46: That’s how you are

"Well? What do you think of my little house?" Melody said on top of the central table.

On the outside she looked comforting, but on the inside, oh my, it was so much more. Where to start...? Remember the little pair of gardens that she had in front? Because inside nature was more vivid. As soon as you entered, you could see vines covered with flowers that spread along the walls of the room, adorning the place with shades of green and blue. The floor was made of wood and at the entrance there was a place to leave your shoes.

That section of the house had a circular table in the center, not very high, made so as not to require chairs and for people to kneel or sit on the ground to use it. A wide wooden piece of furniture with seating pads —three to four people —to the right of that table, under the densest part of the vine, to the left was a three-foot-high stone counter dividing the room and kitchen, from then on the house went more to the background with the rooms of Melody, Samantha and...

"Melody! Get off the table!"

Samantha pulled her from her dress with some anger and a hint of alien grief. Gregory patted Natsume and Airys in the back to make them enter while he giggled.

"Ehm…" Natsume turned to see Gregory.

"You can call me Greg."

"Mr. Greg, is it okay for us to stay here that easy? I mean, if we have to, we'll pay" For a second Natsume looked like a super polite and considerate lady. "If necessary I will force Layd to work tirelessly, don't worry." And that's why it didn't last more than a second.

"Y-sure, no problem" Gregory stuttered at such a beast.

"Really Uncle Greg?" Samantha replied.

"Yes, what is wrong with it?"

Samantha rolled her eyes and sighed, it was obvious to her that her uncle didn't have that kind of sly mentality; detail that caused her anger to know the job he had. You only have to think about it for a second, two strangers spending the night and the day with his nieces, two strangers who JUST got out of prison, they may be innocent, but at least some caution.

"And this has nothing to do with Layd not being here!" she threw it inside her head.

"I don't see the problem, look at Melody, she already has a new friend" as soon as Gregory said that, she heard the highest cry of his life.

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Airys didn't carry the best of spirits, so she was not amazed by the beauty of the place and instead sat on that piece of furniture without saying much. Melody did not miss the opportunity and sat on the floor in front of her to start a chat.

"Why is your hair light blue?"

"Eh? Ah… because…"

Melody's intense face of curiosity took Airys by surprise. She had nothing against interacting with children, but now she wasn't in the mood for it… So she didn't give herself time to think and blurted out the automatic response that formed on her lips.

"Because that's how I was born..." she said and regretted it almost instantly when she saw Melody's gigantic astonished face and the roar of euphoria that accompanied her.

"UNCLE!!! SHE IS ONE OF THEM!!! SHE IS ONE!!!"

Gregory, Natsume and Samantha were startled by the sudden roar of the little girl. Airys was also shocked and, like a bucket of cold water, she realized what she had said.

"Damn it! Seng told me…! " She bit her tongue in irritation. "What does it matter what that moron says?"

"What's wrong Melody?" Gregory said with a panicky face opposite Samantha who was expected to be a triviality or one of those highs that she has with the likes of hers, and well… she wasn't wrong at all.

"Airys is one of the descendants of Dragons!" Melody jumped screaming at the top of her lungs.

"Oh Melody," Gregory smirked. "That she dyed her hair doesn't make her one of them."

"Actually sir, Melody is right" confessed Airys. "Excuse me for lying to you earlier, Natsume."

"Is fine" she said. "I already suspected something like that, your roots are not noticeable."

Not that it was important, dyed or not, Natsume didn't care.

"That's true?"

On the other hand, Gregory's approach to the situation changed along with the helpful and friendly tone, it was not anger that reflected his being, but an honest concern to verify if those words were true, like those of a worried father when he learned of news concerning your daughter's health.

"Yes…?"

"Could you close one eye? Anyone will do."

Airys listened to him and closed her right eye with a slight confusion, from her perspective she didn't feel a great change apart from losing part of her vision, however, the expressions of Melody —smile from ear to ear —, Samantha —astonishment that hid frustration —, Natsume —she bent down to see it better —and the gesture of disgrace that Gregory made when he put his hand to his face and sighed; they caused him some pleasant discomfort.

"Oh no… I think I was a little insensitive to Mr. Yeb… No… well… what he did was not right either…" Gregory was lost in his murmurs.

"What's the matter?" Airys said to the others.

"Don't open it!" Melody screeched and placed her face too close to her and held it with her hands. "Why does it look like this?"

"H-how 'like this'?" Airys said the best she could despite her clenched cheeks.

"Well it looks silver and… I think it shines" Natsume explained, unable to fully understand it.

"Eh? But if my eyes have always been silver..." Airys pushed Melody away and opened her eye.

"Ah… it doesn't look so cute anymore."

