Neverwinter Forest Sorry can't save me now

back dating a fair bit....it was Feb 24th, 2020... :)

Her tail twitched nervously behind her as she paced, back and forth, back and forth. @Zephyr. She was alive and well. He…They? WHATEVER! Zephyr was alive. She hadn’t actually thought to believe Mal as they walked, only her will and determination keeping her moving forward. And while she had hoped for this moment in one way or another, this is not what she had expected.

Rosalie did her best to wait patiently, Zephyr was at least willing to talk to her. That was something…right?! Lie paused for a moment, a defeated sigh dropped her head to hand low below her shoulders. “Gosh.” She moaned softly, squeezing her eyes tight. What a fucking mess.

The trip away from the others, though short, is an awkward one. He keeps his silence until he feels they're a safe distance from the others, trying not to think too hard about the situation. He'd found out his father was alive, too, after all — why should this be any different or more significant? Maybe his entire family is alive, and simply scattered to the winds. He feels oddly numb thinking about it.
So... you're alive. What about everyone else? He says when he finally halts and turns to Maman, slipping into French without even thinking about it. It's been a long time since he's spoken it, but it feels natural and easy, almost more native to him in ways than the common tongue. His gaze lingers on Rosalie as he waits for her to answer, level and patient for once in his life.

She wasn’t the girl that Lie remembered…. He had grown. There was very little emotion evident as Zephyr faced her, silver yearling more serious than Lie could ever remember seeing. Her tone calm and to the point. It hurt. Her child wasn’t excited to see her. Lie took a step forward, shaking her head slowly. “You’re alive? Is that really all I get… Zephyr we were so worried about you. Both of you! I can’t believe YOU’RE alive.” She hadn’t seen him since that fateful night. Rosalie wasn’t a little to distracted to acknowledge the question posed before her.

His ears fall back against his skull as his mother responds, and he takes a step back as she steps forward. This isn't what he'd expected at all, and he isn't sure how to feel or what to say. For a moment, he's silent.
What do you want from me? He settles on, simply because he genuinely doesn't know at this point. What could she want from him, after all he's done and all the time that has passed since their last true conversation? He swallows hard, then adds, I don't know how this is supposed to go. I thought you were dead and I'd never see you again. Sure, he'd dealt with it once already with his father and Lainie, but that definitely hadn't made it any easier. He feels just as lost now as he did then.

What DID she want? Honestly, Lie had no idea. She hesitated as he stepped back from her, and the mother retreated slowly taking a measured step back. “I don’t expect anything from you… I just…” Her voice caught, it had been so long. There were so many things circulating in her head. She was so confused and lost.

“I don’t know how this is supposed to go either Zephyr. I thought you were…were…gone. Just like your brother and sisters. Like your father.” Of course she couldn’t keep a dry eye, and Rosalie was quick to turn away and squeezed her eyes shut. Trying desperately to ward off her emotions. She needed to be strong, she would be strong.

“Zephyr I have missed you so much.” Lie didn’t dare to raise her head and look at her daughter, or rather her son. She couldn’t handle any further rejection. There was a time after that night, when Rosalie would have done anything to bring back her youngest daughter. When Rosalie was furious at Zephyr, and never wanted to see her again. But then the rest of her family died, and Lie would have done anything to bring them back. A now… now one of them was. How could a mother stay angry when one of her children had returned from the dead.

Dad isn't dead. Neither is Lainie. I don't think Helios is dead, but I don't... He trails off, gaze dropping. He doesn't know how to explain it all to her. So much has happened; too much. I missed you too. It slips out unbidden, and he realizes it's true. He had missed his mother for a long time, and he still remembers those feelings well enough to feel something about their reunion, too.
But not as much as he should, he knows. At some point he'd forgotten what it was really like to have a mother, and he'd stopped missing her. His negative feelings have lingered well into adulthood, but the yearning faded some time ago. All he's left with now is uncertainty, and a vague sense of discomfort at the emotions Rosalie is displaying. He feels something, but not as much as she seems to, and it all feels like too much.
Still, he feels obligated to her in some way. After all, he'd killed one of her newborn children, and then he'd fled with Helios and effectively stole two more children from her life. Surely he owes her something after all that, even if he can't give her the response he knows he should have. He reaches out to touch his nose to her forehead gently, hoping the gesture will bring her the comfort he can't offer with his words.

Whoa whoa whoa… WHAT!? Her mouth dropped, jaw unhinging as she tried to even minutely process what Zephyr had just said. Dad isn’t dead. Her breath hitched, Lainie. Helios The names and the revelations rattled Rosalie as she stumbled back. Her eyes flew open like seafoam green saucers staring at her wayward child. Her shoulders started to shake, and her eyes filled with tears. “We…we thought you had all died. After we got separated…”

Lie was so confused. For months her and Alessia had assumed no one had made it. There were so many more questions whirling around, but they all stilled on her tongue as she belatedly acknowledged Zephyr’s final words. Her features soften, as she watches the yearling before her.

A tear fell as Zephyr delicately pressed a nose to her forehead. She cried not for herself or the family that has been resurrected, but for the child that had lost their childhood and had been so distanced from their family, who had to discover so many things on their own. Offering a sad smile, “I’m so happy I found you.” Her eyes slipped closed once again, as she reveled in Zephyr's mere presence. “You’re all grown up now.” And I missed it.

His discomfort intensifies when Maman gets teary-eyed, but he fights it for her sake. He cares for her, at least; he can't make himself want the kind of closeness he used to crave, but he can focus on doing it for her. It helps that she says the right things, too.
Do you... want to stay and talk for awhile? His next words are hesitant, avoiding directly addressing anything she'd said for fear of rejection. Thankfully, she agrees — and he finds himself feeling oddly optimistic when, at the end of their talk, she doesn't leave the forest. Nervous, yes, but... hopeful.