Chapter 2: The orphanage

*baby cries*

"Shh... it's okay little one. I will bring you yummies right away."

A five month old baby was lying on a desk, covered in cloth. They were accompanied by a black haired woman holding a nursing bottle full of milk in her hands.

"Jeez. You always throw a tantrum around whenever it's feeding time. Stay still."

'NOO! Why do I have to go through something so humiliating? I don't want to be a baby!'

This baby was none other than Mirage, now five months old. His hair had grown to a dark grey color, and his eyes were colored green.

He started to make sense of the language around three months after he was born, but he still couldn't speak outloud.

'Blegh. I really hate the taste of this goat milk... I wish I cherished those store bought ones when I had the chance. Well, at least understanding what is being told to me is a little comforting.'

While Mirage was being fed, the door to room suddenly opened. Who walked in was a teenage looking girl walked in. They had long ears and had long hair reaching their shoulders.

"Lady Achlys, I helped put Betty to sleep. Lain hasn't returned from the village yet, but I think he should be back my the sunset. He should be bringing fresh vegetables for dinner."

"I see, thank you Petra. I will bring Mirage to the bedroom as well. He never makes noise when he is around little Betty. Hopefully he remains this understanding even when he's grown up. Helena too..."

"...Lady Achlys, we all miss her... she was like a mother to us; me and Lain. But... she would be sad to us be like this... I will go prepare the dishes."

The woman and the girl left the room together, with Achlys carrying Mirage in her hands. The building they were in had three rooms, excluding bathroom and kitchen. The room they exited just now was the room used to store clothes and other items. One of the remaining rooms was used as a gathering room, and the other, largest one, was used as sleeping quarters by everyone.

'Achlys knows me too well... she is worthy of being an orphanage owner, though there are not many children around here. I still can't found why she is referred to as "lady". Could she be some sort of noble descent? Wish I could speak already... I need to learn how to read and write as well, education is the strongest weapon someone of my status can have.'

Achlys brought Mirage to the bedroom, and placed him on the large crib which already had another baby girl sleeping in it. This baby looked older than Mirage, and had long ears.

'Little Betty, was it? I always wondered what her name was back then. Well, it is still quite a surprise to see that elves exist in this world. Heck, our orphanage already has three, and even the old lady who was there during my birth had somewhat long ears. Could she have been a half elf? That would explain why she looked old. I wonder if Betty will still be a baby after I'm grown up. That would be... sad.'

After she saw that he had gone to "sleep", Achlys laid Mirage on the crib, left the room and silently closed to door. Not even a second after she left, Mirage opened his eyes and started to ponder about his current situation and surroundings.

'There are only four children in this orphanage, two of them are about to leave the house. I remember hearing that Lain will be leaving next year since he would be sixteen then. Petra also said she would be leaving a year or two after that, which means she should be fourteen or fifteen now.'

'Petra helps Achlys take care of the orphanage, and Lain seems to be helping the village's guards as a trainee. Oh, Petra also seems to make some clothes in her free time. Perhaps she will be a seamstress in the future.'

'As for my mom... looks like she used to be someone from the orphanage when she was a child, Achlys described of her childhood; saying that she was a pain to look after. But Achlys still looks so young, no older than mid twenties... my mother also looked to be in her twenties as well, so how could Achlys have looked after her? Maybe she meant it as an older sibling, I just don't know. She could even be some other long living humanoid species, just like the little elf laying next to me...'

'She seems to be getting older, she certainly looks a lot bigger than when I first saw her. Though... she doesn't like me for some reason, so Achlys and Petra are forced to put her to sleep before me. Could this be the innate disdain of elves towards the other races? Perhaps that's why they are described as such proud creatures in literature.'

The elven baby was sleeping quietly, with her little thumb inside her mouth. Mirage also noted that she had a very pale brown colored hair, just a speck away from blonde. Her eyes seemed to be the same color as well, but he couldn't make sure of since she always cried around him.

'I was worried that I would be abandoned after my mother's death, or even being sent to some relatives who weren't even there for the birth... I still don't know what happened to my father, or who he even is.'

'Even so, I am glad to be in an orphanage with loving members who genuinely treat each other as family. Lain who is hardworking, Petra who is understanding, and Achlys who treats me with love and care, even after the death of my mother... I am really lucky to be in such an environment.'

Mirage looked at the ceiling, starting to feel a bit tired. Just a second later, his eyelids fell down, and he fell asleep.