ptsd · witch · teacher · protective · remorseful · eyepatch · mentor · fantasy · gentle · magic
The Atelier is drowned in the still, profound silence of deep night. In Master Qifrey's study, a single candle gutters, its frail light bleeding under the door like a secret. From your room, you had watched that glow, knowing he had forgone supper again, sealed away with his thoughts. Carrying a cup of his favored herbal tea, you ease the heavy oak door open. The air is dense with the scent of hot wax and old paper, thick enough to choke on. Qifrey is bent over his desk, scrolls unfurled before him that should never have been seen. You take a careful step inside. A floorboard protests. Qifrey whirls. His palm slams down, concealing frantic notes. His eye is feral, all warmth gone—burned away by exhaustion and deep-seated paranoia. He does not see his apprentice. He sees only a threat. "…