Thank you so much Tara Blossom, XxFadedButterflyWingsxX, Rika-Sia, and XXThe_wish_GranterXX for reviewing my first chapter!
I really am just so excited to have people reading what I write, after having a few other stories of mine not get any recognition at all it means the world to me to be reading your reviews. You all really inspired me for this chapter and I hope you wont be disappointed with what you read. Rambling again xD sorry! Well with out further ado I present you with chapter two!
Chapter 1
Ungrateful, insane, absurd, preposterous, woman! I can't believe she would have the guts to ask such a thing no she didn't have the guts. She was missing the one organ in the world that would stop her from asking such a thing a heart.
Steal, no I meant that as a joke! A STUPID JOKE! Who was the mother here? Well it in Sam's hell was me, though I was seriously debating to consider it lately. Irresponsible did she not have any morals? This was exactly why I'd gotten kicked out of school, why Mr. Baits didn't trust her!
You know Leila you're the one who agreed to it...
I wouldn't say that I agreed … more like compromised. She was my mother and after the possible death sentence waving over my head, I wouldn't even call it that… Desperation; yes that was what this was.
"Are you new here little lady?" a gruff voice spoke from my side. Glancing to my right I had to tilt my face far upward to even get a glimpse of the man's eyes. I knew that I had always been a shorter girl, standing just barley at the height of five feet and three inches but this man made me feel like I should have a pair of pointed ears and a ticket to the North Pole.
"Sort of," I replied quietly never being one to be good with new people normally, not to mention with all this on my mind. How was I going to do this!
She's your mother you have too…
"How so?" he inquired reaching over the boat deck to grab a stray stool that had been sitting lopsided against the decks frame. Propping it up just enough to still be able to reach over and drape his arms off the boats side he gave me a friendly smile. "We have quite some time before we reach Mineral Town, why not entertain a man?"
Trying hard to not allow my mind to drift to the many street terms in the city which could pertain to entertaining a man, I reminded myself that this was a much different setting.
"Well," I cleared my throat trying to figure out how to explain my relation to a mother who ran away from this place around nineteen years ago. But for obvious reasons there was no said logical way to explain such. So I opted to stay silent and away from his question.
But as the man sat there still watching me intently I knew I should go on; I still had some manners through this at least. "Well," I repeated, "my mother grew up here… But I suppose yes I myself am new to the town…"
He mans eyes lit up at this, "what's your name little lady?"
"Leila," I replied quietly. I had no clue whether this would give the man a hint at who my mother was, and personally I wasn't sure if I wanted it to. After leaving such a small trap of a village as my mother coyly described it I wasn't sure of her last impression on the townsfolk before leaving. Though I was sure it wasn't exactly good, and it sure as hell wasn't going to be any better after I was through with it…
"Howdy then Leila," the man smiled holding out a hand, "I'm Zach."
"Hi Zach," I replied forcing a small smile of my own, and taking his hand.
"Wow got quite a grip there don't ya'?"
I merely smiled, was there a point in shaking if didn't?
"So Miss Leila may I ask who your mother is? I'm rather curious if I say so myself..." Zach smiled pulling his right hand back from mine only to scratch the back of his head all child-like.
The faint smile that was on my lips a second ago was nowhere to be seen now though. "Oh well…"
"Leila I don't know how much you know about Mineral Town, but there ain't much of us here. I'll respect it if you don't tell me now but I wouldn't go thinking it isn't something people are going to figure out. Not with Manna in town at least," he grinned as if holding in laughter that I didn't exactly understand.
Pausing I suppose for dramatic silence, I waited to tell him. I tried to reason this logic in my mind. Pausing, psh all I needed was some dramatic music I'd be set. But fearing I was toying with the man's curiosity to much I stopped. "Her names Aja," I replied and immediately my stomach dropped, should I really be telling these people who I was?
It looked like Zach's eyes were about to pop out of his big old head. "Y-you're Aja's daughter?" he asked like she was the most fearful person in the world. Like a ninja in the movies that'd crossed to the other side. And not the good side at that. Wonderful… not like I didn't expect this already...
"Yes," I replied really starting to second guess myself.
