Born Anew

Born Anew VI

The road to the Azoth library was longer than expected, and we had to set up camp more than once. During those nights we sat by the fireplace, telling stories of how things were before we met. The only one who refused to speak of her past was Marinette. We just accepted it as such. Considering her trail of crime, we assumed she had more than enough baggage without our questioning. Until one day she was accidentally forced to break her silence.

"So. Your surname is Polnareff. That sounds a lot like Polnarev. As in the Moss Castle Couturiers." Lowry stated looking at my beloved. "Are you related to a vampire? I don't sense any of our blood in you."

"It's not a blood matter. My stepfather is Jacques Polnareff. A disgraced writer whose blood traces back to House Polnarev." Marinette explained. A grim look sat on her face.

"As in Jacques Polnareff? The man who moved to Mistbloom two years ago? He became somewhat famous. But I never knew he had a daughter." Kraid was in fact a big fan of the man's writing. "He does have a really pretty werecat wife, but I never thought you were related."

"The plot thickens." I stated while taking a sip from my bowl full of soup.

"So he finally moved to Mistbloom. Last time I saw him, he said he wanted to." The poor girl replied. "And he never had a child with my mother. It must be true then, that he was unable to..."

"He does have a son... Quite an ugly lad. Looks like a mangy cat to be honest, and is about the age of fourteen." Kraid's statement made everyone look at him with a puzzled look. "I actually met the man. He even signed one of his books for me."

"So, fanboys exist in this world too." I chuckled. "I'm glad you didn't ask for Sitri's autograph."

"He did." Marinette responded. "I can't believe I have a brother. Anyway. I never met my true father. He killed himself in jail months before I was born, so I took my stepfather's name. Marinette Polnareff sounds better than just Marinette."

"And how did a member of a noble lineage turn into a dangerous criminal?" Rhuk asked the question no one dared to.

"I avenged my father. He was sent to prison because a noble wanted to hurt my mother. Before she met my father, she had an affair with that man, and their love ended in disgrace. The day he found out she was pregnant, he framed my father. The man could not stand being in prison for the rest of his life, and decided to die on his own terms."

"Shameful!" Ever Faithful yelled, suicide stood against his values. "May Meera's grace forgive him so that the gods accept his soul."

"Shut up! He was brave and acted with honor! I assume he was a werecat, just like you. I used to believe 'furs' had no honor." The ogre felt admiration for a man he would never meet alive. "I hope I meet his soul in the Tower of Champions someday."

"Gods, afterlife, pure crap. My father killed himself, and I never met him. When I was five, Jacques met my mother, and they got married shortly after that. He was the father I never had. But when I reached the age of thirteen I found out about my true father." Marinette took her dagger and stabbed a log with it. "I had to make that noble pay. But he was no longer in Pointe-Vert when I heard of him. He moved to the West. And I left to track him."

"And that's how you became a criminal? I assumed you were some sort of street urchin. You said you felt alone ever since you were born." The bard lady stated while tuning her lute.

"I was being dramatic. I mean, I had no friends back then. No one liked me. It was only my parents and I. And when I left to kill that bastard, it was only me. I did what I had to in order to survive. I had to choose between crime or becoming a courtesan. I preferred the first of course."

"You would certainly make a terrible courtesan. I can't blame you."

"Shut it. I'm not scared of your blood magic anymore! I learned to handle it. I could even try to copy it if I wanted to!" Marinette bluffed, but it was true that she dabbled in blood magic.

"Please, continue your story. Consider it a confession so that I may intercede before the gods." Ever Faithful stated. Even when wishing to hear gossip for the sake of it, he pretended to follow his profession.

"Hold on, tin can." The pink haired girl took a deep breath. "As I traveled to the East looking for the man who ruined our lives, I got involved in some really shady stuff. In fact I was on the winning end of many illegal activities. And made myself of a reputation. That's when I met Sitri and Akroma. They have been trying to straighten my path since then, and helped me find that man."

"I hope we will be able to straighten your path, my friend." The clockwork man placed his hand on a Meeran Staff he carried with him. "For I hope nothing but the best for all of you."

"Calm down sentimental robot. She is already in the right path, that is, with us." I said cheerfully.

"I know I made the right choice. The thing is, I finally killed him. But once I did, I had already become the infamous Marinette Polnareff. I could never return home, and I had no where to go. So I continued going West and doing whatever I had to survive."

"And that is, I assume, how we met." Kraid stated.

"No. I mean, technically it is. The thing is once I got close to the Kalthian border, I decided to just turn that region into my turf and stay low for a while. When I found you, I had already pulled that trick on many. Always with a different set of clothes. That absent minded gnome lady won't recognize you if you wear a different shirt."

Hearing Marinette's story made the rest trust her a little bit more. And I realized my former attempts at running away from both life and my past were childish. Now however I began to feel reluctant to return, for I made new friends, and felt no hurry on returning to my apartment in Aurora and beg to get back my job at Merkel Pharmaceutics.