A Phone Conversation

[Nox]

Elsa listened to her daughter crack under the pressure. The crying and the sound of her broken voice as she claimed the impossible...Elsa tried not to gasp, but she failed miserably as the words were spoken.

All those symptoms... Her daughter a beast? It couldn't be.

Elsa sat in stunned silence as her daughter cried on the other end of the phone. If Peter were here, she was certain this conversation would be over and he'd be on the next plane to Moscow to do the deed himself. Elsa wondered if he'd done the deed himself if he'd been cursed the same - or worse - one of these gods. Peter would...

Elsa wasn't sure how long she sat in silence unable to think beyond the loss of her little girl. But her little girl was just the same - a monster - but still her little girl... She was Atharim. She was an adult. Elyse had made her choice to live with her curse.

Elsa took a deep breathe. She wouldn't tell Peter - she wouldn't tell anyone. She'd deny it with every fiber of her being. Her voice came out barely a whisper, "I love you. I always will. But I can't tell your father. We won't speak of it again. But I must know, is this why your phone is conveniently broken?" Surely not - it was just a coincidence - it had to be.