GRIM REAPER¹, bellamy blake

070 ━━ bad habits

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IONA WAS running on two hours of sleep. She was exhausted, mentally and physically, and still feeling drained from her previous bounce between captors, felt like she could pass out at any given moment.

She was currently looking for Bellamy, having woken up in a cold sweat as she dreamed of him disappearing from the camp, taking all measures to avoid the woman he'd crossed the line with.

Iona knew it was just a dream, but that didn't stop it from hitting her hard. In fact, it only made her more desperate to see him because it was realistic. Bellamy could, quite honestly, be avoiding her after what they did.

If he was, she'd understand, but she still wanted to see him- to confirm her suspicions.

Plus, his presence was calming, and with her rapidly racing heart and unfocused eyes, she really needed to be calmed down.

"You seen Bells?" Iona asked, approaching Bellamy's typical post. He was normally here early, staying throughout the remainder of the long day, only sparing a few hours for sparring matches and time with Iona.

When the man stationed nearby shook his head, looking at the empty spot with confusion, she assumed something was incredibly wrong.

Despite herself, her heart began racing yet again, and her mind became cloudy.

Iona was rarely an overthinker. If anything, she didn't think enough. She jumped headfirst into the water and hoped her body would learn to swim. That was how the days passed for her, and that's how it's always been.

Yet, when it comes to Bellamy Blake, her mind runs at a hundred miles an hour and she loses all sense of clarity within her jumbled thoughts.

She overthinks herself into a drunken stupor and this is no different.

"Fuck," She grumbles beneath her breath. Raising a balled fist to her head, she hesitates, then uncurls it and begins softly tugging on her hair. "Where is he?"

She was about to head to the Chancellor's quarters when the gate began to open, and all havoc broke free. The guards announced something over the speaker, sounding much like a warning of sorts, before a crowd formed around the doors.

Iona hesitated at first.

She was on a mission to find Bellamy, and she was determined to talk with him. They needed to speak of what happened, and they needed to find some in between if they weren't willing to take it all the way.

However, once Iona realized people from the Trikru clan were at the gates, her mind flushed all thoughts of Bellamy, and her feet carried her before she could protest.

"Nyko!"

Iona ran across the courtyard, gaining the attention of several bystanders as she approached the large group of guards and Trikru citizens.

Octavia seemed to have the same concern as she, too, ran over to the group.

"What's going on here?" Iona questioned. Her feet began to tap rhythmically on the gravel as she stared directly into the eyes of a guard choosing to be troublesome towards the outsiders. "They are welcome here, no?"

"No," The guard grit his teeth. Instantly, he pulled Nyko towards him with a fist full of his shirt, and Iona snapped.

Perhaps she was breaking the unspoken rules of her becoming Skykru. Defending Trikru was not on the list of priorities, and holding a katana to the throat of one of her own guards would certainly get her in trouble.

It was too easy, though; to fall back into routine.

She was becoming soft recently, and soft wasn't something Iona understood nor was very familiar being. It was as if she was becoming a disgrace of sorts, allowing her feelings to cloud her years of training that would ultimately lead her further in life than love.

Love was what she wanted but killing was what she needed.

"Say it again," Iona growled lowly. She could hear the clicks of guns being loaded beside her, pointed directly at her head- not that she had to look to know that- but she didn't change her position.

Instead, she held firm; hand on the guard's bicep, squeezing painfully and pulling him closer, while her katana was pressed horizontally against his throat.

One small movement, and blood would run.

The guard remained fearless, though, maintaining steady eye contact and keeping his breathing calmed. She would've believed in his facade, had she not been able to feel the rapid beating of his panicked heart.

"That's enough," Octavia murmured quietly, hesitantly raising a hand to Iona's back. She left it to rest there, a soothing gesture, as she said, "The chancellor said they're allowed to stay; we said we'd help them."

Octavia turned to Iona, who's eyes were still lit with fire, "Put it away, Ona. He isn't worth getting yourself killed over, remember?"

Slowly- very slowly- did Iona pull away. She sheathed her katana, keeping her eyes trained on the guard who hurried away and instantly ran into the pub to drink himself dry.

Still, eyes were on her, and she understood why. She didn't regret what she had done, merely wishing she didn't have to make a move in the first place. But she knew she really didn't have to and merely did it out of spite.

When her bad habits rise to the surface, she instantly acts on them, regardless of how reckless and stupid it might be.

It would help if people weren't so stupid, though. They all press just the right buttons that set her off, and Iona quickly becomes a ticking time bomb estimated to explode within mere minutes.

It doesn't help that she was already frustrated and confused, and that Skykru citizens had more ego than they do respect. It didn't bode well with Iona, or for the relationship between the clan and herself.

In fact, her relationship with Skykru seemed to be going downhill.

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