(Kind of a short chapter. Sorry in advance)
Kiri stared through the window, the book in her hands long forgotten. She could faintly hear the sound of a pair of shoes walking inside the room but she didn't bother to acknowledge it, too deep in thought.
"Child, are you listening to me?"
"Yes, grandmother. " Kiri muttered with a tired sigh, not turning around.
"Have you thought about it?" She sounded calm but Kiri could almost feel her viciousness hovering over the back of her neck.
"Thought about what?" She furrowed her eyebrows slightly, looking everywhere but in her direction.
"The debutant ball! What else!?" Mo'at snapped, quickly losing her patience before her granddaughter's lack of interest in the conversation.
"I...I have others things to worry about." Kiri clenched her jaw at the sight of Mo'at eyes sharpening.
"Come sit." She made a gesture pointing at the little stool next to the sofa where she was sitting. "Don't make me repeat myself."
Kiri closed the book to take a seat where she was indicated. The stool was so small that it would be better fitting for a child like Tuk. It left Kiri at a lower level and she had to slightly look up to Mo'at.
"I know you don't like me. " Mo'at spoke nonchalantly. Kiri knew the feeling was mutual, so she didn't bother to deny it. "But as a woman, you must learn not to allow your personal feelings to get in the way of what you want."
"Grandmother, I don't..."
"You are worried...I can help you." She nodded silently. "I will help you to ease that burden, but if you want my help..."
"I don't want any help." Kiri kept her head down, her eyes fixed on her lap. "That is the reason why I'm here, I work so I can get paid, no? It's a job, not charity."
"When will be the day you will stop picturing me as an enemy and start seeing me as the potential ally I could be?" She waited for a reaction, only to receive less than nothing. "You are worried about your family and it's only natural when they are going through something so horrible, but have you ever thought about what will happen after?"
"...What?" Her voice cracked at the end, not sure if she was following.
"Your brother is strong. Ever since he was a child I could see the determination in those eyes. Well-mannered, responsible, and loyal. His priorities are set straight. He is the best out of all of you." Even if her words were blunt Kiri couldn't deny the truth in them. "But life is much too cruel and those who burn the brightest often burn the fastest...So what will you do?"
"Thank you for your concern, but I don't think I appreciate your efforts to imply my brother's possible death."
"You really don't like to listen, do you?" Mo'at stared down at her.
Her grandmother's voice had always made her feel uneasy.
It made her feel little, but not the same little she felt when she was around her mother. It wasn't endearing or warm, It was mocking and bone-chilling, to the point where she froze, incapable of doing anything but keep quiet before whatever venomous thing that woman threw at her.
"I'm trying to offer you a helping hand. I don't care about whatever little fantasy you have managed to live into up until now. Childhood is over, you are a woman and as a woman, you have to realize there are very few things you can do to help your family, whether you like it or not."
"I know what you are implying, but that is not what I want. If I must work every day of my life until my last dying breath to ensure the wellbeing of those who I love, then so be it."
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To our little ones || Aonung x Neteyam
Fanfiction"My dearest, Give all my children a kiss, tell them I think about them by day, pray for them by night, and find my best comfort in their affection. I know it seems like a very long time before I see them but remind them, we may all work, so these ha...
