All grown up

Sirius chuckles at her question. “You know Halo, she’s always putting aside food, I’ve seen how she still feeds Bas treats, and now the puppies. They’re down in the Hallows, so no they won't miss this”he explains. The topic changed then to the flood, and the loss of life.

“He’s recovering” Sirius assured her, watching her carefully to see how she was taking this. Once she had processed, she started in on something else to say. Only, this time it was him freezing and swallowing slowly. He pushed his food away and stared at her. Not with disbelief, but with longing. Something hungry, and almost desperate. He believed her. He had seen Zee walk away with the firefly man, the last vision given to him on her death. Why you. Why… not me? but he couldn’t say it outloud.

He couldn’t speak, he lifted a paw, clutching it to his chest, feeling the pain there. He couldn’t breathe again, there wasn’t enough air in this room. Zee. It was a long, drawn out whisper in his mind. This pain would never cease, he knew it. Hearing of her would never not stab at that gapping hole inside of him. He knew Vanta was waiting. Waiting for him to respond, waiting for him to start his next tale of news. But he couldn’t. He reached out a paw, blindly searching for her own. When she gave him her own, he held it tightly, clutching at it like a lifeline while he waited for the pain in his chest to pass.

"Speech"