The Fire Inside

Amoret

"I'll call the car up front," Finnick told his wife, pulling out his phone.

    "Okay." Camille sat down on the bed, watching Kova on the other side of the wing, sitting and laughing quietly with two other girls. She turned her head to Elise. "Who are those girls Kova's with?"

    "Oh, those two are Caroline and Ivelle. Caroline's around her age and Ivelle's two years older."

    "Car will be here in ten," Finnick rejoined the conversation.

    "Alright." For ten minutes, the couple enjoyed talking with each other, keeping an eye on their daughter the entire time. Finnick's phone buzzed and he pulled it out of his pocket.

    "Car's here." He turned and watched Kova giggle with the other girls and smiled.

    "So, those're your parents?" Ivelle pried.

    Mor nodded. "I don't know how it all adds up, but they say they are and I guess the blood system data is right?"

    "So what're you gonna do?" Caroline nudged her shoulder slightly. With all of them being on the lowest level of society, they all saw each other as equals and therefore liked to talk as such, rather than in the respectful manner they talked to all others.

    "I don't know," Mor shrugged. "I overheard them talking this morning that there's a lot to work out, including blood system checks again."

    "Does that mean they're gonna take blood again?" Ivelle flinched slightly.

    "Maybe, but if they do I think it'll just be me." Mor rubbed her left forearm, running her fingers over the numbers tattooed.

    Caroline nudged her again. "Hey, you've got a real family, at least."

    Mor shrugged, a soft smile on her lips. "We'll see."

    "Kova," Camille came up to Ivelle's cot.

    "Kova?" Caroline whispered in Mor's ear, giggling.

    Mor smiled. "Shut up," she whispered, turning back to her mother.

    Camille smiled at all the girls. "Hello," she smiled. "Can you two remind me of your names?" Both Caroline and Ivelle nodded their heads respectfully, answering the queen's question. "Well, it's a pleasure to see you both again, do you mind if I borrow Kova for just a minute?"

    Ivelle ducked her head. "Of course, Your Majesty."

    Camille held out her hand and Mor took it, leading to the antechamber. The curtains were pulled so no one could see a thing, but the sound of bustling reporters stood outside, aching to catch something about the kids. Finnick followed and when the door to the wing closed. He knelt by Mor. "Hey, sweetheart." He touched her shoulder gently, rubbing a hand up and down her arm. "I gotta go back to the palace for a little while and do some work, but Mom's gonna stay with you for today, okay?" Mor nodded. "Okay." He pulled her into a hug and planted a light kiss on the top of her head, to which she stiffened. He stood up, a hand on her head, talking to Camille. "I'll call for a press conference at five, the car will be here around four to pick you up."

    "Okay," Camille pulled Kova into her arms and kissed her husband. She looked down at her daughter before looking up at him again. "Bye."

    "Bye, love you."

    "Love you too." Camille and Kova walked back into the wing so no one intruded on her privacy, and Finnick left.

    Lunch arrived and the nurses set up two plates in (Mor's) Kova's cot for her and her birth mother. "Here, Kova," Elise set down the plate on a tray. "I got you everything you asked for."

    "Thank you, Miss Elise."

    "Here, Your Majesty." Elise handed Camille a plate as well.

    "Thank you." Camille sat on the opposite side of the bed facing Kova. "So, sweetheart," she started. "This afternoon, in about three hours, I'm gonna go back to the palace. You're gonna have dinner here, then I'll be back before you go to bed, okay?"

    Mor nodded. "Okay." She ate for a moment then spoke again. "Is the palace where you live?"

    Camille nodded. "That's the perk of being queen," she smiled. "And when it comes time that you can leave the hospital, it'll be your home too, Kova."

    "When would I leave the hospital?"

    "Soon, love. About three weeks, I think. Then you'll move to the palace, where I live with your dad and your three brothers."

    Mor looked up. "I...I have brothers?"

    "Yeah." Camille smiled, looking right at her daughter. "Damien, your older brother, then Dylan and Thomas, both younger than you. Damien's nineteen, almost five years older than you. Dylan is ten, and Thomas is seven."

    Mor looked down at the new news. Camille thought she was disappointed, but really she was just trying to comprehend the information. Not only had she gained two parents in the past day, but also three brothers.

    "I'm sorry if I disappointed you, Kova."

    She shook her head. "No, I'm alright, ma'am. I just never thought I'd have brothers." She looked at her palms. "They...they won't..."

    Camille understood and immediately touched Kova's hand. "No, no honey, no. They're completely adorable, they're all so innocent, and they won't touch you. I promise. We'll all be gentle and understanding, I promise." She held her hands tightly. "I know this is all a big change for you, sweetheart, but I promise we all love you already and want to give you the best life."

    "Really?" Mor looked at Camille hopefully.

    She nodded. "When...when you were born, you were this beautiful baby girl, but the pregnancy wasn't super healthy and you were born really premature," Camille explained. "Because of that, the only thing I could do for you for eleven days was feed you. I couldn't even hold you in my arms. I got to know you for barely four days before you were taken." Camille looked down, not wanting her daughter to see her tears. "And since then, I've never stopped looking, never stopped hoping and praying that you'd be alive and somewhere safe. Because I've loved you since the moment I heard your first little cry."

    Mor looked up. "That long ago?"

    Camille nodded. "Every minute of your life."

    As the hours passed, Kova went back to playing with her dog alongside the other girls, the only visitor Camille got was her daughter's doctor. But it didn't bother her, she was perfectly content to watch her whisper and giggle with her friends and interact with others, being a normal teenager for just a few hours. At about four o'clock she got a call from her driver that he was outside and she interrupted Kova's conversations to call her over.

She crouched down in front of her. "Hey, honey. I need to go back home for a little bit, I'll be back before you go to bed, I promise."

"Okay." Mor looked at her mother and nodded.

Camille pulled her into a tight hug and she felt Kova stiffen, but didn't let go. After a moment she relaxed a little but didn't hug back. Not ready to let her go, Camille rested her chin on her daughter's head. "I love you."

Mor didn't know how to say it back but patted her mother's back awkwardly. Camille laughed, finally letting go. "I'll be back soon."

And with that, she got up, spoke to Elise quietly, and left the wing.

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