Not Capable PT. 2 - Laurance Zvahl

                                    

                                          
Standing at the top of the guard tower, I lean over the railing, draping my arms over the dark wood as I look over the vast field of crops, tanned yellow mixed occasionally with mellowed greens and browns. A deep sigh leaves my lips as a shadow is cast over them. Glancing up, I take in the dark and large mass of water vapor. Definitely gonna rain. I let my head drop down onto my arms groaning slightly in both pain and relief as I gently stretched out my neck, feeling the gentle dripping of water from my face still being wet from the emotional turbulence I had previously experienced.
	"Oh Y/N there you are!" A chipper voice sounds out from behind me. Breathing in severely, I lift my head, hurriedly rubbing all the collected tears and turn to face Dante.
	"What's up Dante?"
	"Nothing much. Laurance's just been looking for you." My eyes snap to his face from gazing at the wall behind him.
	"He-he is?"
	"Yeah! Said he wanted to ask you an important question or something like that." I feel my heart rate quicken slightly at his words.
	"O-oh! Do you know where he is?"
	"Last time I saw him he was near the market square asking if anyone had seen you recently."
	"Okay...Yeah, I'll head there right now!" Grasping my sword in its sheath from leaning against the wall, I strap it to my hip and head towards the ladder, ruffling Dante's hair on the way.
	"Hey!" I hear him yell after me in a playful tone. Giggling to myself, I climb the long, long ladder till I reach the bottom floor, passing the armory. Landing with a solid thump on the ground, I begin walking towards the entrance, exiting. I walk past the golden fields briefly, banking left towards the market square. Spotting the brightly colored advertisements and different stalls, I wave towards Logan, Donna, and Yip. Not spotting Laurance at first glance, I approach the wedded couple.
	"Hey Y/N!"
	"Hey Donna!" I reply, masking my earlier sorrows with a joyful front.
	"Where you headed to?"
	"I'm not actually sure at the moment...." I respond, scratching an itch on the back of my head as I glimpse around me once again, searching for the familiar  short light brown hair.
	"He's up near the statue." Logan speaks with an evident tone of teasing, a smirk on his face.
	"Oh, thanks Logan."
	"Ooooo, why are you lookin' for Laurance Y/N?" Donna questions, leaning over the counter of the booth towards me. My face tints a faint pink.
	"D-dante said he w-was looking for me....that's all." I reply, stuttering slightly.
	"Quit pestering the poor girl Donna." Logan utters, wrapping his arms securely around her waist, pulling her back into his chest.
	"Go up there already L/N, he's been up there for a little bit, so you might've already missed him." Nodding, I announce a quick 'thanks' before taking off in a fact walk towards the base of the cliffs hill. Climbing up the cobblestone stairs at a quicker pace than my usual, gazing around at the beautiful green leaves transitioning into a dark royal blue. Scaling the last few stairs, I find myself coming up directly beside Laurance. Staying quiet, I join him as he stares at the statute of Irene.
	"Beautiful out today isn't it?" He asks seemingly no one in particular. I hum in agreement, watching the occasional cloud pass over grow more often.
	"We should probably head back. It looks like..it's gonna...rain..?" My sentence trails off as Laurance takes a few steps forward towards the fountain before spinning around to face me.
	"Laurance? What's going on?" I ask, raising one eyebrow in curiosity.
	"I spoke to Garroth. After you left." He stated, gauging my reaction.
	"Oh..." My eyes fall to the ground.
	"He-He told me what he said to you...and-"
	"He told you what I am." Locking eyes with him in a serious manner. "Didn't he." He bites his lip, nodding subtly. I sigh. "So you must think I'm a monster too."
	"Y/N, he doesn't think that of you."
	"How would you know?" I spit back, anger growing in my chest.
	"I don't. But I do know he cares about, a lot. And he regrets saying that to you." I look away from his eyes, seeing pity and empathy that I didn't want. "Y/N, I care about you. We all do."
	"They wouldn't if they knew." I feel a gentle few drops of rain begin to fall from the clouds onto my head and shoulders.
	"I think they would. They still care about me, and I'm just like you."
	"But you're not." Silence.  I whip my head back up to gauge his next reaction. "What exactly did Garroth tell you? That when we were younger he thought of me as a sister. Maybe how I was betrayed by my friends and died in the Nether. What about how no one cared that I was gone. Or maybe even how I've killed people, Laurance! Innocent people that didn't deserve to die." He stayed silent, a stunned look set on his face as more rain began to pour down around us. "Yeah...didn't think so. He probably told you that I kept my humanity. That I'm fine, that I haven't turned into the monster that I am."
	"I don't think you're a monster Y/N"
	"STOP TRYING TO TELL ME THAT I'M NOT!" A crack of lighting sounds out around us as I yell at him, tears breaking free from my eyes, streaming down my face with the rain. The precipitation falls heavily, flattening both of our hair, soaking our clothes. I let out a choked sob, crashing to the muddy ground on my knees, my arms out in front of me as I lean forward on them. I sob freely for a few moments before I feel a pair of arms wrap themselves around my shaking figure. Pulling the top of my torso into his chest, Laurance places his head on top of mine.
	"You're not a monster. I won't let anyone ever tell you otherwise."