Here's Chapter 1.. Hope you enjoy the story... And thanks for your time..
CHAPTER I
Five years later..."Momma, when is Marron going to wake up?" A fairy with lavender hair asked the most powerful sorceress at that time.
"Only time will tell, Dota. But now, it seems that he is near his awakening. It won't be long." Momma smiled at the angel.
"It sure is lonely without the others in here." A man, dressed in armor-like clothing entered the Court.
"Hello, Mille... How was the town I let you check?"
"It's sorcerer-free Your Highness!" the knight said enthusiastically. Big Momma smiled.
"Good work." Just then, the sorceress seemed to have been in a trance since her eyes went blank for a second then returned to its original form. The other two looked at her worriedly.
"Momma, are you alright?" Dota asked with concern. Mille just looked on.
"Marron is awake." She replied with a smile.
Just outside the Castle, happening at the same time..."Hey! Give that back!" a girl with red hair shouted at her brother, who was carrying her slingshot.
"Slingshots are for boys, Chiffon! So it is supposed to be mine!" The boy with dark, spiked, red hair shouted back as he ran away from the girl. Then, the girl just sat down and cried.
"Aunt Tira...!" The girl, Chiffon Cake cried as she sat on the grassy garden of the Stellar Church. Hearing the cry, the pink-haired woman gently closed the book she was reading and headed outside to see what was happening. When she saw the girl sitting on the grass, she immediately approached her.
"What's wrong, Chiffon?" She said as she knelt down and looked at the crying girl, hushing her by rubbing her back.
"It's Citrus... He took away my slingshot... Daddy made it for me..." She said as more tears came out of her eyes. Tira just sighed.
"Okay, why don't you go inside and wait... I'll look for your brother..." The woman said as she stood up and gave the crying girl a warm smile, causing her to smile as well.
"There, that's much better... You look prettier when you smile, Chiffon..." Tira said as she sauntered away to find the naughty boy.
Marron's Quarters..."Huh? Where am I? What...?" Marron said as he scanned his surroundings with blurry eyes. Seeing three figures on his front, he tried his hard to focus his gaze, until it became normal. "Big Momma? Dota? Mille? What's wrong?"
"Nothing Marron... We just came by to visit..." Mille said. Marron didn't buy that at all.
"But you don't usually visit me unless it is something important..." Marron said, examining the three figures in front of him.
"Do you remember the sorcerer Mal?" The tall woman asked.
"Yes, Momma... He was the most powerful sorcerer we've fought so far..." Marron said, then continued, "He was supposed to take away the God of Destruction in Oniisan's body until I blocked it... then tried to take away Gaias from Tira and I blocked it as well."
"Good. Your memory seems fairly well. Have you any idea how long you are asleep?" Dota asked, a little too excited. Marron looked at her with confusion.
"A week or so?" He guessed. Dota chuckled lightly.
"Five years." Momma said, with a reassuring smile on her lips. Marron's eyes widened in disbelief.
"F-Five y-years!!" Marron said in a state of shock. "T-that's too long!"
"Mal is the highest form of curse sorcerer in this time Marron, and since you took his curse twice, it had you sleep for 5 years. You're lucky you're still alive, despite the fact that the one used on you is a type of death spell." Mille said. Marron nodded.
"If it's a death spell, why am I still here then?" He asked Momma the question. Momma just smiled in return.
"Gaias."
At the Fountain..."Citrus, I know you are in here so why don't you be a good boy and show yourself." Tira said as she sat on the fountain's rim and looked at the water reflecting her face. She changed now. She looked exactly like the way she looked when she transforms into her dominatrix form – beautiful. Her dress was still the same red cloak, except that it now clings to her curves and is long-sleeved and off-shoulder. She had her ruby pendant – the one Marron gave her on her 16th Birthday. She couldn't help but admire the woman she has become.
"Aunt Tira...?" a boy's voice was heard from behind. Tira span around surprised that she hadn't noticed the young boy come. "Are you mad?"
"Well, a little because you took away something that wasn't yours..." Tira said as she bent down to look at him in the eyes. "So, what are you going to do now?"
"I guess, return it and say sorry?" He asked, his innocence never wavering. Tira smiled inwardly.
"Of course, now go... She's on the balcony..." She said as she looked at the fleeting boy. She let out a sigh. "Sooner or later Chocolate and Carrot must undergo family planning... It's so hard to take care of children... but then again, they take away most problems..." She said as she laughed at the irony.
Meanwhile...'Five years? I missed a lot of things with that time interval... I wonder how Tira and the others are?' He said as he threw on a pair of loose jeans and an open neck polo shirt, as he was fully bathed. He looked at himself in the mirror. His hair was about to reach his ankles, so he used a spell to make it shorter – waist length.
He then grabbed the book he was currently reading and left his room. He decided to see changes made in the Church. But just as he was about to turn to the dining hall, two children came running towards him, smiles on their faces as they pranced along, stopping when they came in front of him and looked at him as if they're examining him. He knelt down and smiled at them. 'This children look exactly like...'
"Citrus, Chiffon... I told you not to run on the corridors... You might break something..." A woman patiently said as she approached the two children.
"Uncle Marron!" They both shouted as they hugged him. Tira looked at the figure the children are hugging and her eyes grew wide as she covered her mouth with a hand – in obvious shock.
"M-Marron...?" She said weakly, feeling hot tears about to drop from her eyes.
"Hello, Tira..." He said as he held the children, his eyes never leaving the young pink-haired woman.
