Aurelia
I never had a chance to be soft
I was always bloody knuckles and shards of glass
I was always bloody knuckles and shards of glass
"I'm sorry for that," she murmured.
As she looked back, the flicker of a small shadow and the distant bubbling of laughter made her stiffen. Her jawline clenched, the muscles there feathering shut, and she wrestled with the part of her that wanted to reach out to her sister. To hold her, tell her that everything would be alright, that she was still here. Only she wasn't still here, she was there, and she had to steady a shaky breath because that made her sadder than ever and that infuriated her.
Aurelia turned back to face Melita's back, stepping after her through the loose sands beneath them. They shifted beneath her weight and the beckoning of mischievous spirits persisted behind her but, she pressed on. "It's fine, don't worry about it. You were right, I shouldn't be down here. If you hadn't followed me down, I would've -without a doubt- gotten lost. I owe you one," she offered a half-smile, though Melita likely wouldn't see it.
She seemed keen on getting them out of the complex system of tunnels, steadfast, and... resistant to look Aurelia in the eyes. Aurelia peered around the side to try to see Melita's expression, hoping she wasn't upset. But, she straightened up as the other woman answered her question about where they were.
"I see," she nodded, brows furrowing thoughtfully as she glanced down the dark depths of a nearby passage. At the mention of a 'lava octopus' though, Aurelia's attentions snapped back to Melita, "Wait, you fought the lava. octopus?! Sunjata told me about that when I first met him. How in the hell did you all manage that?" She'd known beast-hunters in her old world but, she'd never been daring enough to try that line of work. She supposed she'd better start garnering an interest for it now, though...
As she looked back, the flicker of a small shadow and the distant bubbling of laughter made her stiffen. Her jawline clenched, the muscles there feathering shut, and she wrestled with the part of her that wanted to reach out to her sister. To hold her, tell her that everything would be alright, that she was still here. Only she wasn't still here, she was there, and she had to steady a shaky breath because that made her sadder than ever and that infuriated her.
Aurelia turned back to face Melita's back, stepping after her through the loose sands beneath them. They shifted beneath her weight and the beckoning of mischievous spirits persisted behind her but, she pressed on. "It's fine, don't worry about it. You were right, I shouldn't be down here. If you hadn't followed me down, I would've -without a doubt- gotten lost. I owe you one," she offered a half-smile, though Melita likely wouldn't see it.
She seemed keen on getting them out of the complex system of tunnels, steadfast, and... resistant to look Aurelia in the eyes. Aurelia peered around the side to try to see Melita's expression, hoping she wasn't upset. But, she straightened up as the other woman answered her question about where they were.
"I see," she nodded, brows furrowing thoughtfully as she glanced down the dark depths of a nearby passage. At the mention of a 'lava octopus' though, Aurelia's attentions snapped back to Melita, "Wait, you fought the lava. octopus?! Sunjata told me about that when I first met him. How in the hell did you all manage that?" She'd known beast-hunters in her old world but, she'd never been daring enough to try that line of work. She supposed she'd better start garnering an interest for it now, though...
I wanted people to be afraid of me
