Soft prompts

"You know what mother's never said." Witerro asked his brother as they sat alone in their room.
Aventeriel just sighed "So many things, so very many."
"I'm proud of you, she's never told me that before."
"Sure she has- many a time" He pointed out.
"She's said the words to me, but not actually said it to me. Do you get what I'm saying?"
"Alas, I know exactly what you mean. Pay her no mind. She ought to be proud of you and if she had any sense at all she'd see it." He looked at the ground thinking about his old hopes and dreams. "You know what I always wanted to hear?"
"What's that?"
"For her to say she loved me- it seems foolish now but at the time..." he chuckled.
"I gave up on that years ago, I know she doesn't."
"A lesson you learned far more quickly than I"
He gave a sad nod "Well at least we have each other."
"That we do."
And there they sat- two boys with so many differences, suffering just the same.

Now in the other bedroom was the only one with a shot at maternal approval but she couldn't care less about all that. She was alone in her room- the only light being that of a candle as she worked the whole night straight, working on what? She wouldn't say but knowing her it most certainly couldn't be anything good.
If Witerra had it in her heart at all to ever be proud of someone other than herself it'd have to be Apip- practically her clone, just as cruel and if anything slightly less twisted, but by adulthood she'd surely be groomed into a perfect copy of her mother, something nobody wanted. But not even she would ever be worthy of Witerra's love.