The Eternal Mother: A Tale of Love and Loss in Another World - Chapter 3
The next day, Kurt woke up in his 'new' bed that Eri gave him to sleep on. While looking at his surroundings, he noticed that he ended up in her house, much to his relief. "I wonder if she's here to say good morning…" He muttered. He stretched his arms first before going out of bed.
After that, he left the room and decided to walk downstairs, looking for her. There, he smelled something good. He thought that the smell must have come from the kitchen. And so he went to the kitchen. Upon arriving, he saw Eri cooking something for breakfast. She noticed Kurt's presence and smile.
She gently set down the plates of scrambled egg onto the table when she heard his presence behind her. She turned around to greet him with her smile. "Good morning, Kurt." She greeted him. As she turned to look at him, she noticed the tired look in Kurt's eyes. It was then she realized that he was asleep for a very long time.
"I'm sorry that I didn't wake you up. I thought that you would be just exhausted. I hope you slept well." She said, concerning that if Kurt was exhausted or not. Of course, Kurt was just sleepy because he hadn't slept in a long time, all because of the uncomfortable bed he used to have before he slept on a comfortable one.
"Yeah… I slept well…" He said, trying to scratch his eyes to be fully awake. After that, they both sat on one of the chairs of the table each. And before they began to eat, Kurt looked at the food Eri made. With just the smell alone, it was enough for him to be hungry for some fresh and decent food once in a while. He thanked her for making the food before grabbing the fork and the knife to cut the meal in a non-barbaric way.
She smiled, looking at him eating while using the utensils properly. As she watched him eat, she couldn't help but wonder if he enjoyed eating.
"Tell me, Kurt… Do you enjoy the food?" She gently asked after he finished eating his meal. It was a simple question, but one she wanted to ask out of curiosity. Of course, hearing the question, it was pretty obvious to him that he wanted to enjoy decent food once in a while.
"Definitely. It feels so long since I tasted decent food for once." He replied happily. Eri smiled warmly as he complimented her cooking. She was glad that he liked it. Although what took her by surprise was Kurt saying that it's been a while since he had a decent meal. In her perspective, it must've been tough to live in the streets without someone helping Kurt out. It's not like she would know, but she had a feeling that it could be quite the hassle.
"I see… I'm glad you like it and you don't have to deal with having mediocre food." She said, assuring Kurt that he won't eat mediocre food again. He nodded upon hearing what Eri said. Suddenly, he thought of something. Something that was left out of his mind until now. He didn't think of asking her name. An embarrassment for someone who was saved by Eri.
"By the way… I didn't quite ask your name until now. Is it alright to tell me?" He asked. Of course, he knew that it would be some sort of breach of privacy. But Eri didn't care. But still, it took her by surprise that he only asked her name now, not earlier.
"My name..?" She said before wondering how she would answer it, with her right hand tapping gently her chin, worrying that she might be in trouble if just from her name alone, it would be enough to tell her that she came from another world, unknown to him. She stared into the distance, thinking of the best answer to Kurt's question. But in the end, she could only think of a simple and generic answer.
"I'm Eri Kurokawa, my little one. Thank you for asking." She answered before she continued smiling kindly at him. Upon hearing her name, Kurt thought of something that made her suspicious, but decided not to go any deeper, for the risk of her being mad at him. "Eri Kurokawa… Good name if I do say so myself." He complimented her name.
Just hearing his compliment, her smile grew even wider. She thought that most people would just consider her name generic and move on. But she was surprised that Kurt said that her name was a good one. And so, hse thanked him for the compliment. She gently patted his head as a means to praise his compliment, hoping to praise him as well.
Kurt enjoyed the head-patting a little more, even though he still felt embarrassed about it. However, there was one thing that kept him in his mind for a while, after Eri took him in. He never told her about his past. But he wasn't certain if telling her about it would make him feel 'at ease'. But he wanted to tell her about his past so badly. And even if she couldn't do much to him, at least he would be at ease.
"Say… I didn't tell you much about my past. Is it okay to tell you? Not that you would like hearing it, at least." He asked. Eri was surprised to hear his question because, in her perspective, it's not easy for a person who had a rough past to tell much about it. And yet, in Kurt's case, just asking it lightly was proof that he could overcome the fear of telling someone about his problems.
