Litotes;

[Valdis]

how come I never got used to the feeling of sleeping in a cage?
too long driving, too damn hungry; a tied-up hound but nothing stays

Her sigh is of conflict, of uncertainty. The forest holds Sinner’s scent captive, clutching onto it desperately to remind her of the cold evenings tucked into each other’s embrace.

But then the alternative is Litotes, a man that provided her compassion when the walls closed in and she was discarded, alone.

Every muscle quivers beneath her taut skin, trembling as she contemplates who to fold into tonight, who to distract her from this eternal solitude. Their names are both carved into her heart, the wounds still open and bleeding, likely to never truly heal. This is why, she recalls, she considered exploring the Mountain’s strength and test whether they could rip the heart from her chest. It would beat in their palms for a few minutes longer until the ice froze it over. Would they return it to her then? Or suture the gaping hole and dismiss her?

Fear clutched her throat and forced reconsideration into her thoughts.

With another breath, she turns to find Litotes, to see him again since their daughter was born on Pangea’s barren cliffs. His scent swims across her mind, never having truly left her memories. It guides her meandering path until she is in front of him, their eyes locking onto each other for the first time in months. A sheepish grin lifts the edges of her mouth as relief washes across her to once again be in his company. ”Litotes,” his name sticks to her tongue like honey, sweetly sinking into her taste buds. ”I’ve missed you,” she quietly adds as the setting sun paints her glistening body with shades of scarlet, pink, and orange. A slow step edges her closer, wanting the closeness and warmth again as her honest words hang suspended in the space between them.



 

Valdis

@[litotes]