The Bastard Son Chapter 3
By Foeciusfoe
It seemed to be forever before he opened his eyes again. Jowy finally regained consciousness and found himself alone. He was lying in a bed, in what appeared to be a shack. The only memory from before he blacked out being his fight with the bandits, he tried to take in his surroundings. He was in a one-room shack that held only the one bed, a dresser and vanity hanging on the wall. The floor littered with hay, it was obvious these were servants quarters…or part of a slum."
He sat up in the bed and attempted to look around. As he moved up a moist rag dropped from his forehead into his lap. He noticed his clothes hanging off the edge of the dresser, and attempted to get up and get them. Before he could move from the bed, the door opened and in walked the woman he recognized from before.
"Oh you shouldn't be getting up yet." She said as she rushed to the bedside. She placed her hand on his chest and motioned him back down to bed, picking up the moist rag on the dresser, and placing it on his forehead again. Jowy leaned back and rested for a moment as he gazed up to the young woman playing caregiver to him. It almost reminded him of Rosa back in Kyaro…
"Thank you." The girl said, jarring Jowy's attention back to the present.
"For what?" Jowy asked foolishly.
"How long did you black out?" She asked jokingly. "For saving our lives, of course."
She smiled as she leaned over straightening the covers over Jowy's body. Her long, wavy, crimson hair lightly brushed against Jowy's chest as she moved back. Her soft emerald eyes staring down to the man below her, as she brushed a few strands of hair from her light, soft skin.
Jowy looked down to himself in the bed. "I could say the same for you, miss…." He paused realizing he never got her name.
"My name is Sara." She said.
"...Jowy." He replied.
Sara smiled. "Well Jowy, what brings a Highlander like yourself to the capital city of the Toran republic?"
Jowy arched a suspicious eyebrow. "How did you know I was…"?
"The pouch full of coins you threw at the bandits?" She said.
"Oh." Jowy replied. "I'm sorry, I guess the blackout made me forget a few things."
"I see." She laughed. "So are you gonna answer my question, or are you gonna lay in bed all day?" In another time Jowy might have laughed at her wit. But that was another time.
"I'm…on a journey…" he said hoping that would be the end of the conversation. He obviously wasn't as perceptive as he used to be.
"Well excuse me for asking for your life story, but I would like to learn a little more about the man that saved my life."
"I may be wrong but wasn't there a small boy with you? Your son perhaps?" Jowy interjected.
"Oh, you mean Deakin." She said with a smile.
Jowy furled his brow, thinking if he should remember that name or not. Sara smiled and laughed to herself. "How old do you think I am?" Jowy was dumbfounded. He stumbled over any attempts at words. He remembered some forms of tact. "No, Deakin is not my son. For god's sake I'm barely 18, the last thing I need at this point is a child."
Sara stood up and moved over to the vanity mirror, where she began adjusting her outfit. Jowy turned his head and watched as she tugged on bits of clothing, adjusting and primping. She had changed into what appeared to be a maid's outfit, but in a sort of faded green color. "You are a servant?" Jowy asked.
"How perceptive." She quipped. "That 'Small boy' you mentioned is the child I baby sit while his mother is away on business. We were on our way back from a shopping trip to Lenankamp when those guys attacked us." She paused sensing his abrupt absence from conversation, and stared over to catch the confused look on Jowy's face.
"Why would his mother not watch the child herself?" he asked.
"She's a major politician in the Toran government." Sara responded. "His father apparently died during the days of the Liberation army, leaving her with a child before he did."
"I see," Jowy spoke up, "but what kind of position could keep her that far from her child?"
This time Sara arched a curious eyebrow. "You haven't been in Toran long have you?" She asked sarcastically. "She's one of the five great generals. Maybe you've heard of her, Sonya Shulan?"
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