Chapter Text
Tally walked through the grounds back to her dorm, thinking back to her previous encounters of Sarah Alder. The most recent still ringing in her ears. The increasing thunder in the distance brought a flush up from her neck to her cheeks.
"I know you were there with her."
"So why cover up Nicte?"
"So hiding her away, just to protect your pride?"
"I just wanted answers."
"We are connected."
Tally knew she had overstepped the boundaries, crossed the line completely.The more she had gotten bolder with her tone and tongue, the more she felt calm anger boiling over and she knew some of it was from Sarah. The lighting brought about the rain and as she felt herself getting soaked her feet picked up the pace, running now until her lungs felt like they were burning. When she finally made it to the building and stopped underneath the awning to shield herself from the rain, it had been too late, her clothes were drenched and the water falling down her face hid the tears that were coming down from the frustration.
It took a few long moments to get her breathing under control, and she thought back to Alder, her cool precise steps and words that melted off of her tongue with such precision that Tally wondered if she knew all along that that moment was going to happen. That Tally was going to barge in and demand answers.
"What makes you think you are owed any?"
"That time has passed."
But that time hasn't passed, Tally felt it even now, betrayal, and she knew she didn't feel betrayed, no, it was Alder who was still probably setting at her desk, her hair down framing her face, uniform unbuttoned, a glass of wine at her lips and soft music playing in the background.
Flashes of her giving herself up to becoming a biddy, Alders hand on her check, her forehead pressed against hers so intimately. A chill ran down her body and Tally knew it wasn't from the cold wet clothes she was wearing, it was from the feeling of that warm soft hand on her cheek.
For someone who was wanting the truth, she didn't want to admit to herself the truth about her feelings towards Alder. The feelings that were changing from starstruck, to disbelief, to understanding, to anger but down at the bottom of the core, there was a deep attraction for the other woman. Her general, her commanding officer. It was a simple feeling, everything else just made it complicated. She wanted her, wanted to feel her, wanted to be felt by her. But she didn't trust her, not like before, didn't understand her but she thought she had.
When she had found out Raelle and Abigail were still alive, at the time all she could think about was the shock and relief of them being alive, now that she had them back, she could recall the moment before and pick it apart until it was dust. When Sarah had walked to her and leaned against her desk, taking her hand into hers. The way she rushed to her side when she fell to the floor. The very subtle way Sara's finger caressed the hair in front of her ear as Tally's own hands gripped Sarah's arms.
There was a small moment after Sarah had rested her head against Tally's, both of their eyes closed and they breathed as one in sync, connected. Sarah had gotten up first just to help Tally back on her feet. Careful and gentle, a side most people wouldn't experience from the general.
Later after she had been un-biddied and the general had come to check on her, Tally had found herself overwhelmed by the sight of her. The sound of Alder's voice made her sound breathless and Tally couldn't look away from her eyes. The way she had stepped closer to her, eyes trailing down her body. Sarah had felt like she had missed her too even if she hadn't uttered the words, it wasn't the feeling of losing a daughter or a mother.
"The earth is restless tonight."
Just recalling that memory brought about a soft sigh from Tally's lips and she closed her eyes, resting against the brick of the building and imagined for just a moment if she had been brave enough to kiss her as she was brave enough tonight to accuse her of conspiracy. A loud strike of lightning echoed in the distance. Tally was a knower and she knew from across the campus, Alder felt that, just as much as she did, she was sure of it.
Tally finally went in and back to her dorm, getting her clothes to change, her unit was asleep and she moved silently to keep from waking them. As she reached the bathroom and peeled off the wet clothes, she thought back to how coldly Alder dismissed her, standing there with her hands behind her back as she usually did. The tone of her voice was so final that Tally couldn't help but listen to and obey like a common soldier. She dried off and wrapped her hair in a towel, shaking her head at how the night had gone.
She looked at the mirror and out of spite to test her theory, she closed her eyes and imagined Sarah in front of her, she trailed her hand down from her check to her neck, imagining it was Sarah's hands and not on her. Down between her breasts and rested her hands on her stomach, the building shook beneath her and Tally smiled as she felt anger coming up and over taking the lust she was feeling. Yes, the general's words of that time had passed were mistaken and Tally knew it then and was one hundred percent sure of it now.
