His response was assertive without being forceful; a striking contrast to the Adam she had come to know since her departure.
It gave her pause.
He always had that effect on her.
She managed to keep the disappointment out of her face, but it was impossible to hide it from her -
--
His mind is a jumbled mess of thoughts, spinning and turning multiple ways.
But two thing always remained... his rage, and her.
โ I will be the leader the White Fang needs. No matter the cost.
I only wish you were by my side. โ
- She hated herself for almost wishing she could feel his skin against hers; for not being able to kill the part of her that wanted him.
"And if I were? What would change?"
She challenged him. She always did.
"Some will always see us as lesser-than, but others can be -
She's eyeing the blackened cookie warily, her ears drooping slightly at the tips.
A slow inhale to steady her nerves, and then ...
Chomp!
She's taken another big bite, with only one bite of the cookie left.
A muffled 'mhm' around the crumbs in her mouth.
Her ears dropped back slightly and, with an expression of ... minimal ... discomfort, she managed to swallow the bite she'd taken.
"I- ... need some water," Blake smirked.
- It was a long shot; a reach beyond comprehension ... But even Blake herself could not deny that some part of her, buried deep beneath her growth through suffering, still believed in Adam.
She took a single step closer, but maintained a respectable distance between them.
She had enough sense to avert her eyes at his assertion, the tips of her ears drooping only slightly. She pivoted to face him more directly, her eyes trained upon his face.
"... Maybe you're right," she confessed, "I think, more than anything else, I was afraid you'd stop me." -
--
โ โ I'm sorry, Blake. I... know that I let you down.
But don't assume I didn't believe what I was saying, either. Our methods... I still believe they were necessary. โ
"We can't change what's already happened."
Her fingers subconsciously ghosted over the scar he'd left in his wake ( what felt like ) so long ago.
"But it's never too late to change the future, Adam. If you lead the White Fang by example, they will follow." -