Chapter Thirty-Six: Father and Daughter

Chapter Thirty-Six: Father and Daughter

“We’re almost there,” Serena said as the carriage trundled along the road. There were no tramlines to the outskirts of Shimashina, so they had to make do with a horse-drawn carriage. “Remember your lessons. First impressions are important, especially towards my father.” The father in question would undoubtedly meet them when they arrived. Hopefully, their lateness didn't irritate him. After she and Amelia had run the last fifty klicks to Shimashina, rode the plateau lifts, met with the Vengeance's officers and explained what had happened, the sky had already darkened.

“Don’t worry! I’m sure he’ll like me!” Amelia flashed a thumbs up, her now-crimson eyes brimming with excitement. From what Serena knew, it was normal for a Second Word transformation to leave lingering physical effects. Amelia was quite lucky only her eyes had changed since transforming back. Only time would tell whether they would stay red or eventually revert to her usual blue.

“Just... try only to speak when spoken to. I’m not sure how much he knows.” Serena said, thinking back to the previous events in the forest. The overlord had referred to Amelia as a realm traveller, which meant he knew she wasn’t a native of Karligard. If he knew that, then the greatlords below him likely knew. However, had that information filtered down to the highlords, such as her father?

Even more concerning was the thought that this information would also have risen above the overlord's station to the only one who could claim to be their superior. The thought of it made Serena want to squeeze her horns. Imagining that at some point, a document with her and Amelia’s names would have landed on her desk was extremely uncomfortable.

How widespread would the information about Amelia Speaking Asclepius travel? The fact a Second Word had been Spoken in the East was already being whispered about; she had heard the locals gossiping about it outside the carriage. Damn it! Hopefully, House Halen wouldn’t be sued for the financial cost of scrambling hundreds of ships in response to Amelia’s Speaking!

Serena really needed to have a proper sit-down and explain to Amelia how significant it was to get involved with the overlords. She thought she had explained it before but hadn’t accounted for Amelia’s naivety. Amelia hadn’t grown up in this realm, hadn’t developed alongside the culture that glorified and worshipped powerful Speakers. The problem was Amelia was too strong for her own good!

She felt herself almost shudder at the thought of what might have happened. There was a moment when Amelia looked like she might challenge the overlord over that human girl! Insanity! Even if - and it was a big if - the inexperienced Amelia could rival an overlord in a fight, any battle they might have had would surely have angered the slumbering animal god, Rhaknam! If he took flight in anger, then who knows what kind of catastrophe would have arisen! There were rumours that even an overlord would struggle against him!

And, hell forbid, if Amelia somehow posed such a threat to the overlord, then he could call reinforcements! That scenario made Serena feel sick because there was only one entity that the overlord would have a right to call in such a situation, and if she turned up then Serena was sure she would just start crying. At that point, what could anyone do but beg for mercy?

“You okay?” Amelia asked, “You’ve got that im-thinking-about-things-that-make-me-want-to-grab-my-horns look going on?” Amelia held Serena’s hand and fired off a small burst of healing which actually helped a little. “Are you that worried about meeting your family? I won’t mess up, I promise! Eee!” Amelia squirmed as Serena ruffled her girlfriend's hair. Sometimes, she felt a little jealous of Amelia. How nice would it be to be so powerful that everything felt like it wasn’t a problem?

“I’m alright, thank you,” Serena said, enjoying Amelia wiggling as her head was ruffled and patted. There was another matter they needed to discuss. Amelia’s confession. Sure, they had told each other they liked each other, but Amelia said she loved her! Only that idiot would have thought to use the presence of a truth-teller to confess her love! Serena didn’t know if the memory made her roll her eyes or squirm with delight!

She turned away from Amelia as the heat started to creep into her cheeks. Luckily, there was an adequate distraction out the window. They had arrived. “We’re here,” she said, quickly prompting Amelia to fix her hair. They came to a stop and Serena had barely left the carriage before a figure threw themselves at her, squeezing her tight.

“Big sister!” Lani squealed as she hugged Serena as firmly as she could. “Welcome home!”

Serena couldn’t help smiling. Like Amelia, Lani was often a breath of fresh air away from the seriousness of her normal military life. As much as her little sister could be extremely annoying at times, it was for her happiness that Serena kept fighting. “Ooof”, she exclaimed, hugging Lani back. “You’ve become so strong! Look at your horns! They’ve become so big!”