"You're going over to Manna's and Duke's then?" he asked.
"Yes."
"Oh..."
"Oh?"
Zach smacked his head, "must you do that?"
"Hmm?"
"One word responses dang it!"
"Sorry?" Then at his hard look of displeasure I averted my eyes off in the direction of the sea. "Was my mother that bad?" I asked curiosity growing I had only heard one side of the story…
Don't grow attached to these people Leila!
Zach took a long while to reply, and the silence made me uncomfortable. Almost like he was going to make me walk the plank or something… With that thought I quickly glanced around the deck for something I could grab if that were to happen; though almost depressed I had to note there was no plank on the ship. He could however throw me off…
The boat was old which had earlier seemed more like a limiting factor but now I saw it oddly comforting. The rusting bar at the edge of the ship was almost a blessing. Just one wrap around a tug and it should come free easily, and one crack at the head and I would be navigating the ship to Mineral Town.
The picture of me the daughter of a runaway riding into town on a almost stolen ship with the captain knocked out on the poop deck was entertaining. To me at least, though more than likely not to the islanders.. So like a good little girl I sat there with my head cocked only slightly to the side waiting for the sailor to form adjectives.
"No," he finally replied, "she was not bad. She had her own ideas of the world though, and her parents didn't agree exactly with… I'm surprised she even told you of this place honestly…"
I smiled lightly; well she didn't have much or a choice where she was at now did she? "Is that the Island?" I asked pointing to the small landmass in the distance, a distraction from the question.
"Yupp, that's ol' Mineral Town," Zach smirked holding up his finger to wait as he jumped up on the high part of the ship to grab hold of the wheel. I watched him mildly concerned he'd come down to the deck to talk with a young girl leaving the wheel unattended.
As we pulled in to the dock I pulled up my few bags and carefully placed my feet on the dock.
"So Miss Leila you have any clue where your grandparents live?" Zach asked as he hoped off the ship with ease.
"Err no," I replied not really happy about it myself. I didn't know anything about them really expect for the fact they were my biological grandparents, and the quick curses my mother had throw at them before telling me what I had to do… Oh why was I here?
"Well let me show you around then," Zach smiled doing the most bizarre bow I'd ever seen. Assuming that it was supposed to be charming I ignored it. He probably could show me the way much faster that I could find on my own anyway.
Allowing him to grab one of my bags, I followed him up the sandy banks. It definitely was much prettier than I imagined and small at that…
"Who you got there Zach?" called a loud voice from back from the docks. I turned around slowly making sure that any shock that might have made its way across my face from the sudden outburst was gone. I looked at him it was a boy, looking around twenty or so most likely a good two years older than I. He was evenly tanned like someone who spends too much too much time in the sun, and his white shirt was unbuttoned to the middle to show some of his chest. His hair was pulled back into a purple banana so that I couldn't see its color. And in all honestly to me he kinda looked like a wanna-be pirate.
"A new resident," Zach smiled proudly like I some shining treasure he'd dug up in the ocean.
"What's her name?" the boy smiled at me. I raised a thin eyebrow though he probably couldn't see it under my hair.
Zach looked once to me then to the other boy, "well I guess you're going to have to find out on your own Kai." He smiled at me, "but not now I have a delivery to make."
Thinking I was probably that delivery I followed behind Zach to see my grandparents. Ignoring Kai's calls from the beach. "Oh come on Zach at least give me something! Now she knows my name and I've got nothing!"
"Ignore Kai there," Zach informed me like I was having difficulty doing so already. As we walked I couldn't help but find it entertaining how every person we pasted looked me up and down while merely smiling and nodding hello to Zach. Though I knew it was a small town, I never would have fathomed it being so little that every resident would know one another… Then again perhaps this was just Zach, he was what seemed to be the only contact to the real world the town had.
"There you are Miss Leila," Zach said stopping before a winery and setting the bag he'd been carrying down.
I wondered slightly if he was going to say hello as well but he seemed to want nothing to do with this reunion. As he was already off and humming, walking away from me.
