"Mom, dad, I'm home!" Farah walks into her house, takes off her shoes, and announced her arrival. She walks over to the dinner table, where she hears her father's reply and wait for her mother, whose voice came from the kitchen.
David, silently observing his daughter, smiled proudly at his daughter and nodded. 'Very good, Carter must have taught her well. To be able to change that Farah into a... a proper girl in one afternoon, he must be a great teacher. I'll ask her about the contents of the class once Barb is here. For now, let's just have fun!' David's thought slightly stuttered when he saw his daughter drop the act and run to her seat with an eager smile, probably excited for dinner.
"It seems Carter finally drilled manners into your head, how magical!" David begins with a tease.
"What's that supposed to mean?! Master really did drill it into me, though... He-" As Farah was about to complain about her master's treatment of her, she was interrupted by her father.
"Master?! He got you to call him master?! Are you really my Farah? Did you get the wrong house? This is the Aodh house." Seeing an opportunity, David took it. He overwhelmed his daughter with questions with faked concern on his face. He genuinely was surprised, though. He thought she'd call Carter old shopkeep, stingy shopkeep, or even his name behind his back. It seems he is a more admirable teacher than he first thought.
"Uuuuu...!! Dad! Hmph, I won't talk to you anymore! Actually, no, let me stretch your cheeks first! Take this!" Farah, enraged by her father's words, especially when he asked if she got the wrong house, lunges at her father, who evaded in time and starts circling the table, as he always has. Farah soon gives chase, as she always does.
The two chase each other around the table until Farah catches her father, who has intentionally slowed down, and stretched his cheeks like he always does hers. This is the taste of revenge, so squishy and sweet! Farah's sour and frowning expression instantly changed into delight, her smile reaching her ears, and her laugh resounding in the living room.
However, David's situation was different. With his face stretched, he can't make a smile even if he wanted to. He can only try to think of a way to get out without hurting his daughter or wait for his savior to come and free him from this predicament. He starts regretting deliberately slowing down... no, provoking Farah was the mistake. But what is in the past is in the past, so he quickly buries that regret and focuses on how to escape this situation other than waiting for his wife to help.
"Ahahaha! Take that! Hehehe, you look so funny right now. Wahahahahaha!" Farah continues to play with her father's face while laughing frantically. The stress from the class must have gotten to her and turned her abusive and crazy. Her father only sighs in his heart when he sees this and resigned himself to his fate.
"Honey? Farah? What are you two doing?" is what Barbara would've said a while ago if she wasn't teased by her husband earlier during their trip home. Instead, she silently arranged the dining table and waited until Farah stretched her father for a certain amount of time before she walked from the corner of the room and got them to eat their meals.
"Actually, before we start eating, Farah," Barbara realizes something and calls out to her daughter.
"Yes?"
"You look like a clay doll, go clean yourself first. You also stink of sweat." Barbara pinches her nose and shoos her daughter off to the well. All while pondering how her husband hasn't already done it. Perhaps he was too focused on teasing his kid today. Finishing her thoughts, she turned to talk to her husband while waiting for her child to finish showering.
On the way to the well, Farah recalls what happened four days ago. She shudders with lingering fear as she imagined the image of Peter's leg wound, feeling nauseous in the process. She then recalls the first beast's corpse, slain by her father's ax. She remembers the courageous villagers who came to help the family fight off the group of ferocious beasts. She recalls the scene of Carter's magical show which finished off the remaining monsters.
These memories, they make her scared, but at the same time, they gave her courage. She knows the dangers of the forest around the village, but she also knows the strength, and unity of the village. All these thoughts in her head makes her legs shudder at the thought of walking to the well, where everything happened, but she continues walking.
The reason for the quick recovery is that nothing was truly lost, and so there was barely any trauma. And all there is has been cured by the environment around her. She even got over two much more serious problems before, so she can cope with it quicker than a normal child could. And most importantly, if she couldn't get over this measly problem, what rights does she have to keep dreaming of being a mage?
