Having bid farewell to Cerila yesterday, I was confused to see her the following morning. I was in the middle of my training with Dad when she came all the way back to my home just to fulfill her promise of learning sign language.
After I finished my morning training, I began teaching her. Since she lacked a way to communicate, I thought that her ability to learn and comprehend would be far below average. However, my concerns about her were unfounded, as I had also thought Cerila to be a shy and meek girl, but the resolve she had to learn dismantled any notion of that.
If anything she was driven and motivated to keep her promise to me, and I admired that greatly. For I was someone who wanted to uphold promises, so seeing the same thing in my new friend made me happy.
Of course, learning sign language was an arduous task for anyone, let alone a child. Sign language is a language that is complex and has all the nuances of a spoken language. Like nearly all languages, learning the basics isn't impossible, but mastering the language is extremely difficult.
Especially since nobody else in this entire world will be able to speak to her using it unless she or I teach them, and learning a language comes with practice and exposure.
But maybe since she is young, she will pick up on it faster. I had underestimated the power of a youthful mind before. It took me no time at all to become a master of Elvish, and I am well on my way to learning another language. But that might have more to do with the fact I've lived one life already.
Even though she was working hard, it would be some time before she learned the language. After reading lips and drawing words in the dirt for the first half of her life, she got her hands on this magical stone tablet, which has improved her life significantly.
But this was just a bandaid for the problem.
A conversation with Cerila was long and drawn out since you had to pass the heavy tablet back and forth to each other. And many children and even some adults didn't have the mana control to use the tablet or couldn't read and write as well as her. And some just simply didn't have the patience to bear with the task of communicating with Cerila.
This led to Cerila being completely isolated from others. That was until I came along. I have no intentions of abandoning Cerila now or ever just because she was deaf. Even if it took her many years to learn sign language, I would still continue to be her friend.
And having said that, it's only been a day and a half, and I can firmly say I enjoy being around her. When we weren't outside around other people and it was just me and Cerila, her entire demeanor was different. She didn't hide in her hood or avoid eye contact at all. It was a night and day difference.
Her positive outlook on everything was refreshing. I could learn a thing or two from her.
Cerila spent the entire morning and early afternoon yesterday learning without complaining or wanting to take a break. Not only that, she took the lessons in stride and was always smiling. Eventually, I was the one who had to step in and force her to take a breather. Rome wasn't built in a day, and we have plenty of time to learn. But she seemed hellbent on learning.
---
Today, Cerila came back to my home at the same time and watched me train with Dad. After the usual training session, we practiced sign language together once more. Then she took her break, and we continued afterward. I feared she might push herself too hard or even burn out at this rate, so I decided to end things around lunchtime today. I also had lessons with Grandpa today, and I didn't want to miss out on that either.
Currently, we were just outside of Grandpa's office in the center of the village. Cerila stopped and asked me a question,
She seemed conflicted about my answer as she closed her eyes and twitched her ears under her hood again. I noticed she did this whenever she was thinking hard about something. I had seen this look many times in the last day and a half of studying.
She took a deep breath and let it out slowly as she began to write again.
Now it was my turn to be confused. I didn't understand what Cerila wanted, but in a way, I guess she already is family. I always heard that people would consider close friends to be members of their family. So even though we had only known each other for a few days, I was confident that we had a lot in common and would become fast friends.
I could see her fangs as she beamed a smile at me. Just then, a very angry old man barged out the door. "What are you doing just standing outside the door? Wait, what," Grandpa's anger was quickly replaced with surprise as he just stood there and stared at us. Welp, here we go again.
"Kaladin and Cerila? Why are you two together?" My grandpa asked as his old face contorted into confusion. But wait, I didn't introduce Cerila. Does he know her?
"We are friends," I replied simply.
"You have a friend?!"
I think I'm about to cry.
—
I explained the events of the last few days to Grandpa. He didn't seem surprised about anything I did other than the fact that I made a friend. And his reaction to my fight with the boys was completely opposite of my parents.
"Aha, I should have known it was you that fought them." Grandpa was slapping his knee, and I could even see some tears roll down his eyes. "You should have seen them! They looked like they just got out of a life-or-death battle! You crushed that poor kid's family jewels with a single punch! Hahaha!"
Well, to be fair, I didn't want to do it. I simply had to. And what kind of doctor laughs about a patient's injury... then again what kind of teacher teaches a five-year-old dangerous magic.
