Her hollow wish has been answered in the familiar sight of her mother drawing closer. There is something almost like relief in the pit of her abdomen as she watches her, though it is a bare echo in the shadow of her grief. Still, it is enough to tear at the fragile threads holding her precariously together, for the moment Ryatah draws her into her embrace, silent tears begin to slip down her cheeks.
She has been holding them back for far too long and they would not be stemmed any longer.
Noel does not shudder or wail as another might. In fact, if one weren’t looking, they might not even notice her heartbreak tracking liquid lines down her pale face. She doesn’t even try to blink them away though. Not here, not anymore. For the first time since her world had been shattered inside a soft, misty glen, she allows herself to be vulnerable. There is no one here she must remain strong for.
When her mother releases her, Noel draws an unsteady breath, eyes pulling tightly closed as she tries to steady herself. Ryatah does not press her, and for that she finds herself inordinately grateful. Once she is able to trust her voice enough to speak, she opens watery brown eyes and looks at her mother’s comforting features.
“How did you do it?” she asks, hopelessness shadowing the pits of her face. She cannot stop the new wave of tears that track fresh paths down her cheeks. “How did you… carry on?”
- noel
@Ryatah