Blossom Heart (E. Smith)

Chapter Three

It's dark outside and inside as Ionia moves through Sadies' home. She's not leaving, she doesn't want to, though she doesn't 100% understand why she wants to stay. She just knows that she doesn't want to go back to where she came from. The thought of going back scares her more than the thought of staying here does. She adjusts the shirt that she's wearing pulling away from her neck before undoing the top two buttons to make herself more comfortable with it. She's finally changed into the clothing left for her. Mostly because she had started to smell herself, though she hadn't put on the boots. She tried though. She just couldn't do it. She couldn't let her feet feel that constricted. Not when she hasn't worn shoes since she was a kid. The idea of cutting off that touch to the world around her is daunting. She likes to be able to feel it through the ground beneath her feet, even when she is indoors.

Ionia peers around the main downstairs area, her eyes shifting nervously. She is not sure what the rules are on where she is allowed to go in the house. She's unsure if she's even allowed to leave that room. It wasn't locked, so she assumed that meant she wasn't locked away. This building might be on a military base, she's seen that from the window, but it does seem to be set up like a house. An upstairs and downstairs. Kitchen space. Bedrooms. And even an office. If she wants to find out more about Sadies, then his office is a good place to start. She touches the door handle and then turns, taking a deep breath as she pushes it open.

A desk sits against the wall, an unlit lantern on it, along with papers and notes. It's not exactly neat, but not overly organised. It's not an important aspect to his life. Despite being military. Clearly, there are more important things to him. She runs her hand over the desk, her eyes shifting to the bookshelves against the wall which appear pretty empty. She moves across to it and tilts her head. They seem to be books about hunting and scouting.

A potted plant sits on one of the shelves. She moves towards it. Her eyes follow her fingers as she draws them over the leaf of the potted plant sitting on the downstairs windowsill. It's practically dead. She takes a deep breath and draws her hands around the plant, focusing on it. As she lets out the breath, the flower erupts to life. Blossoming back into full life. She pulls her hands back and smiles warmly at the plant.

There is a thud upstairs as something is dropped and Ionia pauses, standing still as she listens. She knows that Sadies is upstairs. His room is next to hers, but she thought he was asleep. Now she can hear him moving around upstairs and she moves fast. Not wanting to get caught out snooping around. It's not like she was doing so maliciously, she was just curious. Wanting to know more about the man whose house she is currently living in. A man who appears rather friendly with the father who abandoned her. She wants to know how she should feel about him, and if she can trust him. Snooping gives her a good idea of the sort of person he is.

The door to Sadies' bedroom clicks open just as Ionia pushes open her own door. She then slips into her room before he can realise that she even left it. She lets out a breath and leans her back against the door. Sadies footsteps stop at her door and there is a moment of silence before he shifts closer.

"Ionia?" He asks, knocking his fist against the door. She gasps and pushes away from it, turning to look at the door in case that he opens it. "Are you hungry?" He continues but she just stares at the door. Her lip twitches, implying that she does actually want to answer him. She's just forgotten how to. When was the last time she actually said something? The last time she spoke to anyone? Grisha was easy. She didn't want to talk to him. Not after all these years. But Sadies isn't Grisha. He has no history with her. Nothing he has done warrants her silence. He's let her into his home. He's fed her and clothed her. She opens her mouth to answer him but the words get stuck in her throat. "I'll bring you some tea and some toast" He offers without her giving an answer. She lets out a breath, relieved that he is still going to give her something. She is still hungry. That soup stuff the day before didn't go anywhere near far enough to counter her original hunger. She huffs a little, annoyed at herself, before she drops onto the edge of the bed behind her. There has to be some give here otherwise she is going to be trapped in this room and in silence. Sadies is trying, which is a start, she has to do the same.