Talk:Tam Song/@comment-174.109.158.107-20181220235559

Okay, another fanfiction because I can. Sorry.

I could hear Sophie's voice as she hailed her friends, telling them to come over quick. I could hear the elation, the surprise, the fear in her words. But it was like it was coming from under water, as if the shadows I was standing in were muting the sound.

One by one, Sophie called her friends to Havenfield. The leaping crystal felt slick in my hand--but whether it was blood or sweat, I wasn't sure.

I had fought to escape. Fought hard, and with everything I had, destroying whatever trust I had managed to gain. The Neverseen said they were coming to hurt Linh. They didn't like how disobedient I had been, how stubborn and unwilling to do what they asked. Things that went against what I stood for, against everything my sister and I had learned--stay safe, stay strong, and never let go of what you believe in.

I didn't even realize how hard I was trying to disappear until Sophie called my name.

I should'nt have been so afraid. What was I even scared of? Even if I thought about it, my mind was blank. Something hurt, but I didn't know what. All that mattered was Linh, and what would happen when she saw me.

I'd come back to protect her, just like I'd always vowed to do. No matter how much they hurt me, no matter how much they tortured me, they couldn't keep me away. I didn't trust Sophie to take care of my sister--she was too distracted, too caught up in her own problems. I only trusted myself, because I couldn't handle blaming my friends if something went wrong.

One by one, Sophie's friends appeared, staring at me with such a mix of emotions it was dizzying to look at.

Joy. Shock. Concern, hope, fear and uncertainty and a dozen others I couldn't even name. I felt the weight of their gazes, and had a sudden flashback of when Keefe had come back from the Neverseen. He'd hurt a lot of people, but I wasn't sure that was the case for me. Why had I stood up for him? Because I envisioned this exact scenario, and imagined how much it would hurt if no one wanted me back.

But Keefe had had Sophie, and if I was lucky, I had Linh. I would get through this.

And then she was there, her silver eyes filled with so much hope and fear that it spilled over in tears. But she didn't move. She simply stood there, lowering her leaping crystal like she thought that if she made any sudden movements, I would disappear.

Finally, I couldn't stand it any longer. "Linh--"

And her arms were around me, her face buried in my shoulder as her tears soaked my shirt. I did the same, holding her in a way that was all too familiar to me. Memories of long nights in our room, the only sounds the distant waves and Linh crying as everything our parents said to her came to the surface. And with a pang that felt like a knife, I realized I had hurt her just as badly.

"You're back," she whispered, pulling away and wiping her tears. "And you're...you're bleeding."

I looked down at my arm, where red was drippping down from a dep gash and coating the leaping crystal I had stolen. So it was blood.

"Linh, I'm so sorry," I said, unable to hold it back anymore. My words came out in a rush, everything I wanted to say blending together in an emotional current. "I'm sorry I left, I never wanted to. But they said they would hurt you, and I couldn't live with myself if you suffered because of me. I'm sorry I hurt you, I'm sorry I left when I promised to always be by your side. I'm so sorry, and I understand if you don't need me anymore--"

And her arms were around me again, pulling me close, her voice full of love as she whispered to me. "If you're sorry, then stay."

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