The shuffle of memories is weak, flickering in and out. Some moments are so sharp they cut, others are barely more than impressions.
The strongest, the first to be seen, is drenched in blue and has a feeling like sticking your hand into crystal.
Lyf looks to be maybe 9 years old. They’re a scrawny kid, skinny and already starting to look exhausted. Maybe it’s the red rimming their eyes that makes them look so tired, though.
They’re sitting on a stool in front of a bathroom mirror, hair loose and falling around their face in shaggy curls. Behind them stands Elvi, a pair of scissors in hand. Her eyes are similarly red rimmed, but her face is tight, keeping the sorrow out of her gaze. She looks to be around 12, her hair trimmed short. Both of them are wearing dull green: the color of mourning.
Lyf doesn’t speak as she takes a strand of their hair and lifts the scissors. With a decisive snip, the strand falls to the floor.
They squeeze their eyes shut as she continues to cut their hair, trying to breathe slowly to keep from crying. Elvi is careful as she cuts it, making sure it’s still long enough to braid eventually.
The final cut is a fluffy bob, the curls almost hiding Lyf’s face. Elvi places the scissors down on the sink, letting out a breath. She ruffles their hair slightly, a typically playful gesture that seems to be more reassurance, now. Their face tightens, a couple tears slipping from their eyes, and hitting the floor.
Elvi crouched in front of them, just under eye level, holding out her arms. They practically fell into her, finally letting themself start to sob. She held them close, rubbing their back, and letting her own tears flow down her cheeks.
Lyf watches the scene, this girl who they've never met cutting the hair of someone who looks so much like them. Whose memories are they watching now? Which Lyf's memories are they watching?
Lyf finds themself wishing they could speak in these, yet they're sure they can't.
Unseen behind them is a young boy, trying his best to sort through glitchy and fading memories, trying his best to bring Lyfrassir through the memories of someone who is fading, trying his best to stabilize them.
