Bliss - Vanya Hargreeves FF *previously Sour Candy*

CHAPTER TWENTY

When she didnt see Vanya waiting by the wrought iron gate like she said, she checked the time and shook her head.

Seven minutes had passed since their phone call.

"Unbelievable." She mutters to herself, unable to stop the smile forming on her face.

However, when she opened the door something wiped it off of her face immediately. What, she was unsure of.

The door clicked closed behind her and she was jolted out of her thoughts by a thud, followed by a yell of pain that sent panic straight into her chest like needles.

It came from the right and she raced towards what sounded like Vanya, what she knew was Vanya, and spotted a tall, stocky figure standing over a smaller form on the floor. The attacker had a mask on and held a large metal pole, ready to strike again.

Florence darted forward and intercepted the metal weapon in its downward swing with her good hand, jumping between him and Vanya and kicking him square in the gut with such power that he stumbles back and releases the metal pipe.

She breathes out just as rushed footsteps come between them, and Luther runs in to fight the man, noticing the two women.

Florence lets the pipe clang against the floor and crouches beside Vanya, supporting her arm and pulling her up with wide eyes. She looks shaken and holds onto her hand, blood dripping from her forehead.

"Are you okay?" She breathes, heart racing.

Vanya manages a rapid nod and Florence tucks the smaller woman behind her, not letting go of her sleeve, as more of their siblings joined the fight out in the foyer. They watch from the doorway, holding their breaths.

Florences heart is pounding in her chest, each sound amplified in her ears tenfold.

The hitting and the grunting and the squeaking of something metal makes her snap her eyes above the stairs, far above where Luther and the man fought, the others assisting him.

She narrowed her eyes at the sight of a woman in a mask holding a knife to the chandelier fixture, directly above the others fighting.

Eyes flickering to the distance of the stairs and the stained glass windows meters behind the masked attacker, she thought quickly.

Florence tore her jacket from her body and sprinted forwards, not even thinking before kicking off and snapping her wings out.

The momentum pushed her through the air up to the banister so quickly no one could have seen her coming, and the very second the woman tore through the tethering, Florence had tackled her in a blur of darkness.

Feet not even touching the floor, her wings propelled them back towards the windows, and Florence could actually hear the womans heart beat spike in panic as she shoved her back.

The crashing of the chandelier and yells met Florences ears just as she sent her flying through the middle stained glass window, the glass shattering upon impact, and the person was sent flying through the air to the ground floor.

Florence caught herself by gripping onto either sides of the wall with her wings and pulled back from the fractured glass jutting out from all angles of the windowsill.

The others were still murmuring panicked to themselves downstairs and Florence exhaled, peering over the broken window just enough to see the attacker disappear over the garden wall, a heavy limp weighing them down.

"Florence?" Vanya's footsteps pounced up the stairs and she turned to meet her, grabbing her arms and reassuring her through touch that she was alright.

At the top of the stairs, they looked down at Luther who had been crushed by the chandelier fixture - he grunted and pushed it off of himself, tearing his clothes and exposing his skin, revealing thick dark hair that resembled an animal.

Allison gasped, Diego was speechless, while Vanya furrowed her eyebrows and held the woman next to her a little tighter.

Luther looked at the others who stared at him in horror and confusion, especially Allison, before he quickly departed with the idea to hide away from sight, ashamed.

Florences foggy mind struggled to keep up with the days events and her own racing thoughts.

"Did you know?"

Heads shook silently all around the room, and nursing their own injuries, still powered by the adrenaline of the attack, they began to dispurse.

Allison in the direction Luther had ran off, concern on her bruised face.

When Florence looked down at Vanya, she herself was fixated on the shattered window behind them.

Her eyes roamed over the coloured shards of glass scattered across the landing in a small radius from the window itself - the image, whatever it had been she couldnt recall, no longer clear in depiction with the destruction she had caused.

She swallowed and pulled her wings into her sides, feeling oddly exposed without her jacket.

"I didnt know you could move so fast," is what Vanya murmurs to break the heavy silence.

Truly, Florence didn't either. She just acted on pure adrenaline. Still, guilt swarmed her because she hadnt been fast enough to stop people getting hurt.

"Youre not hurt?" Vanya asks softly, concern flashing in her eyes as she looks the taller woman over.

She shakes her head, holding Vanyas arms. Whether it was to stabilise herself or to calm Vanya, she wasnt sure.

"Your head." She states, eyeing the bleeding wound. Florences hand went to the side of Vanya's face and she grimaced when her finger touched her temple, just to the side of the cut. It wasnt too deep, but it would bruise and scab over pretty soon.

"Im okay." Vanya assures her, eyes meeting her own.

Florence didn't immediately pull her hand away from the side of her face and frowned deeply at the shade of blue the spot above her eyebrow was turning due to bruising.

Vanya didnt mind.

They were far too concerned about eachother to even notice that her hand was there a little too long and they stood a little too close for it to just be friendly.

Neither of the women held onto those thoughts for too long as it didn't concern them both at the time.