We both went further into the forest to find a giant tree with leaves that are coloured scarlet. There were many rocks under it covered in moss, so I kept slipping since I just wanted to look up at the tree. Rudeus had to hold my arm to make sure I don't fall, but we both fell together since the tree is just to pretty to not look up at.
We carried on finding many different kinds of flowers then I decided I liked a tree, so we sat underneath it. We read a book on the different kinds of plants around us.
I made wind magic that won't go flying because of the tree and it was mainly around the book and Rudeus.
Rudeus showed me the plants, and I would go running to find them. He got me to try to say their names. "You are joking, right?" I asked seeing the name of one.
"Come on, try it." He sighed.
"Shrooms." I grinned.
"No, it's Aleurodiscus wakefieldiae." Rudeus said it flawlessly.
"Yeah, those words scare me." I hummed since I don't like big stupid words like that, they aren't useful and mess me up. "Anyway, can I eat it and grow bigger?"
"This world isn't Mario." He sighed as I took the mushroom from him.
He was looking at the book and then smacked the mushroom out of my hand as I tried to eat it. "Don't! These mushrooms can have bacteria that when digested cause hearing loss." He scolded me.
"I'm deaf." I reminded him.
"...oh, yeah." He mumbled, and I went to try to eat it again, but he kept stopping me making me whine.
He dragged me along and then made me hit a tree annoying. 'I'm the deaf one. I should be the one making myself hit into things, not you.' I complained.
'Someone is getting hit.' He informed me.
I saw the concerned look on his face, and I looked to see three boys from our village throwing mud at someone already covered in mud.
'This is bullying.' Rudeus groaned.
'It is? I don't like it.' I was ready to run out there.
One of the kids then picked up a rock, so Rudeus started to run in while I made wind magic in front of me and had it make a small tornado in front of my face.
Rudeus hit one kid with a water ball. I then screamed into the tornado, and they all fell to the ground including Rudeus. "I will eat all of you!" I yelled as I kept back in the woods.
The kids cried and ran for it. 'Rude? You okay?' I asked nervously. Rudeus jumped up and gave me a thumbs up making me grin.
"Did that nerk?" I jogged over to the victim, and Rudeus did to.
'It did work! And amazing, he's shockingly handsome.' Rudeus commented in his mind. 'I bet he'd make a shotacon lady's heart skip a beat.'
'Shota?' I asked. 'Am I one?'
Rudeus screamed, but I couldn't hear him since my wind magic is gone. I helped the girl up, and I motioned her to lean her head forward. 'I guess he mostly does what people tell him to. I bet he'd make a shotacon dude's heartthrob.' Rudeus thought.
'There are different kinds! Like other races?!' I excitedly asked him.
Rudeus got nervous and made a water ball and the girl hugged me. I hugged her back, and Rudeus used the water on her head while I add some fire at the sides to make the water warm.
She then shook her hair, and I used wind magic on her hair while Rudeus was freaking out for some reason. 'GREEN HAIR! RED GEM!'
"Pancakes!" I rolled away. I was on the edge of tears, but I didn't see a red gem on her forehead when she looked at me concerned. "You bate pancakes, good." I sighed in relief.
"No, I like pancakes." She informed me.
I was freaking out again, and Rudeus stopped me. 'He's not a dangerous Superd! Pancakes don't matter in it, either.' He patted my head.
"But mum told me food is the most important thing." I retorted as I emitted more wind magic. "So I don't beed to eat?"
"No, you need to eat." He sighed and I was confused. "Food is important."
"You're going back on your words." I complained.
"We are talking about pancakes and Superds still, right?" He said confused.
"Were we?" I asked and we had no clue what we were really talking about anymore.
Rudeus sighed as the girl laughed. Rudeus then started to lecture her on fighting back against those bullies while I was checking out her ears.
"You don't mind how I look?" She looked at me since I was so close.
"Her ears wiggled!" I squealed, and she grinned at me nervously. "Demons bar great!"
"I asked my dad, he says I'm not one." She informed us. "My dad is just half-elf."
'I KNEW IT!' Rudeus's mind yelled way to happily.
