Broken Boulder el torito

queenie's sudden re-appearance and the following disappearance of his daughters has rattled delight hollow. part of him assumes that they have gone off with their mother -- he knows how badly her leaving hurt them, and would not blame them for that, as much as it wounds him -- and it is that which keeps him rooted, as if afraid to find out a different reality.

at the end of the day, we all know delight is a little bit of a coward.

his hopefully resigned theory is quickly tested, though, by a familiar scent once again haunting their borders. queenie. anger snaps within him (only she has ever moved him to the height of such passion) as he shapes his path quickly toward her, half-expecting to see brilliance and solomon obediently at her heels.

but they aren't, and the momentary flare of heat dies within him. unwilling to give up yet, delight approaches, his expression wary. "what are you doing here again," he asks, a dangerous edge to his voice tempered only by the barely-held-back uncertainty of their situation: he hates and loves her in turns, fears her and admires her, knows she has seen him at his very worst and very best and wonders if she feels the same -- and all the while, solomon and brilliance hang over him like ghosts.