The nightmares came every night.
Selene would wake screaming Isolde's name. Thrashing. Caught between sleep and waking. Between memory and present.
The fire. The blood. The screaming.
Her sister's small hand reaching for her.
"SELENE! SELENE HELP ME!"
Then rough hands on her shoulders. A calm voice cutting through the horror.
"You're safe. You're here. Breathe, pup. Breathe."
Mira. Always Mira.
Holding her until the shaking stopped. Until the nightmare receded. Until Selene could remember where she was.
Not in the burning manor. Not in the garden with bodies everywhere.
In a cabin. Hidden. Safe.
But the nightmares didn't care about safe. They came anyway.
Weeks passed like this.
Days spent training. Nights spent fighting memories.
Selene's body healed. Her feet stopped bleeding. The blisters became calluses. Her exhaustion faded.
But her mind stayed broken.
Mira never commented on the screaming. Never made Selene feel weak for needing comfort.
