than heroes.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, a hero is someone that always sacrifices themselves and others if need be for the sake of the world. A villain is someone that would sacrifice the world for themselves and everyone they care about. So I’d rather you be a villain that does cruel acts for the sake of your happiness than someone that is cruel to themselves for the sake of others.”
“But in the end a villain is hated and gets killed, right?”
“In story books maybe. But in real life the heroes always get taken advantage of and either die or see themselves become the villains they so desperately fought.”
“Huh…So what did Scarlet do that made her a villain?”
“Oh, tons of things. For example, when one of her friends got bullied by someone for being a lower ranked noble, Scarlet made it her mission to collect every bit of unflattering true information about those people, mixed it with even worse false information and then spread it around the school. Those poor kids still have a bad reputation from that day…”
“But…That seemed justified, right? She only bullied the bullies back, right?”
“Yes, but she did go a bit overboard on purpose to make everyone fear harming her and her friends. That’s what villains usually do.”
“I guess…What else did she do?”
“Oh, well she's a notorious flirt. She went around flirting with anyone she liked with no care of whether they were in a relationship or engaged. Sigh I still remember all the formal complaint letters of supposed ‘perfect relationships’ and engagements she destroyed, kikikiki.”
“Did she try to break people up on purpose?”
“Not really. She just threw out the fishing lines everywhere that seemed promising and then waited for them to bite.”
“I see…That doesn’t seem that bad either though.”
“Well, imagine if you were one of those people that lost the one they love to her. You’d think she’s pretty evil.”
“I guess…But if they really were in love they wouldn’t have just left them right?”
“Heh, now you’re sounding just like Scarlet. That is definitely one way to see it, yes.”
“What else did she do that would make her a villain?”
“Hmm…Oh! She did cheat on basically every test.”
“Really? Did she get caught?”
“Nope. Never.”
“Then how do you know she cheated?”
“Well…Scarlet is smart, don’t get me wrong. But she is not ‘Spend all my time having fun and then acing every test’ smart. I would have believed she didn’t cheat if she didn’t get a perfect score on almost every test.”
“Hmm…I guess that was something bad she did. Did you punish her?”
“Of course not. I threw her a party instead.”
“What? Why?”
“Because if you have the skills to cheat on every test and never be caught you have skills far greater than just learning and regurgitating information. She probably put more effort into cheating than she would have had to put into just studying and getting the same scores.”
“But isn’t cheating bad?”
“Sometimes, yes. But it’s also a great skill to have and I’m so proud of her for being good at it. Scarlet has always been a person that preferred creative solutions over just doing what she was told. So I’m very glad she can live that out and still be successful.”
“Everything you say makes sense but I still feel like it’s not quite right. Isn’t it normal to punish your child for doing something they’re not supposed to?”
“Yes but being normal is so boring. I’d rather be happy and follow my own path than be normal and I’d like for you two to do the same. Even if that path ends up just being the normal one anyways, kikikiki.”
“You’re a bit weird…”
“Yep. Like I said we’re all oddballs in this family. Now how about I brush your hair for a bit?”
“Okay…Weirdo…”
Chuckle
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”