[private] we're the wild ones

[Vastra]

It had meant to be a simple question, one Vastra vaguely remembers her mother asking her before their world fell apart, but she regrets it when she can see Chel giving it serious thought as though the answer to the question troubled her. At first Vastra thinks the girl must be having nightmares, but that turns out not to be true. Still, the concern in Chel’s gaze makes Vastra’s heart squeeze in a way she didn’t know what possible. It wounds her to see her baby girl so worried, and before she even thinks about it she moves forward to press her muzzle against Chel’s spotted head - purring soft reassurances. “It is. I don’t remember most of mine - or they fade before I’m fully awake.” It is mostly true, anyway. Sometimes the worst dreams linger, but she’d prefer Chel to remember no dreams at all than to remember only the dark ones. In an effort to undo what her fumbling attempts at motherhood had just done, she steps back and crouches in a playful stance, her spotted tail flicking behind her as a devious smile brightens her stormy eyes. “Come on, let’s see how big of a tree you can climb.” v a s t r a

artwork by space1993

@[Chel]