Sophia. That was what her parents called her.
Zel was well aware that Zef’s original name was Sophia Gottfrid, but until now, it had been just a piece of information no more relevant than her hometown. It was something Zefaris had told her once, and neither of them had mentioned it since - when Zef had shared her old name, she said it as if she had merely wanted to rid herself of a weight. It felt quite strange hearing the name actually used, and considering Zef’s own reaction, she seemed to feel the same way.
From serving in the military, to the trenches, to becoming a Doppelsoldat, losing her eye, and hiding in the Exclusion Zone - all the way to meeting Zelsys. It was then that the atmosphere shifted a touch.
“Right. So you’re a cultivator now, and you got with a… Body cultivator? Is that what you are, dear?” Eva questioned.
“Of a sort,” Zel nodded. She wasn’t truly a participant in the conversation, not yet. The moment she got her answer, Eva returned her attention to her daughter. Frankly, Zelsys was astonished that the lady even knew what a body cultivator was. She herself could barely define the term besides the broadest possible definition.
“...A body cultivator. And you’re set now, is that right? You don’t look like you’re starving, but I can’t be sure with that getup, and you’ve always looked thin.”
“I won’t have money problems any time soon, don’t worry.”
“Well, that’s good. I would’ve liked it if you came back with grandkids for me, but can’t help it now. Your brothers already took care of preserving our family line anyway, even if the kids live half a day’s travel away. So, Zelsys- mind telling me your side of how you met my daughter?”
“I was just trying to get out of the Exclusion Zone and happened upon the three of them when I found a road. It really is that simple.”
“Alright, but why were you in the exclusion zone? Come now, it’s not as if you have any reason to fear us little people.”
“Mother-” Zefaris cut in.
“No, no, I don’t mean that badly. I mean look at her! She can barely fit inside the door! And those muscles, I can’t fault you in the slightest. I can scarcely imagine what story lies behind that right arm.”
Zelsys didn’t remember ever feeling the exact sense of discomfort she did at that very moment, being fawned over by her lover’s mother. She gave Zefaris a questioning glance, and only once she received a resigned, yet affirmative nod did she admit what she was. Of course, she omitted most of the details, merely summarizing that she awoke in the bunker and that, as far as she knew, she was likely an artificial human.
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“Well no wonder you turned out like you did, then! I can’t imagine a real person with your build,” Eva laughed.
“You’d be surprised, we just came back from Borea and I very nearly felt normal-sized there.”
A short span of time passed, filled by idle talk, wherein Zelsys and Franz quietly worked away at a comically huge stockpile of blueberries while Zefaris continued to talk with her mother. Despite not having exchanged even a word with the man, Zel felt a tacit kinship with him. Slowly, conversation turned to the children of Zef’s brothers. She asked where they lived, receiving the answer of “Togerby”... And a heavy silence to follow.
“I hope not many followed in my stead when the recruitment calls went out,” Zefaris said.
“A handful followed in your stead, though considering who they were, I wager they would’ve found another excuse for seeking glory even if you had stayed. Most of them returned, thank the Dead Ones, but… Well, we had our own troubles. A few raids, starving Grekurian soldiers nearly every time. We gave shelter a handful of fugitives, too, but-”
“What is it? There’s something you’re trying not to bring up.”
“Your brothers. They actually returned home to visit a while back, but they’re gone now. A drunken quarrel with some soldiers who were sheltering with us at the time. It was raining, and they got into a fistfight in the sawmill somehow. Barnabas fell in a bad way and got caught in one of the waterwheels. Hector hit his head. The soldiers didn’t end up any better, one of them got sawed in half. You can still see the stains. We… Buried them out back.”
The life drained out of Zefaris. Her expression and gaze became hollow and cold, the motion of her body came to a halt as if her heart and breath had both stilled. The temperature in the room plummeted, and one could see hoarfrost forming on the windows. It felt as though time slowed down, just a touch - not enough to be noticeable to the two mortals, but Zelsys could tell.
“Oh. I see. It’s a shame. That those soldiers died by accident, I mean. I would’ve liked to kill them myself.”
Zelsys and Franz watched the tub full of blended blueberries turning into sorbet as her Fang Ripper tore through the fruit and mixed it up. Thinking quickly, Zel reached out and snapped her fingers in front of Zef’s face, the action ringing out with metallic resonance. Instantly, she returned to her senses.
“I would… Like to see their graves,” Zefaris said.
“Of course.”
She didn’t weep over the grave, or mourn in any overt manner other than pouring out a shot glass of winter peach brandy over both graves. The atmosphere, somber as it was, gradually returned to normal as Eva broached other subjects with her daughter. The four of them ended up partaking of the incidental sorbet which Zef’s outburst had created, though most of it melted quickly.
The conversation drew on for some time afterwards. After much convincing and many refusals of any gifts of valuables, Zel and Zef shared some of the more benign things they’d brought back. One thing led to another, and before long, the whole hamlet had gathered in a small feast.