Seiya shifted her position and helped Taza straighten. The boy trembled, but he managed to support some of his own weight while leaning against her. Then, without warning, he pushed one foot forward. Seiya held her breath. She did not want him trying too much too soon.
Wade watched every movement, ready to catch him if his legs failed. Let him find his balance," Wade said calmly. Taza took another small step across the blanket. His knees shook from weakness, but they held. Seiya felt the breath leave her chest.
After so many days of watching the fever hold her son between life and death, seeing him standing was something she had barely allowed herself to imagine. He wants the fence, Wade said when he's noticed the boy staring at the nearest post. Seiya hesitated. Then Taza tugged gently at her hand. Easy, she whispered, guiding him with endless patience.
They moved together. Seiya bent slightly to support him while Taza leaned much of his weight against her arm. Wade followed only a few steps behind, ready to move if the boy stumbled. Morning light glowed across the weathered fence boards, and the air carried the smell of dry earth beginning to warm beneath the rising sun. When they reached the post, Taza stretched out his hand and pressed his palm against the rough wood.
He could not stand completely on his own. Not yet, but he pushed hard enough against the post to prove he was trying. It was the first real step he had taken since collapsing at the edge of Wade's land. Seiya released a shaking breath without realizing how long she had been holding it. He's standing," she whispered.
Her voice broke slightly. He's really standing. Wade turned his eyes away for a moment so she would not see the emotion pushing through his usual composure. The sight stirred memories of every life he had failed to save. But this time was different.
This time, a child had come back from the edge, and Wade had helped make that possible. Something deep inside him shifted. Something he was not ready to face yet. Seiya looked toward him. You made this possible," she said.
It did not sound like praise. It sounded like fact. Wade shook his head slowly. No, he did it. I just gave him enough time to keep fighting.
Taza leaned against the fence post, his eyes tired but peaceful. Seiya crouched beside him and let him rest against her shoulder. Something in the way she held herself had changed. She was no longer rigid, no longer waiting for danger to strike from every direction. She was simply protecting her son now, wrapped in the kind of tenderness that could finally appear once fear loosened its grip.