She didn't really like the way he looked at her. What was behind that emerald gaze? Was it anger? Disdain? Resentment? It was impossible to tell. She had been disconnected for too long, and apart from Niro for too long. Could that really happen? Could she and her brother have actually grown apart?
But it all changed when they embraced. She felt his tense muscles relax as he dropped his guard and everything fell into place for the Takekuro children... though neither were children any more. There were too many changes, too many hardships and too much tragedy for them to ever be thought of as children again. This was not only evident by Orin's dramatic and sudden change, but Niro's words and his recent past as well. So, he had lost children too. Did that mean that, in some way, he understood?
For some reason, knowing Niro already knew some of what happened to her did not soothe her like she thought it would. Instead, she tensed in his arms, and pulled back from the hug to look into his eyes. There was something in his voice – a note of anger? No, but some sort of disappointment, she was certain. For a moment she did not know what to say, her voice literally failing her when she tried to speak. She glanced at the playing children for a moment, and when she turned back to Niro she had found her voice.
“How much do you know?” She barely croaked out the words. There was more she wanted to say, but she didn't know where to begin. Hardly a living soul knew everything that had transpired, and Orin intended to keep it that way.