Tafari looked up at the roof of his house from the bed he was laying in, ever since he got back from jail he had not wanted to move, if anything, due to the fact the protection of the Tree was no longer doing its job had started to deteriorate and some what in a fast fashion so he had to do something before he wasted away in this bed where he had decided to live the last of his days, he was weak, he was growing old, he was tired and, most importantly, he was starting to seriously worry his daughter and Granddaughter and he didn't want that so as he lay there, thinking over the events of what happened and what his daughter and Granddaughter were saying over the last couple of weeks and no matter how much he hated the fact that he had to give into the Light, if not for him for his Daughter and Granddaughter. Tafari hated seeing them worry so much, especially Lust when she was almost practically in much trouble as he was but, thankfully, she was slightly better off then he was due to her being a demi-god so at least that reassured him a little but still, he had to do what was right for his family, if it were up to him, he would happily just wait out his last days here, he was getting weaker as the days went on and not to mention his once beautiful fur was now greying and his branches were pretty much gone...his youth was slowly but surely slipping away before his family and he truly couldn't stand to see his daughter cry anymore, Aella was being strong for them both but he had heard her crying at night in her room when she thought her mother and he had gone to bed and he had gotten up to go to the bathroom or get a drink of water.
Tafari looked out the window and and sighed, it was a beautiful full moon tonight and he finally knew what he had to do and as much as her hated this he couldn't let his family go through it anymore so he picked up his walking stick next to the bed, the one thing that would help him walk, not that he couldn't walk still but he wasn't like he used to be, his ability to run on this land was now gone and he was clumsy when he ran and walking, given how weak he had started to become, was also now beginning to be a chore so he had a walking stick on hand just to help him lean on something if he needed it. Tafari walked to his bedroom door, opened it and picked up the shawl from the table (which was basically just a couple of crates with a couple of planks of wood on top of it) that was against the wall and put it on, his daughter had given him her shawl and if he was to do this he wanted something to remind him of what he was doing this for and to make sure he still felt her scent on it, a rose scent, she had made her own rose water and she used it every day...at least she did before the events at the tree happened, even that wasn't lifting her spirits these days but he had always made sure to have her shawl sprinkled with some and, like always, before bed, she had sprinkled it again with some and he put it around his shoulders as he walked out of his room and softly made his way toward his daughters bedroom and opened the door.
Tafari looked in and saw Aella awake and sitting on the seat next to the window, not asleep just staring out at the moon...that was till she jumped a little and turned around to look at who was coming in through the door and he noticed she was crying "Aella, my Princess, whatever is the matter?" He asked softly so as to not wake his sleeping daughter, not that it mattered, she slept like a log and if the whole world came crashing down around her she would still sleep through it, waking her up for lessons as a child was a nightmare but still, he didn't want to take that chance in case, for once, she was sleeping light.
"Grandfather, please, what are you doing up? Go back to bed" she said in a hushed worried tone, you are not as strong as you once were, please, we can talk in the morning, please rest" she said as she dried her eyes and got up, trying to help him back to bed before he shook his head and gestured her back to the seat which she took, wondering why he was saying no.
"I can not, I need to go away for a while, I know you will do well with taking care of your mother in my whilst I am away" he said as he lent down and kissed her forehead, he did what he could for Lust when she wasn't mothering him but now she had to rely on Aella, Aella had to be the strong one to take care of her in his wake "I love you and your mother so much, you know that, but I need to go and sort out my life and to do that I need to leave but I promise, I will be safe...at least I will try to be, I won't do anything or go anywhere that might get me into trouble, I will stick to the path, I will even avoid going into the woods, I know that place is not really a place that is safe for me. I want to stay here, truly I do, I spent months in that jail and now I come out and I have to start thinking about you two, I need to start thinking of what I can do to not have you and your mother cry so often as that is just too heartbreaking to see or hear every day and yes, my princess, I know you have been crying, you have been putting up a strong front in front of your mother and I but late at night, when your mother has been deep in sleep or I get up for a drink of water, I sometimes hear sobs coming from this room.
