5 Motherly Love
After exiting the room Tifeo began to run with all his strength when, suddenly, a woman appeared before him.
From her look the woman seemed to be in her mid twenties, with red fiery hair and blue eyes.
She emanated, like his father, a majestic air but, differently from him, the air emanated from her wasn't cold and oppressive but warm and full of kindness.
"We see each other again, Tifeo "said the woman directing her gentle gaze toward Tifeo.
"It's been a while Mis-... mother" said Tifeo with an awkward expression that transformed into a scared one toward the end of the phrase.
The woman, hearing Tifeo and seeing his expression, began to giggle "Uhuhuh I see that you have finally accepted to call me mother uh, I know that you was a good boy. Now what you say of giving your mother a big hug? You can't refuse after not visiting me for three years, you know it wasn't a nice thing to do? Leaving your mother alone all this time, you are really a bad son" said the woman with watery eyes and a pitiful tone.
"Yes... Mother, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have leaved you alone, please pardon me" said Tifeo before hugging her and thinking between himself *Damn witch, if I don't call you mother you will spank me to death. You are like your daughter, a wolf in sheep's clothing*.
The mysterious woman was none other than Sharon Ignis, Alos wife and Sheila mother.
Even though she wasn't Tifeo mother she consider him her son and thus always insisted to be called mother and, one time when Tifeo didn't do it, she spanked him until he passed out. After this episode Tifeo was terrorized of her and began to be even more respectful of her than his father.
She, like Tifeo father, was a member of the Ignis clan since the clan members are prohibited from marrying people not belonging to the clan to try maintain the bloodline purity. All the people that try to disobey this rule are either killed or crippled and imprisoned to the rest of their life.
It could seem a cruel rule for outsiders but, for the Ignis clan and other clan like them that depend on their bloodline purity to augment their strength, it was completely normal.
*Now that I think about it, aren't they afraid that after leaving the clan I will spread our bloodline?* thought Tifeo while hugging Sharon.
"Tifeo, what are you thinking?" said Sharon with a concerned tone while freeing him from her embrace.
Tifeo remained silent for a few moments and then, trying to restrain his tears from falling, said "You already know the answer right? Father have exailed me from the clan. I'm really disappointed, not of him but of myself, disappointed to have thought that he would have recognized me, disappointed of having hoped that he would have loved me like a real father should".
Sharon, hearing his words, re-hugged him and said "Shhh it's okay, it's okay. You can cry if you want. Don't restrain yourself, even if you are a man, sometimes crying is good".
Hearing Sharon reassuring him Tifeo freed all the tears he was holding back" Waaaaah waaaaah" and after crying said with a void gaze and a monotonous voice "Why? Why does he hate me? What did I do wrong? I don't wanted a reward or anything, the only thing I wanted was a bit of love and that he, even if only for a moment, was proud of me".
Hearing and seeing him like this made Sharon heart hurt and, after thinking for a few moments, she said with a resolute tone "Come with me, I want to tell you the truth. I want to tell you who your real mother was".
Hearing her Tifeo said with a startled expression "The... truth?".
When he was younger he asked elder Liu who his mother was and he responded that his mother was a member of the clan that died shortly after his birth but, now, it seems it was a lie.
"Yes the truth but... we can't talk here, came with me" said this Sharon began to walk and, after a brief moment of hesitation, Tifeo followed her.
After walking for a few minutes they arrived before a luxurious wooden door and, passing through it, entered an even more luxurious room.
The room was finely decorated with pot of flowers and the walls were full of pictures representing Alos, Sharon, Sheila and, in one corner, there was even one representing a pouting Tifeo.
When Tifeo entered the room he began to tremble with fear, fear that intensified after seeing the picture representing him.
This room, that other people would consider a work of art, was, in Tifeo eyes, a torture room.
This room was the place where he felt the greatest pain and fear of his life, the place where Sharon spanked him, and, that picture, was a picture that Sharon forced him to do after treating him that, if he hadn't done it, she would have spanked him again.
"What are you doing? Come, sit down" said Sharon, sitting on an enormous bed at the center of the room, after seeing Tifeo remain motionless for a few seconds.
Hearing her Tifeo recovered his calm and, after sitting on the bed, asked impatiently "You've said you will say me the truth, then all the thing elder Liu said me were lies?".
"Yes and no, it's real that she died shortly after your birth but she wasn't who you think she was" said Sharon.
"She wasn't who I think she was?" said Tifeo trying to find the hidden meaning of the phrase "Do you mean she wasn't a member of the clan?".
"Yes, she wasn't a member of the clan" answered Sharon.
"But... then father isn't my real father? The rules of our clan say that the members can have child only with the other members and father would never break such important rule, he his too loyal to the clan" said Tifeo with his brow furrowed.
"Yes, you are right, but he hasn't always been like this" said Sharon before going toward the window and beginning to look at the sky with eyes full of melancholy.
After looking at the sky for few seconds she looked again at Tifeo and said "I want to tell you a story, the story of two of the most important people of my life: Alos, your father, and Lefia, your mother and my best friend"
