So it took a bit longer than I hoped to update, but grammar check is such a tedious job, especially when you write everything on an iPad. Sigh, well here it is chapter 1, at least I finished it quickly.
Btw, thanks for the follows, fav and review. I'm happy, lots of kisses from me!
Now, a bit more information about the story's structure. I'm planning on dividing it into small arcs. This is what you could call the childhood arc, growing up arc, or introduction arc. Any of those if fine, it's mostly focused on Laylah and Emi, but mostly Laylah. The arc after will focus more on Emi. I'm planning to make the introduction arc about 3 to 5 chapters, so there's no need to wonder: Ugh when will the plot envelop? Because it is crucial for the future chapters and everything needs a base, right?
Anyway, thanks for the support and enjoy the chapter!
Chapter 1: The Mother and Daughter's Daily Life
Six years later...
Ente Isla a nation known to be the closest to the gods. Consisted of five nations; North, South, East, West and the Central continent. It's once peaceful days lost, the humans cowering in fear by the demons and their king, who invaded the lands, but somewhere there is still some ignorance of the war and anguish.
A forest somewhere in the Western continent...
"I found some apples!" A girl with long magenta hair and green eyes, yelled happily as she ran towards her mother, who was busy boiling water at their campfire near the river side.
Laylah smiled. "Thank you Emilia. Well, let's see what we can do with apples and fish!"
The archangel grabbed a bag and looked through the little belongings she had. "Ahah!" She exclaimed proudly as she took out a device which seemed a bit unusual for the place they were staying: it was a fruit peeler.
"I've never tried it before, but we should try to cook apples!"
Emilia looked at the pot with boiling water. "Do we always have to boil whatever we eat?"
"Not really." The angel replied. "But whenever the water boils it sounds funny." She smiled, leaving her daughter only with more questions.
"Is the sound a good thing?"
"Well, it's not a bad sound, don't you agree."
Emilia nodded excitedly. "Can I use the fruit cutter?"
"Sure, but be careful with it."
The fruit peeler, which obviously did not belong in Ente Isla, was somehow in the possession of the archangel, and her daughter and because it was an object which none of the two were very familiar with, they used it to cut fruit, meat and fish with it.
Emilia, being the curious child, always wanted to try out anything she was not familiar with, so the strange shaped knife was like a birthday present. The girl, happily cut the apples in odd, messy shapes, from too thin to too thick. It took the child about 37 minutes exactly, since the object wasn't meant to be used as a knife.
"Thank you very much dear." The silver-haired woman smiled.
Without any thinking she dropped the apples and the fish in the pot with boiling water.
The seven-year old, slightly cringed at the disturbing sight of apples cooked with fish. But there was nothing else to expect from an angel. They didn't require food as much as humans do.
"Now for our last ingredients!" Laylah exclaimed as she picked a few mint scented leaves from a nearby bush and added them to the pot.
Silence engulfed the mother and daughter, until the water reached its boiling point and made a sizzling noise, accompanied by steam.
"Dinner time!" The mother exclaimed happily. She grabbed the bag again and took out two beautifully crafted plates, which also seemed out of place, along with two pair of chopsticks and two Japanese styled teacups. She quickly took out the fish and apples with the chopsticks and scooped some of the water in their teacups. Handing one over to her daughter.
Emilia grimaced at the odd smelling water and the apples and fish. It didn't seem as healthy as before.
"Alright, let's dig in!"
A few minutes later the foolish mother and daughter duo sat at the river site, trying to cool their burning tongues with the river water and their complaining stomachs, completely lost in their own struggles and obvious to the chaos of the outside world.
They finally settled down against a tree, staring at the sky.
"Mama, how come we have to live like this? Can't we stay at one of the villages we've visited? Or with papa?"
Laylah gave her daughter a sad look. "Remember the story I told you?"
"About the bad guys and the stones?"
The woman nodded. "It's too dangerous for us to stay in one place, they will find us easily."
"Because you had to protect those stones?"
