Novacaine

Mariah listened stoically as Caedes finally put voice to his grief, the pain in his words hitting her like a physical blow. She felt a pang of sorrow in her chest, as if it were she who’d failed Aurelia. For a moment she closed her eyes, gathering her strength before pushing aside her own feelings to better focus on Caedes. She couldn't comprehend the depth of his guilt and self-loathing, but she felt the intensity of his emotions, the pain that vibrated through his entire being. It stole her breath away for a moment, but she forced herself to keep breathing steadily, to be the rock he needed her to be.

She tightened her hold on him, a physical manifestation of her unwavering support. His sobs echoed around them, filling the cozy den with his grief. The rawness of the pain in his confession tore at her heartstrings, but she didn’t recoil from it. Instead, she drew him closer still, trying to absorb some of that torment, to soothe it with her presence.

“Caedes," she whispered, her voice steady though laced with pain. She tilted her head up to look at him again. His face was a mask of despair, his normally piercing gaze dull and haunted. It was hard to see him this way, to see the proud, stoic brute that she loved reduced to a trembling wreck. But she didn't look away, and couldn't afford to break eye contact. The moment required her full commitment, her unwavering support, her complete understanding.

She breathed in deeply, steeling herself against the waves of grief that crashed against her. "It's okay …" Her words were soft but firm - a soothing balm against his raw wounds. "I don’t know what happened, but you can’t possibly be to blame for this woman’s death." She began, looking for any sort of recognition in his distant gaze. “And if you had stood in this … madman’s way, would he have not done the same to you?” She didn’t wait for him to answer before she continued on. “Your survival wasn’t a weakness. It was a strength. It’s the reason why you are here with me, right now. Because you’re strong, Caedes. You came back to me.” She tried to assure him- willing the words to sink in. Looking at him, thinking that he could have possibly perished at the hands of someone who she had never met or could even pick out of a crowd … someone so close to him. And she wouldn’t have known. She would have gone on for days not knowing the other half of her soul had been ripped away.

The words he trailed off on- the admission that he couldn’t save himself from the trauma induced by his own father- that threatened to destroy her. She thought about his scars, but made no effort to look at them now. Swallowing back her own tears, Mariah chafed her paw gently against his matted fur, the coarse texture of it grounding her. Her silver eyes held nothing but earnest sincerity and concern as she attempted to reach him in his despair. "Caedes," she started again, a soft note of urgency in her voice, "I wish I could carry some of this burden for you...I wish I could erase your pain. But I can't. What I can do is promise you that you're not alone." She said lightly, settling her cheek against his chest once more. “So, tell me about it. Who was Aurelia? What happened to her?” She finished, hoping that by talking about it he may find a measure of release from the torment that was consuming him.

"Mariah Mendacium"