RETURN
admiring you through the blinds - das mortal
Aloris’s beating wings caused her green eyes to lift. The sound was something she had replayed, countless times, as she lay alone in the darkness of her too-empty bunkroom. Despite the second bed hauled up against the wall, Aderith still had no roommate. Her things were coiled near the oaken frame of her relatively comfortable dwelling. A weight always sat on her chest. It was the same feeling as when Arias had been captured, when she didn’t know where he was.
Instead, Zero sits atop the arcane familiar nearby, pleasant as a peach. Her silver hair is long, flowing, gorgeous. Elfin features make Aderith’s heart sink, reminds her of the way Arias’s cheekbones sat high and his brows curved low over violet eyes. Perhaps it was the Kingsblood coursing through her veins - two cigars smoked, nearly alone, in one evening - but the blonde was angry. She draws in another drag of the blend. Petals and leaves ground together with the dried powder of its roots, wrapped in a thick paper casing.
It’s said that Kingsblood enhances strength and stamina. That it is prone to causing aggression, used as an aphrodisiac. Addy likes the flavor and buzz. Zero brings Aloris around to their front, speaks from her place on the drake’s back.
There Addy was. She’d been looking for her.
Fyeloren and Jason bicker over her. Literally. She sits between them, having initially been very close to the Gilnean berserker only a half hour before Zero’s arrival. He had his arm around her, Addy now recalls. Frustration bubbles up in her throat. She was an idiot, and shouldn’t have allowed that to happen.
Light, her whole conversation with Zero blends together. The drunken Strom remembers asking the Alteraci where she’d been.
Soul searching. Training. Gone.
Rage boiled. Soul searching? Training? As if Aderith couldn’t use some time alone. In fact, the rare pockets of time to herself were often spent concerned about Zero’s whereabouts and well being. Dealing with other people’s shit. Thinking about other people’s shit. Worrying about Zero. Worrying about Zero. Missing Arias.
Several comments about Addy’s drinking and drunkenness. Fuck. She was just trying to have a good time. Drink what she likes to drink, smoke what she likes to smoke.
Even as Darius catches her up on recent events, Zero continues to shift her eyes back to Addy. Gauging her expression. Wanting her opinion. Light, she was gorgeous. Intelligent violet eyes. Silky smooth hair. Gently upturned nose and elfishly perfect pale skin. Her attitude is more confident, sure of herself.
Different.
This reminds Addy of Arias. Her chest feels as if it’lll cave in at any moment. To avoid imminent implosion, Aderith turns her gaze back on Jason and Fye’s altercation. The power behind Jason’s movements.
Fuck.