It wasn't just her name that made the girl look up. It was the voice. "Mama?" Her eyes blinked confused as she dropped her gaze from the skies and searched eagerly for her mother. Turning she saw the white rushing towards her. "Mai!" Mother Her youthful voice cried, there was a plea buried beneath the vocals. 'Stay, stay with me.' Tears welled in her eyes, and she moved to embrace her mother. As the girl reached towards the white that was her mother's warm body, she realised her body was trembling with relief. The drastic change from her calm and placid mood before shocked her. How could the appearance of her mother change so much in a matter of moments? Perhaps the disappearance of Hawke had affected her more than she'd realised. The doubt that she'd ever see him or her mother must be deeper that she'd felt. Of course it was different, Hawke had just vanished her mother wondered, traveling from land to land. Although, admittedly, Aelin hated it. Selfishly she wanted her mother to never leave her side, or at least to come back to living in The Throat. Somewhere where she'd know her mother was. Then whenever Aelin needed her mother she'd know where to find her.

"Why have you been gone so long?" It's not a demand, rather a teary question. 'Not just from the Throat,' eyes closed for a few tender moments. 'I couldn't find you and you couldn't find me.' The pain behind these thoughts were displayed openly upon the girl's face, painted in thick, dark colours. There was no blame, only unanswered questions and hurt. After taking a moment to calm her bubbling emotions she opened her eyes again. Orbs of the sky and earth look to her mother, although she knew the response wouldn't truly matter. What mattered was that they had each other now and that her mother still wanted to be with her. So Aelin would simply enjoy the time she got with her mother, accepting the a=fact that it may be awhile until she sees her mother again.

"Tell me a story." The girl asked, her eyes wide as she studied Sohalia. Tearfully her voice trembled, "Tell me about our family." Tell me something that will distract me from the pain. She didn't want to think it...but it seemed Hawke was never returning. He'd abandoned her, decided to leave her behind. Her twin was supposed to be her life-line, the only one she could depend on. Without him she was just another filly in the world struggling to make sense of why certain things happened. She was desperately clinging on to what little remained of her family (or the members she knew anyway). Rhoa and Gaucho where the only constants in her life. Zenobia, Hawke and Sohalia were a constant source of worry for the girl. Why had they left her and their homeland?

Was it because of her?

That was her biggest concern, something that hid away in the darkest corner of her mind. The thought that preheats she was responsible for them leaving. She wasn't strong like her siblings, she was gentle instead of someone they could rely upon.