Trauma

"Father!" An agile red-haired teen with bright eyes ran into the pristine office in which sat a green-eyed male with red hair.

The man looked up in surprise, documents in hand. "Ariel? What are you doing here?"

"Hehehe!" She ran excitedly towards him and plopped onto his lap.

Mr. Astridge sighed before patting her on her neat ponytail.

"You shouldn't be here—"

"I know!" she chuckled. "Brother Basil is looking for me. Can you hide me for a bit? Thank you!"

Before a response could be mustered, the sneaky girl crawled under the large table, completely hidden unless betrayed.

Mr. Astridge sighed, and just as he was about to bend over to convince his daughter otherwise, his son barged in.

"...What exactly are the guards doing?" he muttered with a frown.

"Dad, is Ariel here? Don't believe a word she says about playing hide-and-seek; she's just running away from her tutor again!"