Nobles

Ch. 8: They won

After having checked who it was through the peephole, she ripped the door open and let Solar in. "Have you heard? It's all over the news," she said hurrying back to the living room where the tv was on.

"Heard what? Pilar!"

Solar closed the door and dropped her bag and jacket before she followed into the living room. She saw the yellow 'breaking news' banner across the bottom of the screen proclaiming that Maridioch had been taken back by the royal followers and the militia had surrendered.

"They did it."

It was over.

Pilar's heart was lifted in a way. She had not had a moment since she had returned where she had not in one way or another thought about what had happened over there. Skylar was getting better; Solar was always keeping her updated. She felt how false she was claiming such hardship over Skylar's condition but not having the decency to call her and offer her help.

She had tried, though.

So many times she had lost count, she had sat there in her apartment with her phone and Skylar's name on the display, but she had not pressed the call button. She rationalized it with giving Skylar space, but deep down she knew it was because she was afraid. Afraid that Skylar would only see her as the person that caused her so much pain, the one that had been too weak to stand on her own and needed to hide behind her sister.

Pilar had always been scared.

The world frightened her. Life frightened her. She hid behind her camera because it gave her a shield against reality. It was her filter against knowing how scary everything was. Editing her pictures she could change the world, that was her magic. She could take pictures and make them into what she wanted to see. Change ugly to beautiful, change scary to less scary, on her computer she had the power.

Agonizing over what had happened to Skylar, she had wished the war to be over, for nobody to ever experience what they had. She had wished it to be over for Philo and Reki, wanted them to be rewarded for everything they had done for them.

And now it was.

It was a stone that fell from her heart.

"They won," Pilar smiled.

Solar was amazed. She had not seen Pilar smile since her return nearly seven months earlier. With regular therapy, Pilar had regained some control over her thoughts. She still refused to see Skylar, going into self-blaming rants whenever Solar brought it up.

Solar had talked with the therapist several times and she had been told that Pilar needed a lot of time to get over her guilt, Skylar was her biggest demon, a constant reminder of how weak she had been and what she had been the cause of. Pilar's psyche would not survive being pushed. Solar had agreed, knowing her sisters Skylar would understand, and she had. Not once had she blamed Pilar for anything or been upset that she had not come to see her, all she wanted to know was if Pilar was ok.

"Yes, they won it seems. Have they said anything about casualties or how it happened?"

"The rebels stormed the capital a few weeks ago, they haven't mentioned casualties."Pilar said with excitement and kept staring at the screen to read everything on the banner and listen to the reporter talk on and on. "The soldiers we met were just small pieces of the puzzle, but I hope Philo is ok."

"Tell me about Philo." Solar had refrained from asking direct questions, she had settled for whatever information Pilar and Skylar had given her, but maybe now Pilar would be ready to open up a little.

If not, she would leave it alone.

Pilar started writhing her hands in her lap. "He was big and honestly at first very scary. Had a massive beard and looked like a caveman, but he had kind eyes. Green as grass. His voice was calm and made you want to confide in him." She looked up. "He saved her. She would have died without him."