^{If you missed the first book - Fireflies - you might want to start there. It's here in its completion, written for Steemit. If you enjoy it, feel free to ask to be added to the subscriber list for the sequel, where new chapters are being released daily.}

Entry 25

"A year?!" Bryd paused, taking her statements in. "It hasn't felt like a year. It hasn't really felt like time passing at all. I've felt things change. Aria - she's - I can't describe it."

"I know. I felt her. I had no idea it was her. I just didn't even consider the possibility! It's like she's in everything."

"She is! When she told me what was happening -"

"What?!" Talia interrupted sharply. "You can hear her?"

Bryd's amusement rippled through Talia. "Hear her? I can't NOT hear her. Even when she's quiet, the birds - the insects - the grass - the sun, they taste exactly like her. It's like her joy and light has rubbed off onto everything. It's a better version of itself than it was before Aria."

Talia remained quiet for a few moments until Bryd realized that Talia seemed to be the only one that was unable to hear her mother.

"Why can't I?"

Bryd's mass shivered, as if he had just shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. Maybe you've been away too long?"

"Can you ask her?"

Without any hesitation, Bryd spoke for Aria who had been listening the whole time. "She says it feels like there is a barrier forcing you away from her. She's been able to work around it - she called you here twice. But she can't seem to make you hear her voice."

Talia slumped, her shoulders hanging in defeat.

"She said don't worry. We will just give it time."

Time. Talia thought back to how short her time had been just a few days ago. Relief flooded her mind. She couldn't bring herself to feel the weight of how permanent that decision would have been. The consequences - irreversible - and she was grateful that her mother had intervened when she had.

"She said 'That's what mommies do', but I have no idea what that means."

Talia smiled. "It's ok. I do."

^{Thank you to @penderis for making my beautiful dreemgirl divider :)}

^{Font used in this post}