hellfire meets atlanis [Cass]

A small laugh penetrated the silence that once lingered in Indigo’s peaceful air. It was as faint and gentle as a small breeze, but she heard it and paused cocking her head to the side. Slightly flustered that somebody was chuckling at her incident with the woman she turned and searched for the source of the noise that made her cheeks rosy with embarrassment He was easy to spot - tall, muscular, and with a stump for a hand. The same boy she had been wondering about before the woman had crashed into her. Or did she crash into the woman? I didn‘t matter; she had been a fool to let herself get distracted, even if the sight was odd and perplexing and something she had never seen before in her life. Then again, there were a lot of things she hadn’t seen. Eleven years in a warehouse will do that to you.

”Are you laughing at me?” Her tone was a mixture of shock and a small hint of irritation. She wasn’t exactly challenging the boy - she just wanted to know why he thought it was so funny that she had nearly fallen onto solid concrete. The loud projection of her voice always seemed to deceive people, however. She was an extroverted girl with a passion for talking and stating her opinions whether people accepted them or not. She often tricked people into thinking she was aggressive, though it was never on purpose. She was merely asking an innocent question out of sheer curiosity. How bad could it hurt?

Almond eyes narrowed in on the tiny pool of crimson that accumulated beneath the boy’s only hand. She had finally noticed - as he had stepped closer to her - that his knuckles were injured. Why, she did not want to find out. His posture, his grimace, his demeanor - everything warned her that he was dangerous like a viper ready to strike and inject its venom. He was twice her size and had muscles that could probably snap her in half if she wasn’t careful. Yet - Indigo Soren was not a coward. She would never allow herself to stoop that low. So, she stood her ground and maintained eye contact. She was not afraid of him. She was not afraid of him.

He opened his arms and crudely snorted at her, practically questioning her intelligence. ”Do you see anyone else?” She forced herself to bite her tongue. Such a rude response deserved an insult, but spitting venom at a snake would cause no harm. In fact, it might just provoke him further.

”Why is a little young girl like you out here all alone?”

Young? She was a practically an adult! And he couldn‘t be two years older than her. ”I’m not young, I’m seventeen.” She furrowed her eyebrows and maintained a hard, stoic expression. Her eyes were squinted into a glare. ”And I’m just going to the market.”

The boy took a second step closer. Indigo continued to keep her soles glued to the concrete, but it was impossible to miss his discreet attempts to close the distance between them. He was slowly and surely creeping closer to her, but the question was - would she allow him to get too close? How close was too close? Close enough to punch her in her face, probably. She wanted to believe that the bloody knuckles, the bitter attitude, and the intimidating demeanor and posture were all figments of her imagination. Mere illusions that her brain was using to play tricks upon her. Yet every sign present she knew was true and legitimate. The boy had a cold, black aura surrounding his form. He was definitely a threat.

Unfortunately, Indigo was too stubborn to acknowledge anything as a threat to her. Not since that incident in the warehouse. Never again. Never again would she allow herself to cower before anybody - including this irritating boy, who was now accusing her of lying. ”I’m not lying.” The anger was apparent in her venomous tone. She decided to support her statement by grabbing the cash that was in her pocket and waving it in front of her. ”I am going to the market. See?”

She slipped the money back into her pocket and resisted the urge to roll her eyes. The boy was rude and annoying. ”They usually end up six feet under.” Was that a threat? She didn’t want to stick around to find out, but her stubborn nature dominated the human instinct that pleaded her to run.

There was no ignoring the boy’s towering height as he stepped closer to her, nearly closing the distance between them completely. She was at eye-level with his chest, and forced to lift her chin up to keep her gaze locked with his - a feeble attempt to express her bravery. Her “I’m not backing down” attitude. The reality was, however, that she was anxious. Her right leg moved back instinctively to create space between them, but she paused in the midst of her act. Instead, she leaned backwards instead of taking a complete step, hopefully an indication that she was not going to let him frighten her. No - Indigo Soren was fearless, and a liar.

The boy’s sinister smirk made her feel sick to her stomach. What was so amusing to him? The fact that he thought he was scaring her? Or was he silently scheming how he was going to wring her neck? Well, she had news for him - that wasn’t happening.

”I’m not afraid of you.” She stared coldly into his eyes and continued to stand her ground. She would not give him the satisfaction of thinking that he was cornering her like a little mouse. Indigo was more than that. She was brave - maybe a bit too brave and definitely too stubborn for her own good, but regardless she was determined not to flee like a coward. She would stand face-to-face with this evil boy until he decided to either give up or make a move. If he ever decided to.

There was a dangerous twinkle in the boy’s eyes. There was no mistaking the fire in his gaze, the sinister chuckles, and his malevolent behavior - he wanted to hurt her. She could no longer deny that fact. The question was, how was she going to defend herself? The boy was ten times her size. Taller, more muscular, and probably more experienced. Indigo had never been in a fight before - she had just been beaten like a helpless child. Once. Those days were over, however, and she had no intention of becoming a weak little punching bag. She would fight back as if her life depended on it - and in this situation, it just might.

The question stunned her for a moment. Why was he asking for her name? It seemed completely irrelevant to the situation. She had expected him to respond with a snide remark or a punch to the face. Her shoulders had tensed and her fists had clenched as if prepared for him to lunge at her. They were both two ticking time bombs waiting to explode. He was obviously waiting for the perfect time to wring her neck, and she was waiting for the slightest suggestive movement - a movement that would force her to react instinctively. The fight or flight response, it was called. Unfortunately, she was more of a fighter than a coward. She refused to demean herself in front of this stranger.

”Indigo.” Her tone was even and apathetic, as if she were unfazed by his words. ”And you are?”

The boy - Patch - was no longer merely invading her comfort zone. He was in her face. Beyond stepping into her personal bubble. She could feel his breath against her cheeks as he spoke to her, and for an instant she expected him to hit her - to smack her, grab her neck, anything. Instead, he moved away and allowed her a split second of relief. She exhaled a breath she didn’t know she had been holding, and relaxed under the lost pressure in her chest before he abruptly swung his arm and socked her directly in the face.

His fist connected with her eye, and stars twinkled in her vision as everything flashed red and black. She staggered backwards into a building, her hands gripped at the building as if searching for support, and her knees threatened to crumple beneath her as her brain attempted to register what was happening. She rapidly blinked and spotted his silhouette in her blurred vision. The pain was nothing compared to what she had experienced in the warehouse; but it was still a shock.

With no intention of allowing him to land another devastating blow, she lunged forward despite her sudden dizziness and swelling right eye, and with a frustrated growl she thrust her right hand forward, fingers extended, and tried to rake her nails across the side of his face. She didn’t care whether the nails landed his eyes, his cheek, whatever. Did it really matter? He had caused her pain, and now she wanted revenge. After all, it was the only way to save herself.