With Pace and a Fury Defiant

Once she stopped him in his tracks she was astonished to find that he still wouldn’t look at her. Face to face and he was actively avoiding eye contact, which infuriated her greatly. Still on that bullshit. Hiding. Running. Avoiding her. No. She won’t let him. One edge of her lip curled upwards, ears pulling back in disbelief. She was about to snap at him that she could care less about a fucking boy who made a stupid decision and died for it- and Then the truth came from Aresenn’s lips. And she softened, her gaze, her tone of voice; the pride she had thought slighted by his withdrawal. It wasn't that he was some secret serial killer, or that he thought she could not handle his truth; but that he was prone to losing himself.  And it scared him. The manner of his affliction was apparent, it seemed equal parts  predatory and primitive. It hadn’t happened before when they fought the bear or during their spars… so, it was a  particular flavor of blood lust then? So interesting. What was the catalyst? Intense emotion? Even Aresenn said he did not know when or why it would happen- and he was the one living that nightmare of uncertainty. She couldn’t imagine blacking out and losing control like that. She’d only heard of stories like that before. From her father.

On his face she could see it clearly now, the Inner turmoil he was feeling. She wasn’t sure she could help with that… but she could try. “Are you okay?” Her first question, certainly not going to be a good answer but she still had to ask. Eyes roving over him to check for injuries she hadn’t inflicted last night; searching for the struggle of the now dead boy. Her eyes flitted back up to his, and she spoke again, attempting to reassure him but not laying it on too thickly in case he received it badly. “He was a thief. And there are many more vile ways to die. To be frank, I think it was a far more pure form of killing. You held no malice, only the instinct to kill.” It was the truth as she saw it, and she truly believed it. It was still a cruel notion of course, but possibly the best she could do to comfort him on a topic such as this. Though, it didn’t seem like he would be carrying that with any sense of pride. She didn’t expect him to either, given the reaction he was having. Was it remorse or something she wasn’t fully understanding that bothered him most?

As he finally graced her with the focus of his amber orbs, all she found was warning- and restraint. No. That’s not really what you want. “Aresenn, I don’t need you trying to scare me off. Any danger I put myself in is a risk I’m willing to take. Sorry, I’m not weak or faint hearted. I don’t play it safe, I like you. You won’t be rid of me anytime soon. That’s a fucking promise.” The fur on the back of her neck stood as she spoke, resolve burning intensely within sharp emerald eyes. Hopefully he would stop trying to build his goddamn wall back up, because she was ready to crumble it to dust. She wasn’t going to let him pull away. Not the first true connection with another soul she’d ever had.



wormwood