Drake’s aura flickered warm red-gold, like tiny sparks trying very hard to behave.
Luna’s was deep silver-grey, steady and heavy like mountain fog.
Kelpie shimred soft blue-green, moving gently like water breathing.
Rocky’s glowed warm, earthy amber, thick and comforting.
Felix’s was dim violet, slow and lazy but very deep.
Boo’s shimred pale ghost-light white, with tiny silver glints dancing through it.
Lucien’s... was darker. Not dark in a bad way. Deep crimson threaded with shadow, controlled, precise, calm.
And Sable’s...
Soft midnight blue with faint silver dust, like the night sky before the stars fully wake up.
Alina’s heart pounded softly in her chest.
She had seen sothing like this once before during ditation. It was not exactly the sa as what she had seen then, but the feeling was close enough that she understood instinctively. She was not just looking at light. She was reading their elental nature through their auras.
Her throat tightened with awe. They looked so small sitting there... and yet so vast. So powerful.
She pressed her hands gently together in her lap so she would not accidentally disturb the mont.
"Very good..." she whispered, almost to herself. "Just stay there... don’t do anything else... just exist with it."
After practice, they went back to the classroom for nap ti, and the earlier excitent had completely drained out of them. One by one, they curled into their usual spots, so on mats, so half on pillows, so already drifting off before their heads even settled. The core practice had clearly taken more out of them than normal play ever did. The room felt warm and heavy with sleepy breathing and soft blanket rustles.
Alina moved quietly between them, adjusting blankets, tucking tails in gently, brushing hair away from little foreheads, making sure no one was too cold or too warm. Sable had imdiately curled toward Lucien, one small hand clutching his sleeve even in sleep. Drake had fallen asleep mid-mumble. Boo was floating lower than usual, his glow dimr, like a night lamp instead of a chandelier.
When she was sure everyone was settled, she sat at her desk and opened her files, trying to catch up on small pending work.
Ding.
The sound felt too loud in the quiet room.
She glanced at her phone and froze when she saw the sender.
Aunt Lyla.
A small knot instantly ford in her chest as she opened the ssage.
Aunt Lyla: Lina, call when you have ti. I don’t know if you’re in class... but Georgia ca back ho crying and said she was leaving.
Her stomach dropped.
Her chair scraped softly as she stood too fast, imdiately checking the room again. All the babies were deeply asleep. No movent. No disturbance.
She slipped outside quietly and dialed.
The phone rang once.
Twice.
Third ring—
Click.
"Aunt?" Alina spoke quickly, already walking further down the hallway so her voice would not echo back into the class. "What’s wrong with Geo?"
On the other side, Lyla sounded shaken.
"I have no idea," she said, her voice tight with worry. "She just ca back crying. Her eyes were so red, Lina... she wouldn’t even look at properly."
Alina pressed her free hand to her forehead, trying to breathe steadily.
"Did she say anything? Did sothing happen? Did she fight with soone?" she asked.
"No... nothing. She just said she needed to pack so things. I tried knocking on her door later, but she didn’t answer."
Alina’s heart squeezed painfully.
Georgia... crying like that... was not normal.
"Please, Aunt... don’t let her leave like this," Alina said softly but firmly. "Just stay near her. Don’t push her, but don’t leave her alone either."
"I won’t," Lyla said imdiately. "I was waiting for you to call."
"I’ll finish my classes and co if needed," Alina said. "Please update if anything changes."
"I will."
The call ended.
Alina stood there in the quiet hallway, phone still in her hand, staring at nothing.
Her mind started racing.
Did sothing happen with... that person Georgia was seeing?
Did soone hurt her?
Georgia was sweet, funny, emotional, but strong. Very strong.
For her to co ho crying...
Sothing was wrong. Sothing serious.
Alina swallowed, her chest feeling tight.
She leaned back against the wall slowly, closing her eyes for a second, trying to think logically, not emotionally.
Should she call Georgia?
No... if she was packing and not answering Aunt Lyla, she might not pick up.
Should she tell Dante?
Her fingers hovered over his na unconsciously.
Then she stopped.
Not yet.
Let confirm first.
She exhaled slowly, steadying herself.
Then she pushed herself off the wall and walked back toward the classroom.
anwhile, at the sa ti, at Aunt Lyla’s house.
