there's light at the edge of the darkness
Roaring. Cute. Well, two could play at that game, Pim. With a thought, Loren reached out to the sky above the College, visible above the courtyard. And in that space a full-sized dragon appeared, its scales black as night, its teeth longer than any sword, wings sending gusts of wind to the ground below that caused new snowdrifts to form, and fire swirling in its eyes. And then it opened its mouth and roared back at Pim. Except unlike the dragonling’s pitiful sound, this one echoed across the entirety Hollowed Grounds and shook the College to its very foundations, deafening Loren with the sheer volume of noise. The luxere fully panicked, and started stampeding, fleeing away from the garden as fast as they could. However, they parted around the summoner, as if sensing he was the source of the monster above. Or maybe sensing who was the real monster here.
There was a reason the symbol of the Launceleyns was a fucking dragon, and it was about time he embraced it. Indeed, dragon rage was no fucking joke. And neither was his.
Dismissing the summoned creature with another thought—he didn’t want to cause a panic, just prove a point—he healed the ringing in his ears with just a whisper of his power. ”Let’s talk about your friend, shall we? Yes, I hurt him. I fully acknowledge and accept that I did that, and that I can never make up for the pain I caused him, even if I devoted the rest of my life to that task. However, I didn’t ask for or need you to defend me.” His words dripped from his lips, frostier than ever.
And there was a lot more from that deep well he’d covered until this very moment. Congratulations, Phoebe got Loren to talk about his deepest feelings. Hopefully this was everything she'd wanted. ”Remi couldn’t seem to leave well enough alone. He couldn’t give me the space or the time we both needed, even when I asked him, begged him to do so. And then he, the man I loved, who is married to my former best friend, your 'best friend,' who knew all this, asked me to kiss him. After I’d already told him I didn’t want to do anything to jeopardize his marriage. When he knew full well how painful it would be for me, or if he didn't is so completely self-centered that it's frankly staggering.” He could feel the ice creeping over his heart and didn’t give a shit. He wasn't going to bottle any of this up anymore. ”So he broke my heart that day as much as I broke his. And I was trying to do the right thing. He was just being selfish. So you’re right. He is at much as fault for what happened as I am. Maybe even more so." And yet, somehow all the blame and all the wrath had fallen squarely upon Loren’s shoulders. Funny how that worked out oh so nicely for the alchemist.
As for not knowing her or how she felt, well, time to see how observant the summoner was. He cocked his head to the side, his gaze piercing and hard and unforgiving. ”On second thought, maybe you two are perfect for each other. You both tell yourselves you’re selfless and caring and kind, but really the fact of the matter is you can’t stand the thought of anyone not loving you unconditionally or having anyone think you’re anything less than pure and perfect and good.” He smiled, but it was a chilling sight devoid of any and all warmth, more baring his teeth than anything else. ”Well guess what. You’re not a good person. You’re just a nice person. There’s a crucial difference, and I know which one I’d rather be. And if you think I want a sympathetic ear from you after we’ve had exactly two conversations, you’re even more pathetic than I thought.” Yeah, Loren was done. He was so fucking done with all this bullshit. So what if he was an asshole? Remi had told Loren to be honest, and this was complete and total honesty.
Too fucking bad if it was brutal.
There was a reason the symbol of the Launceleyns was a fucking dragon, and it was about time he embraced it. Indeed, dragon rage was no fucking joke. And neither was his.
Dismissing the summoned creature with another thought—he didn’t want to cause a panic, just prove a point—he healed the ringing in his ears with just a whisper of his power. ”Let’s talk about your friend, shall we? Yes, I hurt him. I fully acknowledge and accept that I did that, and that I can never make up for the pain I caused him, even if I devoted the rest of my life to that task. However, I didn’t ask for or need you to defend me.” His words dripped from his lips, frostier than ever.
And there was a lot more from that deep well he’d covered until this very moment. Congratulations, Phoebe got Loren to talk about his deepest feelings. Hopefully this was everything she'd wanted. ”Remi couldn’t seem to leave well enough alone. He couldn’t give me the space or the time we both needed, even when I asked him, begged him to do so. And then he, the man I loved, who is married to my former best friend, your 'best friend,' who knew all this, asked me to kiss him. After I’d already told him I didn’t want to do anything to jeopardize his marriage. When he knew full well how painful it would be for me, or if he didn't is so completely self-centered that it's frankly staggering.” He could feel the ice creeping over his heart and didn’t give a shit. He wasn't going to bottle any of this up anymore. ”So he broke my heart that day as much as I broke his. And I was trying to do the right thing. He was just being selfish. So you’re right. He is at much as fault for what happened as I am. Maybe even more so." And yet, somehow all the blame and all the wrath had fallen squarely upon Loren’s shoulders. Funny how that worked out oh so nicely for the alchemist.
As for not knowing her or how she felt, well, time to see how observant the summoner was. He cocked his head to the side, his gaze piercing and hard and unforgiving. ”On second thought, maybe you two are perfect for each other. You both tell yourselves you’re selfless and caring and kind, but really the fact of the matter is you can’t stand the thought of anyone not loving you unconditionally or having anyone think you’re anything less than pure and perfect and good.” He smiled, but it was a chilling sight devoid of any and all warmth, more baring his teeth than anything else. ”Well guess what. You’re not a good person. You’re just a nice person. There’s a crucial difference, and I know which one I’d rather be. And if you think I want a sympathetic ear from you after we’ve had exactly two conversations, you’re even more pathetic than I thought.” Yeah, Loren was done. He was so fucking done with all this bullshit. So what if he was an asshole? Remi had told Loren to be honest, and this was complete and total honesty.
Too fucking bad if it was brutal.
loren
