@lnviictus continued from x
Raph felt a lump form in his throat. He definitely didn’t like the way Willow broached the subject. He was hoping to be able to ease into the topic, but he forced a smile. Saul probably got hurt is all. Willow wasn’t used to it, but he was. So she was probably just worrying over nothing, but Saul would be fine of course! Of course! He laughed softly.
“Just some…rude, inconsiderate things. You know how they get sometimes. They told me you and Saul were dead, but YOU’RE right here so obviously what they and other people were telling me can’t be true…”
Willow felt her jaw tightening from a mixture of nerves and dread. The Greyfaces hadn’t been lying to her: Raph really hadn’t believed it when he had the news broken to him. She glanced away, noticing the concerned bewilderment on her son’s face, the delicacy of the situation amplifying her anxiety. She had to do this sensitively, but god, she was being so obvious as it was; there didn’t seem to be a way to ease into this conversation, and for very clear reasons.
Hating to confirm Raph’s fears indirectly, but not wanting to have this conversation in front of Sammy and Lily, she set her children down and pointed to a nearby patch of violets.
Once the children had settled in a place within eyeshot (but out of earshot), Willow finally met Raph’s gaze with her own, pained one. She hated to be the one to do this. How much she longed to wallow in denial for a while longer, but Raph deserved the truth, and someone had to make him see it. “Sweetheart...” She began slowly, “They...they weren’t lying.” Willow gave it a couple of seconds to sink in, wringing her hands while trying to explain what had happened without overwhelming the poor kid with information.
“Saul, h-he just... He overworked himself. I don’t know what all happened, but I...got caught up with some bad people that he was tryin’ to save me from, a-and by the time I got to him, h-he...” Willow felt her voice crack, tears stinging frustratingly at her eyes. No. Not now.
“His circuits overheated, his heart stopped...”
She couldn’t break down right now. Willow needed to be strong and to hold things together, for once. “He really is gone, Raph, please believe me. It’s my fault and I-I’m so, so sorry...”