Hushed Willows Every day I've got a smile where my frown goes

What little Reverie shared of her fit with what Mae had always imagined. She didn't talk much. Her name was Jakoul. Jakoul. Jakoul. She repeated it to herself in a whisper, committing it to memory though she might never meet her mother for herself. Why did she leave? Mae wanted to ask, but her throat was felt suddenly constricted and aching, and Reverie was still speaking.

And those last words, they were like a bolt of lightning across her skin; a bright lash of pain Mae hadn't realized she carried so deeply within herself until this moment. She looked down at her paws. You don't know that, she thought hotly, her face burning. You don't know and you can't say that, you can't, fuck you, FUCK YOU —

But when she tried to make the words come out, all she could manage was a strangled gasp. Then Mae started to cry.