"Why wouldn't I be upset about it? If anything, I'd be a little bit curious about your past since I don't know much about you right now." She explained why she wouldn't be uncomfortable if Kurt was to tell her about it. "If you're comfortable about it, then I'd be happy to listen." She assured him. Kurt sighed in relief upon hearing it. But he was honestly surprised that she wanted to know more about his past. But it was another reason why he had to tell her about it. 'Guess I can't turn back on that…' He thought before clearing his voice.
"Before I was a street orphan, I was the eldest son of a common werewolf family, which consisted of my birth parents, my birth younger brother, and me." He explained who he was before being a street orphan. Eri sat still when she heard about Kurt's past. She couldn't help but stare at him, thinking about how his life was back then.
"Well, that's an interesting past." She mumbled to herself. "But how did you become a street orphan in the first place? I would assume that you would've stayed with your family. Or do they hate you for some reason?" She asked many questions to Kurt. Of course, hearing those questions, he couldn't help but feel insecure when it comes to his birth family's behavior towards him.
"In a way…" He answered Eri's last question before he continued. "The truth is, my birth parents were spoiling my younger brother, making me feel neglected by them. The worst part of that was not only were they neglecting me, they would also force me to do things that should be dedicated to them. And because of that, I couldn't go to a local school dedicated to werewolves, meaning I don't have the luxury of being educated properly." He explained more about his past.
Just hearing his past, Eri couldn't help but feel sad about his past. First he was neglected, then his birth parents forced him to do chores for them. She felt like he was abused for a long time. "That's tough… No one should deserve being treated like the way you were treated, Kurt… And the fact that they didn't care for you having proper education, let alone an education at all, it's sad as well…" She said with deep sympathy in her voice. To see a child like Kurt being treated by his birth parents was enough to think that it was just terrible.
But he wasn't done. In fact, he didn't tell her about how he became a street orphan in the first place. And that's where things would go ugly. "That's what I thought as well. But the worst thing they did as 'crossing the line' was when I was 10. That was at least 2 years ago, if I remember right." He said before explaining how he has become a street orphan. Of course, Eri didn't know what Kurt meant by 'crossing the line'.
"Crossing the line? What did they do, Kurt?" She asked with a curious tone. Her eyebrows raised in the process, wondering what the line is and what happened to Kurt when he was 10. Of course, He didn't want to tell her about it. But he couldn't back down from telling his past.
"For my tenth birthday, my parents had the biggest idea of going to Klard, the capital of the Thidal Kingdom. And so, we went to some inn available in the capital and that's the last time I saw them before I became a street orphan." He explained, forcing himself to tell more about his past. Eri was confused at Kurt's explanation. She couldn't help but wonder how his birth family left him behind.
"That doesn't make any sense… They left you behind?" She asked with an expression of worry. It's not fair. In her perspective, it was cruel that they just left Kurt behind like he was nothing to them. Not only that, but it also was even more cruel that they didn't bother to check on him once in a while.
"Do you know why they left you behind?" She asked. Of course, Kurt felt traumatized, struggling to find the reason why his birth family left him behind. Yet the one thing that made him suddenly remember the sole reason why they left him behind was just the note from them that he kept to himself.
"Well… I was trying to find them before I panicked. But before I did that, I saw a note that pretty much said that they abandoned me. Worst part was that I still have it with me." He described what he could remember in detail before his abandonment. Of course, Eri could tell that what Kurt's birth family did to him was cruel.
"They… left you to live in the streets on your own with no support or anything? That's… That's just… cruel…" She said with a solemn expression. She thought about it more, of how Kurt's birth family ignored him like that. She started to hate his birth family for doing that to him. It not only just made her so mad, but it also hurted her since they were his family, despite what they did to him.
Just hearing her expression, Kurt couldn't agree more on what Eri said, but he could tell that that wasn't enough to make her hate his birth family. "I know. back then, I always imagined that they didn't like me. But reading the note, it wasn't long until I figured out that they wanted me to live on my own, with no one to help me." He said, with a sad look on his face.
"That's just ridiculous." Eri said with contempt. It just wasn't right. A young kid like Kurt shouldn't have to experience that kind of treatment. In her perspective, no one should have to endure something like that. But just for a family to abandon their child like that for them to live on their own was just ridiculous.
"I'm sorry, Kurt. That is such a stupid thing to do to your own child. I just… I'm disgusted by your family." She said with a sad, yet angry expression on her words. Of course, Kurt was also disgusted by what his birth family did to him as well.
