reduced to a thing that

“Why did he hurt her?”Her mother breathes a quiet laugh, though her eyes darken as her thumb draws soft circles over her sister’s brow.“It’s his pain, Lina. She has to feel it, too.”“Do you feel táta’s pain, too?” Her mother sighs, straightening her back and dusting off her skirt, as if brushing off the conversation like lint.“I do.” she nods. “And he, mine.”The conversation ends there, her mother returning to the kitchen and leaving Karolina to stare at the hungry ghost-insect on her sister’s tiny leg. She runs her finger over it, her mind recreating the angry mark that had briefly torn her sister’s flesh, and silently prays her soul remains untethered, prays love never sinks its claws into her.- shivlina soulmate AU