Chapter 77: Beautiful and Ominous

One milky session later, Anne and Daniel are seated across from each other with their respective canvases. The young man has to admit that a lot of his usual morning churn has been freed up after finding no fault in his slime mother's email responses.

Truly a terrifying assistant who literally knows best.

'Mary is in for a treat if Mother is the same,' Daniel thinks, his lips rising just imagining his counterpart's tears of joy.

So, with more time to paint, he begins working on the final touches to the Stonehenge painting that Lecia requested. Unknowing of her total involvement, though, he recalls her words:

Yes, a shadow cast by the fire: a form of indescribable force that is both beautiful and ominous, brought to this Earth...for better or worse.

'What does she know, really?' he thinks, rubbing his chin. 'Marlin explained to Mary that he believes a green fire represents a form of summoning. If that's true, then the so-called shadow formed from the light must obviously be...'

Stretching that thought, he peaks over to Anne, who is starting a project that's been delayed for too long. Her focus is admirable as she pencils in the structure of the well-built commissioner; in particular, one who couldn't decide on a proper "manly" pose for a whole month until today.

Disregarding the absurdity of the painting to be, his slime mother feels her son's gaze and perks up.

"What is it?"

"Mom, just wanted to say: You are both beautiful and ominous."

Anne frizzes out. "Wha...What's with that so suddenly?! Mama is not ominous!"

Daniel snorts, unable to keep his face straight anymore. "I mean, that's how Lecia described the 'shadow' that should be added to this painting."

"If anything, that makes her the ominous one, not me!"

"Maybe, but a star did disappear due to a rumbling hole in your magical space. I think that makes you credibly ominous."

"Well, I think there are assumptions in your logic, so that makes you credibly stupid. Hmph!"

Snapping back to the canvas indignantly, her son laughs more freely. "Wow, ouch. Forget I said anything then."

Anne breaks into a smile and shakes her head. "Ignoring possible doom, the relation to the stars is fitting, though, isn't it? Amy did say that she'd be watching you from the stars."

Daniel's eyes soften as he returns his own gaze to his canvas. "Never did I think to take that literally. Either way, is that true when I have you here?"

"Of course!" Anne huffs, lifting her chest before making a few more strokes. "As her successor, I'd like to think she's watching over me too."

"More like judging," the artist corrects. "Let's not deny how she would really feel. I have her memories and know her nearly as well now."

Feigning a cough, Anne leans into the canvas more. "Okay, fine. Mama will admit she'd be judging due to our intimacy, but none of that matters since I now overrule. You are free to be more appreciative of your new loving mothers, okay?"

"How ominous."

"...It seems my dear son is asking for a spanking. Amy would certainly not disapprove of that."

"Sorry, I meant the Stonehenge painting I'm working on."

Anne tilts out from behind her easel again, squinting her eyes as she attempts to peer through her son's current poker face. Unsuccessful, however, she relents and continues her sketch.

"You know what else is ominous? Seeing you and Mary hiding something about Vivi-Mama."

Daniel's brush stutters. After holding himself in place for a second, he sets the tool down with a sigh.

"Only for a bit," he admits, closing his eyes. "It's mainly because I still need to organize my thoughts on the matter. Was it that obvious?"

Anne hums. "A little. Vivi-Mama's likely aware there's more to the fog than just your claims, too. At the very least, can you tell me what's causing your hesitation?"

Breathing out again, Daniel crosses his arms. He sees no reason to keep it from his first slime mother. "Well, we heard the same cry that haunted her in the fog."

Similar to her son, the slime mother's pencil stutters as well. She grimaces as bitter memories of her elder sister's time replay in her mind.

"It...does make sense considering the fog resembles her memories, but I don't see why that would-"

"Unlike Mother, however," Daniel continues, thinning his lips. "We were able to travel and find the source of the cry."

"W-what!?" Anne shouts, jerking up to her feet. "Don't draw it out, sweetie. What did you see?"

