[ iris starts to tap the pencil in his hand against his knee, the sound dull and muffled thanks to his jeans. ]

It's part of the deal, if you wanted to stay in the Tower.

[ there's a bead of water lazily making its way down the contour of finn's collarbone, taking up all of iris' attention. it was a welcome distraction, uncertain he wants to let his mind sink into thoughts of the tower for very long. ]

I told you before, how demiflora are hunted, right? Most hide, or stick to settlements that try to protect themselves...

Others stay in the Tower. It's supposed to be a safe haven for demiflora of any kind — protected from the hunters, basically anyone who wants to hurt us. The only condition was we could never leave... and we weren't allowed to use our powers.

[ even now, after everything, it's still so easy to hear his mother's words. ]

It was our way of proving to the world we could be trusted. That we could be normal.