The Hunters and the Prey - Chapter Thirty-Eight
Author: Milady Dragon
Phil leaned in the doorway, looking at the little girl he'd brought home with him, asleep on the bed in the guest room, Lockjaw curled up beside her. Lola was laying across the foot of the bed, her blue eyes alert, watching over the pair of newly-found orphans in order to make certain they could rest. Her concern and determination to make the two children as safe as she could meshed well with what he was feeling, and he couldn't help but smile.
Melinda had taken one look at the little girl resting her head on his shoulder and hadn't said a thing, although Phil knew she would later on…mostly along the lines of teasing him about bringing home more strays. She'd instantly gone into mother hen mode, taking Crystal from him and commenting that she'd help with a bath, and would Phil please get into some of Daisy's old things and find her something to wear?
He'd complied at once. There was no telling Melinda May 'no' when she was on a mission.
By the time the bath was done and both Crystal and Lockjaw were cleaned, and the little girl dressed – and what Phil had chosen was a little baggy on her, but then Daisy had been a little older when he'd adopted her, plus a little better fed – Andrew had whipped up food for both child and dragon, something easy for shrunken stomachs that wouldn't make either of them ill. Then, Phil had tucked them both into bed, and they'd fallen asleep almost at once, as if they truly did understand that this was a good place, that no one would hurt them here.
"You keep bringing home strays," came Melinda's inevitable teasing.
The Void Wizard turned, shrugging, His Steward and friend had joined him at the open door, a soft smile on her usually inscrutable features.
"What can I say?" he said softly. "I have a soft spot for children."
She didn't say anything to that, because Melinda knew him all too well. "We're going to need to get her a few things. She can't keep wearing Daisy's hand-me-downs forever. We'll also need to redecorate a room for her. This guest room doesn't fit a little girl aesthetic."
"We can take her shopping in Triskelia Town as soon as she's up to it."
"She's going to need a bit more help than Daisy had."
"I know." Both girls had been abandoned by their parents, but at least Daisy had been given a fighting chance with an orphanage, instead of being cast out to fend for herself. Yes, Daisy had ended up doing exactly that, but it had been her decision. Crystal hadn't been given that freedom. "I know Andrew doesn't really do this sort of thing anymore…" Andrew had made that plain when he'd asked about counseling Sir Steven. And it wasn't like Phil could blame him; after all, he'd been cursed for over a decade.
"This is a little different. Crystal is going to be family."
"As soon as we can get her parents to renounce their rights." Phil had every intention of fighting for that little girl, the same way he'd fought for Daisy. At least in this case Crystal was Void, and not Cardinal. There had been quite a few Wizards on both sides who'd thought he wouldn't be capable of raising a child who was technically his diametric opposite.
Phil had been more than happy to prove them wrong.
"Hey," Daisy's voice called out, making them both spin around as she came up with stairs toward them, Skye on her shoulder as usual. "Andrew told me I'd find you both up here, but not why…" she stopped in her tracks, her eyes narrowing. "Dad…what have you done?"
Melinda snorted as Phil put a hand to his chest in a, 'who, me?' gesture.
"She's got your number, Phil."
Melinda was right about that.
Daisy stepped forward, peering into the room. Lola chirped at her in greeting from her position as guard, and Phil breathed a sigh of relief at his daughter's soft smile as she caught sight of Crystal sleeping. "So, does this mean I now have a little sister?"
"It does."
"I've always wanted one, you know."
Phil was aware of that. He'd just never considered adopting another child…up until that moment in the village, that was. There had been too many times he'd been convinced he'd ruin Daisy, which of course hadn't been the case at all.
"Come on into my study, and I'll explain."
"And here I was thinking I'd have news for you. At least now I know why Ianto wanted me to come home. I take it he was a witness to your latest adoption?"
Phil was grateful to the Cardinal Wizard for sending her back. "He was. And of course he left me to tell you the details."
"Sure he did, he's not family." Daisy nodded. "I have a feeling this is going to be interesting. Horrifying and interesting."
She didn't know the half of it, really. But she would.
Skye made her own inquisitive chirping sound, and flew to join Lola at watch on the bed. She settled down next to the larger dragon, and her presence had Lockjaw looking up drowsily, but when he noticed it was another dragon he laid back down and dropped back into sleep, trusting they would keep himself and his Wizard safe.
