#because i have the same scars Soluna does

[smilegirl64]

Inspired by this tumblr post, though the actual cuddling doesn't show up til the end.

https://www.tumblr.com/youneedsomeprompts/699464303996207104/cuddle-snuggle-prompts-requested-by?source=share

Soluna’s body trembled as she stared down at her arms. Scars. Why did they leave scars? Tiny white dots sprinkled across her arms like salt. Even her dark vitiligo wasn’t immune to those ubiquitous scars. She was a goddess, little needles weren’t supposed to leave marks. But that thought didn’t make them vanish. If anything, they just became more visible, phantom pains pulsing in her neck. Her breathing wavered and went shallow as the trembling worsened. The noises of the forest blended together into static as she became deaf to everything but her heavy breathing and her rushing thoughts.

Suddenly, a shadow loomed over her arms, distracting her from those white dots. Soluna looked up and saw dark skin and silver eyes framed by long, curly hair. Dark hands gripped the dark fingers of her right hand and the dark palm of her left. “Sweetheart,” Geara sat down in front of her, expression concerned as she squeezed her wife’s hands. “What’s going on?”

Soluna wordlessly extended her arms, showing Geara the dots that marred her arms. “Goddesses aren’t supposed to get scars.”

Geara’s lips quirked up. “Then what do you call this?” She pulled her hair back with her right hand, revealing raised skin on her temple.

Soluna leaned close, examining the scar. “Where did that come from?”

“I hit my head on a rock.” Geara made a hair tie out of a vine and tied her hair back in a high ponytail, as if to show off the scar. “Got pushed off a cliff and didn’t react fast enough.”

Soluna winced. “Sounds painful.”

“It was. But hey, I’m still here, and so are you.” She gripped Soluna’s shoulders, looking her in the eyes. “What those doctors did to you was unacceptable, but the scars are nothing to be ashamed of.” Her hand crept up Soluna’s neck to her cheek, and Soluna leaned into her touch. “They’re proof that you’re still here, with us…with me.”

“But…scars come from big accidents, like that fall or a giant battle.”

“Sure, but little things can lead to scars too, and that doesn’t mean they have any less of an impact. The phrase ‘death by a thousand cuts’ exists for a reason, love.”

Soluna sighed. “You have a point. I guess…I just thought I was unstoppable now.”

“Well, you’re not, and that’s okay. I’m sure not even Abyss himself is unflappable. You’re allowed to be hurt and feel it.”

A rock formed in Soluna’s throat as she teared up. She tried to swallow around it as her breathing started to waver again. Geara wordlessly wrapped her arms around Soluna’s neck, pulling her into Geara’s lap. A gentle hand with long fingers drew shapes on her back. Her body trembled as the dam cracked and a tear ran down her cheek.

“It’s okay, we’re the only ones here. I’ve got you.”

Those words were enough to shatter that dam. Soluna wailed as the shadows around them darkened, hiding them…protecting them. Tears ran down her face like an unstoppable flood as she buried her face in the crook of Geara's neck. A soft voice reached her ears, whispering encouragement on the wind.

"That's it, I'm here, I've got you…" Geara stopped drawing shapes on Soluna’s back, choosing instead to hold her tightly in an iron grip. "I'm not going anywhere…"

#Soluna #Geara #my characters #my writing #original characters #aftermath of torture #implied torture #implied use of needles #hurt/comfort #this was cathartic to write #because i have the same scars Soluna does #for very different reasons #fictional gods #insecurity about scars