Songs of War Oneshots

Silence

Summary:
While the Ardoni clans are on the precipice of war, Thalleous visits a heartbroken Achillean.

TW // mentions of emotional abuse

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I wrote this in a couple hours when I couldn't sleep. It's short, simple, and that's really all it needs to be.

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"He's what?"

"He's abusing you."

Achillean stared at Thalleous, mouth slightly open. Abuse. It was something he'd known in his heart for a while, but he'd refused to acknowledge it because he loved Ingressus so much.

"I..." He swallowed, his throat suddenly dry. 

"I know that's a lot to take in." His friend said quietly.

Achillean's tail curled up on the bed, and he glanced down at his hands. "A little."

Thalleous had come to his den to check on him after the fifth day he'd failed to appear at training, or anywhere for that matter. They'd chatted for a while on his bed, until finally he'd asked what had kept him inside for so long.

That was another long story.

After great reluctance, Achillean decided it was best to just tell the truth. He hadn't exactly wanted to come to this revelation, but it was there anyhow—the truth staring him right in the face. His best friend was being abusive.

It was odd, after spending so much time picking himself apart for Ingressus. He was annoyingly self aware, so the moment he was able, he'd reflected on himself. He'd tried to find everything that he'd done wrong, he'd tried so hard to be the monster. Because if he was in the wrong, then surely he could fix it, right? He could fix whatever was wrong with him. He could be better.

But, he quickly realized that if he was working this hard and turning up empty—it wasn't him that was the problem. He was so, so tired of trying to make himself a bad person, when it'd been Ingressus all along. Him and his toxic, pathetic communication skills. Or rather, lack thereof. Ingressus would sooner see him rot then simply talk. Achillean had made far too many excuses for him, he'd clung to words that no longer held true to their meaning, and above all he'd continuously tried to understand why Ingressus was treating him this way. He'd loved him so much that he wanted to understand him even while he was actively hurting him.

"He told me I was being passive aggressive, and guilt tripping him for not wanting to talk. But I'd given him space. It'd been weeks. He just kept avoiding me. I don't know what I was supposed to do." Achillean groaned, burying his face in his hands.

"Guilt tripping how?"

"I was angry, and he kept ignoring me... The only way I could get him to even look at me was by making angry comments about the way he was ignoring me."

Reminders of all the times he'd been so blatantly disregarded came rushing back and it made his blood sizzle. How could someone be so cruel?

"After you kept trying to approach him about the pain it caused you in a calm and mature manner?"

"Yea."

"And let me recap—He still stonewalled you, even after you repeatedly tried to talk with him and be civil about it?"

"Yes!" Achillean folded his arms, ears flattening in rejuvenated anger. "I did everything right, I made sure I did! I tried so hard to communicate properly... But he still didn't say a word. Eventually I had to pick at him just to be acknowledged."