[P] cinderblock gardens

[Theodosia]

let our eyes show the
fire in our hearts tonight

The sparks roll across her wings, faster now, and there is something dark and vicious that rears up inside her ribcage -- and she had thought nothing could be more painful than her almost-death and the fever that had burned through her veins, until she has faced the cold weight of the Commander’s disappointment in her. It’s a sharp, sudden jolt to her heart, bleeding ichor inside her chest as though it might wash away the sudden bile in the back of her throat.

She had known, after all, that she was playing with fire -- she should have expected it to burn. She hadn’t, and it was her own foolish fault she is in this predicament.

“Of course. My apologies.” She grits out instead of all the words she bites back, the bitter howl of haven’t I done enough to prove myself to you? that echoes inside her ears. She pulls herself away from the bay mare, tucking her wings neatly against her sides and pulling her head up, her stance all tense lines and battle-ready -- standing at attention as she furiously shoves every bit of hurt away until her face is devoid of any sort of emotion.

“May I be dismissed, Commander?”

She can lick her wounds later, in the privacy of the air above the Sea or perhaps by bleeding them out on the training grounds -- for now, she only hopes to salvage the tattered remains of her pride.

credits
@Marisol