Timeskip.
A week had passed since that new maid came to pick me up. Not much had really changed except the new addition of me being able to go out of the room now, not for long periods of time though. And she didn't take me too far.
She also took on the job of feeding and playing with me, The other maids only coming to change my pampers and clean up my room now.
My mother kept up with her unpredictable visits, she seemed to have started trying to talk to me lately. Often pointing at herself and spewing out some gibberish. While I didn't recognize the shit she was saying at all, I assumed it meant mama or some shit. So I started my language learning by trying to repeat that.
Side note, no I wasn't stupid. This fucking gibberish they spoke didn't sound like anything I had ever heard of in my previous life. English, Arabic, Spanish, french, German, Japanese, Mandarin, didn't matter it didn't sound like any of those shit, so it was taking me a little bit to get a handle on it.
Anyway back to topic, after about a day of trying I finally managed to replicate what she said. When she came around to visit again, I showed her my progress.
"*Ma. Mama" I managed to speak out.
'Finally.' Looking up at the beautiful face gazing down at me.I saw her lips slightly quivering and her shoulders shaking a bit. I could swear I even saw some tears at the corner of her eyes.
?? Pov
Sylvia currently felt like she was currently on cloud nine . While she had indeed been trying to get him to say mama, she didn't expect him to get it so quickly. He was only 2 weeks, 1 hour, 15 minutes, and 32 seconds and counting, old. What she was doing was what she assumed any mother would do, just playing around. She didn't really expect him to call her mama yet.
But to say she wasn't ecstatic would've been a lie. Ever since her husband ran away, she had been managing the dukedom solely on her own, while she had excellent subordinates under her to help with the load, it still was a lot of workload she had to deal with. Finding time to play with her baby was always a hassle to organize and find. Thankfully she had maids to help her on that part as well.
No matter how many times she swore to find the time to come and properly raise him. A new issue seemed to find its way onto her desk. Heck the time she found right now wasn't even her own. Even now she was currently running away from her responsibilities. Leaving it to Eadith to deal with the dukedoms matters while she played with little Kael.
'Hm, I wonder. Seeing how quickly he picked that up. Should I organize his studies in advance? Not all the extra stuff like etiquette, history and the like. But having the maids attempt to teach him the language at this age should be alright, the earlier the better anyway.'
While planning for the future I started poking and stretching his cheeks. I didn't know why, but I found it somehow therapeutic. Playing with him seemed to wash all my pent of stress away and if not for having a whole dukedom to run. I probably would have fallen asleep just caressing his soft locks of hair and rubbing his scales till I doze off.
'Hm. I wonder. When he grows a little older, should I move him to my room till he gets old enough to want his own room?'
Having my own personal bundle of warmth every night sounded like a dream.
Kael's Pov.
My mother seemed content to hug me and caress my hair at the moment.
Having nothing to do really I again focused on the little particles floating all around me. I could see them with my own eyes now, although that seemed alot less efficient than entering "zen" and using my mind's eye. There was also a lot less of them zipping around. Recently my limit of using them to sense a few inches all around my body had improved to a foot and a half.
'If I can keep this up passively I could probably use this as a means of sight or detection.' Imagining somebody trying to sneak up on me only for it to seem like I had a pair of eyes behind my head brought a giggle to my lips.
Which made my mother start caressing my hair even more for some reason
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Three weeks later.
I want to die. At an impressive month of life, I suddenly felt the urge to end it all.
I thought I had left school behind. Why was I being subjected to fucking learning shit at the age of a month, this was insane. While it was "easy" work, the fact that they were giving a baby, work at all was flooring me. Usually the maid that was with me for the day would come with pictures of something and tell me the name of what it was called. Terribly inefficient, but It wasn't like I was expecting a lot from this medieval world.
Thankfully, I wasn't also being forced to learn how to write yet.
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Eleven months later.
Finally leaving the kiddie months, i'm officially a big boy in the years segment. No birthday party though. But seeing that I was some sort of elf-draconic hybrid. Both known in fiction as very long lived species, I wasn't really stressing it. The amount of birthdays they'd be having if it was yearly would've been a hassle. I mean, I also switched out from a cradle to a bed a month back. So it was an all around massive moment for me.
I was already walking at around 6 months and talking somewhat comfortably at 10. If even after all that I'm somehow taken for a retard, it's out of my hands. I did my best, anyway my mother was visiting me currently. Taking the opportunity I asked for a change of pace.
"Mama."
"Yes, Kael?"
"Can I go outside?
"No. I already told you, you're too young. Maybe when you turn eight."
Already expecting that, I only used it to make what I'm about to ask next sound more reasonable. However, to increase the odds even more, I started tearing up a little bit. Over the years I discovered that she was quite weak to my tears, or incessant begging- indeed the dao of crying had not abandoned me .
Sniffling slightly. I then asked. "Then can Urethia at least take me so I can explore the palace?"
At that, she visibly hesitated. I wasn't really allowed far from my room. When asked why, it was apparently for my protection, my mother said she could never be too sure if there were people among the workers that wanted to hurt me or were spies for what she described as "bad" people.
"Uh. No. You might get hurt." She replied.
"Please. Pretty please? I promise I won't cause any trouble. I'll listen to everything Urethia says. Plus, It's not like we're leaving the palace grounds."
After a little back and forth she finally agreed.
"Fine, but you can't be out of your room for too long. Ok? I'll inform Urethia where she can take you."
Seeming to think of something, she stayed silent for a little bit before saying something else.
"If you behave then you can go out once ever during a random day of the week. Urethia will let you know what specific day.
Oh? Well I wasn't expecting this to be a weekly occurrence I took it in stride.
But damn, she acted like I was asking her to let me play with bombs. So dramatic.
But anyway. Time to go on an adventure!