The Elementals
Page 16
It was one of many, of the hardest things that Terra had to do, but she moved from that apartment. It was not as though her family was there, not even in body, for even four months later, they would have joined the dirt. The memories of their deaths, it haunted her. Whenever she went into the bathroom, or the living room, the memory of their bodies were there.
Erick and Terra bought new furniture, they started everything new. On the day of their move, she buried her Amber stone in the corner of the high fence. She didn't want the reminder of who she was, for she was someone new. She was no longer Terra the Earth Element. She was simply Terra Webb.
As for Aunt Gwen, she visited the graves once. She talked with her about what a shame it was and attempted to justify her reasoning for not telling them the entirety of the prophecy. That in order to do what they needed to do, they couldn't know what they were ultimately headed towards. That it was better that way.
It was all poor excuses in Terra's mind. She didn't want the excuses, or justification. There could be no justification for her sisters and Bryne's death. There was nothing at all anyone could say that would make it better. It was not as though they were lying sick in bed for many weeks. They were healthy and young, and kind. They didn't deserve it, they weren't suffering, there was no good reason. There were no scapegoats.
She didn't speak to Aunt Gwen very often. The anger and the hurt, the old wounds could not be surpassed. They were on Christmas card terms. Neither of them complained about the situation. It worked out well for both of them. Her aunt did ask if she had a place to stay, that night she visited her other nieces. Terra was happy that she could tell her yes. At least she wouldn't be living alone in a house that wasn't hers. There was no coming home to Aunt Gwen. Living with her, she came home to Marissa and Era. Without them, there was not a reason in the world why she could not find another place. And she did, with Erick and as long as dear Judy had lived.
The house they moved into was lovely, a small cottage in a wild suburban setting that appeared to be cutting into the midst of the woods with the trees and wildlife that surrounded it. Adoring the place more than she had any other, she planted the small tree in the backyard. The Pine grew to be strong, and every year in the winter, she decorated it with treats for the birds and other small life to feed on. It kept her warm to be near it, she wanted it to do the same for others.
It was every night that she parked herself under it with one of Marissa's books, if not leafing through the pages and allowing her mind to float to the past where she would lie bare footed on the couch.
Terra did move on. It took a year of her living with Erick to finally admit that they were more than friends. She told everyone that he was living there as a friend, to help her through a hard time in her life, that he was doing the duty of the Kin, but it was more than that. Although they didn't kiss, or show many signs of being anything other than friends, there was one sign that gave them away, and that was the furtive looks they cast to one another. It was the hugs at night when she felt that she would die of heartbreak. It was the understanding without truly knowing what she was going through. It was everything that he did, cooking dinner, setting the table, pronouncing his arrival every time he walked in, the patience with teaching her to be a Healer, the belief he had in her, the loaning of his ear and shoulder, his hand. It was almost too good to be true, but it was true, it was real. She knew it was real when she had to push his magazines off the couch to sit down. That was when she realized he wasn't perfect, and that was a comfort.
When she stacked up the magazines at the end of the couch, and he came home, she kissed him. He had one foot inside, the knob in his hand, the keys jangling in the other, but she held his face in her hands, pressing herself against him, his lips against hers.
Once the shock subsided, he kissed her back, holding her tight against him, tasting her lips as if he was starving. As if he had been waiting as long as she had.
It felt like... coming home. For the first time since their death, she felt at home.
Terra was home.
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