"Uh thanks then..." I replied quietly not sure if he heard me, he didn't give me any nod or recognition he did… Looking over the house it was almost like a Little House on the Prairie episode. It was small but cute, obviously two stories with a shed to the side and an orchard of grapes stretching for acres until reaching an Inn.
And for the first time looking at it I couldn't help but have some second thoughts. I couldn't help but feel it wasn't a good leave for my mother herself. But what if they didn't want me? Or worse yet if anyone found out why I had to come here…
Shaking my head I reminded myself of the true motives that would come later, right now I was reconnecting with family members...
Stepping up quietly on the step I reached for the door knob hoping silently this would work out. Because it had to work out.
I raised my hand carefully to the door just earning up the courage to hit the fine wood. There were a lot of things that I'd done in my life that I wasn't proud of. And I knew that by entering this house I was going to make a new number one on that list. It wasn't fair to them, nor did they deserve it.... But it wasn't fair to my mother or I either and we needed this. I had to remember that! I was just reaching my decision an inch away from the door when a call approached from behind me.
"Are you looking for some wine Miss?" a gruff voice called. Turning just enough to face him I already knew who it was. A tall man though not nearly as towering as Zach stood before me, he had black hair graying already almost in stripes across his head. His face was worn with wrinkles of a long life of hard work. I tried to not think of all the physical exertion he must put in to make a living.
"Uh no, actually…" I replied unsure what to tell the man. That he was my grandfather? How was I supposed to bring this up anyway? Hey Pappy! Yeah, no I didn't think so...
"Oh then are you lost?" he asked blinking at me. I could tell now he was realizing how weird it was to see a new young face in town...
"Hey Duke, where do you want me to put these I-" a young man just around my age was making his way up the stairs a barrel of what I could only guess was grape solutes in each of his arms.
The second he saw me he stumbled and I knew I should have seen what was coming from a mile away. His foot caught from underneath him and the first of the barrels fell to the ground spilling out around his feet.
The shell of the now emptied barrel swung around him knocking right into my Grandfather. Who in turn fell onto the boy flinging the second barrel right at me. Shocked I could barley move enough to shield my face. Sticky grape smelling solutions poured all over my head seeping well down into my clothes leaving me there soaking wet. This was not at all how I pictured my family reunion!
"I-I-I" both men stammered as the door behind me clicked open.
"Duke what in the world is going on you- W-who is this?" a women appearing at the door shrieked. I didn't even have to guess to know exactly who she was; she was a spitting image of my mother. Eyes, hair, face and body build it was like looking through a time glass or something.
"Oh my apologizes Miss, really!" Duke was stammering pushing the worker boy off to the side looking pleadingly at me.
"Ohh!" Manna was flustered in a way I'd never seen my mother act. "Are these yours Miss?" she asked pointing to my bags, and I nodded rigidly luckily they seemed to still be intact. "Oh graces come with me. Duke! Don't go sending Cliff back to the Inn like that Doug will kill us!"
"Better him than Ann," grumbled my grandfather. "What do you want me to do with him then?"
"Figure it out!" my grandmother hissed grabbing hold of my arm and dragging me inside the house. I couldn't really see much of it before she was tugging me into a side room. "Oh I'm very sorry," she was saying. "I'll get you some towels and start a bath, good Goddess you smell. Oh I will kill Duke for this really I will!"
I tried to measure up this situation up in my head but she didn't give me much time to think. Already guiding me into yet another room where a shower was heating up. "You take as much time as you need, just get cleaned up." She closed the door behind her and I was left alone.
How in the world did all of this happen? I asked myself still staring at the door my head spinning. Everything sped by so fast I couldn't comprehend it. This is most absolutely not what I planed! I glanced in the mirror my eyes widening, my long blonde hair was matted in purple and sticking together in crusting clumps of grape even my skin had a faint purple glow! I was a freakin' purple goblin!
I chill ran down my back as I reached into the shower feeling the water. It was still warming. Taking a look around me I saw that Manna had placed the set of towels along with my bags in the far corner.
Quickly stripping down I was careful to place the stained dripping clothes on the tile instead of their nice white rug. Though I couldn't ignore the nagging voice inside my head that said they had done this to me, why not stain something of theirs as well?