"Uncle Greg…" Samantha tugged at his shirt and brought him back to the real world.

"Oh right. Didn't your parents explain anything to you?" Gregory said glancing at Airys as he scratched his chin.

"Tell me what?" "Great, something else that that idiot didn't tell me."

"Well for some reason the eyes of your race have a… misleading effect? ​​When you see both you know they are silver, but it is impossible to think about it in a conscious way, the only way to realize it is by looking at one eye."

"What the hell?" Airys said.

"I am as lost as you."

Airys sighed, a delicate breeze slipped through her celestial hair, she had never stopped to think much about things like that, mysteries of her origin, epic stories linked to the legend of the Lady and the Dragon. She didn't hide her misery from anyone present.

"Can you tell me more about the dragons?" Melody asked with condensed tenderness and genuine curiosity.

That is why it was painful for Airys to understand that the solution to the unknowns of her origin and traits were found exclusively in that subject, Seng, behind emotional and personal barriers that, for Airys, would mean giving in and returning to him.

"I... my family, my parents adopted me so I don't know much about this subject."

The atmosphere got heavy for a second, Gregory wanted to say something to raise the spirits, but adoption? That your parents are not your parents? He was sure that if he opened his mouth he would not say what she needed to hear. Natsume, closed her eyes self-conscious, what if she said "I'm going to get all the information out of that bastard!"? Of course not. What Airys requires is to improve her confidence. Break her word, even if indirectly, it is the opposite of that.

"A/" Natsume made a syllable with her lips.

"Well, let's investigate!" Melody proposed happily.

"Investigate?" Airys said.

"Yes, let's go out tomorrow to see the city and ask if anyone knows about dragons!" She raised her fists in front of her excitedly. "Can you let us go for a walk tomorrow uncle?!" She threw herself on her legs to pull her pants. "Pwease, pwease!"

"I don't see why not" Gregory replied, spellbound by Melody's sweetness.

"Do you really think anyone knows?" Airys said.

"The city is huge, I'm sure it is!" And with that melody phrase, she started another flurry of comments that this time caught Airys's attention, and beyond that, they induced a state of unknown hope in her. It didn't mean that there were no problems or obstacles, it was about the opportunity to overcome them.

Of course she could know more about her origin. Of course he was capable of getting stronger. She is going to get ahead, there are alternatives.

Natsume jumped in and sat on the floor with Melody to talk to her and Airys about the places they would go, Melody's proposals sounded entertaining.

Gregory just smiled wistfully, his little niece was amazing.

"Hmp" Samantha turned her back on that situation and decided to go to her room.

"Hey Samantha" Gregory stopped her and even scared her a bit unintentionally. "Can you help me make dinner?"

"Aah…" Samantha replied. "It's a nuisance ..."

"Please Samantha, you are a better cooking than me." It was heard as someone knocked on the door. "Help me with that, okay?" Gregory said as he made his way to see who was outside.

Samantha reluctantly walked into the kitchen.

The sun was already in its final minutes and the moon was taking shape in the darkened sky. When Gregory opened the door he found the graceful figure of a lady with her arms behind her back, swaying from side to side in a white one-piece dress, without much detail beyond the personal choice of having only one sleeve up to the left elbow. That lady smiled at him and asked:

"How is Airys?"

"Heylin, what brings you here?"

"It is rude to answer one question with another."

"Ahaha… sorry?"

"So?"

"So what?"

"How is she?"

"A-ah, yeah that, heh… better."

"Better?" Heylin hit his chest with her index finger. "As you have made her feel bad I will charge you more."

"Haha… how do you think" He scratched his head, trying to forget about this afternoon. "What brings you here?"

"Well, it seemed wrong to let you spend the night with four cuties, so I came to stay with the girls" revealed the jacket that she was carrying in her other hand.

"But if you stay will be fiv/" Gregory covered his mouth flushed.

Heylin leaned forward a little, looking for an angle to better see his expression, decided not to tease him so much.

"Don't get your hopes up, you have something else to do."

"Eh?"

"The Mayor has called a meeting for all sectors, it is an emergency apparently."

The goofiness slipped from Gregory's face.

"Samantha is going to be mad" he mused.

"Don't worry, I made sure they have fun while you're gone."

"Thank you very much, tell my nieces that I will be back early tomorrow" he said and he went walking. When he was about to leave he turned around as if he had remembered something: "Heylin, how did you know that Airys was going to be here?"

Heylin shook his head and said one last sentence before closing the door:

"Because that's how you are."

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"Who wants to wake up telling stories?!" Heylin screamed in.

"I DO! I Do!" Melody joined her, pulling Airys by the arm.

"Heylin…?" Samantha cracked an egg and poured it into the pan. "Stupid uncle!"