Narrative: Élan L Who: Élan What: Leaving Where: Addams Family Mansion When: Current Warnings/Rating: Newp.
The house was empty. The irony was not lost on Élan that with the loss of his sister, the place seemed more like a mausoleum than it ever had with her here. (Should he have counseled her better? He had not looked, but he had known that the possibility wasn't in their favor when she made her decision. Would he have provided himself with the same counsel? No, he knew. Even failure would cause them growth that they hadn't experienced in too long.)
But now she was gone, and there was something tugging insistently at him, just beneath his solar plexus, where he imagined his heart to exist. It came in shifts, in insistent wiggling, in pounding pulses, until the need to return was too great.
Stephanie would be fine. He would place her pets back in her apartment, leave her a note on the forums for when she might be free to see it again, know that she had to return to them because he was no longer there to care for them. And - Eddie would be there. That tangled web wasn't lost on him, and perhaps she would be happier.
He hoped so, but did not look. The knowledge was enough.
And so, the pets went back, with enough food to manage until she left the facility. He called a local dog walker, arranged for visits and walks until then and finally set down to pen a message to her. The writing was even, the hand practiced, and there were no wavering lines.
Stephanie,
As promised, your pets are at your apartment. I've arranged for them to be cared for until you return as I must go. I wish you all happiness.
Élan
The doors on the house locked, and the older brother of the Addams Family Mansion disappeared as quickly as his sister had.