[ mal looks wide-eyed from nico's back to the officers running past them. when nico starts back down the stairs, she stops on the third step. ]
Wait. We can't go. [ she turns around again. the walls are blackened by the fire, the stairs destroyed. the metal is warped. above them, she hears shouts echoing from the people trapped above them. ]
We can't leave it like this. We have to help. [ not waiting for an answer, she scrambles to find her spell book. she rips through the pages so fast it's a wonder she does not rip them out. the book shakes in her hands. ] I can fix this. I know I can fix this—
[ she tries to read, but the letters swim before her, changing places, reversing shape. she has to read the first line three times before it makes sense, and she lets out a half-choked cry of frustration. ]
no subject
Wait. We can't go. [ she turns around again. the walls are blackened by the fire, the stairs destroyed. the metal is warped. above them, she hears shouts echoing from the people trapped above them. ]
We can't leave it like this. We have to help. [ not waiting for an answer, she scrambles to find her spell book. she rips through the pages so fast it's a wonder she does not rip them out. the book shakes in her hands. ] I can fix this. I know I can fix this—
[ she tries to read, but the letters swim before her, changing places, reversing shape. she has to read the first line three times before it makes sense, and she lets out a half-choked cry of frustration. ]