Maybe my grandpa is a psychopath?
"Eh, I knew they were lying. They said some older kids were bullying them. But that dang Paul is a real troublemaker. To think he nearly gave himself mana sickness that way. But for you to take them all down by yourself, you are a real monster, huh? Guess that might be my fault," Grandpa said with a hint of pride.
"I just defended myself, that's all. And helped Cerila, of course," I said casually while flicking my hair in an exaggerated way.
Anyways, I had a more pressing question. "Hey grandpa, how do you know Cerila?"
Grandpa closed his eyes and scratched the stubble on his chin in thought. He let out a deep breath. "I've known her since she was born. Like many kids in this village, I helped bring them into this world. But Cerila was a different case. Normally, I do a few checkups on newborns to ensure everything is okay with them. Then, I read an old book that said you should see if an infant can respond to loud sounds after three months."
I vaguely remembered the old man coming back to visit me and him yelling in my face, I didn't know how to react to some random old Human yelling in my face, so I just screamed at him... well I tried to but it just came out as a cry.
Grandpa grew more and more solemn as he continued his monologue, "I'd not had a baby not cry after I did it. Cerila was the first. She didn't respond to any sounds I made or shed a tear. Both her siblings reacted and had no problems," Grandpa sat his face in his hands.
"Cerila's parents were beside themselves. They begged me for years to help cure her ears. But there was nothing I could do. My magic can heal wounds, cure diseases, and even regrow lost limbs. But Cerila was just born this way, and no magic in the world could change her for who she is," Grandpa stopped and took a deep breath. "Two years ago, after her parents passed away, I managed to buy that magical stone at the port for her fifth birthday. It was the only thing I could do. A token of my failure, I suppose."
Grandpa seemed defeated almost as his voice wavered, but there was no one to blame, and he shouldn't be so hard on himself. If anything, he was stronger than most people. The average person would have given up on Cerila years ago. This only deepened my admiration for the old healer, that he could care so deeply about somebody he had no attachments to. Maybe he is just a big softy after all and not some sick psychopath.
But learning that Cerila's parents have passed away is sad news. No wonder she doesn't talk about her family. She is a lot stronger than I am. I wouldn't know what to do with myself if I lost my parents.
"Thank you for helping her, Grandpa. You did your best," I said earnestly.
He just eyed me and laughed. "Being consoled by a five-year-old. I must be going senile, hahaha."
He chuckled to himself, but suddenly, all the melancholy from his monologue got wiped off him instantly. His emerald eyes stared at me with an intensity that could burn right through you.
"What is this sign language you are teaching her? I've never heard of it."
Oh, shit. No one has questioned me about sign language. My parents just sort of accepted the fact I knew something they didn't. Maybe they thought Grandpa taught me.
I wanted to make Cerila's and my life easier. I didn't even consider the fact that it wasn't normal for me to know a foreign language. Not only that, a language that probably didn't exist anywhere else in this world, and it was a language you didn't even speak verbally. I couldn't say I read it in a book either. All the books I have ever read have been from Grandpa. He was boring through me with his gaze.
I managed to stammer out a half-hearted response, "I made it up."
It was the only thing I could say in this situation.
I promised myself I wouldn't complicate things by holding onto my old life, so I had no other choice. I had no intention of claiming to be the creator of sign language... actually have I made a crucial mistake?
I could have named it anything else. Only people from my existence would understand the meaning behind the language known as sign language. But are there other people like me? What are the odds of someone else getting a second chance at life with all their old memories intact? And if someone else like me did exist... that would be problematic.
I have no intention of upsetting the balance of this world by introducing things from my previous life. But knowing Humanity... that wouldn't be the case for everyone. Someone like me would be a threat to my way of life. But there is no point in thinking about it now.
I'll cross that bridge if I ever get there.
"Really? You made up an entire language that uses your hands?" he asked curiously.
"Yup," I responded with a vigorous nod. I could feel the sweat begin to pool under my long hair.
"To think you could come up with something like this within a day of meeting her," Grandpa mumbled out. Then he whispered something under his breath.
"What did you say?" I asked. I didn't understand what he said at the end there. Sounded like the Human language.
"Nothing, kid. Just mumbling to myself. Anyways, we should get started on your lessons today."
Crisis averted, for now. However, I need to be more careful about these kinds of things in the future.
