MegaSuperKami

Well, I am sure I could give any list of excuses as to why it took so long since the last chapter. I don't really want to use any of them though, so just, my bad. I apologize if anyone was disappointed. That said, I am a lot more comfortable from the last few months. I continue to offer no promise of any consistent release schedule, but I have the story at a further front of my mind now. I hope that any that read enjoy, and that any who stuck around finds it worth the wait. Thank you for joining!

As soon as the door closed and we began walking, Vanessa let out a long sigh and rubbed her head with her free hand. “Sheesh, the captain was really serious today. Letting a strange lady like you use unknown magic on her, and then scaring the piss out of me for speaking up about the risk, you would never think that you were brought in to fill the old ‘Phlem File’ with another victim of circumstance.” 

“Mama isn’t strange! Mama is very kind!” Sen spoke up in my defense before I even realized that something was said about me. My mind is still a bit scrambled from the rapid-fire exchange that I just had with Captain Halia.

Vanessa chuckled and turned her head to look at Sen while still walking forward. “Someone can be both of those things, little lady.” She shifts her gaze to me before looking ahead again.” I don’t mean to cast any judgment on you though, it’s not my business. I will tell you though that you aren’t likely to be in much of any trouble for your run-in with that troublesome merchant. He reports outrageous claims on anybody, but mostly women, that don’t do what he wants. We in the guard are well aware of his antics.” 

The gears in my head ground against each other trying to piece together the information that I had now. “Wait, so if he falsely reports people so much then why am I here?” I tilt my head to the side along with the question.

Another sigh escaped Vanessa’s lips as she briefly lowered her head with her eyes closed. “That’s the trouble. A merchant has many connections. Some of those connections… make the guard unable to refuse a report from him. So long as he is not seen breaking any major laws by a member of the guard, he pretty well has immunity to our jurisdiction as well. It is one of my greatest regrets as a protector of this city.” Vanessa’s eyes lingered on the stones beneath our feet, her posture slightly drooping.

Sen breaks the silence not long after it started. “If the bad man can make people get in trouble, then why did the pretty lady say that Mama wasn’t guilty?” Sen brought up a very valid point that I hadn’t even pieced together yet. She is literally only days old. How is she so smart?

Vanessa put a hand in front of her mouth, trying to cover up a mischievous laugh. “Certain trusted members of the guard have ways of making it look like that slob got his way while not punishing innocent people. So long as you lay low for a while, Phlem won’t know any better.” 

We arrived then at the door to what I presumed was the holding cell that we were meant to wait in. The door was actually rather inviting, appearing as if it was from a home rather than a jail. Vanessa took out a key and opened the door. 

“I don’t really know about the rest that the captain has in store for you, but I can at least say that you won’t be in danger of facing the music for running into that gross old man on the road. In fact, I hope that the little run-in that you had with him taught him a lesson or two. He was scared out of his mind. I didn’t see him when he arrived personally, but from the stories the other guards had, it was priceless.” Vanessa wiped the smirk from her face and returned to a professional expression. “Anyway, please wait here until you are fetched by the captain. You will be provided with a meal soon. Please behave yourselves.” 

I look at Vanessa, who is stoically holding the door open. “Thank you for telling us a little more about the situation. It helped alleviate a lot of my worry.” I swore I caught sight of the corners of Vanessa’s lips start to raise, but it came and went so fast it’s hard to tell if it wasn’t just me seeing things. I stepped inside the room that appeared much less like a prison cell and more like a single room cabin. 

In the corner was a decently sized bed that looked simple, but freshly made. A person my size could fit very comfortably with some room to spare. On the other side of the room was a cozy wooden desk. There was even a dining table that could seat four with a frilly tablecloth over it. The room even had a window on the far wall where the late afternoon sun shined through thin curtains.

Sen followed behind me. While I was distracted with the strangely inviting room, she turned around to face Vanessa, who was about to close the door behind us. “Thank you, guard lady! This room is much nicer than the last one! Sen will behave!” I looked back at Vanessa as well, seeing that she now had a very genuine smile.

Vanessa knelt down and ruffled Sen’s hair with her free hand. “You are such a sweet little thing. We will take good care of you. Once the captain is satisfied that you aren’t suspicious, you should be free to go.” Vanessa took a sniff at the air for a moment and tilted her head to the side for a moment, but quickly shook her head lightly and stood back up. She then looked towards me. “So long as your motives are pure, I wish you the best on your goals. Though, I believe that you will find a much better use for your skills if you seek to use your healing magic for a career. Someone as skilled as you being a simple maid seems like a waste of your potential.” 

I nod at Vanessa. “Thank you, but I think that the path that I am on is the one that is meant for me.” 

With a shrug, Vanessa starts to step back and close the door properly this time. The door shut and I heard the click of a lock. Why do they have a room this nice that is still locked from the outside?

“Mama! Look!” Sen drew my attention away from my thoughts by pointing out the window that she had gone over to. 

I walked over to the window Sen was excitedly looking out of. Adjusting my eyes to the light outside, I was able to see that this window stood above some sort of training ground. I don’t remember going up any stairs, so the training ground must be dug into the earth or something. I could see many members of the guard either actively training or resting. Some stood to the side and seemed to be talking with one another. An instructor seemed to be leading a few that were in a separate part as well. 

