CURSED [D.M]

-(69) it isn't her

ZILLIAH holds the baby in her hands like it's the most delicate thing in the world. The morning sunlight makes her little black eyes glint with curiosity as her gaze darts all around the room. And when her soft pink hands grasp at Zilliah's pinky finger, she feels her heart melt. "She's lovely", she mumbles, never once taking her eyes away from the precious thing in her arms. Draco hovers behind her, his chin on her shoulders, watching them, but she can't even bring herself to look at him because looking at him meant looking away from her. And Zilliah found it impossible to do that at the moment.

"You have a name for her?", Draco asks, his breath warming the side of her face. She knows he is smiling even though she can't see him.

"Vivianne", Blaise replies, his voice holding all the softness and proudness of a father.

"Vivianne", Draco repeats, like he's trying to match the name with the baby in her arms. "I like it."

"I like it too", Zilliah says, finally forcing herself to peel her eyes away from the little creature to meet Draco's eyes. There is a soft look in them that she has never seen before- a gentler kind of gaze. And it melts her heart even more.

"I think I should change her diapers", Aneesia says, reaching out for her baby. She is a tall, lean, and beautiful girl, her black eyes ever so sincere, her long black hair pulled up into a ponytail.

But sensing the tiredness in her voice, Zilliah offers to help. "I could do it for you."

Aneesia shakes her head, smiling. "Call me paranoid but I don't want anyone but me and Blaise doing stuff like that.. cause, you know.."

"I know", Zilliah replies in an instant, handing Vivianne over to her mother.

"It's not that I don't trust you, but,,"

"You don't have to explain it. I understand", Zilliah tells her with utmost sincerity. She really does understand- how trusting anyone with a child is hazardous. The personal experience she has with Linden is a prime example of that. 

"Besides, it's our duty. isn't it?"

Zilliah smiles, nodding her head, tears building up in the back of her eyes at seeing this motherly love and care. Something she has no proper recollection of her own. 

The peace in the atmosphere gets disrupted as Draco hisses in pain, catching his forearm. And everybody understands what it means- the little moment of joy which made them forget all about the strife, over in instant.

•

Zilliah sits on the ground, her back against a tree, with her mother's sketchbook in hand- the love Daphne could never show to her directly, overflowing in the papers. Ivan had seen it and stuffed it into his bag when he saved her that night, knowing that was what she was there for. He had also salvaged the video camera and given it to her when she woke up. And as she looks through the book, she sees that there are drawings of her right from when she was an infant. But with the older ones, it's not as accurate as before.

"Hey", Theseus mumbles, plopping down beside her.

"Hey", Zilliah mumbles, staring at the last sketch in it- of her sleeping, mere months back, at their apartment.

"You mind if I have a look?", he asks. And with no hesitation, she hands him the book, shutting her eyes and leaning into his side to shield herself from the sun. Or maybe she just wants to feel some presence of comfort to combat the uneasiness trying to claw to the surface within her. He doesn't treat it oddly and lets her as he flips through the pages of the book.

"You're beautiful", he says, his words a half-sigh. "Been so since your birth."

She chuckles, shaking her head slightly.

"No, really! I remember seeing your photographs ever since I was a kid. You were.. the best thing I've ever laid my eyes upon. And Nana always used to say, you'd be mine one day. I've dreamt of that forever."

She lifts her head up and eyes him in disbelief. "You used to gawk at my photographs?"

A blush creeps up his neck and his cheeks at that. "I shouldn't have said that but, yeah."

"How did you even get them?"

He shrugs. "Linden always used to bring in one at the end of every year."

"Oh", she registers, her eyebrows perking up. "That's why he always used to force me in front of the camera once a year. I just thought he was just being an asshole, doing that solely because he knows it pisses me off."

He chuckles, his gaze upon her soft and admiring. "Yeah, you always looked grumpy in them."

"Well, of course, I did!", Zilliah throws her hands up, laughing, It makes him laugh too.

And for the first time, since she's seen him, she acknowledges that he is not someone she can exclude from her life. She may never view him romantically or be his wife like everyone wants her to be. But she has been mingled with his life right from the start- it's in their blood and in their bond. It's not something she can just turn a blind eye to. But she isn't being true to it. She still hides behind a cowardly shield of armor, just to protect her own self. And it isn't right. It isn't her.

Be true and kind to yourself- Ivan had told her.

Kindness is a virtue she doesn't think she deserves. But hiding behind a facade, that's not something she wants anymore. She spent her whole life being shut out from ever knowing her true potential. And she doesn't want to be like that any longer. For that, she has to right her wrongs. Atleast parts of it that can still be made right.

"Theseus, can we go somewhere?"