I looked at Cerila as she sat in silence, dangling her feet off the stool. That's when I had an idea.
"Hey Grandpa, can you teach Cerila magic too?"
"I uhh... I don't know. I did teach her how to control her mana and use the stone. But neither of her parents were mages as far as I know," Grandpa said a little too fast.
Huh, that's weird. Is he nervous or something?
Either way, I had felt Cerila's mana control before. She had better control over mana than me. If Cerila was taught magic, she would probably surpass me in no time at all. But then again, learning a new language and magic might be too much.
No, I should have more faith in my new friend. I've seen her resolve first hand.
"But don't ask me. Ask her. Not everyone wants to learn magic, kid."
"Why not?" I could understand if people couldn't use magic. But not trying seemed like an absolute waste of potential.
"You, of all people should know exactly why kid. Magic is dangerous? Remember?"
That is true… I did have to learn this lesson the hard way. I've nearly died twice from mana sickness, only surviving by pure luck and Grandpa's assistance.
But still, I think learning magic has far more benefits than downsides. Besides Cerila was smart, she wouldn't let herself get mana sickness so easily. But I should ask her anyways.
She didn't even bother writing back to me as she just nodded quickly at me.
"Well, that settles it," I told gramps.
The old man just sighed, "Fine. Just this once, since she is your friend. And remember, I'm not some charity. So don't bring around any more strays."
"Thanks, Grandpa, you're the best."
And from this day forward, Cerila would join me in my magic training with grandpa Jacobs.
—
Another day passed, and it was my first day of school this morning. Instead of having Cerila come all the way to my house, I promised I'd meet her on the outskirts of the village, and we could walk together.
This was probably for the best since I didn't know where to go, and this wasn't her first time attending this school. I wasn't sure what to expect. I'd never been to school before after all. I can only imagine what the building looks like. The way I was taught things in my previous life was unorthodox, to say the least. Fading memories of my training at Mount Olympus resurfaced.
Best not to dwell on this. I don't need to be that kind of person anymore.
I did have mixed emotions about going to school, though. On the one hand, it seemed fun, and maybe I would be able to make some new friends. My family also wanted me to give it a try. This morning my mom even got a little emotional and was adamant about walking me to meet Cerila this morning.
On the other hand, this place was full of kids who bullied Cerila to the point of her leaving the place. And I honestly doubted this school would give me much of an education compared to Grandpa's tutelage. Compounded by the fact this place wouldn't teach me anything about magic. Apparently, basic mana control was taught, but neither Cerila nor I needed to learn that.
Cerila guided me to the school, and once we arrived, it was precisely how I had imagined it. A single-story wooden building built in an extended formation using the usual warm brown jungle wood and accompanied by plenty of greenery.
The greenery was a full-blown garden that surrounded the school. It was obviously well-tended, like most of the plant life that has been integrated into the village. The only real difference in the building's architecture was the large wooden double doors at the front of the building.
However, there was one noteworthy thing about this school. In the center of the courtyard was an odd-looking tree that I had never seen before. Instead of the usual warm brown color, this tree had pitch-black bark and crimson red leaves.
The plant was off-putting, almost ominous in a way. The tree clashed with every aesthetic in the village and clearly didn't belong here. It seemed so alien, yet Cerila paid it no mind. She grabbed my hand to get me out of my trance, and we walked to the front door together.
Standing in the doorway was a portly Human woman with short-cropped brown hair wearing a sky blue dress. She was greeting the kids as they funneled into the building. So far, I've seen a good amount of children, some older than me, but most seem to be either younger or right around my age.
One of the kids walking in was a Beastmen boy who looked exactly like Cerila, except his hair was more silver than white. We made eye contact for a brief moment, but he averted his gaze.
I wonder if that is her brother.
"Why hello there, young man. You must be Kaladin, Seana's son?" The portly woman said with a voice best described as ugly.
It sounded like someone rubbed sand into my ears and then shook me around in a blender. But there was no need to be rude about it. She was just born this way, unfortunately.
"Yes, that's me. It's nice to meet you, ma'am," I said politely.
"Oh my, such manners. Welcome to the Garden, Kaladin. You can call me Ms. Sandra."
I just gave a small smile and stared at her expectantly. Was she not going to greet Cerila? Just because she can't hear you, it doesn't mean she can't read your lips or understand your greeting.
