Chapter 26 – Swaying tails

"….after today you will have the freedom to do as you please."

Silence.

The wide hall of the tent was quiet. The only sound that could be heard was the eery flapping of the material of the tent.

The air outside the tent might be howling but inside it was completely stagnant.

Every moment that passed made the environment that much more awkward.

'Why are they not replying?' He was looking right at them and they were looking right back but it seemed as though time had stopped for them.

"Umm…" He tried breaking the silence.

"Umm, what?! Can you answer us already…" Elaine snapped back.

"Huh?!" He was shocked. 'They are still stuck on that? Isn't my answer obvious since I put forward my offer…'

'Damn. I almost completely forgot.' He came to a realization. All this while he had treated the two girls as logical adults. He had completely forgotten that they were still two young girls.

What had these two girls been through to be forced to mature to the point that they were even able to fool someone like Adam? Alas, they still retained a bit of childish innocence.

This could be seen from their playful conversations with each other. Any adult who was put through trying times would most probably not come out with a side that could still maintain joy.

Weirdly enough, children could do so because of their lack of experiences. This gave them the hope that there were still things beyond the bad that they saw. However, an adult would trap themselves and fall because of their experiences.

The mind was a gateway and a cage.

It is very easy to get caught up in a small world of our own making and ignoring the vast potential of everything outside it.

These two girls were a prime example. Unlike an adult who 'knew' how the world works and would not even imagine someone who would not hold the element of darkness in contempt in this small city of Two Fang. They still held onto that belief.

This had paid off for them. Adam was one such individual who had a broader perspective on the matter. He put more emphasis on the individual rather than their abilities.

Elements had an effect on the personality of a person. He knew this but it was also not the only determining factor of a person's personality.

Bad omens and the like were superstitions that Adam would not fall for. He believed in what he saw and what he saw was a playful and mellow girl with a lovely personality.

Getting his thoughts in order, he began to reply to the girls.

"Yes, I don't mind that Luna has the element of darkness. It also doesn't matter if Elaine is 'tainted' by it. What matters most to me is your personality." He said resolutely.

"Young master! Are you sure it is okay?" Unlike Adam, Fen was a bit more sceptical.

She was a local of this world and these negative superstitions were something she grew up with. It was a lot harder for her to accept these girls.

"Big sis Fen, trust me." Adam did not say more because he knew that the best way to remedy a wrong assumption was through personal experience. She would understand once she interacted with the girls enough.

He then turned back towards the two blank-faced girls.

"Alright, you two! When will you stop staring at me like that? I have answered your question so now you answer mine." He raised his voice a bit.

"Ah!" The two girls were shocked out of their stupor by his voice.

They both turned towards each other and their eyes began talking. In an instant, the two girls seemed to have had a long conversation between themselves.

"You are not lying to us?" Luna broke off eye contact with her sister and asked. Both the girls were now paying close attention to every movement of the boy in front of them.

Adam truly felt like he was a lamb being eyed by two tigers at this moment.

"Of course not." He waved his arms in front of him and said.

Both the girls walked up to him. They stepped down to the first step where he was standing all this time. They were both an Inch shorter than him but their twitching and perked up ears made up for it.

This was the first time they had been so close. Both girls were looking up into his eyes. He was once again lost in admiration at how pretty these two were.

Taking one of his hands that was still in the air, Luna spoke "I believe in you. I will follow no matter where you go and what you do."

Adam was surprised at the bold action of this mellow girl.

"Fine, I will believe in you too. But only because Luna said she does." Elaine's hand stretched out too and grabbed his other hand. A bright smile bloomed on her face when she did.

'They are still two little girls. I will do my best to always be there for them.' They were still at the age where they needed support. Adam had now become that for them.

"Good. I may not be able to promise much but I will promise to protect you two. Anyone who ever dares to harm you can stop even thinking about having a calm life. They will have a personal taste of what my wrath feels like!" He gently squeezed the hands of the two girls and gave them a resolute look. The least that he felt he had to do, was assuring their safety.

The two girls had already accepted braving dangers through adventures along with him. He felt it only right to state his stance.

For the two girls who had placed their lives in his hands, his words were like lightning that struck their unguarded hearts.

The gentle squeeze of his hand, the warmth that flowed through to them through it and his determined words that held no pretences were all things that they had longed for but never gotten.

Safe.

This was how they felt at the moment. It seemed ordinary but they had not had this feeling from the day they were born. They had remained guarded and not opened up to anyone.

Not even the elder who took them in, because he had kept his distance from them. He was an old man who could not rid himself of his conventional wisdom and also had the thought that the girls might be vile creatures.

No one had held their hands or even spoken to them on equal terms.

Fen watched this transpire from behind Adam. She let out a soft and joyful sigh.

She could imagine what these two girls were feeling right now. Though the circumstances were different the outcome was very similar.

