3 Peace and Innocence
Chapter 2 - Peace and Innocence
In an old but clean and tidy wooden room, a little boy slept peacefully in his bed. He had black hair and fair skin, and he was drooling on his pillow while mumbling some things. Suddenly, the bedroom door opened, and a little girl came in and started shaking the little boy.
- Simon wakes up
- Hmm, 5 more minutes.
- None of that; let's go now
- Hey, could you give me back my blanket?
- Get up, it's Christmas.
- Alright, Heloise, I got up. Oh, my.
Simon stood up as he massaged his temples. He was still trying to shake off his drowsiness when he was suddenly dragged out of bed.
- Hey, Heloise, calm down, I'm already awake.
- I know you, Simon, if I don't take you out of the room, you'll go back to sleep.
- Hmm…
- Come on.
Simon was dragged by a 10-year-old girl called Heloise. She had very striking red hair and small freckles on her cheeks, as well as beautiful bright green eyes, and without a doubt, she would be a great beauty in the future.
Not that he was raising her to be his future wife, no.
Heloise was one of the youngest girls at the orphanage and was one of the few children with whom Simon had any affinity and with whom he was close. She was the complete opposite of him, being extroverted and very sociable, in addition to always helping the youngest.
Simon, on the other hand, was an egocentric pervert who had a serious inferiority complex while at the same time doing everything to remain superior to others, at least before arriving in this world. Over the nearly 5 years since his reincarnation, Simon's perversion has diminished considerably. Maybe it was due to his mentality, which gradually became more childish, or the lack of excessive contact with pornography, but he left behind many of his bad habits and customs.
Simon also gradually stopped being the introverted loner he once was, although he still socialized very little, he had a great affection for the children at the orphanage and saw almost everyone as his friends and family. He even stopped feeling hot for director Victoria, which was surprising for him.
He spent a large part of the day playing with the children without worrying about unnecessary things. After all, who wouldn't like to have a chance to return to their childhood, where problems seemed not to exist?
Of course, Simon has not forgotten his studies. Every time he fell asleep, he would go straight to the large library in his mind and start studying. Within 4 years, out of just over 3000 books, Simon would soon reach his 1000th.
Going downstairs, still in his pajamas, Simon found a group of children, some of whom were younger and still sleeping, standing up in front of a large Christmas tree. Surrounded by gifts.
Simon smiled at the scene. In your previous life, your Christmases were not so pleasant. Well, there were a few, but most weren't that fun.
Plus, everyone at this orphanage ended up becoming Simon's family. He still missed his sister, and oddly enough, he also missed his mother. But now that that was in the past, if possible, he would like to see them again, but he had no plans or desire to return to his old world.
While he was still thinking, Simon saw the director enter the room with three other people. One was her mother, Camille, who was already in her 60s, but her skin was still a little firm, and she exuded a noble air about her.
Next to her was Thomas Miller. An American WWII veteran who served between 1941 and 1945. He didn't talk much, he was a silent, observant middle-aged man who taught a few things to the children, but most of the time he served as watchman and caretaker of the house. Along with the two other women who came with them.
One was Martha, a kind girl who grew up in an orphanage and worked as a cook, and the other was Anna, a middle-aged woman who, like Thomas, fought in the Second World War as part of the French resistance and who, after the war, somehow ended up with him in England and now worked as one of the younger children's teachers.
Both were great friends, perhaps something more, Simon didn't know. They didn't talk about it with the children.
The house itself didn't need many people for cleaning. The older children were responsible for keeping everything clean, one of the few things that director Victoria demanded of them, so she imposed some discipline on the boys so that they wouldn't grow up thinking that everything in life would come easily. Although being an orphan was difficult enough
- Merry Christmas to all, and happy birthday, Heloise, my dear.
- Thanks, director Victoria.
- Well, I know everyone wants to see your gifts, so go ahead.
- EEEEEEE
- Get out of the way
- I first
- No fights, kids, Thomas helps me here.
- Okay
Simon looked at the children screaming and opening their presents. Some girls got rag dolls or toy tea sets, while the boys got cars or dolls. The older ones got more useful things, for example, Jonas, a 16-year-old boy from the orphanage, got a job.
Well, he said he would like some money as a Christmas present, and director Victoria made it happen, he would start working at a market nearby, earning a low but fair salary.
As for Heloise, she received two things: a beautiful flowered dress and a cookbook. Heloise loved cooking, she always helped Martha when she could, and when she couldn't, she would watch
As for Simon, well, he got a little drawing book and some colored markers, which was actually quite nice. Simon liked to draw, and although he wasn't a great draftsman, he was actually quite good.
Simon picked up his notebook and returned to his room, leaving the mess behind. He sat down on the bed and, as gently as possible, began to draw.
The noise of the children running downstairs and the smell of the food that was slowly spreading throughout the house made him relax.
Simon loved this place more than anything in this world or the one before. But he would have to leave soon, he could feel it.
Furthermore, no matter how much his mind regressed or how much Simon tried to change the way he acted, he couldn't erase certain traits of his personality. He was a control freak who took pleasure in feeling superior to others.
Before, when he helped Lucas get evidence of his girlfriend's cheating, it wasn't because he was a good person who cared about one of his few friends. He just wanted to see the shit hit the fan.
The same happened with Eliza. He took advantage of her vulnerability and the need to have her for himself, even if just her body. Maybe if he had chosen another approach, they could have even developed some kind of relationship, something he always strived for.
But all that was in the past now, he couldn't go back, and honestly, deep down inside, he wasn't sure if he really regretted what he did to her.
Simon couldn't help it, and he wanted everything to always be under his control. If before he already had a certain amount of control over a few people, now that he had access to alchemy, he could be much worse without any restrictive measures on himself.
FMA's alchemy, although it was not perfect or indestructible, was enough to make him reach an almost divine state. Not that he wanted to be a god or be immortal. Simon had already died once, and if possible, he would like to continue like this.
He had never felt such peace, so he didn't really fear death, he wanted to avoid it. Of course, who wants to die? But he did not feel that fear toward her.
Trapped in these thoughts, Simon continued drawing while he thought about what to do next. He already had a more or less elaborate plan in his mind, but he needed to be absolutely certain that he was in the world he believed he was in.
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Hey guys, sorry for the delay. This chapter was supposed to be posted yesterday, but I was busy all day taking care of some matters.
Look, my sister will get married this Friday.
So I hope you understand if the four chapters that I promised for this week don't come out.
