:: 400+ ♥ Word Count ::
:: Forward-dated to Wednesday, June 8 ::
It was overwhelming. Everything was overwhelming, always, now. Ever since those few hours of horror that now all melded within Orin's memory and nestled in the darkness of her mind. It sheltered itself away at the edge of her consciousness, ever vigilant for a moment to leap to the fore, catching the vulnerable woman off guard and dropping her into the throes of madness. The only thing that kept her from succumbing to the horror, as she had for the many long weeks that all ran together, were the two little pups that so dearly depended on her for their survival.
Yet now things were overcoming her in a different way. Before, Orin was lost in a well of blackness. Her world consisted only of fear and terror. The only sane thoughts she clung to had been hopes of her childrens' survival. This time, these past few days, were not like the others. Somehow the children had found a snippet of what their mother once was, and were slowly, unknowingly, bringing her back. Orin had found the courage to come out of hiding – even if the process was slow – and had finally revealed herself to the one she loved most, her brother, Niro.
After that, things went so fast. She had met her nephew, her daughters now had playmates. All of Cour des Miracles would know she was there again, and she had to petition the King for permission to stay a few... what? Days? Weeks? She ran into her dear friend Alaine, the very woman who had delivered her children. Life was spiraling back... but it was still oh so alien.
Orin treasured every hour since she returned to Cour des Miracles and found her brother, yet she still felt so out of place in her own skin. She loved her brother, and her friend, and the company of a welcoming pack, but she needed her time to think as well. So, with the two pups fresh from a nap, Orin took her daughters for a long walk in the Court's forest. It was a path she was so used to, one lined with flowering vines. She remembered Alaine collecting herbs from here, and she knew it led out of the Court's borders. Still, after Monday's drizzle, this sunny walk through whispering trees was comforting, and the girls were enjoying it. It was not long before the mother and her children drifted from the boundaries of the Court...
...The girls began to complain about tired paws long before Orin worried about rest. Following the dust motes and ray of noonday sun, Orin took her daughters away from the beaten path and into a small clearing, about a dozen feet in diameter, and her daughters soon fell asleep on the loamy forest floor. Orin sat upon a stump and stared at her perfect daughters as they dozed away the afternoon.
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