Terror Fifty-Two - Hug

I don’t know why I’m so worried. It’s just Mom. Mom’s the best.

Livonas carefully lowers her hands down, dropping the cart full of books to one side and placing the back of her other hand down so that we can climb off without having to jump.

Felix and I hop off without any problems, but Esme sits on the edge of the hand and scoots her butt to the edge until she slides off and lands on her feet.

This is it. I’m home.

I don’t know what the weird swirly sensation in my tummy is. It’s not the nicest feeling, but I squish it down and away. “Mom!” I cry out before I start to run.

The feeling disappears entirely when Mom moves down from the first step and her lips twitch in that familiar almost-smile she does when she’s happy. I crash into her face-first, arms wrapping around her waist and pulling her as close as I can.

She freezes for a moment, then I feel her hand gently patting me on the head. It’s nice, but it’s not a hug.

“Hi Mom,” I say as I look up. She makes her happy laugh noise, but I see her eyes flick up to my friends. Then it clicks.

I pull out of the hug, place my hands on my hips, and glare up at Mom.

“Valeria?” she asks.

“Mom!” I say, indignant now. “Just because there are people here that you don’t know doesn’t mean that you need to act all hard and serious. You’re my mom, you’re supposed to put hugs and love in front of all that... propriety stuff.”

“Valeria, I can hardly allow myself to be seen as--”

“Nope,” I interrupt. “You’re the big scary Goddess of Darkness, no one will think you’re less scary if you give return hugs. Sheesh, mom.”

Mom rolls her eyes, sighs, then mutters under her breath. “This daughter of mine, I swear.” Then she leans down and grabs me in a hug.

Giggling, I hug right back. “I missed you,” I say.

“It’s only been a few days,” Mom replies. Then, in a smaller voice. “I missed you too.”

The hug ends eventually, as all hugs do, but I’m not sad about it or anything. It was a good hug, one of the best I’ve ever gotten. “I need to present my friends to you!” I say as I half turn.

Felix is grinning from ear to ear, her bandanna snug over her eyes. Esme, meanwhile, looks red in the face and is staring at Mom with wide, wide eyes.

“That’s Felix,” I say. “She’s a friend I made in Santafaria. She was blind, but we fixed that. Oh, and she’s a really great Joy mage.”

“Hello Miss Valeria’s Mom,” Felix says.

“That’s Esme,” I say while pointing to Esme. “She’s a librarian that works at one of Semper’s libraries. She helped us set up the heist at Heroes’ academy.”

“Heroes’ academy?” Mom askes, her voice even and entirely neutral. “The academy where Heroe trains his templars and the people who routinely travel around with no other goal than to kill monsters and undermine me?”

“Uh,” I say. I spin around and give mom my most powerful puppy-monster look. “Not in front of my friends,” I whisper. If mom spanked me in front of the others, at my age, I’d just die.

“So, it’s acceptable to mock my status by being physically affectionate before strangers, but punishing you in front of the same isn’t?” Mom asks.

I smile at Mom, and maybe it’s a little bit brittle on the edges. “Ah, maybe?”

One of Mom’s eyebrows perks up, and I know I’m in a heap of trouble. “We’ll see,” she whispers before turning to my friends. “Greetings. I am Luciana, though most merely call me the Dark Goddess. You may address me either way, though I do ask that you respect my person and my home. There are few mortals who have stepped into my castle, fewer still who have done so with hostile intent, and of those who did, none survived.”

“What Mom’s trying to say is that you’re welcome!” I say before I dart over to my friends. I grab both by a hand and laugh as I pull them after me. “Come on, I’ll show you my room, and the library. You’re going to love that, Esme. Oh! Mom, can my friends stay over for the night?”

“I suppose,” Mom says. “But before you go gallivanting around the castle, I wish to speak with you.” She snaps her fingers and her shadow twists, a monster stepping out of the dark behind her. “Escort the children to the big dining hall, and the washrooms as well, they might wish to refresh themselves after the trip.”

The monster nods, and reappears before me and my friends.

I sigh. “Fine, I’ll join you two in a bit.” Reaching over to Esme, I place a hand on her shoulder. She seems a bit nervous, which I guess I understand. “Don’t worry, nothing here will hurt you. You’ve probably never been in a safer place before.”

“Right,” she says. She doesn’t sound entirely convinced, but I can work on that later.

I wave my friends goodbye for the moment as they walk up the steps and into the castle, then I turn to Mom.

Mom waits until we’re alone outside, except for some wyverns and Livonas, who is curled up in a huge ball in the courtyard to sleep. “I truly did miss you,” she says. Her face draws into a frown. “What were you thinking, foolish daughter of mine? To go so far as to steal from one of my greatest foes? Not to return as soon as you could? I don’t know if you have any idea how worried I was.”

Now I feel bad. “I’m sorry,” I mutter.

Mom’s hand comes down, and she gently touches my chin and lifts my head. Her eyes meet mine. “I really do love you, Valeria. I... I don’t know what I would do with myself if you were to be hurt, or if you died. I would ruin the world and destroy every trace of the one responsible, but then... I don’t know. And that terrifies me more than anything has in a very long time.”

I feel wetness stinging my eyes, and the guilt in my tummy roils around painfully. So I step up and hug Mom as best I can. “I’m sorry,” I say again.

Mom hugs me back, a soft, tender hug. “I know,” she says. “You’re a good daughter, Valeria.” She brushes my hair back absently with one hand. It’s a nice feeling. “Now, enough moping. We can go over your punishment later.”

“Punishment?” I ask.

“Oh yes,” Mom agrees.

“But Mom!’

“No buts,” she snaps. “You went off and jumped headlong into danger. Only a fool would do that, and no daughter of mine will be a fool.”

I puff my cheeks out. “That’s mean,” I say.

She sniffs. “Hardly. Now, tell me about your grand adventure. How did you end up bringing not one but two young girls back home, and where did you find all those books?”

My pout fades away, replaced by a happy grin. “Oh! It was a ton of fun! Some bits were scary, and some parts were a teeny tiny bit dangerous, but I came out victorious, and made a couple of awesome allies along the way!”

“Well, start at the beginning then,” Mom asks.

I lean into her side, and we start walking back home while I retell the story right from the start, with only a few tiny alterations to downplay some of the more punishment-worthy bits.

***