"I am, too…" he said before he picked up the critically damaged-yet-readable note he kept to himself from his pocket. "By the way, do you want me to say what the note said or is that enough for you?" He asked, wondering if Eri was okay enough for him to read out loud. Of course, wanting to know about his birth family's intentions, she didn't mind at all.
"If you're comfortable saying what the note said, I'll listen. I want to at least know what they said before they abandoned you." She answered. Hearing this, Kurt was getting confident that what he was about to say might make her mad towards his birth family. Yet she wanted to at least listen to what the note said. And so he breathed in and out before starting to read the note out loud.
"Here goes…" He said before looking at the note, which was read as followed :
"Kurt. We are not sorry for leaving you behind. Or better yet, we're glad that we got rid of you. The reason why we wanted to go to this city was because it was well-known for the number of legal street orphans. And putting two and two together, we have the biggest idea of turning you into a street orphan, with nobody to help you. The reason was because you keep doing things humans do. Just this reason was enough to put your life as a living hell. One more thing…"
And there was the most disturbing part of the note that made Kurt sure that Eri might not like what he was about to say. "If you manage to see a pregnant woman, try performing…" And just trying to read out loud, Kurt's hands were shaking and he couldn't tell if he was going to be nauseous or not. Yet he desperately kept reading it.
"...abortion in their 9th month of pregnancy and bring it to us…" And just as he said those words, he kept feeling his head about to explode, as he continued to read out loud. This forced him to drop the note on the table with the feeling of wanting to vomit. He couldn't feel well, despite being recovered thanks to Eri's food she made. His body was, without a doubt, at its limits.
Seeing the note, Eri picked up and, upon looking at it, she couldn't believe in her eyes. Or better yet, she felt disgusted by the contents of the note. The fact that Kurt's family were willing to make him suffer like that is inhumane and despicable. She felt like her head was about to explode with outrage just from reading what the note said. At that moment, She felt like his family were the most horrible people in the world and that they deserve to die if anyone were to hurt anyone in such a way.
"How could they do such a thing?" She said with utter disgust. In her perspective, it was horrible, enough to make her feel disgusted by it. As for Kurt, it wasn't long until he couldn't hold himself much longer, to the point where he desperately wanted to vomit upon reading the note. Seeing this, Eri came closer to him and decided to pat his back, trying to soothe him.
"It's alright, Kurt. You don't need to read any more of that disgusting note." She said softly, still feeling angry from reading the note. All she wanted to do was to punch every member of his family for doing such things, even if they were blood-related to him. It was just something no child should've experienced in her perspective. Yet she was just glad that she was there for him, otherwise, it would be a painful life experience that could be too much for him.
Yet despite hearing her reassuring words, Kurt couldn't hold himself much longer. Because of that, he went to a near plastified box he could think of and vomited. Seeing this, Eri was getting even more worried if Kurt was going to be alright.
"Are you alright, Kurt…?" She asked nervously when she saw him vomiting. As Kurt finished vomiting, she gently helped him stand up as she brought him to a restroom to clean his mouth up. She also gave him a glass of water, hoping that it'll make him feel better. It was a horrible situation that he experienced and it really made her feel disgusted to think that someone would actually do that to their child.
"Do you need help?" She asked, hoping that at least she'll be there for him. Yet, with the feeling of his head spinning, Kurt couldn't feel even more sick than last time. "Head… Spinning…" those were the only words that were let out from his mouth before passing out. Not only that, he could feel cold after vomiting. Seeing this, Eri picked Kurt up with her strong arms, despite her pregnancy.
"Oh dear… Kurt." She said with a worried tone as she gently laid him down on her bed. Just seeing him in such a state made her worried for him. His head spinning and him passing out were such a bad sign in her perspective. And yet, after laying him down on her bed, she gently caressed his forehead with the back of her slender and soft fingers, smiling in the process.
"Rest well, Kurt. I'll make sure to take care of you, alright?" Even though she knew that Kurt might not hear her, she still said it to make sure that he won't be abandoned again. While he was sleeping, she grabbed a book on one of the shelves in her room to pass the time. The book was actually her secret diary, with the contents written based on what happened ever since she's in her world. While she was reading and writing her diary, Kurt was sleeping like he was trying to fight back against the pain.
