People of FFN, I bring you 714 words this time. This chapter is in a new style for me, because there's no names mentioned and I like names ok.
Thank you to redpantsu for the amazing fic cover! :D
Prompt: Weave a story around this mixed proverb: "Silence is a great healer."
Sometimes, no words need to be spoken. Sometimes, silence is a great healer; a better one than words.
When the girl with ice water in her veins first came into his life, she hadn't said much. Even after he tried to warn her of the consequences if she touched him, the girl hadn't hesitated.
All she said was, "It's so warm."
He remembers when she had given him a flower. It was a plain, white, simple flower, but he had been hesitant to touch it. She had silently placed it in his hand, and he held on to it, thinking it would wilt after a second, like every other living object he had dared to touch. To his surprise, it didn't; it stayed alive.
She is exactly like the flower. They are both plain and simple, but strong.
At first he thought the girl had the Alice of Nullification. It would explain why she was still breathing after being touched by him. He was certain of this until he saw her files, which clearly stated that she had the "Ice Alice." The Nullification Alice had belonged to a certain teacher, the only one who had dared to touch and interact with him before the girl came around. It had also ended up useless against his Mark of Death, so what chance did the Ice Alice have?
He stayed away from her since, and had done a fairly good job at that. He spent most of his high school life until graduation in the basement, where he once lived, where he belonged. The silence welcomed him. It allowed him time to think. Silence usually meant no one was around, and that meant he wouldn't have a chance to use his Alice.
It all went well until he was assigned to teach the Dangerous Ability Class.
He walked through the classroom doors, and there she was, looking expectantly at him from her front-row seat. She didn't say anything, only had a gentle smile on her face; but the last person who had given him such a smile had died, too.
That smile turned upside down each time the girl got a new mission. She didn't want to use her Alice to kill, she said, and they had to resort to hypnosis to make her complete her tasks. It became routine, really, and students knew her as an Ice Princess with multiple personalities.
Back then, she had been like a docile lamb, hypnotized and looking glazed and willing to perform her duties.
Now she stands in front of him, plain, simple, but strong. She tries to persuade him to stop shutting people out, but he's sure she doesn't know what she's talking about. The only times she's ever experienced people dropping like flies from a single touch were when she was under hypnosis. If she had ever made the conscious decision to kill, she wouldn't be saying that.
Remembering that the girl had come back from watching the past, he puts two and two together, and realizes that her tone of voice is one of pity.
She keeps trying to convince him to apologize to all the people he's hurt and to admit his mistakes. Memories of the days of putting withered flowers on graves come flooding back, and the girl pleads for him to stop showing hate to the people around him. She talks all about him and the teacher who he respected and cared for, like she knew everything. He finds himself feeling exactly what he felt when he caused his teacher's death.
Once again, he loses control.
It's the first time he taints her with death. He feels that it should be a victorious moment, as if it is proof that nothing can really escape his Alice, but he only feels despair. She still doesn't give up; she still has the same stubborn look in her eyes. Her words bombard his mind, and all he wants is a break from the excruciating pain. Words really aren't his best friend, and actions are worse for speaking louder than words. Silence is all he wants, just what he needs.
His own marks cover his hands, his arms, and his face. The darkness is everywhere, and it's the last thing he sees before it completely overwhelms him.