"h_h_help Piccola pack up, I'll take her with me" he breathes the words out, and the Old woman instantly moves to do as she was told, Luna annoyingly fell back on the bed, covering herself with the blanket from head to toe, making vicious noises that sounded like a snake or cat hissing, Edoardo held on to Zeno's hands, patting and telling him he was doing the right thing.
It was almost like Maria already had things set up, because it didn't take her minutes to return with fully packed boxes. It was like Luna was moving out of the country never to return again. "What do you need all these boxes for?" he asked. "it contains Miss Luna's most essential stuff." Maria simply explained. But the problem Zeno was having was that the woman said 'most essential', but there were like fifteen boxes here. She was so tiny, so why the hell does she need so much stuff?
"Anyway, call some men to help you move them to the car." He orders. "Don't you think it's time you get up already?" He turns to Luna who still lays angrily under the blankets and she doesn't even reply, she just kicks and turns on the bed, causing him to grimace annoyingly. He looks over at Edoardo and the man just clears his throat out loudly, indicating that he wasn't going to get involved this time, and Zeno's eyelids flutter non stop as he was getting slightly pissed.
"Piccola, get out of that bed this instant if you don't want me to drag you out." He warns, now loosening his necktie. "I'm warning you Luna, don't make me drag you out. You think I want to live with you too? Of course not. You'll only give me a constant headache, but that's what papa wants, so let's not make this harder for each other, alright, now get up" he tried coaxing, but she was one stubborn little thing. She just wiggled in the blanket without saying a single word back.
"The bags and boxes have been loaded sir," Maria comes and says, and he looks over at Edoardo again, but the man just turns his head toward another direction. "Her shoes are among her essential things right?" he asks, because he would drag her out of here barefooted. "Yes Sir." Maria replies.
"Piccola, I'm telling you for the last time, get up from the bed, or else I'll bundle you." He warns again, and Lords!, was she stubborn. He looks over at Edoardo one last time as he folds his sleeves up, and the man waves his wrist in the air, signaling him to do to her as he sees fit. And Zeno needed no more words than that. With three long and powerful strides, he reached the side of her bed and landed his hands on her blanket, pulling at it, trying to take it off her body, but she was as strong as a horse, and if he exacted any more force in pulling, he might end up hurting her wrist so he stops pulling and since she refuses to let go of the blanket, he wraps it around her body even more, packaging her like a burrito, leaving her head sticking out so she could breath, he lifts the wrap up effortlessly and flings her over his shoulder.
Kicking, and screaming, and cursing at the top of her lungs, he moves her. "Would you stay put!!" He slaps her on the butt with his full palm. "You big oaf, did you just spank me? I swear I'll kill you the minute I get out of this, you brainless Yeti." She hits him in the abs with her knees again, and he spanks her again. "I will continue spanking you if you don't stay put on my shoulder." He warns. "Did I ask you to put me on your shoulder you idiot? Why did you carry me on your shoulder and now you're spanking me… you're just a big dumb bully." she bawls. "You're just a brainless mutt, I didn't ask you to carry me, so why are you spanking me?" She bawled even louder.
And to think he'd have to deal with this from now on and till further notice. "Why are you crying now? It's not like spanking hurts you. I mean you're all wrapped up in this blanket, I bet you felt it at all." He stops walking and places her down. "I didn't feel it doesn't mean you didn't spank me. My body might not have felt it, but my mind felt it." She cries, and he just rolls his eyes. She was such a drama queen. "Okay fine. I'm sorry for making your mind feel the spanking, okay? But please, please let's just go peacefully. Alright?" she nods a yes as he wipes the fake tears from her eyes. "Good girl, now let's go." He states, forgetting that she could not move while being wrapped up like a burrito. "Am I supposed to crawl like a worm or a caterpillar?" She eyes the blanket. "oh, sorry," He says and quickly moves to unwrap her but then… "You won't make me chase you round the whole house if I unwrap this thing right?" he narrows his brows on her.
"Hah! You got me. I was going to, but since you already figured it out, I won't." she assures him. "You sure?" he asks again, and she nods convincingly, giving him her brightest smile. "Don't smile like that, that smile makes me feel like you're lying." she instantly dropped the smile, firmly pressing her lips together, showing that she wasn't up to anything. With his eyes glued on her face, and a heavy breath, he unwraps the blanket. "Let's go" she says, moving forward before him, and he breathes a sigh of relief as she wasn't running. He really didn't have the energy to chase her round the house.
"But DK," she suddenly calls. "Hmm?" he looks up at her. "Are you getting old? Why would you believe me?" the corners of her lips curled up into a smug, and like lightning bolts she took off. The blankets fall out of his trembling hands.
"Why would you let her go?" Edoardo calls out from behind him, "Are you really getting old?" Maria adds, and he turns around to look at them both, his whole face cringed with scary frustration, causing both elders to zip their lips. He clenched his fists, pressing his nails into his palm, his blood was starting to boil…"PI_CCO_LA!!!"
*
*
Chapter 8-11 Epilogue.
2011…
"DK!" she called as they sat down together watching a movie. "hm?"
"What if? Just a what if, okay?" she says, and he nods. "What if, like that girl in the movie, someone tries to hurt me, what would you do?" She looked seriously at him.
"Why would I do anything? You can defend yourself can't you? And besides, I'm sure you must have caused trouble with that loud mouth of yours. So the person is probably just dishing out to you what you most definitely deserve." He hurt her, but he didn't even know it, he wasn't even looking at her as he spoke, so how could he see the tears that ran down her face as he said those words thoughtlessly.
Without saying another word to him, she stands up from beside him and walks away. "Where are you going?"
"To go and get myself in trouble with this loud mouth of mine!!!" she screamed angrily, and he flinched in shock, wondering why she was suddenly angry. He sits there for a while, watching the movie alone, or more like the movie was watching him, for his mind was somewhere else.
"Was I too much?" he wondered out loud. "Why did she suddenly ask that crazy question? Who would dare hurt her? I'll cut off their fingers before they get to her" he hissed. "Ahh! That crazy little thing only knows how to make me worry." He pushes himself off the couch and goes in search of her.
"that idiot. So he'll just let me get hurt, he is so hateful, right?" she asks, but all she gets back in response was the chomping sound of the teeth of her favorite horse as she fed him, "Why do I even call him my Dark Knight? He's so useless. I hate him so much. He can't even protect me. Don't you agree?" she asks the horse again, and he just continues chewing. "Why aren't you saying anything, Sonny?" she yelled at the poor animal.
"Maybe because Sonny is a horse, duh?" he called from behind her, and a smile lit up on her face, but his words from earlier rings in her ear again, and she instantly straightens up her expression. She drops the rest of the grass she was feeding the horse and walks toward the door in the opposite direction.
"No one can hurt you!!" He calls out, and she comes to a halt. "You asked me right? What would I do if someone tries to hurt you?" he moves a step closer to her. "They will never get a chance to hurt you." There was so much assurance and confidence in his voice, maybe because she was just twelve, and he was nineteen now, but the older they grew, the more reliable his voice sounded. Just like now. The assurance in his voice made her turn around to look at him. He stood so close to her now, she'd always been so small next to him.
With her neck bent backwards, she looked up at him, and he lowered his head to her level so as not to hurt her neck staring up at him. He takes his hands to both her shoulders, looking deep into her eyes as black and beautiful as onyx, as she stares, lost in his ocean blue eyes.
"No one would ever hurt you, Piccola, because I'd destroy every single one of them before they even dream about it. The closest they would get to you is your feet, and I assure you, Piccola, only their corpses would make it that far."