[23.4] Something Found

The door was pushed open so forcefully, the knob smashed into the wood, causing a dent.

Della rushed in and grabbed a bag, shoving the little clothes I had inside.

I stared at her incredulously.

Patrick followed her inside with a panicked look, "Della! What are you doing!?"

She shouted with tears gathering at the corner of her eyes, "I'm not letting that man take my baby away from me!!!"

"But Della! If he thinks she's a demon, then he won't just let her go! He will track us down! We will be burned alive for helping a demon escape!!"

She spat back, "Then don't come! Just stay here! I can do this on my own."

His voice was soft, "Della… Think about this…"

"B-But Patty… I can't let them take her from me…" She broke down in painful sobs, "I-I finally became a m-mother… I-I can't let them take her…"

I stared at her with complicated emotions swirling inside.

Why is this woman acting so emotional over me?

I'm not actually her child.

I stole her child.

Yet, she is acting like I AMher.

Is she in denial?

I don't understand.

I'm just a stranger who occupied this body.

Who would be so compassionate for someone like that?

Shouldn't she hate me?

Shouldn't she resent me?

Patrick slowly shook his head and let out a sigh. Then, he turned around and left the two of us behind.

Just as I thought, it's only this woman who is abnormal.

She stifled her sobs and rubbed the tears away. She continued to place the necessities in the bag and then threw it over her back. She rushed to me and pulled the covers back, "Come on, my darling Rei of sun. We have to go now while it's still dark out."

Before she could pick me up, Patrick returned to the room with a large bag filled with food and three cloaks in his hands. He handed one to Della, "Here. Put this on. I will carry Reika."

She took the cloak from him with large eyes, "Patty… What… What are you doing? You're coming with us?"

He smiled at her softly, "How could I let my older sister and my precious niece leave me behind?"

I stared at both of them as if they were so abnormal, that they couldn't possibly be real.

Why would someone go this far for someone like me?

Patrick placed the cloak on me and picked me up. We moved through the hallways as quietly as possible. Their footsteps were light as they hurried over the cold stone floor. As he carried me out of the building, I stared back at the structure with mixed emotions.

It had been the first time I was taken out of that room. I had no idea the building was so large. Now I can see I was actually in a huge church filled with many floors and rooms.

I watched as the building became smaller until it finally disappeared over the horizon. The two of them climbed through the dense forest and mountains while I could only be carried and watch their arduous hike.

Della started falling behind and began to gasp roughly. Patrick noticed and slowed down, "Della. We can stop and rest for a few hours."

She shook her head, "We have to get as far away as possible before they notice we ran off."

He forced a smile, "It will be okay. We did a good job hiding our tracks so they shouldn't be able to find us. We even hid our scent, so no familiar should be able to track us down."

Her eyebrows pinched together, "I… I guess."

After finding a good place to rest, Patrick propped me up against a tree. I could still only use my hands and arms for very easy tasks, so I had to rely on them to take care of me.

Patrick then gathered up logs and placed them down on the ground. Della pulled out her wand, but before she could use it, he stopped her. "Della. We can't use magic. They'll be able to track it down."

Her face tightened, "Oh… That's right."

He used a stick and rubbed it together, eventually creating smoke. After the fire was started, he sat down next to me and let out a sigh, "Don't worry, Della. Once we are far enough away, we can use magic again. We just need to find a city where it's normal to see people use it."

She let out a sigh and shook her head, "I don't care about magic. I wouldn't care if it was taken from me or not… All I want is to be far away from that place."

I mumbled under my breath, "Just what kind of place was that?"

Patrick turned to me, "It is a church that takes in refugees from the Desert territories."

I glanced at him, "Refugees from the Desert?"

He forced on a smile, "This isn't our homeland. In our homeland, there are very few people born with the power to control magic. Those who can use magic become slaves. They forced us to wear collars which would cause immense pain if we ever went against their wishes. Then, they would extract our mana so they could sell it to rich buyers who wanted to use it for themselves."

My face darkened, "So that makes us…?"

He let out a sigh, "We are runaway slaves… Or in this Kingdom, we are considered refugees."

"Refugees? But why…"

Why was the Priest so determined to kill me then?

Della paused and looked at me in surprise, "That's right. I suppose we have never explained our world to you… You must have been so scared and confused."

I scoffed, "I wasn't scared."

She ignored me and started speaking. With a smile on her face, she explained the world to me.

Magic.

Demons.

Familiars.

But there was one thing I didn't understand…

I looked into the flames with a conflicted heart, "What if I actually am a demon?"

"You're not." She laughed and reached out to run her fingers through my hair, "But even if you were, there's nothing wrong with being a demon."

Patrick nodded in agreement, "That's right. It was thanks to a warrior demon that we were even able to get out of those collars and escape to this country."

I furrowed my brow, "But you don't even know who I really am… I could be a murderer. I could be evil."

Della smiled softly, "You're not evil."

I clicked my tongue, "How would you know?"

She cupped my cheeks gently and turned my head so that my eyes stared into hers. With an affectionate smile, she spoke, "Because all I see in your eyes is a girl who is lonely but is filled with kindness. There is no evil within you."

I felt the heat rise to my cheeks and averted my eyes, "What do you know?"

Patrick laughed, "Della is the best at understanding people. If she says it's so, then it's definitely true."

I turned away my head and closed my eyes, "It's not true."

He pinched my cheek, "Is our little Reika embarrassed?"

I muttered under my breath, "Who is your little Reika? I'm much older than you."

Della giggled, "Stop teasing her, Patty."

I shook my head, "I don't understand you two. We aren't actually family. I'm just a stranger who stole your daughter's body. So why are you treating me so kindly?"

Patrick opened his mouth but froze. He looked at Della for help and saw that she was smiling softly.

She spoke slowly, "Family isn't always the people who are related to you... Family is the people who stay by your side no matter what. It's the people who are your shining light in times of darkness. Family is the ones who give you love when you yourself don't think you deserve it. So... Of course, I am your mother... Because I will always love you and I will never leave your side... Even in death."

My eyes widened in surprise.

Is that…

Is that what family is?

I forced myself to remain nonchalant, but my tone betrayed how touched I was, "Who would call you mother? I'm older than you."

She laughed gently, "That may be true, but you're still my little baby girl."