Raina obediently walked to her father"s side. Her eyes shifted to the ground as his hand raised to caress her cheek. A quick flinch brought a frown to his face. Clovis reached for the string securing the cloth to her ear and she shook her head."Kimi say no." she says softly and Clovis stopped, confused. He vaguely remembered a Kimi being a.s.signed to watch over Raina… but she shouldn"t be giving the child orders.
"Rain, Kimi is a servant. You are a princess. What Kimi tells you to do does not matter, what you want matters. So let me ask you this: Do you want to hide your pretty smile from your Father?" Clovis patiently corrected her, letting her process his words. She was young but this should make sense to her if he gave her time. She was nearly four now and spoke well, even if imperfectly.
The torrent of emotions in the child"s head made her soft eyes stormy. If she told, Kimi would be angry. If she lied Father would be unhappy if he found out. She wanted Kimi to like her so Kimi would play with her. At that moment the image of Kimi playing ball with her and laughing popped into her mind. That would be so much fun. Then she thought of Clovis and the disappointed look he would have if he found out she had not told him.
Raina was torn. She didn"t want Daddy and uncle to fight. They argued a lot because of her already. Sometimes they even got physical. Grandpa and the Grandmas never said anything, but she knew they didn"t like it either. However, Daddy trusted her. If she didn"t tell him wouldn"t that be dishonest?
The second hurt more than the first one was worth. "No…" she slipped the cloth off herself to reveal the bruised swollen cheek beneath.
The instant rage overcame the shock as Clovis tilted her head in the light. A handprint followed her cheek and side of her neck. There was no way this 25 pound child was standing after the force behind it. The ring mark on her neck, a small indentation spoke volumes of who had hit her. Writing his name on her skin in ink wouldn"t have made it more clear.
His eyes softened as he saw the fear and shame on his baby girls face. "What happened?" he asked softly bracing himself for the worst. He knew how shameless his brother could be. The little one lifted her hands to him, asking to be picked up. With one hand he scooped her up and settled her onto his hip while the other was on her back. She laid her head on his shoulder.
"Cousin wanted my good luck charm. I said no. My friend face it to me. He called me a liar. He said i didn"t have any friends i must have stolen it. Daddy you saw her give it to me… you saw." she whispered looking up at him, pleading him to remember. For a split second he froze, looking into those eyes. He had no idea what he was suppose to have seen but he nodded.
"Rain, are you talking about your pendant?" he asked motioning to the silver and amethyst charm attached to her sash. Clovis knew he made a mistake when her little heart shattered in her eyes.
"No… my real good luck charm. From my warrior lady." she said almost sulkily. He was still at a loss till he noticed the silver clip still on her ear. A light sparked in his head and he ran a finger over the clip.
"You mean this little trinket?" he asked really looking at it for the first time. It was wonderfully crafted of silver, swirls and flourishes etched into the metal. A single purple stone, seemingly hollow, held in place by 3 thin silver strands that looked like vines. It really was very pretty. A single silver chain fell from it behind her ear and a little claps dangled there. "We need to find a pretty feather to dangle from it." he added as her eyes lit up.
"So… I can keep it?" she asked her eyes hopeful. He chuckled at her childish energy.
"You can wear it every day if you like. I"ll see to it." the little one smiled and hugged her father. She didn"t see the pain in his face or anger in his eyes. This was far from settled.