Ouroboros Spine you don't recall our house near the ocean

the call rose for his father and then his mother's voice joined in; rising on the wind for him. his heart stutters in his chest; aching. had she returned? had akkuma? though, kivaluk cannot help the creep of doubt that his brother's ...aches could be balmed so quickly. not much time had passed — or so this was how it feels to kivaluk. the truth was it could've been weeks and they all blended together to be one indecipherable blob of time.

his long legs carry him towards where the call(s) had risen.

mama? he asks tentatively, forgetting that he is almost a man grown with the small tremble of his lip and flutter of his ears, slicking back atop his skull. in that brief moment he feels small again; a boy needing his mother. his gaze scours her side for akkuma and feels his brother's absence with a keen stab betwixt his ribs. is akkuma not with you? he inquires, though he can plainly see the answer for himself.

it shouldn't surprise him but kivaluk realized that he'd held onto that small flicker of hope all the same.