Aria’s POV
I turned slowly. My body moved before my brain could catch up.
And there she was.
Lilith.
She stood about twenty feet away. Near the school gates. Alone.
Three years since I’d seen that face. Those silver eyes—my eyes—staring back at me.
But she was different now.
She’d grown taller. Lost some of the baby fat in her cheeks. Her features were sharper. More defined.
Her hair was a mess. Tangled. Matted in places. Like no one had brushed it in days. Maybe weeks.
Her uniform was wrinkled. Stained. The hem was coming undone on one side.
And she was thin.
The round, healthy child I remembered was gone. In her place stood this... this ghost. This shadow of the daughter I’d once known.
"Mommy?" Her voice cracked. Tears were already streaming down her face. "Is that really you?"
I couldn’t speak. Couldn’t move.
*"You’re evil! You’re an evil mommy! I wish you were dead!"*
Those words. Those horrible, devastating words that had echoed in my head for three years.
"MOMMY!"
Lilith started running toward me.
Her thin legs pumped frantically. Her arms stretched out. Reaching for me like a drowning person reaching for a lifeline.
I stepped back. The movement was instinctive. Automatic. My body reacting before my brain could process what was happening.
Lilith stumbled. Her momentum carried her forward. But I wasn’t there to catch her.
She stopped just short of where I’d been standing. Her arms dropped to her sides. Her eyes went wide.
"Mommy?" Her voice was tiny now. Confused. "Why did you... why did you move away?"
I stared at her.
This child who had broken my heart. Who had chosen Celestia over me. Who had called me evil and ugly and wished me dead.
She was looking at me now like I was the one who’d abandoned her.
"Don’t you recognize me?" Lilith’s bottom lip trembled. "It’s me. It’s Lilith. Your daughter."
Something cold settled in my chest.
"I know who you are."
My voice came out flat. Distant. Like I was speaking to a stranger.
Lilith flinched. Actually flinched. Like my words had physically hurt her.
"Then why..." She took a shaky step forward. "Why won’t you hug me? I missed you so much, Mommy. I missed you every single day."
I glanced past her.
Finn and Celestia were watching. Of course they were. Finn had that look on his face—that smug, calculating expression I knew so well. Like he was watching a game he’d already won.
He thought I would crumble. Thought one look at my crying daughter would make me fall apart. Apologize. Beg for forgiveness.
That’s what the old Aria would have done.
But I wasn’t the old Aria anymore.
"Lilith." I kept my voice steady. Controlled. "Do you remember what you said to me? Three years ago?"
Her face scrunched up. Trying to remember. Or maybe trying to forget.
"You said you hated me."
The words hung in the air. Heavy. Final.
"You said I was evil. That I was ugly. That you wished I was dead." I counted off each accusation. Let each one land. "You pushed me. At your school. In front of everyone."
"I was just a kid!" Lilith’s voice rose. Desperate now. "I didn’t understand! "
"You chose her." I cut her off. My voice was ice. "You chose Celestia. Called her ’mommy.’ Said she was prettier than me. Nicer than me. Better than me in every way."
I stepped back again.
She froze.
"Three years ago," I said quietly, "you told me you didn’t want me as your mother anymore. You told me you wanted Celestia instead."
I glanced at Celestia. She was watching with narrowed eyes. No trace of the fake sweetness she’d shown earlier.
"Well." I turned back to Lilith. "You got what you wanted. Celestia became your stepmother. And I stopped being your mother. That was your choice."
"But I changed my mind!" Lilith was sobbing now. "I want you back! I want my real mommy back!"
"Changed your mind?" I laughed. The sound was bitter. Harsh. "It doesn’t work like that, Lilith. You can’t throw someone away and then decide you want them back when it’s convenient."
"I’m sorry you’re unhappy," I said. My voice softened slightly. Couldn’t help it. "But you made your choice. And I made mine."
"What choice?" Lilith’s voice pitched higher. "What are you talking about?"
"I have a new life now." I straightened my spine. Lifted my chin. "A good life. A happy life."
"Without you."
The words hit her like a physical blow. She staggered backward. Her hand pressed against her chest.
"You can’t mean that." She shook her head frantically. "You CAN’T. I’m your daughter. Your REAL daughter. You have to love me!"
I glanced at Finn.
His smug expression had faded. In its place was something I’d never seen before. Shock.
"My precious daughter is already inside that school." I gestured toward the building. "She’s waiting for me to pick her up this afternoon. She needs me."
Lilith’s face went blank.
Then twisted.
"Your..." She couldn’t even get the words out. "Your what?" Her voice was rising again. Getting shrill.
"WHAT PRECIOUS DAUGHTER?! YOUR PRECIOUS DAUGHTER IS ME, ISN’T IT?!"