Fire Emblem: High School Years (High School AU) - Sophomore Year

I Won't Leave You

Anna

I was curled on the couch, eyes threatening to fall shut. Chrom had left a few hours prior, leaving me and Mom alone for the rest of the day. Mom had left us alone for the time he was here and continued to give me my own time. Deep down, I knew she wanted to spend every waking minute with me, comforting me, but I truly and deeply appreciated her leaving me alone to collect my thoughts.

How long has she known about this? How long has Validar been trying to get to me? Months? Weeks? Gods only know...

Before my thoughts could drag me into sleep, Mom came into the living room. Her phone was still against her ear. "I know. Thank you so much. Goodbye," she sighed, eyes turning to me. "I just got off the phone with our lawyer. She says they're doing their best to contain the situation."

I pulled a pillow towards me, hugging it tightly. "I see..." I nodded. "That's good at least."

Mom sat down next to me, brushing a few strands of hair from my eyes. "How are you feeling?"

"Better than before," I replied. "I still feel really worried and scared, though."

"And that is totally fine." Mom wrapped an arm around me. "I promise that I will protect you from him. I know I've already broken the one I made long ago, but I won't let that happen again."

I shook my head. "Mom, don't worry about that. We can't control Validar's actions, we couldn't have predicted this."

"I know, but..."

I hugged her tight. "I think we both knew that we wouldn't be able to avoid him forever," I sighed. "Sure, things looked and felt like they would have worked. Just another year and a half and I would be able to revoke any connection he had to me as my father."

She swallowed, trying to hold back her tears. "I just want him to be gone from our lives..."

"I do, too, Mama," I whimpered. "...What do you think the trial will result in? Do you really think the courts will allow Validar custody over me?"

Mom flinched at that, pulling away to give ourselves some breathing room. She still kept her arms around me, though. "Honestly, pumpkin, I don't know," she said. "I don't know what his behaviors are like these days; what masks he can wear to trick the courts. However, given his past charges, it could be a very, very steep uphill battle for him."

Still, the thought of him being a part of my life again made me want to crawl into a corner. "...The trauma I experienced because of him still lingers to this day. Very heavily, too. Will they take that into account?"

"I really hope they do, baby, I really do." She pressed a kiss on the side of my head. "We'll have plenty of hearings with social workers and I'm sure they will want to hear your thoughts and anxieties regarding him."

"...I don't even know if I can be in the same room as him."

"Neither do I, Anna. Neither do I..."

We remained like that for a while, just holding onto one another and silently praying to Naga that we would never have to see Validar again in our lives. Please...we've been through so much... My life has been made progressively harder because of him, and he hasn't been a part of it in years! Physical wounds may heal over time, but emotional scars last forever. I can't let him ruin everything Mom and I have built.

"...I love you, Little Bird. I need you to know that." Mom suddenly spoke, voice soft.

I smiled, huffing a small laugh. "I know, Mama. I love you, too."

She kissed the crown of my head. "We'll get through this, I swear it. Life has always been the two of us and I have no intentions of letting Validar back into the equation."

I began to play with a stray thread on my pants. "Mom, I've been wondering, and this is probably the worst time to bring it up but..." I drew in a deep breath. "Actually...never mind. It's dumb."

Mom frowned. "What? No, you can tell me."

I shook my head. "It's stupid and I don't really want to talk about it anymore. Please, pretend I didn't say anything."

She seemed reluctant to do that. "Are you sure?"

"Positive."

She sighed, hugging me once more. "As you say, my love." She smiled. "Well, what say we just order in for dinner? I don't really feel like doing anything or going anywhere."

I chuckled. "All right. Sounds like a plan."

All I am wondering is if it WILL be just Mom and me for the rest of our lives. I'm perfectly happy with the dynamic we have, something just feels off. Someday, I'm going to move off and start a family of my own. I will NEVER cut Mom out of my life EVER, but we won't constantly be by each other's sides like we are now. I want her to be happy. Has she avoided dating because she's worried I won't adjust well to a drastic family change?

*****
おはようございます！
So yeah. Some more worldbuilding and family fluff. I am so flipping tired, good lord. The time change has ruined my life. And, to add to that, I had to wake up really early this morning and I'm about 99% sure I'm catching a cold. Yaaaaaaay. Anyway! I am currently on my way to a competition, actually. It's for my Japanese class and I'm super excited! Wish me luck! (And pray to literally every god that I actually remember my Japanese. I'm only a first year student, don't @ me). Yee. Thank you so much for reading and look forward to reading more!

Currently listening to: Panic! At The Disco - "Hey Look Ma I Made it"