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Her feet could not move fast enough. Her legs could not carry her at the pace she wanted them to. Be it maternal instinct or the strange unsettle that gnawed desperately at her conscious when she pondered the well-being of her daughter. Poltergeist took no notice to any passerby she may have unintentionally pushed through, or carriages the canine leapt seamlessly over without a moment to glance back in apology. Her heart pounded angrily against her chest while lungs burned. Paws begging to stop as they slowly began to shift back into a more human shape as the estate finally came into sight. Lavender eyes narrowed as her spine straightened, ignoring the agony of shifting so quickly, and forcing doors open before house staff could pry open the heavy structures. Sweat beading down porcelain, clinging to the mess of raven curls she haphazardly threw back into her usual sloppy bun. “Avarice—”

The mother exhaled in a desperate rasp. There were familiar and unfamiliar scents that clung to the walls which caused her skin to crawl in a nervous tug. An investigation for another time, despite the sting of guilt knowing that such incidents should befall her due to her lengthy absence.

You’re a terrible mother, Poltergeisssst.

A sharp breath hitched her aching lungs following the otherwise absent hiss of the several echoes that claimed to exist but did not. A hard swallow was forced down her throat as she pushed through door after door in this blasted mansion. “S-s-she is in there, m’lady—” ushered one of the maids pointing towards Ira-Gula’s chamber. Poltergeist stopped abruptly, instantly feeling her heart sink to the pit of her stomach as if to already know what waited for her beyond that oak framed door.

“Sarah, send out a request for a new escort and guard for hire effective immediately.” Her voice was low enough for the maid to hear, though not loud enough for her daughter to catch wind. She could not begin to consider the thought of her daughter remaining unaccompanied. It wasn’t safe. “And please inform the rest of the staff to begin preparations for a private funeral.” The maid curtsied in compliance and quickly departed leaving Poltergeist facing the door slightly left ajar. From there she could hear the quiet pleas of desperation, disbelief murmur from the pale maiden’s lips.

“Ira-Gula please,” Not once had Poltergeist ever heard her daughters voice crack in the way it had just then. “Please wake up—” The air felt heavy The brine of salt tugged at Poltergeists’ tongue with the indication of her daughters shedding tears. The door then groaned as the mother gently pushed it open.

“I said I wished to be left alone!” Avarice snapped with bitter regard, not realizing just who it was entering without permission. Poltergeist’s gaze softened with anguish to see the weariness in her daughters face. How her eyes were swollen with what she could only assume hours worth of crying in solitude. The riddling confusion written upon her freckled features as their eyes met. Poltergeist found herself holding her breath, unable to find the words to speak. Lavender sights would only briefly look beyond her daughters frame to see the resting corpse of her daughters former guardian. The stench of war made her stomach curdle with distain, though in hindsight came to no surprise as the veteran had never truly retired from his post even during his time serving the Trahern family.

The sheets were stained in red. She could only assume that whatever the birds gossiped, he was returned here to the estate. Poltergeist couldn’t help but wonder what became of others who had succumbed to the vicious trenches of this petty battle. Violence begets violence. She wanted to hiss at the sheer action though knew it would do neither of them any good. It would have been a selfish gesture where her daughter sat at Ira-Gula’s bedside. Her knuckles white as she gripped desperately to the sheets in some false hope the elder would rise with nary a scratch on his aged body.

“My little cherry blossom,” Poltergeist murmured softly as she took a step forward before pausing again, trying to get a better read on her daughter. Avarice felt her jaw tighten as she looked to Ira-Gula then back to her mother with a slight tilt of her head, cherry blossom gaze searching her mothers features in hopes she could find some reprieve – an answer she desperately wanted. “Y-you can undo this… can’t you?” A single tear rolled down her flushed freckled cheeks. There was no question in regards to her absence, or why she’d been away for so long as she was never one to pry.  Poltergeists shoulders dropped as her heart only ached hearing the desperation in her daughters voice. While Avarice may not have shown it, or if she even knew how to, there was a bond between she and the elder as he’d been present since infancy. “Momma, please.” The young maiden’s voice cracked.

Lavender gaze would slowly return as she inched ever closer to her daughter. She did not hesitate to pull the weeping soul with a mothers embrace, as she knelt to hold her.

“I am sorry love,” her own voice cracked in admitted defeat. The turmoil knotting her stomach in the sense that her own child was hurting and the powerless ache knowing she could not take away the very pain endured. Poltergeist held Avarice as she broke down, the cries grew louder as she trembled in her mothers arms. It wasn’t fair – and for what?! What was it that Ira-Gula risked his life for?! Avarice buried her face into her mother as if she were the very infant that had done so once upon a time. “Is this my punishment?” Her voice shook in between sobs. “Is this because of who I am? My existence?” The questions began to spill as if to try and find comprehension behind these events. “Is it because I am an omen?”

“Oh, my dear child no.” She could not help but mentally scorn her husband for such insults even if they were so long ago – that there would need to be an understanding made going forward. Words oftentimes were far more harmful than physical action.

“Avvie, nothing could have prevented this, if not now then at some other point in time – but it is not your fault love. It never will be your fault.” She felt her jaw tighten as she offered a gently hugging squeeze. “Sometimes… events take place without reason.” She sighed. “It is… truly unfair.” She paused for a moment, listening to the whimpering sniffles of her daughter, pale digits gently combing through colorless locks. Avarice resting her head against her mothers heart, listening to the gentle thrum against her ear.

“Avarice, your very existence means so much to me that words cannot place meaning nor definition. Ira-Gula would tell you the same.” She kissed the crown of Avarice’s head with maternal reassurance.

“You, my little cherry blossom, are the best gift I could have ever been given.”