HOTARU
Hotaru sighs against her sister's skin, eyelashes brushing against it as she blinks slowly. A closeness she would sacrifice so much for. This, in many ways, was worth so much of the pain. How she had wished in Helovia to be able to hold her loved ones like this. She had been granted her wish, but at the cost of having so few loved ones to pull close now. "Perhaps it's better that way," she points out softly, still caught in the memories of her previous life. Could she even make that distinction? Was it another life? Or merely another realm? Hotaru doesn't know where to draw the line. "It's hard enough to know Kiada remembers. I wouldn't wish it upon you, the kind of clarity we have." If she could spare them all the horror, the trauma, the pain of how their lives had been lived and how they had...ended. She would do it.
Hotaru reaches a hand to pull gently at Rexanna's hair, small smile at her lips and a spark to her eye that was kindling, small embers sparking to try to chase away the pain of remembrance. "Give her time, Rex. Actions speak louder than words." It seemed so simple and plain to her, but she knew how hard it was to wait for the forgiveness you so desperately needed. To be separated in any way from your child if you loved them even the smallest amount. Hotaru would not advocate for Rexanna or use her connection to Kiada to draw the two closer - she'd never betray Kiada's trust like that. But she would give advice where she could, and keep them both full of love and company at all times she was near them.
Nearness is all she cares about now. As Rexanna's vow reaches her ears, Hotaru soaks it in, lets it fill her soul to the brim. Lets herself be led to the guest room, one hand clutching the blankets to keep them over her slight frame and the other still hanging tight to Rexanna's. It's a comfortable room, with a bed softer than she has had in a long time, and the Valkyrie does not wait to fall into it. Her mind is more exhausted than her body, but even still it aches with travel. She had scarcely stopped or slept since the destruction of Helovia, and now she can finally rest. Rexanna slips in behind her, and Hotaru lays her arm down on her sister's as it finds her waist. There is no heartbeat to feel at her back, no breaths to match, but it doesn't matter to her the eccentricities her sister's new form bring.
Sleep does not come easily, mind still abuzz with questions. Hotaru reasons that it is daytime for Rexanna, and lets her quiet voice fill the room. "You know what I miss most?" My family. My parents. My Goddess. My children. My title. My land. My home. "I miss those damned hotsprings," she laughs incredulously, interlacing her fingers through Rexanna's over her stomach where it vibrates with her mirth. It's a pleasant memory, one she would rather dwell on than all she has lost.
it's our nature, we destroy
it's the constant of our kind
no matter the color of blood, man will always fall
