(e)scape-goat
Though everybody was taught the same lessons, not everybody learned the same things.
Some of them learned not to be afraid. Others learned to hide their fear, and then vomit it down the sink every night. Some of them learned to be angry instead, and posture and posture. Others learned that one man only deserved fear, and nobody else. Not even God. And they tended to do the best.
They tended to sneer, and laugh, and look at the world—everyone who was not him—with a kind of pity. In the worst possible sense. The kind of pity that is scorn and begs for violence rather than love. They learned to hate everything for weakness. Even God. And they weren't afraid of anyone, except him.
And they showed fear only to him, and they showed it only in the way their bodies went rigid upon touching, the way their movements became sharp like scissors upon hearing, in the way their teeth clenched down upon tasting. And they showed it to no one else, not even God. And to the rest of the universe they were fearless. And that was what he wanted.
And that was what helped Tala survive.
a/n: Yeah, these are terrifically late. And I'm so sorry! I've been offline a while because of family and school nonsense, but things are okay now. I hope nobody's died of waiting. I really can't apologize enough! Tell me what I can do to make it up?