AURORA’S POV:
    The moment the door locks behind us, her energy shifts again. Jon’s mother is no longer just stunned instead she’s unraveling.
   She steps closer, slow and unsure, like I’m a dream she’s afraid to touch. Her hand trembles as it rises to cover her mouth, eyes glistening as if holding back a tide of memories too heavy to bear.
   What have I done now?
Tears spill. Just like that. No warning. No sound. Just soft, wet streaks that break something inside me.
   "Ma’am…?" I whisper again, more timid this time. Fear starts to grip my heart at her reactions to my existence in get living room.
    Jon steps forward, instinctively, like he’s about to put an arm around her, but she lifts a hand.
   "Wait,"she breathes out, voice shaking like a leaf in a storm. "Just… wait here. I'm coming. Just hold on!!"
Then she turns and bolts.
Up the stairs.
The fuck just happened?!?
   Her footsteps echo across the walls until all that’s left is silence. Thick. Unbreathable.
   I blink after her, heart pounding. "What… what did I do?"
    Jon turns to me instantly. "Nothing. You didn’t do anything." He moves toward me, gentle, protective. "She just... she’s probably just shocked. Maybe you look like someone she used to know or-"
    "That was more than shock, Jon. She looked terrified. You should have seen the tears in her eyes." I hug myself tighter. "I shouldn’t have come. I should’ve stayed back. I should have just remained in the hotel. Arc warned me. I could have avoided all this drama."
   Jon’s jaw tenses. “Don’t say that. Don't you dare say that. This is not on you in any form."
    Behind me, Arc shifts. He hasn’t said a word since we stepped in, but his silence feels louder than either of us. 
   When I glance at him, he’s leaning against the wall, arms crossed, but there’s something conflicted in the way his brows pinch together. His crimson eyes flick to the stairs, then to me, then back again.
A part of me wishes he would step forward to hug me. Tell me that everything will be fine. I know I shouldn't think that way but I can't... I just can't help it.
    He looks like he is split right down the middle. Half-expecting her to return with answers, half-hoping she doesn’t.
I don’t know what to do with that.
   Before I can ask, footsteps descend fast; heavier, quicker. Her again.
   But this time, she’s carrying something. A wooden box clutched tightly in both hands, worn at the edges, but handled like it’s precious.
    She doesn’t say a word as she strides to the center of the room and drops to her knees. The box rests before her like an altar. Her face is still telling everyone in the room that she is very much still apprehensive.
Jon kneels beside her. "Mum-"
    "Shhh. Hold on." Her voice is tight. Barely there. She pulls out a small key from around her neck and slides it into the lock with fingers still shaking.
The click sounds louder than it should.
    She lifts the lid slowly, reverently. One by one, she begins to pull things out; a silver bracelet, an old sealed letter, a dried sprig of lavender. Jon and Arc step closer on either side of her, and I follow, too uncertain to breathe, too drawn in to stop.
    When she reaches a brown envelope, she stills.
Her hand freezes mid-air. Then she lowers it to her lap, trembling again.
"No," she whispers. "No, this… this can’t… This is not supposed to happen. Doom..."
    She snatches the envelope like it’s burning her, rips it open, and pulls out the contents.
Photos.
I lean in instinctively, unable to stop myself.
   She stares at them, her chest rising and falling too fast, and then slowly, she lifts her eyes to me.
Pure horror. She stares like she’s seeing death itself. Her lips part.
I have never seen someone stare at me like that before. Not even when I broke that boy's arm in pre-K. 
"Mavilla," she whispers.
What?
And then, she collapses. Oh my-
    Jon reacts fast, catching her before her head hits the floor. "Mum!"
    I gasp, reaching for her, but my legs won’t move. Arc crouches low, helping Jon balance her limp form.
    The pictures scatter from her hand like falling leaves, drifting to the floor. One flutters down right in front of me.
It lands beside my sneaker so I reach down and pick it up.
My hand stops halfway.
What I see punches the air out of my lungs.
It’s me. No… it’s not me. But it is.
    She’s ethereal -same face, same eyes, same hair cascading like black silk, dressed in a long, flowing white gown that looks spun from moonlight itself. 
    Her expression is radiant. Glowing. And standing beside her is Jon’s mother, planting a kiss on her cheek, her face lit with the kind of joy you only reserve for people you love deeply.
My fingers tighten on the photo. My whole body buzzes.
What… the hell is this?
Jon carries his mother up the stairs with urgency, Arc following close behind. But I remain frozen in place, staring down at the woman in the photo.
A woman who looks exactly like me. A woman named Mavilla.
**********
    Few hours later, Arc comes back downstairs to sit down with me on the couch. Jon has laid his mum on her bed and we are all just waiting for her to wake up. 
   Jon said it was just a moment of shock and we don't need to call a doctor. So we didn't...
   But that doesn't take the guilt away from me or make me feel better.
   When Arc came back downstairs, he saw the pictures which were still very much with me. 
   He had the same reaction with me upon seeing them. I would have done an happy dance if I wasn't so depressed at the moment. On top of everything, I haven't even had breakfast yet. 
It's 12pm!!!!
  But it's fine. 
"Who is hungry?" Yes, Lord! Exactly what I needed to hear.
   Before I can respond, a loud rumble comes from my stomach. I groan in utter embarrassment.
  At this point, they will revoke their mate bond before a month with all my embarrassing moments.
   "Looks like someone is very hungry." Arc says, letting out a laugh. Jon joins him and my head snaps up to glare at both of them.
  "I'm very glad that my embarrassment and hunger have brought both of you joy and even furthered a bonding moment."
   "Fools." I mutter under my breath. They both look at each other before Jon makes a turn to the kitchen and Arc takes out his phone from his pocket. 
  Wonderful, innit?
I just hope she wakes up soon. I need answers.