"Sole Survivor" (Rose)
Paralyzed with terror, which rapidly turns to horrifically overwhelming grief, I drown in my own sobs. I carefully begin to turn him over, but I cannot find the strength. I find Merlin now kneeling beside me. He does the deed for me. I clutch at my shoulders, chilled by the bitter wind sticking to my wet cheeks.
My father lays before me- not breathing- dead. I lose all control, leaning down, my head on his chest, and wail. My fingers fumble with the buttons on his regal jacket. "I'm so so-rry, Father," I choke. I lift myself off him, only to reach up and touch his face. His skin feels made of ice. I am dumbstruck. I cannot speak. I cannot get a hold of myself, nor do I desire to. It is, as I feared. I came to look for survivors, knowing all along, deep inside my soul, that of this attack, I am the sole survivor.
"Meaningful Silence" (Merlin)
I feel utterly horrible as I sit beside her, watching her cry her eyes out. She buries her hands in her face and does what I thought to be impossible- she sobs harder. Tears fill my eyes. I cannot stand this. I instinctively reach out, but bring my hand back. Maybe, she doesn't want to be comforted. Afraid to just grab her and hold her like I so desperately want to, I scoot closer to her and place my left hand lightly on her shoulder.
I stay quiet in meaningful silence. Words, at this point, render useless. Too many times, I have been told to save my tears, and in every instance, I hated hearing that. Too many times, I have sat in my room, cold and abandoned, suffering from hurt that not one mere person could possibly comprehend. I know that if, at those periods, someone opened their arms for me to cry into, I would have gladly accepted (no matter how stupid I would have seemed). It's not that no one would have, it's just that there was nobody to see it to do anything about it in the first place.
She brings her body nearer to mine, shifting her weight to the side. I slide my hand across to her farther shoulder and she turns into my side hug, making it complete. I take her in with my other arm and embrace her securely. She's still shivering, so I hold firm, trying to keep her warm in two different ways. She would have every right to let her heart turn to stone after this. I pray that she finds the strength inside to leave the hardened feelings behind someday. 'Please, say something... Do anything to let me know you're going to be okay,' I plea to her in my mind, all telepathy aside.
Much to my relief, she slips her arms around me, her crying starts to calm. I stroke her hair and rub her back. I even find the nerve to kiss the top of her head ever so gently.