Wren
I need the clouds to cover me
Wren nodded once, slow this time, her eyes lingering on him a second longer before dropping back to the table. She shifted in her seat slightly, the feeling in her chest twisting at the words about family. Wren had no recollection of anything of the sort, save for flashes of darkened faces and the murmured sound of voices from her dreams and nightmares. “That’s good,” he said quietly, though it sounded more uncertain out loud than it had in her head. Her thumb traced another slow line around the rim of her mug. “To, uh, have something that mattered that much.”
The silence that followed wasn’t entirely uncomfortable, but it stretched enough that she felt suddenly aware of herself again—of the way she kept fidgeting with her sleeves, of how long she looked at him before looking away, of the faint pulse building behind her temple. She searched for another question before the quiet could settle too deeply between them.
“What was it like?” she asked, then immediately shook her head a little to keep herself from adding having a family, and instead continued with: “Being a Dragoon, I mean.” Her mouth pressed briefly into a thin line. A small, nervous breath slipped from her as she tucked a strand of auburn hair behind her ear. She glanced up again, offering another quick, careful smile like she was trying to smooth over more awkwardness before it fully surfaced. The smile faded at the edges when she realized she didn’t actually know how conversations like this were supposed to work. Usually people filled the empty spaces for her.
With him, every question felt strangely important, and that only made it harder to ask the next one.
The silence that followed wasn’t entirely uncomfortable, but it stretched enough that she felt suddenly aware of herself again—of the way she kept fidgeting with her sleeves, of how long she looked at him before looking away, of the faint pulse building behind her temple. She searched for another question before the quiet could settle too deeply between them.
“What was it like?” she asked, then immediately shook her head a little to keep herself from adding having a family, and instead continued with: “Being a Dragoon, I mean.” Her mouth pressed briefly into a thin line. A small, nervous breath slipped from her as she tucked a strand of auburn hair behind her ear. She glanced up again, offering another quick, careful smile like she was trying to smooth over more awkwardness before it fully surfaced. The smile faded at the edges when she realized she didn’t actually know how conversations like this were supposed to work. Usually people filled the empty spaces for her.
With him, every question felt strangely important, and that only made it harder to ask the next one.
Pulling them down, surround me
