Bearclaw Valley what you need is a sweet caress

Her breath fell, ragged with relief. She’d not realized how much worry she still carried on Amneris’ account. She breathed in, and shed the tension from her shoulders, working her jaw slightly after realizing that it had been clenched-

Only to clench it again a moment later. 

She squinted, glaring at the girl now who made accusations that made no sense. Naturally- she had to pan through every recent conversation she had had with Athalia to make absolutely sure that nothing she’d said had been offensive but a death threat? Highly unlikely. 

What worried her even more was that if this was true…Why was Athalia telling strangers that her mother had it out for her? No. It couldn’t be true.

Her gaze darkened. Yuh lying, She said. She stepped closer. You were a pain in my ath the latht time I thaw you, an’ honeyhtly? Thith kind of foolishneth ith enough to make me want to thay that you needta thtay away from my daughtuh. I’m her mothuh, She emphasized, baring teeth toward the one she now believed was a bad influence on her girl. I would nevuh harm huh, an’ you need yuh learn not to try an’ thplit familieth up. I’m her- 

She paused. 

Mother.

But not biologically. 

Fear gripped her. Her pupils narrowed to bare pinpricks, turning her eyes into bright, silvery-blue pools.

But…I’m not her biological mothuh… Realization began to dawn, along with its potentially terrible promise.

Was Athalia’s biological mother trying to hurt her? Had she returned? 

Oh god, She breathed in a whisper, now turning a pleading look to the girl. Her ears shifted back in an apology. 

What did she thay? Hath her mother come back? Pleathe- I’m thorry for what I thaid- I jutht-

She needed to keep her baby safe. It was all she could do to keep calling out an emergency warning for Ancelin, so he might know as well that their daughter had a target placed on her back.