Chapter 60: I want ten!
Kein's POV
Rose walks with me back into the inn with a sleeping little girl wrapped around her arms.
She kept humming a song I'm not familiar with and pats the little girl's back gently for comfort. "If you're tired I can go ahead and carry her." I told her worriedly because I'm not sure how she's holding up.
Besides, she might be tired from all the traveling that we did.
Rose shakes her head with a smile and holds my hand as we walk together in the streets being eyed by some villagers. I can't exactly blame them because it's two girls holding hands, one being a knight and the other girl carrying some lost child.
"No, not at the moment. Maybe later when I get tired I'll pass her to you so you won't need to worry. I promise." she giggles under the shawl and I smile hearing that sound.
I guess she's in a good mood despite the tiring questions we keep asking the locals just to find this girl's parents. "Why are you giggling like that?" I ask her.
"It just made me think about what it would feel like having a family with you." she replies looking at the brunette little girl who sleeps soundly, her head nesting around Rose's chest. "We would take turns carrying, feeding and tucking them into bed. You know... Back then when we were just kids- don't get scared... but I wanted to have ten kids or more with you."
Cough!
Yes, I remember you telling me that before.
"H-How about now? Do you still want ten kids?" I asked failing to not hide my stuttering nor my nervousness if she actually wants ten. I'm alright with it but like- oh my goodness me ten kids.
"Oh of course I changed that plan. I actually never confided your feelings around it. If you'd agree or would like to have kids with me." (Rose)
I laughed a little looking at the little girl she was carrying and it made me recall that I always wanted to have a family with her too. "Rose of course I would like to have a family with you. We never really talked about it before you left."
"And now we're adults..."
Yeah... Adults...
If you count my past life's mental age and current age. I'm technically an old lady by heart. "Time does go by fast. Lenard has a boyfriend now actually."
"Oh! Your cousin, right? I don't think he ended up with Vincent last time I checked." (Rose) mutters the last part worriedly and I nod.
"Yeah he's with his servant right now. They're happy being with each other and Lenard visits my home usually twice or four times a month to bring in books he got from [Sprivanto]." I wonder how they're up to nowadays actually. "Vincent is sort of doing fine about not ending up with Lenard. He realized his feelings when it was all too late."
"Oh..." (Rose) bites her lip almost as if she was recalling something painful. I wanted to ask her if she was alright but I think she needs some space.
Oh, was the only word that she could mutter before we stopped at the building of the inn where I booked in. I opened the door for her, and she entered.
The owner of the inn recognizes me immediately and welcomes us. "Oh! I didn't think you'd be back so soon, dear. Who's this with you? Will she also need to book a room?" (Inn Owner)
"She'll be staying with me for a while with um a lost child we found." We walk up to the owner's desk and I give her the key back to my first rented room. The owner looked at the little girl in Rose's arms for a moment and nodded in understanding.
She takes the key, looks for another one before she hands it to me and I accept holding it in my grasp. "Oh and- have you seen this little girl before around these parts? We've already asked around the locals but there's no sign of her parents..." I ask the inn owner and she looks perplexed.
"It's because... um when everything fell apart due to the financial issues in the village some of the locals here thought of moving someplace else and leaving some of the children behind- because of you know..." (Inn owner) explained a little rushed.
Rose held the girl tighter in her arms looking solemn. "Thank you, as one of the knights serving for the kingdom we'll help her get to an adoption center and see to it that she's going to be fine."
"Oh thank you, may the light be with you." (Inn owner) waves her farewell as I motioned to Rose to follow me into the hallways of the inn.
We have some time before the night will settle in and she'll need to leave but it means I'll be left alone with the kid I don't even know that's been calling me Mama for the past time.
The room key had numbers, and the doors of several rooms had placards. "Here, this is our room." I opened the door inserting my key as it let out a little clack noise and held the door for Rose who smiles at my chivalrous move.
"Ever the gentlewoman now, are we?" she teases while going inside the room and I follow behind.
"When have I not been?" I chuckled, closing the door and went by her side where she put the little girl onto a bed temporarily and I sigh. "We have a lot of problems to think of now- we have another."
Rose frowns at my words, "She's not a problem... She really seemed so attached to you, you know?"
"Yeah and that's a problem. I don't want a kid getting attached to me when I need to leave for a few month's time, Rose." I explained needing to rub the sides of my temples to calm a headache incoming. "We'll hand her over to the orphanage that my family owns." I step forward at the girl who was sleeping soundly at the bed all curled up by herself.
She's not even bathed and yet she's laying at a pure white sheet. I have to pay double the price at the inn for this.
Rose tugs onto my armor and points at the little girl, "There's something special about this girl. I can feel her aura being protected by a deity." (Rose)
"A deity? You can feel that?" I ask her feeling uncomfortable... a deity? I know they existed here but... it could be possible it's taken an interest in a girl but why a normal one of all things?
pαпᵈα-noνɐ1·сoМ "Yes, the aura is stronger than anything I've ever seen in someone. Usually it's to protect her from danger or bad luck." she tucks a stand of hair behind and yawns tiringly. "Or maybe I'm just tired and I'm seeing double the aura today..."
Rose slumps into the bed with the little girl and I chuckle. "Maybe it's the last one."
I rarely see any sort of deity since coming here anyways. I know they exist but they never visited me despite being a reincarnated person.
I slump into the bed with these two laying around so casually and feel someone's waist going around mine. Rose giggles, kissing my cheek, "You know if we had our own private room I wouldn't be able to stop myself from removing your armor."
I roll my eyes, turning to the little girl whom we still haven't gotten her name from. "How about we go wake her up and give her a bath before we let her sleep in the inn? Maybe even get some answers while we're at it."
