12-29-2024, 04:48 PM
Esper didn’t like being churned upon the whims of something so painful. She turned to bury her face in the space between Roza’s shoulder and neck, to hide her crumbling expression. The other girl’s yell cast its own protective spell, but Esper didn’t know how to process what she was feeling. Others were usually so inconsequential to her – they were nourishment, distraction, entertainment. Her bond with Roza was so old and strong she sometimes didn’t see them as different people, which did not mean they never argued, but that it was only ever fleeting. No one else had ever come close to piercing Esper’s shell.
The sweetness of Ashton’s voice, even now, opened longing in her chest. Yet apologies were never true when they were followed by but, so she didn’t listen to it. Her soul recoiled against the idea of the house like it were a physical cage. The people in it were broken, which might have tasted sweet, except they already orbited another.
“He has power over me. He does not mean to be careless. He does not know,” she murmured into Roza’s hair. She wanted Ashton with such a visceral hunger it really did feel like she was breaking. She had not tried to manipulate with slyness, as they did their marks. She had not used her power to force what she desired. The truth was Esper’s highest regarded currency, aside from her promise. But it seemed her true nature found no welcome. It made her think of the priests at the Santissima Annunziata Maggiore, which only deepened the sudden despair of her mood. So for now she only leaned into Roza’s comfort and strength, and let her squeezed tight eyes burn with tears.
The sweetness of Ashton’s voice, even now, opened longing in her chest. Yet apologies were never true when they were followed by but, so she didn’t listen to it. Her soul recoiled against the idea of the house like it were a physical cage. The people in it were broken, which might have tasted sweet, except they already orbited another.
“He has power over me. He does not mean to be careless. He does not know,” she murmured into Roza’s hair. She wanted Ashton with such a visceral hunger it really did feel like she was breaking. She had not tried to manipulate with slyness, as they did their marks. She had not used her power to force what she desired. The truth was Esper’s highest regarded currency, aside from her promise. But it seemed her true nature found no welcome. It made her think of the priests at the Santissima Annunziata Maggiore, which only deepened the sudden despair of her mood. So for now she only leaned into Roza’s comfort and strength, and let her squeezed tight eyes burn with tears.