He set about cleaning the office, his brows furrowed with irritation and worry. He began to straighten papers and pens, cleaning off surfaces, anything to keep him from standing still.
He was clearly stressed, something like panic fueling his movements. “What?” he asked after a moment, looking up at her.
"I'm just thinking," she told him slowly, before hesitating, unsure if she should ask. "Would.. you like a hug?"
He shook his head, resting his head on top of hers. “No, you know, it’s really not. I don’t know what’s happening.”
She sighed slowly, turning her head into his shirt slightly. "I'm not really clear on the situation.. I think it will be okay in the end."
He was silent for a long moment. “I saw my dad, Rory,” he said after a moment. “I saw my dad. He died more than ten years ago, and now he’s here. Alive.”
He seemed unable to look at her. “Yes. Alive. I don’t see how that’s possible, but it was him. Now I have to deal with this... this person.”
He looked down at her, his expression sadder than she would have ever seen it. “We... we were attacked,” he said heavily. “I was 9. Ellis was 8. Plaguers came into our clan and attacked our family. Ellis’ mother, my father, my mother, my...” He hesitated, not meeting her gaze. “My sister.” “My father was supposed to meet us at the emergency shelter. He never did. We just assumed... we assumed he was dead. Why else would he have left us? Winter was coming, we didn’t... we didn’t know how to survive.”
She frowned slightly, coming to his side and rubbing his back gently. "Emerson.. I'm sorry to hear what happened."
He shrugged it off, shaking his head distractedly. “No, no. I’m not telling you this because I need you to empathize. What I can’t figure out is why he wouldn’t come for us if he could. We always just assumed that he was dead, so obviously he couldn’t come for us. What could have possibly stopped him from helping us?”
