Our second world- Book two: War is coming

Chapter 15

~Grace~

"He-- Haren. Wait!" I called after him as he dissapeared to his room.

I ran down the hall and yanked the handle. No use. He'd locked it. An idea suddenly came to me and I ducked into my room to try the door that connected the two rooms. It was locked too.

"Fine," I huffed," We'll give him some space for now.

Closing my door, I walked slowly back to the living room. The others were silent and looking at me expectantly. I shook my head and sat down on the couch. Pulling Mary into my lap, I wrapped my arms around her in an attempt to comfort her. She wasn't crying visibly, but I knew she was on the inside.

"Um.. I'm sorry," Yuri said," I didn't know I'd upset him by bringing it up."

"It's not your fault," I said firmly. It seemed to surprise everyone.

"Daddy spends all his time with dad, so it must be really hard for them to be separated for such a long time," Mary added.

"Yes," Tsu agreed," He's not mad at you, Yurina. None of us are."

Yuri nodded," I still think I should appologise," She said, jumping off the couch.

"Don't bother. He's gone for a walk so he's not in his room anymore," I shook my head," Let's just let him be for now."

We continued with our small celebration, but we didn't end up doing much. Somehow, it had gotten late without us noticing. Yurina went home and Mary and I pulled out the futon since we would be staying the night and my bed wasn't big enough for the both of us.

While I was searching for the sheets in the hall closet, I noticed Himira and Nonaka running from their room to the living room and back.

At about their fourth trip back, I stopped them and asked what they were doing.

"We're having a sleep over!" Himira grinned.

"You are? With who?" I asked, finally finding the sheet I was looking for.

"With Mary!" They chimed together.

"Oh?" I followed them out to the living room to find that they had dragged out two sleeping bags and thrown them on the floor. I could barely see the bags under the mountain of blankets and stuffed animals that were piled on top.

Mary was sitting half swadled in a blanket on the futon while she observed the activities of the girls.

"Well... if it's ok with Tsu, but you can't stay up all night." I instructed.

"Okies!" They giggled, running to the bathroom so they could finish getting ready for bed.

While they were doing that, I had already changed into pajamas and Mary had borrowed a pair from Himira, so I climbed onto the bed and got myself comfortable.

"Hey Auntie?" I looked over at Mary. She was clutching a worn looking rabbit doll to her chest and stared at me with a blank expression.

"Yes?"

"When is dad coming back?" She asked.

It had taken me a while, but I learned that for her, dad was August and daddy was Haren. I shook my head sadly," I don't know."

"I think it hurts daddy," She said," They were always together, and now---"

"Don't worry.  I'm sure he'll be back soon."

I meant to convince her, but I guess I was also trying to convince myself.

~early the next morning~

"N-no! Daddy! Daddy don't! Please!" The shrill cry echoed through the house.

"H-hey, it's ok." I bolted upright when I heard the sound.

What I found, wasn't what I expected. Himira and Nonaka had jumped up next to us and were trying to wake up Mary.

Suddenly, her eyes snapped open and she practically threw herself at me. Burrying her face against me, her sobs were muffled by my chest as she curled into a ball.

Wrapping my arms protectively around her, I tried my best to calm her down, but nothing I said seemed to help. We sat that way for a long time before she eventually calmed on her own, but her body still shook slightly.

"Did you have a bad dream?" Himira asked gently.

Mary nodded, still clinging to me.

"Wanna talk about it?" Nonaka added," Mommy says that can help."

"It's fine," She said," I'm alright now."

"Well... ok."

"Why don't the three of you go get dressed and I'll make you waffles for breakfast?" I suggested.

They agreed and the two younger girls pulled Mary down the hall.

Standing up, I stretched my arms. Stiff and sore from sleeping on a bed I wasn't used to anymore.

With a yawn, I pulled the pillows and blankets off before folding the futon back and replacing the cover. When I was done with that, I folded up all the blankets and threw them in the wash before heading back to the kitchen to start the promised breakfast.

After saying goodbye to everyone a few hours later, Mary and I headed back. As I thought, Haren had stayed in the archive room since he'd gotten back.

I wanted to run and see him to tell him everything was going to be ok; Mary seemed to share my feelings, but we decided it was best to leave him be for a while longer. Heading to my room instead.

Around lunch time, Mary said she was hungry, so I offered to get something to eat and left her in my room.

As I walked past the archive room on my way to the mess hall, I heard a loud crash followed by curses and shouts of frustration.

Letting my curiosity get the better of me, I snuck a peak inside. I was surprised to say the least.

Books and papers were strewn about the floor around the desk Haren was working at. Haren himself sat on the floor against the wall. His head in his hands and his knees tucked into his chest.

Something wasn't right.