"But my hair colour is different from my dad's and my mum's." She started to cry and I cried with her.
I breathed in and let out a lot of wind magic to make sure I can hear myself well. "It's not a bad thing!" I reassured her. "I'm deaf!...but no one else bis! We are special, unlike Rude!"
I hugged her as she cried and Rudeus explained how I can hear. 'It sounds like his family situation is complicated. Still, he gets muds thrown at him for just his hair colour? Just the idea almost makes me piss myself.' Rudeus shivered.
I rolled away from him with the girl. "I won't actually!" Rudeus yelled and I discovered a hill...then a river.
We got back onto land, and Rudeus was scolding me as he got me dry. I just made myself deaf, and he scolded me in his mind making me whine.
Rudeus then got me to put up my hands telling me to make wind magic again and I saw she was trying to talk to me.
"Why did you help me?" She asked us.
"Weak!" I pointed at her.
"Yeah, our dad asked us to make friends with the weak." Rudeus added.
"But they might leave you out." She said concerned.
"Good! Why would I want to know that?" I asked. "Men in this world are ugh so far."
"Hey." Rudeus spoke up.
"You're a boo." I informed him. I meant boy.
"Anyway, you should play with us. We are friends now." Rudeus grinned at her and she was surprised. "Are you busy with chores or something?"
"No!" She shook her head.
'Lucky. With his looks, girls will be all over him someday.' Rudeus thought then looked at me. '...No boyfriends.'
"Okay." I nodded as I played with her ears. "Your name? That's Rude. I'm Ceral."
Rudeus laughed. "I'm Rudeus and she's Ceres."
"Sylph-" She answered.
"That's a nice name. Like a wind spirit!" Rudeus exclaimed.
She grinned happily from the compliment, and we explored some more. She chased after me every time I ran so she ran the whole time.
I then saw Rudeus ask her something, and he signed to me he was asking her what should we play. She then shook her head making me pout and whine.
She was panicking. 'He does want to play it's just that he has never done it before. I feel sorry for him. He has never had any friends.' Rudeus pouted.
'Do we have any?' I asked in my mind, and he looked ready to cry. 'I didn't have any in my past life either.'
Sylph then started to make some motions. "Fight?" I held up my fist.
She frantically shook her head, so I made wind magic. "That!" She exclaimed. "Teach me how to do that!"
"Mazic." I nodded. "Rude, teach her the word spells."
"Incantations." He corrected me.
"Bad word, diffic-" I was struggling to say difficult annoying me.
"Are you interested?" Rudeus asked and she silently nodded.
"We can be teachers!" I excitedly exclaimed.
"Then let's practice." Rudeus added and Sylph grinned. Her ears wiggled making me deck her into a hug, she's too cute.
Rudeus immediately separated us and chanted in his head no boyfriend for some reason. I don't think that's a spell.
We taught her a little, and Sylph was looking at me with an expression I'm not familiar with so I got a little scared. "Amazing! You're amazing!" She exclaimed.
I just laughed not knowing how to react and Sylph got concerned when I started to shake like I was in the middle of an earthquake.
"Don't worry, she's happy." Rudeus explained.
"Then why does she do that to my ears?" Sylph asked as I was playing with them again.
"Cute!" I explained.
"She gets excited over anything, but she really means it when she reacts like that. She's a bit naive, but she's very honest." Rudeus explained as he patted my head proud of me.
I was just grinning with my hands on my waist. I always get really happy when I get compliments. I was shaking a lot since I'm not used to them.
"Still getting used to them?" Rudeus asked me.
I nodded making him laugh. When I was a baby, whenever I got complimented or informed by Rudeus that I was I would cry since I felt so happy and since I was a baby, it was hard for me to try and control myself.
We walked Sylph back home then made our way back to our own. 'We did a good thing.' I grinned brightly as we made our way back. 'Its so cold!'
'Sorry, we were out so late.' Rudeus apologised to me as I looked up at the stars.
'Thanks.' I grinned. 'I always wanted to feel the nighttime cold! It's much different than when it's cold inside!'
Rudeus took a moment and then stopped walking. 'It is actually different. That night was the last time I ever felt this, and it was the first time for Ceres.'
