Ka'lei nodded, showing that she understood, and settled herself back into her fully seated position, wings loose and open at her back as she stared up at him expectantly.
When he had sung before, in the dining hall, she had thought it lovely. Exotic, melodic, just...lovely. He had a nice voice, and the Serenian ballad he had performed had been both interesting and sweet--exactly the sort of thing that held one's attention long enough for them to hear the actual story to it, but was not so involved as to become trying to listen to.
This...
This was different.
First she registered the echo, the faint otherness to his voice that hadn't been there when she heard him sing before. It was almost eerie, for a moment, but not in a way that made her want to flee. Eerie in a way that made her curious, made her want to lean forward and listen more, try to figure out exactly what she was hearing.
Then the subtle magic of his voice hit her, and she drew in a short, sharp breath. Happy. Safe, soft, warm happiness, the sort of happiness she'd had once, but had nearly forgotten. Curled up in her mother's lap, preening Kai's wing while their mother told them stories, safe in an embrace larger than her whole body, home, safe, family--
"Yoreiq," she choked out, throat tight with the threat of tears. "Yoreiq, Yoreiq."
She was suddenly on her feet, wings flared wide as though she meant to actually fly away. But she couldn't. Her feathers were clipped. Her feathers--her brother--
A sob caught in her throat, the memories of happiness that Valor's song had conjured clashing with the stark reality of her world, and she staggered back from the bed, covering her face with her hands and drawing her wings in tight around her body as though that might somehow shield her.