His legs began to feel numb from his sister’s head lying there on his lap. Why’d you have to go and fall asleep like this on me? He sighed to himself. He wanted to carefully lift her head and lay her head down on the grass beside him but at the same time that could wake her up. She was several years older than his eight-year-old self making her quite a bit heavier and bigger than him. It’s not fair.

Father began to laugh a little as he sat cross-legged beside them. “I see you’re unsure of whether to pull her off of you or not.”

Raelle tugged at her shoulders questioning whether he ought to risk it or not. He then pulled his hands away giving up. I guess I’ll just have to let my legs be numb and accept having her hold me hostage.

The stars shone brightly tonight. Though the sky was dark, the moon was bright enough that there was no difficulty in seeing anything outdoors. The nearby forest appeared quite dark, however. The moonlight didn’t quite reach within it making it quite scary. He imagined monsters and other strange creatures stalking through the woods. It sent a shiver down his spine even though Father always made it clear that such a danger didn’t exist in these particular woods. They might exist elsewhere but certainly not there.

Their father wanted them to be there with them outside on this particular night. A particularly rare celestial event was to occur according to him.

It was a night in which the moon would turn red.

“Your mother used to always insist that we watch and pay attention to the moon on nights such as this. We ended up making it a bit of a family tradition I guess you could say.”

“So that’s why we do this every year?”

“Uh-huh.”

Every year around this time they would get together as a family, and observe the moon. It was a rather rare occasion and quite a fascinating one as well.

“What makes it turn red?”

His father pondered on that question. “No one knows the why behind it. We just know the effects that it can bring down to all of us here on our planet.”

The world was a strange place, the moon was strange as well. He knew hardly a thing about it. Father always had interesting anecdotes and knowledge that he tried his best to recall. He ended up forgetting a lot of it however making his father always repeat information to him. He wasn’t ever mad though having to repeat things which made it easy for a naturally interested soul like himself to ask him questions nearly constantly.

Raelle got the impression that he liked him asking him things. He was so wise and knowledgeable. He had no choice but to always ask someone like him things. It didn’t matter what topic or area he asked about. Father always had an answer and if he didn’t he was clear about how he didn’t know about a particular subject matter.

But beyond mere questions of the world itself or even the very moon itself, there was always a question that Raelle asked every now and then, only to ever receive a hesitant response. He thought on a special night like this, perhaps this was the right time to ask it.

“Can you tell me more about Mother?”

It wasn’t that father never spoke about her at all. It was just that he struggled to ever think to bring her up or talk about her leading to Raelle not knowing all that much about her.

“I’m sorry,” Raelle ended up saying eventually after his father didn’t immediately respond. “We don’t have to talk about her.”

“Never stop asking questions,” he replied. “Especially about her. It’s a good thing to do.” He gazed up at the sky and appeared happier than usual whenever Raelle thought to invoke her. “What would you like to know?”

He pulled his arms back pressing his palms into the grass to keep himself upright at the slight inclining hill they sat upon. The blades of grass went in between his fingers as the wind brushed up against the three of them.

“I guess,” he said softly, “I suppose I want to ask about what she was like. Was she like you?”

His father smiled. “You’d think she was, knowing me, but she was quite the opposite. No, she was her own self. Your mother was incredibly independent and curious much like yourself come to think of it. I’ve known many people throughout my life and most people I find aren’t curious at all. Your mother wasn’t like that. She never stopped wanting to learn new things and have the audacity to act in ways others might not approve of. Truthfully speaking, if it weren’t for me, she would’ve likely gotten into some real trouble.”

“Really?”

“She wasn’t a scoundrel if that’s what you’re beginning to think. It’s just that she wasn’t afraid to get herself into trouble. I liked that about her. Someone who dared look at the world and its rules and think that maybe, I’ll try things differently. Few are like her or will ever be her. I think if I could go back in time, I would try to act more like her.”

“She sounds amazing,” Raelle said enthusiastically. “I wish I had gotten to know her.”

“I do as well,” he said softly. “You and her would’ve been the absolute best with one another.”

His sister continued to sleep whilst her head kept his legs numb. She breathed in and out peacefully whilst totally unaware of their conversation. He briefly thought of poking her in the cheek with his finger but thought against doing so.

Amberilla was fortunate enough to have gotten to spend some time with their mother. It wasn’t for all that long admittedly, but he was somewhat jealous that she had the chance to be around her more.

There was so much he missed out on not having gotten the chance to have her around. It was an unfortunate part of his life, that he had to deal with and the frustrations that came of it. His family was more than supportive to him, however, always being sure to compensate for the lack of their mother being around in their lives. He imagined what it would be like without his father. That was not a thought he wanted to think about.

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One lesson his father often repeated to him was that the world did not cater itself to one’s needs or desires. The world acted independently in its own way. Nature does not pay us any mind, his father often says.

“Look up,” his father said pointing towards the still white moon.

At first, he didn’t notice anything peculiar up there in the sky, but as he focused in, the white hue began to shift. A slightly pink color became more noticeable until shifting into more of an intense reddish hue.

He looked over to his father whose gaze would not waver from staring up at the red moon. “Great power awakens on days in which the moon turns red. It is both a beautiful and harrowing sight to behold.”

“It’s definitely beautiful but what exactly makes it harrowing?”

