Chapter 3. Curiosity.
The short boy with a slight shake to his limbs with slightly glowing orange and red hair turns with his arms tenting his head. He almost fell into fathers garden earlier but he seems to be following my advice right now.
"Hello. Lovely evening isn't it?" I greet him. My porch swing is rocking slowly. He looks at my bible rather strangely. His bright orange eyes glimmer softly. He seems rather unsteady but I don't mind.
"Uhhh, what are you reading?" he asks. I smile and lift up my bible.
"My bible. My father requires that I read it every day. Of course the good word would be quite fine for life." I answer with a fond smile. "Normally I read about the Judges and maybe a proverb or two."
He nods at that. I notice he's not exactly listening to the second bit but I cannot blame him. Sometimes I get too into my faith. Not that it's a bad thing. He brightens a little as he asks me another question.
"You read anything else like manga or…" he started.
"Oh no. No. My father banned those." I answer with him freezing a little and blinking he almost falls over and my vines rustle a little almost ready to catch him again.
"Wait! Your father doesn't let you read MANGA?! I mean yeah if you read stuff like Berserk or some really crazy horror then I can see why but ALL OF IT?!" he squeaks. I chuckle a little at that and close my bible a little. "Well I've had a passing fascination with it." It's true, deep down inside and seeing him do that strange deep nod and turn away about to go towards his house.
"Wait! Can you at least tell me your name?" I blurt out. He turns and looks over his shoulder at me with his glowing hair dancing in the sunset's amber light. His half smile and bright orange eyes were shining too.
Something about him is familiar. Something about him reminds me of fire. A kind of nostalgia fills me and then he tells me his name and it all falls into lace.
"It's Renaru. I live next door. Have a good evening." He then turns away and walks back towards his house with his light so small and so new. I rise to my feet and close my bible. It's getting close to the time Father is to return home.
So I entered inside. Our house is rather large for two people but he had built it for my mother to live in as well as for my aunts to stay if need be. I walk over to the small ledger marked with my name and fill out that little checklist of things I need to do. After that, I head into the kitchen and get on my apron. Passing by a picture of me and him when I was little. I smile and just move on to make Father some tea. The kettle boils as I wait for him to arrive.
Getting out a cup and saucer I set it on the table taking the ot with me and pouring it for him. Soon enough I hear the tell tale sound of his boots clunking on the front stoop outside. The door opens and he comes in. My father is tall and muscular. His face is covered in scars and the rest of his neck and his green eyes look harsh and his blonde hair is long and ends at his shoulders. His long gray coat billows around him. He wears a small silver cross around his neck.
It jingles softly with every step. He mostly keeps me out of his affairs. He pauses near the door and opens my ledger. He looks at it calmly almost sedately but his movements creak a little.
"Good evening Father." I say.
"Aye." His voice creaks but it sounds warm enough. It is a good evening. He embraces me and squeezes me in his arms.
"I see you had a good day." He says. "That's good. Nothing like a productive day to make one happy right?"
I nod, "Yes! I had a good day! I also made some tea for you."
Father's smile is warm but still a little tired. "Thank you darlin." He sighs as he sinks into the chair in front of the fireplace with the tea in his hands. His glasses are set on the side table. He watches the fire dance and crackle every night. Like clockwork. Father stares at the flames with an almost mesmerized look to his face. His wrinkles and scars stretching and bending along with what he was remembering. His congregation never questions why he trails off.
But I know why. He's still wrestling with his inner demons. His expressions and posture tell me that more than his words could ever know. Father looks at me and smiles a little.
"Ibara." He says.
"Yes father?" I ask.
"Did someone speak to you today?" his voice rumbles a little but I clear my throat.
"Just the neighbor." I answer.
"Ah. I see." Father said, "Now what did you speak with him about?" His tone shifts to something a little darker. His voice is more akin to a Scottish accent. Although there's a small note of German.
"Oh. He was just curious about what I was reading. Then we talked about those… father?" I notice small thorns coming out of his coat shoulders. His brow furrows and his lips downturn into a scowl.
"Ibara. What have I told you about fire?"
"Fire consumes and takes all the beauty… f-for itself. But- But father? Renaru is harmless!"
"Is he now?" Father drawls "Oh aye. Become friends with the thing that can destroy you!" His body creaks and groans as he draws himself to his full height. The light in the room did not reach his eyes.
"I will not argue this with you Ibara. It is already bad enough that I allowed you to go to UA." he growls softly, laying his hand on my shoulder. "Do you understand? You're going there to be a hero and nothing more."