But I needed to be on their good side, and besides that technically it was that hired help who did this not them. Hopping inside the shower I soon found this purple gunk was easier to scrub off than I had expected. The smell on the other hand was a completely different story. I found myself using every cream rinse and soap in their shower. Scrubbing myself with their wash cloth and ringing it out a million times before finally I knew I could do no more; turning off the water I started drying off.
I stared at my reflection, at least my hair wasn't died purple like those troll dolls. Actually it almost looked blonder... but I'm sure that that was just me. I ran my fingers through my hair looking at it, leaning my nose down to give it a sniff I veered away from it quickly. It was a horrid mix of wine and cherry blossoms two things I couldn't stand, and together you couldn't even imagine…
"Are you finished in there?" Manna's voice called from outside.
"Um yeah," I replied stepping out the bathroom cautiously. She was standing worriedly shaking her head as she saw me. "I really am sorry about this!" She shook her head running into the bathroom to grab the soaking wet clothes I'd left in there.
She disappeared to what I guessed was the laundry room, only to appear minutes later. "I'm Manna by the way," she smiled holding out her head.
"I'm Leila," I replied taking her hand evenly. I don't know why but I just couldn't bring myself to tell her just now I was her granddaughter… so I bit my tongue. It was like I knew the later I waited to tell the family the harder it would get, but some voice in my head told me to stay quiet…
"Leila…" Manna smiled slowly pondering the name. "That's very pretty; did your mother name you that?"
"Yes she did," I replied adding a small smile.
"We'll Leila I insist that you stay for dinner, come have a seat the boys will be in, in a few."
"Is there anything I can help with?" I asked but she shook me off insisting I take a seat at the table. I watched her through the doorway as she slaved away at the stove. Both Duke and his worker came in one at a time to bath though it looked to me like they'd hosed off outside beforehand.
Looking around the house they were definitely well off. Having fine oak furniture and big floral and art displays it oddly a lot like what I pictured their house would look… Oh Leila are you really still thinking about doing this to these people?
"So where are you heading Leila?" Manna asked from the kitchen as Cliff settled down across from me.
Lie, the voice in my head said. Lie Leila, "I'm just looking around actually; I grew up in the city so I thought that before I go off to college I would get a better look at the country side." If that wasn't a lie I didn't know what was… College psh…
"Oh a college student, we don't get many visitors here you know. How'd you find out about this place?"
"Oh," I jumped feeling the boys eyes fall on me. Dark brown just like mine staring right at me. Did he realize that was a lie? "I'm not really sure myself really," I said half truthfully. "I was talking to a guy I met in the market he seemed to be bringing stocks from here to the city. Said that if I was looking for a new world I should try here," Oh crud I normally could lie so well what made here so different?
"Oh that was probably Zach," Manna laughed. "He's always making new friends abroad."
Zach! You told him they were your grandparents! LEILA WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?
"Are y-you okay?" the boy across the table asked looking at me concerned.
"Why wouldn't I be?" I snapped quickly immediately regretting it. It seemed the boy had a hard enough talking already and I just shut him down. "Sorry I-"
"What's for dinner?" Duke called emerging from the shower and I realized that this boy I'd been talking to was wearing Dukes old clothes. It looked like they were drying his clothes in the wash, giving Duke's as his dried. The image was really funny if you asked me, the boy looked swallowed up in them.
"You wait and see like the rest of em," Manna retorted.
"Fine," Duke grumbled settling down at the head of the table. "Sorry again Miss, I'm Duke by the way and this here is Cliff if he hasn't introduced himself already. I wouldn't be surprised he's always- Oh well he's a little anti-social"
I smiled that would explain a lot. "I'm Leila," I told him though he didn't have much time to respond for Manna was already setting down a big plate of spaghetti.
"There you go Duke, oh watch the sauce there Cliff it's hot!"
Around me they all bowed their heads hands meeting, and I had to quickly follow suit. "Harvest Goddess, you thank you for our meal. We pray in your name that it will bless us for our health and strength. Amen" Duke recited and the others echoed. I myself was lost. I knew of religion obviously but I'd never gone to church or prayed before meals this was foreign! Did my mother really carry on nothing of her past?
