~Pov Rainea~

It was early morning when my eyes began to open, dull from fatigue and all the movement of the night before. My throat was also a bit sore, and the culprit was sleeping peacefully still.

Eli had his head lying against my chest, the strands of his thick black hair tickling against my nipple through my bra every time his breathing rose and fell. I pulled him off me roughly; he deserved nothing more after the way he treated me last night, but still, he remained asleep.How can a child be such a heavy sleeper, I wondered as I felt my body was completely clammy and my mouth tasted strange, maybe a little sour....

I left the room and headed to the bathroom, meeting Aran down the hall. I greeted him as I normally would, surely the anger he'd had the night before would have worn off by now, I thought as I opened my mouth to say "Hey...", but, contrary to what I expected, at no time did his gaze land on me; he simply ignored me and walked past me as if I didn't exist.

I can't deny that it hurt. Aran was my twin brother, my other half, the person who understood me best in the world. But if he wanted to distance himself a little, what could I do? I only hoped that this situation would be temporary. Maybe in just a few days, everything would return to normal.

With that thought in mind, I continued with my usual routine: a quick cold shower, a light breakfast of egg whites and vegetables, rinse my mouth and then go for a short jog. All as usual.

I returned home at almost noon, completely exhausted, after running a few errands and training magic and sword stances in the woods near town. With the practical exams a few months away, I couldn't afford to waste a moment.

These exams are going to be like no other. There are rumors in the academy that other races and schools will be invited for this particular exam: orcs, dwarves, beastmen and even demons. The competition will be fierce and I have to be prepared for anything.

It is no secret to anyone that I am the best, the strongest, the bravest. It doesn't matter if I face a man, a woman, a child or an adult, I always come out on top. And I want to keep doing it, even if it means trying twice as hard or three times as hard. I don't care what it does either if I have to train until my hands bleed and my mana runs out....

I opened the front door and it let out a horrible squeak, our home was a bit old. The wooden walls were weathered, painted a dull yellow that was slowly peeling. The roof was also in disrepair, leaning to the sides of the house. The dirty windows reflected my room and Aran's upstairs, with thick black stains of unknown origin. Despite our attempts, we never managed to clean them. Overall, the house didn't look very livable, but for now it was what we could afford.

I dreamed of someday taking my brothers and mom to live inside the third wall. Maybe if we told Grandma to do it, this wouldn't be just a dream. We were not fools, neither my siblings nor me. Grandma was well off, maybe too well off, and if for some reason we lived in a minimally peaceful way, it was because of the support she offered us. But Mom was too stubborn, just like me. If that were to happen someday, I'd like to have something to do with it.

Mom, as she almost always did, was in the living room, reading one of her books with a quirky cover. The only part of her body that made any movement as she read was her arm, which repeatedly carried the delicate crystal glass resting in her hand against her mouth.

Mom was a frequent drinker, something that was actually normal. All, I repeat, absolutely all adult elves I know drink and drink a lot, so seeing Mom having a few glasses of wine at this time of day was not an odd sight for me. What was odd was seeing the scowl that adorned her face.

I'm not going to lie and say that Mom never gets angry or peacefully scolds us. No, Mom smacks us on the butt, scolds us in ways that are sometimes a bit excessive, especially Eli when he gets really naughty. She may even stop talking to us for a few days depending on how bad the mischief we've been up to was.

And even though she is like that, quite an impulsive woman, I was quite surprised to see that scowl on her face while reading her novels. She really enjoyed them a lot, so if she had that expression on her face, it was because there was something else that was really bothering her.

As I closed the door and began to take off my shoes, which by the way were killing me, I didn't know what simple act of freeing my feet from the leather could provide so much relief. It was then that Mom's gaze met mine, and I knew immediately what it was that was bothering her and not allowing her to enjoy her novel: me.

Her gaze pierced me for a few seconds, that look that only she knew how to do, the one that conveyed everything I was thinking at that moment: "You're in trouble, young lady!". Without a word, with a gesture of her long fingers that released the strange book and placed it on her lap, she instructed me to sit down in the same armchair where she was. I did so.

In this house there is one indisputable rule: never contradict Mom, at least not as long as you are not Eli.