I let my glare linger long enough to make her uncomfortable as she seemed to notice Cerila's existence suddenly. "And welcome back, Cerila," she gave her a half-smile. "Kaladin, would you mind waiting at the front of the class so you can introduce yourself?"
An introduction? I never had to do one of those before.
People just knew who I was, and I was always accepting new members into my squad, not the other way around. But, I thought back to the most recent introductions I heard, which brought up painful memories.
I shouldn't be doing that. Best to forget.
"Okay," I replied. Ms. Sandra waved us into the building, and we walked in.
The school was just one large room with multiple wooden benches and tables set in rows. There were plenty of transparent wooden windows around, letting the morning light cake the entire room.
There was a distinct lack of paper for a classroom, but that was to be expected. In its place was a large amount of parchment. The jungle had no problems supplying the town with the stuff. They even had a wall dedicated to the Elven language written on sheets of parchment.
There was also a large black stone anchored to the wall at the front of the class. At first glance, I thought it might have been a stone similar to Cerila's, but there was a residual white powder on it. I slid my hand across the stone and inspected the white powder.
Huh, it's chalk.
I expected there to be some sort of magical device that allowed Ms. Sandra to write things out. Chalk was just so simple it disappointed me.
But it also made sense. Syn'nari was an island and there should be chalk deposits around here from dead algae and shell deposits. I was getting lost in the chalk and hadn't even noticed everyone had taken their seats and was observing me. I guess I attract a lot of attention to myself based on my appearance. My dad and I are the only Dark Elves in the entire village. There are a few High Elves, but mostly everyone here is a Wood Elf, Human, or Beastmen.
However, I was surprised when I turned to face the class. Out of all the people, I did not expect to see the three idiots from my little back alley fight to be here. Not only that, they were sitting at the table with who I assumed to be Cerila's sibling.
I was busy trying to stare through their souls when Ms. Sandra interrupted my ritual. "Kaladin, are you ready?" I nodded in the affirmative. "Okay then." Ms. Sandra cleared her throat and called out to the class, "Everyone settle down. Today, we have a new student joining us. Everyone, this is Kaladin. Kaladin, please introduce yourself to everyone."
I went to speak, but I realized I had no idea what I was supposed to say. I spent the last five minutes thinking about the existence of chalk and the three idiots, which made me neglect entirely to think of a self-introduction. And, of course, all eyes were on me now. I tried to speak, but no words were coming out.
What the hell? Am I nervous?
I've stormed fortified enemy positions while orbital bombardments were bursting around me, but I suddenly can't give a self-introduction in front of a bunch of kids? I took a deep breath and focused. No point in making this complicated.
"Hi. My name is Kaladin. It's nice to meet everyone. Let's learn together," I managed to get out in a single breath.
I instantly became embarrassed. My face flushed all the way to the tips of my ears. My tone was utterly wrong, and I sounded like a complete idiot. I'm so off my game I forgot to add any emotion into my words. Not only that, what the hell does "Let's learn together" mean? Am I stupid or something?
And, of course, my introduction was met with an awkward silence that permeated the entire room. Thankfully, Ms. Sandra began clapping and saved me from embarrassment. Everybody followed suit.
"Thank you, Kaladin. You can go find a seat."
I released a breath I didn't know I was holding and moved through the class to find Cerila. I spotted her at the back of the class sitting alone, but I was stopped en route to her table. "Wanna sit with us?" a girl asked me with a friendly tone.
The girl had the ears of a Wood Elf but lacked the defining facial structure of an Elf. She had chestnut brown hair tied in long ponytails and chocolate brown eyes. The girl was beaming a smile at me, awaiting my response. I think she is a Half-Elf.
Perhaps a week ago, I would have said yes, but the girl's company made me uneasy. At her table were the three idiots and Cerila's brother. And I wouldn't be caught dead associating with the three idiots.
"No thanks. I'm gonna go sit with my friend."
The girl looked a little hurt at my response but just nodded at me, but Cerila's brother clicked his tongue and averted his gaze from me again.
I took my seat next to Cerila and she got her tablet out.
I wrote.
Did Ms. Sandra actually make Cerila speak? No, surely she just used the chalkboard. On the other hand, maybe some of the kids just couldn't read her introduction.
"Now then, class, today we will go over the arithmetic from last week."
Ms. Sandra began to lecture the class on addition and subtraction, and I was surprised to see just how basic it was. Was the education level that low here? Most of these kids should be far past this. But I guess that's just me putting the standards of a space-faring civilization from another existence onto my current one.
