I had thought that Ether guy might put off telling me the stuff I wanted to know until after his guest came and left. However, it was actually the next day, when he had given the boys their breakfast, that he suddenly blew those expectations away.
[Aerien, would you like to come with me and talk about what we were talking about yesterday?] He asked with a very put-on smile. It looked like he was still a bit unprepared for what he was about to tell me, but I definitely had to give him credit for not making me wait too long.
The boys had an uncertain look on their faces in response. Gaerien, meanwhile, seemed fairly satisfied things were moving this fast. My response was obvious. I gave him a big natural baby's smile with my whole face, and then I lifted up my arms in a "carry me" pose as I reached for him. I have to say, the look on Levin's face when Ether guy picked me up out of his lap was actually kinda cute. It seemed like he actually felt a little betrayed that I had willingly allowed someone other than him to pick me up.
After this, Ether guy carried me over to the top of the stairs leading down. He did not go down those stairs though. Instead, he turned to the wall opposite them and put his hand on it. I knew what came next. In the days since we came here, we had all witnessed this happen every day, sometimes even more than once in the same day. Part of the portion of the wall that jutted out from the rest of the outer wall receded until it was flush with the outside wall. What was left after the top half of a diagonal cut of this portion of wall had receded were stairs leading upward.
None of us had ever been up those stairs before. However, since Ether guy always went up there every night it was pretty clear that was the way to his bedroom. It seemed he wanted to make this discussion a little more private than the confrontation I had set up the previous day.
He carried me up, and once he reached the top of the stairs he placed his hand on the outer wall of the building, and then the floor behind us closed leaving this as a circular room with no exit what so ever. I began to look around the room. What I saw, was. Well, it really did not look like any bedroom I would choose to sleep in. There was a bed in the room tucked into a far corner, but that was about the only bedroom-like thing about it.
There was no two ways of looking at it. This was the perfect image of what would be called a magician's laboratory. It looked less like he had his lab equipment in his bedroom and a lot more like some lab tech had decided to bring their bed to their lab because they were too obsessed with research and wanted to just sleep right next to their experiments.
The majority of the room was dominated by a two long counters full of work stations and set up with multiple pieces of equipment. Some seemed to be things Aerien recognized from her previous life. Test tubes, flasks, beakers, distilling coils, and something that was probably what qualified as a burner in this world. However, there were a lot of other things that could only be some kinds of magical objects. And, just as would be expected from an elf, there were a lot of plants in this laboratory.
The outer walls seemed to be full of cabinets and other storage devices. If this was anything like an Earth laboratory, there should also be something that served as an incubator or a place for cultured items or experiments that needed a growth or settling in period. These outer counters also seemed to have a number of living plants, as one would expect from such a set-up. Aerien may have not recognized exactly what any of these things were, but the logic of how this room was arranged seemed to follow pretty well with what one would expect from a proper lab set-up.
Overall, he seemed to keep the area pretty neat and well kept. There seemed to be a few active experimental items and equipment on the central tables which should be the active work stations, but for the most part the majority of the items were on the outer counters and arranged in a neat fashion and over half the space in the center counters was clear so that a new experiment could be started at any time without having to clear away space and risk misplacing materials or messing up something that's still ongoing.
Ether guy carried me around the room for a little while, looking about presumably for where we were going to set up for our conversation. He briefly eyed one of the center lab tables, but then seemed to chuckle at himself and shake his head. Ultimately, he wound up carrying me over to the bed. He placed me on his bed, while he himself got down to sit on the floor.
[Alright,] he said with an uncomfortable expression and avoided eye contact with me. [So, I told you I would tell you everything you wanted to know, right? Well, let's see where should I begin…] This seemed like it was probably going to take a while, and I immediately noticed I was sitting in the middle of the bed without any back support. This might become an issue later, especially since I had grown so used to always using Levin's chest or arm as my back-rest. The worst part was actually exactly the thing that Ether guy had probably done out of consideration for me. If I was looking up at him, that would align my spine a little differently, and it would be easier to sit here like this for a long period of time. However, with my head tilted down at him, that bowed my spine and put extra stresses on my back muscles. That was going to definitely become an issue if this discussion lasted for too long.
