Aria's POV:
After waking up from a relaxing nap, I am making my way to Mom's office.
Knock knock
"Mom, how are you doing?"
"I'm doing alright, dear. Just finishing up from some pending work. Come inside, have a seat" She pointed towards the couch in the middle of the room.
"No Mom, it's alright. I came to let you know that I have a surprise planned for you after dinner. So, can you please cancel your current plans, if you have any?"
"Wow, that's a first coming from you. Alright, surprise me. I don't have any prior engagements anyway"
"See you soon, Mom"
I left her office while pondering the plans for tonight. 'Even if she doesn't agree to my request, at the very least she'll have a great time tonight. I'll make sure of it'
I prepared the venue with Letty and made sure that everything was in order.
...
After finishing the dinner,
"Mom, are you ready?"
"Sure" she said while giggling.
What's so funny about it? I wonder.
"What's all this about? Why am I being excluded? This is not fair" Dad complained.
Right, I forgot about him. Sigh.
"Sorry Dad, tonight is a special 'Mother-Daughter bonding time', and no one else is permitted"
Mom gave him a big smirk and said "Now-now, Honey, we are getting late for my special surprise. Let's postpone our tonight's plans for later"
Saying so, she grabbed my hand and left the room.
So she did have plans.
I took the charge, and we headed towards the bath. Just like in my room, she has a bath in her room as well. I barred anyone from entering, until we came out.
"Let's have a relaxing bath before the main course" I said as we started undressing.
"How long has it been since we last bathed together? You kept avoiding it, I thought you hated it"
"It's not like that. I was just embarrassed. I'm not a kid after all" My face was starting to flush slightly.
"Aww, my baby is so cute" She picked me up and bombarded her enormous t…ahem…chest on my face.
"Stop or I'll hate you"
It's super effective!
I helped her with washing her hair, they were super smooth and silky. That's probably where I got my hair from.
Then we relaxed in the lukewarm water till I was satisfied. Then Mom used her Wind+Fire magic to dry both of us. She used to do this before as well, but I haven't seen her do anything more. She won't tell me. Maybe she's not very good at it, so she decided not to show it. It's a possibility.
"Now Mom, just grab the towel and lay down on the bed facing downwards"
"Uhm, sure. But, what are we doing dear? I don't get it"
"You'll see, and I'm sure you will enjoy it"
"If you say so"
She followed my instructions and laid down on the bed. I took out the oil and plastered it on her back. Then I let my hands do wonders.
"Mnngn…It feels so relaxing. Keep doing whatever you are doing"
"Hehe, I knew you'd love it. It's called a 'back massage', and as you are experiencing it, it helps your muscles relax. It has several health benefits as well."
"A back massage, huh. This feels so heavenly, keep going, dear"
"Sure" I gave her a wonderful massage with all that my tiny hands could muster. In order to apply more pressure, I had to make use of my whole body's weight. And it worked well, she was enjoying every moment of it.
After the back massage, I made her sit upright in order to give her a shoulder massage. It worked, but not as well as the previous one. My hands were too thin and small to be able to apply proper pressure.
"It was very pleasurable, dear. I can feel my body much more relaxed after spending the whole day doing desk work. Did you learn this technique in your past life?"
"Yes, I did. But it does exist in this world as well. I read about it in some foreign book in our library"
"I see. Thank you very much dear. You must teach this technique to our maids as well. Then we can have a nice massage together"
"Sure Mom, in fact, Letty knows how to massage too. She has a skill for it. I'll ask her to teach the head maid, so she can prepare our masseuses. That's what people who give massages are called"
"How delightful!"
Alright, now for the next step.
"So Mom, you enjoyed it, right?"
"Right"
"Do you remember what I asked you on my 6th birthday?"
"Ohh I see now, so that's what you want. Sorry dear, but you are still too young. You can't go wandering around the city. Although our city is hailed as the safest city in the kingdom considering the quality of the guards and all, I can't let you go out alone. It's too dangerous, especially when you can't even defend yourself"
"Mom, after all the events yesterday, you know I'm not a kid anymore. I can handle myself. Letty spent her whole life on these streets, what could go wrong?"
"It's not about your mentality dear. Sigh, let me demonstrate it instead"
She moved her hands very fast, and before I could even react, she grabbed my waist and locked me tightly in her hands. I am not able to struggle, even a little bit.
