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̷T̷H̷R̷E̷E
"Take a seat."
It took Elodie a moment to process her brother's words. After an awkward pause, she cleared her throat, nodding. Elijah moved to the pit, and Elodie followed suit, seating herself opposite her brother.
It often took Elodie a moment to adjust to Elijah's presence whenever she visited the villa. Though both considered their visits to be frequent, this term was entirely subjective. It hadn't been since the accident that she had seen her brother in person. He had changed his hair, which had always been a few shades lighter than hers, to a cool dark tone of brown and had shaved down the sides of his head. He appeared to be paler than she had remembered him, an impression not helped by the contrast of his skin against the dark grey robe he wore. She found herself wondering how she had changed comparatively.
"You don't look as sick as you used to. You should get hit by cars more often." He said, clearing up her thoughts. Elodie raised her eyebrows in surprise.
"Apparently," she remarked. "I didn't believe mom when she said the same thing."
"She usually doesn't know what she's talking about, it was a reasonable assumption." Elijah replied, spreading his arms across the top of the couch. He yawned, his eyes flickering to Connor, who had remained stationary. "What do you think?"
Elodie glanced over her shoulder, pursing her lips.
"I'm not sure." She thought for a second, frowning to herself. "Did I work on it?"
Elijah let out a short bark of laughter. "The accident really knocked something out of place, didn't it?" He gave a concise nod. "For months."
"Months?" She could feel heat spreading up her neck, though she didn't know if it was from embarrassment or the warmth of the fireplace between them.
"Wouldn't shut up about it."
She glanced over her shoulder again, squinting at Connor. "I don't remember at all."
"You did mention the doctors said your short-term memory was worse than your long-term." Elijah replied, waving a hand. He always possessed a dismissive air when it came to the lasting ramifications of the accident, but Elodie couldn't fault him for it. She herself disliked dwelling on the matter. "Don't make too many harsh judgments on it. It's still recalibrating at the moment, reintegrating its memories. A little incident with the last deviant it tried to deactivate."