If she's feeling this shocked on behalf of her elder sister, one can only imagine how the lake dweller would personally react to such revelation. After all, the imprisoned slime went through centuries of hearing the same, repeated cry in the distance, yet was always trapped in a lake area that prevented her from seeking out.

Now, all of a sudden, two artists hold the answer to what she's been seeking for so long. The anticipation is enough to make anyone go crazy.

Daniel raises his hands up with a slight nervous laugh. "W-whoa, Mom, this is exactly why we didn't mention it. Turns out, as we got close, we saw the same dark-haired woman with blue eyes, holding a covered baby."

Anne blinks a few times. "Seriously...her again?"

She slumps back into her chair, her own aggregated mind racing. "So, you're saying this woman we've been seeing so far saved a baby that was haunting my sister?"

"It seems that way. She even mentioned the baby as 'abandoned'."

"...Abandoned? But...why?" the slime mother whispers before narrowing her eyes and speaking clearly. "No, before that, we still don't know who this woman truly means to my sister. Further, if this baby was going to end up being saved anyway, why would it call out for so long?"

Daniel hums. "This is where I'm not so certain, but...I think I caught some strands of silver hair on the baby head before she disappeared."

His slime mother's mouth hangs for a moment. "Wait, you're not suggesting that..."

Daniel nods, his gaze narrowing. "My guess is that the baby that cried was Viviane herself."

"That's..."

Letting her thoughts move forward first, Anne presses a hand to her lips before continuing, "Meaning, this woman is an important mother figure for Viviane, but then...no, something is wrong. If my sister was found as a baby, wouldn't that imply she was once...human?"

"See, that's what I've been considering. In any case, we need to think this through better, knowing how many more questions will arise."

"Ugh, this all sounds so eerie..."

Bzzz!

The two flinch, their thoughts disrupted by a sudden presence at the door. Swallowing her worry for her sister, Anne tries to reset.

"I don't believe you're expecting anyone today, right?"

Daniel was about to say, but at minimum, it could be package delivery. Hell, he wouldn't be surprised if a neighbor finally came to address the increased noises in his apartment.

"Don't worry, I'll get it," he assures, standing up. "We'll discuss this more when Mary is here, okay?"

"Alright, but first, you probably should wipe off that milk mustache."

Gasping, the artist swipes over his lips, and indeed, finds such liquid stealthily lining his face. Flushing red, he stares at his slime mother with disbelief. "Don't tell me, have you known this whole time and didn't say anything?"

Anne closes her eyes, bearing innocence. "Yep!"

"Why didn't you tell me?!"

She promptly frowns and turns away. "Why? My son is a grown man. He shouldn't need his Mama to tell him to how to take care of himself with every little thing."

Daniel's eye twitches at her creeping smile. 'This slimy...'

The front buzzes again, forcing him to give up. Exhaling out his annoyance, he double-checks to make sure there's no further sweetness on his face before entering the hallway.

Upon opening his front door, he stiffens.

Perfectly centered, and wearing a light pink turtle-neck sweater, Rachel tilts to the side with an embarrassed smile.

"Hello, dear, sorry for the sudden visit! I just felt like dropping by."

Staring blankly, Daniel forces himself to relax and steps aside, lifting himself with the brightest smile that he can muster. "Oh, there's no problem. Please, come in!"

There are definitely worse times for an unannounced visit, so the artist just counts his blessings that it's when Mary and Viviane are away.

With the artist's permission, the astronomer walks in, then joins him through the hallway until a pencil drops. Looking to the source, she catches a frozen, wavy-haired girl at her easel, whose eyes slowly light up as if an angel had descended.

"Rachel!" Anne squeals.

Breaking from her surprise, the slime mother hurriedly stands to attention, but nearly stumbles on the wooden flooring in doing so. Undeterred, she's about to hug her friend before she stops herself midway.

Mentally slapping herself, she cringes. 'Calm your Amy down, seriously!'

The older woman before places a hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle, then nods her head towards her fellow sparkle-eyed star enthusiast.

"Hello there, Anne."

"Ah...yes, hi! It's good to see you again!"

