[ P ] still feels like the storms not dying

( set after the parade, but before dahlia goes to meet hask)

NORA SEAFARER
still feels like i can't stop crying

Once the parades had finished the little family made their way home. It was getting late and the walk had been exhausting, but something was keeping Nora up. The girls had gone to bed and Anteros slept soundly beside her but she just couldn't get the look in Dahlia's eyes off her mind. She had been acting strangely upon her return and during the walk home. Instead of sleeping, Nora rose from the bed and wandered into her daughters room. The home was so large they did not have to share a space anymore and she noted that Hyacinth had decided to sleep on her own tonight. That left her alone with her other daughter -- the one who most resembled her despite her larger stature. She was a beautiful coastal mix of her and her father and Nora smiled softly as she ran a paw over her head where she lie in her bed, unknowing if she was sleeping or not.

"Sorry to wake you," she said softly. Nora settled down beside the bed, letting her gaze trail over her daughter's still form. "I noticed you were a little... quiet... on the way back. Is there something you want to tell me? Did something happen?" she asked. If someone had bothered her at the parade, she wanted to know so she could address it. If anything happened to any of her children she wanted to know. She wanted to be there for them as much as she could and as much as they'd let her.

code by claerie

Anxiety plagued her entire being, seeping into her bones and causing her to be jittery, on edge and agitated, like she had drank a thousand cups of coffee. She was silent for the entire walk home, keeping as much to herself as possible and even pushing Hyacinth away when she tried to play and wrestle with her. She was in no mood to speak, or talk, or exist, as recent conversations swirled in her head, as multiple voices repeated all the bad, bad things she had just found out.

When they arrived home, she immediately went to her room, not acknowledging the rest of her family. She remained there, skipping dinner and laid in her bed well into the night. Sleep evaded her, so she just stared out of her window, watching the moon and stars rise, watching them twinkle as if all was right in the world.

But it wasn't. It really, really wasn't.

At some point, she must have drifted off, because the next thing she knew someone was touching her. Instantly, she flinched away, her body only relaxing minutely when her mothers voice met her ears.

"Sorry to wake you," she spoke softly, but Dahlia's muscles were tense all over again. She simply stared at her mother, wondering what to do.

"I noticed you were a little... quiet... on the way back. Is there something you want to tell me? Did something happen?" Dark blue ears pressed tightly to her crown as she leaned backwards, unable to answer right away. Did she even want to? Should she? Questions bubbled to the surface, threatening to be voiced upon her tongue, as she stared at her mother.

"Do I have... Did we have a brother?" she blurted out then, flushing from the embarrassment of speaking before she thought about it. But then again, she was impulsive, and this was eating her up inside. She needed the answers, now.

manip + code: clae

NORA SEAFARER
still feels like i can't stop crying

Nora could see that something was bothering her daughter and she sat by patiently waiting for her to speak up. She hoped Dahlia knew she could talk to her about anything, Nora tried to be there for all her children. But what came out of the girl's mouth was not something she'd ever expected, yet somehow simultaneously dreaded for a while now. Nora shifted her paws, blinking in surprise and allowing her lips to thin in a dissatisfied grimace. "Where did you hear that?" she asked curiously. It wasn't as though she'd tried to keep anything from her children, she was just doing what she thought was best by not talking about such tender topics to someone so young.

"You did... He was dead when he was born. I decided after some time to call him Kai," she said solemnly. She didn't know what else to say but the truth. Her heart ached as she thought of the little boy she'd lost. "I never told you because I didn't know how to and it didn't seem like the kind of thing you told children," she admitted, lowering her gaze momentarily. "But you're old enough now." she said. Maybe Dahlia would understand this.

code by claerie