“Mother, please breathe. You’re frightening yourself and making the panic worse,” a girl said gently as she sat beside her mother, who was resting on a rock.
“B-but what if Father comes back?! What would I do then?!” her mother cried anxiously.
The girl smiled softly and stepped in front of her mother, pulling her into a comforting hug.
“Calm down, Mother. I’ll do my best to make sure he doesn’t hurt you,” she said soothingly, trying to calm her mother’s nerves.
She gently stroked her mother’s hair and whispered encouraging words to her.
The daughter’s name was Y/n, and her mother’s name was Isabella.
“Ah… I have to go back home now. I’ll see you later, Mother,” Y/n said sweetly.
Her smile faded as she walked away.
---
On the path
A short while later, Y/n heard the rustling of bushes nearby.
She stopped walking and slowly sat down on the ground.
“I know you’re there. There’s no need to hide. Please come out,” Y/n said gently, a soft smile returning to her lips.
Two children stepped out of the bushes—a boy and a girl.
Y/n immediately recognized them as her youngest siblings.
“Hello, Hina and Riku. Why are you following me?” Y/n asked calmly, careful not to frighten them.
“We were trying to find you. Then we saw you with Mother, so we started following you,” Hina explained as she softly hugged Y/n’s leg.
Y/n gently ruffled Hina’s hair and motioned for Riku to come closer as well. He hugged her other leg, and she ruffled his hair the same way.
“Would you like to walk back home with me?” Y/n asked softly.
Both children nodded and held onto her legs a little tighter.
She knew they were afraid of Rui.
And this time… she would protect her family.
No matter if Rui killed her or not.
Y/n gently took both of their hands and began walking slowly so they could keep up with her pace.
---
At the house
“Finally. What took you so long?” Rui asked coldly.
Y/n’s smile never left her face.
“Hina and Riku were following me, so I walked slower so they could come with me,” she answered calmly.
Rui didn’t like that answer.
Using his threads, he suddenly sliced off her arms.
Her younger siblings hid in the bushes nearby on the verge of tears because they thought they had gotten her in trouble.
Yet Y/n’s smile never changed.
Her arms regenerated quickly.
“Brother,” she said calmly, “they are my family as well. I have every right to be with them.”
She looked directly into his eyes, and for the first time…
Her smile faded.
Rui’s eyes widened slightly.
