S a l e t é I I

XI - Yeux - Quatorze

Cassie stayed with Monet for what felt like quite a long while, even with her concept of time completely eroded.

It may have been twenty minutes, it may have been an hour, she didn't know. She didn't care. Just being with someone in that moment provided her with a sense of something calmer, something that she'd essentially been craving, and she didn't consider Monet to be that much of a stranger; she'd helped her before now, she'd offered her a temporary haven, she'd explained some profound matters to her, and here she was, helping her again.

A friend? Maybe not yet, but a stranger? No.

She may not have known too much about the girl in red, but she knew that she was both considerate and generous. Monet was the one leaning against the wall now, Cassie sat just before her, leaning back against her wearily.

Whilst in Monet's gentle hold, Cassie felt as if she was able to actually think, without the concepts she'd become aware of thoroughly consuming her again. Each time something would begin to encroach upon her senses, or her sanity, a light brush of Monet's hand upon hers would bring her back from such a brink, allowing her more time to process what she had been told.

Considering what Monet had told her, about her being who she was, helped to soothe her too. If it really was the truth, then... Was it...

Was it so bad...?

She'd been taken to Deering House because she'd been wanted, and she'd been accepted by everybody there, even though she was a Jouet - she was still Cassia Deering to all of them, a member of the family, treated with as much care and respect as Adeline, to whom she was a sister.

She still missed them terribly, and it was an ache that wouldn't truly leave her until she was with them again, but her nerves... Her nerves had been cooled. There was a lot that still confused her, and contemplating everything that she now knew was still a monumental task, but it didn't strike a vast sickness anymore.

She wasn't content, but she wasn't distraught. Not about what she'd been told, anyway.

"Monet...?"

"Yes?"

"Um... T-thank you. I mean, for having me here, and... For taking the time to... Talk about things."

"You're welcome."

Monet's responses may have been brief, and her tone may have remained unchanged, but hearing them still settled Cassie's mind on the matter; knowing that she'd expressed her gratitude was a good feeling, and the more of those she could muster up, the better.

She would have to thank Uliana properly as well, for bringing her to Monet in the first place, and it might have been nice to thank the others for accepting her - even Taya, who had at least agreed to tolerate her presence.

"How do you feel now? A bit better?" Monet asked her, still comforting her in a delicate fashion, her artificial touch still granting a semblance of warmth.

Cassie nodded gently.

"If you ever feel bad, or afraid, you can talk to me or the others. Uliana seems to have taken a liking to you."

"Do you think so...?"

"She was the one who told me that you were struggling, when she came upstairs to retrieve a chair earlier."

Cassie hesitated now, as she considered what she'd heard.

Uliana had done that? She'd looked out for her again, after seeing that she was lost amongst all of her thoughts...?