-He is coming!-

Excited. I quickly added some finishing touches and hid my work behind my back.

As I stood straight, I noticed Mili was chuckling while looking at me. I angrily put my index finger to my mouth to tell her to be quiet. She would ruin the surprise! With an exaggerated motion she covered her mouth which only annoyed me more, but I dropped it and focused my attention on the door.

The curved handle slowly started tilting. My excitement was barely contained, but I resisted the urge to rush to the door. Finally, it swung open… But it was only Stash.

I felt my shoulders droop from disappointment. From the corner of my eyes, I noticed Mili slightly shaking. Confused, I looked up at her. She was laughing herself to tears.

I frowned. Was that her idea of a joke? Getting me all worked up like that? I lightly hit her skirt with the back of my hand in frustration, but that only served to make her laugh harder.

-I’m not sure what’s going on here, my lady, but I must insist that you do not go around hitting young lady Gelzare.-

Stash said with a stern face.

Realising I might get scolded. I quickly bowed in apology, but still felt bitter inside. Still with an amused look, Mili tilted into my field of view and smiled.

-He really coming this time!-

Feeling excited once again, I stopped focusing on Mili’s prank and focused at the door while Stash walked toward the desk where he laid down some documents.

[Dad!]

I yelled as Lionheart crossed the threshold.

He smiled broadly and picked me up from the ground. He walked toward the sofa and sat down with me on his knees.

-How was your morning, Silika?-

He asked much more patiently than I felt.

-It was good, but dad I’ve got something for you!-

He looked surprised.

-You do?-

I nodded and was going to hand him the gift, but I realised that I had put it down before signing. Where did it go?

I looked around for a bit, until I realised that I had distractedly put it on my knees. I felt my cheeks burn in embarrassment. I glanced up at Lionheart, but he didn’t seem to have noticed… Or at least he was politely pretending not to.

I picked up the drawing and handed it to him.

He carefully took it from my hand and looked it over. His expression shifted. It wasn’t a polite smile anymore, but something else that I couldn’t describe. He didn’t look mad or angry at least…

He looked down at me for a moment with the same almost confused expression and hugged me tightly. We stayed like that for what felt like several minutes, but I didn’t mind. I liked being hugged.

When we separated, he looked at the drawing again while wiping his face with the back of his other hand.

-So– So you drew this?-

I nodded proudly.

I didn’t expect him to be so happy about it, but now I was definitely glad I drew him this surprise!

He smiled as he kept staring at the drawing. He finally stood up with me still in his arms.

He sat me down at his desk, which felt a bit strange. I couldn’t recall any other time in my life where I sat on a table. What an odd feeling, especially since someone voluntarily sat me here.

He said a few words to Stash who promptly went to dig through a nearby cupboard and before coming back to Lionheart.

It was a frame. Lionheart took the drawing and swiftly slipped it in. He removed a painting from the wall and replaced it with my drawing.

Was it that good? I’m sure the other painting was much better. Why is he replacing it…

He backed away from the wall and admired it before turning to me with a smile.

-This way, I can admire it every day!-

He simply stated, but I still felt confused.

-Wasn’t the other painting much better? I just learn to draw today, so it’s not very good…-

I tried to explain, but Lionheart simply shook his head.

-Anything you draw is a hundred times better than any painting in this house, because I know you drew it while thinking of me. Money can buy any paintings I want from any artists I wish, but a drawing from my daughter? I can’t buy that with money. I have to earn it as a father.-

I thought about what he said for a moment.

It was a bit hard to wrap my head around the concept.

-Like a medal?-

I tried to guess.

Medals were something you couldn’t buy.

Lionheart smiled in a satisfied way.

-Exactly. Like a medal. A drawing from you is like a medal…-

His expression shifted.

A shadow of doubts in his eyes. He looked down for a moment and held his chin, but eventually simply shook his head.

-I’m very grateful for the drawing, thank you.-

The strange expression still lingered, but it was now masked under a more happy one.