"Yes, one is with your father for safekeeping. Another one is right here." She showed Emilia the ring she was carrying, "another one is right there." Laylah pointed to her daughter.
"Me?" Emilia blinked, in surprise and enthusiasm.
"Yes and make sure to take good care of it."
"Unn!" The child nodded happily. "What happened to the others?"
"Ah... Well, I gave another one away a long time ago... And the others... I lost them..."
"Lost them? Shouldn't we look for those then? What if those mean people find it."
Laylah scratched the back of her head. "Yes... But I don't really know where I have to look... It's been a while since I lost them..."
Emilia puffed her cheeks. "But if mama can't find it, then those mean people can't either, right? Because mama is much smarter than them!" The girl grinned as she said those words.
"Yes! Mama is much smarter, now let's continue on! Our tummies probably don't hurt anymore!" Laylah exclaimed as she proudly stood up. Sadly for the woman, her stomach hadn't recovered completely and it started to complain. "Ugh!"
The daughter stared painfully at her mother, who clutched her complaining stomach. "I guess there are things even angels are weak too." The woman mumbled. "Let's just continue at a slow pace..."
She slowly stored their belongings away, grabbed a cloak and took her daughter by her hand. "On to the next village..." She exclaimed weakly.
The duo arrived at a village after a half-day travel. Laylah turned to her daughter who was looking at the village curiously. "Alright Emilia, what did we agree on whenever we entered a village or city?"
"Always stay together."
The archangel nodded.
"Don't wander off"
"Don't talk to strangers"
She nodded again.
"Don't tell anyone about us."
Another nod.
"Stay calm."
Another one.
"No holy magic."
The woman smiled. "Yes and please ignore what the people here tell you. It would be troublesome if they notice our presence."
The little girl nodded proudly. She grabbed her mother's hand, while the woman placed the cloak over her head to hide her silver hair and they entered the village.
Emilia was amazed with how lively the place looked. There were humans everywhere talking, laughing and playing. It felt so foreign to her, no matter how many villages they visited, which in truth weren't many. So, Emilia's social skills weren't that good either.
They walked into an inn. The angel politely greeted the owner. "I'd like to rent a room for two days for me and my daughter." As she took out a pouch and gave three golden coins to the store owner. "You can keep the change." She smiled.
"Sure..." The owner commented, taken aback by the large amount of money she received. She accepted the money absent-mindedly and grabbed a room key. "Please follow me, madam and young miss."
Laylah and Emilia followed the owner to the first floor, the fifth door on the right. The inn keeper opened the room for the two. "This room has two beds, a closet to store your belongings and you can wash yourself in this room here. Dinner is at sundown. Please, enjoy your stay."
She closed the door and left the two. Emilia looked excitingly at the beds. "I can sleep on a bed?!" She asked happily as she ran towards the beds and allowed herself to fall on the mattress.
"For the time being. We ran out of soap and it can't hurt to hide between the humans, as long as we stay away from the capital and the church."
"Why? Are they bad guys?"
"You could put it that way." The woman exclaimed as she walked over to her daughter and sat next to her. "So, what shall we do now?"
Emilia closed her eyes, as if she was deep in thought. "I... want to see the town!"
"Alright, let's do that, but don't let go of my hand, we have until sundown."
"Yes!"
Laylah placed their belongings in the closet, while her daughter waited impatiently at the door. Grabbing the curious child by her hand, the two left the inn to do some reconnaissance.
The archangel noticed that the town seemed to be strictly under surveillance, wherever they went there were guards. The woman decided to not pay too much attention, as they couldn't afford to attract any attention at the moment. They arrived at the plaza, which was filled with merchants and citizens conversing, selling and lots of other things. Laylah glanced back at her daughter. The girl seemed quite curious, but there was a hint of uncertainty and fear present in her eyes. The mother took a deep sigh as she made a decision. "Emilia, could you get something for mama?"
The child eyed her mother questionably, slightly nervous about what her mother was about to ask.
The woman grabbed a few coins and handed them to her daughter. "We need to buy some food and some water and while you're at it you can also buy something delicious. Don't worry, I'll be waiting at the fountain." She smiled.
