My name is Afald and I have loving mom and veeeery strict dad, but he is kind and if I did my job good, he would praise me and brag in front of his friends. That's kinda embarrassing....
Aunty Amella is a good friend of my mother. They grew up together, married almost at the same time, but something happened and they became a little distant. When I asked, mom didn't tell me the reason at that time.
However, they suddenly got close again. It happened when Aunties belly started to grow. She had a baby inside. When she would come by, she would let me to press my ear against her stomach and I would hear something moving. A living baby was inside another person!
" Mom! Waz I alzo inzide you?", I would ask this my mom every time and she would always answer giggling that I was. I really couldn't believe it. I'm so big! How did I fit inside!
" Waz I all tangled and squished? How did I fit?", I once inquired.
" You were really small and could swim there."
....
'Just how small was it?'
****************
After a lot of months, Aunty finally gave birth. I wanted to rush there and see the baby, but was stopped by dad. It appears, there is some kind of tradition and we could go and see the child only after 5 more months. By that time, I'd already seen some babies, All of them looked funny and cute, but they couldn't play. They couldn't stand, run, jump, speak or even sit! They were always in beds or in the hands of adults. So when we went to see Aunty's baby-girl, I expected to see the same thing. But....
"Mom, how come she sits and eats along with us? She is too small. right?"
Mom looked at me with understanding eyes and replied to my question using her own,
" But it's all good, right? You can play with this little angel now and don't have to wait for her to grow."
Angel.... yes she was a living,cute, fluffy angel with golden hair and poppy-red eyes.
When everyone finished eating, Mirta's dad started to play with other kids. I wanted to join in, but then spotted the heroine of the party in the corner of the room. She sat there with pouty, pink cheeks, looking all lonely, but extremely cute. When I approached her,she showed delighted, but shocked expression. We played with dolls and she was really good at it, but somewhere in the middle, her ruby eyes closed and she fall asleep leaning against my shoulder.
' She got tired already? Well she is small." I laid her on my lap and could no longer restrained myself.
' Her hair are so soft and fluffy!!!!'
That's right, since the first time I saw her, I wanted to pat her hair. Her mother came when everyone started to leave. I wanted to be with Mirta more, so asked if I could come again and was told that I'm welcomed in their house anytime. Hooray!!!
I came almost everyday and played with Mirta until she would fall asleep. That was the time when I would brush her hair and feel their softness. Once, when we were playing, I accidently patted her on the head when she was awake. She turned all happy and glowy, so since then I just patted her whenever I got that chance. We played and as time passed by, I noticed that I wanted to know her even better and one day that opportunity came.
I caught Mirta using magic, talking and standing. My shock was immeasurable. At first I didn't know what to do and tried to call her mom and received a mouthful of water. I took a glance at her, while still coughing and saw how she was shaking.
She was... scared?
We talked and I got confirmation. She was scared that people would start avoiding her and her parents would leave her. She cried for long time and when she finally stopped I pulled her towards their house. She tried to resist, but I was stubborn and still brought her inside. She told them about her abilities, but her parents didn't seem all that surprised. However, when Mirta casted her magic their eyes became cold. Her dad rushed towards us and, GOSH! His eyes were scary! I accidentally let go of Mirta's hand and saw how she froze on the spot.
' She is scared and I let go.... I'm an idiot'
I hugged her to show that I will not leave and her parents took their measures to calm her down. In the end, she fall asleep in our group hug.
' What a clumsy friend I have', I thought, as warm feeling slowly spread in my chest.
Uncle Kelm carried Mirta to the bedroom and when he returned, both of Mirta's parents looked at me.
" Afald, when did you come to know about this?", her dad asked with calm, but scary voice.
" Just a few minutes ago. She said she wanted to reveal things slowly , starting from the next few months, but I forced her to come today. Is something wrong?"
" No. You did the right thing. If she kept it a secret, she could've make a very grave mistake", Mirta's mom told me that with kind, grateful smile. Now that I think about it...
" You weren't that surprised when Mirta started talking? Did you already know?"
" No, we didn't, but we knew that she would grow faster than most children, because children with magical power always quicker to grow"
"Afald", Uncle Keim called out to me with serious look on his face" keep Mirta's abilities a secret from everyone else. It is still too early for them to know."
I get to keep a secret that only Mirta's family and I will know! Hehehe... That sounds cool!
" Of course! I will do my best!"
Mirta, I will be by your side and support you, just how I promised earlier!