𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑬𝒚𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒎 | Riven

𝟎𝟑

═━ 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄 ━═

Fallin sat quietly on the cold wooden bench beside Stella, her gaze fixed on the training platform in front of them. Sky and Riven sparred on the field, exchanging rapid blows as they pushed each other to the limit. Normally, watching the two of them train would pull her into their energy, sparking a competitive thrill in her chest. But today, her focus kept drifting past them to her father, Silva, who stood at the edge of the platform. He watched Sky and Riven intently, but there was a heaviness in his posture, and he leaned on a small cone he used as a crutch, struggling to keep steady.

It had only been a few days since the Burned One attack, but Fallin couldn't ignore the changes in him. The infection was spreading, darkening the veins in his hand and creeping up his arm, leaving the skin beneath it cold and ashen. She could see the tightness in his jaw each time he shifted, trying to hide the pain from the students — from her.

Her heart felt caught in a slow, steady ache as she stared at him, the horrifying possibility of losing him gnawing at her thoughts. She'd already lost her mother. That gaping void in her life was something she'd learned to navigate, the pain becoming an old, constant ache she carried around like a scar. But this? The thought of her father fading away, of watching him grow weaker each day until he was gone — she wasn't sure she could bear it. She clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms as she tried to ground herself, to stay focused on anything other than the fear curling through her stomach.

"Fallin?" Stella's voice broke through her spiraling thoughts, and she turned, blinking as if waking from a trance. Stella was watching her with concern, her gaze flicking to Fallin's mouth. Only then did she realize she'd been biting her lip hard enough to draw blood. She quickly wiped it with the back of her hand, tasting the metallic tang as she forced herself to look away from her father.

"Are you... okay?" Stella asked gently, her tone soft but probing. Fallin shook her head, swallowing hard as she forced herself to answer, deflecting the question with one of her own.

"Do you think my dad... looks worse?" Her voice was barely a whisper, like she was afraid saying it out loud might somehow make it true. She could feel her chest tighten as she glanced back at Silva, watching him shift his weight, his grip tightening on the cone. 

Stella followed her gaze, her expression shifting with a mixture of sympathy and something Fallin wasn't sure she wanted to see — pity. Stella hesitated, choosing her words carefully. "He... doesn't look his best, I'll admit," she said slowly, her tone gentle. "But Silva's tough. You know that better than anyone. He's been through a lot and come out the other side, right?" Fallin nodded her head in thought, thinking that Stella might be right. Stella went back to typing on her phone, as Fallin crossed her arms and looked to the ground. 

She looked up, when Sky and Riven came over to them, Sky asking something she didn't get. "About what?" Stella asked and Sky replied "Silva. How does he look to you?" Stella sighed, mumbling under her nose "Not you too.", answering again "Fine.", to which Riven replied sarcastically: "Dr. Stella coming through with a zero-effort diagnosis." Stella ignored him, as she turned to Sky: "Are you training later, or are we hanging out before the party?" Sky didn't answer, his eyes focused on Silva, to which Stella urged him for an answer. When she realized where he had been looking, she repeated her words: "He's fine. Professor Harvey still has him on the Zanbaq, right?" Sky didn't seem convinces: "That just manages his symptoms. He won't get better until they kill the Burned One that attacked him.", to which Stella reminded him: "And there are people out there looking for it. It's not gonna get away from every fairy and Specialist in the Otherworld." She glanced over to Fallin, who was sitting beside her and said: "We have classes. Stop worrying." as she stood up with a kiss on Skys cheek and turned to wait for Fallin, for which the younger girl gave her a thankful smile.