A Mother's Love

Gruff made his way to the second floor of the building, taking the stairs two at a time. At the top, he was greeted by a familiar room.

The last time he saw his mother, she had brought him here. He remembered the stairs looking much bigger then, and the room darker and lonelier.

Gruff remembered the way the villagers treated Smith after taking him in. How they wouldn't pay him for his work, or how they yelled unkind things at him. And how Smith often gave Gruff all the food. The giant of a man withered away daily. It was hard to watch.

Gruff smacked his cheeks and looked around the room. The diaries sat on a round, wooden table beside the stove. Many of the journals written in a different language. In the margins, Gruff noticed Smith's handwriting, as sloppy as always.

Gruff chuckled to himself as he squinted at the words.

There was something about round objects throughout the journals. Then Gruff came across something legible:

00/12/10050

It is the first day I have arrived in this village. My stomach is massive. My child seems to be healthy, but I worry about giving birth. I do not know any midwives in the town, and I have been alone since I was informed of that prophecy. My mother, who was traveling with me, was told she needed to find a young man who would save my child.

Knowing how much I love my children, she told me she must set out to find this boy, even at the risk of our lives. That is when the three of us parted ways. If Fre had stayed with me, I would have been less lonely. However, she told me she must find a golden soul.

Gruff traced his finger over the word 'children'. "I wonder if Smith translated this wrong."

08/29/10050

Gruff continued to read.

It has been over a week since I arrived in Soa Pel. The people tend to avoid me. I feel as if they are wary of me, afraid even.

09/05/10050

I overheard some women discussing a witch and her son the other day. Supposedly, Fre gave a prophecy about how the witch and her son are destined to destroy this village. While they were talking, they kept bringing me up, saying, 'What if she's a witch, and her child will be the one who destroys the village?' Fre told them that the man would have red eyes and that he was the child of a witch. Fre must have foretold this long ago.

09/30/10050

My due date is fast approaching. I fear the prophecy Fre gave these people long ago will affect my child. My child will be born a boy, as my kind rarely has girls. I can do nothing about that, but my main concern is that he'll inherit his father's eyes.

10/03/10050

In my research, I found a spell that can change my child's eyes. It will use his magic to maintain them, so if heaven forbid something happens to me, they will stay hidden. The only problem is that his eyes will momentarily revert to their original state whenever he becomes upset. I hope that he doesn't have his father's eye. I never in my life thought that I would say that.

10/31/10050

My son is here and more handsome than I could have imagined. His tiny hands reached out for me, and I only wish I could bring him to meet his father. Sadly, this would only harm him. As much as his father would love to see him, I'm sure he doesn't want our child to come to harm.

He is so precious, and though I dreaded his eyes looking like this, I can't think of anything I want more at the same time. Looking at my son gives me insurmountable joy.

Anger swelled in Gruff's chest as he read of his father. "If he loved us, why didn't he come get us?"

Gruff flipped through the pages furiously. 11/18/10052

Even though I changed his eye color, my son is still an outcast. At least he has me, but I would love for him to be able to make friends. I'll go into town with him tomorrow and help him talk with the other kids.