Celeste felt the bottom of her stomach fall off to the ground as they walked through the creek side. Green grass that had grown to the size of her calf, clinging and rubbing on her floor-length white satin gown.
She lets out a long puff of breath that tries to suffocate her lungs, closing her eyes for a mere second before opening them to the blue water. A breeze blew and traveled through her white hair, swaying it gently over her nape and waist.
"Oh," Seha made as if remembering something, turning his body backward slightly to face Celeste, "And the pack leader is my father."
Her eyes zeroed in on him, mouth parting and making a tiny gap as she breathed out. Father?
Don't find hope in anything, Cele!
She warns herself. No, she can't think Seha will talk for her and do something to help her. But how can she not when her stupid mind is luring her to do just that?
"Was that necessary?" Ayz said.
"Was what necessary?" He asks back, eyebrows propping up, challenging. Ayz narrowed his eyes on Seha before snapping his head to the other side.
"Seha is that you?!" A voice, just as they stood before a giant but the same white stoned home as the two men's, startles Celeste out of her skin.
But when her gaze shot up to the mates standing before her they were nowhere near startled as she was, maybe they were immune to this.
This voice, too, was a woman's and it came from the right side. She cuts her eyes from Seha, turning to her right, and sees the lady coming out of a giant tree that was a few yards away from the house.
She was dressed in a similar tunic as Celeste's but not satin nor it was floor length; it was curled and stopped just below her knees.
Oh, and yeah, she was a young lady. Had her dark brown hair up in a bow, fringes touched the golden skin of her forehead and she had freckles scattered across her nose and cheeks.
She looked so similar to Seha.
Her rosy lips pulled into a wide smile as she dropped the vessel she was holding but which Celete failed to notice as she was charmed by her beauty, and ran toward them.
Celeste's mouth fell agape, confused but it all went away as she watched the girl leap forward and landed herself on Seha's chest.
"I know it's not too long after I've seen you last, but that doesn't do any good to how much I missed you." She says into his neck.
Seha's scent intensified as he rubbed his nose on her cheek, a smile bloomed on his lips as their scent intertwined. What was this, Celeste had never seen this.
She gave Seha a squeeze, "I missed you scenting me, too." Her eyebrows creased down, lips pressed into a tight-lipped smile, pulling away.
Scenting?
But it didn't take her long to launch herself on Ayz, yielding a mix of yelp and snort out of him. "Ah, I thought you didn't see me," he joked.
"Mmmh, well, you're too big to not see you." She tipped her head back into a laugh which Ayz joined light-heartedly. "Dad told me you'll be here two days for the night patrolling yesterday, but never thought you'd be coming today. What, something came up?" Her pearly white teeth tugged at her plump bottom lip, worriedly.
And Celeste stood there and stared, she hoped she was not that tiny to notice. As if she had voiced her thoughts out loud for the wolves to hear, the girl twirls her head in her way.
Her eyebrows creased the same way Seha's did when he was confused. "Oh, who's this?" She turns back to Seha— who Celeste assumes to be her brother.
"A refugee…" Seha's Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed.
Her eyes widened and zeroed in on Celeste, "A… refuge?" She let out a gasp when her gaze ranked down to Celsetes body. "Goddess! Seha, you gave her mother's clothes?" Her eyes cast a glassy hue as they found Seha's.
"I know… it's fine, okay?" He rubbed a reassuring hand down her arm.
"Is it really?"
Seha swallowed. "It is. it's… it's—"
"Don't say it's nothing. Because it isn't, it's everything, Seha." She toned, but her words were still a mere whisper of breath.
Seha let go of a long puff of air as if he was about to say exactly that, nothing. "I know, she had nothing to wear."
Celeste watched them talk about her like she wasn't there, present with them. As if she was suddenly invisible to their eyes. And suddenly she felt the nice fabric of satin burn.
"Is Father here?"
"He is here, taking a bath."
Seha twisted his head, eyes on Celeste as if remembering her existence now at all. "Come on in."
She didn't say a word, didn't nod her head acknowledging, no, she just stared. And sure, follow them when they walk through the white path to the massive looking pack house.