Flora
Flora turns her gaze from the horizon to Hadama, her gold-ringed fingers rising to push her curls from her brow, though the gesture does little to smooth the storm behind her eyes. The hush of waves is too soft to drown out the words he’s just spoken—about the void, the battles, the sheer weight of what might be coming—and for a moment, all she can do is breathe through the knot forming in her throat.
"I hate it," she admits finally, voice low and honest, without the usual shine of performative deflection. "The tax, I mean. The way it feels like we're turning against our own people. Like we're making them pay for something that wasn’t their fault and isn’t theirs to fight." Her teeth press gently into the inside of her cheek. "But...you’re right."
The words taste bitter, but she says them anyway, because she means them. "If there’s something down there that could take out a goddess—Safrin of all people—then it’s not just Torchline that’s at risk. It’s everything. And we can’t afford to sit back and pretend good intentions are enough anymore."
Turning fully toward him now, her expression settles into something quieter. Not resigned, exactly, but resolved. "We’ll implement the tax. If anyone’s going to get mad about it, maybe I'll fly them over to Starfall on the Sugar Tide and ask them if they're really sure about it."
"I hate it," she admits finally, voice low and honest, without the usual shine of performative deflection. "The tax, I mean. The way it feels like we're turning against our own people. Like we're making them pay for something that wasn’t their fault and isn’t theirs to fight." Her teeth press gently into the inside of her cheek. "But...you’re right."
The words taste bitter, but she says them anyway, because she means them. "If there’s something down there that could take out a goddess—Safrin of all people—then it’s not just Torchline that’s at risk. It’s everything. And we can’t afford to sit back and pretend good intentions are enough anymore."
Turning fully toward him now, her expression settles into something quieter. Not resigned, exactly, but resolved. "We’ll implement the tax. If anyone’s going to get mad about it, maybe I'll fly them over to Starfall on the Sugar Tide and ask them if they're really sure about it."
'Cause I'm a real tough kid, I can handle my shit
They said, "Babe, you gotta fake it 'til you make it" and I did
They said, "Babe, you gotta fake it 'til you make it" and I did
Code stolen from Queen Sky