“Mama, those people are playing with weapons. Why are some of them fighting each other? Aren’t they all on the same side?” Sen looked up at me with a questioning gaze.

“They aren’t playing, or really fighting, I think they are training to get stronger. People have to work really hard in order to make themselves strong, especially if they are trying to protect something. The guards have to be strong in order to protect the people of this city.” I gave Sen the best explanation that I could think of. 

“Oh! So that means that because Sen is strong that Sen is Mama’s guard! Sen wants to be Mama’s guard!” Sen was practically bouncing with enthusiasm. “If Sen plays with weapons will Sen get stronger too?”

I rustled Sen’s hair and she pushed her head further into my hand with her eyes shut and a happy smile. “They aren’t just playing, they are practicing how to use the weapons better. Like how I had to practice my magic with Inza.” 

Sen opened her eyes and gave me a full-toothed grin. “Then Sen will practice a lot to be strong! Lady Inza told Sen that Mama needed Sen to keep her safe!” Sen turned her smile into a pout that would put a puppy to shame. “Mama didn’t answer if Sen could be Mama’s guard. Sen will be the best guard for Mama that Sen can be! Please?” Sen’s eyes started to water as she continued her pout.

My poor heart could not handle the onslaught of Sen. I took a knee to be able to hug Sen and wrapped my arms around her, with one rubbing the hair on the back of her head. “Okay, you can be Mama’s guard. But-” My conditions were interrupted by Sen point blank tackle hugging me.

“Yay! Sen will be the best guard! Thank you Mama!” Sen bounced for joy while still hugging me, which caused me to be bounced around with her. 

“Sen, sweetie.” Sen paused her rambunctious display to look up from where her head was buried in my chest. 

“Yes Mama?” Sen asked innocently. I could tell that she was only barely restraining the rampant spurt of energy she has. 

“You have to be smart about being a guard. It isn’t easy. You have to keep yourself safe too. And you can’t hurt people carelessly even if they are aggressive. Your job would be to keep everyone safe, not just me.” Sen pouted again, but with less energy than last time.

“Okay, Sen understands. Gross old men have to stay away though or Sen will be angry.” Sen looked very annoyed. I hadn’t expected to see that kind of expression from her, but it is surely cute in its own way. 

Sen squirmed out from the hug and looked back out the window again, intently moving her eyes around the field at some of the guards. She kept doing so for a short while before a knock at the door drew out attention. 

A guard with two bowls of what looked like stew came into the room and set the bowls on the dining table with a couple of spoons. Only a nod of acknowledgement came from him before he left and locked the door again behind him. I thought little of it and went to sit down at the table, with Sen pulling herself from the window to sit with me at the table. 

The stew turned out to be beef stew, and it smelled pretty good. It didn’t smell like it was seasoned with much of anything, maybe some salt. It did look surprisingly hardy for a meal in a jail though. Meat and potatoes with a few other vegetables. 

I took a bite and was shocked by how little flavor it had. It didn’t taste bad by any means, but it was so dull. My own cooking used many spices that the coffers of a hero could afford, so maybe I was too used to nicer things?

“Why is Mama making a grumpy face?” Sen had seemingly noticed my face change when I took a bite. 

“Nothing really. The food just didn’t taste quite like what I expected.” I took another bite and enjoyed chewing the wonderfully tender meat. 

I could see Sen nod out of the corner of my eye. “Sen also didn’t expect it. The mana in this is really small compared to the rich mana-fruit in the forest.” Sen took a bite, but looked similarly unsatisfied with the flavor. Was the difference really the amount of mana?

Another thing came to mind that I wanted to ask Sen. “Sen, are you okay with eating meat? Considering your situation and all?” Was a treant that was a part of nature really meant to eat meat? I had to ask to make sure that she wasn’t unhappy with it. 

Sen shrugged lightly. “Meat comes from animals. When animals die, they go into the ground and become nutrients. Sen has eaten those nutrients plenty. This animal is just more fresh than those nutrients.” Sen took another bite of the stew once she was finished explaining. 

It seems that she is okay with it. It seems to make enough sense. All of the parts of nature are linked. I just didn’t expect her to think like that.

Sen mumbled very quietly between a bite of stew. “The cow eats the grass and Sen eats the cow.” I looked over and saw her with an odd gleam in her eye. 

“What was that Sen?” 

Sen swiftly turned her expression into a gleeful smile. “Nothing Mama!” She then turned and continued eating like nothing happened. Maybe it would be best to leave that thought alone?

—-----------------------

Vanessa opened a door and joined the captain who was looking into a mirror that didn’t reflect her face, but showed a room with two people eating together in their cell. The two that Vanessa had recently escorted in. 

“Anything interesting so far Captain Halia?” Vanessa inquired to the captain who stood with her hands neatly folded behind her back as she stood in front of the mirror.

“Nothing that I can make good sense of yet, but we will find out more soon when we bring them to the tower. Truly, they let some interesting things slip once they are in a comfortable place.” Captain Halia moved a hand toward the mirror just beneath where the two were now snuggling as they sat on the edge of the bed. A slight mumble escaped her lips, quiet enough that Vanessa couldn’t hear. 

“What are you two?”