Witch's Marsh kiss your eyelids in the morning as you start to raise your head

Without missing a beat, Cortez delved into a story that she doubted few others could truly understand. The Olive, Cortez and Calder had all once shared their mother’s womb, but the two boys had emerged into reality together, as such, certain twin-links were afforded to them that simply weren’t available to Olive. With the wonderful and fulfilling childhood she had been gifted, Olive tried not to belabor the fact that she might never have such a close connection with another living being — but there were times she had been jealous of her two brothers. As she could see now, there were two sides to every coin. Where there was plenty of good, there was also the potential for bad.

Olive nodded, understanding how all beautiful things could spoil. She had seen it happen with Dakarai, and knew what it meant to have to distance yourself from the most loving of oppressors — especially when you did not want to. Both Dakarai and Calder had been overwhelming forces that seemingly bulldozed anything in their path, while Olive and Cortez were gentler souls, needing of nuance and balance. Thought it made her sad not to see Calder alongside Cortez for this random chance, fated encounter, she wasn’t surprised that it had come to this.  “You’ve always been something to me, brother.” she affirmed softly and shuffled backwards to press her forehead into Cortez’s. “But I understand.” Olive had about a million more questions, all of them buzzing at the tip of her tongue about mother and father and the many things they all must have seen together, but Cortez beat her to the punch.

How would it be possible to encapsulate all that had happened to her? Certainly this was a subject that would need to take many, many conversations — but she decided to touch upon all the highlights, and oh-so-thankfully, all of the recent highlights were lovely and positive.  “Oh Cortez, so much had happened! You are an uncle of 8, and they’re all just like us — adventurers at heart. I have a wife, Seabreeze… oh, you will just simply love her… We live amongst a sanctuary not too far from here, within a grove of weeping willows — it’s like the one we saw that one time, with mother and father and Calder, but it’s different. Its very holy…” the druid spoke quickly, words spilling out of her mouth faster than her brain could think it, pride and excited nearly jumping out of her throat. Her eyes were wide, youthful and glittering in their exuberance as her tumult of words continued. She felt very much like a young cub again, and in the face of her brother, she folded easily back into such a natural role.

“It’s just splendid. Oh, you’ll come, won’t you? You’ll come see it?”

Finally she paused, and Olive saw fit to recognize the gods once more for their role in all of this.  “The gods are so good to you and I. We are truly blessed, just like mother had said. I still can’t believe you are here… I have dreamt of this day, so many times.” and with that, she gave a hefty sigh and nearly collapsed against her brother, like a hug but more because a hug simply could not possible suffice. When she pulled away [thought she could have easily stayed tucked away against him forever], she questioned him, voice twinged with concern.   "But, Calder… He is safe? Are you safe?” Olive cut him a discerning look, but it quickly melted and softened. “You’re safe now,” she whispered. If the fates wished him to find a place to rest, recover and find himself, Cortez could be no place better. He would forever be welcome amongst her hearth and home.