As Farah reaches this conclusion in her mind, her legs no longer shake with fear, and her pace quickens.
After all, it was already dinnertime.
Today's meal is composed mostly of meat, as the supply from the group of beasts have yet to run out, and it will stay this way for one more week if everything goes according to plan. There are four dishes on the table. First being a big plate of barbeques meat, sliced evenly and releasing a tempting aroma. Served alongside fresh lettuce, one can only imagine the taste when the meat is wrapped in the lettuce, fresh and crispy on the outside, soft and intensely flavored on the inside, akin to an explosion.
The second dish is a meatloaf, a dish resembling a bread. It looks like it's as soft as a loaf of bread, too. However, the smell and the juices coming out of the loaf reveals the fact that it's made of meat. This dish is lighter on the seasoning than the other dishes, even having a small amount of sugar in it.
The third, a bowl of stew. It is from the same pot as the stew from yesterday, so the flavor is more concentrated today. That is why there is only a small bowl and a plate with some slices of bread next to it, treating the stew as a kind of dipping sauce to dip the bread in.
Finally, there's a plate of boiled red beans, garnished with sugar. This dish is meant to be a dessert for after the other meals, but Barbara felt the need to bring it out now so that she would not forget it in the kitchen and let it fall into the pests' claws.
"Farah, he, pft, he actually got you to call him master?" Having heard the news, Barbara immediately asked to confirm the authenticity with Farah. However, with her expression delighted and a laugh leaking out, it actually seemed like she was mocking her daughter, as her husband did.
"Uuuu... Not you too..." Farah clutches her shirt and pouts, with her eyes brimming with tears, she looked pitiful in that state. This raised the parents' alarm and they cease their teasing.
"Ah, sorry, sorry! Here, come eat dinner first." Barbara quickly thought of a solution and invited Farah to come to the dinner table. However, it did not seem to work, as Farah stays where she was, as if she didn't hear her mother.
"...I'll let you eat some of my portion too. Just come here, won't you?" Barbara decided to lure her daughter in with food, not placing much hopes on it and thinking of the next method to employ.
"Yay! No backsies!" Farah's eyes shined and she immediately ran to her seat, as if the sadness earlier was all an act. Even Barbara is surprised by this, as she has never had to deal with this kind of situation before with Farah. She even gets thoughts that perhaps Farah learned some acting from her master and wanted to try it out.
"Did you learn acting from Carter too? You little imp, take this!" Barbara pinches her daughter's left cheek and shook it from left to right, creating a sight to be seen.
"Ah, ah! Ih hurs! Aih sohhy!" Farah frantically apologizes and begins to explain the situation once her mother let go of her.
"Yes... master taught me a little bit of acting when he taught me linguistics... Still, no backsies! Ah, dodged it. I'm going to explain everything from the beginning, so don't pinch me!"
"So, what did you learn in class today?"
"So, we began with etiquette."
.
.
.
"And... that's about it!" Farah finished recalling her day, putting an emphasis on how scary her master was. She also described the lunch in detail, having been entranced by its heavenly taste.
David is intrigued at the content of the classes, since he never had a proper education. He doesn't feel the want to understand them, though. He's not the one trying to be a mage, pursuing the truth of the world. He's also glad his daughter is doing well in her classes, and he believes she would be able to balance schoolwork and social life. He laughs happily when the story ends and pats his daughter on the shoulder.
Barbara is astonished by the speed of her daughter's education. Since it took her weeks, no, even months to learn what Farah has been taught in a single day. However, upon thinking further, she remembers that the school she went to taught general knowledge and that there is not much emphasis on science, while Farah is learning specifically to be a mage. That is why she thinks her daughter progressing this fast is reasonable. She relaxes once she realizes this and reminisces about her school days.
'I wonder how they're doing... Sigh, I should pay their families a visit when I go to the capital.'
After finishing her thoughts, she went to pat Farah's head.
"There, there. You did well for your first day. Now, let's eat."
