Chapter 6: The Patient Child
"Nathan, would you be a dear and go check on the vegetables in the garden?" Toriel asked. "I think I saw some tomatoes and cucumbers that were ready for picking the other day."
"Sure, Mom," the young boy said, grabbing a small basket and going outside. He had been living with Toriel and the other kids for about two weeks now and he had to admit, it felt great to have two older brothers and a little sister. He loved playing with his siblings, but mostly liked to help Toriel. Whatever she was working on, he wanted to help her with.
"Nathan, not that I don't appreciate it, but may I ask why you like to help so much?" She had asked him a few nights after he had arrived.
He looked down. "I just...want to feel useful," he said. "So that...you don't send me back."
Toriel had at once scooped up Nathan into her arms and hugged him. "Nathan, I will never send you back to that awful place," she promised. "While you haven't told me exactly where you came from, I could tell someone had abused you, or at least had neglected you."
"Yeah," he said. "They just didn't want me around. I...I felt useless and...you don't make me feel useless. You make me feel like I'm a good helper."
"And you are, my child," she said with a smile. "But don't feel guilty if I tell you that it's okay to play instead. I don't want to deprive you of being happy and playing."
He looked up at her. "Really?"
She nodded and hugged him again. "I promise, Nathan," she said reassuringly before tickling his sides gently and he giggled, squirming to get away before she went back to spinning some yarn and he took the finished yarn and got to work rolling the twisted skeins into balls of yarn, happy to sit by Toriel while she continued spinning the yarn.
Since that night, Nathan seemed to find a balance in playing with his siblings and helping out Toriel, calling her 'Mom' after that night. She had smiled at him and hugged him.
Now, Nathan went into the vegetable garden and found the tomatoes and cucumbers his mother had been talking about. He suddenly heard rustling and jumped a little, looking up. "Who's there?" He asked, picking up a nearby stick.
Something darted past and fell with a grunt, allowing him to see blue material before it disappeared behind a row of pumpkins. Two blue eyes looked into his eyes and he noticed that they looked afraid. "Hey, are you okay?" He asked, setting down the stick and the basket before going over to the pumpkins, seeing the eyes move back a bit before he came around and stopped short as the person turned to look at him.
It was a girl that couldn't have been much older than him and she had red hair and wore a long-sleeved blue dress and blue slip-on shoes. He looked at her in surprise before seeing some cuts on her right arm and some bruises on her face. "Who hurt you?" He asked her.
The girl didn't respond, but looked hungrily at some green bell peppers that were growing nearby. Nathan knew that look as Julie sometimes had that look when she was hungry. "Hey, I bet I can ask Mom if you can join us for dinner," he said, hoping the offer would help her see that he wasn't going to hurt her. "And Mom can heal you. She's really good with her healing powers."
The girl seemed a bit unsure and Nathan held out his hand, to which the girl hesitantly took, and he guided her out of the garden, picking up his basket again and grabbing some tomatoes and cucumbers along the way. "What's your name?" He asked.
She looked down before looking up at him. "Sarah," she said softly.
He smiled. "I'm Nathan," he said. "You've got to meet my siblings. I've got two older brothers named David and Thomas and a little sister named Julie. They accepted me right after they first met me and Mom adopted me."
Sarah looked a bit surprised at this, but let Nathan guide her inside. She did hold back a little after the door shut, looking a bit scared. "It's okay," he said reassuringly. "Come on. Mom's in the kitchen."
Toriel was wondering where Nathan was and was about to go look for him when she saw him come into the kitchen. "Oh, there you are, Nathan," she said. "I was wondering where...,"
The goat woman trailed off as she saw Nathan standing there with a girl somewhat hiding behind him. The girl was clutching the boy's hand as if it was a lifeline and Nathan turned to her. "Sarah, this is my Mom, Toriel," he said before looking up at the goat woman. "Mom, this is Sarah. I found her hiding in the garden."
Thankfully, Toriel regained her composure after the introduction. "Hello, Sarah," she said pleasantly, smiling as she kneeled down. "Why were you hiding in my garden?"