Georgia’s eyes were swollen and red, the skin beneath them faintly bruised from crying too long without rest. She stood near the door for a mont after opening it, one hand still on the handle as if she might close it again, as if letting Aunt Lyla see her like this felt like losing the last bit of control she had left.
Aunt Lyla didn’t step in imdiately. She looked at her carefully first, and her expression hardened in that protective, fierce way.
"What happened to you, child?" Lyla asked, her voice low but intense. "Did sothing happen? Did soone say sothing to you? Tell ."
Georgia forced a smile that didn’t reach her eyes and shook her head slowly. "No..."
It was obvious Georgia was lying, and Aunt Lyla could see it.
Lyla’s jaw tightened. She stepped forward now, closing the distance, her voice softer but firr. "Don’t do that. Don’t give that smile. Tell . You’re like my daughter. You think I can’t see when sothing is wrong?"
That was all it took.
Georgia’s face broke.
Her lips trembled, and suddenly her eyes filled so fast it felt like sothing inside her had cracked open. She pressed a hand over her mouth, trying to stop the sound that escaped anyway, a small, helpless sob she clearly didn’t want anyone to hear.
Lyla pulled her into her arms instantly.
"It’s okay... it’s okay... let it out," she whispered, rubbing slow circles on her back.
Georgia clutched her shirt like she was drowning.
"I... I thought..." she tried to speak, but her voice collapsed into tears. "I thought he... I thought he really..."
She couldn’t finish.
Her shoulders shook harder.
"I was so stupid," she whispered finally, her voice breaking. "I really thought he cared."
Lyla closed her eyes briefly, already understanding enough. She was talking about the man she had been seeing, the one she never properly introduced to anyone.
"Did he hurt you?" she asked quietly. "Did he say sothing? Or did he do sothing worse?"
Georgia shook her head quickly against her shoulder. "No... he didn’t hit ... nothing like that..."
She pulled back slightly, wiping her face roughly, angry at her own tears.
"He just... replaced ," she said hoarsely. "Like I was nothing. Like I was just... ti pass."
Her laugh ca out broken and bitter.
"He said he ’didn’t want anything serious’."
The room felt too quiet around them.
"I t his friends," she whispered. "His family knew . I thought... I thought I was part of his life."
Her fingers curled into fists.
"And today I found out he’s engaged. Arranged. To soone ’more suitable.’"
The last two words sounded like poison in her mouth.
Lyla’s face went cold.
Georgia’s voice dropped to a whisper.
"I just... I can’t stay here right now. Everything reminds of him. The cafe. The street. The stupid bakery we used to go to."
Her voice cracked again.
"I feel so... embarrassed. Like everyone knew except ."
Lyla cupped her face gently.
"You listen to ," she said firmly. "You loved honestly. That is never embarrassing. Soone else being weak or dishonest is not your sha."
Georgia’s lips trembled again.
Knock.
Knock.
Knock.
The knock ca again, louder this ti, echoing through the quiet house.
Aunt Lyla frowned, her brows knitting together as she glanced back.
"Geo, you stay here. I will see who is there," she said gently, pulling her into one more quick, reassuring hug before stepping away.
Georgia nodded weakly, wiping her face again, trying to steady her breathing as Lyla walked down the hallway. The house felt too quiet around the heavy sound of Lyla’s footsteps, every second stretching too long.
When Lyla opened the door, a small, surprised smile slowly appeared on her face.
Standing outside was a tall young man with sharp, clean facial features, his presence imdiately noticeable in the doorway. He was wearing a black shirt that outlined his broad shoulders and lean figure. His sleeves were rolled to his forearms, revealing lean muscle beneath warm skin. Thin-frad glasses rested on his nose, slightly crooked, and his dark hair looked like he had run his hand through it too many tis on the way here. He looked like soone who had co in a hurry... and hadn’t cared how perfect he looked while doing it.
Aaron.
"Aaron?" Lyla said, genuinely surprised. "What are you doing here? Are you here to et Lina? She isn’t here, she’s at the kindergarten."
Aaron shook his head quickly, adjusting his glasses in a familiar, nervous habit.
"No, Aunt... I ca here to et Georgia."
Lyla’s expression shifted from surprise to confusion.
"You... know her?" she asked slowly, studying his face more carefully now.
Aaron exhaled softly, like he had been holding that breath since he knocked.
"Yes," he said quietly.
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