Dana wondered how much of the supernatural stuff can her parents take before it starts freaking them out. She couldn't really understand half of it herself and imagined her human parents would have an even harder time grasping everything all at once. She peeked outside when the wind swayed the living room curtains ever so slightly and wondered how long they have been sitting in the same place for. She could see that dawn had already cracked, making way to the light of a new day. She let a soft, inaudible sigh escape her lips. At least her parents still gave her the comfort of a home, a sense of belonging which honestly felt like holding on to sand dunes. "I know now that you two will always be my home no matter what but now I need answers of who I was before you took me in" she wasn't quite sure why she used that choice of words herself but she did and now the pig was out of the bag. From the way Dana picked on the change to her mother's heartbeat she knew she had struck a nerve. Those words felt uncomfortable to Sally and if she was being honest with herself, they sounded a little cold. Nothing that her little girl would've asked them before. She felt the gap that now existed between them and their daughter but she couldn't fault for her sudden withdrawal, her little girl must have gone through a lot. She may look tough and stern on the outside but she was still her seven year old self on the inside, fragile and sensitive and the only way she knew to protect herself was feigning a hard exterior so that people who rub her up the wrong way will assume she is cold and rude but she knew better. The thing was this time Dana had maintained the cold front for quite a while. . . a bit longer than she normally does.
"Please calm down Princess, I can't sit here and pretend I know what you went through to even understand half of what you must be feeling right now but please don't shut us off, we don't really know why the bad things that happen keep following you and neither do we fully understand the source of your powers but any clarity that we can shed from what we have picked up from your over the years, we will be happy to share" Sally still tried to reach her daughter, the scared little girl inside her that feels vulnerable and scared. She knew that girl was still inside somewhere there.
"Do you know my real parents" she asked the question in a soft voice as if it's a thought that wasn't intended to be voiced out loud.
"We can't say for sure sweetheart, your mom is not even sure of the face of the woman who is supposed to be your biological mother and she didn't seem to have any male companion at the time to even assume one as your father" Nick stepped in to say the words he knew would be difficult for his wife to let pass through her mouth.
He knew how much Dana meant to her and no matter how much in the past he tried to let her know that it didn't matter to him if they can't have a child of their own, that he was okay as long as he had the love of his life by his side that life was perfect. He never missed the look of longing anytime a couple stepped in to her pharmacy to get flu shots for their young ones or something trivial like young couples looking to remedy their infant from crying all night due to teething. She would have that longing air around her and somehow felt grateful at just being able to help recommend a remedy that eases the pain of a child that barely even talks. He knew his hugs had turned to a numbing remedy to his wife who, despite being young and healthy with access to the best doctors in the country was unable to conceive. He had assured her that it will never waver his loyalty to her and that if she really wanted a child they could always just adopt one who needs a home with loving parents but she always seemed reluctant to the idea. Until that fateful morning at the bus stop where everything seemed to just fall into place.
"I know you want answers baby and truthfully, I am curious about a few things too but in the end I had to take what I was given and cherish it because it was worth putting everything aside. You still are, not to say finding answers is not important but what is the truth worth to you?" Sally pleaded again, her voice turning hoarse with unshed tears. She didn't want to be dismissive of Dana's feelings in the whole ordeal but she wanted her baby to know she had options, "I need you to know that no matter what you choose, no matter where the truth leads us in this journey, that to me you are just my precious baby girl. And I will always love you" a lone tear escaped her right eye but she didn't care at this point, she felt her husband squeeze her hand lightly, "We will always love you" they said together.
The sincerity in their combined words hit her like a sledgehammer, tampering with her resolve to not let herself remain too attached to anything and anyone.
'mom, dad' she felt something trickle down her face and realised she had dissolved any will to be cold to her two favourite people and felt her shoulders cave in to let just how exhausted she is finally show.
"I'm tired mom, do I still have my room" she asked, eyeing them like a child caught with her hand in the cookie jar and needing an escape plan from the big bad wolf(the mom of course)
"Don't be silly" they chanted at the same time as they could finally feel that they got their Princess back.
They made their way upstairs to go to their rooms respectively and no one would blame the couple for wanting to see their baby girl to her room safely and tuck her in *despite her age*.
After the lights were turned off and everyone took a nap after their emotional early morning talk, a shadowy figure that had been next to the window spying on the people from the inside also drifted away, its entire body covered in a tattered brown cloak that had a hoodie covering it from head to toe.
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XO