WORDS THAT WOUND
FICTOBER PROMPTS: Heart, Cruel
NOTE: Wow, a non-smutty Merlandau fic. I surprised myself. It's not really that shippy but it's something. And the set up for this entire interaction is a scenario I've been wanting to write down for a while. Not sure when I'll have time to develop the full story but I'm glad I started with this one-shot anyway.
Enjoy!
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"You don't belong here, but then again, you don't have anywhere else to go. You are all alone in the world."
Merle didn't know why she had blurted all this out. But once these bitter words had been said, there was no taking them back. And at least for the first few moments, she did not regret them.
Dilandau tensed but said nothing. Something almost like hurt flickered in his eyes but this was quickly replaced with his usual fire. His expression was grim and he made a few steps towards the cat-girl.
Instinctively, Merle took a few steps back, suddenly aware that she had possibly provoked one of the most dangerous individuals on Gaea. She cursed herself for being so reckless and she quickly planned her escape as she knew there was no way she would be able to defend herself against him.
She needed to run. She needed to get as far away from him as possible; that's what her survival instincts were telling her. And yet, something else kept her rooted to the spot. For some insane reason, she was curious about his reaction.
For the next few moments, he maintained his silence, only fixing his crimson eyes on hers so intently she did not know what else to do but to stare back nervously.
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Dilandau Albatou had shown up in Fanelia a few weeks after the fall of Zaibach, seeking asylum. This idea would have been ridiculous had he not possessed some leverage with which to bargain with the young king. The silver-haired soldier had brought someone back with him from the wreckage, a severely injured but definitely alive Folken Fanel.
It had been a strange reunion, to say the least. But once Folken had explained the situation and confirmed that Dilandau had indeed saved his life, Van Fanel reluctantly agreed to grant the latter refuge in his country. In the end, the king's joy at his brother's miraculous survival outweighed his anger at his former enemy.
Despite their complicated history, both Van and Dilandau were exhausted by the bloodshed and so they settled on a tentative truce. Dilandau wasn't particularly pleased with his new predicament but he knew that there were less palatable options available to him should he be found and tried in any of the other countries Zaibach had attacked.
This development was bound to be controversial, at the very least, so Dilandau's presence in Fanelia was known only to a select few of the Fanels' most trusted confidantes. And until a more suitable arrangement could be made, Dilandau was kept in hiding and under strict surveillance.
So while he wasn't exactly a prisoner, neither was he free. The set up was far from ideal for him but he also realized that there were worse options. So he endured the situation with somber resignation.
For the most part those who knew about him tolerated his presence. But unpleasantness could not be avoided. Folken was by far the most accepting of him, grateful as he was to Dilandau for this chance to reconcile with his brother. Van felt likewise indebted, and since he had grown so much after his recent experiences, he found that he preferred the prospect of reparation than revenge. While he hadn't exactly forgiven Dilandau everything yet and vice versa, there was a reluctant mutual tolerance and indebtedness between the two that prevented them from killing each other.
But not even the happiness of the reunited Fanels could make Merle forget the role Dilandau had played in the past war. She was glad to see her dear friend reconciling with his brother, but she found it particularly difficult to see the man who had caused so much destruction living peacefully in their midst. There had been endless arguments about this but Merle had relented, for Van's sake.
Still, she could not help but express her disapproval of Dilandau every chance she got. Initially, she had approached him and warned him that should he ever try to betray them, she would not let this go unpunished. He had seemed amused by this, which only frustrated her more.
She constantly reminded him that the only reason he was alive was due to the Fanels' generosity, and she noticed that the emphasis on his debt vexed him to no end. So she found numerous ways of reiterating the point.
So far, she had not elicited any violent reaction from him, probably because he was trying to remain in the good graces, such as they were, of his hosts. He knew that one wrong move would destroy any chance he had of survival so he bore everything with a surprising fortitude.
Merle was the most surprised of all, having known him to be of a more reckless nature, not unlike her own. But she had also noticed something slightly different about him since he arrived in Fanelia. Something had happened in Zaibach that had brought him low, that had broken him somehow.
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And in the moments following her most recent tirade, she could see that she had struck a nerve, that he was not as invincible as he always seemed. But she was the last person who could have been expected to land such a blow on him.
He continued to stare silently at her and Merle was more confused than ever. After having said so many unpleasant things to him, sometimes eliciting a response, she was at a loss for words.
She wished he would say something, anything, if only to break this oppressive silence. Merle felt that the intensity of his gaze was almost worse than any physical attack that he could have made.
At length he simply turned and left without a word, leaving the puzzled cat-girl staring at him. She noticed that he was clenching his fists as he walked away. She sighed with relief and yet she could not shake off some other uncomfortable feelings. There had been an air of finality about the way he had calmly but coldly taken his leave.
She had always wanted to wound him somehow and yet now that she seemed to have finally accomplished this rare feat, it gave her no satisfaction.
It was odd to feel guilty about hurting someone like him, and yet Merle could not help it. She was no stranger to expressing her rage, to harboring resentment, to lashing out at others when she was in pain. Some people deserved such verbal attacks, and he was far from innocent. But in this particular instance, Merle was suddenly unsure about how much Dilandau deserved such censure. Not after whatever horrors he had witnessed in Zaibach.
Perhaps she had been too harsh, and his lack of response only made her feel worse. This time, he had not been angry or amused or even annoyed. His expression had been unreadable and so she wondered what effect her words really had had on him.
Why he would be moved by anything she said was also a mystery. The old Dilandau would surely have murdered her by now. But there she was, still standing. It was almost like she was meeting him for the first time.
So to Merle's great surprise, she found that she very much wanted to know more about this new Dilandau, just when it seemed that she had ruined any chance of further interaction with him.