Kindling a new relationship

Dahl was crying in my arms, letting out all the emotions she had been trying to contain and repress until now.

"There, let it all out. You've been very brave today, Dahl." I said, gently patting her head, before looking at Marion, smiling. "Thank you for giving her a chance, Marion. You have no idea how much this was eating away at her."

"Y-you're welcome... I'm just... so confused right now..." She timidly replied. "Even with the proof earlier, it's so hard to see you as monsters..."

"We may not be human anymore, no, but it doesn't necessarily mean that our emotions and personalities have been altered, you know? Our minds are still mostly the same." I spoke before giggling. "I did find a new passion for makeup and fashion, though, so some things did change."

"I... have so many questions..."

"And we'll give you the answers you seek, don't worry. She just needs a bit of time to recover." I said, hugging Dahl more tightly and giving her a kiss on her forehead.

Marion raised an eyebrow. "Hmm, are you...?"

"Together? Yeah. You can see me as your step-mom if you'd like." I replied in a joking tone.

My joke immediately took her aback. "Huh?"

"It's kinda weird to think about it, though. Especially since we're so close in term of age. I am technically twenty-three and you're what, eighteen?"

"Seventeen..." Dahl muttered as she broke free from the hug, having calmed down a bit. "She'll be eighteen next August, on the fifth."

Marion nodded. "Y-yeah."

Dahl wiped her tears and smiled weakly. "I'm feeling better, I'm sorry for that..."

"Are you... really my father?" Marion asked. "It's still so... surreal..."

"The... man... I used to be is long gone, but yes..."

"But... you're a woman, now?"

"Honestly... I might have always been one, looking back." Dahl replied with a rueful chuckle. "But this appearance is due to my abilities as a skinwalker."

I held one of my arms in front of me and freed my own spines, eliciting a small gasp from Marion. "Like Dahl said earlier, we skinwalkers use these spines coming out of our fingers to turn humans into hollow skins that we can wear, absorbing their souls in the process. We get access to all of their memories and are able to wear any skin, no matter the gender or size. Although, skinning a human doesn't mean killing them, we can 'restore' them afterwards, and tweak their memories if needed."

I cut an opening around my hand and pulled on it to remove it. It wasn't easy, I hadn't removed Seo-Yun's skin at all since we revealed the truth to Laura, and it felt like it really didn't want me to leave, even temporarily. But still, with some efforts, I managed to free my original hand underneath, and it was a sight I wasn't very pleased with, in all honesty. I was only comfortable when I was fully Seo-Yun now.

Marion stared at my hand and the hanging part of Seo-Yun's skin, disgust and uneasiness clearly visible on her face.

"It's creepy, I know. My sister had a similar reaction when she learnt about it." I said as I slid my hand back inside Seo-Yun's, it hungrily attaching itself to me again. "Although, I still have my original skin for the time being, so it is probably slightly less disturbing."

"Original... skin?"

Dahl sighed. "The skinwalker curse slowly destroys our own skin... It slowly turns us into abominations that can't live without having to steal another person's skin... I can't show you any physical proof of who I used to be, because there's nothing left..." She then tried to sound more cheerful. "But well, not everything is bad. I've been able to easily explore the world and experience a multitude of different lives. The vast majority of skinwalkers are thrilled by the curse and the opportunities it gives. We can be anyone we want, anywhere we want."

"It sounds... scary..." Marion commented.

"It is. Especially since most skinwalkers are far more selfish and greedy than us. Be careful if you ever meet one, Marion, and please avoid hanging out around Westminster at all cost. That's where most of them are."

"O-okay..."

"In any case, I... don't really have any attachment to my old name anymore, so feel free to call me Dahlia. It's the life I've been living for the last two years and I don't plan to ever change that." Dahl said as she put a hand on her chest and gave Marion a friendly smile.

Marion stayed silent for a moment as she processed everything that happened. It was a lot to take in at once, so it was understandable.

"I... I'm not sure how I should react..." Marion finally said. "All of this... Learning that monsters exist... That my father and one of my idols are apparently monsters themselves... And that my father is now a woman..."

"I understand." Dahl replied, approaching the window overlooking the garden. "Do you... mind if I take a look?"

"N-no, it's fine, go ahead. Just be careful, please."

Dahl smiled. "I will, don't worry. Cecile told me off enough times that her teachings are still perfectly ingrained in my mind."

The two of them went outside, with me following them. Now that I could fully see it, the garden was truly impressive with how vibrant and full of colour it was. There were so many flowers of different shapes and colours. They went closer to a parterre of flowers similar to the ones Dahl bought, pink dianthus.

"They're truly beautiful. You really take care of them yourself?" Dahl asked as she crouched to examine them closer.

Marion nodded. "Yeah. I want to prove to my mother that I can succeed her."

Dahl smiled proudly. "You can definitely do it, Marion, and I'm sure Cecile knows it too."

I walked next to them and observed the flowers as well. "Unlike Dahl, I don't know much about flowers, but I do find them beautiful too."

"T-thank you." Marion replied a bit shyly before gazing at Dahl more seriously. "Are you going to... tell my mother too...?"

Dahl closed her eyes, letting out a quiet sigh. "I don't know... It's been fifteen years since the human I used to be has disappeared from this earth, there's no point reopening an old wound..."

"It's... a bit late for that... The picture already did it..." Marion said, looking away. As Dahl didn't reply, she continued. "You know... Mom... has been with another man for a while, but she still often spoke about you, always with this melancholic and loving smile... You were special to her."

"And she's special to me, too..."

"If you tell her, I'm sure she'll understand..."

Dahl made a sad smile. "Probably, just like she would probably have understood fifteen years ago... I've always been... a very cowardly person, deep down..." She took a deep breath before resuming, glancing at me. "But I need to change, I can't keep hurting those I love due to my cowardice... I'll talk to her."

I gave her an encouraging smile as Marion spoke. "Do you want to stay here until she's back?"

"If you're fine with it, yes."

Dahl wandered around the garden more, taking a closer look at the other flowers there.

"Did you... really travel around the world?" Marion asked as she was following Dahl.

Dahl nodded. "I visited every continent, and a multitude of countries on each one. There was this time I spent in China as an herbalist, trying to refine my knowledge on plants and flowers. I learnt how to use some of them for medicinal purposes, making balms and powders. It was... pretty relaxing. I could teach you what I know someday, if you'd like."

"M-maybe..." Marion replied shyly.

"And if you ever want to visit the US, don't hesitate to ask, Marion." I added, smiling warmly at her. "We'd be happy to host you and give you a tour."

"I'll... think about it..."

Marion and Dahl exchanged a bit more about the different flowers, Dahl asking Marion the methods she used to take care of them, praising her and sometimes giving her a few advice on how to make things more efficient. She was clearly overjoyed, smiling from ear to ear. She was finally able to bond with her daughter, something she's always regretted not being able to do before.

Better late than never, huh? I though as I observed them from afar, a big grin on my face.

I truly was relieved that everything went well, and hoped that it would stay that way. Hopefully, Cecile would be as understanding as Dahl and Marion believed.