Played For A Fool

A Blink of Agreement

Salty tears streamed down Winter's face. She recognized the sense of soft wet kisses trailing down her scarred cheeks better than most, though the feeling that came with these ones was different than she had ever experienced. Instead of feeling empty and hopeless, she felt overpowering joy and happiness as she saw her cousin.

"Selene!" Winter exclaimed, her dark, corkscrew hair bouncing. She ran to the crowded bedside, and had to restrain herself from throwing her arms around her dear cousin. "Selene, oh, dear Selene!"

A cough that may have started as a laugh escaped her cousin, and Winter paused. There were three other people already in the room, all of them she recognized. Two she had only met days before when they had confirmed that her cousin was alive, while the other she had known for years. The first was dark haired, with purple circles under his eyes; Kai. The second was in a wheelchair, and unmissable with her bright blue hair; Iko. The final was tall, dark, and statuesque as he stood silent as ever in the corner; Liam.

Winter stared from one face to another, before looking back at her cousin. The sight brought more tears to her vision. Selene was a multitude of bright, unnatural colors. She had seen Selene when Kai had carried her out of the hospital, but not dared to visit since. Selene looked absolutely awful.

When Jacin had gotten the call of Selene's awakening, the two had rushed to the hospital. Both of them couldn't stand the steril interior of The Commonwealth for very long, and had decided just to visit every day. Neither of them had escaped with an injury, so they had no reason, other than their friends, to stay.

The call from the excited nurse had been a cheery one. Winter knew that Selene was not in a good position after being beat nearly to death, but she had imagined her looking somewhat better than three nights ago. Turns out hospitals can't work all miracles.

"Selene?" Winter choked out the word. Three bodies moved away from Selene, the first softly dropping her hand. Winter didn't hesitate for a second to reach forward and grab it. She held it soft, as though it were a bird with a broken wing that she had just rescued from her front yard. She encircled the taped and bruised hand with both of her own, fingers trembling as she did so.

Tears fell from dark eyes onto soft white sheets. Winter held Selene's hand without saying a word. Selene stared at Winter, looking at a loss for words, though there were no tears; there never were. "Winter," rasped Selene, the voice excruciatingly painful to listen to. It sounded broken and tired. Winter shushed her cousin.

Winter remembered the day she had discovered Selene's death. She could recall every detail. The tree; the branch cutting scars into her cheek; blood; crying; pain. Every bit stood out in her mind, just as it had when she had first seen Selene back from the dead. Back then, Selene had only been another ghost, now she was real.

"I love you, Selene." Winter whispered softly. "I cannot even express to you how overjoyed I am that you are alive. Thank you for not dying."

An almost smile twisted on Selene's face, though Winter could tell that she was exhausted. Winter dared not squeeze her cousin's hand, but she rubbed her finger gently over the back. She had decided that if her cousin lived, she would ask her to live with her. No, she would beg. "I know that we haven't seen each other in many years, not since the accident," Winter said quietly. "But, I want you to come live with Father and I. We both do."

Blink. That's all that Selene did, but Winter could tell from the look in her eyes, that it was a blink of agreement. A bright smile crossed Winter's face, and she resisted the urge to wrap her arms around her cousin and squeeze the breath out of her. Instead, she settled for a soft kiss on the forehead. "I love you very much, cousin dearest."