"Rustling...Rustling"
In the middle of the forest, a quiet rustling noise kept resounding as a tall silver-haired burly man wearing medieval looking armor was walking silently while carrying two long swords on his back.
The man kept walking silently for some moments before suddenly stopping, his gaze and attention attracted to a faraway cry, unsheathing one of his longswords slowly, he changed his direction toward the faint noise.
After walking for a short period of time, the man known as Atlus soon found a basket laying on top of a stone tablet.
"This is..."
Atlus stood bewildered as he looked down at the infant cradled in the basket before him. The baby's hair was a deep, natural dark brown color, and the skin had a light bronze hue. But what truly caught Atlus's attention was the child's dark eyes, they were extremely dark like the reflection of the ocean.
Atlus then moved closer to the basket and brought his index finger near the dark-haired child.
Atlus was surprised by the infant's course of action, the child extended its small hand and held his index finger with an innocent happy expression as it made a babbling noise.
"da...dada"
Atlus stood still with a complicated expression as he stared at the innocent child filled with questions.
Was the infant abandoned?
Was he left here intentionally?... Why leave the child stranded in the middle of this dangerous forest, but more importantly...what should he do about the infant?
A part of him felt pitied for the child, all alone and defenceless in this dark forest, alternatively he came in this forest for a purpose; a mission to be accurate. It would be a complicated matter to bring him along. The more Atlus stared into the innocent gaze of the child, the more troublesome he felt the situation was.
After a short period of time Atlus ran his fingers through his silver hair as he sighed gazing at the child knowing that he wouldn't forgive himself if he also left the child alone.
"This is going to be troublesome with the assassins of Devas running around in this forest..."
He made up his thoughts as he took ahold of the basket's handle and picked it up effortlessly, his mind enveloped with uncertainty of the situation.
********
A couple hours later:
A modest and well-kept two storied house sat at the edge of a small village. The house was surrounded by small lamps thus illuminating the house with faint golden lights that supported the charming yet simple look of the house.
The home was permeated with the tasty scent of freshly baked bread and the delicious smell of the steaming hot stew, Cooking inside the kitchen was a charming middle-aged woman that had her dark-brown hair tied in a simple braid.
Her hand moved delicately as she was cutting the vegetables, while simultaneously humming a soft and beautiful melody throughout her actions until suddenly she heard a loud noise at the door which broke her trance.
"Knock, Knock"
With a faint smile on her face, she wiped her hands on her apron before walking to the door while still holding her kitchen knife.
"Creak"
The woman known as Jeanne opened the door and glanced out with the same pleasant expression as her gaze went upon Atlus, her husband.
"Welcome ba-..."
Jeanne's pleasant expression changed quickly as her gaze landed upon the basket in his hands, her smile turning into a cold one all of the sudden.
Atlus shivered inwardly from her gaze.
'Did her grip on the knife grow tighter!?'
he quickly fake coughed to gain her attention
"Cough!...Jeanne...I'm back."
Atlus tried to act casually but Jeanne's blank gaze was making him feel nervous.
"Hmm, I can see that."
She said flatly waiting for him to explain himself.
******
Atlus sat on the couch in the living room and sighed before beginning to explain the situation to Jeanne about how he had found the infant during his mission stranded all alone in the middle of the forest, but decided to leave out the extra details to keep it shorter and simple.
As Atlus spoke, Jeanne listened intently as the earlier tension all subsided. Her expression softening more as she took in his words.
Jeanne's cheerful expression later returned to her face, as if the cold tension was never on her face. She spoke up, her tone now softer and relieved.
"I see...if that's what happened, I suppose I would have done the same thing if I were in your shoes too."
Jeanne replied to Atlus's explanation warmly while walking closer to the infant's basket. She then extended her hand toward the child, however as her hand reached out to touch the child her voice abruptly stopped midway and so did her hand.
Because at the same time the infant also reached with its own small, chubby hands and grabbed ahold of her finger, a soft laugh escaping the little baby. The sound was too innocent and adorable. It was enough to melt Jeanne's heart completely.
The tiny hand, clutching into her like a lifeline, and the sweet childish laugh that filled the living room were too much for her to bear which made her heart melt into a puddle of gushy affection.
Atlus quickly noticed the silence that filled the living room.
"Uhm...Jeanne?"
After a couple of seconds, Jeanne turned around slowly; her expression flat as she said with resolute.
"What should we name him."
Atlus was surprised by her question and sudden change of mood, He replied quickly;
"Wait, wait a second! Are you sure we can even name him. He's not ours, furthermore I'm sure he has parents somewhere out there."
Atlus voice got more quiet the more he spoke because knew when he saw Jeanne's stars-filled eyes that she wouldn't give up this matter easily.
*** ***
{15 minutes later}
After minutes of dealing with Jeanne's begging and convincing for a straight 15 minutes, Atlus was mentally exhausted. He exhaled loudly and finally agreed reluctantly.
"Alright, alright!"
Atlus sighed realizing the battle was already lost. He spoke in a tired tone,
"We'll keep the baby. But on one condition; We'll take care of him until we find his biological parents, got it?"
His tone was resigned, but there was a hidden hint of affection and surrender in his gaze as he looked at the baby in the basket.
"Besides...We can't also keep calling him baby."
After Atlus agreed on keeping the infant, Jeanne's mood immediately brightened. She enthusiastically picked baby and held him up. Her eyes sparkling with excitement and affection.
"Atlus."
"hmm"
He immediately replied at hearing his name.
Jeanne smiled at the child before finally making her decision.
"Crius..."
"...his name will be Crius."