With a soft smirk from being right, Tally got dressed and went to lay down, the sounds of the rain luring her to sleep and the night's exhaustion overtook her and she let sleep claim her, all while imagining the general's face and her long black hair let down from its normal tight braid.
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Tally woke up to Abigail shaking her, rousing her awake from a nice dream. "General Alder is at the door, waiting for you, get up." She didn't bother trying to throw on her uniform, instead walking to the door in her shorts and shirt, Raelle and Abigail standing near their beds watching curiously, wondering what the hell was going on, sleep still etched on their faces.
She opened the door slowly, Alder standing there with her hands behind her back, biddies behind her standing silent. She did not look happy in the slightest but Tally expected it. A part of her wanted Alder angry.
"Good morning, Izadora told me she was available this morning to see us and I've come to walk you."
Tally smirked, more like Alder had demanded Izadora to see them first thing after last night's stunt. "Let me put on my shoes."
Abigail opened her mouth to speak but Tally shook her head before she could ask questions. "I'll tell you later."
She slipped on her shoes and walked out the dorm, shutting the door behind her and the nine of them walked down to Izadora's office. "Nice to see you are making personal calls. You could have sent someone else to tell me." Tally said, breaking the silence between them.
Alder stopped walking, the look of livid clearly shown on her face. "Do you think what you did last night was funny? It was completely inappropriate."
Tally had stopped a few paces after her and turned around to face the older woman. "I am not sure what you mean. The connection has been severed, remember? That time has passed?"
Alder walked up to her slowly like she was stalking prey, stopping only close enough that a small breeze could be between them. Tally couldn't breath, she was so close to her face, her eyes staring into hers with storm and fury.
"You are completely out of line Craven. I have never in all the years of having a biddy, manipulated the bond between us, nor have they because we respect each other for what it is."
Sarah somehow managed to get a little bit closer than what she was, only the fiber from their uniforms touching and Tally let out a small gasp, the overwhelming urge to touch her felt unbearable. "I was and forever will be grateful that you saved my life, but once we go see Izadora, this 'connection' will be severed. Whatever truth you think I owe you, respect my choices and privacy, no matter how you feel about them." Sarah wasn't going to mention any of last night however considering how Tally was acting this morning and also by how she mentioned making house calls, Sarah wasn't skilled enough in patience to hold her tongue.
The words she spoke caressed the skin on Tally's face, maybe it was the soft breeze of the morning, but Tally smelled the hint of wine and cinnamon. The smell and the close proximity, it was intoxicating. Without thinking, Tally reached up, hovering her fingers over Sarah's throat, wanting to feel the small amount of skin just above the collar of the uniform. Alder didn't move, staying completely still, only staring, the only movement was her chest from her breathing.
Tally put her hand back at her side, the brazen moment she felt was slipping and gone before she could blink.
She wanted to say no matter what Izadora gave her, the connection was too strong to break. But she didn't, instead she took a step back and they continued their walk in silence. She wanted to know the truth about Nicte, she wanted to understand what had happened and why Sarah made the choices she had. She however was not going to get the answers she wanted by the means she had tried, demanding it like Sarah would willingly open up painful truths.
It didn't seem like she was going to get to know her on a more personal level either, Sarah Alder would remain a mystery to her in more ways than one.
The potion Izadora gave them tasted like poison or Tally imagined that was what poison tasted like. Her face turned soured however the general beside her didn't look affected at all, not by the taste anyways. Nothing felt different, Izadora said it would take twenty four hours to know if it had worked, Alder didn't look too appreciative of that but took it regardless.
"If anything starts to feel off, if your seeds seem wrong, you both need to let me know." Izadora told em and Tally nodded her head for an answer.
As they were leaving and about to go their separate ways, Sarah seemed to want to say something, had stopped, causing Tally to stop as well, waiting to see if the other woman spoke but nothing came from Sarah's mouth.
"Well thanks for walking me, I will see you around." Tally said and walked away. She felt confused but contributed it to the potion she took. She started to feel empty like she had after the un-biddying and felt herself wanting to cry like she almost had when Sarah had came and checked on her. She wanted to go catch up with Alder, for what she didn't know, she just wanted to be near her, close enough to feel the warmth from her body, anything, but she refused to try and seek her out. It would just be dealt with until the effects subsided.