Theia lay with her arms spread across the floor, one arm stretched wide, her gaze fixed on the ceiling as if searching for something just beyond it. Her hair spread like a halo around her head.
A deep sadness lingered in her eyes. They were red and bloodshot from crying, as they often were after such an overwhelming storm of emotions.
She slowly raised her arm, watching as her fingers curled into a fist before loosening again. With a sigh, she brushed her thumb across her lip, then let her arm fall. It hit the floor with a dull thud.
I… can't tell that to Luna, that I overheard everything. Not only will she be disappointed with me, but I will ruin everything… everything. Like I always do.
Theia sat up; she opened her mouth with a warm smile, as if she had forgotten everything, but… no, her smile faded, and she closed her mouth.
"Luna is dying, and I can't do a thing,"
"And she didn't tell me," she said, voice cracking. She pushed herself to her feet. Her eyes relaxed, and exhaustion settled in the moment she stopped trying. "She… she just wanted to protect me. She will tell me soon… when she feels comfortable."
Theia looked at the open doors to her room; with seconds to spare, she chose to smile. Her tattered hair fell behind her shoulders. "T-tea is coming, Luna!"
***
Inside the room Luna slept in bed, her back facing Theia, and El was there too. Theia frowned at the sight of her.
She lay on the floor, her head resting on her arms atop the bed.
"Is Luna fine?" Theia said, staring right at El's hand, which was sliding across Luna's back. A grimace twisted her mouth at the sight of it.
"Yes, why?" El turned her head towards Theia. Staring at her and expecting an answer to her question.
"Luna is asleep."
Then El, without hesitation, her face glowed with warmth, a smile spreading from ear to ear, her eyes closed. "She just fell asleep but she really was fatigued. *Sigh* The illness is really taking a heavy toll on her, but you don't need to worry."
Theia's eyebrows furrowed as she placed the wooden tray in front of her, with her tea, and pointed to the one on the right, saying, "That one's yours."
El chuckled, her pointy ears slowly tilting down, "Don't be like that. I know you don't like me, but you don't need to display such a level of hostility. It's not like I'll harm Luna."
"Time will tell," Theia said as she walked out of the room.
El stared at the open doors, dumbfounded. "What did she get upset with?" she muttered.
"Well, it doesn't matter, since I have you… Don't worry; I'll do whatever is in my power to help you. My best friend," El said, while burrowing her face into Luna's back.
***
Some time passed as El fell asleep alongside Luna on the same bed. Of course Theia was deeply displeased with it and wanted to throw El off the bed, but the thought of waking up Luna stopped her from committing to it.
Then three knocks echoed through the house. Theia was startled when she heard it. "Who is it?" she thought.
She made her way through the living room and opened the doors just enough to peek through, and there stood a man, waving at her.
He had long dark brown hair and warm round grey eyes, but to contrast them, he had a sturdy but rounded figure.
"Who are you?" Theia asked, staring at him, searching if he had any weapon on him.
"Ah! I'm Mytri's friend. You probably haven't met me before, Theia, but I brought some apples for you, Luna, and El. I hope that's okay."
"Name," Theia said bluntly.
"Ah, forgot. Sorry. Hehe~, my name is Varu, just Varu. and I work in the back alley of the main street, where roses bloom. It's really easy to find me, so visit at times, if you want, of course.~"
Theia snatched the basket out of his hands and slammed the doors on him after saying, "Thank you. "Goodbye."
Theia walked across the room and placed the apples on the table, in the center of the living room, and sat by the brown sofa. Theia groaned and placed her hand on her face.
"Okay… calm down. It's nothing. She's just Luna's friend… I can't get mad over her friend. I can't act like this. She'll hate me if I do… Ugh, why am I even saying this?"
Theia rested her hands in her lap and tilted her gaze toward the ceiling. Slowly, her eyes fluttered shut, and she drifted into a light, peaceful sleep.
***
Just outside the window floated a small bluish wolf spirit, one made of ice. Niva. He stared at Luna and El, who slept peacefully, unaware that they were being spied upon.
He overheard everything, but it did not affect him; sadly, he had already experienced this same scene many times. Time after time, he met another new incarnation, and the fate was the same. He saw them grow up and die. Sadly, it was no different with Luna.
"Mother, you're again withering away," Niva said in a soft, worried voice.
He reminisced about previous Masters, with a different body but the same soul. They grew old and died, but with each iteration they stopped growing old, then stopped growing past their fifties, and after that past their thirties, and the latest died at twenty-eight.
His eyes closed involuntarily. "I can't look at you… If I get attached, it will hurt the same." His eyes shut on their own. "Maybe… just maybe it's supposed to hurt" He sighed and floated away towards the lake, inside Mytri's garden.
He submerged himself and floated just above the surface of the water, "What am I doing, putting on an act for that child, hiding away and observing her from a distance? I grew pathetic over the years. At this point she will die before I know it. I need to stop being a coward and face it head-on."
Tears trickled down his snout as he said, "M-mother… What should I do? I'm terrified of losing you again."
Slowly around Niva, the lake began to freeze; the ice protruded from him like spikes, or rather, cracks along the surface of the water . Ice trembled, splashing the water around, creating hectic waves that hit the land.
Countless of Niva's reflection reflected upon ice, each of them shattered, barely recognizable.
"I guess… I have to visit Theia, she'd be of help" Niva spoke as he disappeared into the lake.