𝐍𝐈𝐀 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖𝐒 𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐕𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐓𝐎𝐑 from his footsteps alone.    she inhales,   exhales deeply,   and picks up her glass of wine to take a drink,   knowing damn well she’ll need it.    when enver was young,    he’d been a disappointment:    how could her people ever see him as strong,   as a leader if roan was killed or died,    when the very foundation enver was built on was weak?   now,   however,   she can admit that enver has surprised her over the years,   and perhaps because of his sheer determination he could have worked his way into her favour if not for his incessant groveling.   it might not be evident to all,   but nia sees it.    nia knows.   nia cares very little for how he cares very much about her opinion.

​𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐔𝐒 𝐇𝐀𝐒 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐓𝐇𝐄 realization that she does reckless things after being locked up for too long.    she had pushed herself too early when she was still healing from under the mountain,   and now,    after being shut with blaiz in his room for a day and half a night,    she feels the need to get out.    it’s not that she’s decided to run away :  venus knows blaiz’s protection is in her best interests,   and in truth,    she doesn’t think she’d last out there with all those scouts and spies in the woods,    ready to kill skaikru at a moment’s notice.    but she does want to know more about the place she’s being kept prisoner in;   she might as well gather as much information as she can for when it’s time for her to finally escape.

that’s how she finds herself roaming the halls of her prison with quiet steps,    clothed in the azgeda garb that blaiz gave her as a replacement for the skaikru ones she arrived here in.    where are the doors that lead outside?    she’s managed to blend in so far,    sticking to the shadows and avoiding eye contact,   and the guards outside the outer doors of blaiz’s chambers hadn’t stopped her from leaving.   she thinks she might be being followed by one of them but she has no clue.   would blaiz have ordered them to follow if she left,   if only to ensure her safety?    she hears footsteps occasionally,    and it’s now that she turns back to look back to look behind her and catch a glimpse,   anything—