-I’m happy that it makes you happy!-

I answered, all smiles.

We stayed like that for a fleeting moment, before dad’s eyes shone.

-By the way, how are you feeling today? You don’t seem to be coughing as much.-

I nodded proudly.

-That’s right! I started feeling better today. Doctor says I shouldn’t be sick anymore in a few days!-

-Is that so? Then should we go somewhere to celebrate when you feel better?-

I almost fell off the table when I heard. Going somewhere! Yes! I want to go!

-I’m better! We can go!-

He started laughing at my response and gently ruffled my hair.

-Only when you feel better. Otherwise you will fall sick again.-

I let out an annoyed click of the tongue. I was hoping he would let it slip, but I guess I really have to wait a few more days before I can leave the house.

-Alright, let’s eat. I think you’re well enough to eat in the dining room.-

After picking me up once more, we headed down to the dining room. Today’s food was mostly composed of liquids and warm soft things. From what Mili had told me during our lunches upstairs, soft and warm food was good for your health when you are sick. I don’t understand how that works. I wish I could just stuff myself like usual.

Since I was feeling better and the weather was clement, Stash allowed me to go out to the yard for the afternoon, but no running.

His words.

After dressing me up, Mili and I headed out to the small terrace at the centre of the garden. She had already placed a set of tea, and brought down the chessboard and drawing supplies.

I felt a bit annoyed at the thought of playing yet another game of joust, but since I was in a rather good mood, I decided to humour her.

She set up the board again and we started placing the fences on the game board. After a lucky break, I was able to defeat one of her jousters on my second turn, but it was a short-lived victory and she quickly swallowed up two of my pieces after an unlucky coin toss on my part. In a matter of minutes, the game was wrapped up and another loss was added to all my collection.

I let out a pained sigh and slowly collapsed in my chair. I extended my hand toward my cup of tea and took long gulps of the warm liquid.

Will I ever win at this game? How was she always able to get so many pieces in one turn?

While I brooded on my chair, I stared at the glass veranda of the building. Normally, the place was quite messy since it was being used as a storage, but I noticed people walking around picking up things.

-What’s going on?-

I asked while motioning toward the building.

She looked over and nodded.

-Since there is renovation. Lord said to clean entire house.-

She explained.

Makes sense. When we walked around the other day, I noticed the house was pretty messy…

We cleared the chessboard and just as we were setting it up once more, Mili turned her head to the side.

-You have a guest.-

She signed as she stood up from her seat.

A guest?

I turned in the direction she was looking and almost instantly jumped out of my seat.

[JADE!]

I yelled out loud.

Jade was walking down the stone path toward us slowly. I ran up to her and squeezed as hard as I could as she squeezed back.

-I was told to make sure you wouldn’t run around, but I guess we can forgive this instance.-

She signed with an amused expression.

AAhhh I missed Jade! Less than a week had gone by, but it felt like an eternity.

I took her by the hand and led her back to the table where Mili still stood.

-This is Mili! She helps me and plays with me!-

-Hello, Silika friend.-

Mili signed clumsily before introducing herself verbally. They exchanged a few pleasantries before Mili offered Jade a seat.

-I let you catch up. I go get snacks.-

She signed before excusing herself, leaving Jade and I alone in the garden.

Jade looked around curiously. Obviously, she had never been in a garden like this before.

-It’s really… colourful, here.-

I nodded. I never met the gardener, but he was talented for sure. Even in Oblon the gardens had not been as pretty as here.

She finished looking around and turned back to me.

-So how have you been? I heard you were sick?-

She asked as she raised an eyebrow.

I nodded as I pushed a cup of tea toward her.

-Yeah, it’s a bit of a long story.-

I started recounting the tale of that night as she sipped on the cup of tea and nodded along.

I explained how it turned out that there were no monsters at all and that it was the pieces of a tree that had been struck by lightning that had broken the window, and that the rain from the storm had completely soaked me through.

