But, if that’s the case; what exactly did happen? And … ow. What happened to my face; it’s throbbing … why does it hurt so much? … Oh yeah, now I remember; one of those bastards stomped on my face, right before I passed out. … Asshole jerk!
I slowly look about; as I softly utter aloud…
“Okay; how in the world did I end up here … wherever here is.”
Daphne cheerily replies, “Our mate … he brought us here; after saving us.”
Hey girl, there you are; glad to have you back. And; in such a good mood, at that. … Tell me; what’s making you so happy?
Daphne enthusiastically proclaims, “We’ve finally found our mate. We’re with our mate; Pomona. Isn’t that wonderful?”
Apparently she’s forgotten … or, is intentionally overlooking the fact … that our mate has already rejected us; and, not in a nice way, at that. Oh well; I suppose I’ll just let her relish in her own little, delusional, fantasy world, for the time being … as long as she’s happy now; there’s no point in bothering to ruin her mood.
Hmm … there’s a large mirror affixed to the bureau over there; but, since my vision’s still kind of blurry, I can’t make out how my face actually looks. So, I get up out of the bed, and head over to the bureau; then, lean in towards the mirror to take a closer look.
Alright; time to assess the damage. … I’ve got two black eyes, that are slightly swollen shut. No wonder my vision’s still a little messed up. My nose is clearly broken; having been smashed in, and demonstratively crooked … with a gash running along the upper bridge of it. Both my upper and lower lips are immensely swollen up; with each one being split near the center. … Yup; it looks as if I were on the losing end of a boxing match.
What a mess. … Sorry, Daphne; pretty sure Mr. Moneybags probably finds me more repulsive than he did before. But; no point in wasting my time worrying over that … since he doesn’t want us, anyway; why should I care about how I look. … Besides, thanks to my rare, genetic condition; my face should be all healed up, and back to normal by this time tomorrow.
I go back over to the bed, and lay down; closing my eyes, as I plan on getting in a little more rest before leaving. Even though I realize it’s probably evening already … honestly, I have no idea how much time has actually elapsed, after losing consciousness; or, know what time it is … I’m in no rush to head back home. Sure; by now, my mother and sisters probably may have started to worry about me … especially Bellona … but, they’d also probably be more upset when they see the condition I’m in.
A few moments later…
I hear faint footsteps approaching from the other side of the door; stopping right outside of it. Soon after that, I hear the knob turn; and then, the door slowly creaks open.
All this time, I’ve kept my eyes shut; feigning to be asleep. Maybe Daphne’s happy to be here, and can’t wait to see her mate again; but, I’m still pissed at him … even if he does happen to be the one who saved us from those bastards; according to Daphne … and, quite frankly; I’m also a little embarrassed to have to face him in my current condition.
The door closes; and, once again, I hear faint, gently taken footsteps slowly approaching … this time stopping right beside the bed. Suddenly; there’s a fragrant scent that’s lightly wafting about in the air closely surrounding me. It smells like a pleasantly sweet aromatic concoction of … cotton candy and pumpkin spice? … Shortly; I feel the steady, soothingly warm, sweet smelling breaths gently falling upon my face.
My curiosity is piqued; and, I slowly open my swollen eyes. I briefly exert myself to try and refocus my blurred vision; and, gaze up at the face that’s hovering only mere inches above mine.
I momentarily find myself getting lost in the most mesmerizing, brightest sky blue eyes I’ve ever seen. But, once I free myself from that hypnotic stare; I’m finally able to take notice of her complete, aesthetically angelic-looking face. However; she does seem emanate a subtly impish little aura … along with an underlying ferocity. Almost kind of like Bellona’s. … Although; Bellona’s aura tends to emanate more ferocity, and less impishness.
Maybe it’s because she exuding an aura that’s quite similar in nature to Bellona’s … or; for some other unknown reason … but, I’m feeling a strong, bond-like connection with this child. I don’t know what it is, or why, I’m feeling the way I do right now; but, what I do know is that I feel like we were meant … or, should I say rather, destined … to meet, and be together.
So, despite the evidently awkward predicament that I’m in; I can’t help but to smile in her enchanting presence.
“Hello. My name’s Pomona. What’s your name?”
She looks at me, wearing a quizzical expression on her face; and, earnestly asks, in a seemingly wry inflection, “Your name’s really Pomona … like Pomona, California?”
I chuckle. “No; actually I was named after the Roman Goddess of Fruits. … Our father has this thing for mythology; and, named me and my sisters after some of the characters found in it.”
Come to think about it … after hearing myself explain that out loud … that really isn’t much better than if I had been named after the Los Angeles County city, either. … Anyway; I ask her again…
“So; what’s your name?”
“Brianna.”
Brianna. What a beautiful name; and, definitely befitting of her. She’s adorable; looking almost like an over-sized, porcelain china doll.
Although she possesses a petite, diminutive stature … one which looks as if she were around five or six years old … I realize that age can’t always be determined by size; after all, I myself am the runt of the litter in my family … even my younger, twin sisters are bigger than me. So, judging from her facial appearance; I’m guessing she’s probably more likely around ten.