damsel in distressin’

the taste of blood is in her mouth, coats her teeth and tongue and lips, but El just sinks further into the kiss and lets it defile her, embraces all the gore and violence that has laid the foundations of her new life. for that is what she intends this to be: a new start, a future she can craft at Red's side. El closes her eyes, sighing into the kiss as she lets the image unfurl. Red, as Insomnia's fierce heir, and her as his...as his, wholly his, now and forever. her heart soars and throbs in tandem. "i love you too," she breathes into his mouth, pressing closer, hotter, her hunger for him all-consuming. "and i want a life with you in Insomnia. right now." she opens her eyes, and there's a new intensity there, a steely determination. "i wanna leave it all behind and move forward with you, Red. you're my future. i know it." she lifts his hand to press it to her chest, right where her heart beats true. "don't you see, Red? you're my guiding star." maybe it's whimsical, romantic nonsense, but right now, nothing has ever felt more true. maybe the consequences will be messy; maybe Medusa won't accept her, or her family will be upset with her for refusing to join them in their chosen pack. but for the first time since Ashen fell, El doesn't fear the future: she fucking relishes in it.

"Elara Klein"