Remove these ads. Join the Worldbuilders Guild
A Normal Life
“I want you to have a normal life.”
What did that even mean…a normal life? Had her parents tried to talk to her about that? Surely they must have. Father was right, of course, she didn’t listen. It had never been her strength. She knew that. She tried to push away the thought that said of course that was why Mother hit her. She was fortunate to have a loving father who was willing to keep forgiving her despite all her missteps. And how did she repay him? Sneaking into his office, following him, disrupting his rituals.
She still couldn’t quite believe that her father, the upstanding Baron Karl Jaeger, was scamming the other nobles. The thought made her smile a bit despite herself. She wondered if Mother knew. Surely not. She couldn’t imagine that. Her father must feel so alone. She frowned softly. And what of her grandmother? Is this why she disliked him so? That hardly seemed to fit. Peg scrunched up her face, considering that. And what did any of this have to do with her powers? She had come no closer to understanding them, only becoming more certain that her father wished she did not have them. How else could she have a normal life besides setting them aside? Did he not see how impossible that was?
Her mind warred with…itself? She never was sure. Could she be the daughter he wanted, that he was trying so hard to create a life for? She owed it to him to try, didn’t she?
Owed it to him? For what? For standing by while her mother bruised and bloodied her? For trying to turn her into something she could never be? For hiding the source of her powers from her?
But he was the father that read to her, that inspired her sense of justice. Did he think it would all fade now that she knew about his scam? Surely he didn’t worry about what she thought…did he?
She should try harder. Do better. Or just…let it all burn around her. Wasn’t she happier away from them?
She imagined finding out who all the people were in the robes…the foolish nobles her father duped. She could reveal what he had done. Watch it all break. She grinned a bit maniacally at the thought.
But it was the easy way out, wasn’t it? Giving up because she knew that she didn’t have what it took to do anything that really mattered. Maybe that was why her father did all this to give her a normal life? He knew someday she would crumble under the weight of the world and this way she could fall back on the simple, undemanding life of a noblewoman.
Continue reading...
-
Who Doesn't Like a Good Soiree?
-
Peg's Playlist
-
Memories in Rain
-
Consequences
-
Mother Knows Best
-
Always Too Much
-
The Early Days
-
The Akmon Appreciation Society
-
Who Are You Fooling?
-
Pretending
-
Grim Things
-
Childish Make-Believe
-
Failure
-
Afraid to Die
-
Loved Until
-
To Trust Yourself
-
A Normal Life
-
Roses and Thorns
-
Through a Glass Darkly, Part One
-
A Little Better?
-
The Younger Orlov Daughter
-
Choices and Actions
-
Through a Glass Darkly, Part Two
-
Roses and Thorns Revisited
-
Adventures in Avalon
-
Home
-
Eyes
-
Of Bravery and Cowardice
-
Heroes and Villians
-
Scars and Gaping Wounds
Find your way!
Resources
WHO WE ARE
LEGAL
Get the news
Listen to our Podcast
Our Allies
