Helena sighed as she peered through the window at the guardian that protected her grove. The wooden golem’s once pristine features were faded and chipped away from years of fighting. She could sense the magic holding the thing together fading, and soon she would have to make another. The witch-hunters’ frequent attempts to capture her may be laughable, but they had a strength in numbers that couldn’t be ignored.

Shaking her head, Helena turned from the wilting flower that was her golem towards her storeroom to begin the preparations for creating a new protector. The spell was a simple one to cast; the hard part was carving the shape of the golem. The more intricately detailed the carving was, the stronger the golem would be, but she was getting older and the carving got more difficult every time.

Nevertheless, Helena got out her tools and began working. First she got the general shape of a humanoid; cutting off huge pieces of wood in the process. Next she carved the anatomy of a well-muscled human. Even in her old age, her wood carving skills were on par with that of the most skilled sculptors in the human cities. Lastly, she carved the details of its face. While the rest of the body is that of a generic non-specific human, she tended to subconsciously sculpt the face to resemble humans she felt fondness for decades ago. This, of course, made it all the more difficult to watch the golem deteriorate over time.

The carving was complete, and it was time to bring the golem to life. Helena retrieved a glowing green stone from her storeroom and held it on to the golem’s chest. She muttered an incantation so ancient that time has long forgotten it’s meaning, and the glowing green color faded from the stone. After a moment, the eyes of the golem shot open; glowing the same as the stone did. The golem turned its head to Helena and opened its mouth to speak.

“Mother?” The golem asked slowly, with a strained and quiet voice.

Helena gaped at it for a moment. In all her six-hundred years of living she had never heard of a golem speaking before.

“Umm.. Hello.” Helena replied after a long deliberation.

“Mother!” The golem said, now visibly excited. It curled it’s lips into a smile; another action that Helena had never seen before.

“What is your name?” Helena asked, feeling slightly foolish for talking to a golem of all things. The golem pondered a moment, before responding “Lief!”

“Ok, Lief. Are you a boy or a girl?” At this question, Lief’s head tilted to the side much like a dog’s would when they’re confused.

“That’s ok Lief. You don’t have to be either. So… Umm…” Helena paused. She really had no idea what to do here. A golem has never come to life like this before. But, she had to admit, Lief reminded her so much of the small children who used to play in the grove… before the witch-hunters came.

“What do you want out of life,” Helena decided to ask.

Again, Lief pondered. Their movements were stiff but more natural than any golem Helena had seen before.

“I want to… help mother!” Lief exclaimed with a large smile on their face.

It was true that Helena had dreamed of having a child for many years, but this was decidedly not what she envisioned. The excited personality of a child that Lief had was in stark contrast to the tall and well-muscled wooden body Lief inhabited. The bodies of previous golems never gave her any pause, but the fact that one calling her mother wasn’t wearing any clothes was slightly uncomfortable, even though she hadn’t sculpted anything revealing in the wood. She decided to dress Lief in one of her black robes for the time being.

“This robe is wonderful,” Lief said with genuine awe, “thank you mother!”

Helena had to admit that Lief’s raw enthusiasm was rather growing on her.

The day went on and Helena took Lief on a tour of the grove. In that time she got to learn more about Lief and how they don’t know how or why they are different from other golems, but they have a sort of instinctual knowledge on things they like, want, and need. Lief apparently doesn’t need to eat, drink, or sleep. Helena figured as much but it was good to have confirmation.

As the sun started to hang low in the sky, Helena and Lief retired to the cottage. While Lief may not need to sleep, Helena did. She thought for a moment on how to entertain her… child… while she slept.

“Lief, I need to sleep for the night. Would you be interested in browsing through my library while I do? It might be good to get you caught up on the things you don’t know.”

“Sure Mother,” Lief responded with just as much enthusiasm as they reply to everything.

Nodding, Helena closed her bedroom door and laid in her bed. She was… a mother now? The golem she made was now a person. She made Lief, and she couldn’t very well throw them out now. She would have to find another solution to the witch-Hunter raids but she’d cross that bridge when she got to it.

Helena drifted to sleep imagining the clothes she’d weave for Lief in the morning; all the long lost hopes and forgotten dreams of having a child flooding back to her.