A Mother's Love

I found out that we were in a dungeon type basement. I do not know really what to call it. All I know is that the hallway walls were all made of a greyish stone brick, and there were many more rooms than the one Ray and I were locked up in. I didn't take the time to check the other rooms. After all, I could only worry about myself and Ray. Even if I am strong right now, I have no idea how long this will last or if I will be able to even fight with Ray in my arms. Unlike how we were in the room we just left, I do not dare set him down for anything. I just want to get us both out of here as quickly as possible.

When I got to the stairs leading up, I slowed my pace. So far, we have been lucky and have not come upon anyone just yet, but that doesn't mean it will always be like that. I took a deep breath as I leaned my ear against the door. When I did not hear a single sound, I adjusted Ray in my arms and slowly opened the door, and poked my head out.

The hall was dimly lit by what looked to be some kind of strange device that was not like anything I saw in my second life. That world had all kinds of wondrous things, but these devices looked strange as they seemed to run on a different kind of power than electricity which I have yet to see in this world. They had a blue liquid encased into a glass ball at the bottom of a glowing cylinder, which I think was some kind of fuel. Whether it was oil or something else, I do not know, nor do I have the time to find out.

I quickly readjusted my grip on Ray and flew into the hall, and looked around. At one end, I saw a window and decided that would be my best bet. If we wanted to leave this place without running into others, this was the way. I flapped my wings and flew down the hall, carefully listening for any kind of signs of life. Luckily even as I reached the window, I heard nothing. I landed by the window, and after a little bit of work, I was able to get the window open. I could see that the suns had started to go down. I knew we had been here for a long time. I mean, we left the estate early in the morning. Luckily it seemed we were still in the city.

After jumping out the window, I flew up into the air and looked around. I could see the tall wall that enclosed the city from the outside world much closer than before, meaning we were no longer near the noble district. I flew through the tall rooftops trying to stay out of sight of others. I did not want people to see me just yet in this form, as I did not know how people would react to me just yet. I know it sounds strange as I have been trying to tell my family about it for a long time now, but now that I was truly a demon in appearance as well, I was a bit nervous about being rejected by them.

As I flew towards the inner part of the city where the noble district should be, I could swear I could hear a sound slowly getting louder the closer I got to the center. After a few more minutes of flying, that sound slowly got louder and louder.

"BeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

A small figure came flying directly at me and slammed into my forehead! "Ouch!" I cried out. I couldn't even hold my head because I was carrying Ray. But as the small figure slowly slipped down my face, I realized just what it was. "Pixal!? How?"

"I left a mark on you just in case when you left this morning. But Bella…. Your body!?" Pixal flew back and looked at me in amazement. I lowered my head and looked down at my sleeping brother, and instead of answering her, I said: " PIxal, I will explain later since there is no time for this. Ray needs medical attention. I have no idea how my parents will react to this appearance but…. Ray comes first. So please lead me back to the house."

"Ah yes, sorry! Let's go!" Pixal quickly flew off in front of me, and I hurried to follow after her. With both of us flying as fast as we could, we reached the house in no time. I landed on the ground in front of the front door. I did not even need to open it before the door swung open, and my father and mother came running out.

"Mother… Father… Ray…" I called out while lowering my head. My father placed his hand on my head before taking Ray from my arms. "He will be fine…." That was all I heard before he rushed off into the house. My mother suddenly hugged me and lifted me up. "Mother I…"

"It's fine…. I am just so glad you are okay…." My mother hugged me tightly to her. My wings folded down behind me as she carried me into the house. I really did not know what to make of all of this. I mean, they have said nothing about how I look. They did not even say anything about the blood that was on me. It's as if they are ignoring everything….

When we walked in, Mimi was standing there with tears in her eyes, but as she saw me, I could swear I saw a bit of fear flash across them as well. This was a natural reaction, I guess, after all, I truly was not human. While I was trying to figure out how to explain this situation so that they would understand, I heard my mother yell out. "Mimi, what are you doing? Go get a bath ready for Bella!"

"Ah yes!" Mimi quickly took off running after being scolded by my mother. As for me, she brought me into the sitting room and sat me down on the couch. She looked me up and down and even caressed my face with her hand. I raised my head and looked into my mother's eyes. All I saw was warmth. She gently stroked my hair as she gazed into my eyes.

"You don't find me disgusting?" I asked softly. I could feel my lips quivering. I did not wish to lose the warmth I had found with this family. I did not wish to become homeless again and have to run the streets. But now that I think about it, every time I reach the age of five, this always happens.

I end up alone. I end up being taken in and live a useless life that is full of coldness. No one to rely on but myself. While my first life was not so bad due to the church giving me the bare minimum, my second life was a different story. And now I feel like I might lose the warmth I have yearned for, for three lives now.

"Disgusting? How can I ever think of you as disgusting? You are my precious daughter. Plus, you used your new appearance as a means to save your brother, right?" My mother asked. Her voice was still full of warmth as she stroked my hair. She even caressed my horns. Her answer was not what I was expecting. The tears that were doing their best not to fall suddenly came raining down. I could no longer hold them in. For the first time in my third life, I was letting out all the pain and suffering of my previous lives into my mother's chest. I hugged her tightly but only tight enough not to hurt her but enough to embrace the warmth only a mother can give. She rocked me back and forth and hummed a soft melody in my ear.

Some minutes later, my Mother kissed the top of my head. I raised my head and looked up at her with my red eyes to see her still smiling at me. "Bella, always remember, whether you are the angel you talk about, the demon you talk about, or just plain old Bella, you will always be my Bella. My cute little girl who I treasure more than life itself. But now that we know that what you have been saying was true this entire time, we now know we should figure out the key to your appearance as well. But never think for a moment that we would ever send you away. Your father would say the same thing. He was, after all, the one who asked Pixal to put an imprint on you just in case. We just never thought it would have such a short range, or else you would not have had to suffer."

Listening to her words, I slowly began to calm down. I wiped my eyes and smiled brightly at the beautiful woman who was my mother. "Thank you for still loving me… I love you, mommy…" I said as I lowered my head, blushing slightly. For the first time in all my lives, I can finally say these words.

"Say it again." I heard my mother say after a moment of silence. I raised my head to see my mother smiling away at me with sparkling eyes. "Say it again! Bella, you have never told me you loved me before! So say it again!"

I never realized such simple words would ever make her so happy. So although embarrassing, I still lowered my head once more and muttered: "I love you…."