After spending half a day on balancing the bills Cerin stood up from the desk for the first time since she had returned from her jog in the morning with a triumphant smile. As soon as she did the front door swung open and shut and light footsteps pounded in towards her, similarly a small but quick shadow blurred across the room and tackled itself into in Cerin's arms.
Cerin caught the little shadow with practised ease and hoisted it up onto the counter top to sit facing her. The little shadow or rather Ryella beamed up at Cerin with an enthused expression and began to speak at a pace almost faster than her mouth could speak up with.
" Aunt Cerin! Today my tutor said I could tell you that I was learning really well and I won't be behind at all when school starts up again. He also said that I should ask you if I wanted to continue with the lessons since I had caught up! He also said I should ask you if I could start learning some more advanced courses since Im learning so well! But aren't you proud of me? Since I caught up even though I was so far behind?"
Her large feline eyes sparkled up to Cerin with such pride that the older girl couldn't help but laugh out loud. At this moment the difference between the talkative child of now and the stray kitten of three months ago were so pronounced that it was impossible not to be pleased.
Although Ryella hasn't grown any taller and still looked much younger than her age it could now be traced down to genetics rather that malnutrition as she previously scrawny frame had mostly filled out and she now exuded a cherub like sweetness that couldn't be denied despite her naturally bratty features that had shown themselves as her face filled out. With feline shaped eyes, chubby cheeks that made one want to pinch them and a proud nose that seemed to be perpetually stuck in the air she looked every part the spoilt little schild of a rich family.
Cerin listened to the rest of the child's exited news and played along, smiling when appropriate and praising when needed before letting the child down to go greet her mother.
She sprinted into the room but then sprinted back out just as quickly with a confused expression. Ryella ran through the whole apartment with just as much urgency and finally arrived back in the kitchen with Cerin.
" Aunt Cerin? Did my mom go out? I can't find her."
Cerin shook her head and tried to remember if she had heard Serana going out but really couldn't remember. As well Serana rarely left the house anymore because of how large gher stomach had become, but when she did she would make sure to tell Cerin exactly where she was going and when she was back…. Something didn't feel right at all. Still she put on an easygoing expression to calm the rapidly panicking child and said.
" Ryella, did you say that you got some work to try here so you could see if you could handle the more advanced courses?"
Ryella nodded slowly but showed her confusion at the sudden switch in conversation.
" Yes."
Cerin nodded in approval and continued on in the same light hearted tone.
" Why don't you get started on that worksheet, I just remembered that I had your mom go out and do something for me so I'm going to get her now. Okay?"
Once her thoughts had been settled the little girl stopped thinking about it and went to do the special work, determined to prove herself as useful to Cerin.
Honestly she wasn't the type of child she put herself forth as around Cerin, bright and bubbly and was rather reserved when around others but she knew that seeing her being so bright made Cerin happy so at least while she was at home put forth the effort.
While Ryella focused on her work Cerin quickly prepared a small meal for her to eat and then slipped out of the apartment to look for the missing woman.
The car was missing so Cerin knew that she had gone out for a purpose. For some reason Serana treated it like one would a company car and never took it out for things that she had dubbed as personal reasons.
First Cerin checked all of the usual places, like the grocery stores and the markets then she checked the less usual places like book stores and even the college campus where Serana would soon be enrolled but the woman was nowhere to be found.
It was then that Cerin began to worry.
She took out her phone and began to contact all of the friends she had met at the gym through the gym wide group chat she had just recently been invited to and asked them if they had seen the woman who lived with her. She had taken Serana to the gym a couple of times so she could get some exercise with her, although her training wasn't nearly as intense as Cerin's, so they should know what she looked like.
Very quickly she received replied saying that they had not but they would help keep an eye out. Because the gym was one of a kind and handt opened any branches its members lived in various areas of the city which was why Cerin had thought to ask them.
While she waited on the other replies she continued to loop around the neighborhood and other places Serana might be in order to try to find her.
It was only after an hour that she finally got a response from one of the members who said that he had seen her.
Cerin's phone dinged loudly as she received a photo and she opened the file.
As the file slowly loaded the worried expression on the younger girls face deeped and deepened and she broke into a run in the opposite direction she had been walking in.