ORIGIN

She felt the force of Lilith's anger and for a second she almost shied away. Perhaps at one point, she had blamed Tamulus, she'd pointed a finger at him, but she had done that to everyone. She'd been in hysterics when Lilith had gone, she'd been broken, one half of a whole, screaming and cursing the world, and blaming everyone, including herself, for the loss of her beloved. But it had settled, gone away, because she'd understood that it wasn't Tamulus that had caused it all, it was the Empire that was to blame. Always the empire.

But...she could admit. Tamulus could have helped somehow. Was he not powerful? Did he not bring magic to Let and give the witches their stones and power? Did they mean so little to him that at the first sign of danger he abandoned them? She could understand, now, Lilith's anger, thinking of it in a way she had not before. Yet still, she couldn't be truly angry at him. He must have had a reason.

But she didn't want to dwell on the topic. Lilith didn't seem to want to so she let it go without anymore comment, smiling at the praise for their son. "He did," she whispered, feeling a slice of pain thinking about what a great man he'd become. "Don't worry. He knows. I always told him that you would be. Because I knew you would. He never became a leader, not officially, but he is in the ways that matter. So many people look up to him and respect him. I think, if the time comes to choose a new leader, the witches may choose him."

She hoped that the day would come, but also that it would not. Because it would mean that they were in danger once again and they needed strong, fiery leadership. They needed his will and his passion. She hoped he would lead them well, but that he would never have to.

"Oh, of course!" She couldn't be happier to hear those words and the question. "Many places, in fact! I have something of a temporary setup in a cave - Pegasus, you must have passed it to get here. Open meadows and a forest, right next to the cave you were in before. It's peaceful there, kind of like the hillsides of the Vaa. We could make ourselves a home there - and a garden."

And then she squeezed Lilith's hand, feeling her dread and suddenly wishing that she could have a better answer, but it was a deep sadness that she had still not fully come to terms with yet. "...No. No, there's no way out. I'm sorry, Lilith." She didn't say it, but the longing for the sky returned, for the wind and the stars. But they were gone and they would never see them again.

The took notice of Lilith's discomfort, how she seemed far away, her mind divided. Eleanora couldn't blame her - she'd changed a lot, her circumstances had changed, everything was different now. She could feel her fear, her anger, she could feel how the contact between them kept her here and now, the storm at bay threatening to swallow her. By the sky, she wished she could hold it for her, shield her from whatever madness threatened to overwhelm her. But she could do nothing but watch and do what she had in her power.

"The best man," she answered, quietly. "We couldn't have had a better son. Perhaps...there will be a way to see him again." She doubted it, but these caves held wonders she could barely imagine. Perhaps there would be a way through magic to speak to him, or even just to see him. How desperately she wished to revive the memory of his face that threatened to fade through the cruel streams of time.

She squeezed Lilith's hand again. "I know." The caves were big, yes, but the claustrophobia afflicting her love were familiar feelings. Looking up and seeing nothing but stone, knowing that there would always be a wall stopping her from going any farther, it had always made her feel so trapped. She had grown used to the feeling, always there and never quite fading, but the reminder of the situation they were in made her skin tingle with discomfort.

She stopped walking when Lilith paused, patiently waiting for her to catch her breath. She glanced off into Eridanus, wondering what had even happened here - the white fungus clutching to every surface, the web-like strands hanging from the trees, and the strange smell that permeated everything. She was lost in a mix of curiosity and anxiety when Lilith asked That Question. She had hoped she wouldn't, not immediately at least, but it was inevitable. She took a deep breath and turned back to her, the sadness so deep in her eyes, the apprehension for how she would take it making her feel light. "I've only been down here for a little less then a year but you..." she swallowed. "You've been gone for over 200. I lost count a long time ago." She waited quietly for Lilith to process that sheer amount of time, knowing that if she had been in her shoes, it would be near crushing to know she had left her other half alone for all those years.