Chapter 18: Umuriro

Looking into the flame she focused on the figure and could make out the outline of a woman. Then she saw the bushy head of hair surrounding her slim face.

"Is that me?" She asked him but he shock his head. She looked closer and saw the woman had a little bundle in her arms as she ran in place.

"Is that, is that my mother?" She asked watching the woman occasionally peaking over her shoulder.

"Yes, is the question of what happened to your birth parents burning inside you?" The giant asked diminishing the flame. Then resting his hand on his knee. He dint wait for Sionna to reply.

"Fire is apart of every flame, even the intangible ones." He said while rising and addressing Caith.

"I will build you both a weapon, one that the fire chooses for you."

"Here is a chest full of weapons, feel free to use their metal. What you don't use for ours you can turn into whatever you please. I have more chests in the carriage I can bring to you as well." Caith said holding out the chest still in his hands.

Umuriro took the chest from him and setting it down on the table he peered inside.

"Bring another chest, this is more then enough but I am need something particular and this doesn't have it." He spoke to Caith as he pulled a sword from the small chest.

Caith gave Umuriro a nod before heading back out the black smith holding the door for Sionna. However she wasn't ready to leave.

"Umuriro, how did you know about my parents. I still don't understand, is there a way the fire could show me what happened?"

Umuriro was inspecting a metal shield that he had just pulled from the chest. He looked over it to make eye contact with the tiny girl facing him.

"I didn't know about your parents, the flame did." His gold eyes were shining with the reflection of the fire as he said the last sentence even softer. "The fire might be able to tell you what happened to them. Just remember it is never recommend to play with fire and that the past is meant to stay exactly where it is." He then turned back to the chest while setting the shield down.

Sionna watched the giant for a minute before exiting the smith shop with Caith.

Her head with was spinning with what had just happened. Her Papa's friends often used magic and would make it appear in the palm of their hands like Umuiro did for her entertainment. Yet she had never seen anything in the flames before.

"You never saw anything in the flames because you didn't desire for anything at the time." Caith said out loud in reply to her thoughts.

"So you can hear my thoughts!" She nearly screamed at him, "why didn't you tell me until now?" She asked jumping in front of him and stopping him in his tracks.

"All shapeshifters can read thoughts, you just haven't figured out how to do it yet," Caith said calmly waiting for her to move out of his way.

"And your an ice giant? That's why you can use magic without a wand or staff." She questioned him while tilting her head up at him.

"My father was an ice giant, I am only half ice giant." He said with little emotion in his voice. "Fire giants are notoriously warm and friendly, he probably calls everyone who walks into that shop his brother."

"And being calm and collected all the time is a ice giant quality?" She said raising an eyebrow at the man.

"Yes, from my previous experiences with them I would consider that true." Sionna was speechless at Caith's reply. They talked for almost two days of travel and he didn't bother to disclose any of this to her.

"You never asked," Caith answered shrugging her off and gently stepping around her.

Angrily Sionna chased after him jogging to keep up with his steady pace.

"Can you at least stop reading my thoughts?" She huffed angrily.

"If you make them a little quieter yes, your inner voice is very loud and hard to not hear." He said now turning to look at her, his blue eyes sparkling in the sunlight. "I don't mean to take away from your privacy, hearing thoughts is just something I can do." Be paused and crinkled his forehead as if deep in thought. "I have always heard people's thighs my whole life. My mother tried to help me control it but I think because of my fathers magic it's harder to mute people's thoughts. That's why I like to live away from people. They are very loud thinkers." He said now looking at the road in front of him.

Sionna watching the man now with a curiosity in her eyes. It must be odd always hearing everything people say. In fact he was probably hearing this.