The girl looked down, clenching her free hand into her blue dress while shuffling her feet. Nathan gently squeezed her hand reassuringly and looked up at his mother. "Mom, I think she's been abused too," he said as he stepped back a little so that the goat woman could see the bruises on Sarah's face and the cuts on her arms.
"Oh, my goodness," she said, going up to them and gently touching Sarah's shoulder. "Why don't you sit down, honey, and I'll see about healing your injuries?"
Though this was spoken kindly, Sarah didn't let go of Nathan's hand and looked at him with some fear. He gave her a reassuring look. "I'll stay with you," he said. "You can squeeze my hand while Mom heals you."
Toriel was proud of her son for being so thoughtful and Sarah gave Nathan a grateful look as he guided her to a chair and she sat down while Toriel got another chair and sat beside her. "Alright," she said, her hands glowing green. "I'll be gentle, but let me know if anything hurts, okay?"
Sarah nodded and Toriel began healing her. As the green magic touched her skin and began healing her injuries, the girl giggled a little. "That kind of tickles," she said.
The goat woman chuckled and as she continued healing her, she also checked on Sarah's trait and stats.
Sarah
Age 9
Strongest trait: Patience
Attack: 1
Defense: 2
LV: 1
Likes to observe and is willing to wait for something, even if it means waiting for a good while. Appreciates that someone is being kind to her.
Toriel could see that patience definitely suited Sarah, because she was sitting patiently as her wounds were healed. Because some wounds were a little deep, it was taking a bit for them to fully heal, but the goat woman kept at it. Sarah looked up at her. "It doesn't hurt anymore," she said quietly.
Toriel smiled, having heard her. "I'm glad of that, my dear," she said. "Some of these wounds...did someone use a knife on you?"
Sarah nodded. "And razor blades," she said. "One even had a saw blade."
Nathan looked at her in concern. "Your parents?" He asked.
She shook her head. "Foster parents," she said. "And they didn't want me."
Toriel felt her heart go out to Sarah as she finished healing her. "Well, you don't have to worry about that down here, my dear," she said. "Why don't you join us for dinner and spend the night and after you've rested, you'll feel better."
The girl nodded. "Thank you, Miss Toriel," she said softly.
The goat woman smiled. "Just 'Toriel' is fine, dear," she said gently.
Julie, David, and Thomas were thrilled to have Sarah over and Julie at once asked if Sarah would be willing to play dress up with her tomorrow while David and Thomas were going to play outside and said that Sarah could join them if she wanted to. She smiled shyly.
"I'll think about it," she said.
Nathan smiled. "Don't worry, you'll get used to it," he said. "They're just really excited that you might become our newest sister."
She looked surprised. "Really?"
He nodded. "I bet Mom's ready to adopt you," he said, looking at his mother, who chuckled.
"Let's not overwhelm Sarah right now, my children," she said gently. "Right now, it's time for supper."
The children eagerly dug in and Sarah did also, seeming to enjoy the meal greatly, giggling at something David had said.
Watching her children always amused Toriel and made her happy. And Nathan was right, she had already adopted Sarah with her heart, but had decided to wait until the morning to tell the girl.
Five children, she thought to herself with a smile. Oh, Chara and Asriel would have loved them.
Thinking about that made a few tears come to her eyes, but for once, they were happy tears for the mother goat as she smiled again at her children. She noticed Sarah come up to her and look up at her.
"Toriel, um, can I stay here? Like, to live here?" She asked.
The goat woman nodded. "Yes, you may, little one," she said. "I promise, you'll be safe here. You will never see those abusers again."
She wasn't prepared for Sarah to hug her, but she returned the hug all the same. "Thank you...Mom," the girl said with a smile.
Toriel smiled again. "You're welcome, my daughter."
I promised the next one to fall would be a girl, didn't I? :)
So child number 5 has fallen, which means it won't be long before the other two fall as well. :) Also, quick note to everyone, I will not be online next week due to some pre-planned stuff, but I will be back online in October, so stay tuned. :)
Please leave a review, but no flames!
GoldGuardian2418
