She now understood how her parents felt about one another. She had felt love growing in her heart for Novel since she had come to Ludicael, but only today did she realize it was not exactly the platonic kind. The very thought of Novel belonging to another was painful in a way that she had never experienced before. Now it was even more difficult to handle was the pain she felt at knowing what someone had done to her beautiful friend. It was difficult to watch Song's reaction as she told her what had happened; anger visibly bubbled beneath the surface, though it was obvious she was hurt too. "I shouldn't have let her go alone," she stammered as Song moved quickly past her, toward Novel's den. Though she still felt guilty, she also knew that two girls in heat, wandering together were an even larger target. Ara didn't know the first thing about defending herself -- she never imagined needed to know how to fight. But she knew if she'd been there, she would've done something to protect Novel, even if it meant putting herself at risk. She had been torn between wanting to spend time with Novel and caring for her parents and her new baby brother, and knowing she had made the wrong choice today was deeply unsettling.
'Thank you for watching her Ara, Elohim,' she said softly. Ara didn't need to be thanked, but she wouldn't protest. Eyelids would squint over her blue orbs as she sought the sleeping form of Novel. Her beauty took her breath away, though she felt a whimper struggling to leave her throat again, her chest constricting as she couldn't shake the vision of Novel being attacked from her mind. "Song," she began softly, her lyrics quivering with uncertainty. "What do we do?" Would this Lel get away with what they had done? Was the world so unfair?