I see his eyes change color. A deep carmine glowing in the darker reaches of the room with the firelight flickering off the walls. The slight smell of dogwood flowers fills the space but I stare back up at him.
"Yes father. I do." I say softly. He gently squeezes my shoulder.
"There's a good lass." He chuckles as the thorns fade back into his body. He moves into the kitchen to get dinner ready. I watch his lurching gait leave for the kitchen. So goes life with my father. As ever-changing as the wind. I sit down facing the window where his house should've been but instead of that was an ugly concrete wall. I just feel empty. A hollow feeling like a slight ache in my chest. Just knowing that my friend was just over that wall and knowing that he was well is enough for me to be at ease.
"I heard yer aunt Maryanna is in town." Father chimed in. "Seems like there's a big tournament in the underground coming up. She said something about finding a student."
"I see." I sigh a little. The wall is far too large for us. It's an eyesore and not even a single bit of ivy crawls up it. So how did Renaru do it?
Father just works on dinner oblivious to how I am feeling. Maybe he found a weaker section of the wall to scale and made his way up that way. Soon enough dinner is ready and I sit across from him. He calmly eats with his green eyes focused on his leather bound journal jotting down notes for sermons. Always working and always silent. More of a man of God than a man of family. Not that it was a horrible thing.
But I couldn't help but wonder why he would build a wall to keep me in. Why would he give me a ledger to fill out every day? Why would he require me to not form any friendships? I try to gather my courage but the second I form the words he's already done. Dishes in the dishwasher and already heading to his room. Father always moves quickly despite his history. I sigh and do my dishes.
I grab my watering bottle and go to my room and open the door. My room is small and all my plants are lined on the windowsill. I spray them and smile.
"Don't worry. I'm here." I say. "It's alright. That horrid wall blocks out some of the sunlight, I know." I find myself warbling a little. "It's not fair. Why does father want to stifle me? He knows sunlight is good for me but…" I mumble and think about my hiding spot. Where I keep things Father deems as inappropriate. Stuff that my aunties had gotten me. Also an unopened manga from my birthday all those years ago when Renaru got me a volume of a manga that looked like a girl with a sentient garden.
I cracked it open and began to read.
The itching machines whirred and threw balls at me. I try to dodge through them but some of them still hit me. I jab a few balls out of my way and bob through the rest. Sweat pools in my shoes and socks. The pain from the balls hitting me pushes me further. The old batting cage had not been used in years and the owner let me have a go at using his machines for another reason. The old man watched me with his mouth agape.
"Kid! Yer crazy!" He laughs, "If ya told me you were gonna use em for that, I woulda said no!"
I smirk as I dodge a ball and bat one away. The man twirls his bat in the air and hammers a ball right at me. In a quick burst of flame the ball drives through the wall and thunks dully on the floor charred black.
"Ya know kid. I letcha borrow my batting cages cause yer mom used em in a similar way for her own training when she was young." The old man's eyes glimmered wildly, "Yer kinda like her."
I cock my head at that, "Really?" I ask.
"Yeah." he nods and turns off the machines, "Now get a move on. You've gotten hit by enough balls already."
I smile and bow, "Thank you for letting me use your facility to train in!" I rise and hustle out as fast as I can with a grin ever present on my face no matter how much it hurts to move. Mom always worries over me but I smile to let her know that I'm okay. Especially now since those baseballs hurt. I get out of the batting cages and undo the weights on my arms and legs. Neither of them are burnt but I didn't realize I could already move so quickly with them on.
I sit down in the park between the ramen shop and the train station out to the bigger portion of the city. Seeing all these people hanging out and laying kickball and janken and a lot of other things like ultimate frisbee. This wasn't a bad area at all. Just old and quiet. Mom used to be in a big famous family with her mother and father. She never told me what they did. I feel my phone ring under my pocket and I yank it out.
It's Mom so I answer, "Hi mom!" I greet her.
"Hi honey! I gotta work late again. The boss is really steamed about something with our department so I'm staying overtime to iron some things out."
"Aww… really?" I sigh, "I was gonna show you my progress with my training so far!"
"I know. I know. Hey! How about you record it and send it to me?" she asks. I grin and I think it's a great idea.
"Mom… It's a good idea but…"
"I know I know." She says, "Get some rest." I smile and begin my march home. Knowing I made some progress at least. Everything is gonna be worth it in the end.