(Alice POV) [This is event is situated during the three years of training]
Well... from where do I begin?
It was a normal day like always, you know, suffering from a pain worse than death, courtesy of Fayna, her reason for my suffering? the excuse is "this is training".
So this is what it feels like to see what lies beyond the mask of admiration... her true self is similar to one of a witch...
A-Anyway, if we ignore my melodramatic reaction, I'm currently waiting for mom to finish her training in our room while laying down on the bed. She usually finishes her training and chores late so I was planning to fall asleep as soon as she arrived but when the door was opened instead of my mom, it was Anil who opened it while carrying a girl with blue hair in her arms...
How did she open the door? I don't know, and with her lack of emotions, one would think this was an abduction.
"Anil... so you finally resorted to kidnapping uh..."(Alice)
"Alice, next time please don't voice your thoughts out loud. They are annoying."(Anil)
I know sometimes I say what I'm thinking out loud and I know I have to work on it, but I'm not gonna lie, I didn't expect Anil to get this angry, as she would usually ignore most of my jokes.
Without waiting for an apology, Anil laid the blue-haired kid on the bed and left without giving me an explanation, moments later after Anil left Fayna entered the room a little confused while looking in the direction where Anil left.
"Alice, How did you manage to make Anil angry?"(Fayna)
"I don't know... I just made a joke about her kidnapping this kid, after all, she carried her here without saying anything and then she got angry... I made a mistake uh..."(Alice)
"Alice... Yeah, you have to apologize Anil later, this time it's your fault. For now let's put aside your big blunder, we have to talk about this... kid"(Fayna)
Seeing that there was a connection between the girl and Fayna I looked at the girl that was sleeping on the bed. Although I know I made a mistake you can't blame me, the girl is a really cute girl dressed as a maid with a beautiful face and blue hair. Although I can't stop emphasizing how cute she is for some reason she looks familiar.
I took my time looking at her closely and as time passed an idea that I thought couldn't be true slowly got stronger and stronger.
"This... this is impossible..."(Alice)
"That's right Alice she is your --"(Fayna)
"My sister!?"(Alice)
Yeah, that has to be the truth, my mom already told me about the story of my birth and in consequence about her life. I remember that she once had a baby but lost her thanks to her drunk husband.
Could this be a miracle!?
"Not it isn't you idiot. I know you tend to exaggerate whenever you are very shocked, but please don't ever tell her that when she regains her true age, otherwise you'll have to apologize to two people instead of one."(Fayna)
Thanks to Fayna's scolding I regained my senses, indeed what I just said was something incredibly absurd that would hurt my mom if she heard about it. It was then that Fayna's words landed like a huge boulder on a cliff...
With my eyes extremely open I looked at the girl while not believing the reality in front of me. This little girl was probably my mom.
"How did this happen?"(Alice)
"Well..."(Fayna)
Without cutting details Fayna explained that my mom accidentally broke a potion that was inside her office and inhaled the mist, and coincidentally this was a potion that needed to be inhaled to take effect, and on top of that, the unknown power relapsed making her condition even worse.
Fayna told me she was in a complete panic when she found her as she didn't expect this series of unnecessarily unfortunate events to happen simultaneously. The result of all the factors combined and her overhealing my mom was my mom returning to when she had seven years old to the age of seven.
As much as I wanted to ask how or why... in the end I'm relieved that nothing happened to my mom.
"And that's why we'll leave the care of your mom to you, Anil was supposed to help but now that she is angry you are on your own... you reap what you sow, by the way, I gave to all employees paid vacations for tomorrow and I have to see the king tomorrow, so good luck."(Fayna)
"Wait, What? paid vacations!?"(Alice)
Ignoring my words Fayna quickly left the room and left me alone with my mom.
Anyway, this shouldn't be so difficult. My mom is one year lower than me so I started to think about what we could do tomorrow, but I didn't want to sleep late because of the excitement so I laid down on the bed and quickly fell asleep.
(Alice POV)
"Where I am!? Where is this!? Don't tell me they sold me..."(Orie)
I woke up in hurry surprised by my mom's scream, the sky wasn't even illuminated yet, but I could see my mom trembling in fear and crying while hugging herself in the dark.
I was bothered about what she said, as this shouldn't be a normal reaction but my priority was to calm her down so I decided to suppress my curiosity.
"I don't know what happened but you are safe, you weren't sold or anything like that"(Alice)
My mom heard my voice and turned around with tears still falling from her eyes, I don't know why but at this moment I couldn't help thinking that she looked super cute. While suppressing the dark impulse of pampering her I patted her head as she did to me when I was stressed.
My actions seemed to work marvelously as my mom quickly calmed down, she looked around the room trying to understand something before looking at me again.
"Big sister... where are we?"(Orie)
CUUUUUUTEEEEEE
How is possible to be this cute!?
I couldn't help to hug her after seeing her like this, this level of cuteness should be illegal! at first, I could sense that she got tense by my sudden action but she soon relaxed in my embrace. This was a unique opportunity and I didn't want to lose this cute being so I made an excuse of finding her sleeping in the streets.
As soon as I said that I realized how stupid my excuse was and tried to dismiss it as a joke, but before I could do that she apologized for the inconvenience and thanked me for my help.
