forgive my 200 ask at the minute, but my brain is on fire. I just love your babies, so much. Alright, so would u ever be up for writing a moment where Isaiah actually has to use his shadow on another wolf, where all his soft skills in the world fail him (the other pack/wolf won't hear him) and he's forced to let the Executioner out in front of Matt and Sel?
And not even in a bad lighting (ofc Sel will be spooked regardless), but really just a small reminder this man IS super capable and badass, even if his shadow is lowkey falling apart.
asking for a friend 🙈🙈🙈
I need you too much
Seline always felt like she had to beat the world back with a stick sometimes, to conserve her energy levels.
Everything tried to syphon her. Every class, every homework, every person, everything needed for work. And that was fine, that's why she made sure to enjoy all those things as much as she could. Careful selection.
But she still needed those precious days where she could just stay in her room and do nothing. Just her thoughts, her books, some writing done, music and daydreams. No obligations, no socialising or putting herself together.
She needed to just be with herself to recharge her batteries.
And she was careful about that time even with Isaiah and Matt. While she made an effort to be present with them, whole-heartedly and completely, to make traditions, to spend time together, there were moments that were untouchable and only hers.
But now the most terrible feeling came upon her.
She wanted to spend the entire weekend with Isaiah.
She couldn't sleep that night, thinking of how much she didn't want to go back to the house or to her room or to her books, if she could just be with him. One more day. An extra day of the week.
It wasn't a thing she felt like she could say out loud without sounding insane. Every girl in her shoes would logically want to spend all her time with her boyfriend.
But Isaiah wasn't just in the category "interesting" or "not exhausting". He was category "share every thought with", "read him the best passage on the page" and "childish kind of delight" at just seeing his face.
This was terrible. Out of control terrible, horrible.
So instead of enjoying the evening and hurrying home from class, she sat down at the park next to uni and watched the trams. Sun came and went, twilight came and went and she couldn't make herself move. Afraid to go home; afraid to completely lose herself in that irresistible desire to see that man.
Oh, this was so so bad.
Seline refused to give someone that much power over her. To hurt her, to control her. She wasn't going to depend on anyone and even less on a guy. Her thoughts were supposed to be enough to make her happy - she was enough to make herself happy.
The streets were clearing out. Vienna wasn't particularly calm at night, but the vicinity of the main university building sure missed its students in these hours.
Seline almost didn't notice, except the trams weren't coming that often and the wind was starting to howl emptily.
She should go home. This wasn't particularly secure anymore. Not that she needed anyone to feel secure. No way.
"Ah, look at that. Isn't that Seline?"
Seline blinked, getting herself back in the present.
The girl had long violet hair, a coat with spiraly patterns and long fale earrings shimmering in the steetlamp light. The other one she held around the waist had long brown curly hair and dark eyes and was considerably smaller in size.
"Hi, Violet," Seline muttered. "Bye, Violet."
Violet gave her a sly smile. "Oh you are not getting rid of me that easily. You know Seline, Cami? That's the witch that used to be in our coven."
Seline sighed, leaning back on the bench. Just the kind of theatrics she needed.
"You know why she got kicked out?"
"I left," Seline corrected, trying to not to let herself get baited into this. Violet was not worth the time to argue with.
"She believes," Violet continued, voice rising, "into the human system of work. Wants to waste her valuable magic and time for salary and live under explotative capitalist conditions. Some serious brainwashing, isn't it?"
Seline rolled her eyes. "It's called having interests outside of magic. And wanting to contribute something to the society."
"We are contributing. Our magic. A proper witch should get the freedom to develop her talents and arts."
"No, you just want somebody to take care of you just because you were born," Seline said, voice acidic. "If you can't find a wolf who would do so just cause you look pretty, then the state should do it for you. Cause food and electricity simply fall out of the sky and witches are too cool to work like normal mortals."
Violet frowned. "You just aren't skilled with magic so you look for something pathetic to fill the void."
"Yes, indeed, lot of pathetic people work at the university."
"I am at the university too."
"That's it, Violet. You are, you don't work. You just put stickers with communist ideas onto bathrooms and tables and feel important. Giving speeches about how everything should belong to everybody, because you shouldn't have to create anything of value, since you have a talent for magic."
"That's-"
"Magic," Seline interrupted, "that doesn't work on humans or for humans. It comes from wolf shadows and works only on them. Tell me Violet, what exactly is your problem? Can't find a job to your liking? Or can't be bothered to put in any effort or thought into one?"
"You should learn how to shut up," Violet was downright hissing. "So it doesn't cost you that precious job of yours."
"Are you pulling the strings now, Vi? If you at least read the crap you put on those stickers or actually went 50 kilometers to the east to see what your ideas looked like in practice in the Sowjet Union-"
"That you came from to steal our jobs and places at universities," Cami said, looking terribly proud of herself for pitching in. "Little Slavic refugee and a thief."