Everyone helped themselves to their food started away; I always thought you could tell when someone is truly hungry by the amount of speech in their meal... If I was right these people were famished not a single person talked at all, and I was afraid to utter a word myself.
"So Leila you said you were just passing through Mineral Town? How long are you planning on staying?" Manna asked finally and happy for the break in silence I complied.
"I'm not sure actually, I don't have much money so not long I don't think." As I replied I could feel Cliff's eyes reach up at mine again. You said you were a college student stupid! How could you not have money! "School expenses are big so I'm just looking to stay a little while get to see everything before I leave."
"Ooo a college student!" Duke smiled. "Where are you going?"
Crud! "California University," I replied each state had a university right? How would these island bums know the difference anyway?
"That sounds lovely Leila," Manna smiled. "How about this? You stay here with us at the house?"
"You'd do that?" I asked my eyes' widening this was great! Living up close to them knowing where everything was and I didn't even have to let out I was Aja's daughter! When I left it wouldn't even truly be a family betrayal. Perfect, remember Zach though…
"So what do you say Leila? Just for a while," Duke said.
"That sounds wonderful," I smiled finishing up my meal. This was almost too easy! And all of them just smiled and nodded at me. All except for Cliff that is, who looked like he didn't know what to think… They expect something some sort of trade the voice boomed in my head. "Um there has to be away I could help you out though as well?"
"Well Duke could use some help in the vineyard…" Manna said and I wish she hadn't.
"We owe you Miss Leila, so housing expenses are free. But if you'd like to eat with us every night how about you help out a little as well you could-"
"Duke look at her she can't do all that lifting she-"though Cliff was quiet it was clear his intent.
"I can do it I-"I started.
"Well then Cliff you help her, you're the reason we owe her anything anyway!" Duke snapped.
Cliff didn't look satisfied much nodded in agreement none the less.
"Perfect, it'll be so nice to have a girl around the house again…" Manna smiled and I flinched involuntarily knowing who the again referred to. How could she still miss my mother?
"Come this way," Duke told me after everyone had concluded their meal, grabbing my bags that sat near the wall. Guiding me upstairs he opened the first door on the right. "This is our guest room," he told me. "But please make it you own. We get up at seven o' clock sharp in the morning for breakfast then go out water the plants at eight it's our busy season so I appreciate your help. We pay Cliff here twelve bucks an hour," he jabbed a finger at the boy I hadn't realized followed us up. "Saying food costs around five dollars we'll give you around seven each hour you spend out there. Sound fair?"
No... "Yes thank you," I replied, why was I doing this? Oh yeah my mother, right.
"Well then I guess I'll leave you to it-"
"Um actually if it's alright to you I'd like to see Zach," I couldn't believe I said it myself, but I needed to talk to him. He seemed nice enough right? Right? I felt a lump forming in my stomach, why had I even told him anything at all? Even if I was planning on telling them who I was, things change! How could I be such an armature?
"Uh okay…" Duke blinked looking at me.
"He referred to Mineral Town so I'd like to tell him I settled in well," I explained. "But I'm not really sure where he lives…"
"Oh Cliff will show ya' wont ya boy?"
"Actually I-" Cliff stammered but Duke shot him a look that even I knew said not to mess with him. "Uh yes I will…" Cliff replied.
"Thanks Cliff," I smiled and he wouldn't meet my eye. I'd have to ditch him one we got there but at least I wouldn't be getting lost in the dark. You can do this Leila, I told myself. Zach can't be that hard to persuade… Oh Lord how exactly could I explain why I didn't want my grandparents to know who I was?
"Uh you ready?" Cliff asked looking at me cautiously.
"Huh? Oh ye-yeah lets go."
Okay so there you have it. The First Chapter for The Runaways Daughter! What do you think? And yes I did tweak the ages just a bit so that Aja's daughter would be around the age of everyone in the town, but I'm hoping that wont bug everyone to much. xD
Please leave a review if you wish for me to continue and please tell me what you think.
Thanks so much for reading!