As time passed, he began to sleep well, until he woke up slowly. He then noticed Eri, who was still reading, but it wasn't her diary. In fact, she was reading a novel instead. As she continued watching him sleeping before he woke up, she felt jealous of him sleeping peacefully. Because of that, She thought of Kurt sleeping on the clouds in her head. If only she could have that kind of sleep, maybe she might experience it.
"Good morning, Kurt. I'm glad to see you awake. How do you feel?" She asked after greeting him in a gentle and motherly fashion. Though Kurt could still feel the pain, he could tell he was recovering from the vomiting. "A bit better… And… I'm sorry you had to listen to the note… especially the last part…" He wanted to apologize, as it wasn't the thing Eri liked to hear in his perspective. Yet Eri didn't think of it and head-patted his head.
"No… No, it's okay, Kurt… I'm glad I was able to help you. I'm just… Disappointed at your family to say the least. The things they tried to do to you are just horrible… And they call themselves 'a family'." Eri said with disgust, shaking her head at the disgusting things his birth family were willing to do towards him. It just showed how vile they were, and that alone made her blood boil to just hear the note's contents.
Kurt couldn't agree more. But there was something on his mind that might be the reason why he vomited easily. She might not like it, but he had to say it. "So… I'm sure you don't want to know more but… I had to say it…" He said, still hesitating whether he'll say it or not. Though Eri knew what he wanted to say had anything to do with his birth family, she didn't mind lending an ear.
"Um… What is it, Kurt?" She asked with curiosity, wondering what was on his mind when he said he had to say something else. She was curious to know more about him so her interest grew even more. She gently nudged him to make sure he could let her know what he was thinking. "Is it about your parents or…?" She asked, still wondering if what he wanted to say had anything to do with his birth family.
To his disappointment, what Kurt wanted to say had in fact anything to do with his birth family. Though he wished he didn't want to remember, it looks like he had to say it so that Eri might know how messed up his family was.
"You see… The reason why I vomited earlier was because the last part of the note reminded me of the time I've seen something… That I wish I hadn't…" He said, feeling traumatized by what caused him to vomit earlier. Of course, hearing what he said, Eri's curiosity grew even more bigger.
"What did it remind you of, Kurt?" She asked, growing even more curious. She never thought that Kurt would have experienced something so horrible that it made him vomit, but now she thought about it more and more. It must've been a traumatic experience from how he worded it. She looked at him, curiously waiting for him to tell her what happened.
Kurt feared that he might be scared if Eri was getting really mad about what he saw a long time ago. Yet he embraced it with all his composure until he said it himself. "It reminded me of… aborted babies…! Especially from eight months of pregnancy…! I couldn't believe my eyes, but that's what I really saw…!" Though he felt glad that he said it, je was getting terrified as he described what he saw back then. Or rather, something he wanted to forget to oblivion.
And there Eri was, staring in shock, as he heard him talking about what the last part of the note really meant. The fact that he had to witness something like aborted babies was just… disgusting, in her perspective. The fact that his family would make such a request… It was horrible. Not even those from another world, like her, wouldn't stand for that sort of thing.
"Oh, my lord… That's… That's just horrifying, Kurt…" She said with her hands covering her mouth as she thought about the horrible request Kurt's family made. She felt so horrified, even more than back when they heard about the note. She thinks that her heart skipped a beat from how gross it was. Even though Kurt agreed with her, he was worried that if he would do as his birth family told him to do, it would put him in a worse position.
"I-I know… But that's why I'm scared of hurting you… Now that I know you're pregnant…!" He exclaimed, hesitating whether to take Eri's side or his birth family's. Knowing that she was granted with everything to protect her, including her defensive stats beyond human comprehension, Eri head-patted him, wanting to calm him down.
"Don't worry about it, Kurt… I'm pretty durable so I won't get hurt from anything that you might do. And besides…" She gently rubbed her belly before continuing. "I'm not really that hurt by the sight of blood… I've seen things way more terrifying than blood, Kurt…" She said with a reassuring smile, hoping to calm him down since he was scared that he might hurt her in any way. She wanted him to feel at ease since she knew he was a good person, and he just needed that extra bit of care in his life.