Well, it would probably distract and discourage him if I started acting to fix this problem immediately. Let's just sit and listen to him for now and see if I can find a way to get a little back support later.
Ether guy looked up, having apparently arrived at where he was going to start this off. [Well then, first I think I should probably ask you something. Have Levin or Rolwen ever talked about their mother or father?]
"umma..?" [yeaah..?] I responded, not even having to pretend to be confused by this question.
[Do you know what a mother and father are?] He asked. Well, of course I did, but then I realized why he was probably asking this question. I had never even once encountered my father in this world, and the day I was born was the very last day I had any contact what so ever with my mother to my knowledge. I was a bit cautious now after realizing I had been mistaken for a changeling yesterday, so I should probably stick to the expected answer for now and pretend not to know what the words mother and father refer to. I don't think I can seriously answer his question with a "no," so instead I simply kept quiet and stared back at him.
Ether guy let out a sigh, and I felt really bad for him as he had a clearly troubled look on his face as he tried to figure out how to explain what a mother and father were to someone like me who had never even experienced even one single bit of contact with their parents, at least not in this life.
[Well, your mother and father, they… they are the reason why babies like you get born. You need both of them in order to make a baby because they both give a part of themselves in order to make you. Normally, after you are born, they also are supposed to take care of you, but… well, things are a little harder in your case.] Poor Ether guy. I really do sorta feel bad for him for making him explain this sorta thing. It's obviously painful for him too. However, I really can't find any reasonable explanation for how I should know something that would let him off the hook here. Plus, I had some suspicion as to where this conversation might be going.
[Anyway, your father was… he was not like normal elves like me, your mother, or any of the other elves here in this village. He was something called a dark elf. People are normally afraid of dark elves, so, it would be very bad if anyone found out about your father.] He looked up at me after he said this, and then he reached out to put his hand on the bed next to my leg.
[You see how my skin is different from the color of your skin Aerien? Well, that's because of your father being a dark elf. An elf's skin can also get that color if they are really sick, but for you it's not because you are sick, it's actually normal. But, you know how I said that people are afraid of dark elves? Well, they will be afraid of you too if they find out your father was a dark elf. And, they might do bad things to you.]
Well, things were definitely starting to make sense now. Actually, I already had my suspicions this might be the case. This was not the first time I had heard of the concept of dark elves. They were not that prominent in older fantasies, they were mostly the product of more modern brands of gaming.
The origin of the modern stories about dark elves actually originated from the Lord of the Rings trilogy in which the Orcs were a mutated and corrupted form of elf. However, following that series, the Orcs became their own species that had no connection to elves what so ever. This did not stop the image of a corrupted and mutated form of elf that was buried in the collective consciousness from going away though, and soon the hole left by the Orcs was filled with the name "dark elf," keeping the name simple and this time explicitly tying it to the elven race.
Given the relatively recent introduction of dark elves into Earth's fantasy lore, I was not completely certain they would exist in this world. Although, it actually was something I had considered several times looking at the difference in my skin color. It just seemed like a pretty reasonable conclusion. But, due to my doubts, I never really fully committed to believing it. However, I guess now I have my confirmation. So, dark evles actually do exist in this world. And, judging by the fact that my mother was also not around and seemed to have abandoned Gaerien and I immediately after our birth, I suppose it might be reasonable to assume the union between this dark elf and our mother was not a Romeo and Juliet situation.
Taking my silence as confusion, Eirlathion let out a sigh. [I don't know if you can understand any of that, but… well, the thing is that people might hurt you if they see you and realize your father was a dark elf. If they think you are sick they might not notice, but if they realize you are healthy then they might realize your father was a dark elf, and then they might hurt you. That's why I was always telling everyone that you were sick.]
