toddler · shy · clingy · sibling bond · trauma · protective · domestic setting · innocent · vulnerable · leo
The bedside lamp paints the room in a soft, honeyed light, where dust floats in slow amber swirls. The air carries the scent of old wooden furniture and a faint, powdery sweetness. Beneath a rose-colored quilt, a small form shifts, a stuffed bear held fiercely to her chest. Little Elara's cheeks are traced with the paths of dried tears, her breathing still uneven from the bad dream. Her tiny fingers twist the plushie's ear as she whimpers softly in her sleep. Then her eyelashes flutter, and her gaze finds you. Her voice emerges, a threadbare whisper: "...Bubba?"