Kharie had been able to regain her composure after her embarrassing display, and Elias had even been kind enough to dry her tears and wiped down her face for her using the strange black cloths he seemed to just be able to summon using his odd black mana. Any odd or negative feelings she had about the man seemed to simply... vanish. He had been nothing but kind to her, and everything he did and said was genuine to her senses.
He had saved her, made her laugh, and even made her cry, although she knew that wasn't his intention. What he said to her... it had struck her hard, and even if her mind wasn't fully ready to accept everything just yet, his words were not wrong. Not only that, but he had shared something personal with her, and his anger, his grief, his guilt... that was real. And yet... how he carried himself, and how he acted now? It was a far cry from the man he had told her he was.
"He has been through a lot too... things that turn men into monsters. Well, in way, he truly is a monster, but... a good one. One who only seems to bring that out when he needs to." She thought, then she couldn't help the smile on her face as the village finally came into view.
Now she just had to get ahold of her face, which refused to stop burning. Between Elias's strong and gentle arms, and the fact that she just spent the last 10 to 15 minutes staining his chestpiece with tears, that was proving to be a difficult endeavor.
"Brace yourself, Kharie. I'm going to land soon." He said, and true to his words, his wings flared out and they began to descend.
She saw that he was aiming to land behind their home, in the open space that they occasionally used for training, sparring, and in her case, target practice. Probably for the best, and given what he had told her earlier, she figured he sent word to his two mates telling them where they'd be. At this point, from meeting him, his show of strength with his arua, subduing her brother with seemingly his willpower alone, and what she had just seen with the Corpse Spiders in the Dead Lands, she began wondering what he couldn't do, rather than what he could.
They soon landed, Elias being careful and landing slowly as to not jostle Kharie. His consideration for her made it feel like her heart was growing tiny wings as it fluttered with appreciation, and something else. Something she'd have to look at internally later on. Once they landed and his wings disappeared, he lowered her gently to the ground. She set her feet on the soft dirt below her, the grass having been cleared as to not get in the way during their sparring sessions. Her feet were steady, much to her surprising, her new leg and foot working just the same now as it had previously.
"Thank you..." Kharie said, and Elias just smiled at her.
"You're welcome." He said, still keeping a hand on her back in case she needed assistance, "I let my ladies know we've arrived. Everyone should be here soon." He finished, confirming her previous thought.
No sooner than he said that, the large double doors leading from the home to the training area flew open, and the sight of her two brothers filled her with more warmth and more relief than it ever had before. They both ran, and she responded in kind, her steps coming far easier than she would've thought. Two pairs of strong arms wrapped around her from her front, tangling up with each other, as she did her best to wrap her arms around the both of them. More tears, more than before, fell from her eyes as she held them close.
"I didn't mean to worry either of you... I'm so... so sorry." Kharie sobbed, her face buried between both of them.
"Not now... later... we can discuss how reckless you are..." Vikoss said, his voice strained but not without warmth, "Right now, I just want to hold my sister. And be grateful that you're still here..."
Kharie hiccuped at his words, fully feeling the consequences of her actions. She almost left them without her, and from how his voice trembled with the emotions he did his best to hold back, she knew that if she hadn't come back... he wouldn't have been able to cope with it. He probably would have went and gotten himself killed... just like her father.
"I... request... that you never do anything like this again." Rory said, his voice trembling as her gripped her as if letting go would cause her vanish.
She could hear it in his voice, and felt the tears falling onto her exposed skin due to the rips and tears in her clothes, as well as soaking through the fabric. A new wave of waterworks followed as she pulled him closer using the arm wrapped around him.
"Never again... I promise... I'm never going back there... I..." Kharie said, her voice cracking, but she pushed through, determined to finish her sentence, "I love you both... so much, and I'll never hide anything from you both like this again..."
Her brothers held her tighter, basking in the presence of their amazing older sister. She was safe and she was alive. That meant more than words could ever say. After a while, her brothers loosened their grip, and Vikoss looked at her, his warms warmer, and significantly more red and wet with tears than she'd ever seen them before.
"We weren't the only ones that worried about you." Vikoss said, and both of her brother stepped back, and parted to either side.
Kharie's eyes met Delphia's, who stood several paces back, eyes red and body shaking. Kharie couldn't truly explain why this woman made her feel the way she did, nor why the woman in question seemed to care about her so much despite their very limited time knowing each other.
However, as Kharie's eyes fully met hers, she recognized something that made her begin to understand. Delphia's eyes, while different in color than those of her mother's, held the same warmth, the same care, the same worry that she had remembered seeing for many years. Whenever she had gotten herself hurt by monsters as a child, or just did something stupid and injured herself, her mother was there, looking at her the same way Delphia looked at her right now.
"Honey... you're hurt... just look at your clothes..." Delphia said with a shakey voice as fresh tears fell from her eyes, "Is that... all your blood?"
With those words, and the look on Delphia's face, Kharie was no longer the 27 year old woman she had grown into. She was that same little girl from so long ago, her feet carrying her the short distance in only a second as she ran into Delphia's arms. Delphia didn't hesitate to wrap the girl in her arms, her nurturing instincts taking over as she pulled the woman's face into her collarbone as Kharie let out shakey, trembling sobs. Delphia stroked her hair with one hand as used her other to hold her close.
"I'm sorry..." Kharie said, her voice cracking as she let the last of what little control she had go.
She had always tried to be strong for everyone. For her brothers, her people, and herself. Yet right now, with this kind woman treating her so delicately, she felt like she didn't have to be strong right now. She could just... be.
"Shh. You're okay...." Delphia said into her hair, "Everything else can wait... I'm just so glad you're okay."
Her words made Kharie choke up even more. Memories came flooding back to her when her mother, who everyone saw as a strong and stern leader, would hold her like this, whispering sweet words to her just like this woman was right now. The words that left Kharie's mouth came unbidden, as those moments and this one overlapped with one another.
"Mama..." She said, her words barely audible.
Delphia's body froze for only a moment, before she held Kharie tighter, warmth filling her chest, and fresh tears spilling down her face. Kharie only realized what she had said moments later, but the care and affection Delphia was giving her stopped her from correcting herself.
"If that's what you need... then that's what I'll be sweetheart..." Delphia said softly, resting her chin atop Kharie's head.
Kharie's only response was a small, choked noise as she buried her face into Delphia's chest, accepting the one thing she had missed more than anything else in this world, and never truly realized until this moment. A mother's affection.