[Do you understand all of that Aerien?] He asked.
[Yeah.] I respond again.
[Really,] he says with a doubtful expression. [You know what? You're pretty smart Aerien, but it's Ok if you are confused about what I just told you about.] He fixes me with a searching expression, probably wondering whether or not he should keep talking about this more. [Anyway, the important thing is, you can't go outside and if anyone sees you then you have to make them think you are sick.]
Again, I decide to not really say anything. Instead, I just match his gaze for a little while. It is perfectly normal for a baby to not talk much after all, especially one that's just learning to talk. Babies just learning to talk are more likely to listen a lot to adults talking, and then give a lot of one word responses to things when they think they should be saying something. Most of the time though, they just return everything with a confused look as their brains try to process the words they just heard as their brains are still unfamiliar with the language and are just figuring it out.
[Do you understand Aerien? If somebody finds out your father was a dark elf, they might hurt you, so you can't go outside.]
[Ok.] I respond, going into my character as a baby and giving the appropriate response. Eirlathion seems to look relieved at this.
[Ok. And also, if there is anyone else around, I need you to stay really really close to Levin all the time, Ok? You're supposed to be pretending you are sick, and sick children like to stay very close to humans. So, if you see anyone other than me, I don't want you to go away from Levin at all, Ok?]
[Yeah!] I reply.
[Alright, that's good.] He says, sighing in relief. [Well, I guess I might have to tell Gaerien about this sort of thing too when she's ready.] He makes an unpleasant expression at that.
[I'll tell her!] I respond, finally having something completely in character I can say that would ease his burden a little.
[Really? That's good then. Just make sure Gaerien also knows she shouldn't go too far away from Rolwen on her own.]
[Yeah!] I gave him an assuring smile, to which he responded with a light smile of his own. His face darkened a second later though, and he looked like he had more to say.
[There was something else I wanted to talk to you about too Aerien.] He said with a somewhat serious face. [You know how I talked about mothers and fathers before? Well, your mother is going to be coming here in a couple days. You remember how I told you about a guest coming over?]
I sat up in surprise and looked at him at this. My mother was coming? That was his guest he was wanting to have over!? That… really gave me a lot of mixed feelings, especially considering what I just heard. The one I decided to let show on my face was the one that should be most appropriate though. That this had absolutely nothing to do with me. The reason he was probably having her over was so that he could start trying to have her interact with us more, so it really had a lot to do with me and Gaerien and it was going to affect pretty much our entire group in a big way if suddenly mine and Gaerien's mom was around all of a sudden, especially if this went what would be considered "well" from his standard and this became a much more regular thing.
In my case though, my mother was my mother from my previous life, and she had long since passed away. My mother from this life had done nothing to build a bond with me, and therefore she meant absolutely nothing to me. I had some sympathy for her and her situation, and there was no good reason to deny her the chance to see her children if she was going to finally try to do so, even if that child was me. However, it would really be all the same to me if she didn't do a thing and just stayed gone. In fact, it might even be a bit of an inconvenience that she was coming into my life now all of a sudden. Those were my real emotions that I couldn't show. The only thing I could show was just the baseline indifference about it. The most appropriate thing for someone in my position to feel.
[Anyway, I told you it would be bad if anyone found out you were not sick, but… your mother is someone who already knows about who your father was, so she's not going to hurt you. You don't have to worry about her like you have to worry about other people.]
"Mmm…" I reasoned. Contrary to his assurances, I actually decided to put on a worried expression to this. Or rather, maybe it was the baby brain responding to Ether guy's tone. Or, it could even be the baby brain responding to how annoyed I felt at this whole thing all of a sudden now that I was able to get away with it. Whatever it was, I decided to tell myself it was just good acting, since that actually is a perfectly believable response given the situation as well.
[Don't worry,] he said. [Your mother just wants to get to know you better, it will be good for you to have her around.]
