Maera did not feel abandoned, she didn't allow such feeelings to creep into her mind. Even if the nights had gotten colder since Larus' unfortunate departure it had only grown worse when her beloved sister and greatest role model also disappeared from view. She missed having her partner in crime with her, she even missed their little fights. But she wouldn't say it.

Just like she wouldn't say anything about Mommy or Valtyr. They were also far gone, but always present in the small child's mind. She missed every single one of them dearly, but despite that growing feeling of nostalgia feeding on their absence she refused to speak of it. Maera was talkative, when she wanted to be.

Now the bubbly little girl she had been was hidden in the corner, gathering dust as the days went by. While she had spent most of her time in her secret club, she often came to the den again, it was much more comfortable to sleep in and besides it still had the faint fragance of those she yearned to see.

As the blonde femme that had once been her saviour called out into the emptiness of the Sveijarn home, the little one's ears swiveled in her head. She lifted her chin from the floor lazily, glancing weakly at the entrance where her parents seemed to never return to. "Hmm?" she answered instinctively, blinking slolwy as she waited for whatever figure to appear through the door.

Before Danica slithered into the den, the child pulled her extremities closer to her, tucking each paw underneath her belly and wrapping her tail over her toes. With Danica's entrance she felt a wave of self-coniousness and exhaustion wash over her coled body. She didn't want to be seen as the child with no family -- even if that was all she was now -- she wished she could wipe away that expression of pity off everyone's face.

She was broken, but she didn't want to be treated as such.
With her eyes following the female's movements, and her ears pinned to her skull she chuffed gently, her hazel eyes inviting Danica to come closer. Arabella and her were all she had left in the Glacier -- no, in the universe.

Danica approached cautiously, giving the girl a gentle invitation and the offer of company. Maera lifted her snout of the floor, she had no energy to move, nor she wanted to, but having another's warmth and feeling another's heartbeat was an offer she couldn't turn down.

"Here?" she asked softly, moving her head to glance around the empty den that had once held her whole world.

While it would've been nice to be certain that all of the obstacles placed in fron t of her would end up pushing her into greatness, it was still someting that remained unknown. Maera was a strong child. She had never hesitated to voice her worries and desires, just like she never backed out from a squabble (unless it was with Jokull).
She was a strong puppy.
Was.

Now, after life had slowly plucked each of her family members one by one the tone of her voice had softened. Without siblings to battle with she had crawled back to her old lethargic self.

But there was still hope.
There was still a chance that the fire in her heart would be rekindled and burn like the fiery inferno it was before.

"Here is alright" she barked softly, allowing the edges of her lips to curve into a smile. She wanted to sleep close to another warm body, to feel another's heartbeat lull her to sleep. While the child waited for her blonde caretaker to crawl closer, she tapped her tail to the dusty floor.

Rules weren't her forte anyways.

The child's eyes followed the slow movements of the female as she made her way inside the den and laid down on the cold floor. She fixed her eyes on her for a moment, watching her with unwavering attention; the girl's oversized ears cupped towards her as she admitted she had never gone to a sleepover before.
Unless napping on top of your chubby brother every afternoon until he wriggle himself free resembled a sleepover, Maera had never had one either.

With a brief shrug of her shoulders the girl threw the ball back in Danica's court. It was far too cold and late to play around -- and honestly Maera was completely exhausted,and there weren't many games around that didn't involve getting up.
"Cuddle?" she piped up, pushing her rump off the ground so she could creep into the tall wall of heat that was Danica's flank.

Though she should have waited for an answer before sinking beside the blonde warrior's stomach, she kinda felt like a silent agreement of mutual support had already been signed between them since their afternoon with the fairies.

The warm feeling of Danica's skin against her own was enough to make the child feel a thousand times better. In a blink of an eye, Maera had already wrapped herself into a tight little ball, melting into Danica's side in the same way she used to with Tuwawi at the time. It would now be a matter of time before Maera fell asleep in her arms, but before she did so she wanted to talk to Danica.

She felt a strange need to do it, even if it went against her nature, she needed to het it off her system somehow, and what better opportunity to do so now? She had missed the chance to do so with Njal and Tuwawi but she didn't want to make that mistake with Danica as well.
"Danica?" she began, feeling a bit awkward to be the one taking the lead in the conversation now.

"Do you think they miss me?" she asked, twisting herself from her little ball to look at Danica's face for a second. Though she somehow knew that knowing if they did wouldn't help her sleep at night she was curious to know if they had also felt their hearts break every night they spent alone.
She wanted to know she was not alone -- even if she was.

The answer given by her last friend on Earth was quick and strong, as if it were a fact as obvious as saying the sky was blue. And though it meant to serve as comfort for the Sveijarn's troubled little mind, Maera couldn't help but pick up on the slight hollowness of Danica's voice.
Though the idea of loosing her too had not crossed the child's mind, it would not have been much of a surprise to be honest.

The sky was not always blue.
Sometimes it was dark and cloudy, filled with the loud screeches of the rolling thunder; while other times it was completely cloudless and perfect.
Some leaved and some stayed.
It had been through the instability of the sky that Maera had gotten to understand that the sky and her life would not always be blue.

"I hope so" she whispered before twisting her body again into a small ball. She knew she already had had a hard time missing them, so even if they had not missed her, she was certain her love for them would never be cloudy.

Maera, who had been cold and distant as a child, now allowed her love to fall over those she held dear to her like an unforcasted storm.
Because she knew that just like the day could be rainy, the sun was always bound to come out again.