Though Eri tried to reassure him, he couldn't understand what she meant by that, he could feel like it wasn't enough to calm him down. "But… What if I would do as they wanted me to do to you…? Would I be happy…? No! I'm a werewolf, and although werewolves are not the 'scared' types, I'm scared to pull something like that…! I-I don't know what to do…" He ranted of how cowardly he was just based on what happened to him throughout his life so far.
Eri stared at him, feeling like her blood ran cold from his question. What he was suggesting… It was so disgusting. the fact that he was even considering such horrible things to get back at his family… It disgusted her so much that she didn't even know what to say. It just felt so wrong and evil at a time.
"Kurt… What they want you to do is inhumane… Why would you ever consider such horrible things to do?" She asked, still disgusted by his consideration of taking his birth family's side. Because of the thought alone, Kurt panicked even more, adding fuel to the fire on what Kurt suggested.
"That's the thing…! I wanted to go back so badly, but I'm scared of doing what they asked…!" He exclaimed, feeling even more paranoid at the fact of what his birth family could do to him if he agreed to do what they wanted him to do. Eri was having enough of how he kept thinking this way, and so she decided to be stern to him.
"No… Listen to me, Kurt…" She said sternly with her hands firmly grasping his shoulders. It was like her voice changed, sounding more stern than her usual demeanor. It was like she was trying to tell him everything she felt about his previous suggestion.
"There's no way you're going to do what those bastards wanted you to do. Do you hear me, Kurt? you're not going to do that, understand?" She became to talk to him more sternly because of his previous suggestion. To Kurt's surprise, hearing her stern voice was enough to calm him down. He couldn't bear himself to talk back to her, probably because he wasn't thinking straight. He thought that maybe she and him both agree on something : he's better off without his birth family. And yet, having no one to take care of him, he wanted to at least ask her if she could take care of him. But he wasn't sure if she would oblige, since he's a werewolf, after all.
"Then…" He tried to speak up. Despite the fact that it was something out of desperation for a werewolf like him, he had to ask her about it. "Is it okay to be… my adoptive mother…?" He asked out of embarrassment. Eri wasn't sure if she understood what Kurt asked her. It's as if it came out of nowhere.
"You… want me to be your adoptive mother?" She asked with a shocking expression, due to the idea of her being Kurt's mother which was not even thought of. In her perspective, he was suggesting that he wanted to be his mother.
"Are you… Sure? Do I really deserve… To be your mother?" She asked, worried that if she took him under her wing, then that would make three children to take care of, if she included her forever-unborn twins. Just hearing those doubts, Kurt wasn't surprised. His proposal came out wildly with no second thought, much to his embarrassment.
"I mean… If you're okay with it…" He said still embarrassed about the fact that he asked her out of nowhere. Despite that, Eri couldn't be more happier than having Kurt be under her wing. And so, she grabbed his hands with hers and began to never let go of them.
"Of course… I can't reject such an offer as yours, Kurt. I'll be your adoptive mother, if it makes you happy." She said with a gentle smile. It was clear as crystal that she was serious when she said those words. She couldn't reject his idea, as she would be happy to help him in any way she can. In her perspective, being his mother alone was just one of those things that she would be happily willing to do.
Yet she didn't finish there. In fact, she used her hands to put his hands on her left boob. Kurt had no idea what she was doing, until he felt one of her boobs. With just the sudden contact between her left boob and his hands, he was left speechless, with his cheeks blushing red. Even though she felt uncomfortable, she wanted him to at least feel her comfortable boobs, still smiling in the process.
"So…? Do you like the feeling…?" She asked in a flirtatious way with her low and motherly voice. With just the way she talked, Kurt couldn't tell if she was trying to seduce him. But he decided not to think much about it. And yet, his face still blushing, he was still left speechless, until…
"It feels soft and squishy…" He answered, trying to describe what he was feeling with his hands. Hearing this, Eri smiled, knowing full well that someone like him might love more than just her pregnant belly. "I'm glad you liked it." She said before she moved Kurt's hands with hers again, letting it go off her boobs for a while. Probably because despite her flirting, she didn't forget that Kurt was still recovering.
"Right now, you should take a rest. When you're feeling better, we can begin documenting for adoption and making you a proper civilian. Are you okay with that?" She asked. Of course, Kurt nodded to her proposal and he began to close his eyes to get some rest. Seeing this, Eri smiled before leaving her room.
"Sleep well, sweetie…" She mumbled before going to the living room, probably to gently caress her belly or write more in her diary in peace.