'...mum was warm...then the pain...' I kept quiet, and he ruffled my hair making me smile at him.
"Faf!" I yelled to Paul when we got back. I wanted to tell him about what we did, so I could get a compliment or food, I would like both really.
He looked at me with narrowed eyes catching me off guard, and I got nervous. He was saying something, but I didn't want to use my wind magic.
Rudeus stood in front of me as I held onto the sleeve of his shirt. 'He's mad. It's probably because of me so don't worry.' He reassured me with a smile. 'Is it about Roxy's pan- I mean holy relic?'
Paul stood up and came closer to us, and he said something. 'Wait, what?' Rudeus asked in his mind.
'Oh, I see. Must be the brat who was bullying Sylph.' Rudeus smirked.
'Oh, we did good!' I thought and made some wind magic so I could explain.
"NO! YOU CAN'T USE YOUR FAKE DEAFNESS TO GET OUT OF THIS!" Paul yelled at me, and the sudden sound scared me.
"She isn't-!" Rudeus went to say.
"No excuses! When you do something bad, you say, sorry!" Paul retorted.
"No." I said quietly.
"What?" Paul asked.
"NO!!" I yelled as I looked at him with tears in my eyes and he paused. "I believe brother. We did nothing wrong."
Rudeus patted my head and looked at Paul. "What's with that look?" Paul asked.
'He really won't listen to our side after that lie. I could just apologise for now, but he just shouted at his crying daughter. I don't think that would be best for Paul or Ceres.' Rudeus was just staring at him.
"Because you will yell not to make excuses if I do." Rudeus answered.
"What?!" Paul yelled.
"Unfair!" I added.
"She is right. Shout and make your kids apologise before they say anything? I wish I could deal with things as quickly as adults." Rudeus huffed.
"Rudy!" Paul raised his hand, and I jumped in the way.
I got hit to the ground, and I was just in shock. "Mot-" I stopped remembering back to when I died. 'I can't shout for my mother or my father. Who can I shout for?'
"You only have one big brother." Rudeus knelt down beside me with his hand on my shoulder, and he smiled at me.
"Rudy, help." I clung to him as I cried.
"Father, until now, we have done our best to be good children." Rudeus stood up and helped me up.
"That's beside the point." Paul crossed his arms.
"No, it isn't. We have worked hard to earn your trust, and you shattered yours with Ceres." Rudeus informed him and his fists clenched seeing Paul still looking away from us. "You may not know, but Ceres blames herself whenever something bad happens. She's brave for speaking up and not blaming herself for once, so don't you dare try to crush her progress!" Rudeus yelled surprising us.
'I got over my trauma of going outside with her help. I need to be the one to support her since she has a bad father once again.' Rudeus sighed.
"But little Somal was definitely hurt-!" Paul retorted.
"Yeah, so?! He's a...dick!" I yelled surprising them.
"Hang on, what happened?" Paul asked.
"Didn't you say no excuses?" Rudeus asked making him flinch. "Don't worry, father. Next time we see three kids ganging up to bully one helpless kid, we will ignore it! In fact, we will join them letting everyone know that's the Greyrat family way!"
"I can leave when I get older, right?" I asked.
"Yeah, together!" Rudeus exclaimed. "You can choose who your family is."
Paul was shaking scaring me. 'He knows he has done bad.' Rudeus reassured me. 'Paul, you should give it up. I didn't spend 20 years weaselling my way out of unwinnable arguments for nothing.'
I was trying to imagine what twenty years would be like.
"Sorry, I was wrong, tell me." Paul apologised.
Rudeus explained everything and then turned to me. "You okay?"
"Twenty? So many Zeniths that would be." I mumbled.
Rudeus laughed loudly and then pulled me with him inside. I used my wind magic immediately wanting to hear mother's voice. "Welcome back! Have you been crying?!" Zenith asked me.
I hugged her. "I choose you!" I exclaimed. "And Rude!"
"Rudy." Lilia corrected me then patted my head and I grabbed her hand choosing her to be my family as well. "Fam!" I yelled making Rudeus laugh.