good at goodbyes
The weight of the world felt tied to her back. Returning to Ischia had been far more dramatic than she could ever have imagined and even sooner than she would have liked it to be. Having fulfilled her lifelong dream of becoming a sworn Brother, the taste of her accomplishment tasted bitter upon her tongue. Of late her heart and mind had been elsewhere, torn away from the things that had once risen in importance. Now her loyalty had been sworn to her father’s cause, painting a clear path before her. Determined to remain steadfast despite the aching of her slowly breaking heart.
It was because of Klaudius’ own foolishness that had led to his eventual capture by Loess. Mosrael understood so much more now than she had before, something she credited greatly to her renewed trust. Still, the idea of his submitted to the consequences of his actions filled her with an uneasy sense of dread and uncertainty. Too many conflicting emotions plagued her, and she knew that they would only grow stronger the longer she was forced to wait upon the final word of his condemnation. He was flawed, she understood that potentially better than most, but did he deserve to be punished so cruelly?
Countless times she had felt her feet carry her towards her father with the intention to beg for his mercy. To plead with him to intercede on her behalf, if he loved her as a father did. The nearer she drew to him, of course, her steps would falter in their confidence and she would remember that her father was a just king and Klaudius had slighted him more times than Mosrael cared to admit. Besides her inexplicable, and unadvisable, affections toward him, Brennen had no other motivation to spare the lavender stallion.
Tear burnt eyes drift towards Kove as she played within the chilly shallows of the lagoon. Her once vibrant child had grown lonely and cautious since her accident back on Tephra. Not only was the trauma still fresh in her mind, but she desperately wished for the companionship of her twin. Not a day passed that Mosrael didn’t worry upon Ketzia and her decision to remain inland. Daily Kove would ask about her and Klaudius, begging to see them again – a desire Mosrael was powerless to satisfy. They were gone, stretched thinly upon the land and the thought had occurred to her that they may never meet again.
In the midst of her sadness, however, there was hope and the bay mare suspected that Kove’s longing for companionship would end with spring’s arrival. It was hard to ignore the signs that she had missed a year ago. The stirring within her and the gradual growth of her middle. Of course, Klaudius was the father, who else could be? The details of their union remained foggy, almost like a dream. If she hadn’t felt the child within her she would have doubted its reality entirely. New worries brewed alongside her realization of pregnancy and she had yet to even admit her weakness to Brennen, worried that he would question her vows as a Kraken.
Exhaling sharply, she felt as if she would be crushed beneath the influence of her many secrets. She was home, she conceded, even if large pieces of her were missing.
@[Kove]