Chapter 30
Haruki spoke to gluttony.
'What the h.e.l.l, all of this is so d.a.m.n disgusting...'
[These were carved by those devout weirdos, you know religion could be messy sometimes...]
'Wow, they sure are...'quite unique'
[Unique is an understatement, they're a bunch of f.u.c.king devout weirdos...]
I'm surprised that you have your own followers...;
[Well, kid it goes way deeper than you could imagine, it's not a religion it's more of an army of meat bags ready to devour anything in it's wake... even at the cost of their own lives.
I only wanted to understand humans... that's why I created this... I wanted to observe them.
It's grand don't you think? Almost Divine!!
and yet it's currently nothing more than a shrine for misguided idiots...
I got curious, what drives these things? Their instinct to survive? Love? Family? Religion? War?
The more I observed, the more charmed I am by their complexity...
I seek to learn all facets of Humanity!
Some desired Love! Others Family!
Only then did I realize an absolute and unbiased truth...
The core of humanity is conflict!!
They fight. Steal. kill!! This is humanity, and even if countless millennia pa.s.s, that fact won't change...
I strived to attain nothing less than the essence of humans and faunus...
Yet, the more I eat the less I understand... but one thing did not change... their love for war.]
'That is true... Conflict exist as long as we exist...'
Gluttony then continued.
[Most of the humans I've eaten has faith in some form or another...
Faith or at least the idea of it, is perhaps the helping hand in the evolution of human consciousness.
Once they realize how small and relatively helpless they are compared to those hulking Grimm that walk among them... The world becomes a big, complicated scary place...
They're scared of what they don't understand, that's why they created stories and explanations, to make this world more bearable...
That's what faith is...
In a world abandoned by G.o.d, because of humanity's folly...
They wanted to create meaning for their pitiful existence...]
'Did I just listen to a sin preach about faith? Hahahaha how f.u.c.king ironic...'
[Hehehehe, I have my moments kid]
Haruki looked at the room they were approaching.
He asked gluttony if they were near the exit.
Gluttony was silent, he was thinking whether this was the right place.
Cinder on the other hand was just pondering about what Haruki told her...
As she was distracted She and Haruki entered a large Hallway.
But as they stepped inside a blinding light swallowed them both.
"What the- -"
Gluttony told Haruki before they disappeared.
[This is the place where we sins look at what you desire the most.
this is where we determine your place in our army...
But since no sin is controlling this you'd have to get out yourself...
Don't lose yourself inside now!! It would be a shame for me to lose an observation target. Hahahahahahaha]
They both lost consciousness.
...…
Cinder woke up, she stared at the ceiling for a good long while...
"Ugh... where am I?"
All she saw was a wooden ceiling...
She sat up looking around, she discovered that she was in a cabin in the middle of nowhere, with snow pouring all over the place...
"What how long was I asleep!? where is this place?"
She immediately stood up and went down the stairs.
When she got down, she saw a young boy, playing with a toy Grimm.
The boy looked up, he looked exactly like her Younger brother...
"What!? that's impossible!"
She dashed towards the boy, hugging him close.
"Caleb is it you!? is it really you!?
Hahahaha this must be some kind of hallucination...
Haruki must have triggered some trap!"
Then a man who has been sitting in the sofa, watching this all happen was staring weirdly at Cinder the whole time.
He then finally spoke.
"Uhh... sister? I'm over here... Did you have a bad dream? or do you still have a fever?"
Cinder looked up and saw a grown up version of Caleb.
"What!? Two Calebs? What's going on!?"
she stared at they young boy she was hugging...
The boy looked like Caleb but he was slightly different...
His expression looks extremely familiar, to someone she knows...
Caleb then spoke...
"Sister, are you okay? Does your head still hurt? Why are you looking at Caleb Jr. like that?"
Cinder's eyes widened and she dashed towards Caleb.
"What is going on!? what do you mean?"
Caleb just stepped back...
"Sis how about you lay down for awhile? I think brother in law is arriving with Alice in a while..."
Cinder looked at the child, He ran towards Cinder. Clutching her Pants... He looked up and said...
"Mama~ Carry! Carry!"
Cinder was shocked, she slowly picked up the boy...
She was staring at him...
She thought to herself. 'This... is my child...'
She felt emotional...
Memories that she wasn't sure if it was real, flowed inside her head...
She hugged the boy while smiling from ear to ear.
It was probably the first time she has genuinely smiled, in a long while...
She threw her doubts to the back of her head.
Caleb sighed a breath of relief...
"Sister for a second there I thought you lost it."
Cinder smiled at him and said.
"Sorry, it must have been the fever... but insulting your
Caleb was sweating hard...
Cinder tried to ignite her hands but no flames would come out... she tried to use her semblance but no gla.s.s would come out...
She was shocked...
"what!? where are my powers?"
Caleb was looking at him weirdly and said. "what are you doing sis?, is that my punishment?"
She wondered what she was trying to do?
Cinder laughed and said.
"What was I doing? Hahahaha sorry Caleb I'm just joking with you..."
Cinder was confused on what was happening, she had no powers, but that's fine as long as her family is here.
As she was saying this the door opened Haruki entered the Cabin while clutching a young girl.
"Cinder... Honey! you're okay! That's good!"
He dashed towards Cinder and Hugged all of them.
Cinder looked at the young girl holding Haruki...