-It’s a good thing the branches didn’t hit you. You might have gotten hurt pretty badly if it was strong enough to break the window.-

She commented.

I actually had not thought about that. As I considered what would have happened, I felt a shudder run through my spine, and shook off the thought.

-It’s okay. They are fixing the window. I’m sleeping in my dad’s office until it’s fixed.-

I reassured her off-handedly, but she looked surprised.

-You call him dad?-

She couldn’t help but ask.

She didn’t look incredulous. Rather, she simply looked surprised.

I guess I did start calling him that recently… Last time Jade and I spoke, I was still unsure whether I belonged in this place, but somehow, over the course of a few days, I had developed a new opinion.

Unable to explain, I simply nodded at her question and she didn’t pry. Instead, she looked curiously at the art tools on the table and picked up a single oil stick.

-It’s to draw.-

I explained.

I took a piece of paper and started to make shapes on it and showed her. Her eyes lit up with interest.

-So it’s like chalk?-

I had never made the connection before, but it did make sense so I nodded.

-Want to draw together?-

-Sure!-

She dragged her chair closer to me and we both started doodling.

As I was attempting to draw the office and the fireplace, an earlier thought occured to me.

-Say. If there’s no god of fire, why is there fire?-

I simply asked Jade.

She looked at me for a moment before putting down the oil stick entirely and rubbing her chin.

-I’m not too sure to tell you the truth. The gods don’t normally represent objects as much as concepts, so you can assume that most things around us don’t have a god. I mean, there’s no god of water or rocks either, right?-

I nodded in agreement.

My own thought process had not reached that point, but it’s true that there were many objects that weren’t directly related to gods… And those who were often came from unrelated objects that were then transformed by a god’s blessing or miracle.

-But then, where does fire come from?-

I insisted.

She looked pensive for a moment before turning back to me.

-Do you remember your second day at the orphanage?-

I frowned at her question. That was an odd thing to bring up. Still, I tried to recall that day and suddenly remembered.

-Ah! Yes I do! The other kids did a play. I think it was called “Root”?-

I responded inquisitively.

-I’m surprised you caught the name, but yes that’s right.-

She took a piece of paper and started doodling a tree.

-So in the very beginning, there was only Alcorn the god of creation. Well Root focuses on the story of the other gods, but there is another story in the books of creation that retells that era in much more detail. Before the War in Heaven, but after the creation of all the major gods, there was an era where Alcorn shed leaves that the other gods would shape into other gods. Remember?-

That part of the story was in Root after all.

-Well not ALL the leaves were shaped into gods. Some leaves were simply left where they fell and, from the indirect effect of the gods, started taking different shapes. So this is how we got rocks, grass, water and everything. I didn’t hear anything about fire, but it’s likely it was created in the same way.-

She drew a bunch of leaves falling from the tree, all in the shape of different objects.

I was incredulous. I had never heard of this part of the story.

-Leaves turned to grass?!-

Jade smiled uncertainly.

-Well, kind of. There are a lot of different theories regarding exactly what these leaves were like. Some say they are similar to the grey leaves that fall from the Evergreen, but other kinsmann scholars disagree.-

She continued to explain, but by that point I was starting to lose focus.

What did it all mean? Everything is made of… Leaves?

Jade smiled kindly.

-It’s okay to be confused. Most adults don’t really understand it either. That’s why we have the kinsmanns there to do the thinking for us.-

I agreed with the sentiment.

Really. What was the point of racking your brain about how everything works when the people who best know how it works don’t agree together?

Unless that means I should be trying to rack my brain harder to decide who I think is more right…

While I was deep in thoughts, Mili came back with snacks in hand and placed them on the table.

-Dig in!-

She announced.

Seeing the sweets, my earlier trail of thought suddenly lost its importance.

I have an entire lifetime to think about what is made of leaves and what isn’t.

These sweets, on the other hand, will be gone for good in a few minutes.

These sweets, on the other hand, will be gone for good in a few minutes.