#dbnd

of course! physically, maybe he wasn't harmed. or maybe he didn't show it. but the way i see it is: he had something taken from him. this part of him that was personal and intimate. he was assaulted without warning and had part of him ripped away. and then was assaulted more. even if he didn't want his gnosis, that choice was taken from him. and it is very, very traumatic when something like this happens, especially if you don't have a stable support group after. the trauma is not necessarily physical, but mental and emotional. so much was taken from him in that moment. if you've never had to experience something like this, then i am very, very glad. but if you have, and for others who have, you know exactly what i mean

signora, in a sense, ripped out his heart. it's almost a very literal metaphor for assault, because when you're assaulted, it feels like something is taken from you. like you lose a part of yourself that you can never get back. and even if you do get that back, it's not yours anymore and it likely never will be

she found him. she planned this out. she showed up exactly where he would be and when he would be there. and that also leaves thoughts in his mind: how did she find me? can she find me at any time? does she always know where i am? will i ever be safe from her? what if she comes back? what if she takes something else from me?

there's something terrifying in the thought that there is someone you can never escape. that someone knows where you are, always. that someone is following you. that alone can be traumatic. but she also took part of him away. and there's that fear that since she found him once, she can find him again. since she took from him once, she can take again