my held breath fills the room with blood
hurting in ways I can't describe
Flora shifts backwards. Trusting, complacent. Hopeful in a way that slowly and painfully scoops every piece of Hotaru’s insides out through her esophagus, which burns with a fire no amount of swallowing fixes.
As Flora straightens she nimbly buttons the front of the cloak, and her eyes beseech Sah from a distance. His offer to take Enzo stands, and Hotaru cannot bear to answer her daughter until the Thunder has her son in his arms and is taking him away. “Flora,” she says softly, in that voice you hear before all bad news, and she isn’t sure how it doesn’t tremble. All her strength right now is for and because of the young woman in her arms, and the power of it is the only reason she continues on. “Flora, honey. I tried to heal him the second I touched his skin, okay? I couldn’t. He’s gone.” Gone, and having taken nearly everything left in Hotaru with him.
As Flora straightens she nimbly buttons the front of the cloak, and her eyes beseech Sah from a distance. His offer to take Enzo stands, and Hotaru cannot bear to answer her daughter until the Thunder has her son in his arms and is taking him away. “Flora,” she says softly, in that voice you hear before all bad news, and she isn’t sure how it doesn’t tremble. All her strength right now is for and because of the young woman in her arms, and the power of it is the only reason she continues on. “Flora, honey. I tried to heal him the second I touched his skin, okay? I couldn’t. He’s gone.” Gone, and having taken nearly everything left in Hotaru with him.
my heart bends and breaks
so many, many times
HOTARU
