Chapter 23
686 Words
Was Seth okay?
Mother had been pacing for days over father in this room. She had from the moment we found him like this not once even left his side.
“Mother, go sit down and get something to drink,” I pensioned to one of the girls, waiting to help.
“Reno, I just---.”
I folded my arms. “Seth will get it done. We just have to believe in him.”
Mother turned to me, her face wanting to protest, but she just walked away. The door closed as the maids followed behind her. With my ability, I heard their sound until it disappeared in the distance.
I sat beside the man that was my father. This man was a human, frail and weak. I raised my arm towards him, noting that we were both the same. I chuckled to myself. How low had I fallen that I cherished the time I spent with this man?
***
“Reno, Seth, good job today on the farm.”
Seth scratched his head, looking at the sun setting in the distance. “You say that all the time father but you just end up spending most of the time doing the majority of the work.”
Father merely chuckled as he dipped his pitchfork in the ground. “As your father for now, I will do the most work, but in time. You two will step up and take my place when you both become men.” He placed his hand in my hair.
“No more dirt, father,” I protested, wiping my face. “It’s going to take forever to get out. I am tired of working on this damn farm.”
“I was the same way when I was young. I didn’t see the end result.”
“The end result of what?” Seth asked.
“What makes the man? Fighting wars, the freedom to run along and do what you please. No, the man has to settle and in order to do that he needs something to build. You can’t control but with your hands you can provide for those that are important, your family.”
“That’s just an excuse for you to get us to keep working on the farm,” I said.
“No, it’s not an excuse, just some wisdom from my old age.”
“And mom is the one that made you settle?”
Father rubbed his head at Seth’s question. “I guess you would think that, but your mom came after. It was your grandmother’s last request for me to settle down before I came to live here. I used to live outside of the empire as a merchant. I was always on the road selling something to someone.” Father pulled out his pitch fork. “Come, let’s walk home.”
“What was it like being a merchant?” I asked as I followed along beside him.
“What was it like outside the village, hard chaotic and sometimes fun.”
Seth trailed behind us. “Was it all you used to do selling items?”
“I would buy from one area and head to another to sell listening to gossips and rumors. I guess that was the fun, but it was lonely and things didn’t work out well.” Father paused for a while, lost in thought.
We walked passed the children and villagers, all heading to their home. Torches were lit to keep out the dark.
“Many times I thought I would have died and when the time came. I gave it up when I realized I had everything that I needed. Your both young and I want you to know that I will always be here if you need me for guidance that was something I didn’t have.”
We all came to a stop at the front of the house, as a smile was on our father’s face.
There was Mom.
- Writer