Any education at all is probably rare in this world, reserved for only the wealthiest of individuals. So a free education in some backwater village on an island is perhaps completely revolutionary here.
I looked over at Cerila, and she was focusing, staring intently at the front of the class, trying to read Ms.Sandra's lips. She was giving it a good attempt, but there was no way she could keep up.
Since I didn't need to actually learn this stuff I took her tablet and began translating Ms. Sandra's lecture for her. She gave me a fang-filled smile as I mindlessly translated the class.
I wonder what Mom is going to make for dinner today. Maybe that one mushroom stew, that's always good. Cerila really liked it as well. Perhaps she wants to eat dinner together tonight?
My mind was off in food-land when I was snapped out of my future dinner plans by Cerila. And everyone in the class was staring at me.
"Kaladin. What are you doing?" Ms. Sandra asked me.
I was thinking about dinner, duh.
"Um, nothing?" I said.
"No, what are you doing with that big stone?" Ms. Sandra asked me with a hint of annoyance.
"Oh, I am translating for Cerila," I said nonchalantly.
Apparently, that was the wrong answer, as Ms. Sandra gave me a frown of disappointment. But I wasn't even doing anything wrong…
"Well, if you have time to talk to her and not pay attention, surely you can solve this problem?" her gravelly voice complained.
I was about to answer the problem verbally, but Ms. Sandra interrupted me, "Why don't you come up here and solve it for everyone?"
Is this an attempt to humiliate me publicly? The problem on the board would probably be impossible for most of the kids in the class. The entire lecture was basic subtraction and addition, using money as a medium to understand the problems.
But on the board was a long addition and subtraction problem with more than four numbers and a negative. She even put in a word problem format for the extra difficulty.
Well, too bad for her. I was me.
I walked up to the front of the class and quickly solved the problem. I didn't even bother to act like it was difficult. Ms. Sandra began checking my work and her eyes got larger and larger as she double-checked herself.
"This is… correct. How did you do this?" she asked me, unable to hide her bafflement.
"I taught myself," I said curtly.
Of course, that wasn't true. Grandpa had taught me everything I knew as far as anyone was concerned. But I wanted the satisfaction of knowing I had bested her. Good to know she was trying to humiliate me today. I can already tell this is going to be a long day.
—
After the failed attempt at public humiliation, Ms. Sandra excused the class to take a break outside. I was sitting on a bench with Cerila, just enjoying our recess in the relative silence of the schoolyard, when the Half-Elf girl from earlier approached us with Cerila's sibling in tow.
"Do you wanna play with us, Kaladin?" she asked me in a sweet voice.
They were playing some kind of game using a leather ball and kicking it around to each other. I really should attempt to be social while I'm here. They are just kids, after all. I can just ignore the three idiots if need be. And maybe I could even become friends with Cerila's brother.
"Sure. As long as we both get to play," I said excitedly.
I actually kind of wanted to kick the ball around. It seemed fun. I never had an opportunity to do this kind of stuff in my previous life.
I watched as the warm smile on the girl's face was replaced with an ugly scowl, and she murmured something under her breath at me. Cerila's brother just looked annoyed, and they started walking away.
What kind of attitude is that?
"Hey, are you her brother?" I didn't bother hiding the venom from my voice as I stood up and questioned him.
He simply looked over his shoulder and narrowed his ember fox eyes at me. "Don't lump me in with that mistake, weirdo," he said coldly.
Why are all these kids like this? I don't understand.
Is Cerila some kind of monster, and I'm the only one not aware of it? No, I've seen enough of her kindness to know that's not the case. These kids are just rotten, and no adult is attempting to rectify their behavior. That's fine. I'll just do it myself.
I went to give this kid a piece of mind when Cerila grabbed my arm to stop me. She had her hood back on and wouldn't even look me in the eyes. I took a deep breath and steadied my nerves. That's right.
Doing anything to her brother would only cause problems for her. My father's words echoed in my head from the other day, "Violence isn't always the right answer."
I shouldn't let these emotions get the better of me anyhow. It didn't mean I had to like this situation, though. Cerila's brother clicked his tongue and walked away with the Half-Elf girl.
Now I'm seething on my first day of school. School sucks.
"Hey man. Kaladin, right? You ever heard of runesmiths?"