Rose rolls over to the bed, quickly standing up and shakes the girl gently to wake up. "Hey there, wake up little one we have to give you a bath before you could sleep." she tells her smoothly and I shake my head.
The little brunette girl didn't even flinch. "Listen Rose when you wake up kids like that, you won't ever get them to budge their eyes open. You have to shake them hard and with force." I moved her over and started shaking the heck out of that kid.
"HEY! WAKE UP! DON'T SLEEP YET! YOU'RE STILL DIRTY TAKE A BATH BEFORE YOU DO!" I yell over and she wakes up instantly, a little groggy.
"Huh?! Wha... ma-" she turns to see me looking around left and right all confused.
"Are you awake now? Jeez." I asked her but there was no answer, slowly she looked up at me with a pouty lip and tears in her eyes. "Wait no don't-"
"Wahhhh!" She cried and I was taken aback.
I was about to say don't cry but that was too late...
"M-Mommy! Wahhh!" She sits through the bed and cries even harder. I backed up a bit all worried because I made her cry unintentionally! I didn't know she'd cry!
Smack!
"Ow!" I held my arm protectively while a glaring Rose held up the little girl and pats her back gently. "I guess I deserve that." I rubbed my neck awkwardly seeing Rose rock the baby as she carried her humming a small song.
"Shhh... once upon a midnight stroll, a star runs its toll. Darling, don't cry... I promise mommy is there by your side. Don't cry, don't cry... my darling... shed those tears won't you my dear?" she repeats the lyrics over again and slowly the loud crying stopped, it was just turning into small sniffles.
The little baby girl relaxes and giggles cupping Rose's cheeks together. "Everything will be alright... Stop crying little one, everything will be fine." These words seemed to do the trick and it let the little girl giggling while keeping the comfort of Rose.
"Where did you learn to sing like that?" I ask Rose, placing a hand on her waist looking at the little girl trying to reach for my nose. "I never knew you could sing beautifully like that, actually it's more like you never did."
I lean in over for the little girl to pull my nose happily now that she's calmed down. The dirt in her hands went over to my face but I didn't mind. I looked at Rose who smiles widely holding her and replies, "From my mother. Singing was one of the things we enjoyed doing together with Cecilia before she passed away, it always brought a smile on our faces. I was going through mourning before and I didn't have the strength to do it anymore... that is until now."
I couldn't help but remember the time she told me she lost her mother.
She refused to tell me more information about it, and I just acted as her support and asked for me to never speak of it.
Now that she's slowly opening up to me now, I understand why... she doesn't want to talk about it much anymore. "I may not have met my mother-in-law but I'm betting she also has a very lovely singing voice like you."
"She sure did. One of these days, I have to introduce you to her so that we can get her blessing." she nudges me slightly and I laugh nodding.
"Do you think she would've liked me? Or would she have seen me worthy of you?" I asked her a little dazed, imagining what would've happened if I met her mother, the former late Queen and introduced myself as someone who was currently dating Rose.
Rose pinches my own cheek and sighs a little frustrated. "Please Kein, after all the horrible things I did to you. It's more like the opposite. Would my own mother think I'm worthy of such a capable, honest, and kind girlfriend that I have?" she stares in my eyes deeply as I feel a lump getting stuck to my throat and I couldn't speak up.
"I... I've already forgiven you." I tell her, pulling her closer, our face only inches apart.
"I know you have forgiven me, Kein but I haven't forgiven myself. It'll take a while, but we'll take it one day at a time." she leans in closer for a kiss and I close my eyes expecting her lips on mine again but-
"Mama! Mommy! Kiss?"
I opened my eyes forgetting that there was a kid that needed to have a bath. "Ahem. Almost forgot about you little one." (Rose) coughs pushing me away and shooing me to get some soap and shampoo.
My body relaxed for a bit, laughing, taking off my armor, tossing them to the side and preparing the things we needed including the water for a warm bath. "How about her clothes?" I turned towards Rose who was stripping the little girl who tried to run away from the water.
"Unghhh! Nwo! Nwo!"
"Hold still, please..." (Rose) struggles on holding her down and the little girl runs to create havoc and she almost slips. "Kein a little help?!" I heard Rose yell and even saw the little girl laughing while running with no clothes on.
"HEY! DON'T RUN!" I stood up and ran out of the bathtub only to almost slip myself but I managed to get a hold of the corner of the door and grab the little devil. "Got you. Now bath time for you."
"Nwo! Bwath nwo!" she struggles to break free kicking her feet around. I sigh and laid her down gently into the tub. Rose holds her chest trying to breathe and gives me a thumbs up for a good job of grabbing her, "She's... really hyper... but she doesn't seem to like baths huh." (Rose)
"I don't think any kid does." I tell her while I grab the shampoo and a bucket of water to clean her hair. I held her brown hair in one of my hands and grabbed a handful of shampoo, putting it on her hair forming some bubbles.
I can even smell some sweet fragrance of flowers from it. "Fwoaty!" the little girl reaches out to touch the bubbles till it pops. I smile a little at the scene, "Now that we got you settled down what's your name?"
"Mama." she points at me and I sigh, not getting any other answer than mama.
She clearly knows other words like 'no', 'kiss' and 'floaty' but her name isn't one of them. "This is going to be harder than I thought." I muttered to myself and I could hear someone behind me.
Rose giggles walking towards us inside the bathroom looking happy that the little girl is taking the bath well. She pats her head and holds my shoulder with a smile. "I'll go handle the clothes. I have some sewing materials in my [Storage Ring]." I could see her go up to the bed and sit down to take what she needed.
"Okay then little one, we'll think of a nickname for you when you're done with your bath." I told the little girl who kept throwing her around the water and my clothes are getting wet.
"Agh... Haha..." If Rose wanted ten of these little devils, goodness gracious.
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