Aoife finds Nolan patiently awaiting her response. There is something about his demeanour that she can not quite fathom. Something akin to curiosity and... is that love? She has known love. She has seen the emotion shared between her parents, but this is something different. It is definitely love that she sees, but it is the kind of love that is shared between brother and sister. It is the kind of love that she has always desired but has never felt before. It is something that she craves for. Now, she sees that there is a chance she would finally get what she has always wanted. The young girl silently vows that if she does, she would take hold of it with both her hands and never let it go.

She doesn't hesitate to give her answer.

"Come along."

Aoife doesn't care that Aodhán is throwing her a hostile glare or that he is looking surprised with Nolan's actions- it does not matter to her. There are but a few days left for her, a few months at most, but she wouldn't push Nolan away simply because the others wanted her to. There is only one thing that confuses her. What has changed? Is Nolan willing to give her a chance?

As soon as they have walked halfway towards her home, she turns around to face him. They wouldn't be going there just yet. There are things to do. People to speak to.

"Are you coming home with me, Nolan?" she asks him. Upon seeing him shake his head, she allows a small smile to play on her lips as she awaits an explanation.

"I know you're not going there anyway," he says with a nonchalant wave of his hand. "I do not think I would have come if you were going to do that. I am not sure if we are ready for that just as yet."

That gets her thinking. How did he know? After all, she has only spoken to him once. He had not been unkind to her, and neither had she been rude, but they had both been withdrawn. He had only teased her good-naturedly, and she had left him at that, claiming to have been expected to return home soon. Any more time spent there, she had suspected, would only lead to a lot of awkwardness.

"Where would I be going if not home?"

"Well..." He looks unsure now. "I guess I'll see you another time. I'm not sure if your father would enjoy me walking in with no warning whatsoever."

Aoife knows it will be a lie if she says that she is not disappointed. For some unfathomable reason, she does not want him to go. Somehow, she feels safe when she is with him. There is something there in his eyes and his presence that comfort her. She has not been with him for long, and yet, he feels like the brother she never had. For some reason, he had chosen to come with her and that in itself meant much. He had wished to come with her knowing that their families disapproved of it and she wishes to know why. She has to know if there is a chance she will have a brother after all. On an impulse, she reaches for his hand.

"Do you have to go?"

She feels like a child. A child speaking to her protector. Her hero. There is understanding in his eyes. He feels for her the same way that she does for him and she knows it as much as he does. He is not like the others. He wants to be there for her too.

"You know I can't Aoife. They're not going to like it."

His response irks her. Deciding that her age still allows her to be petulant, she directs a question of mock accusation.

"Then what made you come with me?"

"The same thing that made you stop me, Aoife. I want to be a brother to you, you know. We're family and the same blood flows in our veins whether or not we like it. A single belief can't change that. We are supposed to be there for each other Aoife, and something tells me it is high time we did that. You went out of the way to come home and try to mend the gap between our families. It's my turn to try now."

"I don't think Aodhán will be too happy about that. I don't think he likes me."

"Oh, he'll get over it. Or maybe not. My mother will get over it soon enough though. She just needs her time."

Time that I do not have, Aoife thinks to herself, but outwardly, she only says, "We still have some time before sundown. Can you stay a while? We'll not go home. Just here. I want to talk to you. I want to talk to my brother."

"I suppose I could do that. I wouldn't want to face home just yet. You don't know what it was like the last few days, Aoife. After I spoke to you that day, seeing that you were no longer the innocent child I had left behind had me feeling guilty for not being there. People are dying. There is not enough food for all of us and knowing that I may never see you again, knowing that I may have lost a sister without ever knowing her... believe me when I tell you it was painful."

"Then why didn't you come? Why weren't you there for me?"

"Honestly, I think I was scared that you'd hate me. That my mother and Aodhán would hate me for trying. That you'd want nothing to do with me. I have been there all the time, Aoife. You just didn't know it. The day the boy teased you for having lost your mother? I was there. The day you proudly showed your new pink gown to all the other girls in town, the one you seem to favour most now, I was there. Those days you spent alone, hoping someone would talk to you? I was there. I watched you, Aoife, helping you as I could from afar. I just couldn't pick up the courage to talk to your father or you."

It has always been him! Aoife realizes. The boy had come back to apologize because of her brother. The beautiful flower chain that she had found on that lonely day? Had that been her brother's work too? At that moment, she wonders if he has always been a part of her life. Without another thought, she throws her arms around him, silently thanking him for always being there. He is here for her now. She is no longer alone. She has a brother.

He hugs her back after getting over his initial surprise and slowly, he draws away. She guesses that he has something to ask her, though he seems hesitant to ask. She just looks at him, waiting for him to ask her. Aoife sees that where there had been affection before, now there is only concern in his eyes but she never expects to hear the question that comes her way.

"Aoife, who is that girl in the forest?"