The young girl looked exactly like her...
The young girl looked back and beamed a smile, while saying.
"Mama!!! hehehehe Hug! Hug~~!!"
She hugged Cinder tight.
Cinder Felt her tears slowly fall down as she was surrounded by her family.
She wondered what she did to deserve all this...
But memories continued to surge...
They slowly resurfaced, creating ripples, distorting her own reality.
Haruki immediately asked what's wrong.
"Honey... why are you crying? what's wrong?"
Cinder buried her face on his chest.
"Nothing... Nothing is wrong..."
Haruki kissed Cinder on the lips, their kids also opted for a kiss...
Everyone laughed Heartily...
For her, being surrounded by them, felt rea.s.suring...
She felt safe in 'His' arms.
Caleb interrupted them.
"Uhhh guys... I hate to interrupt the warm family scene, but mom and dad are coming in three days...and we still don't have food prepared for tonight."
Haruki raised his head, He dashed towards the kitchen...
"Honey I'll start preparing! Alice, Caleb Jr. you go play with your uncle Caleb."
Cinder patted the two's head and she also headed to the kitchen to help Haruki.
As she was heading to the kitchen, she felt that she forgot something... it's like something is amiss...
She stared at Haruki chopping the meat, She smiled sweetly as she hugged him from behind.
"Thanks for taking care of me when I was sick..."
Haruki turned around and returned her embrace...
"Cinder Darling... you don't have to thank me, but... How about this... since it's already the time for The annual Nondescript Winter Holiday... Do you... maybe want to dress as s.e.xy Nondescript Winter Holiday Mascot again?? you can come by after Alice and Caleb fall asleep?"
Cinder blushed and Hammered Haruki's chest softly and kissed him in the cheeks and whispered.
"Maybe? if you have been a good boy..."
Crash* A gla.s.s of water shattered on the ground.
Caleb was standing there shocked...
*Cough Cough* "please... just cook guys..."
Caleb Cleaned the shattered gla.s.s...
Haruki and Cinder both blushed... and continued cooking...
Cinder stared at the shattered gla.s.s... she can't help but feel weird.
Slowly but surely she was finally sure something was wrong...
They finally finished preparing...
Cinder went back to the Sofa, sitting down Her Kids ran to her.
"Mama! Lets go watch!"
They snuggled to Cinder.
Cinder Thought that this was bliss, but there was a creeping doubt thinking that all of this seem fake...
A few Days pa.s.s, she spent time with her kids, her brother, and Haruki...
They were waiting for the food to be cooked while they were sitting down at the couch watching TV.
It was finally time to Celebrate the Nondescript Winter Holiday...
In this few days she was a bit doubtful...
But now She was Finally sure.
Cinder held her head...
"Nnnggghhh, my head hurts!"
Haruki worriedly held Cinder, "What's wrong!? is it your fever?"
Cinder shook her head... Clarity finally came to her.
As her headache disappeared... her memories slowly resurfaced.
"Hehehehehehe.... HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! it seems I have been having such a sappy dream..."
She slowly stood up Stared at her Family slowly scanned them one by one...
She was sad that she had to part with her brother again, but she has something more important to do now.
She looked at Caleb First...
"Caleb I know this is not real... but I always wanted to tell you this...
I love you, and I'm sorry for letting our parents die and I'm sorry for letting you save me with your life..."
Caleb smiled...
"It's fine sister... you remember what I told you before? Be Happy... you still haven't lost that chance..."
He said as he stared at Haruki.
Cinder then looked at her Children...
She softly smiled... She hugged the two close...
The two looked at Cinder with eyes that look like they were about to cry any moment...
"Mama? will... will we see each other again?"
Alice asked...
"Mama... will you play with us again?"
Caleb Jr. asked...
Cinder could no longer hold her tears back... even if this is not real... she still considers them as her own.
Even if the memories she had with them maybe fake... She doesn't give a d.a.m.n, They both were her blood and flesh...
With tears in her eyes... she told them...
"Yes.... Mama will do her best... mama will play with you two again..."
The two cried in her arms...
She knows that she might not get this chance... but she doesn't care, she has already decided to do what she can...
She then kissed them both in the cheeks.
"You two be good okay? Mama loves you very much... We'll play again when the time comes okay?"
The two slowly nodded their heads...as they buried their face into cinders chest.
As she held her children she looked at Haruki... angrily shouting...
"You better do your best you b.a.s.t.a.r.d!!"
Haruki smiled wryly...
"don't yell it at me, tell it to the real one..."
Cinder looked away...
"Hmph! I know that! Take care of our children..."
Haruki went near the two holding them close...
"Of course..."
She stood up looking at their doorway.
She saw her parents standing at the door step.
She then said... "Goodbye Mom... Dad... I have always been angry for letting you two die... and failing you as a daughter..."
Her parents shook their heads...
"Right... you probably can't speak, because I barely remember what you sound and look like... But always know this... I love you..."
The two standing at the door step smiled at her... as if telling her, to move on and find her own happiness, that they love her and Caleb dearly...
Cinder stared at everyone one last time... engraving them into her memory...
"Good...bye... everyone..."
Her expression returned into it's Arrogant and proud state...
She grinned...
She was covered in Crimson flames...
"I guess its time to wake up..."
She was covered in blinding light...
She returned back to her somber reality, with new found Determination.