Chapter 121
Wilderness Neutral Zone parallelling Republic of Shantu, Continent: Barat, the Year 2035, Planet: Grimoire
That week was something Grifton would keep in his memories. It was a blissful, peaceful period he wouldn't experience for quite a while afterward. Not to mention all the cool things he discovered while there. His siblings did monopolize most of the time Grifton spent there, but it was worth it.
There were three days he'd used to wander around the city streets to see what else there was besides the marketplaces. Grifton enjoyed the sights and sounds of the rowdier aspects with his caravan group members.
He still had to complete the inventory bags for them, which Grifton did on the sole day he'd set aside to finish incomplete projects. Most of which were gifts for his siblings and their children.
Afterward, Grifton hoped they liked the gifts since he had gained some insight into what they all preferred during his time with them.
It was on the fourth and fifth days that Grifton truly learned what it was like to celebrate the small things in life.
It turned out that Marlayne, Calico, and Amberlyn discovered he'd never been to anything other than lakes, which might or might not be hazardous to one's health. As a result, his sisters and brother first took him to the beach he'd gazed upon from afar.
"Be careful; hidden currents can catch you by surprise," Calico warned him.
"So, there are hidden dangers in the shallow and deep, eh?" Grifton wasn't all that shocked. "I'm still going to have fun anyway." He splashed some water at Calico, who sputtered and dunked him right back.
"Hey, don't forget about us!" Marlayne complained.
"Let's join them. It looks like fun." Amberlyn insisted. "We did dress for this, didn't we?" She reminded Marlayne.
Marlayne laughed. "Sure did. Look at them and go." She shook her head.
They watched Grifton and Calico dove among the shallow waves. "Messy, but fun." The two sisters ran into the waves where their brothers frolicked.
Grifton splashed and laughed with his siblings, and for a moment, they were normal teenagers with no care in the world. Once they had their fill of the salty water, sunlight, and possible sunburns, they headed to Calico's home.
There, Grifton was greeted by squealing excited nieces and nephews. He was able to shower, bathe, and get dressed in fresh clothing. He was dressed casually, and his siblings were impressed.
"Did you make them?" Calico inspected him.
Grifton nodded with a smile. "Yep, nothing fits me unless I get it customized." He would've had to remove all his artifacts that cast illusions that concealed his natural height. "It was just easier to make it myself."
"Uncle, your shadow gives away your real height." It was Pepper. He gazed at Grifton soberly. "I think that's the only thing that doesn't get concealed by whatever you're wearing."
Ah yes, the shadow that could either be a dragon or man, depending on the circumstance. Grifton was amused. He'd managed to stop several bad situations as soon as his shadow revealed his mood. As a result, several confrontations ended without a fight. "Yeah, I know. I have fun with it." Grifton grinned at them. "You could say it's a weapon I save for tense situations."
The kids' eyes widened in speculation. However, they didn't ask further because their father and mothers cleared their throats to gain everyone's attention once more.
"Err, I see you're looking happy, but now I'm at a loss." Grifton looked puzzled at their anticipatory expressions and became slightly wary. "So, what's happening next?" he tilted his head curiously.
"Have you ever celebrated your birthday?" Marlayne studied his with amusement.
Why should he? As far as he was aware, it was just another day on the calendar. Grifton hadn't done anything of the sort. Since they seemed to think otherwise, he would wait and see what they wanted to do. He would still be honest with them, though.
"Err, no. I don't even know when it is, to be honest." Grifton never saw the point in asking, much less looking up the information. Sure, he'd seen celebrations but hadn't felt any inclinations to join them.
"Well, as it turns out, this is our birthday." Amberlyn stunned him. "So, we're having a celebration with all our favorite foods."
Oh, right. They were turning what age now? Sixteen, seventeen, something like that? It didn't really matter to him. He was more of the kind to celebrate achievements through hard work, but whatever. He was with family. That was all that mattered to him.
So, they wanted to celebrate birthdays? Grifton swallowed. "Okay." Good thing he'd brought some gifts along with him. He was still determining if they would be what they wanted, though.
"Ohh, this is gonna be fun." His nieces and nephews seemed to have doubled in numbers. "Who knew that birthdays aren't celebrated." There were murmurs. "I'm curious to see what gifts he'll give." Now, that was a new voice.
Much to his consternation, he realized there were quite a few of them now. These must be the younger ones who'd been too shy and frightened of strange surroundings in Shantu. None of them had greeted him back then. They would run and hide whenever he arrived at the various suites in the past.
"Goodness, what's this?" Grifton peered at them. "Oh, I see new faces now."
Grifton was ambivalent. He recalled other celebrations in the past when people had done that sort of thing.
