Finding Truth

《17》

Shiro sat by the water fountain, his eyes empty as he stared at the sky above. It was so blue, clouds floating up high, showing the castle below. It was so peaceful. But his mind wasn't.

He felt conflicted. He felt as if there was nothing more now. He found more clues but it led to nothing more but confusion. He wanted answers but he found more puzzles to solve.

"Hey... how do we get to older brother?" Kohana asked as she and Koharu peeked from behind the pillar, wanting to go and ask their brother about their mother. "Go ask him, Koharu."

"Ah, why me!?" Koharu silently exclaimed, restraining his sister's push. But it was a failure when the two of them tumbled right in front of their older brother. "A-ah, hello..?"

There was an awkward silence between the three of them. The twins awkwardly smiled while Shiro just sat there, wondering if they were okay or if there was something they needed from him.

"Uh... yes..?" Shiro asked, staring at the boy in confusion as he hid behind his sister. "Is there something you need?"

"U-uh... I w-wanted to ask!" Kohana stuttered as she stepped closer to her older brother that she met just a few hours ago. Shiro nodded, signaling her to continue. "W-what was our mother like? What did she look like? Is she nice? What kind of powers does she have?"

Shiro saw the excitement in their eyes as she asked those questions about his mother. No... it wasn't just his mother anymore... it was also theirs. But it was almost impossible to think of that. He never saw them born.

"Can I ask something first?" Shiro asked, patting the place next to him and the twins sitting on both his side. "If you're my full sibling... how were you... well... born?"

The two of them seemed to flinch for a second before they composed themselves.

"We weren't born." Koharu began with a sad smile. "We were... made. From father's own life and mother's. So... we're more like a fusion of their own powers other than their children..."

"But father treated us as his own children." Kohana added with a smile. "We weren't babies or anything. We woke up able to walk and able to talk. We could use magic at the bat and we were aware of how we were made. But he still made sure that we grew up like normal children."

"Yeah, so please don't be mad at father anymore." Koharu said with a smile, placing a hand on his brother. "You know... he kept telling us that we'll meet you and mother in three more years, but here you are. We were excited when we saw you at the bed. But..."

The twins paused, looking at the ground, their eyes filled with sadness. And Shiro can see what kind of sadness it was. He wasn't just the only one they were waiting for. He smiled softly, placing his hand on their heads, giving them a pat.

"Mother was very nice." He began. "She's a very good cook and she's a hard working woman. She has (E/C) eyes like you and uncle Ko, but her hair is (H/C). And as for magic... I never really saw her use any type of magic... but it's holy magic."

Shiro told more and more stories of their mother to his younger siblings, enjoying the afternoon in the sun and telling fun stories of his time in the human kingdom. All the while not uttering the name of his two uncles and the king.

His trust in them had faded. But that doesn't mean he trusts the demon king either, he'll need to prove that he is worthy of his trust.

And from a window stood three figures, watching the scene below with soft eyes. They too wanted to talk to him, but they wanted to make sure that their nephew reunites with his father and siblings first.