The silence that followed was... a bit overwhelming, to say the least. Mom kept her gaze fixed on me, with an expression of disappointment and disapproval that she had never directed at me before.

I lowered my head, wondering what I had done so wrong. If it were anyone else, maybe I would have asked, but being Mom, I knew that if we were in this situation it was because I had done something really bad, and I wasn't even aware of what.

So I decided to wait, until her reprimand would come....

//////

~Pov Thalea~

"I failed as a mother..."

Maybe I did it from the start without realizing it? Should I have been stricter perhaps? Or was it because I wasn't able to keep a man in my life to help me with child rearing?

Maybe a more permissive approach would have been the solution...?

I have no idea where exactly I failed. After all, in all the vast elven empire there is no manual on how to be a good mother. Everything is learned through one's own experience: how to reprimand, how to congratulate, how to love....

But the problem I have to solve now, ohh, is one where I do need someone to tell me how to fix it.

This morning, I was awakened by a pounding in my room. I wasn't feeling very well, my body no longer processes liquor the same way it did a few years ago. So, at first, knowing it was one of the kids knocking on my door, I decided not to answer. I hoped he would somehow get the message and go away.

But whoever it was, he didn't leave. So I grabbed another glass of wine from the nightstand, which was next to my bed, to keep me drunk enough that the hangover didn't hit me directly, while I talked to one of my kids.

Still, a slight headache kept hammering my skull as I got out of bed and said, "Wait, wait!". I quickly pulled on a robe that covered most of my body, realizing that sleeping next to Eli had fostered a nasty habit in me that kept me from falling asleep unless I was naked.

A habit that my other two children were unaware of, so to avoid surprises, I put on another layer of clothing under my robe. I walked to the door and opened it, seeing Aran standing in front of me. Aran was noticeably nervous until his eyes wandered to mine, seeking comfort.

My mind immediately jumped to the conclusion that there must have been a fight between the children. I had heard some commotion in the house the night before, but dismissed it as another childish argument. After all, how many times had my sisters and I fought, fights that usually disappeared after a few days, fueled only by adolescent hormones.

But when Aran threw herself into my arms and sobbed on my chest, I knew it wasn't one of those petty arguments. He explained to me that he had gotten into a fight with Rainea over something Eli had done. I couldn't figure out what Eli's role was in all of this, but I knew that he must have done something really reckless for things to have precipitated things like this. Aran also mentioned that although he wanted to make amends with his sister, he was waiting for her to apologize first. "I, the great Aran, will not talk to such a rude girl until she admits her mistake," his words, not mine.

My son sobbed for a few more minutes until his crying began to calm down. By the time this happened, I held him in my arms as if he were a newborn, and that's when the first question came up, the one that has led me into this predicament.

"Mom, can I ask you a question without you getting mad at me?"

I nodded, with a smile on my face, allowing him to continue.

"Is it normal for a girl to take a boy's penis in her mouth?"

The words almost choked me when I heard them, I didn't know what to say or how to react. At the time I had nothing in my mouth but my tongue, but I felt as if something was stuck in my throat. My face turned bright red and my eyes widened wildly, reflecting my surprise.

I had never heard of a mother and son talking about sexual matters, obviously this had never happened in my family either, so I didn't know how to proceed. I cleared my throat and tried to compose myself before answering.

"Well...," I began, choosing my words carefully as I tried to explain the complexity of love to my young son. "When a man and a woman love each other very much, they can do many things together."

I paused, aware that what I had said was a way of evading his question rather than answering it directly. I couldn't answer "that," though I also noticed a glint of recognition in his eyes before he spoke again. It seems that my answer seemed to... liked it?

"But where did you see that?", I asked, my voice tinged with curiosity and a hint of suspicion.

In an instant, my mind ran through all the possible sources where I might have seen something like that: some chatter with his friends, some kind of rumor on the street, or even overheard a conversation between adults. But then another thought struck me: what if someone had taken advantage of my innocent son and exposed him to something he wasn't ready for?

I felt a surge of anger bubbling up inside just thinking about it. If someone had hurt my son like that, heads would roll. So, I asked him again.

"Who told you about these things?" This time in a hard, stern voice.

My son looked at me with wide, innocent eyes and shook his head. "No one," he said. "I just...heard it somewhere."