“But not as big as yours!” Lani complained, looking up and puffing her cheeks out in a very Amelia-like fashion. Serena grinned and gave her little sister some big sister advice, telling her to eat a lot. Lani rolled her eyes, before spotting Amelia climbing down from the carriage.

Lani broke away from Serena. “Human!” Lani called out, “Who- oh, I’m sorry! I thought you were a human!” Amelia didn’t seem offended; instead, she broke into a somewhat nervous but otherwise friendly smile before sticking her hand out.

“Hello!” Amelia chirped, “I’m Amelia! Nice to meet you!”

Lani looked blankly at Amelia’s hand, prompting Serena to sigh. She told Amelia that ladies didn’t shake hands, but the idiot kept doing it! “Amelia, women don’t shake hands, at least not in the East.” Serena turned her attention to her little sister. “Lani, this is Amelia Thornheart. Despite her eye colour, she is human.”

“Huh!” Lani looked between her and Amelia. “You’re human!? Why do your eyes look like mine!”

“Ah...” Amelia withdrew her hand and scratched her nose. “Some uh, spellwork backfired. My eyes are actually blue, you see...”

“Oooh, a spell! You’re a mage!? The teachers say humans make poor mages, is that true? I heard humans aren’t as intelligent as demons! Isn’t your kind super weak!?” Lani fired off question after question, not taking into consideration the atmosphere. In that way, she had another similarity with Amelia. “Why would someone like you be with big sister? Are you a slave!? Did she capture you!?”

“Lani!” Serena barked, switching right past stern-captain mode and into the much more dangerous angry-big-sister mode. “Amelia is a talented Speaker and a willing employee in my retinue. Remember your manners! Apologize!”

“Eeek!” Lani squeaked, “I’m sorry, Miss Amelia!”

“Speaker Thornheart!”

“S-Speaker Thornheart!” Lani stuttered, “I’m sorry!”

“Hehe, it’s okay!” Amelia bent forward with a smile. “I like your horns! They’re so symmetrical! I wish I had horns!”

“You... you really think so!?” Lani beamed at the naked flattery. “It must be so weird not to have anything up there...” Lani tapped her horns. “Doesn’t it feel weird?”

“I don’t know,” Amelia said with a shrug. “I’ve never had horns to know what it feels like!”

“But-”

“Ahem!” The authoritative yet polite cough cut Lani off. Serena’s stoic father lowered his hand. “Lani, come back here. Serena, my daughter... it’s been too long. How was Kenhoro?” Serena took the cue and approached her father, surprising him with a sudden hug. It wasn’t something she usually did, and she felt a little mischievous doing so. The widening of her father's eyes behind a pair of neat spectacles was a worthwhile reaction.

It seemed a little bit of Amelia’s cheekyness had rubbed off on her.

“Hello, Father,” Serena said. “Kenhoro was busy... We found time to attend the festival. Oh, we bumped into Uncle Yulan!” Serena was confident her father had received a report of the many chaotic events they had been involved in. Even so, there wasn’t any need to bring up how she, Amelia and Lord Yulan leapt out of his penthouse suite, was there? “He’s doing good. Sends his best.”

She turned to the old butler beside Father. The tidy old demon was standing impeccably, dressed in a black and white uniform. “Johan, I hope Father isn’t working you too hard. Make sure you’re taking your holiday.” Johan inclined towards her with a perfect bow.

“The human,” her father said cooly, placing down his glass.

“Amelia, yes.”

“When I heard you’d become involved with a human Speaker, especially a healer... I admit I panicked a little. I pulled all kinds of favours to get the orders dispatched for you to come here.” He took a slow breath before continuing, “I thought... well, I’m not sure what I thought. Was it a trick? Were you being deceived, or were you deceiving the human? She appeared, and the next moment, you're fighting Korvus Maranai. Your actions seemed mad. I was... concerned.”

“Then, as I waited... reports came in that the human saved your life, defended you against those Speakers in Kenhoro - I started to think maybe you weren’t mad.” He cast a long look at her and Serena held his gaze. “I was about to petition the greatlord to intervene directly when he contacted me first. He explained the human was already under surveillance and you were protected. Still, I was worried.”

He took a slow sip of the loqua. “It’s strange. The reports described her as having blue eyes, yet shortly after a Second Word was Spoken, right around where the Sakamoto went down, her eyes seemed to have become a new colour.” His face turned grim. “Do I need to ask?”

“She’s powerful,” Serena explained bluntly. “Beyond you or me. Beyond both of us together. Don’t think you can intimidate her into doing anything; she’s too strong for that and too naive to have the tact to navigate Cascadian politics. Remember, she is employed as part of my retinue; she is not yours to command.”

