*****
Until one day… your mother disappeared.
You blamed your father for not taking care of her.
Those two thoughts clung to Lyrium like shadows, heavy and unyielding. Alicia had already left, and now he was alone again, tucked under his blankets, the quiet of the room pressing in.
"So… in this timeline,"
He muttered to himself, voice barely above a whisper, "my father… Lyrium's father… didn't disappear. But Lilian… my mother… she did."
Even though Lilian wasn't technically his real mother, he had already grown attached to her in the original timeline.
Even if they hadn't spoken much, even if he carried memories from the original Lyrium, he still remembered how she had treated him, and how much he cared for her.
The loss left a hollow ache in his chest.
He had never met the original Lyrium's father, so speaking to him now felt awkward, unnatural.
The thought only added to the weight pressing on him.
Lyrium yawned, rubbing his eyes.
