I'm the Mother of the Heroine? (Book 1)

Chapter 24

Lily:

When the children walked into my Garden I'd expected child wonder and excitement but was honestly floored by the calm and collected reaction of the boys. Helena of course squealed in happiness. 

"Mommy! This is beautiful!" I could hear the awe in her voice. From her point of view I could understand why though. 

Many plants that usually didn't grow longer than a hands width had grown taller than my knee. It was a simple task in doing so when you held the Nature Element. 

"So you like it," I teased her. 

"Can I go explore?"

"Sure. If you get lost all you need to do is call for me. The plants will let me know if you're in trouble."

She gave me a strange look as if I'd gone crazy for talking to the plants but ignored it and skipped off. 

I turned my attention to the boys. 

"You guys can go explore if you want as well."

Nathaniel walked over and slid his hand in mine which shocked me but I allowed it. "I want to stay with you, Lily."

I gave him a smile. "Okay. What about you Vincent?"

"I have no preference."

Which meant the child probably hadn't even wanted to join us. I reached my free hand out and grabbed his within it before leading the boys through the maze of plants towards the clearing I trained in. 

When we finally reached it, Nathaniel spun around taking everything in. Vincent looked on in a detached manner as if he was cataloging everything but not really seeing it. 

Using my Nature Magic I asked the plants to create two extra sitting places. They responded by growing more loam and adding some of their petals to cushion it. Floral essence permeated the air, giving it a sense of tranquility and beauty. 

"Lily, this is really the most beautiful place I've ever seen," Nathaniel spoke in awe. 

I gave him a gentle smile as I rearranged my skirt to not get caught on anything as I sat down. Giving them both expectant looks, I tapped my hands down on the two new spots made for them. 

"Come sit down. This entire room, albeit swarming in Earth Element, caters to all the others as well. It's a type of skill I've got."

Which wasn't a lie. With my Nature Element I was capable of calling for every element. I'd not tried to absorb the rest of them yet though, only the four main ones. Nathaniel gave me a curious look and his eyes looked at my stomach. 

"I've been meaning to ask but did you get a new Marking?"

"Yes. I also broke through to the next Star."

His eyes drifted to my shoulder with an 'o' gracing his lips. "Do you feel different after breaking through the barrier? What does your new Marking mean?"

Breaking through from the sixth to the seventh star stage was a major leap in power levels, especially for women. Since they relied heavily on Magic and didn't have much physical strength usually, it meant that more Magic was stored inside of their Stars. 

"I was able to kill double the amount of Magical Beasts with the same or one level lower difference in strength. This Marking is something I only managed to observe once while out in the Forest. I'm not certain yet but it seems that my veins have turned into a type of vine that absorbs the magic and blood out of Magical Beasts to restore damage done to my body."

Nathaniel's mouth opened in shock and if I were completely honest, maybe even looking too much into it, Vincent seemed equally as shocked. Minus the facial ques expressing that shock. Maybe it was his body language that seemed to tense up as if given a blow. Regardless though, it had done nothing to chip away at that bland look he held. 

"You have vines inside of your body?!"

I held my arms out in front of me and tried to examine them through the Markings that had created sleeves. It was rather useless though because they covered nearly every square inch of flesh along both. 

"Well I'm not entirely sure to be honest. I've not built enough courage to test it out without my life being on the line," I commented wryly. 

Nathaniel closed his mouth and took on a contemplative look as he also examined my arms. He shrugged his shoulders as if to say 'It's your body and if you don't know then neither do I'. 

"Anyways, I brought you both here because this place is very soothing on your mental state. Not only is it a good place to increase your Stars but even if you're Stars haven't manifested, like Vincent," I nodded my head towards him, "You can still strengthen your mental barriers."

"Mental," Nathaniel questioned with a confused look. 

"It's not a well known 'Magic' and in a sense it is completely separate from our Stars and Markings. Mental Strength is kind of similar to having a second container that holds Stars but it's not visible to outsiders. If you strengthen your Mental Strength enough not only could you create barriers but it's also useful in building stronger Arrays, Rune Magic, and even easily manipulating offensive Magic. There are many uses for this but it's not something I or really anyone can teach another person. The only thing I can help you both with is tapping into it. Would you both like to try?"

Nathaniel eagerly nodded his head and Vincent simply inclined his while he sat calmly next to me. 

"First, yo-," I had begun. 

Helena came tumbling out of some chest height lavender planted to my right and behind Vincent. Not only was she completely dirty, which I honestly didn't know how she could get that roughed up in the Garden, but she was slightly out of breath. 

"Mommy! This place is awesome!"

Her eyes twinkled happily and I watched as an assortment of butterflies that usually roamed the place begun to flutter and dance around her head. 

A/N: I'd like some feedback on how you guys feel with the slow progress in the storyline. It's not too boring is it? I'm honestly on edge about it because I'd like to skip to the 'juicy' parts but it doesn't feel like the right moment.

'Into the Shadows I'll walk, escaping this eternal Hell you've left me in.'

I definitely feel that this is something Nathaniel would say. (I just liked the picture and decided to share. :P)

Love,

 Your Quirky Author; MadamKhaos