“Is she a threat to the house?” Father asked.

“No more than I am.”

“No more than you are...” he murmured. “Serena, the walls you’ve kept up since your brother's death seem to have weakened. You're more... emotional. Don't think I haven't noticed that you call her Amelia, not using the proper title of Speaker Thornheart.” The mention of Gin caused Serena's heart to twist. Perhaps if her brother never died she wouldn’t be in the military, perhaps her father wouldn’t be working so hard.

Perhaps she would have never met Amelia.

“We have a good relationship. After all, we’ve been through... situations together.”

“I’ve noticed she’s... attractive for a human,” he said, causing Serena to resist a gulp as she identified what direction he was going in. “I am concerned... that your disposition may have caused you to make... poor decisions.”

“My disposition is not a matter for your concern,” Serena said sternly, sensing her annoyance rising. “As a highlord, you should be well aware of how improper of a subject this is to discuss with another lord.”

“I’m not asking as a highlord!” Father suddenly called out, a note of desperation in his voice. “I’m asking as your father. I’m asking my daughter, not the lord she has become!” He took his spectacles off and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “I apologize, Serena. It’s just... even before you became a Speaker, you had plenty of worthy suitors. When you became a Speaker, you would have had your pick. And now? The sky's the limit! Any family would twist their horns backwards for you to marry into them. Tell me, is this... human... really what you want?”

Serena was quiet for a full minute while she figured out how best to answer. Settling on her wording, she opened her mouth, ensuring she sounded calm. “Father, as your daughter, I beg for your understanding. I am under no delusion, no spell or deception. I would not have chosen this if I thought it would harm our House. You have a Cascadian Lord as a daughter who will always protect you. And you have a Second Word Speaker who will protect me. And... most of all...” Serena gave a weak smile. “She makes me happy.”

Her father was quiet for a moment. “How strange. I said the same thing to Greatlord Oshiro decades ago." Seeing Serena's confused expression, he smiled softly. "We fought once, you know? Back when he was a highlord and I a mere lord. We fought for your mother, who we both fancied terribly. Ha...” He snorted before pouring himself some more loqua. “He thrashed me, obviously. Still, I refused to end the duel, to give up. By law, he could have continued and taken my life, but instead he asked me... why? Just that question: why? I said the same thing; she makes me happy. Somehow, that was enough, and he just...backed off.”

“... I didn’t know.”

“It’s just a silly old story anyway,” he sniffed, fiddling with the glass. “Still... what about children? Don’t you want some? No matter how powerful she is, I doubt she could put a baby in you.”

“Dad!” Serena blurted out, feeling heat rush to her cheeks. “Why did you say that!”

“What?” he replied as if he did nothing wrong. “I’m an old man, and I want my grandchildren. Nina is married to her work, and Lani is too young.”

“Tsk! I don’t know about Nina, but you shouldn’t worry about Lani. All she thinks about is which boy she’s going to marry and what she’s going to name her children. She’ll be popping little horns out one after another when she reaches adulthood. Ha!” Serena laughed, and her father joined her. The atmosphere became noticeably lighter.

“The human-”

“Amelia,” Serena corrected.

“Right. Amelia and Lani seem like they’ll get on. She’s always complaining about being bored despite being provided with anything she wants. I think I spoil her too much...” he took a sip of the loqua, smiling. “But what’s the point of being a father if I can’t at least spoil my youngest daughter.”

“Don’t be too soft with her; it’ll come back and bite you.”

“Hmm...” he murmured. He opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by a bell sounding in the office. The small bell was connected to the kitchens by a string. “Dinner is ready. It’ll be nice to have a friendly conversation with the... I mean your... uh... Amelia.”

“She only wants to impress you. She’s been going on about meeting the family for weeks.”

“Is that so...” he suddenly paused. “One last thing. Her origins. I’ve been told she’s from Karligard, but her accent is perfect Centralis Imperial. Is there...” he raised a questioning eyebrow, “...something I need to know?”

“Nothing someone like you wouldn’t be able to deduce by yourself over time,” Serena said frankly. It was only a matter of time before her father twigged Amelia came from a different realm. “It would be best to avoid that topic of conversation. Stick with... simple things, oh, and try not to be too surprised when she says or does something weird or incredible like it’s nothing at all. She’s just like that.”

“I see. I hope Lani behaves...” her father stood up and neatened his clothes. “Shall we?”

Serena stood up and together they headed to the dining hall.

Her first family dinner with Amelia.