You are finding this difficult, I know you miss having your freedom, being able to come and go as you please and now, look at you, you have grown into a beautiful woman, I missed seeing you for half your life but now you are a beautiful young woman and I couldn't be prouder of you, especially when I know you just want to go do your own thing like finding Sparrow, you have given up much to take care of your mother and I for that I thank you and am happy that my daughter has raised such a loving, kind, caring daughter who understands that the needs and wants of others sometimes come before the needs and wants of her own." He said smiling a little somberly at her, tearing up was not what he wanted but he couldn't help it, he hated not being able to be here for her if something happened whilst he was away but it just couldn't be helped "I can't promise how long I will be away but I promise I will come back to you and your mother, I promise I will come back a new Faun...ex Faun...oh whatever I am classed as these days but I want it to be a surprise for your mother" he said as he looked at his daughter, his beautiful daughter who he was going to miss greatly.
Tafari looked back at Aella who was now silently crying again and he got his thumb and wiped away some of her tears ]"please sweetheart, don't cry" he said as she jumped up and threw her arms around him and hugged him, droping his walking stick he hugged her back "I am sorry this is so out of the blue but I want this to be a surprise for your mother alright?" He said as he whispered into her ear "I am going to go and seek out the Light Faction" he said as he pulled back and smiled at her "i am going to be the the father and Grandfather I was before ending up where I am now, I don't want to cause your Mother or you worry anymore and I especially don't want you both to cry over me, that is heartbreaking every time I see or hear it and I just don't want to live like this if it means knowing my two favorite girls are upset over me so I will give in and go. I just ask one thing of you until I get back and that is for you to stay here and taking care of her, she is going to need you more then ever once she realizes I have gone so you are going to have to be strong for both of us just that little while longer, I am sorry for putting you through this but I swear, I will take this burden off you when I get back, I swear" he said as he hugged her once more.
Aella started to cry again, hugging her Grandfather tight, partly she was crying because he was leaving, partly it was because he was leaving her with all this stress of taking care of her mother without his help, meaning, she was now going to have to be that responsible adult she just didn't feel like being, part of her teenage years was doing that, now that she was an adult she wanted to get out there and do her own thing but family came first which is why the last part of her feelings were making her cry because she was happy her Grandfather was listening to her and her mother, he was going to seek the help of that Faction who she had no idea about but if they could help him then that was the most important thing, she and her mother didn't have to watch him become less and less of the man he once was. "Grandfather!" She said as she kissed his cheek "thank you! Thank you for doing this for us!" She said, knowing his views on doing this hurt him, he was a proud man with only ever wanting to be part of the Faun community but now that was no longer an option she knew he had to do the hardest thing his pride could handle and that was give in and go seek the help of the Faction he was ignorant about, he didn't even know where they were to be found, he always kept to himself so this was going to be an adventure for him but she also knew it was one that was going to be taxing on him and his body.
"I love you so much!" She said, pulling back and pulling a feather out of her wing and handed it to him "a keepsake, if you are going then you need to have something to remember your Granddaughter by" she said as she smiled at him somberly, watching as he took it "I will help you get ready, come" she said as he nodded.
"Thank you but I just wish to do one more thing before I leave" he said as he walked carefully over to his daughters bed and sat down upon it, moving a strand of hair away from her face and just looked down at her, smiling, tears starting to slowly fall from his eyes as he looked at his sleeping daughter "Lust, my darling, beautiful daughter.." he started softly "...I wasn't the most proudest of fathers when you were given to me, I hated the idea, I didn't know what to do or who to turn to for help and was so scared I was going to end up killing you which is where your Aunt came in, she helped me raise you and made me learn that you were not something I should be scared of and she was right, you were not, you became the greatest thing to have ever happen to me, you became my family and someone who I would die for. I learnt, with the help of that Goddess, that you were a special baby girl who I lost my heart to, I never knew I would, soon after wanting nothing to do with you, fall in love with you like I did as well as making me the proudest father to walk this land. We have had our fights and disagreements and all but at the end of the day you are my special little girl but I did you wrong, I seem to, somewhere along the line, have taught you that disobeying rules and orders was a smart thing to do and it wasn't, I regret that so much now, it is one thing to have myself in this situation but to have placed my daughter in almost practically the same situation as myself makes me a terrible father, to see your suffering also kills me more and faster day by day then what this punishment does, I do not deserve your forgiveness or even your love, I will always love you, no matter what, I am your father and I could never hate you but if you wake up one day and realize how bad a father I am and how much you resent me for making you like this, then please, by all means, do so, I fully accept it.
