Page 32 of Mated By Twilight

“She’s in our privy now,” he said by way of greeting. “She wants us to do the show. I think she needs a moment to gather herself.”

“What even happened?” Tillos frowned, looking at their closed door.

“I don’t know. She really hated being heard singing though.”

“Stage fright?”

“Maybe. Seems a bit extreme if it’s just that.” Sollit gestured with his head. “Let’s get the show over with so we can get back here.”

Tillos grunted in agreement and turned to walk with him. “Corvidair is insisting that she sing for him.”

“I just bet he is. I don’t think it’s going to happen though.”

***

Sollit and his brother would never let a distraction get in the way of putting on a great show, but he couldn’t deny that his mind kept drifting to their mate. It was wrong for them to leave her alone, hurting and afraid, but she had insisted, so what choice did they have? Breaking down the door would be bad, and waiting outside might make her feel pressured.

So, they finished out the show to the best of their abilities. No one watching would ever think that they were eager for it all to end.

Still, they made only the most perfunctory of appearances for the fans afterwards before rushing back and changing out of their costumes. Once they were more comfortable, and ready for whatever might happen, they returned to their room.

Sollit was fully prepared to need to convince Leah to leave the privy again, but he was pleased when they entered to find she had already emerged on her own. Proof, to his mind, that leaving her alone for a while had been the right choice.

She was sitting in the very center of their bed, legs crossed, playing nervously with the corner of the blanket. She didn’t look up when they came inside but seemed to hunch in on herself further instead.

Sollit and Tillos slowly came around to the sides of the bed and silently climbed in. They sat in front of her, not quite side-by-side, creating a little circle as they crossed their own legs and waited. Sollit’s tail came around to rest along the outside of her thighs, touching her as little as possible in case that’s not what she needed. But she kind of smiled, looking at both of her legs, and he knew Tillos had done the same.

Only then did she lift her eyes and give them a sheepish look. The redness of her face had gone down, but her eyes were still puffy.

“Sorry,” she said softly. “I overreacted.”

Tillos shook his head. “It’s okay. But will you tell us why? Are you upset you were overheard?”

“I mean… kind of? It was embarrassing.”

“You’ve nothing to be embarrassed about,” Sollit assured her quickly. “You were happy. It made you sing. We’re glad for that.And your voice is pretty. I would love to hear it again. Especially if it means you are happy once more.”

She smiled, but it dropped quickly. “I, er, used to sing in school. My middle and high school had a choir program, and I was the principal singer through most of high school. I really loved singing. I haven’t sung in front of anyone since then though.”

Tillos was curious, and Sollit understood why. There was an undercurrent of sadness to her words. Like she had lost something precious to her. But it clearly wasn’t her voice. Unless maybe her voice used to sound even better. But it certainly wasn’t unpleasant now.

Leah took in a breath, sighed, and shrank. Then tried again before saying-

“Erm, so, I should probably tell you. My family… well, they’re a very, super religious kind of people. Like, church twice a week at minimum. Girls could only wear skirts. Men were the heads of the household, and the family had to do whatever they said. Like, very fundamentalist worldview.”

Sollit and Tillos shared a quick glance. They couldn’t say they really understood, as the religion devoted to the goddess and the twin gods wasn’t a very popular one. However, he did know that they had their own, specific practices that they adhered to in their daily life. Though, it didn’t really sound similar to what Leah was saying.

“Go on,” Tillos encouraged when she fell silent again.

“Right. So, grade school is mandatory for all kids where I’m from. We all had to go through high school. But, in my religion, it was only the boys who were allowed to go to college and get degrees and specialize in higher education. Girls, females likeme, we were expected to finish high school, find a husband – our mate – that god intended for us, and then settle into life as a wife and homemaker. That was the greatest thing we could do with our lives. Theonlything we could do with our lives really…

“B-But I nearly got a scholarship. To college, I mean. This arts college had scouted me, and they thought I sounded amazing, and they were going to offer for me to go to their school. And I really wanted to go. Like, I was super excited about it. My family though…”

“They were not,” Sollit finished for her, understanding dawning even before she nodded. Though Sollit was sad that they would not be happy for her, he felt Tillos getting angry.

“I was going to do it anyway,” she breathed, like it was a secret she was still afraid to speak. “I really liked singing. I wanted to go to school. I thought it wouldn’t really matter. I could still be a wife and homemaker. Even if I had to wait a few extra years. I didn’t think I’d get famous or anything singing, I just wanted to keep doing it. Just for a little longer. My dad forbade me. He said that it was useless, and a waste of time, and I would be better off spending those years having babies for my husband.”

“Wait,” Tillos frowned. “The way you speak… it sounds like you were still underage and beholden to your parents.”

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