"Hahaha, my little girl has become a smart little girl. You better act like one from now on, yeah? Well, as your mom said, let's eat!"
"Mom, dad, thank you... I'm super hungry, let's eat!" Farah thinks of how her mother and father used to be opposed to her learning magic due to them being uninformed. Now, they not only let her, but they also compliment and support her for learning magic. She truly could not have asked for anything better. Farah basks in happiness as she enjoys the delicious food which multiplies her happiness by at least tenfold.
As the family eats their dinner and enjoy casual small talk, David brings up the topic of the encounter he and his wife had today.
"Ah, lil' Farah, did you know? Two of your friends, I think their names were Joe and... James? No, that's not right... it's the boy from the opposite house and a fierce little redhead girl." He can't remember his daughter's friends well, so he just describes their features to her.
"Jon and Jane?" Farah is perplexed on why her father would bring her friends up. Did they do something weird? Did they meet? What did they do?
"Yeah, them. Dad and mom found them on our way to Frank and Fred's. Apparently, they were heading there too, so we talked a little. They told me a lot of interesting things, heh heh." David can't, and doesn't, hold back his sinister chuckle as he recalls the contents of their conversation. 'They are very observative kids...'
"Yep, very, very interesting things." Barbara added in.
"Dad?! Mom?! W- What did they tell you?!" Farah panics thinking what the duo could've possibly told her parents. They saw her in a lot of embarrassing situations! Though it'd take a long time to list them all, she has some stories she doesn't want her parents to know, like one time she absentmindedly stepped in a pond, or when she tried to jump over a mud puddle but tripped and fell head-first into it. They're very embarrassing stories!
"Ah, nothing, nothing. Let's save that for later. Let me get to the interesting part of this story first. Apparently, they're looking to train under Uriah! Hehe, what ambitious kids. Maybe they'll catch up to lil' Petey." David teases Farah by keeping her on edge and starts talking about the main topic, the duo's visit to the Conick house.
"Hmph, they should have asked me. Who knows what kinds of preacher they'd become when they grow up? Actually, I heard that Pete is also looking to train under that man too, I seriously hope a promising kid like him doesn't end up like, like that." Since Barbara can't deny Uriah's combat power, she can only complain about the part she didn't like about him, the religious side. Her pouting almost mirroring Farah's at times.
"Come on, babe. Let's tone down the religion-bashing. Let's toast for their health! ...I really hope they don't become fighters. Cheers!" David tries to defuse the situation with a wry smile. 'Like mother, like daughter.'
"Cheers. Sigh, I really hope so, too." As war veterans, the couple don't want others to experience the horrors of war and fights to the death. They'll only observe for now, but they'll definitely talk to the children in the future. After all, even if they respect the kids' decisions, the kids will still need the information from all sides to make a proper, well-thought-out decision.
"Eh? Mom? Dad? Are you guys telling the truth? Jon, that Jon, doing physical training? There's just no way! And Jane, why would she? I don't get it! I've got to ask them the next time we meet, if you two aren't pulling a prank on me, that is." Farah is still confused by this information. It was seemingly out of nowhere, Jon, that shut-in, and Jane, who didn't seem to have any interest in getting stronger, training under the big, strong grandpa? That's a little hard to believe.
"We aren't!" The couple replied at the same time, looked at each other for a little while, then David started talking.
"Tell me about it, I seriously doubted it myself when I saw them. They seemed... scholarly." His impressions of the children were the same as Farah's, unlikely to be interested in physical training.
"Right?! Now, tell me, what did they tell you guys?!" Farah snaps out of her confusion and remembers about the conversation the duo had with her parents. She can't sleep well knowing her parents might know something embarrassing about her without knowing what it is.
"Hehe, aren't you nervous?" David lightly chuckles when he sees his daughter's eyes glancing all over the place, beads of cold sweat forming on her face. With her mouth slightly agape, it creates an image that seemed humorous to him.
"She's super nervous. How cute." Barbara added in, signaling her husband to stop teasing the poor girl and tell her the truth.
