Amidst the Crash of Worlds

She wasn’t running away. She wasn’t a coward. There was just… nothing more for her here. She wasn’t even sure why she had let her paws roam this way. It was obvious that Alistor was not here, and maybe he never had been.

After Sitka’s attitude on her being no threat, she had started to believe that maybe he would actually let her go. Her anger had helped bring that point around - she was too irritated to remember why she hadn’t left in the first place. That only prey runs. It startled her when she heard the sound of his paws behind her.

He caught up quickly, no doubt his superior height had everything to do with that. His harsh words made her flinch, but her anger was stronger than her fear. Perhaps that was the answer - every time she had ever managed to break through her fear, it had been at the behest of her temper.

She didn’t want to, but she had to stop when he placed himself in front of her. She almost knocked into him, and skittered back to avoid touching him. The idea of another contacting her was still enough to send a shiver of fear through her coat - despite the anger.

He closed that gap she had created, and her heartrate picked up. So too did her breathing, catching the scent of charcoal and a spice she couldn’t name. This was the closest she had been to him yet, and she could see a hint of blue in his light-light eyes. Even clouded as they were with his own rage.

She was trying too hard to distract herself from her growing fear as she realised the predicament she had put herself in. distracted as she was, she didn’t catch his threat once the words were out of his mouth until his paw was already moving. Dealing her a blow on the side of her head that knocked her slightly to the side. She scrambled to keep her balance, and everything suddenly felt more real. Her anger was sliding away from her, leaving her vulnerable and afraid. She didn’t want to be the plaything of another narcissist.

He swung again and she threw herself to the ground to avoid the blow. His snarled words were spat in his face, taunting her. As her kidnapper once had, shortly after he had taken her. When she was still a sweet summer child. He had smacked her around, taunting, daring her. Any time she tried to defend herself, he had hurt her further. Played with her, dragged his paws across her coat. She felt like a child again and tears pooled at the corners of her eyes. He had taken everything from her.
“No!” she snapped not again
Not a coward, not a coward, not a coward!

She lashed out, wildness in her eyes as she aimed to smash her hardened skull against his shoulder and swipe at his paws in a futile attempt of the untrained to defend herself, tears falling harder as she vented a lifetime of rage. “I won’t go back, I won’t!”

"Speech"