The time though has come to say goodbye my, Angel, I need to go away for a while and that means I have to leave you in Aella's hands but I swear, I will be back and I will make sure I come back as almost the man I was before all this happened, I don't know how long I will be away for but I promise I will be back" he said as he lent down and gently hugged his daughter and placed a kiss on her cheek "I love you, Lust, you and Aella will always be with me, thank you for giving me a chance to be a father, albeit a bad one, but a father nevertheless, it is now time for me to make use of that title and be the parent who will take hold of this situation and get myself better so I can take care of you and worry about you not have you and Aella worry about me" he said as he kissed her forehead and got up, walking over to Aella he took her arm as she held her as she handed him back his walking stick and walked out the room with her, looking back at his daughter one last time and closed the door, making his way now down the hall and stairs to the kitchen.
Lust had woken up soon after her father entered the room, she heard almost everything but just laid there, pretending to be asleep and when she felt her father sit down on the bed she just stayed 'asleep' and let him do his thing and afterwards, after all was said and done, she rolled over to look at the wall and started to silently cry, she wanted to go out there and hug him, kiss him, tell him that she loved him and would never resent him but it was easier on him if she stayed here, she hated it but if he knew she knew she was awake it would just make it harder on the both of them so she stayed where she was just cried, silently thinking to herself how she could never hate him, she was his daughter, he helped raise her, he gave her a home, a loving family environment, food to eat etc, she would give up her life to him. However, the one thing she didn't agree with was that this was his fault, she was the one who ignored the rules to see Rais first, she was the one who just thought she could walk in without seeking an audience with him or whoever was in charge of the jail, her father may have voiced his opinions to her but this was her doing and she just silently prayed to whoever would listen to protect him, guide him and watch out for him, she had stuff to say to him when he returned home and she didn't want to say it to his dead body.
Tafari had taken a seat in the living room, watching, Aella had gotten his hunting bag and had started loading it up with fruit, nuts and whatever else she could find that will make this at least a little more easier for him but stopped as she noticed his hunting knife on the bench, picking it up she walked over and placed it with the rest of his hunting stuff.
"I think we will leave..." Aella started as Tafari shook his head.
"No, please, Aella, put it in my bag, I might as well take something with me if only for protection, I may not be able to hunt anymore but I can still use my knife for protection purposes" he said as he smiled a little at her as she nodded and stuck it into the bag.
"That is it" Aella said as she shut the bag "I apologize but you are going to have to find your own water" she said, knowing not what to place some of their water supply into "I hope you don't mind" she said, knowing it was a bit more work for him but still, there wasn't anything she could do.
"That is fine" he said as he placed the semi heavy bag over his head and let it rest over his shoulders, it wasn't easy to carry given he wasn't as strong as he used to be but he could cope with it "thank you my dearest Granddaughter" he said as he hugged her once more and kissed her cheek "when Lust wakes up tell her something, I don't want you to lie to her but I want this to be a surprise so it is a small white lie you are going to have to tell her, but thats fine, it doesn't matter, just let her believe something and that I will be coming home" he said as she nodded, kissed his cheek and pulled away, tears falling from her eyes once more as she went to open the door.
"I will, Grandfather, please, take care, be safe and I will see you when you return...oh wait!" she said as she ran back upstairs and into her and her mothers room quietly and took the bottle of rose water that was sitting on the table next to the bed and rand back downstairs with it "here, you might as well take it" she said as she placed the corked bottle into the bag "you may not use it but it will keep your memories fresh of mom" she said as he reached out and kissed her cheek once more.
"Thank you sweetheart, just make sure you make more for your mother alright?" He said as Aella nodded and watched him walk out the door, stopping to look back at her and smiled a little "goodbye my darling, I will be back as quick as I can, I love you" he said as he started walking away, hearing Aella call goodbye as she closed the door and left Tafari to fend for himself and try and find out where to go.