Grifton hoped they would forgive him if what he brought with him wasn't what they wanted. He really didn't have a clue about this sort of thing.
Amberlyn and the others laughed at him. "Ignore the materialistic brats," she narrowed her eyes at the youngest ones. "They still haven't learned to conceal their glee whenever they receive gifts."
Grifton couldn't help but smile. "All right." He followed with the children clustering around his legs. They couldn't reach his hands despite jumping high.
"too tall," Pepper grumbled. "When will I reach your height?" He complained.
"Enjoy it while you can." Grifton grinned. "It is actually a good thing not to be this tall." He didn't offer any explanation. Their parents could do that if they wanted to.
When reaching the dining room, Grifton gazed in astonishment at the buffet prepared. True to their word, every favorite dish that he recalled was there. While a few others were unfamiliar, all smelled enticing, and his stomach rumbled.
Howls of merriment erupted, and the awkward tension that had been present vanished. "Leave it to a rumble from Grifton's gut to break the odd moment of tension amongst strangers." Calico was still laughing.
Grifton just smiled. "Well, it does have that effect." He shrugged good-naturedly while laughing with them.
They all stood around the table where the dishware waited to be used and sang a song. They blew out candles on four cakes and made their silent wishes.
Once that ended, everyone began getting food and drinks and settled into a feast. It was a happy meal for Grifton, who helped his nieces and nephews when they had difficulty cutting something. Otherwise, he didn't do much and just observed who else was there.
"These are some of our friends." Marlayne noticed his curiosity regarding their acquaintances. "Jacks, Morrow, Llewellyn, Carib, and Nolan. They're from the Charros trading family in the Naxos Kingdom."
Neither of those names was familiar to Grifton. He figured they must've come from another continent. "Nice to meet you." He bowed his head politely to them.
"Nice to finally meet you as well." The brothers grinned.
Jacks admitted. "We've heard quite a bit of gossip about you."
Morrow commented warily. "However, seeing you in person is actually intimidating."
Uh, how was he supposed to respond to that? Grifton blinked. "Should I just ditch the artifacts?" He glanced at his siblings, who blinked and laughed.
Amberlyn giggled. "Oh, that's right, illusion and other stuff don't work on them. I forgot."
Grifton shrugged. "Well, if that's the case, I'll be right back." He escaped from their eyes and went to a bathroom. There was a knock on the door. "Who is it?"
"It's Calico,"
Grifton opened the door. "What's up?" He still needed to remove the artifacts.
"Keep the earrings on since they hide your ears, eyes, and horns," Calico informed him. "They're afraid of demons, you see. I hate to say it, but out of all of us, you're the one who resembles those beings the most."
That's what he got for being a damn mythical colored dragon, it seemed. "All right," Grifton did what he was suggested. "Are you sure they are working properly though?" He looked at the mirror, as did Calico. It showed Grifton's actual appearance. He looked nothing like a human male.
Calico smiled. "Yeah, as long as no one has a mirror around, you look normal, just really tall."
Grifton sighed. "If you say so." He washed his face and hands with soap and water. "All right, let's go back."
They returned, finished the food, and then sat down in the living room again. That's when a variety of gifts were produced. Grifton, mindful of not spoiling the children too much, only had one or two gifts for each child. He had three each for his sisters and brothers.
As the three marveled over the sets of clothing, shoes, and armor he'd provided them, Grifton glanced at the brothers who watched him cautiously. He didn't approach them.
"If I'd known there would be visitors," Grifton said, referring to the tradition from where he'd come since it seemed Marlayne and the others didn't do that any longer. I would've had something prepared as a 'Nice to meet you' sort of greeting."
The brothers shook their heads. "No need for that," Llewellyn grinned. "We'll probably meet you again in the future." When the others nodded. "Besides, more of us haven't shown up yet."
Ah, was that so? Grifton merely nodded. "I fear I must return to my rooms," he informed his siblings with a sigh. "Though I have a week, I still have to spend time with the caravan folks." He shrugged ruefully when his siblings sighed in disappointment, and the kids booed in frustration.
"Such is the life of a merchantman." Grifton smiled at them.
There were maintenance checks and other things to do before they left. This celebration happened to end at the end of the week, so he had to go in the next few days.
"It was nice meeting some of your friends," Grifton told his brother and sisters. "May we see each other again in the future." Let there be more festive moments in their adult years, he hoped. That had been his true wish.
Not long after, Grifton returned to Shantu, but he was uncomfortable in familiar surroundings. It really didn't feel at all like home any longer. He only had four more journeys before he reached the frost tier ranking. That would also coincide with his enrollment into Cornell Academy if he managed it.