This is the EU, you idiot. I have every right to he here. Seline stood up, making a mocking motion as if she was tipping her head to the two witches, heart racing. "Your intelligence knows no bounds. Have a good evening, bitches."
She made to move behind the bench and to the other side of the park, when a tall figure suddenly appeared out of the shadow, blocking her way.
"If only you stayed a little bit longer, Sel," Violet said in the sweetest fake voice she could manage. "You might have had found a wolf to protect you."
...
"Isaiah, you are overreacting."
Isaiah didn't slow down at Matthew's protests as he hurried down the street, into the direction of Seline's last class.
"She should have been home hours ago."
"Yeah, maybe she found a bookshop on the way and forgot about time again."
"She is not answering me."
"Do I have to remind you of the speech she gave us both about being constantly available? She knows how to turn it off and all that crap." Despite his reassurances, Matthew jogged behind Isaiah at the same pace.
The streets were basically empty at 11 on Monday. Isaiah let his shadow up to have more senses to search with. His shadow eagerly consumed the darkness and the streets around, melting into it.
It sensed another intense eagerness just ahead of them.
Isaiah sped up into an outright run, Matthew close on his heels.
He didn't catch Seline's scent until he was almost there. They stood upwind with buildings all around, it was hard to track.
But it was Seline alright. Circled by a bunch of wolves who were throwing her around like a volleyball. Frozen solid in their grip, tyring not to show a reaction. Sign of fear or pleading would just rile a wolf up.
Wolves technically shouldn't harm witches. Witches had a powerful calming effect on them, making it very hard to be hostile to them.
But there were other witches present. Two altogether, standing a bit to the side but with good view. A wolf head over heels for a witch would be capable of many impossibilities.
The girls noticed them first, the one with blue-violet hair immediately positioning herself between them.
Matthew stopped at the sight, unsure. Wolf should not harm a witch. Not only was it physically uncomfortable, felt entirely wrong for a wolf to do so, it was strictly forbidden and looked-down upon.
A wolf should not touch a witch without her permission. Touch ment connection and connection meant magic.
Isaiah had not decided what to say yet, but he did not feel any qualms. "You let her go right now," he said quietly. "This is the only warning you will get."
The violet witch smiled widely as the wolves behind her looked up, sneering.
"I don't think you are paying attention, pal," one of the wolves said. "It's six of us. And it's only two of you. You really want to fight us?"
Might makes right kind of idiots? Fine with him.
Isaiah noticed Matthew's hesistant look, not seeing a way how to get to the wolves around the two witches he wasn't supposed to touch.
Isaiah didn't wait for him. His shadow was up and about in the darkness, covering the ground underneath them. One quick twist and they were all falling down, feet flying up as if he pulled the carpet underneath them.
The girl's smile turned into a surprised grimace.
Before anyone could move Isaiah used his shadow to sweep over the wolves, rolling their shadows one by one with smoothness of years of experience.
He stepped closer, pushing the two witches out of the way as they yelped, looking down. His shadow didn't need a straight path. And he had enough control not to touch Seline in the midst of them.
She was standing upright in the middle with a stony expression. But her arms were wrapped around her, her hair was sticking in all directions. He scanned her for any signs of blood or injury.
Not finding any didn't really quell his anger.
"I thought you wanted to fight," Isaiah said, turning back to the wolves crawling and moaning on the ground. Three were shivering without their shadows, one was curled up holding his head, one was even passed out. Rolling a shadow was never pleasant.
The last one, the one who spoke, was crawling away. Isaiah quickly closed the distance between them, kicking him into the stomach. And then in the face for good measure.
He took him by the collar, easily lifting him with one hand. "You come after my girl again, I'll rip your arms off, you hear?"
The wolf shook violently than nodded.
Isaiah turned around, his shadow riding around in satisfaction, brimming with happy aggressive energy. It wanted to make good on his threat right away, wanted to rip them to little pieces along with the witches.
Isaiah looked back at Seline and down, suddenly self-conscious of how much of those desires she could read from his expression.
Seline said nothing, retrieving her bag from the ground.
She did not take his hand, when he offered it.
...
Isaiah was sure he had fucked things up spectacularly. He went all scary in front of Seline, did not even wait for Matt to back him up. He just rushed into it with killing intent.
The way Seline got scared from Matthew's shadow, how she cried and shut him down for weeks to come was fresh in his mind, making his chest tight and dread pool in his stomach.
Seline said nothing on their ride back home and didn't look at any of them. He wasn't sure how to interpret it, she was very hard to read, when she didn't want some kind of emotion to show. But it must have been fear. What else could it have been?
Fear from what just happened and from him and from being involved with wolves in general...
