- you love i (prologue)
✥ A nation destroyed, and two children left alone. Ripped away from each other, left to fend for themselves. Years later, they meet. But do their morals lie the same?
WARNING(S): descriptions of violence/war, injuries, explosions, brief mention of religious trauma
#masterlist
ambience
&& - kaeya alberich (the boy with stars in his eyes)
Destruction was everywhere. Fire, explosions, and smoke rushed into her lungs. Putrid, rotting. But this does not differ from the air she's used to inhaling. The chemicals in the air they claimed were the future, the fumes that made her eyes water. This destruction had been coming for a long time.
She walked with a limp; her left eye swelled shut and bleeding. In her arm, she clutched a stuffed bunny, stained with blood and dirt, and sweat. There was still no one around. Gunshots ring, but her sight is fogged by the grey and black hues. Sparks fly and brush against her cheek, but she continued to walk.
Then she paused. The small, delicate hand of a child her age laying limp, their body crushed by debris. Blood pooled from underneath. She turned her head---another. Then another. And as she continued to walk, it only continued to grow worse. Some of their bodies had been dead for some time. Others seemed like they were just on the brink of being alive, but just, just out of reach.
And in the distance, she sees a ghost. At first, that's what she thinks. This must be hell or purgatory. Just like her parents told her would happen if she talked, worshiped, to even have thought about the divines. It must be a ghost.
But it wasn't. The older child turned his head, rubbing his eye. Blood splattered the front of his dress shirt and she instantly knew he was of the nobility. The stars in his eyes matched hers, and she knew she was safe with the boy.
They exchanged no words as she stood in front of him. He carried a blank expression. It seemed all the light had dimmed in his eyes. All hope had left what seemed to be a long, long time ago. She reached out her hand, looking up at him. He was much taller than her.
At first, he didn't budge. Then he clutched her hand softly. They walked, ducking behind debris to evade the military. She limped, her foot catching on a rock and she fell flat onto her face, cutting her upper cheekbone deeply. He was at her side in an instant---analyzing her. But they had no time.
He helped her up and as he supported her weight, both of them looked up to a presence they both felt.
A man, towering over both of them. An adult. She almost asked him for help, until she noticed the spear in his hand, and the white dressings he wore. But most importantly; the gold rimming his eyes somehow seemed so familiar. The blue-haired boy squeezed her hand.
A silent vow. If they go, they go together.
But the man just knelt down, kneeling. Both of the children shied away when he reached his hand out. He reached forward again, and they both froze as his hand swept over her eye, a warm sensation filling her head. Lightheadedness overtook her, and she nearly collapsed. When she opened her eyes again, the man was gone. But when she looked up at the boy, he had gone pale.
Another explosion. She frowned, shoulders shaking.
He just nodded, and they continued limping to the gate, the one it always tempted her to sneak through, although she knew her father would be upset. They told her it was unsafe, a portal to another dimension.
The boy tried to usher her through first. But she shook her head---she was terrified of what was beyond. The boy volunteered to go first. He stepped through the portal, giving her one last look before he melted into the unknown.
Then a hand clamped over her mouth. She inhaled the chemicals of the cloth, yelling and kicking and screaming as they dragged her away. The boy remained on the other side of the portal. The longer and longer she took filled him with dread. Then the portal flickered---once, twice. Then it shut down, a dull grey instead of a vibrant blue.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A pair of arms wrapped around him. He recognized them immediately. His father. But as joyful as he was to see him alive, his mind stayed with the young girl trapped on the other side. His face remained blank—he had failed.
“My son,” His father started. His voice, deep, that usually filled him with comfort, was nowhere to be found. “It is over.”
He looked up at his father then. “It can’t be.”
His father closed his eyes solemnly. “I am sorry.”
He shook his head, tears filling his eyes.
“My son, we have no time to spare. You are our last hope. Come quickly. I can keep you safe.” His father wrapped his hand around his, but the boy pulled away. “Kaeya. What are you doing?”
“The girl. I can’t leave her.”
His father glanced at the portal and then at him. “I am sorry. She is dead. They will spare no one.”
“But-”
“Enough. You are the prince. As long as you live, there is hope.”
The boy looked at the moon, at the stars. He had always longed to see them, but now it was only a taunt. The girl would never get to see them. She’d never be able to smell the fresh air, feel the wind against her cheeks.
He closed his eyes. A moment later, he nodded.
That night, he had lost three people. The girl, his father, and himself.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
( a/n ) : The start of something new.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
please don't copy or plagiarize this work!
(post layout by @lychniis) - please let me know if i need to change anything ^^