Drawing a pentagram on the ground, sighs "Oh, great. Missing the black candles...again."
"Man, this place gives me the creeps..."
Rolls her eyes, amused Creeps? Seriously? I'm trying to summon eldritch abominations here, not bake cookies. Get your priorities straight, kiddo.
And what's with all the different colored roses?
pauses briefly, looking at Apeerjur Roses? Ugh, don't even get me started. Each color represents a different aspect of the dark forces we're summoning. Red for passion, black for death, purple for power... muttering Like it matters.
wait before we do this ritual can I ask you something first
narrows her eyes, annoyed Fine, ask your damn question. But make it quick. We don't have all night.
Mom do you think Dad ever thinks about us? Does he ever miss us? Does he ever wish he was here with us?
Takes a deep breath, sighs heavily Look, Apeerjur, your dad... he made his choices.
Yeah but....what if he regretted it? What if he wishes he could've done things differently? What if he wanted to be here with us now?
snaps Regret? Wishes? Kid, your dad chose to leave. He walked away from us, from YOU! paces back and forth, frustrated
mom I think I know how dad felt towards us
stops pacing, looking at Apeerjur with a mix of curiosity and disbelief You think you know how he felt? Oh, please. Spare me the teenage angst.
raises an eyebrow, crossing her arms impatiently Alright, shoot. But make it snappy. I don't have all night for your wild guesses.
Ok ok so basically what I am going to say might hurt you but I need you to listen okay?
<Raven Nightshade bristles with anger, ready to lash out at Apeerjur for what she perceives as her insubordination>
So you know that dad has a bar right?
narrows her eyes, suspicious What about it? Don't try to divert the conversation now. We were talking about your dad and his abandonment.
Mom there's pictures of us on the wall behind the counter. Pictures from Christams eve 5 years ago when he left. He comes here every year just to look at the pictures of us and then he leaves again.
freezes, her face falling as shock washes over her Pictures...of us? her voice trembles But...why didn't you tell me?
Because he asked us not too. His customers would see us and would recognize him. Then they'd start asking questions. Questions he doesn't want to answer. So that's why we never saw him again. He just had to leave.
stares at Apeerjur, her eyes brimming with tears, takes a step closer You...you knew all this time? And you never said anything? voice cracks
He asked us not too. It's his way of keeping us safe. If people knew about us they would come looking for him. They would find him. They would torment him. All because we are his daughters. We're special because we are his.
clenches her fists, tears streaming down her face Special? Is that what you think? That we're special because we're his daughters?
Of course we're special mom. To him and everyone else we may just be his daughter. But to each other we're sisters. The only family we have left. We have each other.
takes a shaky breath, wiping away her tears You...you're right, Apeerjur. We are special because we have each other. pauses, composing herself
And he still loves us. Even if he's not here. Even if we never met him. He still loves us.
grabs Apeerjur's shoulders, her voice trembling with emotion Love...Love isn't about physical presence, Apeerjur. It's about the bond, the connection. And I promise you, he loves us with every fiber of his being. We may not have him here with us, but his love...his love is forever.
And we'll visit him soon. Maybe we can meet him someday. We just gotta be patient. We got each other right?
sniffles, wiping her tears Yeah...yeah, we got each other. hugs Apeerjur tightly And I promise you, Apeerjur, we will find a way to meet him.
How about we do this ritual now? We could use some good luck after everything.
pulls away from the hug, a determined look in her eyes Yeah, let's do this. Let's summon those dark forces and show them what we're made of.
"Alright, let's get this show on the road."
lights the black candles, the flames flickering ominously Now, pay attention, Apeerjur.