Chapter 13 - Open Cage

The shed doors open, the old man calls out to the little girl lying on a stack of haye deep in sleep. "Little girl, my dear child." Gently he shakes her, the girl wakes from her slumber. Slowly opening her eyes before shutting them, having to rub the sleep out of her eyes before opening them again. She looks at the old man not sure if she's dreaming or awake. She calls out to the old man to confirm if she's still dreaming or awake, "Tatomkhulu?" (Grandpa?). The old man nods with a joyous smile on his face, "Ewe mntwana'am." (Yes my child). Half of her sleep instantly leaves her once heavy eyes. She pulls her body up to a sitting position, legs crossed. Still rubbing whatever sleep that was left out of her eyes. "Tamkhulu, wenzantoni apha?" (Grandpa what are you doing here?). The girl stretches while smiling at the old man, he walks over to her with excitement written all over his face. The old man shifts to sit next to me, groaning as his old bones cracked and grinded against each other, "Ndiza neendaba ezimnandi" (I come with good news). I could hear the excitement in his voice. I look up at him. The old man's whole persona is screaming take a guess. "Ndizakuyishiya le ntolongo?" (I am going to leave this prison?). He stares at me for a moment. Silence fills the room as hope starts to build up in my chest from what the silence and the look in his eyes are implying

He seemed amused as he teased me, I jump to a kneel position, eyes turning red while grabbing his hands. The deafening silence becoming unbearable for me. With red eyes he finally answers me while nodding his head slowly, "Ewe" (Yes). His actions are a little too slow cause somehow this high expectations has taken a toll on me. My heartbeat feels like it did a backflip into my stomach and dropped it's beating rate to one thump a minute. Feeling overwhelmed by emotions and joy let's go of the old man's arms and drop to my bum, a sigh of relief is exhaled. The little girl's voice as she spoke, scared that this might all be a dream and she's already drowning in hell, "Ndingagqibela ndiyodlala nabanye abantwana?" (I can finally go play with the other kids?) The words she said wasn't what she meant rather it was just her child-like way of expressing her grief and feeling. The old man's eyes water as he scoots over to the little girl. Rubbing her back gently, the girl starts crying to the point of sobbing. Thankfully the old man was there to comfort her, "Kulungile ngoku, ungakhalaza ku tamkhulu njengawe. Ndilapha ngenxa yakho" (It's oky now, you can complain to grandpa as much as you to. I'm here for you). The two embrace each other as they cried in joy

Unknowingly their sobs of joy, a man is seen standing by the side of the door. Unseen to the duo inside the shed, and a few feet off the brothers are staring at their father whose demeanor seems worried as he silently paces at the side of the wall, hidden from the two inside. The boy's stare at each other then back at their father in shock. The man then enters the shed a stern expression on his face. The grandpa is the first to see his adopted son. Unconsciously he tightens his hold on the little girl, his eyes telling the man to keep his promise. The girl notices the old man's change of behaviour, looking up at him. To see his staring at the exit of the shed, she follows his gaze. Locking with a pair of icy void pupils. The Lord of the mansion looks at the girl, "You don't look too shabby, maybe you look good enough to be my 'adopted' daughter, however I still don't like you!" He radiates an intimidating aura, eyes sending a chill down to one's bone. She can't help but shiver, this made the old think she's shivering in fear from the Lord - well he's not wrong. The butler wipes away the tears on his face then proceeds to clear his throat, "Stop glaring at the little doll. She might think you're scary." The younger man of the two raises a eyebrow

"Aren't I?" "Ha! You sure know how to make this old man laugh, if you were really cruel. You would have killed this old man long ago and not keep me by your side and taken good care of me." The man shot back at the old man with a steel response, "I killed my family and even caused division between my children and wives. What part of that is not cruel, uncle?" The old man lifts the child and places her on his lap, "See this? This child is ever growing and has been improving with each passing mistake. Meaning you still have time to fix things with your children. Afterall you're not the reason why Kwang Yeou's and Seong-jin's mothers died. You can't control everything in the harem so stop taking all the blame." "I can't be selfish, I was both their husbands but I couldn't protect either from-! I saw my sons get along recently from sharing the same grief, however I fear that if they ever found out about the feud between their mothers... I fear their bond would be broken instantly." The old man looks at the Lord with great sympathy in his eyes for the man. The man looks at the girl in the old man's arms, "What are you going to name her?" The old man looks at the Lord with shocked eyes, "Me? Aren't you father? Shouldn't you name her?" The Lord tsks his tongue in sustain before saying, "I am her father only in the register nothing more, she... Can never be my daughter. She looks like a black lotus, tsk!"

The man turns and leaves the room, the little girl clings onto the old man's clothes in fear

The old man smiles his face full of tears, he snorts back, "Then the Lord is the father of this beautiful flower ~". He brushes the girl's head as she glares warily at the man standing before her. The two make needless chatting for the rest of the the morning. By the time they had finished planning the girl's stay, position in the mansion and backstory, the young lady had fallen asleep from fatigue and was pretty much worn out from stress. Though she held up pretty well in acting like all was well even though it wasn't. Her eyes puffy from all the crying, her small hands gripping tightly onto the old man's clothes. Over time her grip slackened but still held onto his clothing. The young man approached the old man, intending to help him carry the young girl but her grip tightens once again. The more he tried to separate the two, the more she held on. At some point the Lord gave up due to the old man's persuasion, but the little girl's knuckles were almost as white as snow. The old man had felt sorry for the child sleeping on his lap, with some difficulty he managed to make his way to his feet with the girl still in his arms. The old man laughs in triumph, "Ha ha ha ha, I'm still strong for a old man!" The Lord smiles with a sad expression on his face. "You're not in good health, you know you shouldn't strain yourself-", the old man nods his head as he listened to the worried son's nagging. He laughs, "Aren't I suppose to be the one nagging you? Why is it that you're the one gaining more grey hair than me, hm?" The Lord clicks his tongue while looking at the ground quite angry, the old butler continues. A sad face looking down at a peaceful face that his many different kinds of emotions

"She has no one. No one to protect her or inform her of the world she has entered unknowingly. I want to be her family and leave this world with at least one child that's mine and his." The old man looks up at the Lord, "What? You trying to say she's my baby sister?!" "I would like it to be that way however I don't know when I could die and she is younger than even your youngest so that's not quite appropriate, so take her as your daughter." The Lord nods his head vigorously, "I know, I take my promises seriously." The old man sighs looking up at his son, "I know, I fear you take them a little too seriously. When are you going to tell them the truth?" The man steps back and walks towards the door frame looking at the sun sitting in the middle of the sky, "How could I tell them that I raised them to kill each other, that their mother's were literally at each other's necks. Sparing no mercy on the child? That after one died, the other died inside from guilt? Leading to her playing into the other wives' trap?... The harem is not a game I wish to indulge in, though I have five wives, none of them bared my child except for Kwang Yeou's mother... I'm afraid Seong-jin's going to become the elders' puppet soon. I don't have much time, I must keep my bloodline going. I can only hope that Jin's sudden change will let him lead a good life." The Lord turns his head to the side. The same side where Seong-jin is hiding, meaning he is aware of his son's presence even the old man is. The old man smiles, patting his son on the shoulder. "You must know, I may be old but I ain't dead yet. I'll make sure I go out with a bang. Let's make it count!" He walks out heading to the main building with the little girl in his arms. Luckily she wasn't too heavy