Emilia glanced at the stance and then back to her mother, she grimaced, before letting go of her mother's hand and slowly walked over to the stands. Laylah watched her daughter patiently. "Step by step." She mumbled.
It was bustling with people, trying to bargain and negotiate about the price, quantity and more. Seeing all those big adults together made the child feel very small and scared.
"Well, well, good day my lovely lady. What can I get you?" A man asked politely, upon noticing the small half-breed.
"I... Um... I... Can... I" The girl stumbled over her wording. "Bread... and vegetables..." She mumbled softly.
"Can you speak louder dear?" The merchant asked gently.
"Ah, I need some... bread and vegetables please!" The girl mouthed the last part loudly, earning the attention of the other adults and children around her. Emilia's face turned beet red.
"Ahahaha! Sure little lady. That will be five silver coins" The man laughed.
"I have only a few gold coins..." The girl muttered.
"Then how about you give me one gold coin and I give you these in return." The man smiled as he took the golden coin and gave the young girl the change with her order. "And here's something sweet as an extra." The man winked.
"Um... Thank you mister." She squeaked out. The girl happily returned to her mother, but a few voices caught her attention.
"Did you hear?"
"You mean the events at the border? Yes, I can't believe how fast they're advancing."
"I heard the East and North have already fallen. What is to become of humanity?"
"They have increased the security around this place for the exact reason."
"Yes, and I'm sure the church is doing whatever it can to keep them away from us."
"Let's pray for the souls of the deceased. This town would turn into nothing if they were to arrive here, is there even any place we can flee to?"
"Heaven may protect us from those demons."
Emilia blinked, for some reason she felt a shudder upon hearing the foreign word demon. She shook her head wildly, remembering her mother's words and quickly returned to the woman.
"Mama, look what I got from the..."
The archangel's stare immediately silenced the little girl. Laylah was looking at her right, staring at some guard who seemed to be conversing about something. The woman snapped out of her thoughts, when she felt her daughter tugging on her robe. "Ah, thank you very much sweetie."
"Are you alright?" Emilia asked in a slight worried tone.
"Ah, yes I am. Thank you very much. Let's go back to the inn for now." Laylah said as she took her daughter by her hand.
The seven-year old nodded happily as they made their way back to their room. "Mama..." The girl asked softly. "What are demons?"
Laylah stiffened slightly, but kept her gaze on the road. "We'll talk anout that later." She answered in a whisper.
Emilia nodded, though she noticed her mother's change of demeandor, she decided to not question her further in public.
The town fell completely silent the moment the moon came out. Only soldiers were still outside, patrolling the area. Laylah watched from her window with a worried expression on her face. Her daughter was already sleeping soundly. The two had been walking around for most of the day and after all the traveling, Emilia was completely exhausted after they returned. Being still a child of the age of seven and having hardly the chance to sleep in a proper bed, the girl was out of it, the moment she lay under the covers. She shifted under her blankets and let out a snore before she continued to sleep soundly. The archangel smiled at the innocent movement of the child, before turning back to the window. "Demons..." She muttered, zoning out as if she was reliving a distant memory.
She glanced back to her daughter. "Ah, don't tell me I'm such a big screw up. How am I going to fix this now?"
"Hmm, papa, I want more of that cold coloured food."
Laylah glanced back at her daughter who was talking in her sleep. The archangel let out a sigh and approached the bed. Giving up on worrying and deciding to rest instead. "Nord, I hope you won't get too angry." She muttered as she joined Emilia in bed and closed her eyes. Allowing her mind to somewhere else.
I'm very satisfied about this chapter. I hope I gave everyone a good image of how I think Laylah would be as a mother. She may seem the most reasonable of all but, she is still an angel. So short comings are likely to be present. The novel already gave hints of what kind of person she is and we'll explore more of that in the later chapters. I'm not sure if Angels need food or anything, but I doubt the majority of them know how to cook properly. Emilia is lucky to be still alive. XD I'll try my best to release the next chapter as soon as I can.
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