The States

mother of states

It isn't a choice. Not really. She can pretend it is, they all can, but they have little choice in secession. They are bound to the will of the people by virtue of their nature, and that's all.

ꤠ

She collapses as soon as she crosses into the Confederacy and screams.

It takes a long time for Ginny to stand back up.

Whatever wound is on her back bleeds through her shirt, making it stick to her back uncomfortably.

She shrugs a jacket on to cover it once it's dried, not bothering to bite back her whimper at the motion since no one's around to hear it anyway.

Ginny climbs back on her horse.

ꤠ

The Confederacy- Jackson- prefers to call them by their state names.

It's not that they aren't used to being called by them- after all, their state names were their true names, and most officials liked to call them that too.

It's just that Alfred had always called them by their human names, and sometimes she misses being called Lizzy or Gin instead of Virginia and Ginny.

ꤠ

Scott kisses the corner of her mouth and says then I guess you don't know me at all, but it sounds like goodbye.

ꤠ

Jackson leaves her alone mostly because he respects what she is, she guesses. She is Virginia, the oldest of the south, mother of states, mother of presidents, and it is a dangerous thing to be on her bad side.

It changes after she uses her ability on him that first time, forcing him to leave Drew alone.

Jackson is too smart, too wary to get too close to her knowing what she's capable of.

That doesn't mean that she's safe though, it just means he's planning a way to get what he wants.

ꤠ

Ginny is not someone who scares easily, and she hates that she allows Jackson to scare her.

It's just. She knows how easy it would be. Because she's weaker than she used to be, than she was before this war. She's small. Jackson's as tall as Alfred, possibly just as strong.

She sees the way he looks at her. Not just her, either. The way he looks at Scarlett. Evangeline, sometimes.

She writes about in her letters to Scott, because if she writes them down it's no longer inside of her, and she can't tell Wes because he's already worried enough. Writing it in letters to Scott is safe, because he always sends them back unopened.

ꤠ

Jackson beats Evangeline bloody and tries to break the rest of them any way he can, and Ginny sits in her room and thinks I could stop this.

It'd be a deal with the devil, it would be a martyring, a sacrifice play.

She's the oldest, though. She's supposed to take care of the others, right?

The thought of Jackson touching her makes her sick, but she could do it for the others.

ꤠ

"I'm willing to make a deal with you."

Jackson's eyes flicker towards her filled with poorly-concealed interest.

Ginny takes another step forward. "Leave them alone, all of them, and you can do whatever you like with me."