"Heh, they just told us that you are a very good girl!"
"Phew." Farah breathes a breath of relief.
"Ah, you forgot to mention that they told us she loves dragging their hands and hurt their wrists, and that she jumps and almost dances at the sight of fire." Barbara added on her husband's answer, shattering her daughter's relief and filling her with panic and embarrassment. Bait-and-switch, oldie but a goodie.
"Aghhh!!" Farah doesn't know how she feels at this moment, only feeling an intense urge to scream and run far away, to a place her parents don't know.
"Hahaha, we always knew, so it's fine." David fakes reassuring his daughter knowing she'd make a fascinating reaction, and he wants to see it. He smiles widely while saying his prepared line, not able to resist laughing a little before he said it all in one breath.
"You always knew too?!" Farah's mouth can't go any wider lest her jaws dislocate. She thought her reactions were a secret, but apparently everybody knows it. She truly doesn't know how to handle this information.
"Yeah, yeah, let's skip this topic and get to something I've been meaning to talk about!" Seeing his daughter about to overheat with embarrassment, David changes the topic. He got enough funny Farah faces for today's quota, there's no need to tease her further.
"Don't change the topic so bluntly!"
"Shh, Farah, it's okay. Daddy's always been this way, hasn't he? He'll forget about it in a few days, just put up with it for now." Barbara saw that Farah's mood has lightened, being able to retort her father like she did, so she comforts her to quickly get Farah back to her normal mental state.
"Fine, mom... You better not tell anyone." Farah accepts her mother's words of comfort, only slightly grumbling and listening to what her father has to say, though she missed quite a lot.
"I won't, now let's listen to daddy. He's gotten to the important part." Barbara hasn't missed anything unlike her daughter, she splits her attention to also listen to her husband say unnecessary things and boast about how innovative he is.
"Then I went to tell village chief, "We want to form a patrol team, so that the attack won't happen again!" everyone talked about some boring money thing after that. I just know we get ten dollars a day, and a dedicated training ground, pretty good deal if I say so myself.
Farah, we, dad and mom, we decided on this schedule. Dad will go for four days, then mom will go for four days, we get two days of time off, then I go back to work and repeat the cycle. Ah, but don't worry! The job wouldn't need us to camp outside or anything, we just walk around the village for the entire day and take care of problems we see. This job is basically wandering around and being nos- ow!" As David gets more and more derailed and his language gets more crude, Barbara came in and pinched his cheeks which still hurts from being played with by Farah.
"Don't ramble on and use words like that!"
"Anyway, Farah, the gist is that one of us will be home and the other one will be walking around the village until nightfall, and we'll both have two days off every eight days. Just come and say hi when you see us. Jon and Jane will probably be there some of the days too. And don't come if you see Uriah!" Barbara gives a summary of the facts and gives her daughter some advice after she releases her husband.
"Got it, mom." Farah repeated her mother's advice to herself inwardly and answers her.
"Ow... It still hurts... Hey, Farah!" David calls out to Farah while holding his right cheek, it's been abused so much today for some reason.
"Yes, dad?"
"Have you got any plans for tomorrow morning?" David asks Farah, fully expecting her to have already forgotten. This also serves as a reminder for Farah to start thinking of ideas for tomorrow.
"Huh? Oh!" It's the breakfast punishment! Of course, Farah completely forgot. Now that she remembers, her brain fires up and all sorts of meal ideas come to her mind. 'Omelets? No, it has to contain meat... Steak? No, that's too heavy...'
"Seems you haven't." David nods as things are as expected.
"Maybe you have to think it over while doing dishes." Barbara added in with a little bit of emotion, how dare her daughter forget her own punishment?
"What?! Mom?! No, no! I can think about it right now! No need for the dishes! Please!" Farah panics and does all sorts of hand gestures, temporarily forgetting about her food. After all, there's a ot of meat, meaning the plates would be really hard to wash today!
"Better be quick, then. Food is running out soon." Barbara replies coldly and continues her meal.
That night, Farah did do the dishes.