“There are those who would take advantage of the power it gives to our kind and use it for cruel ends. The power it offers us is not in and of itself evil, but it is used for such ends nonetheless. What we choose to do with it is what ultimately matters.”

Streaks of red aura began to lift off the surface of the moon. In the dark sky those streaks waved in and around it shifting in not just their shape, but hue as well.

What power would I possess were I to receive it? He knew not how it all worked or how one might gain power from it. It was an interesting phenomenon nonetheless.

The moon was truly a fascinating celestial object. He kept gazing towards it wondering about the powers it could grant mortals down below.

“She’s still asleep I see.” His father began to stroke Amberilla’s black hair and then rest his hand back on his lap.

“Should I wake her so she doesn’t miss this?” Raelle asked.

Father shook his head. “I may not be wise in all things in life, but I am wise enough to know that carelessly waking her is a mistake I would prefer to avoid at this point unless it’s necessary.”

She could be a little grumpy, especially during early mornings when forced to wake up. Raelle found waking up in the morning to not be a problem, but his sister was definitely not the same.

“I’ve already told your sister this, but you should know as well.” His father held his hands together in his cross-legged lap. He looked over to Raelle with a calm look in his eyes. “I’ve been given a new coveted position that I cannot turn down.”

“Oh? What kind of position?”

“A seat within the king’s council.”

“You’re going to be working alongside the king?”

“Essentially.”

“That’s amazing.”

His father appeared happy and sad about it at the same time strangely enough. Although, he wasn’t entirely sure why. “It’s a privilege few are ever given. And it’s certainly one that I cannot afford to turn down. However, it will mean that I will have prolonged periods where I won’t be around.”

“You’ll still be with us often enough though right?”

“Of course. The capital city is only a few day’s ride from here so it’s not like I’ll be incredibly far away. But still, it will mean I won’t be able to be with you or your sister as much. I’ve been told, however, that your dear uncle has agreed to come by more often to keep the two of you company in my absence.”

“You mean Uncle Roy?”

“Yes, yes. That doesn’t mean you can goof off around him or get up to bad things. I expect you two to behave well with him just as if he were me.” Raelle wouldn’t ever think to goof off around Uncle Roy. Or would he? His uncle was a bit of a goof himself so was it really goofing off if he promoted or allowed for it? Such a question demanded an answer one of these days.

He quite liked Uncle Roy. He was a bit of a silly person at times but that made having him around to be quite a joy. He however did feel a bit disappointed to hear that father wasn’t going to be able to be around as much. But at the same time, he was going to serve the king which was sort of amazing to think about. My own father will sit by the king. How incredible!

The red moon gave a bit of a red hue to all of their surroundings. The intensity however began to wane. It went from a dark red to a much softer red. The stars around it blinked in and out maintaining their usual white or yellowish color.

“This time,” his father said, “let me be the one to ask a question towards you.”

“I’m ready for it!”

“Good. Tell me then, what exactly do you believe to be the most important thing in the entire world?”

“In the entire world?” He blew air out of his mouth trying to come up with an answer. “I don’t know. There are so many important things.” He felt a little frustrated not being able to come up with an answer. He could just blurt out the first thing that came to mind but he knew he’d get it wrong.

“Family.”

“Family?”

“Yes. Family. That’s the most important thing in the world. Nothing else besides that truly matters. That’s what I’ve come to understand as I’ve aged. Forget everything else.”

Family. That word alone meant so much to him. And the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. He was brought into this world by his mother and father. Without them, he wouldn’t even be here. He loved both of them and loved his mother even if he never got the chance to know her or have her really in his life. She still brought him into existence and that mattered even if she was absent for pretty much all of his life by no fault of her own.

And his sister meant so much to him as well. Sure she often teased him or took advantage of him because he was a few years younger than her, but she never did so in a malicious way. She loved him and he certainly couldn’t help but love her as well making sure to always get back at her in the most equal of ways.

This family of his truly did feel like the most important thing in the world, especially as he thought about it more.

“You two are why I’ve chosen to accept this position,” Father went on to say. “I never wish to worry either of you. You’re both young and cannot possibly understand the full extent of what all is going on in the world nor should you. But there are things out there that require individuals like me to take action. It may not look like it, but our world is quite fragile and there are people and things out there taking advantage of that. People like myself are destined towards making sure our world remains safe. I want you to know that is my reason for why I may not be around as much anymore.”

“That’s alright,” Raelle said. “The world needs people like you to help it. That’s what good people do, isn’t it?”

“I’d like to think so,” he said. His father gripped his shoulder tenderly and chose to get up. “Come on then. It’s getting late. Let’s try to get your sister into bed too without waking her up.”

“Alright.”

The two of them managed to avoid waking her up as his father held her up in his arms. They walked along the surrounding grassy land that surrounded their estate. They went inside feeling the warmth of the interior. Several of the maids appeared busy as they walked by them. If not for their services, this estate would quickly become a mess.

When they reached his sister’s bedchamber, Father put her on top of her bed in the darkened room. She looked truly at peace as she slept and found a blanket covering her body. They both quietly left and Raelle soon found himself in his own bed being covered in a blanket by his father.

His father looked down at him. “Sleep well Raelle.”

He closed his eyes and heard his father walk away. “Goodnight Father.” The door closed, and he soon fell asleep.