Missing Piece

Chapter 39

"Wait, kids!" Charlotte was the first one out of the kitchen rushing forward to intercept them at the door should whomever on the other side be unfriendly instead. Law hid from view, ready to call his room at any unsavory sounds from Charlotte's first address. His trusty nodachi already by his side while Shachi dried his hands, keeping the water purposefully running in case they were listening in.

Charlotte cursed when she caught sight of Kozu stretched out, fingertips just scrapping by enough to turn the handle open while Kora stood by the door's edge pushing it wide open. The door swung open, and Charlotte froze on the spot, eyes blown wide at the person standing on the other side.

"Latte, sweetie, are you okay? It's okay, don't cry. Mommy's here." Her mother murmured into the crown of her child's head, sapphire eyes darting towards the large burn on her back with unease and worry. They need a doctor, fast. They'll be a scar... she realized disheartened at the idea of Charlotte growing up bullied by the ugly scar. But that was a problem for another day. Today, they needed to get away and somewhere safe first. "Mommy will fix everything. Just stay behind me, okay Latte?" She placed a gentle kiss on the teary-faced child. "Stay behind me." She murmured, pushing the trembling child behind her as she turned to face their assailant, a pained expression on her face.

Charlotte could barely remember her mother leaving her side—her mind overwhelmed by the pain searing through her trembling body. She could barely recall the conversation that took place, her cries and trembles drowning out the loud screams and shouts—people were fighting. Charlotte could barely remember anything that happened until all time seemed to freeze.

Teary eyes seemed to dry instantly, along with the pain, the noises—everything stopped—insignificant except for the sound of her mother screaming, the warmth of red blood splattering across her face, and the sight of her pale mother, limp on the floor, one blue and one platinum eyes frozen in shock and pink lips parted in half gasp and half scream. The blue contact she wore on the floor and her eyes dulled to black.

She was probably wrong. Terribly wrong. Charlotte knew better than to believe the sight before her. Yet, she found herself unable to look away—to even blink in case the action does away with the image, the cruel illusion. Still, she couldn't help but hope that this was reality and somehow, she had been awfully, terribly wrong these past fifteen years.

She knew better.

Yet. She couldn't help it.

"Mom?"

Her gut twisted uncomfortably—bitterly and Charlotte felt incredibly stupid when the woman's lips curled into a sad understanding smile. "I'm sorry for your loss." Kora's mother said softly. She reached out to touch Charlotte's gloved hands gingerly. Tears pooling around her kind eyes, unshed by sheer willpower. "Sorry, I didn't mean to have pried into your memory like that. It sort of happens automatically because of our abilities, but we can stop it if we're fast enough. I just wasn't expecting... I'm terribly sorry. My name is Elora, mother of these two." Elora explained softly, and Charlotte inhaled sharply. She bit at her bottom lip in realization. Those tears were her tears. "My children are also quite adept at picking up strong feelings."

A pair of arms wrapped around Charlotte's leg from behind and Charlotte turned back to see Kozu at her side, burying his face into her thigh. "It's alright. I'm here to protect you." He promised, tears falling from the corner of his eyes. Kora started sniffling next to them. "I won't call you Latte-nee anymore."

Great. They knew. They all knew. God, did she hate their abilities. Charlotte tilted her head towards the sky, inhaling deeply and forcing her wet eyes to dry. She plopped a gloved hand against the Kora's head. "It's fine. Call me whatever you like." She breathed, still looking up. Her words sounded so far away from herself. Don't you dare cry, Charlotte!