[Years ago, before she knew better than to ever hope for such a thing, Lorna used to daydream about proposals, weddings, true love and all the other storybook things that weren't allowed to her. Even in her fantasies, she never expected much: boy her age or a touch older, a simple young man of simple means, someone who would take well to Auntie. He would be money-poor but spirit-wealthy, possessing charm and character and a good heart but little else.]
[However, even a dream as simple as that had always seemed too much to ask. To think anyone other than Auntie could ever love her - it was preposterous.]
[And now here she is a lifetime later, watching all those once-forgotten dreams unfold in real life as though they were plucked straight from her mind, only the circumstances are so wildly beyond anything she ever could have pictured even in her most untamed imaginings.]
[She's not being proposed by a young man, but a woman. She does not come from simple means, but royalty, and her heart, charm, and character were only a fraction of the qualities she possesses.]
[Lorna cannot believe this is happening - her mind simply cannot reconcile the reality of the situation with her long-held but now thoroughly obliterated expectations.]
[She blinks rapidly, her stunned, wide-eyes brimming once more with fresh tears, her hands hovering over her mouth as though to stifle a gasp - not that she could utter one even if she tried. Her throat's gone so tight she can scarcely breathe let alone make a sound, and so she answers Anna's question the only way she can.]
[She nods, just once at first, then more rapidly as her composure takes leave of her once again and reduces her to hiccuping softly as she chokes back a sob, her shoulders shaking from the effort of keeping herself from falling to pieces.]
[She leans forward to hug Anna once more, her tail snaking around to wrap around her waist because she simply does not have enough appendages with which to express just how much she loves her.]
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[However, even a dream as simple as that had always seemed too much to ask. To think anyone other than Auntie could ever love her - it was preposterous.]
[And now here she is a lifetime later, watching all those once-forgotten dreams unfold in real life as though they were plucked straight from her mind, only the circumstances are so wildly beyond anything she ever could have pictured even in her most untamed imaginings.]
[She's not being proposed by a young man, but a woman. She does not come from simple means, but royalty, and her heart, charm, and character were only a fraction of the qualities she possesses.]
[Lorna cannot believe this is happening - her mind simply cannot reconcile the reality of the situation with her long-held but now thoroughly obliterated expectations.]
[She blinks rapidly, her stunned, wide-eyes brimming once more with fresh tears, her hands hovering over her mouth as though to stifle a gasp - not that she could utter one even if she tried. Her throat's gone so tight she can scarcely breathe let alone make a sound, and so she answers Anna's question the only way she can.]
[She nods, just once at first, then more rapidly as her composure takes leave of her once again and reduces her to hiccuping softly as she chokes back a sob, her shoulders shaking from the effort of keeping herself from falling to pieces.]
[She leans forward to hug Anna once more, her tail snaking around to wrap around her waist because she simply does not have enough appendages with which to express just how much she loves her.]