Sebastian's POV:
The moment she stepped through the door, my heart lurched. It's embarrassing how strong that reaction still is, even now—after everything. But it wasn't just love or desire—it was protectiveness. A deep, instinctual urge to shield her. From what? Maybe from everyone in this room. Maybe even from herself.
Her hair was still damp—she must've just showered. Her clothes hung off her like they didn't belong to her anymore, and maybe they didn't. She used to fill a room with her energy, but now she looked like she was trying to disappear inside that oversized grey shirt. She's trying to hide the weight she's lost, but I see it. You don't miss these things when you love someone.
She smiled. Kind of. She forced eye contact. Tried to crack a joke like it didn't take every ounce of her strength just to stand in front of us. I watched Abigail's expression shift—she was smiling, but it didn't reach her eyes. She was confused, maybe even uncomfortable. I get it. The person standing in front of her wasn't the Hannah she remembered. But I've been watching this version of Hannah. I'm getting used to it. They aren't.
Sam handled it better than I expected. He doesn't censor anything, ever, and somehow that worked in Hannah's favor. She seemed to relax a little around him. Like the chaos of his energy gave her something else to focus on. Still, I could tell she wasn't fully here. She kept scanning the room like she was mapping out an escape route. Her body was in my basement, but her mind was someplace darker.
She said things that threw them off—offhand remarks about screaming in the Skull Cavern, beheading some goblin thing. I saw the way their eyes widened, the way they looked at each other when they thought she wasn't watching. But I was. I was watching all of it. And I got it, because that's just... her now. She has no filter for what's "appropriate." Her brain's rewired itself to survive first and socialize second—if at all.
What they don't understand is that even now, even like this, when she kisses me, when she hugs me—it's real. She remembers how to love me. That hasn't been carved out of her. That part is untouched, intact. It's like her love for me is muscle memory. Maybe that's selfish, but it's how I know she's still in there. She's still my person.
Even if she did just casually announce that she decapitated a goblin.
I sighed and muttered, "Great." It came out flatter than I meant.
"Sebastian, something is seriously wrong," Abigail said, her voice tight with concern.
I turned to her, already annoyed. "Abigail, I don't think you understand what she went through down there. It wasn't just monsters she was fighting. That place broke her in ways we don't even have names for. And she did it—for you, by the way. So maybe let's not treat her like she's crazy."
"You were just as shocked as me when she said she cut that dwarf's head off!" Abigail argued.
"I wasn't shocked at all," Sam chimed in, completely unfazed. "You think someone who willingly walks into the Skull Cavern alone isn't gonna decapitate a goblin? Come on. Yeah, she looks like she probably shouldn't be near sharp objects, but she's not a freak."
That actually caught me off guard. Sam, of all people, cutting straight to the truth.
"I never said she was a freak," Abigail said quickly. "I just... I don't know how to process any of that. It was so—"
"—Not what you expected?" I finished for her. "I told you it wouldn't be."
"She was so full of life before," she said softly.
"I know," I replied, voice low. "I never wanted her to end up like me. Broody, distant. But even this—this isn't me, either. It's something else. Something worse. But if you stopped waiting for her to go back to who she was, you might actually see she's still there. Just... buried under a lot of wreckage. She's still funny. In a morbid, awkward way. She's still Hannah. Just more fragile."
Abigail nodded slowly, and something in her expression softened. "Okay. Well... can I go with you? I want to make this right."
I hesitated. Then nodded. "Yeah. Okay."
I looked over at Sam, who was balancing a drumstick on his nose like a toddler at a talent show.
"You're coming too. Apparently you're the only one she still likes."
The drumstick hit the floor. "Obviously. I'm incredibly lovable," he grinned. "Take notes, ladies and gentlemen—this is what peak charm looks like."
I rolled my eyes, but I didn't say anything. Because somehow, in all the awkwardness and chaos and darkness, this odd group of friends might be exactly what she needs. Not to fix her. Just... to show her she's still allowed to exist. Even like this.
Hannah POV:
I made my way back to the farm wishing I never left it in the first place. Why do people stare at me that way? It pisses me off. I get I've changed I get I look like a battered house wife, but that doesn't mean you can look at me that way purposefully reminding me of it.
Annoying.
I kicked a rock across my farm and noticed my one of my chickens flew to the other side of the coop startled by the noise.
I walked over to them and watched them as they pecked and clucked, carrying on with their normal lives, they don't treat me like I'm a freak, that's what I do know.
"Hannah!" A voice called from across the farm. I turned my head and saw Sam waving alongside Sebastian and Abigail. I let out a sigh.
"Well Hello to the lollipop guild." I say sarcastically.
They walked over to me stepping over weeds and logs that I needed to clean up for weeks.
"Hannah, I am sorry. It took me off guard what you said, but I wanted you to know im happy that you're back and nothing was the same without you." Abigail said to me. I looked at her unsure of what to say.
"What I want you all to understand, is you can try your best, you can wish on a star, or the wizard, but you can't change me. I have tried." I said as the last word of the sentence carried more desperation than I intended. "If you still want to be my friend, get used to it like I have had to."
-but the truth is, I haven't gotten used to it. I've just grown uncomfortably, comfortable.
"You're right, and I'm sorry I made you feel that way." Abigail said to me like I was to be walked on eggshells around. It annoyed me.
"Okay." I said flatly kicking leaves about with my boot.
"Hannah do you know how long we had to deal with Sebastian? I think we can handle you." Sam said casually. I looked up at him and a smile crept out. I looked over at Sebastian who smirked at me and shrugged.
"They're pretty good at it, if you let them."
I continued smiling, "We will see."
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