Admiring the Light

Ep 15 (Slurs)

Unusual that Guinevere hadn't spoken a word since they'd got home, especially since she'd seemed so upbeat when she approached Natalie at practice. Had the talent show rehearsal not gone too hot?

But her minty eyes were diverted by a new addition to her calendar, it had been flipped to December even though it was only October? And that was definitely her sister's handwriting, though what did 'Vet appt. for Night' have to do with anything? It just seemed so random for today.

"Hey- Sport- uh- I'm usually pretty chill about this kinda thing, but-" Natalie beckoned her sister into her own bedroom, her finger on some date in December. "Please don't just write stuff on here... I know it's important but just- tell me and I'll do it myself. Got it?" She tried not to sound exasperated, she really wasn't, but it seemed so out of character for Guinevere to do anything without asking.

"Hey! Sport! Is something wrong? Did something happen?" Her green eyes picked up on Guinevere's body language as she just... stalked out, her shoulders hunched. Even Nightwhisper seemed confused, the cat pacing around Natalie's room as she looked up at her owner. "It's nothing, Nat."

"Well, if that's all- then I guess we're gonna play this game!" In an instant the taller girl had Guinevere on the floor, painlessly pinned in a position where she had most of the control as they sprawled out on the floor. "So! What's up, buttercup? Care to share?"

"You don't wanna know..." She muttered, only getting a tighter grip. "Oh, try me, Sport. I've heard it all."

"I... I- dropped the show... I couldn't... I just..." She barely got her words out as Natalie listened to the confession, though her sister sounded like she was admitting to a crime instead of just being scared. "Hey, hey Sport, being scared isn't something I'm gonna beat you up for, that's your call, girl."

She paused for a minute, letting Guinevere up before continuing her little speech. "It's a school talent show, Sport! It's not gonna matter in the long run." But even with the support for her decision, Natalie could see the shame written all over her sister's face. "Sport, you want me to arrange a date between you and Jackie? I'll do it!"

"It's not about that, okay?! I haven't been able to do shit right these past few days, Natalie!" Guinevere snapped, parts of her words mixing together as her face flushed. "Ay, Sport, what are you talking about? Breathe a little-" Shocked by the sudden anger, she could just feel the anxiety in waves, she'd gotten like this before.

And she could see that Nightwhisper was feeling it too, as the maine coon approached her girl and started rubbing against her legs. "Sport, nothing has gone wrong, not badly- wanna- explain how you feel? Maybe- do you want some time- alone?" Natalie tried explaining, her hands carrying more of the work than the actual weight of her words.

"NATALIE! All of a sudden I'm feeling things that I haven't felt before for someone that isn't in my family, and Callie died but now we've got a new cat all of a sudden and I'm taking care of her too- and now everyone expects me to-"

"Sport... Guinevere, sit down, come on-" Everything added up in her mind, at least for right now as she guided Guinevere into the bed against her back wall. White block letters, 'Natalie,' against her purple wall. "Or more like- lay down if you want- Sport-"

Here came what Natalie had expected it to look like, as her sister struggled to catch her breath and curled herself up in the sheets. "Yep... do whatever you need to, Sport. Come on, Night-" The bigger sister stood herself up to let their big cat on, watching Night rest her hatted (I don't care if that's not a word) head on Guinevere's stomach.

"I'll go do something else, Sport. You can sleep or whatever." She offered a gentle smile, hoping the anxiety attack would subside on its own. It must've built up over the past few days, as she had said. But with magnified levels of self doubt and stress in the moment, strange.