She was overjoyed at the general's agreement - though she didn't do more than smile politely and nod. Quanil was bad at hiding their emotions; she was not. She'd learned a long time ago that showing your interest made merchants increase their prices. She didn't make that mistake anymore.
She stood ready as he backed away, preparing herself to cast again. And then... of all things... it was ice...
...and she could feel it closing in on her as she ran, almost as if it were calling out to her in warning of its arrival, was that Ludo's voice or her own imagination, was the hand of death on her shoulder? She had to do something or she was dead, she knew it, knew it as certain as she knew her heart thudding in her chest and the air harsh in her throat as she fled the chaos. She whipped around, not knowing what she was going to do, and the only thought in her was NO as...
...she flung her hands out and air shot from each palm, knocking away any ice shard that came within range of it. Just two simple columns of air, short-lived and small-powered, but enough...
...to keep the shard from hitting her heart and she felt pain blossom in her shoulder, searing hot and then cold, so cold...
...and she was standing there, breathing hard, eyes wide and blinking rapidly so they wouldn't go dry, and reality was starting to melt in around her again. Her shoulder was fine, she was fine, this wasn't the festival, this was Leafchange, not Flowerbirth. She shivered and swallowed and tried to pull herself back together.
She stood ready as he backed away, preparing herself to cast again. And then... of all things... it was ice...
...and she could feel it closing in on her as she ran, almost as if it were calling out to her in warning of its arrival, was that Ludo's voice or her own imagination, was the hand of death on her shoulder? She had to do something or she was dead, she knew it, knew it as certain as she knew her heart thudding in her chest and the air harsh in her throat as she fled the chaos. She whipped around, not knowing what she was going to do, and the only thought in her was NO as...
...she flung her hands out and air shot from each palm, knocking away any ice shard that came within range of it. Just two simple columns of air, short-lived and small-powered, but enough...
...to keep the shard from hitting her heart and she felt pain blossom in her shoulder, searing hot and then cold, so cold...
...and she was standing there, breathing hard, eyes wide and blinking rapidly so they wouldn't go dry, and reality was starting to melt in around her again. Her shoulder was fine, she was fine, this wasn't the festival, this was Leafchange, not Flowerbirth. She shivered and swallowed and tried to pull herself back together.