Rachel only chuckles in response, then takes a moment to scan the studio a little. Of course, she finds no sign of the black symbol Lecia caught in the open. It could've been put away as well, knowingly or not.

'God, what am I doing?'

With such thought, the astronomer clears her throat in shame. Coming to visit while holding suspicions against her friend's son and his girlfriend was never her intention, but fortunately, it's only a small, passing opportunity to check up with the couple.

Thus, she moves on, raising her hands to prevent any pressure for them to show unneeded hospitality. "Actually, would you two like to go out for lunch together? I had originally driven out here to meet a colleague, but she annoyingly canceled plans at the last minute. So, I figured I might better use the time to catch up with a fellow science lover."

She winks towards the wavy-haired girl, who inhales sharply. Meanwhile, Daniel notices how he's unfairly left out of the catch-up as someone who apparently isn't a "science lover".

'Isn't this good?' he thinks, keeping a smug grin to himself. 'With Mom's knowledge, I'll actually be able to follow...no, wait, that would be suspicious, wouldn't it?'

"Yes!" Anne nonetheless answers amid her son's troubled thoughts. She shakes him out of it as she tugs at his arm. "My boyfriend and I aren't in any critical stages of painting currently."

The artist opens his mouth for a second before closing it. He nods to his side, conceding. "As she says. Do you want to go now, Rachel?"

"If that's fine with you two, but I don't mind waiting a little if there's stuff you'd rather wrap up first. We can take my car as well."

"Then, I'm pretty sure we can leave straight away," Daniel assures, smiling. "Let me grab my wallet."

"Oh, there's no-"

However, her friend's son steps away, leaving the two women alone for a bit.

Huffing, the astronomer places her hands on her hips. "Honestly, that boy. All the times I've taken him out for lunch, and he still won't let me make it my treat."

The slime mother titters before leaning back with her hands behind her.

"Don't mind him! So, how is everything?" she asks.

"Absolutely bonkers," the astronomer answers, placing a hand on her forehead just thinking about it. "I'm sure you've heard of that missing star, right?"

Anne smiles crookedly. "Er, y-yes! Haha, can't really avoid knowing about it with all the news."

"Well, now I'm now part of a global effort with other labs to figure out why it just disappeared, but all our usual suspects for stars disappearing just aren't there."

"Meaning suspects like black holes or wave-inhibiting dust were dismissed?"

Lifting her brows for a moment, Rachel can't help but soften her gaze in delight. "Once again, Anne, it's a pleasure to talk to someone outside who understands well."

Quickly, the slime mother waves her hands. "T-that's not true at all! I have an interest and know some basics, but I'm no expert like you."

Such "expert" scoffs, smiling wryly. 'Hardly.'

While Rachel privately recognizes there's a connection between the Aquarius constellation and the ritual Lecia organized, it doesn't mean she can ignore more public research exploring other possibilities. There are simply too many variables to consider: astronomy, magic, and astrology, of all things.

To make matters stranger, she can't shake away a sense of familiarity with this bright girl. Simply speaking with her brings out high-energy and exciting times, like when Amy was around. While it may be just her, she remembers how this girl referenced certain star designations that aren't well known to the public.

"Anne, please don't be humble," the astronomer insists. "I still need to invite you to the lab, and I don't say such for someone who only knows 'basics'."

The slime mother wriggles her lips as she lowers her head. "Rachel..."

Daniel returns, ready to go. "Where are we heading?"

Rachel switches her gaze to the artist and hums. "I was originally going to meet for sushi at a new spot in the East, but now that's called off, we can go anywhere you'd like."

Anne raises her head and gasps. "Oh, I don't mind sushi! I'm assuming this colleague works with you at the laboratory?"

The astronomer chuckles, closing her eyes rigidly. "Well, something like that..."

It was actually a meeting with Lecia; however, she said that other matters had come up. While that's to be expected for such a busy woman, her tone was rather...alarming.

Rachel, I...need you to be careful, okay? Please lay low for the time being.

The astronomer knits her brows when thinking about it. 'What exactly is going on?'

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