AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Ayla’s grin grew wide as she all but lunged for the stack of books and toys on the table. Katie walked up to Axur and shook her head.
“That is really nice of you,” she said in a whisper.
He averted his gaze. “As I said, it’s so she isn’t bored.”
Despite herself, Katie felt a small smile tug on her lips. Maybe he did care, just a little.
FIVE
AXUR
The general’s estate had started to change after a mere few days with Katie’s presence. Beforehand, it appeared like a totalitarian bunker, brutal but practical. And, while those core infrastructures remained, fresh attention to aesthetics and safety appropriate for a child began to appear.
That was, at least, what Axur assumed Katie was trying to achieve. He didn’t completely recall his own childhood and the flights of fantasy that Ayla seemed accustomed to. While, by all means, his parents were loving and provided him with everything he needed, there simply wasn’t room in his mind for the memories that Katie was effortlessly forging for Ayla.
It gave him a warm, fuzzy feeling in his chest to see the little girl so content, moving from toy to book, manifesting her own world with Katie’s willing and creative aid. That wasn’t a feeling the general was used to.
It was strange, and he tried to divert his attention from it. It wouldn’t last, nor could it. Ayla’s presence in his life was temporary. As was Katie’s.
Nevertheless, joining in on meals and observing playtime surged Axur with an abundance of those splendid feelings. It was difficult not to want to indulge in them.
He ruminated over this as he sat in what was previously the lounge, a place he came to do such limited brooding, when Katie came in with Ayla, brandishing a book under her arm.
Axur rose from his seat, taking note of the way Katie’s bare arms began to bristle with bumps. In the meticulous and pragmatic manner in which he operated, he crouched and lit the fireplace.
“Thank you, General Axur,” Katie remarked, sitting behind him on the couch. “I don’t know the weather of this planet very well. I didn’t pack enough sweaters.”
“You can borrow some of mine,” Ayla said playfully.
“You silly goose, they wouldn’t fit me. But I appreciate the offer. Maybe one sweater on each arm?”
Ayla burst out into an uproarious giggle, with Katie laughing along. It was a pleasant sound that he felt inclined to hear more of. He imagined the child had laughed more when her parents were alive, and the thought sent a nasty slither down his spine. He finished the combustion of the wood, which cast a light, watching it burn a pink-peach radiance.
When he straightened and turned, wiping his hands together to get rid of the wood shavings, Katie looked up at him. She rubbed Ayla’s back while she rummaged through one of her books, a coy smile growing on her lips.
“Thank you again. This is really cozy.”
Her emerald eyes shimmered, and it set off that blooming glow in his chest again. He averted his eyes and gave a clipped response to keep from feeling anything he shouldn’t.
“A report should have been sent to you about the climate. I will have sweaters brought in for you with haste.”
He sat in the chair across from them, the flames crackling and snapping. Axur was thankful when she returned her attention to Ayla, her gaze having an unprecedented effect on him.
He had done something that would suit them both, to make them both feel content and comfortable. Yet, whenever he did something of the sort, Katie showered him with praise like he had just gone off to war and fought hundreds of men in her name. It was a reaction he felt was somewhat incongruent to the act, yet he didn’t want it to stop. It felt … good.
The general wondered if that was what she had been referring to when she spoke of doingnicethings for his niece. And for her? Was that really how people in close relationships functioned?
He wasn’t a stupid man, but rather, one that thrived off earnest functionality. Positive reinforcement from Katie sounded childish, but he was the first to admit that it was working. And quite a delightful sensation.
“What’s this one about?” Katie asked the little girl.
Ayla showed them the pages of her storybook, spreading it wide with pride.
“It’s about the first queen on our planet, Queen Andrea,” she began to narrate, eyes lit up. “They said she had long black hair, but I imagine hers like yours. Queen Katie with the yellow locks.”
Katie grinned and began to snicker. Ayla's eyes darted over to her uncle’s, anxiously awaiting his approval of her creative ingenuity.
Axur's knee-jerk reaction was to say how silly her distortion of the story was. Why read a book if you were going to change the relevant details? Then again, he used to think any kind of fable was absurd. Why waste time and energy on a fake story when there was so much to be dealt with in the real world?