I was bothered by the fact she didn't deny my words and I asked why she was sleeping on the streets.
"I-I want to tell you, but I can't do it now, I need to make the breakfast so I'll be grateful if you can please take me to where you found me."(Orie)
"Breakfast?"(Alice)
"Ye-Yes, I have to make breakfast for mom, dad, and sister. Then I need to wash the clothes, clean the house, buy food for lunch and dinner, take care of my newborn sister, also..."(Orie)
My mom kept talking and talking about her chores with no end in sight, I could feel myself getting angrier with each chore she added. No matter how you put it, she was no different from a slave. It got to the point couldn't keep hearing her anymore so interrupted her while looking her directly into her eyes.
"You don't need to return! What kind of parents are they!?"(Alice)
"I-I have to return, they are my parents... and if I don't obey them then, the-there will be consequences."(Orie)
"Just because they are your parents you have to do everything they want!? Consequences? That's bullshit! You are her daughter, a kid like me, you should play, learn, fight with other kids, do anything besides being their manservant, their slave!"(Alice)
"Th-that's not right, mother told me I have to help in the house because they are busy, I-I need to help because they can't do it alone. Mother told me that I only need to learn how to be a good wife and mother so she won't let me learn anything else."(Orie)
"Learn how to be only a good wife and mother? What kind of bullshit is that!?"(Alice)
"Ple-please don't say bad words"(Orie)
"I'll do my best, please continue"(Alice)
"I-I once had the opportunity to learn thanks to a spiritualist that used to live near us, but my mother didn't allow me so I can't do anything about it. After all, I have so many things to do and they are doing this so I can grow to be a good woman."(Orie)
"That's a fucking lie! You thought that they sold you moments ago, what kind of parents sell their child!? Why are you trying to justify them?"(Alice)
"It's not that I'm justifying them, it's just that I'm a kid, their daughter, a woman... Even my future husband will be chosen by them."(Orie)
It was then that I understood, it wasn't that my mom was trying to justify them, it was just that she hasn't experienced anything else in her life. My mom in her childhood lived like this ever since she was born.
My mom once told me about her family and her deceased sister, but she never told me about this... and possibly I'll never learn about what she lived years later, this is probably why... she got married to her deceased husband, it was her parents...
I can't imagine what she has lived.
She didn't have a voice, a choice, a life... now I understand why my mom told me I was her life, because saving and taking care of me was her first real choice, not by necessity or survival, but by her own will.
Why did a beautiful person like my mom had to suffer like this?
I want to tell her it doesn't matter if she is a kid, a daughter, or a woman. I want to tell her that she can do whatever she wants and no one can stop her, yet my words can't come out as I knew it was already too late. My mom in front of me is a mere reflection of her childhood, maybe the reason I can talk with her is that I'm a girl like her... yet I'm very different.
"I-It's getting late, I have to return"(Orie)
"No"(Alice)
"Fue?"(Orie)
"I mean, I'll return you to your home tomorrow, you said you have to do a lot of things right? then I'll pay you to stay here and tomorrow I'll give your parents the money, are you fine with it?"(Alice)
Although it sickens me to say that I'll give her parents money, there is no other way to convince her as if I said something else she would reject me.
My mom seemed to be struggling so I took out of my storage space a bag full of coins, after seeing the bag my mom seemed to hesitate a little before nodding in approval.
I don't know for how long she is gonna be a kid but at least I managed to convince her for today, tomorrow I'll try to do it again.
Without wasting time I took my mom around the mansion to play, read books, cook, and do anything that came into my mind. Although I can't change the past at least I'll try to give her the good memories she couldn't have in her childhood.
I didn't expect that my mom was a genius in her childhood, as she learned how to read so quickly that I thought she already knew how to read, and she was even capable of memorizing every book she read.
Soon night fell and we ended back into the room, we were very tired and while trying to sleep I asked what would she do if she had a daughter.
At my question, my mom said she would shower her with love, give her what she couldn't have, but at the same time try to not force it on her, as it could be harmful. In other words, she would try to be the best mother for her children.
I swallowed the tears that were trying to escape and hugged her tightly, soon we felt drowsy and with my consciousness falling asleep I caught a small whisper coming from my mom.
"I'm... happy..."(Orie)
"Me...too...you'll be even happier in the future mom"(Alice)
(Alice POV)
"Alice... Alice... Wake up my daughter..."(Orie)
"Mom?... MOM!?"(Alice)
This is the second day I abruptly woke up, this time it was because my mom was healed. Should I be grateful to Fayna for giving my mom maid clothes that adapt to her size? I didn't know her clothes had this type of function.
"Are you fine? are you feeling sick or something?!"(Alice)
"I'm fine, although I can't remember anything I guess I made you worry."(Orie)
It seems that she didn't remember what happened yesterday, but it is fine. I'll wait for the day she tells me about her painful days, until then I'll keep loving her.
"Mom, I love you"(Alice)
"Thank you, my daughter, but I love you more"(Orie)
"No, I love you even more"(Alice)
We left the room while teasing each other, ready to begin a new day... with a slight twist, with me having a resolve to make my mom the happiest mom in the world.
Also, I gave Anil a month's worth of Azazel's food to earn her forgiveness. If you are wondering about why she got so angry then it's a story for another moment.
