#prynid things

[xylitolictrolls]

You're all on your own now, you and Hawkmom. You eat the food that she brings back raw, but it never tastes any good to you. If nothing else, they fed you well in the facility, to keep your energy up. It takes you a week or so to find the first hive you shelter in. You didn't want one on the ground- all the ones you found seemed too open and exposed for your taste, and you knew that now that Hawkmom was free to roam, she'd want a place nestled in the treetops. She was part of the reason you had escaped. The other part being.... Him. You didn't even know that scientist's name, did you? The tree hive you find, or rather, that Hawkmom does, is small by other trolls' standards, but you adore it. You haven't had your own space in so long, you forgot what it was like. There was no electricity, but that was fine by you. You wouldn't have surprised yourself if it made you jumpy- your psionics gave you a tendency to sense electric currents and be drawn to them, and in the long run, you didn't think you could currently handle that. Anything that tried to interact with you, save Hawkmom, put you on edge now. You find a pile of old blankets left by the previous hive owner- there's a lot of useful stuff left behind, like they were in a hurry to get out, and you would've thought they still lived there if not for the thick layer of dust that had accumulated, as well as the song feather beasts you found nesting in one room that you felt too guilty to make leave, so you let then be. Hive mates like them would be good for you- they were small, as lusii went. They weren't hurting you. The blankets, though- they are a relief. You can be warm. It was just your luck that you escaped just as the cold season started. You also hoped the pile would help ease your daymares- they plague you every time you close your eyes. You also find that they have a small wood stove. It seems to you that it would be a dangerous hazard in a tree hive, but you decide to attempt to use it. The first attempt isn't as disastrous as it could've been, the second you make a clumsy mistake and come close to burning down your hive, and the third you almost get it, but you burn yourself in the attempt. It takes you another week afterwards to approach the small stove again, and you succeed in cooking a small amount of meat, albeit in an inelegant fashion. Every victory counted for you now, though, no matter how small. It was by that time, though, that you were beginning to realize how much you'd missed your lusus during your imprisonment. You were certain she wouldn't wait for you, as, after all, she had been held in an open-air courtyard without any kind of security, and you didn't ever get to see her unless it was one of the rare occasions that you were being shoved along a corridor that gave you a view of her. That was your only reassurance that she was still there. In all that time. And now, you were broken, a wriggler again, and had been away from her for what, seven, eight sweeps? You didn't even remember your wriggling day. But maybe she'd known. In her infinite lusus-y wisdom, maybe she'd sensed that you would always need her like this again. Though you'd begin to feel the rift all that time apart had caused, you could also feel it mending itself. She was your lusus, and without her, you wouldn't be here. You would still be in the facility, under lock and key. And for all the things she'd done for you, you adored your lusus. For her, you'd give your life, and that was all that mattered.

[xylitolictrolls]

all i can imagine now is that teal blood escaping shortly after Prynid bc he knows they'll find out about what he did and he's on the run while also trying to find Prynid because he's his limeblood prince in distress swoons

i'm p sure Prynid would also be significantly more attracted to tealbloods than most other castes after that even if it's a subconscious thing

[xylitolictrolls]

There is one scientist who treats you a little worse than everyone else, but also a little better.

He pushes you more, but he also rewards you when you do well, when no one else is looking. He calls you worse names than the others, but a lot of the time it seems forced. He gives you the worst glares, and though it doesn’t really matter to when anyone else does it, not any more, his glares hurt you.

His blood is teal. You know it because he’s older than you, and even though your eyes are still gray, his are a shade of teal you’d never be able to forget. He does a lot of your solitary tests, and even starts to bring you your food, a task which the guards usually undertake.

He doesn’t do anything that could give him away until the day when they push you too far, and everything shorts out. The building goes pitch black, and as your eyes adjust to the darkness, you see another pair staring back at you, and you can make out his shape as they adjust further.

He’s looking at you strangely, and he reaches up, and you flinch back, and you realize you’re trembling. Every inch of your skin feels hyper-sensitive, and everything seems wrong in your head. Your eyes hurt, and the area behind them buzzes painfully.

He doesn’t touch you, but pulls at your restraints, releasing you, and you stumble off of your platform, confused. You feel his lips brush your forehead, and something warm and wet hits your face. You’re baffled as to why he’s acting so tenderly, when he whispers to you.

“I have done everything I could, Prynid Acipte. Please. Please, run, and escape from here. I’m sorry for treating you as I have, I’m sorry for letting them treat you so badly. I’m sorry for everything. Run.”

He steps back and lets you go, and you run, run to where you know they keep your lusus, and the two of you make it out to the yard. You climb onto her back and hold on to her neck, and she spreads her wings and takes you far, far away from there.

It is only a few days later, as your eyes as drifting shut for sleep after finding shelter in an abandoned tree hive, that you realize what the strange look was that he gave you before you left.

He looked at you like you mattered.