Chapter 10: Family Forever
“…LLE. Lille!”
Through a haze, she could hear Charles’s voice somewhere in the distance. The words were the same she’d heard when she woke up in Charles’s memories. She weakly opened her eyes, but her vision was blurry, almost as if it was shrouded in white mist.
“Are you all right, Lille?”
His voice sounded closer, and she was beginning to regain sensation in her body as well. For a moment, she worried she was sleeping on Charles’s lap again, but the fluffy, supportive surface beneath her was far more likely to be a bed.
“Master…Charlie…” she called, her voice hoarse. Her throat tingled immediately, and a dry cough escaped her. With no hesitation, Charles rubbed a soothing hand in circles on her back and put a glass of water to her lips. She gratefully sipped it.
“Thank…you,” she croaked. As her eyes finally came into focus, she looked around to find herself in her own room. Charles had probably carried her there.
“Thank goodness… I bet you were exhausted. You’ve been asleep for quite a while,” Charles said, sighing with relief.
“Oh, really?” she asked, stretching out her stiff limbs.
Looking out the window, she could see the sun setting. She didn’t know how the passage of time in the visions corresponded to time in the outside world, but judging by the severe look of concern on Charles’s face, she supposed she’d been sleeping for at least a few hours.
“It’s dinnertime now. Do you feel like eating? If you don’t feel strong enough to move, I’ll bring it to you here,” Charles offered kindly.
“No, it’s quite all right. I can move,” she insisted.
“Are you sure…? Don’t push yourself, okay?” He eyed her, uncertain, but let her stand up all the same.
When she reached the living room, an unexpected scene awaited her: Leo was sitting patiently on one of the chairs, Ark towered over him in his human form, and—for some reason—August was there, too.
“M-Master August? What might you be here for?” She blinked in surprise. Apparently, Charles hadn’t been aware of August’s presence, either, because he yelped and jumped out of his skin at the sight of him.
All three of them were frowning bitterly, and August even had his arms crossed.
“I called him here,” Ark announced.
“Why?”
“Well, because it seems like Master Charlie has something important to tell us. I filled Leo in on what’s been happening, too,” he clarified. Lille then understood why they all looked so serious. She suspected, though, that it would be even harder for Charles to share what he’d gone through amidst such a negative atmosphere.
“W-Wait, why’d you d-do that?” Charles stuttered.
“If I didn’t, you’d say you’re not mentally prepared to talk about it and keep on putting it off ’til later. You know you would,” Ark said bluntly.
“I wouldn’t—”
“You most definitely would, Charles. Steel yourself and sit down,” August interrupted, gesturing to the chair firmly.
Lille could understand the logic behind Ark’s strategy, but having just seen everything Charles had experienced, she felt a little sorry for him. “I know you can do this, Master Charlie. I’ll fill in any parts you find hard to talk about,” she promised.
“Lille…” he said tearily. Their eyes met; he was clearly touched.
Suddenly, a giant sigh from Leo drew their attention. Up until that point, he had simply listened silently.
“Can’t this wait a moment? Lille’s famished. Pot-au-feu is one of my specialties, but it’s not gonna taste of anything if you eat it with a frown,” he huffed dramatically. His unusually theatrical declaration was most likely a way to distract everyone—for Charles’s sake.
“…Yes, you’re right, Leo. Thank you.” She smiled pleasantly.
“It’s just, I went to all the trouble to make it, so…” He fidgeted. “I just want you to actually enjoy it.”
Lille merely looked at Leo, a grin on her face. He swiftly averted his eyes with an exasperated snort, his cheeks dyed red.