Chapter Text
It was raining the day Serafina got the letter.
The spring had been unusually warm, with new blooms popping up earlier than expected, small green shoots in the wet soil. The older women said it was a sign of change, of new beginnings. The older men said it was a good thing, more food for the wild beasts meant more game.
The only new thing in Serafinas life was that there was a new hole in the basement ceiling her Pa had started to patch up.
It was dripping water right near her head. An omen? Essie called it that, but Serafina had moved past all that superstitious stuff.
Serafina was busier this time of year, the rats had more babies in the spring which made more varmint pop up. She was slower this year, often watching their hairless tails in the corner of her eye as they scuttled around.
But right now, she felt like all that didn't matter. Serafina swung her legs to the corner of her mattress, her back bent over the letter like she was protecting it from anyone who might snatch it away.
Her mother, after weeks of not hearing from her, had finally written back.
She wiped the sweat from her hands as she tore it open, expecting either good or bad news.
Leandra was writing from an unknown address, which could either mean she had found a house, or was stuck in danger somewhere.
Serafina hoped she had found a house, or at least wasn't in prison again. That would be unfortunate.
Leandra had suddenly reappeared in her life about seven months ago, sending an apology written on an old piece of paper, claiming that she had been searching for a house for herself.
She spoke of new beginnings, letting go of the past, and wanting her daughter to be part of that.
Her father didn't like the sudden change, but he didn't stop the letters from coming. Serafina was grateful for that, she had missed her mother dearly, and the sudden random showerings of love and attention had honestly gotten her through the weeks.
She had hung them up with tape on the wet basement walls, just over where her bed.
Serafina liked to imagine Leandra watching over her, like a guardian angel, while she slept.
She often read the letters out to Essie, Braeden, or Jess, then wait for their input. Serafina sensed that they were getting tired of the talk, but they had experienced having a mother in some form, while this was Serafina’s first run of it. She was allowed to be excited, no?
It was contact from a person who had left her, last she heard from Rowena was a year ago, when a letter came stating she had returned to England, and Leandra had mentioned Waysa in a couple of her letters, but not often.
During the quiet hours of the night, when one can hear their thoughts more clearly than they would like to, she sometimes wondered if he was dead. Serafina shook that thought off as more began to arise. No matter. She had one thing to focus on, and it was this.
The paper was nice this time, like the kind Braedens family used. It was light in her hands, dark ink forming her mothers neat cursive on it. Serafina lay back, her feet in the air, as she began to read.
My dearest daughter,
My heart aches to see you, to hold you, to kiss you! I’m sorry I’ve been gone for so long.
I know your little heart must’ve hurt as much as mine to hear from me, and I hope this letter suffices for all the hugs and kisses you must dearly wish from your mother. I bring only good news this time, I must have done a good deed, because the saints cannot stop smiling down on me.
As you know, our great leader Francis Gustav has gotten our people a nation- in the eastern undiscovered lands on canada. It's small, but i know it's mighty. Many people are emigrating back to it, myself included. My daughter, I wish for you to come with me. I know i should not drop a bomb like this in such a short letter, but I love you, and my heart would break if you couldn’t come. I have met your aunts once again, and I’d love you to meet the rest of your real family. There are so many lessons I have yet to teach you, and i think it would be better if you were with people like us. Of course you can still visit your little friends, but just know, I’m coming to get you on July 15th, if the weather permits.
Love
Momma