It was really adorable. Phil's heart swelled from the sight until it was a rather painful lump in his chest. "Let's leave them to sleep.."
Pulling the door most of the way closed, Phil led Daisy down the stairs toward his study. Melinda went down farther, and the Wizard didn't doubt that she and Andrew would be talking logistics about having a child in the Keep once more. Crystal would need a lot of support as she settled in, and Phil liked to think the family he'd formed around him would do an excellent job of it.
There was still Clint to consider, and he was hoping his new lover would want to be a father beside him. He was already bonding with Daisy, certainly Crystal would be just as easy.
Once they were in the study, Daisy didn't go to her usual chair by the fireplace; instead, she sat on the couch, where Phil joined her. He reached out and took her hand, his thumb stroking across the back of one of her gauntlets, the metal warm against his skin.
Through the contact he could better get the feel of her magic. It didn't bother him that the Deep Ways flowed through her, like some people did when faced with their opposite in Order. To him, this was just a part of her, as much as the Void was a part of him. If only more could see that, the world would be a better place, where children weren't tossed out like trash because they weren't what their parents wanted.
Daisy was so very powerful, and he was intensely proud of the fact that he'd raised her to be such a conscientious young woman, someone who would stand up for what she believed in. She had such a generous heart, and would always do the right thing no matter what that was. And her intelligence was just amazing, so encouraging her in her studies had come to be second nature to him.
He could only hope he'd do the same for Crystal. He'd certainly do his very best.
Sighing, Phil explained how he'd come to find Crystal and Lockjaw, abandoned and starving under that gazebo, rejected by her birth parents and left to die. When he was done, Daisy's outrage was incandescent, the only thing keeping her seated was his hands holding hers. It made him even prouder of her for reacting that way, for obviously wanting to do something to those people who'd hurt an innocent child. But then, he hadn't expected anything different. Just look at her group of friends.
Although, if it had been a few years earlier, her magic would have backlashed all over the place. Her control had improved so very much, and Phil knew the only real reason she wore those gauntlets anymore was because he made them for her. Oh, and she thought they looked fantastic on her.
"She's never going back there," Daisy vowed.
"Ianto and Stephen are going to find out who the bastards are and get them to sign away their parental rights," he told her. "I thought it was more important to get her out of there."
"Yep," Daisy agreed. She gave him a warm smile. "You always manage to do the right thing."
He was touched by her confidence in him. "Not always, sweetheart."
"Maybe," she capitulated, "but a majority of the time, sure." She bounced a little in excitement. "I can't wait to officially meet my new baby sister. I don't understand why her parents got rid of her just because of her magic. They weren't much if they'd do that to a kid."
He completely agreed. But there were extenuating circumstances, ones he hadn't shared yet. He was almost hesitant to do so, but she deserved to know the complete truth. "It might have also contributed to the situation that your Uncle Nick and I blew through there when we were younger and made quite a mess of things."
"But that wasn't the only reason."
He should never forget that his child was almost frighteningly smart. "No, but it certainly didn't help matters any."
"You can't blame yourself, Dad. Besides, if you take Crystal in because you feel guilty, it'll only wreck your relationship later on."
Oh, yes… he was so very proud of his elder daughter for pointing that out. He just had to hug her, which he did gladly.
Because, she was correct. If he adopted Crystal because of the guilt he would always feel about his past actions, it would taint what he would come to feel for her. It certainly wouldn't become the all-abiding love he felt for Daisy, and that was unacceptable.
No, he had to dismiss that right now and accept Crystal into their family because he wanted to, not because it was his duty to do it. Then they could all get on with the healing part of their lives.
"Besides," she went on, "you can't tell me, with all the propaganda that's been spread around by the Greats, that this probably wouldn't have happened anyway."
She had a point. With Mordo living nearby, that village had probably been steeped in anti-Void and Cardinal rhetoric for years.
"If you ask me," Daisy snorted, "someone needs to go to that village and drop a major truth bomb on them."
Phil blinked, as his daughter's words struck him.
A truth bomb.
No.
A Truth Bomb.
It would be relatively simple to create, and would be easier to use than a bunch of individual Truth potions. All they'd need to do it get all the Wizards in one place…which they'd already planned to do anyway…
"Dad, you've got that look on your face that says you're plotting something."
He gave her a sly smile. "I just might be." He stood. "You want to help me make a Truth Bomb?"