Blood from Stone [AU]

[Marian Hawke]

She nods again, her face still pressed into Beth' shoulder for a long moment. Finally, she pulls back, wiping at her eyes. "I'm sorry," she begins.

[Bethany]

"Oh it's fine," Bethany says smoothly, them mutters something quickly under her breath. Her shirt dries instantly and she smiles. "See? Clean and dry!" She stares at Liz, daring her to say the apology was for anything else.

[Marian Hawke]

Liz nods, swallowing hard as she wipes at her eyes again. A moment later, she gives up, murmuring a similar incantation. Beth can see how it costs her, how the gesture isn't effortless, but she pulls it off, her tears drying and her tunic unwrinkling.

"You're too good to me," she murmurs.

[Bethany]

That gets a snort. "Not really," she says softly. "I'm being super nice and gentle right now, but I'm sure I'll slip and show you Bethany the Raging Bitch at some point. Gods know I've done it to Carver enough."

[Marian Hawke]

"Oh," she says quietly, lowering her gaze. A moment later she takes a deep breath. "Sorry. I... I haven't been much of a sister, have I?"

[Bethany]

"You're due it," Bethany says with a shrug. "You spent, gods, nearly a decade being big sis and mother in one, starting before you could even have kids. It's okay to let us take care of you for a bit."

[Marian Hawke]

"You know, I used to daydream about what we'd be like together, when I finally got free," she says quietly. "I wanted to spend so much time with you, doing our hair and going on walks and... but I'm still not well enough. Maybe I never will be."

[Bethany]

How well do you need to be to cuddle and braid hair? "Well... None of that seems... all that out of reach," Bethany says carefully. "You already hug just fine. Little wet maybe but that's understandable."

[Marian Hawke]

"I didn't want... I didn't want you to... I'm..." She shivers a bit, breath catching. "I'm not ready to be a person yet."

[Bethany]

"...you kind of already are?" Bethany points out gently. "I get you're not ready to... be fully independent or take on all the duties of adulting but..." She shrugs. "You are a person. You're my sibling." For reasons, Beth has found herself sliding towards gender neutral terms wherever possible. She misses some but she tries and mostly succeeds. "You're one of dad's kids. So... person." I'm not a hound's sister, nor whatever role you're cramming yourself into.

[Marian Hawke]

"I... I guess," she admits. "But I've been... Cindy tells me who to be and I do it."

[Bethany]

"Well, that's not... entirely unusual," the healer says thoughtfully. "I mean, most people try to fulfill the expectations of their loved ones. And others- friends, church, coworkers and so forth. You... went to an extreme on it, true. But we can help you figure it out in a more, uh, controlled manner, I guess?"

[Marian Hawke]

"I.. I can't, I'm not ready."

[Bethany]

"How can you know that if you haven't tried?" Beth points out. "Besides, it's not like you only have one shot at it."

[Marian Hawke]

"If I... if I fuck it up..." She shudders. "I fucked up last night and Cindy left me."