“Daddy, do we have to stay quiet?” asks Punkin as she runs along Cer’s side.

“Yes, we don’t know how far the mean people are. What if they hear us?” Responds Cer while looking around for danger. I wonder how they were able to fire cannons without being attacked by ghosts and essences. They must have some kind of concealing spell or witch-tek like the Mech Knights of the Mecca Nights.

“What if we hear them first? Can we surprise them?” asks Punkin.

“No, we avoid them. The orb will lead us away from them.” Responds Cer while carefully traversing the terrain hidden in the mist.

“What if they see the orb? Will they follow it too?” asks Punkin, with curiosity again.

“They shouldn’t be able to see it. The Gyldan Galare cast magic much like your mother, nobody should see it unless the witches want them to.” Responds Cer, while finding footing on increasingly uneven terrain.

Tugging on Cer’s shirt, Punkin points East of them to a vague humanoid silhouette with indiscernible features of size and stature. “Then who is that over there? They’re following us.”

Becoming suddenly cautious, Cer stabilizes their footing and crouches down while regripping Fang from a walking stick to a fencing foil. “Where are they? I can’t see the auras in this mist.”

Silence

Feeling around while listening carefully for Punkin, Cer frantically whispers. “Pupu, where are you? I can’t see you or the people following us?”

Moments of eternal silence.

Suddenly, breaking the silence, Punkin jumps up from the ground near the silhouette. “I GOTCHU! Surprise!” Whack! Punkin lands her bubble wand on a small figure.

In response to Punkin’s attack, the child smacks the wand away and lets out a groan.

Quickly reaching out to cover the child’s mouth, Ai appears and signs for Adeline to suppress the groan while whispering to Punkin. “Shh Pupu, we have to stay hidden. Where is your father?”

Pointing Westward while crouching down to remain hidden, Punkin smiles. “Oh, he’s over there. Let’s go get him. He can’t see in here because of me.”

Signing to her mom, Adeline begins walking briskly towards Cer.

Jumping up with excitement while remaining hidden, Punkin follows Adeline and beckons Ai to follow. “Ooh she can see him. She has eyes like daddy.”

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Surprised, Ai chases after the two girls. “What do you mean she can see like your dad?”

Giggling, Punkin continues to follow Adeline as they approach Cer. “Silly. Daddy can’t see. He is blind. But he knows colors. Adeline’s eyes are pwettier.”

“What do you mean he sees colors but he is blind at the same time?” Asks Ai.

Interrupting them mid-conversation, Cer whispers curtly. “You all talk so loud… shhhh. My daughter is correct, I am blind and yet I can only see auras and energy or mana.”

Astonished, Ai responds. “You can see magic?”

Correcting Adeline as she approaches Cer, who is sitting casually on a large stone while leaning on Fang, responds with warmth. “Magic is made of three components: Mystic which is Will, Mana which is the energy and life force gathered by the Will, and Materia which is the conduit or vessel in which directs the energy or mana. So I only see the energy as it is manifested by the Will. I can basically see emotion and intent.”

Realizing her daughter’s ability, Ai looks down in guilt and shame. “All this time I thought she was broken; I am a good mother so I love her anyway. She had always signed to me when people were sad or angry or dangerous, but I never listened. I thought because she could not hear the world, she could not understand people.”

Squatting down next to her father and rocking on her heels with a smile on her face, Punkin chimes in. “Oh she can see everything. More than daddy. I didn’t know it. But this mist let’s me know it. She is sad nobody listens to her because she can’t speak for herself. I hear her. I hear her heart. She has a lot of stories that make her sad and alot that make her happy. She can hear my mouth with her eyes. That is funny.”

Welling with curiosity, Ai looks to her daughter and signs to her. “Is it true? You can see colors?”

Responding with a hand nod, Adeline signs back. “Yes. I can understand what her mouth says. I can see their colors. They are nice. He is very very sad. Mommy, they are different. Their colors are different from other people. ”

Gasping, Ai falls to the ground on her butt from surprise and worry. “Wait, are you witches?”

Smiling while studying Ai’s aura filled with fear, Cer responds warmly. “No need to worry. Not all witches are bad just like not all people are good. We are all just dwellers trying to survive and we all may do bad or good things to meet our needs. We have no need to hurt people. Our desire is to see the world heal. But to answer your question; yes we are witches. Seems like Adeline is a natural born witch as well. She has an uncanny ability to hide and suppress her magic. Perhaps it is because she is used to being deaf and feeling invisible to most. Unseen and unheard. Ironic, she has the mana of nobility. Like her bloodline runs from the highest order of witches.”

Scrambling up to embrace her daughter and hide her from the world. “No! She can’t be a witch. Witches are why my husband died. She will be hunted like the rest of them. No. No. No! Please help me hide her! You all are good at hiding. Please keep her safe!”

Standing up with palms open to show they mean to harm, Cer approaches Ai and Adeline and puts a hand on Ai’s shoulder to comfort her. “She is already good at not being seen or heard. The last thing you want is for her to have to hide. She wants and needs to live freely and for her to be recognized as human despite her abilities or disabilities. Her heart wants to stop hiding.”

Crying from her internal conflict and disbelief that her daughter is a witch, while feeling overwhelming pity and love for her daughter, Ai responds with defeat.”What do I do? How do I protect her and keep her safe? I want her to have a happy ending!”

Squatting down to meet Ai at eye level, Cer offers a defeated sense of comfort. “I struggle with those questions everyday. How do I keep her safe, sheltered, protected, hidden, yet happy when her soul yearns to be free? I have learned one thing I still have a hard time accepting and even doing. Let her define her own happiness. Let her chase it. We cannot protect them all the time; we can only promise to hold them when they fall, to hug them when they cry, and walk with them when they feel lost. I have learned much more from her about happiness and love than she has ever learned from me about anything important. I think as a parent, we all want our children to be happier than we ever experienced ourselves.”

Hugging Adeline tightly, Ai mutters. “I don’t know if I will be ready to let her decide when I don’t even know if she will ever be ready.”

Standing up and beckoning to Punkin, Cer whispers to Ai. “I just try to stay out of her way now and let her decide what she needs to do. We are never truly ready for what is to come. By accepting that and understanding that, we are more ready than we'll ever be. For our journey to come, you are more than welcome to join us.”

Shrugging as if she has no other choice, Ai agrees. “We’ll go with you just until we get to someplace where Adeline can be safe.”

Nodding, Cer begins to walk ahead with Punkin following closely behind. “Safety is just one beginning. Finding a place you can call home, that’s the destination.”

Beckoning for Ai and Adeline to follow, Punkin runs to keep up with Cer. “Family is home. You can be a happy family, with us.”