238. A Long Awaited Heart to Heart

Frost didn’t speak a word to Ber or her sisters, only nodding with a candid smile. Or what looked like one. Her eyes spoke more than what Frost ever could. Never blinking, her eyes remained widened like the headlights of a train. There was much revolving around her mind, clouding it as she received the message from Jury regarding the false healers.

But her judgement remained firm. If Jury had passed their verdict as guilty, then Frost was the judge to decide their fate, and the executioner to bleed them of everything they knew. Coming back from saving Ber and waking up into yet another nightmare caused Frost to become eerily silent, and her gaze carried a hint of mania.

The Red Giant and the Bee Insectid Blood Moon were mummified with layers of steel string. Some had melted and infused with their flesh. Dirt and grit smeared into their open, corrading wounds as she dragged them aside, granting the triplets the privacy they desperately needed without uttering a single word.

But it was clear how she felt about all of this. How it ate at her mind. The nonsensical violence, and the blind fervor of the Scarlet Logic made Frost look towards the flames, her golden eyes brimming with its scarlet burn.

She could not wait to get her hands on those false healers, and she salivated at the thought of watching the City of Spades reduce to cinders.

In the meantime, Ber entered the limelight. Her naked form stood just meters away from a defeated Cer and Res, both tattered and beaten like stray dogs. Their wounds were healed by Frost, but their suits carried the proof of their abuse.

Res needed to look up to face Ber. An emotionally charged gaze trapped them as Res struggled to grasp at the words racing through her mind. What did she want to say? What did she want to hear? Awkwardness coiled around her heart, squeezing the confidence from her as she meekly stared at the new Ber in disbelief.

A part of her still hadn’t digested this reality. And if it was just a dream, then it was a cruel one. Flames brimmed in the backdrop. Nothing but air separated them. The awkwardness and her tears clasped at her throat, silencing her as she opened her mouth to speak.

Cer sifted through the ground, repositioning herself until she had a clean view of Res.

“How about instead of blaming yourself, just be happy that Ber’s still here.” She whispered. “We’ve seen stranger things. Ber coming back all grown up is the least of our worries. BER! WHAT ARE YOU DOING STANDING AROUND! GET – OVER HERE ALREADY!”

Ber’s eyes glistened. It was as if she was waiting for their approval. Like Res, after things had died down a bizarre awkwardness chained her down. But hearing Cer’s voice alleviated them, uprooted the hooks from her heart and before she knew it, she was running towards them.

A guilt ridden Res couldn’t seem to fathom why Ber looked so desperate running towards them. Deep down, she knew that she was the cause of her Corruption. Her tiny paws grasped onto the tattered fabric along her lap, tears still collapsing onto her knuckles.

Suddenly, warmth enveloped her. Ber’s overwhelmingly large body embraced her from head to toe, the familiar warmth causing her to look up as she gazed past her shoulders into the wall of flames beyond.

“Res! Res… It’s alright! I’m back so you don’t gotta keep crying! Did they hurt you? Did they try to turn you into a Corrupted!?” Ber was worried about her, and never mentioned anything about the past, only causing Res’ tears to fall harder.

“Why are you still worried about me? After everything I did. Everything that happened… It’s my fault you became a Corrupted, so why? Ber, why? I never knew how much you were hurting. How can you… worry about someone who feigned blindness?” Res couldn’t accept it.

But it felt like she was just trying to grasp at excuses. Her guilt twisted her heart as she blamed herself for all Ber’s woes.

“If you really feigned blindness, then you wouldn’t be bawling your eyes out. I really did hate that I had to go through all that. Pretending to be you. Stealing the stuffed teddy bear just to know what it was like to be held like this. I was alone in that lake for a long time.”

“Then –!”

“But it was also my fault! I couldn’t say anything! If people heard how I felt, then I’m sure… I’m sure they would’ve tried to help. In retrospect, I was the one who closed myself off from everyone when I should’ve been crying for help. Res… You were the same, weren’t you! You don’t gotta keep feeling guilty anymore! I know now that I wasn’t your fault!”

“… how can you say that without spiting me? I never knew how much it festered! Serum G kept us all in the dark, but now that it’s all out I can’t bring myself to understand! I… don’t want to be forgiven. Please Ber…” Res’ cold exterior melted.

The real Res was not the stern and serious wolfwoman she portrayed herself as. Underneath it all was someone just as vulnerable as Ber. Rather, she was just as much as a victim of the past as her, and she took upon the full brunt of the blame, trembling in self-loathing hatred as she her voice grew raspier.

Ber brought a hand to the back of Res’ head and drew her into her neck, her beautiful tail coiling around them like a fluffy nest. Then, with her mouth drew close to her ear, Ber whispered:

“You don’t want to be forgiven. But I wanna forgive you. I have to, because even after all this time, there’s one thing that hasn’t changed. Res. I love you. Why… else would I have gone through all that if I didn’t care about you for a second?”

“Stop…”

“You’re my sister. We’re triplets… Maybe it’s just me. Maybe I’m just stupid because I still love Mom. But I can’t bring myself to hate you or her or anyone. I just want to move on.”

Res’s hands slowly wrapped around Ber’s back, struggling to latch on as she became an incoherent mess. Forgiveness was an unbearable pain for someone like Res. But it was a relinquishing one. Perhaps this was what she wanted all along. Forever blaming herself for all these years cemented her guilty chains as truth, so when Ber released her from them, the floodgates opened.

“There are things I still haven’t gotten over. But if there’s one storm that’s passed by, then it’s this. Serum G never let us talk like this, huh? It was always just tugging, hugging, and comforting each other with our presence. A heart to heart…” Ber began to tremble, her eyes sinking as they began to shimmer with moisture. “Was what we needed all along. If anything… I’m sorry. For making us take Serum G. Res. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

Their shared tears washed away the bad blood coated along their exposed skin. The scene looked like a mother comforting her child. No one could have guessed that these two were in fact siblings. Cer, gazing at them from the side as she laid down to watch the smoldering skies, softly smiled and threw her forearm over her eyes.

“Isn’t that nice? Moving forward one step at a time. Parts of our old selves are coming back, but it feels like we’re also growing. Can’t see a single star or moon tonight. But I think I’ve seen something brighter than any of those combined… and it’s all thanks to Her.” Cer monologued, shielding her eyes from the metaphorical light above.

… or, more than that, Cer just wanted to hide her own tears.

A glistening bead dripped from her cheek.

She was not one to believe in miracles.

Frost’s presence was more of a blessing than the Blessing of the Nexus itself if it could chisel away at the likes of Serum G.