However, I could not believe her in the least. For as a mother, she had raised this child and knew his every gesture and movement. I knew that when he lied, his little nose would acquire a strange nervous twitch. So I kept attacking him with multiple questions as he denied over and over again. But after a while and a few more tears, he finally blurted out the truth: "W-was it Eli.... last night he and Rainea did it!".

My heart almost stopped at the thought of my two children, my babies that I raised, clothed and coddled, doing something so repulsive. and I wondered what others would think if they found out. how would the church react to such an outrageous act? I didn't even want to imagine it, but unfortunately it was a reality. This time, Aran wasn't lying....

And that's how I ended up in a problem for which there was no clear solution.

Whatever decision he would make now, I knew it would have consequences. But I had to decide something, things could not go on like this. There was still time to fix this, there had to be some way.

I took my time as I spoke, thinking carefully about how to approach the whole thing. Neither Rainea nor Eli were completely responsible for what they had done; they were just kids after all and sometimes hormones acted on their own. However, I must admit that the sad expression on Rainea's face touched my heart. That little girl who was always strong in front of others, who protected her family above all and faced any problem bravely, today was on the verge of tears as she rubbed her fingers nervously, making it obvious how anxious and worried she was about what I was going to say.

"Honey... I know what you and Eli did," I said breaking the silence in the room.

Her look was a mixture of surprise and confusion, as if she didn't understand what I was referring to or I was accusing her of something meaningless. So I decided to be more specific.

"I know you put Eli's "pee-pee" in your mouth, dear."

"Ohhhh..." Her expression now showed more confusion and I could tell from her body language that instead of being shy and nervous, she was getting defensive. "Is all this drama just about that, Mom?"

"......"

Just because of that, was she kidding me? How can this girl be so shameless and say that almost committing incest is "just that". Or maybe she didn't know...?

Well, that was a possibility too, in fact it was the most likely. I had never talked to them about these things, so if this was happening in the first place it was my fault.

I took a deep breath and counted to ten before speaking again.

"Honey, I don't think you understand...", I whispered with a tone of concern.

To which Rainea turned to me with a defiant, cold stare.

"No, Mom, you're the one who doesn't understand! It's just a game between Eli and me," her words came out quickly, trying to justify what they had done. "That you don't understand is none of my business," she added at the end with a more aggressive tone.

But I knew that nothing I said would change her mind. Rainea was so much like me that I could anticipate her reaction to this discussion. I sensed that we would both lose our patience soon.

It was clear to me that I had to stay calm to solve this problem. I counted to ten, took a deep breath. However, nothing helped; at that moment I was so exasperated and enraged that it was impossible for me to do so. I know I told myself that it was all my fault, and that I should handle things in the most mature way, but still, I don't think any parent keeps their temper when their child has just spoken to them that way. This is a matter of pride.

"How dare you talk to me like that, miss?" I changed to a threatening tone. "What you have done together with your brother is nothing but an aberration, you should be ashamed of yourself."

My eyes were teary and my face red with rage, an expression my daughter shared.

"Oh, and I forgot something," I continued. "You will stay away from your brother until further notice. I don't care what you think, you can't be alone in the same room anymore."

Rainea kept silent as she listened to my words. Silence that her teeth were not complicit in, grinding with an almost deafening noise as she felt all the mana in the room concentrate throughout her body.

Soon the bottle of wine next to me began to break, into small pieces of glass, so small they almost looked like dust, mixing with the purple liquid as it fell down the small table. I swallowed saliva, I knew she wouldn't do anything to me, my daughter would never hurt me, but still I couldn't help but be afraid.

However, Rainea noticed the fear on my face and quickly began to calm down. Shyly, she mumbled a "sorry" before heading towards the stairs that led to the second floor.

Before disappearing from my sight, Rainea turned and said without looking me directly in the eye, "Regarding Eli, he is my brother and I love him. If he comes to me looking for protection or just a chat, I'm not going to turn him away just because you ask me to, Mom. If you want to change something, maybe you should talk to him. Although I have my doubts about whether that will be effective." And with those words, she went up the stairs leaving me alone in that giant living room.

"......."

Great way to solve problems, Thalea.

I thought as I leaned my head back against the couch.

No one had ever told me that being a mother was so complicated....