Every Step I Take Is Another Mistake

Whenever he looked at Duchess he was given a glimpse at everything that he had lost, of the children and family they should have had, of the band that should have surrounded them, of the adventures they had been going to embark upon. None of that existed anymore. Their children were gone, any kind of relationship between them was broken, and the band was dissolved. There was no returning to what was, they were set upon the paths they were on now. They would lead them in completely different directions.

Before Duchess could answer him Aslatiel reappeared, hitting Duchess to the ground. "Aslatiel…” He spoke sternly and went to grasp her shoulder but she shrugged him off and forcefully drug Duchess away from the crowd. He went to follow, but Aslatiel gave him a look that stopped him in his tracks. There was no stopping what was about to happen. Deep down he knew these were the last words that he would speak to Duchess. He wouldn’t forget their children and he wouldn’t forget those moments of happiness they had shared at one time. Too much had changed, the knife had severed them completely.

Asla slipped back through the foliage shortly after, not looking at all like she had threatened Duch’s life, but even if he didn’t hear anything he knew what happened. He sighed softly, and returned his sister’s smile. His heart ached, but Aslatiel was the balm to all of his sorrow. He was sad for Duchess and he was sad for the puppies lost, but he wasn’t taking a path into fog and uncertainty. He had the true owner of his heart, and whatever was coming down the path was bright and beautiful. Aslatiel returned his hope and mended his heart. As he turned away from Duchess he turned away from soul crushing grief he’d allowed to take him.

"Speech"