A Tale of One Deviant (Book One)

Chapter 24: Insults, Vampires, and More

I woke up sometime later in my father's arms. I knew it was my father, because only he has this smell of trees and cologne. Why he wore cologne, I had no idea. I just knew he wore one that smelled like the forest with a faint scent of something cinnamon.

     "Daddy," I shifted in his arms, mumbling. I yawned with my tiny mouth, going "num num" while opening and closing it.

     "Daddy?" He questioned to himself. I'd never called him that before, but the way I normally called him eluded me so I just did what I remembered Hera and Adri did. "Yes, sweetie?" He was hugging my head to his shoulder as I was held like a child. His voice was just as enticing as the boy's from before.

     "Is the party over?" I slurred while trying to crack open an eye.

     "No, not yet. Over half of the people are still here, with only five hours left till midnight. Ana was quite worried when you walked off with that boy."

     "I'll apologize to her later..."

     I was going to go to sleep again, when Father spoke up, "Oh no, you don't. If you fall asleep now then you won't be able to sleep later, and no one wants to watch a hyperactive child all night. You already slept for three hours and the whole day, I think that's enough for now. Let's go meet your grandparents, okay?"

     I was lifted up and dangled above the ground, forced to stretch out my feet or continue hanging there.

     Huffing tiredly and feeling like I was going to fall asleep on the spot, I walked slowly after Father, who had a longer gait. I ran a little after him and attempted to reach for his hand like a spoiled child, but I was too short.

     Disappointed with the tough love he was displaying, I followed after him while mumbling some tsukkomis in Japanese so no one understood what I was saying. We were walking through groups of chattering people again, so hopefully they took it as tired mumbles.

      Finally, we reached the open door that I used to come outside last time and we walked back in. There had only been firelight to use to see outside, in sconces every few feet outdoors, but inside was powered by magic stones that made it seem like electricity didn't hold a watt to it.

     Get it? Watt?

     Oh, never mind. Don't mind me and my tired mumbles. It's an English joke.

     Eventually, we reached a group of people that were dressed gaudily, as if they were higher ups that you were supposed to please. I may have been putting my words a little too bluntly and vaguely, because everyone was dressed that way.

     They were all about the same age, in the middle part of life. Their hair was just about to turn gray, the same age as my previous mother and father.

     It felt odd having young parents almost my age. I felt like they were school mates I could talk to, Father being Takuya and Mother as Kagame or Kagome, until I remembered that if I was too intelligent...I might be suspected as a Deviant.

     Didn't want that.

     So, I didn't put too much thought into my words as I said them. I was still as blunt as I had been in my previous life, not sparing any words for someone's feelings unless it was for people like Hera and Adri, where sarcastic comments and cool comebacks were lost.

     I bet I could start up a conversation with anyone here, guessing my IQ to be somewhere around theirs if not over because of my deep schooling in foreign subjects.

     I didn't and just acted like a normal, tired baby. The tired part wasn't that hard. The normal part...

     "Father," Father said, clapping his hand on some man's shoulder. That would get confusing quickly enough, with the Father (mine) talking to his father by calling him that way.