Tears stained Tira's bright red eyes as she ran towards him and hugged him for dear life.
"I was so worried! I thought... I thought... You're not..." She said as she sobbed clutching the collar of his polo shirt.
"Shh... I'm here... There's no need to worry..." Marron said as he placed his hands on Tira's shoulders and gently drew her away to look her in the eyes.
"I see you're not wearing your glasses any longer..." Marron said as he smiled at her tenderly. Tira looked at his golden eyes – she can't help but be lost in them. Then realizing this, she blushed a little and looked away. The two other children looked at them.
"Aunt Tira... Is Uncle Marron your husband?" Citrus asked, tugging at Tira's skirt. Both adults blushed crimson at the young boy's innocent question.
"W-What makes you say t-that?" Tira asked, trying to calm herself.
"Because Papa and Mama are usually like that!!" Chiffon enthusiastically replied. Both the adults blushed harder as they began looking at random places in obvious discomfort. Then, Marron broke the silence.
"So, I believe breakfast is already served in the dining hall... Shall we?" Marron gestured. The two kids looked at the raven-haired young man with pouted lips. Marron glanced at them questioningly.
"They usually want to be piggy-backed when they are about to eat." Tira said with a smile. Marron just smiled at the two children and knelt down, his back facing them.
"So, ride on!" Marron said. The two children screamed in bliss as they climbed on Marron's back. Tira just smiled happily, following the three people.
After breakfast...Marron walked the Stellar Church to look at things that changed through 5 years of sleep. 'Nothing much changed in here... Except that the garden is now more beautiful with the fountain and a dozen white roses... And there's a prairie where Tira said the night sky was beautiful...'
As he approached the living room, he saw three figures clamped together in one sofa. It didn't take him long to notice who they are.
Silently, he watched the woman who was humming a lullaby at the two sleeping children. There was an inevitable blush on his cheeks as he admired the way Tira is now. Her hair was neatly arranged, and she had a contented smile on her face. And her dress – God, her dress showed every inch of her curves. She was so beautiful. Realizing this, he shook his head vigorously.
'Why am I like this? It's just Tira... Beautiful Tira... Wait! There it is again! Ugh! I can't be in love with her, can I?' Then, the thought just sank in.
'I am in love with her...' then, with this realization, pain showed itself to him, 'She doesn't love me back. I might as well keep this to myself...' He said sadly. Making up his mind, he called her.
"Tira!" Marron said with a smile but was silenced immediately by Tira herself.
"The children are sleeping... Wait..." Tira said as she gently lifted Chiffon's head from her lap and replaced it with a soft pillow. Then went to where Marron was standing.
"So, I suppose you've got a lot of questions you need answered, right?" Tira said as she gestured to the gardens
"Yes..." He said as he looked at her. She was no longer the nerd-looking Tira before. She was now a very beautiful young woman, her pink tresses were not as messy as it was before. Now, her bangs frame her face perfectly and a small part of her hair was tied to her back. She was a sight for sore eyes. Adding to that the dress – no, sort of like a gown she's wearing. She was like an angel.
'God, she's even more beautiful up close...'
"Well, to start with, I know you already have an idea whose children those two are." Tira said as she smiled at him. This shook Marron out of his reverie, making him blush faintly. He nodded.
"My brother's and Chocolate's?"
"Yes..." She said in reply. Marron's brows narrowed in obvious thought, then looked at Tira.
"I thought you liked my brother?"
"Oh... that... Well, I did. But now, I don't any more. It ended the moment he picked Chocolate over me..." She said as her eyes darted to the floor. 'And the moment I started feeling weird things about you...' She thought, but blushed immediately.
"Oh..." He replied. He couldn't help it but be happy because at least, he's got a chance to court her... 'Wait! Hold on! What!?'
"And do you know what happened to Gateau?" Tira asked, trying to divert the topic. Marron shook his head.
"Well, he married a town maiden who looked similarly like you..." Tira said as she giggled. Marron raised a brow.
"Well, what is funny Miss Misu?" He asked jokingly.
"Nothing..." She just smiled at him. That caused him to blush, as he looked away, at the garden they were approaching.
'That smile, I swear, is the most beautiful I've ever seen...' He thought as his heart beat faster.
"Marron... I'm sorry... for, well..." Tira said as she played with her hands, looking down. Marron looked at her questioningly.
"For what?"
"If it weren't for me, you wouldn't be sleeping for five years..." She said as a tear dropped from her eyes, covered with her pink tresses that time. Marron's heart ached at the scene before him. He doesn't want to see her cry.
"Well, if it weren't for you, I would've been dead!" Marron said, a little cheerfully. Tira looked at him as he said what he just said. There were still tears in her eyes. Marron gently brought his hand up to her cheeks and wiped away the tears in her eyes. Tira closed her eyes at the feel of Marron's hands. They were warm and comforting. Then, Marron hugged her.
"I would prefer to die than you..." He whispered, causing Tira to blush really red. They held each other for a while, then withdrew. They sat on a bench under a Cherry Blossom Tree.
"I should be thanking you, in fact." Marron said quietly. Tira looked at him. He was looking at the sky.
'God, he's cute...' Tira blushed at her thoughts. 'Wait... that isn't right...' She somehow managed to say "Why?"
"Well, if it weren't for the Gaias you performed on me, I would've died..." He said as his eyes set on hers. He smiled.
"It's the least I can do for the things you've done for me, Marron... Thank you very much..." She said as she laid her head on his shoulder and Marron draped an arm on her waist. They both fell asleep for a while.