When they arrived at their apartment, she went upstairs immediately. Clear signal she wanted space.
"This is going to be a problem," Isaiah said quietly, staring at the staircase.
Matthew bumped into his shoulder. "What do you mean?"
"Well, look at her! She is terrified of me!" He turned around to lean his forehead against the wall.
There was angry stomping on the floor above them. Then a slam of the door.
"Yeah, I don't think fear is what we are talking about," Matthew said dryly. "She looks pissed to me."
"Huh?" Isaiah said intelligently. His brain was short-circuiting at how he just went all Executioner in front of his girlfriend.
"Yep. Stop making guesses and go talk it out. No point worrying about something that might not be true."
"But- Did you not see-"
"I saw fine. It was plenty cool, if you ask me," Matthew said with a smirk. "Shoo."
Isaiah shook his head in exasperation, but went up.
Seline was in the process of changing and getting ready for bed. She slammed the cupboards violently behind her, the doors creaking painfully as she threw them open and then shut again.
Isaiah slipped inside her room, a little stunned by the display. He couldn't remember if he had seen Seline like this before.
"Ehhh...are you okay?"
She gave him an indignant look. "I'm fine! Perfectly fine!"
Isaiah watched her as she glared at her discarded jeans and shirt on the bed, in her PJs already, suddenly grateful Seline's affinity was water and not fire.
"Why didn't- you could have called me, you know?" He said tentatively into the silence. "I would have come sooner."
"I didn't need you to come."
Isaiah's eyebrows knitted together. "Well, then you could have at least called Matthew or messaged us where you were, so if something happened, we would know to look for you."
"I don't need-"
"You message your mother when you go to school and arrive home, why the hell can't you do the same for your pack?" Isaiah interjected, voice jumping up. "If you don't want to see me, fine, if you- at least let us know you are okay. Not to mention you weren't-"
"If those cows didn't bring their wolves, I would have been alright," she said, turning back to him, her chin up.
"I don't doubt that, but they had wolves around and it's my duty as your packmember and packleader-" Why was he defending his desire to protect her again?
He knew it was the wrong thing to say by the furious look in her eyes.
"Look," he said, pressing the bridge of his nose. "Wolves are dangerous, the city is dangerous and I just want to keep you safe. You can at least make sure of that, right? If you need a break from-from me or if you are disgusted or scared of me right now- there are still ways how to-"
"What are you going on about?"
"You didn't answer my messages or my calls all day," Isaiah said. "I thought something was wrong or that you were upset with me."
Seline watched him silently as if that wasn't all.
"And...right now...That must have been scary, right? I don't blame you for-"
She gave a dramatic sight. "I was upset. But not with you."
Seline approached. Isaiah suppressed the urge to back away, keeping the space he had drawn around her in his head untouched.
Seline's eyes widened at something, then she took the last three steps between them to stand right in front of him. "I'm not scared of you. That was actually...really nice of you. To defend me like that."
"Yeah?" He rubbed the back of his head self-consciously. "I don't want you to see-"
"I have never been scared of you. Wolves, sometimes, and yelling maybe, but not you. You would never do anything to hurt me." She took his face between her hands to make him look at her.
Isaiah let out a relieved breath, putting his hands over hers on his cheeks. "Okay. That's good, I'm glad. So what were you...upset about before?"
He watched her face intently, and his heart jumped into his throat where there were suddenly tears spilling over her cheeks.
"Sel?"
"I don't-" she broke off with a shuddering breath, ducking her head. "I don't want to need you this much."
"I'm sorry - what?"
"It's like I depend on you to protect me, and-and I'm doing it all wrong. I'm not supposed to tell you stuff like this, but I wanted- I want to be with you too much." She let go of his face, hugging herself.
Isaiah had the distinct feeling he was missing something. "And that's bad how?"
She looked up at him, her eyes even bluer from the tears.
"Isn't that kind of why we are together?"
Her blond eyebrows met in the center of her forehead in annoyance. "Don't you understand how bad this is? You...you are better than my solitude."
Isaiah frowned until he remembered the quote she meant. It was one of the quote books that they read in the evening to each other, sometimes to discuss them. My alone feels so good, I'll only have you if you're sweeter than my solitude.
His heart was fluttering in his chest at the proclamation as he understood what this meant.
Not needing more reassurance than that, he scooped her up from her feet, hugging her to him. No way he was allowing his girlfriend to feel so sad about caring about him so much.
He dragged her into the bed, arms wrapped snuggly around her, and she reciprocated, hugging him just as tight around the waist. Like she couldn't get close enough.
„Love takes off masks that we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot live within," he said into her ear, nose in her hair. "You know that one? Cause that's how it feels to be with you."
Her breath hitched against him, her face buried in his chest he wondered how she could even breathe. But he couldn't make himself let her go.
He wondered how he ever could again.
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