The pride that swelled in Lycoris's chest was immediate and undeniable, warming her from within like fine wine spreading through her veins. Her daughter โ her clever, capable Iris โ thriving in this strange pharmaceutical company that was so much more than it claimed to be.
โฌ
โฎใ คThat saidโฆใ คโฏ Lycoris murmured, her voice dropping into something softer, more intimate. โฎใ คI am incredibly proud of you, sweet pea. Working in logistics, helping others, understanding what Rhodes Island representsโฆใ คโฏ
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A softer smile curved Lycoris's lips, touched now with a hint of playful mischief that danced in her eyes.
โฎใ คWere you a good girl while I was gone?ใ คโฏ She asked, her tone light and teasing, though the question carried genuine weight beneath its gentle delivery.
Lycoris caught her daughter instinctively, arms wrapping around the girl's smaller frame with the ease of long practice, steadying them both as the momentum of Iris's leap threatened to send them tumbling backward into the corridor.
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Any other person might have met their end at the sound of that feline toneโbut not Iris. For her, that voice only made her pink hues widen, her pillow and terminal sent tumbling aside in one frantic, hasty sweep.
โใ คMamaโผ๏ธใ คโ
โฏ
Her thumb brushed across Iris's cheek in an absent, affectionate caress as she studied her daughter's features โ searching for any signs of hardship endured in her absence. The prepared welcome, the patient waiting โ all of it spoke to how much Iris had missed her.
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