l o s t {kaia/zahra}

[sarabi]

Sarabi could still feel her eyes sting as she continued to pack her things. The custody hearing, although Jacques had not gotten complete custody of her, had not gone the way she had hoped. Jacques now had partial custody of her, and because of this she was packing herself to spend the holiday in France with him. Sarabi bit her lip as she folded jeans, shirts, and robes to fit into her trunk, this was the last thing she had wanted. But he was her father...

After putting her clothes into her trunk Sarabi stopped, unaware of the tears that had spilled onto her cheeks. She had no idea why she was so upset, Jacques was kind enough to her, but she had not been planning on spending so much time away from her siblings- though she did suppose Hyperion wouldn't miss her much. She swallowed as there was a knock at the door. "It's o-open," Sarabi sniffed, wiping her tears on the back of her hand and hoping she didn't look too sad.

[kaia]

Kaia opened the door to her sister's room after Sarabi's muffled words and walked in. It was immediately apparent that Sarabi had been crying. Kaia's motherly instinct kicked in and she wrapped her sister in a soft hug. "I'm sorry, Sarabi," Kaia said, wishing there had been something more she could have done to ensure that Jacques didn't get partial custody of Sarabi. But the hearing was now over, and Kaia wasn't sure what to think.

[sarabi]

"It's not your f-fault," said Sarabi, her voice still trembling. She was grateful for Kaia's embrace, she had always admired how easily the nurturing sort of thing came to her older sister. "I s-suppose I'm being silly," Sarabi said, returning to her packing to give her hands something to do, she sniffed again, "it's not forever. Just for the summer, I'll be here for Christmas."

[kaia]

"You're not being silly," Kaia assured her younger sister. "A summer is a long time and we'll miss you terribly. But I'll visit if you'd like and write to you as often as I can. And we'll count the days until school starts again." Kaia released her sister and gave her an encouraging smile. Kaia firmly kept herself from trying, though it was getting harder by the second. She couldn't bear the idea of Sarabi being gone for an entire summer.

[sarabi]

At that Sarabi managed a smile, but it faltered after only a few seconds. It was true that England and France weren't too far apart, just the gap of the English channel separated the UK from Calais. But Sarabi had no idea where Jacques' house was, though she assumed from his demeanour it would be near Paris, or another large city. "I'd like that," said Sarabi, continuing to pack her varying things.