Above All

-Forty-Five-

Armies march reckless

Gift of love behind the end

World spins in the wind

Amani:

"I need to sit, I feel dizzy." I said as I felt my legs slightly buckle underneath me, I wobbled towards the living space as my father quickly came to my aid, guiding me so I could sit down, rest and just process the information that was just blurted out to me.

"I'll clean up the glass... Rehan can you get me the dust pan?" I heard my mother call out to my cousin. "Sure thing, Auntie Liya." He replied back to her.

Dad brought me to the couch where I found my kitty, Sashu nuzzled within her own white fur purring softly to herself. Oh, I had missed her so much, just seeing her there was already making me feel better, though my heart was beating erratically and my hands were shaking, I think the stress had finally gotten to me.

I was wound up tighter than a Jack-in-a-box.

I shifted my feet together and tossed my heels to the side as I brought Sashu's sleeping figure over me. She woke up a bit, her eyes glazing over mine for a few seconds before she returned back to sleep on my lap. I nuzzled my face within her fur and just rested there for a second so I could think... I needed a moment to contemplate.

Maybe I had heard Grandma Zenny incorrectly.

"Amani, princess... are you feeling a little better now?" My dad asked worriedly. I'm sure I was freaking him out a bit by how I was acting, the shakiness, the wide-eyed stare, the dizziness... all signs of my mini panic attack; I was just trying to calm down as best as I could right now. And somehow even despite having my father and Sashu on my lap... I was craving one person to be at my side.

Layton.

I shut my eyes softly, "Daddy... what is Grandma Zenny talking about, is she suffering from her delusions again... she shouldn't play with saying things like that. Is that why uncle Zyair pulled her out of the dinner?" I asked him.

"Princess, things are little more complicated than they seem right now." He replied to me simply. He patted the top of my head softly as he gazed at me with a reflective expression.

I heard scoffing behind us and I slowly turned to meet my grandmother's stare, she slowly walked herself over to the couch and my dad quickly got up to help her sit down slowly. "You think I'm suffering from delusions, huh?" She chuckled again as if she found the thought comical. "I've had it with these three coming up with that preposterous lie to get me to shut up about everything!" She said once she had gotten comfortable on the couch.

I pursed my lips, "So... you aren't sick and delusional, grandma?" I asked her.

She gave me a long look, her dark skin sagging gradually as she shook her head, "I'm as sharp as whip... and my tongue is just as quick. I've grown restless over the years so, they had to find something to make people believe what I say isn't so." She rolled her eyes, catching my fathers who quickly looked away to avoid the harshness of her look.

I bit my lip too scared to ask her to once again elaborate on what she just said, instead my mother and Uncle Zyair had returned, both of them wearing weary glances as they made eye-contact with me and then Grandma Zenny.

My mother took a seat on the other side of where I sat, she took my idle hand that was resting on the other side of my dress and held it, lightly rubbing her hand over mind to comfort me; that always used to help when I had my panic attacks. "Mani, baby... I'm sorry we had spurted this news on you like this, but we realized too late that we took way more time than necessary to get you up to speed... in all honesty we should've told you immediately when you told us you were going to Idizia but..." She stuttered with her words.