Garden of Winter

II

The Measure Of A Mother

Gray Fullbuster

The following few days were a strange experience as nobody within Ur's cabin really seemed sure of how to handle the situation. After his conversation with his master following her return a few nights earlier Gray had kept to himself for the most part, following Lyon's example and purse some self-study whilst their master tried to coax her daughter out of her shell to little success.

Ultear refused to so much look at her mother, never mind talk to the woman who was clearly falling apart as the void grew ever larger with each failed attempt to get her daughter to acknowledge her. The little girl even refused to eat much of anything– but seeing as how see was barely more than skin and bones it was pretty obvious she used to idea of going without food.

Still, the girl could only go for so long before she could no longer ignore her hunger and given that they had been running low on supplies anyway, Ur had taken Lyon into town to the market to pick up fresh food and some clothes that would actually fit Ultear's skinny frame.

It was strange, Gray thought as he sat in his preferred armchair with a book on his lap as he stared at the door to Ur's bedroom where Ultear currently hid that the girl was actually supposed to be older than him by a few years. It must've been the result of so much time in that hellhole laboratory where she'd been treated as nothing more than an experiment; Ultear was clearly malnourished and had been the subject of obvious abuse and had stunted her growth somewhat given she was supposed to be twelve but looked to be no more than eight.

Either way he doubted the girl would be able to put up much of a struggle in her condition if she attempted to run but when the door to Ur's bedroom finally did creak open and Ultear emerged she didn't beeline for the front door, instead she seemed much more interested in the kitchen. Guess she finally gave in, Gray thought as he watched her dash for a chair, pulling it over next to the counter so she could stand on it and reach the higher cupboards.

"Two cupboards to the right," Gray said figuring it'd save them both sometime if he just told her where to look. Clearly the girl had not realised he was there because she just about jumped out of her skin when he spoke, flailing backwards off the chair and lading on her rear. Still, Ultear made no sound or showed any sign that the tumble had hurt whatsoever and instead pulled herself upright, glaring at him with all the fury her mother would conjure when she was truly angry.

"I thought you went into town with her," So she could talk, Gray thought with a scowl as he closed the book up and folded his arms over his chest. A part of him felt he should be a little more annoyed at how she spoke to him but it the young boy was honest what really rubbed him the wrong way was how Ultear talked about her own mother like she was a force of evil– one not worth enough to even name properly.

"She is your mother," Gray argued back as Ultear pushed the chair back to where she had taken it from– whether it was because she didn't want the food if Gray had helped by telling her where it was or that she didn't want him to tell Ur that the girl had actually finally eaten something. "A mother who went into town to buy food and clothes for you. The same woman who reduced that damn research facility to pile of rubble for you."

"The same woman who gave me to that damn laboratory in the first place…!" Ultear screamed with her back still to Gray as she tightened her grip on the sides of the chair. Spinning around, the Ur's daughter looked absolutely murderous and Gray could see his previous comment had clearly struck a nerve. "The same woman who abandoned me and replaced me with you and the other white haired boy! She is not my mother!"

"We were never replacements!" Gray stood up from the chair and marched over to stand in front of Ultear, the both of them inches apart as they glared at. "Lyon and I have nowhere else to go and your mother was kind enough to take us in and teach us magic when no one else would like at us twice if we'd been left alone! Your mother didn't take us in so she could replace you with two sons. You haven't seen what I have– you haven't seen her up in the middle of the night crying over your old possessions you'd. If you'd seen that you'd know we never could've replaced you even if we wanted to!"

"But you have replaced me!" Ultear screamed back at him and Gray wondered for a brief moment if this was how angry and short-sighted he'd been that day Ur had found him in the ruins of Isvan. Here before him was a little girl who had dealt an awful hand, yes but she'd also finally gotten something better. Something she should've had from the start. "You know my own mother better than I do and you aren't even her son. How is that fair? Answer me!"

Gray didn't know what it was about that simple question: How is that fair? but he saw red. Maybe it was the cruel, unintentional cheek of it all – Ultear just wanted answers but she was really spitting in his face without realising it.

"Fair?" Gray said, shouting back as he found himself pushing Ultear back without meaning to– it was a weak push, but given how scrawny and malnourished the dark haired girl was she was quickly back on her rear. "How is it fair that a bratty, ungrateful bitch like you gets a second chance with a mother who loves and wants her again whilst people like me, I bet even Lyon despite how much he would deny it, would give anything to get even one of our parents back! Ur was tricked into leaving with those bastards whilst I watched my parents and everyone else I know get murdered by a demon from the depths of hell! How is that fair?"

After his brief rant it took Gray a moment to realise he was shaking and short on breath. It was also in this moment that he realised he had actually shoved Ultear and turned away, ashamed he had let himself become so easily overcome by anger. She didn't even know anything and she still managed to get under my skin, he wanted to scream as he brought both hands up, ruffling his hair as he tried to calm himself down. Turning away the young boy realised his explosion had been witnessed by both Ur and Lyon who had finally returned from the nearby town.

"What's going on here?" Ur asked, voice low as she stared at her floored daughter and panting student.

Gray opened his mouth to respond, explain. But how could he explain the 'conversation' he and Ultear had just hand. Looking over his shoulder at Ultear's unreadable expression, he hung his head in shame before moving to grab the book he had been reading earlier and left to go to the room he shared with Lyon.

Ultear Milkovich

She would have very much liked to have gone back to her sulking after the incident with Gray, but Ultear was instead sat down at the kitchen table by her mother whilst the white haired boy was asked to check on his fellow pupil. Ur pulled out a second chair and sat down, though was no demand for answers though or any sign of anger. Instead she looked tired and world-weary and just stared off into the distance for a brief period before she finally shook her head and spoke.

"I know you don't exactly want much to do with me right now," Ultear didn't say anything to confirm or deny that statement, just looked at her mother, waiting, "but I need you to explain to me what was about. Why did Gray push you? What did you say to make him so angry?"

Ultear didn't know what to say, so she just opted to repeat what she had said to Gray earlier: "You're not my mother."

Ur took the statement as well as could've been expected, looking as though someone she trusted had just stabbed her, yet she also looked ashamed as she hung her own head. "You're right," Ultear blinked, taken aback. Ur shoulder's shook as she choked back a sob as her hands tightened into fists atop her knees before she finally looked back up, "A mother is someone who is there for her daughters first words, to comfort her the first time she scraps her knee and tuck her in at night after checking under the bed for monsters. Mothers don't leave their children with deranged scientists. I've never been allowed to be the mother you deserve Ultear. but we have a second chance now, so please. Please, will you let me try and be your mother now."

"You left me!" Ultear screeched as she threw herself from her chair and at her mother, slamming tiny fists into the woman's chest.

"I know, baby," Ur mumbled as the girl in her arms finally gave into the urge to cry, burying her face in the crook of her neck as the will to fight finally drained as mother hugged daughter close.

"You left me," Ultear repeated, muffled against her mother's neck as it was it still lack the bite of the previous scream. "Please don't leave me again,"

"I promise," Ur mumbled into Ultear's hair, now damp with her mother's own tears. "I promise. I won't ever leave you like that again."

A/N: Abrupt ass ending I know, sorry for that but hey, I finally managed to scrape something together after a month of block on all my stories. Hope the next one won'y take as long but no promises. That said I'll catch you next time.