" it's a good look on you. you should get covered in blood more often. "
the blood clung to her skin like a second layer, darkening the air around her with its heavy scent. emilia didn’t acknowledge it immediately, but there was a subtle shift in her posture as the words hit her ears.
❝ is that so? ❞
she replied, her voice as even as if she were discussing the weather — too calm for the weight of the moment. her eyes met accalia’s, sʜᴀʀᴘ and ᴄᴀʟᴄᴜʟᴀᴛɪɴɢ, as if measuring the space between them, considering her every word. ❝ you think this is a look? ❞ she added, her hand slowly rubbing the back of her neck. not to clean the blood, but to ground herself in the calm that, for a moment, seemed so out of place. ❝ i’ve worn worse. ᵇˡᵒᵒᵈ'ˢ ʲᵘˢᵗ ᵇˡᵒᵒᵈ. ❞ she took a step forward, not toward accalia, but into the silence that lingered. the weight of her presence settled, heavy and deliberate, like the calm before a storm. ❝ but it’s not a look. ❞ her eyes lingered on accalia’s, colder now. ❝ people forget how easily it can stain you — how it’s never really gone. ❞ her hands, still dark with it, reached for the edge of a nearby table, fingers brushing over the surface, more out of habit than need. she didn’t look back at accalia, but her next words came quietly, almost as an afterthought ❝ and people always think they can handle it. until it’s theirs to wear. ❞ there was a finality in her tone, but no aggression. just an inevitability. a warning, soft but clear.