'I see'
'She wants to show me that anyone can overpower/kidnap me easily'
"You see, I'm only slightly stronger than average people. Yet you can't struggle your way out. Us being the only nobles in the city, do you think you will be safe if you go out there alone?" She asked.
"I get it, can you leave me? My face is getting crushed by your…chest" Seriously, is she trying to flex or something.
She let me go while giggling, "My-my, no need to be shy in front of me. Fufu"
"WHAT!? Who's shy? It's you who shoves your breast in my face at every opportunity. Humph"
"Ara-ara, now don't go sulking so fast. I said you can't go 'alone', but if you promise to be a good girl and obey her well. I'll ask Nora, my guardian knight to escort you and show you around the town. Is that satisfactory?"
"What really! Thanks Mom, you are the best"
She giggled,
But, why hasn't she loosened her grip yet? She does realize that she is hugging me naked, right?
"Uhm, Mom"
"Yes?"
"Let me go?"
"No, my dearest daughter gave me such a nice surprise. I am very happy. So, you are sleeping here tonight. Otherwise, I might forget to ask Nora about our arrangement tomorrow"
"That's playing dirty. Didn't you have enough of this yesterday? You hugged me the whole night"
"One night to compensate for all these years, my baby is so cruel to me"
"Fine, stop with your nonsense. I'll sleep here tonight"
She kissed me on my head, and soon we drifted asleep.
.....
Although not exactly, my demands were met. So I can finally tour a medieval-fantasy city. I've waited so long for this.
I called Letty to my room after breakfast and explained yesterday's events,
"So, wait for Knight Nora and prepare 3 sets of common clothes for all of us. We will tour this city in the evening!"
I can't wait.
...…..
Martha's (Mother) POV:
Yesterday, my precious daughter told us about her past life's memories. I was quite shocked to hear it, but accepted it after listening to her thorough elaboration. It explained various abnormalities regarding my child. Why was she always distant from her parents? Why does she not let anyone else in her room? Why won't she cry or throw a tantrum? I used to be so worried that our child might not be healthy. I even got Richard to call a couple of doctors to get her checked-up. But everyone insisted that she was healthy.
Although it all made sense. I'm so glad that my worries were unfounded. But just how untrustworthy does she consider her own parents to be? She bottled up all these feelings and guilt, for what reason? Was she afraid that we'd reject her? Did I fail her as a parent? I felt my rage growing by the second. And out of rage I hit her on the head. Albeit, I didn't use any force, but how could I hurt my own child? I am a failure of a mother.
After all the self-loathing, it took me a single glance at her face to get my emotions back. I burst out in tears as soon as I hugged her. How long has it been since I last shed tears? Hahah…
After talking our hearts out, we all managed to calm down.
Last night, I had the most peaceful sleep in years.
As I was working in my office, I heard a knock. I was surprised to see Aria come through. She told me about the surprise. Fumu, finally, my cute daughter is opening up to me. I can't wait to rub it in Richard's face.
After dinner, I got the reaction from Richard that I wanted. Haha, how satisfying!
We took a bath together like in the old days. Then she asked me to lay on the bed, naked. I wonder what she wants to do.
And then she started giving me the most relaxing feeling I've ever experienced. Hah, I feel like I'm in heaven. My cute daughter is rubbing my back in a weird technique, and it feels so good. I'm afraid I'm going to melt.
After the 'Massage' session, she asked me about her demands. Oh, here it comes.
"Do you remember what I asked you on my 6th birthday?"
Hah, why did you have to ask me this of all things? I wouldn't have hesitated if you had asked for anything like jewelry or something fancy, but this. How do I refuse her now?
I tried my best to make her understand the dangers of leaving the mansion, but she looked so sad.
I guess I'll have to do it.
I gave her permission on the condition that she take Nora along. She's an excellent knight, so I don't have to worry about her safety. But a mother could never worry less. I reluctantly let her go, also using this opportunity to make her sleep next to me. Surprisingly, she gave up pretty easily. I wouldn't actually cancel her outing plan for something this silly. Well, whatever. I get to have one more night with my cute little angel.
After waking up, I realized that I had forgotten to wear clothes after the massage. And I hugged her the whole night. Oh god, what a bad example I'm setting for my daughter. This won't do, I need to maintain a dignified front in front of her.