Quite a while had passed since Callisto got taken over by her emotions. Raymond found himself sitting on one of the couches in the room with a big mirror. On his lap was Callisto's head resting.
"Are you good, Calli?" The father asked, patting her head gently.
The girl who seemed to have finally calmed down gave her father a slight nod in response. But although she seemed all right now, Raymond was well aware that getting rid of such pain in one's heart wouldn't be so easy.
"There's no denying that Adela went way out of line back there. But I can assure you, Calli, your mama don't mean any of it."
Callisto's cat ears and tail showed a small sign of life after hearing her father's words.
"Really?"
The father gave his daughter a resounding yes.
"Adela can be harsh and scary if you give her a reason to. But deep down, she's genuinely a kindhearted and loving person."
Raymond could say all of it with confidence because those exact qualities of Adela were the reason why he fell for her, married her, and had two beautiful children with her. His love for Adela never wavered. If anything, his feelings for his wife only grew more and more as they got older and older.
"Papa..."
Callisto shifted her position to look at her father. She found herself in agreement with everything her papa stated because she is Adela's child. After all the years her mother had been by her side, of course Callisto would have known what kind of person Adela was, and it was exactly how Raymond described her.
"So, what now? Is there anything I can do to convince Mama it's me?"
"I'm afraid there's really nothing we can do but wait. Adela is going through the same thing when Phillip and I showed her the aftermath of the Mutated DNA Fusion on Leona."
Callisto let out a gasp in response.
"Now that you mentioned it, Mama took quite a long time before she got over big sister's death. I remember Mama refusing to believe it was Leona on the coffin that she didn't even attend the burial."
Raymond nodded at his daughter.
"But in the end, no matter how tough it is to accept, Adela came to terms with it. All she needs is time, and surely she will accept you too."
With a hopeful expression on Callisto's face, she replied, "I guess you're right."
Right as she said that...
Grooowwl~
"Ah."
"Ah."
For a moment, the father and daughter looked at each other in silence before breaking into laughter.
"I guess it is that time of the day, huh," Raymond said whilst looking at his wristwatch. "I'm gonna go grab us lunch so you can get some more rest back in your room afterwards. Then tomorrow, Phillip and I will have you go through some tests."
Callisto's cat ears twitched with curiosity. "Tests? What kind of tests?"
"Well, aside from the obvious lack of nutrients, you seem to be doing just fine. We just gotta make sure it will stay that way. Don't worry, the tests will be short and easy."
"I understand."
Groooowwl~
For a moment, a familiar growl coming from Callisto's belly silenced her and her father once again.
"Well, what do you want to eat?"
"Chicken," Callisto replied as fast as the speed of light.
"I see. Two pieces fried chicken, right?"
Callisto's cat tail dances cheerfully in response to her father's question.
"Yes! Two pieces!"
Raymond smiled at his daughter. "Glad to know you still have the same appetite."
After taking his daughter back to her room, Raymond went on his way to grab food for both of them.
*
*
*
Several days went by since Callisto first woke up after the Mutated DNA Fusion. The tests Raymond and Phillip conducted on Callisto indicated that no complications from the operation were present and the girl was in perfect health. Compared to the first time she woke up, Callisto's body certainly had more meat in them now.
"..."
A couple days ago, Callisto requested to be moved to a room with a TV installed. And for the past couple of days, all she did was eat her meals, watch the TV, sleep and repeat.
Today, she was also doing the same thing until she got tired of it. Leaving the television open, Callisto lay on the bed with her body in a contorted position like a cat, squeezing and passing the softball from one hand to another.
The seemingly endless passing of the softball from one hand to another would eventually be abrupted by a failed attempt to catch.
"Ah..."
Not only did she fail to catch it, Callisto even accidentally shove it across the room. Luckily, no furniture was hit and broken or she would have to crawl under the bed afterwards.
Twisting her body back to normal, the young girl got out of the bed to fetch the softball.
Grab.
Soon after that, Callisto's cat ears twitched as the news on the television she left open caught her attention.
"So, is it true that the people just cannot resist the beauty of the lotus plants thriving in that pond despite the officials' warning about the danger of getting exposed to the radiation coming from it," The females news anchor on the TV asked the female reporter on the other screen.
"That seems to be the case," the female reporter replied. "Right as we speak, people are arriving from all over the place to get a view and a picture of these wonderful flowers. Even I can't help but be enthralled by their beauty for some reason. It seems what the pond owner said is true. Once you set your eyes on these lotuses, it will be hard to walk away."
The camera man filming the news reporter moved the camera up and down following the reporter's statement.
Meanwhile, Callisto crawled back to the bed and continued watching the news.
"According to the pond owner, the asteroid known as the Tatawar, which is the size of a person's fist, crashed on this pond years ago and is the reason why these flowers grow so beautifully compared to the same plants that grow on other places."
"That's what's so strange, isn't it," the female news anchor said to the reporter. "The officials warns it could be dangerous if people get exposed to the radiation coming from the asteroid, but the residents and even the pond owner living near it all seem fine. How is that the case?"
"I don't know, but the officials prohibited the pond owner from trying to sell these flowers. So instead, he turned the pond into a tourist attraction. And well, it brings them profit."
"Lotus, huh..."
The news brought Callisto a memory of when she and her family went to a flower garden years ago. There, she bought a lotus plant with her mother and took care of it until she lost the feeling of her limbs. Having shared that memory with her mother, the young lady cherished the lotus plant so much that she never bought another plant ever since.
"Mama..." A crestfallen sigh came out of Callisto's lips.
Unsurprisingly, the pain of being called a monster and ignored by her own mother was still lingering in the silver-haired girl's heart. Ever since that day, Callisto had hoped that the person opening the door to her room was Adela.
Ever since that day, Callisto dreamed of being seen by Adela as her daughter rather than a monster and feel her embrace. So far, the dream has yet to become a reality.
Click!
"Huh?"
The moment Callisto heard the door being twisted from outside, a hopeful expression drew on her face. Callisto thought that today would be different than the past few days.
Well, it was just her thought.
"Looks like you're awake. I brought you breakfast." Raymond carrying a tray containing Callisto's breakfast entered the room.
"Oh, it's you, papa."
Raymond noticed the disappointed tone in Callisto's voice.
"What's the matter?"
Forcing a smile, Callisto replied, "No, it's nothing. Thank you, papa."
Callisto sat properly on top of her bed as her father placed the breakfast right in front of her.
"Looks delicious," she remarked. "Thanks for the meal."
As the silver-haired girl started eating her breakfast, Raymond sat on the bed across his daughter and said, "Callisto, can I tell you something?"
"Yes?" Callisto munched on her toasted bread.
Suddenly, tension filled the air around them.
"What's with the sudden tension," Callisto asked herself right before her father spoke.
"I... messed up."
The weight of Raymond's words struck Callisto with concern.
"Huh?"