24 Comfort.

By the time I woke up, it was already afternoon and Jerry had gone out to take care of more of his work. As I opened my eyes, I could see Effah right across from me, curled up on the other side of Elsie sleeping like a baby.

I looked up at Elsie, embarrassed again. "Sorry…"

She just smiled. "It's fine. Everybody gets tired from time to time."

I looked back over to Efah.

"If you're ready to go we can get up and–"

"No wait." I stopped her. "I don't want to wake her up, she looks so peaceful."

Elsie settled back into the chair. "Well, I guess we're stuck here then."

"Hm…"

I stared at the little girl in front of me, thinking back to when she came down the stairs and called Elsie Moma. Meanwhile, I referred to my own mother by name, and she tried to avoid using my name as much as possible, sometimes going days without saying it.

I snuggled back up against her and wrapped the blanket around myself even tighter. "Elsie… Do you think it's possible for me to find a family like yours someday?"

I felt her arms squeeze me in tighter for a moment. "Of course I do. Someday, when you've finally proven yourself, you'll find someone that doesn't need you to be strong for them to be happy…"

"What if I don't…"

"Then you can just come back to me. I'll give you a big warm hug and make you feel so loved you start to look like a tomato again."

I let out a slight groan but ended up not responding. It was warm and comfortable, and although I had woken up on my own, I was already starting to feel tired again.

 It was a nice thought, but one that would never play out. If I failed I would die, simple as that. In trying I limited myself to only two options. If I ran away, things would be different, but if I were to do that I shouldn't have even bothered coming back. Still, her words were so warm I almost believed them anyway.

"Is it ok if… I fall asleep again?"

She smiled. "Well, it's not like we can leave anyway, not with little Efah's sleep depending on us."

I smiled back. The warmth of another person felt intoxicating. It was intense, and filled every part of my body, like I was laying under ten blankets in the winter and my bed had turned into an oven. "Good… Because… I don't want to leave yet either."

As I spoke, I could feel my face turning red again, so I covered it with the blanket snuggling closer to her before falling quickly falling asleep

It seemed like I couldn't escape embarrassment when I was around her.

…

Not long after, Effah woke up from her nap. Apparently, she still had chores to do before bed, so while she was busy with that, Elsie took a closer look at my jaw. 

"Ok, open up."

She had me sitting in front of her on a tall stool in the kitchen. I stared back at her as she talked. "Open?" 'Like… My feelings?'

"Like this. Ahhhh." She continued, opening her mouth wide.

I chuckled, 'Oh, That's what she meant.' I went ahead and said ahh like she asked, letting her go ahead and look inside my mouth.

"Well, your teeth aren't damaged, but your gums were bleeding, here. I'll put some medicine on it."

I closed my mouth again, staring at her while she dug some herbs out of a cabinet nearby. It was a strange feeling like I was in the doctor's chair. "Do I really need medicine though?"

Generally, I only got medicine for one of two reasons, either it was because I was unable to train in my current condition, or because I had a nasty cut. In regards to the ladder though, all I got was a good bit of alcohol and salt poured over the cut to stop infection. It was weird having her treat me for something so minor.

"It's fine, we have plenty since Effah gets into so much trouble."

It was hard to imagine her as a troublemaker with the way she so happily did her chores and how peacefully she slept. 'I guess people aren't always how they seem though. That eases my conscience though, at least they're not wasting something they need.'

I suddenly felt her cold, slimy hand touch my lower jaw, causing a slight tingle. A scent of mint so thick I almost thought I could see it assaulted my nose as the dull pain in my jaw stung from her rubbing it.

When she was done applying the medicine, she cleaned off her hand, grabbing a strange Q-tip-like object and coating it in the same substance. "Open up." She said again

As she applied the medicine to the inside of my mouth it hurt far more, but she was done quickly.

"Doesn't it hurt?"

She was turned away, but I would have bet anything she had that concerned look on her face again. "I'm used to–" I cut myself off. 'No wonder she feels bad…' "I mean, no, it's not so bad really."

She chuckled, "You're really trying to spare my feelings?"

I lifted up my hand to my jaw. It didn't hurt, and I could already tell the swelling had gone down. I couldn't help but laugh back as I looked down at my little legs, kicking them back and forth. 'Guess I got caught stumbling over my words again.' "It's just kind of gloomy when all you do is make people sad you know."

My whole body suddenly changed position and it took me a moment to realize what was happening. She had wrapped her arms around me.

"E-Elsie?" I muttered, frozen still.

She let go and took a step back, shyly folding her hands in front of her. "Sorry, that was sudden of me."

It was strange, to see her embarrassed for a change. "No, it's fine…"

She quickly grabbed the bots and coat she had found earlier, setting them before me. "That's right, here you should take these."

She awkwardly tried to change the subject, but I couldn't say I fully understood why she was embarrassed in the first place. She had already been treating me like a daughter, it seemed almost natural to receive a hug after sleeping in her lap like a little kid. "Oh, right. Jerry asked you about that."

Before I could refuse, she was already putting the boots on my feet for me. "Yes, and don't you dare say you're fine, you just worry everyone more."

'She already knew I didn't want them?' "Busted…"

She finished putting the boots on, even tying them herself and helping me with the coat too before she would let me leave. It really was starting to feel like she was my mother, but I suppose that was to be expected.

She had a daughter who looked nearly the same age. It probably would have been harder for her to not act like that.

When I did finally head out the door, saying goodbye felt like it tugged at my heart, but I was fine. There wasn't any time to mourn the end of my visit, instead, I tried to be grateful for their kindness, and the sweet taste of anise milk that I could still taste in my memory.