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A wide grin stretched across the pale woman’s maw as Tayui moved to embrace her sister. Although she could not hold the other woman had she been in her Optime form, she could at least offer her a small nuzzle of affection. Even Aurèle, the lady of the ice, could not avoid Tayui’s love.
Tayui stepped back to evaluate her sister. She looked well and she had pluck; there was no doubt about it. While Tayui had been content to have her minor adventures, Aurèle might have done far more. She didn’t even know: Aurèle had never spoken of her travels, even when questioned.
Tayui was surprised to hear her sister reply in such an offhanded way. For a moment, she wondered if Aurèle was being condescending or sarcastic. But then, Tayui suspected that if her sister had sought to be sarcastic, she would never have come over here and would have been much clearer with her intentions. She was too suspicious: the second time she had seen Aurèle since the fire, Tayui had suspected her of a murder. Now, she was glad she had been wrong, but she was still disturbed by the knowledge that she thought her sister was capable of such a gruesome crime.
“Do you need any help? I could come by one day if you want. You’ve been gone a while – you’re right – so there’s probably a lot to do. Re-organize your life, I suppose.” She paused, and added: “where did you go, anyway?” Curiosity. Curious. Tayui was curious to know what her sister had been up to, what she had done, and what her "adventures" had been like. She might have meandered through unclaimed territory for months until she made her way back, or she might have done something wild and outrageous. Tayui sneaked a glance at her sister, wondering if she could ever be outrageous. Perhaps. Perhaps not. Her sister was an enigma.