Her young master was very genuine in voicing his opinions. This held a very magnetic effect toward them who had been deceived or kept in the dark.

She was proud. Proud that it was someone like him that considered her as his family.

The two girls were similarly going through a whirlpool of emotions that they couldn't explain.

Water welled up in their eyes. They both simultaneously tugged at his hand that was holding theirs, pulling themselves into his embrace. Their faces were buried in his chest.

It was hard to tell what was happening but Adam could feel his clothes getting wet around his chest and the trembling of the hands in his.

"it's okay." He said in the gentlest voice he could muster. "What's there to cry about?"

"I'm not crying." Elaine's muffled voice refuted. She let go of his hand and used it to try and punch him. Just as her fist was about to hit him it uncurled and caught his clothes, using this extra hand she pulled herself deeper into his chest. Hiding her face more.

Luna didn't say anything but only gripped his hand tighter. Trembling more and more increasingly.

Not knowing how else to console the two girls, he used his free hand to softly pat the two girls smooth hair alternatingly. He looked towards Fen for help.

Fen only nodded in response. Encouraging him to just continue on as is.

Adam could only stare at the top of their heads atop which two pairs of feline ears were drooping while patting them gently.

A long while later…

Adam was still standing there patting their heads. The girls had stopped trembling and unknowingly two tails had popped out from under their short robes and were happily swaying behind both the girls.

"How long are you two going to enjoy this? My hands are starting to go numb." He had realized that the girls had long since stopped crying and at this point were just enjoying his patting.

Two red tinged faces looked up at him from his chest with puffy eyes. They looked adorable, just like two plushies.

"Just a little longer?" Two soft voices came together with a pleading tone.

"Sigh. Okay, only this once though." Adam said in a resigned voice but he actually did not mind. He was relieved that they had finally stopped crying. A sense of content was what he felt when he saw their happily swaying tails.

"Mhmm" Two satisfied and muffled little grunts could be heard as the patting resumed.

...…

"Master Adam, are you sure?" Ungad asked questioningly.

"Yes, you don't have to reimburse me and I won't tell anyone of what happened as long as you also keep quiet and let me take both these girls." Three girls stood behind Adam. Of course, they were Fen who stood right beside him, just half a step back while Elaine and Luna stood right behind him on each of his sides.

Both the girls were still holding onto his sleeves and had no intention of letting go anytime soon.

"It would, of course, be my pleasure to be of service to master Adam." Ungad could not believe his ears. He had so easily solved his problem and also gotten rid of the cursed girl. He was jumping for joy in his mind.

It should be understood that he had spent all this time thinking up of every possible solution to his problem but he still could not find a way where he would walk away completely unfazed. Yet, now he had been handed a way to do so on a silver platter.

"Are you sure you want to take those girls? Though it may not be easy I can surely find another." He could tell that the customer had already set his mind so there was no loss in accruing more credibility through empty words.

"No need. I shall be leaving now. Thank you for your services." Adam knew just how good a trader this man Ungad was. If he spoke for too long and let the other realize just how much value he held for the girls, things would become tricky.

Thus he flashed an incomparably tasty bone for the man and threw it out at the start. This way he would be too blinded by the gains to notice much else.

It had worked. Ungad led the group out personally and bade them farewell in a great mood.

Walking back along the street Adam was revelling in his ability to fool the trader when his stomach grumbled.

"Umm, have you guys eaten breakfast yet?" He turned around and asked the two girls.

"No! That cheapskate didn't even give us dinner last night." Elaine complained.

Adam Looked at the thin figure of the twins and felt a pang of pain in his heart. It was obvious that they hadn't eaten in a lot longer than just a day. It also seemed like they were used to not getting food.

"Then our first stop shall be a food stall on Blue lane street! I saw this great stall last time that sells one horned rabbit meat!" He said excitedly, masking the pain he felt. Now that they were with him, he would make sure they never remembered those times again.

"Big sis Fen please lead the way."

"Yes, young master. You two girls follow closely. Don't get lost, the city is very crowded in the morning." Fen said with concern. She did not fully accept the girls yet but that did not mean that she would hate them.

These were girls who would fight alongside her precious young master. She hoped nothing but the best for them since Adam had made his decision.

"Yes, big sis!" Both girls mimicked Adam and then grabbed a hold of each of his empty hands.

"We won't get lost if we hold hands!" Luna said giggling.

"If Luna says so, then there's no way around it," Elaine mumbled softly but she had already held his hand even before Luna had said anything.

"You two…" Fen only smiled and shook her head while Adam was left with no voice.

"Let's go. We need to make a trip to the guild as well, later today." Adam just let the girls do as they liked. They were not harming anyone. Plus they seemed happy about it, he wouldn't deny them something so simple.

The Four walked along the crowded Fang street. Slowly making their way through to Blue lane street.