@saviare wrote: “ stop doing that— stop trying to hide your emotions from me. ” || meme
clarke’s voice makes the king grow still, though he doesn’t look at her right away. his instinct is to withdraw. he was taught to keep his emotions in check, rein himself in and ensure no one is given an opportunity to turn weakness into a weapon against him. and it isn’t that he doesn’t trust her, because he does. she earned that some time ago. but it’s not within his nature to put it on display every time something makes him angry, or hurt, or sorrowful. he knows it frustrates her. she’s a much different creature than he is. where he has always shoved away his feelings, she uses them. he’s watched her grab hold of her fury and her grief to give her strength. she uses it as a weapon before anyone else can turn it against her. sometimes he admires that.
“ i’m not hiding anything from you, clarke, ” he returns, finally turning to face the young woman. maybe it isn’t the full truth. but it isn’t like he is making a conscious decision to shut her out. “ there’s no point to discussing what i have no control over. ” he can’t win every battle. both literal and figurative. he doesn’t have time to stop and fret each time he loses something— or someone. and if he starts to let himself feel it, he knows most days he wouldn’t be able to stop.