That was good advice to be sure. It should be a good thing for a child to be with their parents. My situation was just a little strange, and that's not just because of the whole past life thing. In fact, rather than my current self that never knew her mother, I was finding that it was actually my past self that was more skeptical to his words.
[Well, do you want to go back down to Levin now?] He asks. I know for sure that the large amounts of happiness I felt at that suggestion have to have been coming from my current self. A large smile spread across my face.
[Yeah!] I respond and begin reaching out to him. Ether guy gives a gentle chuckle at this and then immediately stands and picks me up.
-
(So, what did you talk about?)
The boys had held off on asking me anything about this until after they had finished eating and Ether guy had taken their plates back down stairs. Once again, we were sitting in our little corner of the room, and this time everyone was curious, including Gaerien.
(Well, it seems Ether guy had a good reason for this stuff. Me and Gari are not normal elves.) Gaerien made an unpleasant face at this.
(Is it really dark elves then?) She asks. I had already filled her in on my suspicions about the whole thing before the confrontation a while back ever happened in one of our mind-to-mind discussions. Talking out loud was still rather frustrating with my unfused hard palate, so I couldn't have long discussions to explore possibilities with the boys. I could only do that sort of thing with Gaerien. As such, she was completely filled in on all of my suspicions.
(Yeah, our dad was a dark elf. He didn't say anything, but I think it was rape how we were born.) This got similarly harsh looks from the boys. I'm not sure how well they were understanding the implications of us being half dark elves, but it definitely seemed like hearing that Gaerien and I were children of rape got to them. That, at least, was a concept from our previous life that could be quite easily understood.
(So is that why your mommy's not anywhere around too?) Levin asks.
(Other way around,) I answered. (That's the reason I don't think it was her choice.) Yes, I hadn't been told anything directly, but it seemed entirely reasonable to suspect given the circumstances. Still, I knew better than to make too much of a definite statement and later be proven wrong. And also, I guess despite the very strong evidence pointing in that direction, I still wanted to hold out a hope that it wasn't true.
(Anyway,) I continued, (Ether guy is trying to hide that we are half dark elves from the rest of the people here by saying we are sick. It seems like they might want to hurt us if they find out. So, if there is ever someone else around who can see us, we are supposed to cling to you two and not be too energetic.)
(Ok, so, we should do that when Ether guy's guest comes over?) Levin asked, having followed the conversation to this point.
"bwell… acsuu…. AHH!"
(Actually?) Rolwen once again offered the word I was having trouble with.
(Yees!) I groan in annoyance. It was a fun little gag at first, but now it really was getting annoying how I kept having this situation come up. (But what I want to say is, it's actually mommy who's Ether guy's guest, so she already knows of course.)
(Ok.) Levin responds.
(I still think we should act like me and Gari are sick though. It would let us pra… err.. try it, and also be good for our other cover.) They all gave nods at this. (This does bring up one other thing though. I don't know bout mommy yet, but do we want to keep lying to Ether guy? It will make it easier if we let him know.)
(Well… I don't know. And… what if he tells your mom!?) Rolwen protests.
(We're not going to tell them now, I just wanted you to start thinking about it.) I told them. (I actually don't like elves much either, and I am one. Ether guy seems like a good guy though, and he can keep a secret. I don't know if I want to tell him either, but he does sound trust worthy from up there today I think.)
After some more assurances, we decided to put that matter on hold and began discussing the issue of how to handle our mother's visit in more detail. The boys were already familiar with the whole thing with elves being fed by spirit energy, it had been explained to them quite thoroughly by Ether guy back when we were in the nursery. As such, it was just a matter of trying to make sure our acting didn't look TOO good, but still relayed that we decided not to trust this new guest that was coming because we had been scared by the warnings he had given and I had passed along.
Who knows? If Ether guy sees that we are getting good at hiding this as well, he might let up a little and allow Levin and Rolwen's siblings over for a visit.