Tender memories of a guitar playing in the warm plains of Pleasant Park, on the rooftop, overseeing the mountains straight ahead. Next to Jade, her mother sat, she was the one playing the guitar. A beautiful melody that made her heart melt, she would take these secret escapades with her mother to sing along, improvising.
Her father and younger sister were more in the stern side, he would prefer to focus on weaponry since this island existed to fight mostly.
Thankfully Jade had her mother. She was there to let her express herself artistically, these small moments were pieces of paradise that let her breathe and be herself to her heart’s content.
This time, the melody sounded slower, more lazy apparently, small Jade felt her mom touch her own hand, a smile beamed on her lips:
“I think this is our last secret concert little angel.”
Jade pouted and frowned, she crossed her arms and threw a tantrum, as any five years old would if she was deprived of her favorite way to play. “I want another! I wanna sing with mummy! Daddy only wants me to learn to shoot guns like he does with Veronica!” His father was indeed more keen of her sister.
“I know little Angel… but mom has to go… on a trip to visit Tilted…” she kissed her head softly, her voice tired.
“I wanna go with you to Tilted mum! You go everyday! I don’t like staying with daddy!”
Her mom understood her feelings, she also knew that her father only wanted to protect her, she knew that… Jade couldn’t follow her, not this once…
“Papa only wants to make you strong, not everyone is gonna play nice with you when you grow up Angel. And mum is gonna… take a while…” She stood silent for some seconds. “Jade… No matter what… I love you.”
Jade only crossed her arms more, of course she replied back to her mom: “Love you too mum…”
She then tried to help her daughter going inside the house, Jade jumped inside her window and went to bed. Her mother stood with her until the morning, stroking her hair, kissing her forehead. She did the same with her other daughter, Veronica. When the sun appeared in the sky, she made her way to Tilted, to a special medical wing that treats terminal patients with cancer.
Only after a few years Jade would process the frail condition her mother was, knowing she would sneak out of the hospital so she could have been to be with her family until her body allowed her, but not wanting her family to see her suffering in the end. It was her last wish and her husband complied.
He raised two little girls: Power Chord and Bullseye in the arts of gun fighting, knowing that was the future of the island. Being a strict father, he did not approve of Jade’s soft behaviour and her music choices in life. Her musical talent would be a secret most of the time, and this clash of ideologies would be the breaking point as Jade would one day sneak away from her house and join the newly founded Academy for hunters.
