|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2014 7:37 pm
"It'll be really quick, I promise," Zippeite had sworn up and down the entire trip there as they approached the wealthy home of the Sfakianos family.
The walk there was a good transition. Or at least Zippeite felt much more casual about the whole thing and it was almost like the weight of the initial decision he had made was a weight off of his shoulders. He was, probably poorly, beginning to think of purification as a big reset button. One he could push to forget all the bad things and erase his sins. The shattered pieces of his life could just be swept under the rug and forgotten.
But not without talking to Lydia.
His brain had basically clicked over into a rote level of comfort, replacing Bazzite with Hvergelmir on their way to cause extremely nerdy trouble. But then he remembered Bazzite was another very good reason to hit the reset button as his shoulders slumped.
Maybe it was combination of feeling weightless or the reminder or both but the walk there he actually ended up bringing it up to babble.
"In Junior high I had two best friends," He started, and walked with his hands in his pockets and a faint smile as he reminisced stupid stories about Johnny and the older, bigger boys they used to run from and dodge in the survival arena of being small and not entirely good at the social game in junior high.
"We corrupted at the same time, when we were still flailing around high school. Then he went by Bazzite. And when he made my rank he wanted the power boost so badly. Not for bad reasons, he had good intentions. But his general shattered his starseed. And he didn't die. He's a youma now. And sometimes when I visit the Rift I have to hear his metallic voice asking me why I don't visit more often. Ah... here..."
He pointed at the large home and powered down again, having wanted to be on equal ground with the squire for the duration of their travel and being aware of auras. But as he found his usual way up to the second story window of her bedroom. he figured it would probably be best to not approach like a stranger. And he could text her a warning he was here just in case too.
"Like I said, it'll just be really quick," He said with his hands almost preemptively defensive before he started climbing, muttering something about how her dad was going to kill him.
He had always pegged Lydia as naive and unaware of the terrorist games of Destiny City, so on that assumption he was figuring it to be an incredibly short 'goodbye forever' sort of deal and it was no big thing to leave the cosmos squire on the lawn.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Oct 14, 2014 5:13 am
Bazzite, she memorized the name. An agent who was turned into a youma by trying to accept more of Chaos's power than his starseed was ready to contain. But more than that -- Zippeite's friend. A high school kid trying to make something of himself, to live up to his authority figures' expectations. Now a lonely youma. Was he like Bischofite? Did he still remember his life before, still feel the same emotions? "I'm sorry about your friend," she said glumly. "He didn't deserve that. He was young, and he was doing his best. We all are." It wasn't much to say -- but it was all there was to say. That life was hard, and full of tragedy, and effort counted for something even if it never did anybody any good. It mattered in the ways people connected with each other, if not in the things they accomplished. Hvergelmir was glad she'd offered to give Zippeite his privacy in saying his goodbyes. The prospect of climbing a tree filled her with dread even if she hadn't been wearing a very un-tree-climby sort of dress. She didn't want to end the night hobbling her way to a purification on a broken leg. " Careful," she called up in a stage whisper.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Nov 07, 2014 8:12 pm
For days, Lydia barely left her room. Her classes were the only things that got her out of the house, and those she went through in a daze. She couldn't remember what happened from one class to another, or what she had eaten for breakfast. One day, she arrived at the DCU campus, only to discover that she had left the house without any of her textbooks. Or her left shoe.
That night, however, she remembered with painful detail.
Despite all of the arguing it took for her to get a place of her own, she felt more comfortable at her parents' house than in the apartment she was still getting used to. That house was safe. Nothing could get her there. And whatever mistakes she made, whatever precious things she broke, her parents would be able to fix things.
After every show of defiance meant to assert her independence, Lydia was five years old again, ready for Mana and Babbas to do everything for her. The part of her consciousness that could see that was horrified, but that horror was nothing in comparison to what she had seen. What she had done.
She curled up on the bed, stroking Mariposa's tail gently, as she ran through the events yet again. What could she have done differently? What was the moment when everything went wrong?
There was a noise outside, and Mariposa began to bark. "Shhhh," Lydia whispered, scratching her dog behind her ears. "It's probably just the wind." But Mari didn't stop, instead barking louder as she jumped off the bed and ran towards the window.
"There's nothing there." But that didn't help either, so she sighed and got up. Apparently she would have to prove it. She picked Mariposa up, and together they went to draw back the curtains and look out the large window.
There was someone out there. Lydia shrieked and hugged Mari closer to her, but as she stared, she realized she recognized who it was. "Cass?" she hissed, setting the Papillon down on her desk so she could open the window. "What are you doing out there? You almost gave me a heart attack!"
Now that the source of the noise was revealed, Mariposa stopped barking and sat in a pile of study notes, wagging her tail eagerly. Lydia petted her and waved Cass inside, trying to will her heart to stop beating so fast.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Nov 07, 2014 9:57 pm
Cas flailed and nearly fell out of the tree, and ended up clinging to a branch with all four of his limbs while his eyes bugged out in panic.
"I sent you a text to avoid the heart attack!" He whispered in a loud, harsh tone that was not really a whisper. He hunched his shoulders up and looked around rapidly, as if her father was about to come storming out and kick his a**. When there was no immediate activity, he allowed himself to be ushered inside.
Mariposa was a sight for sore eyes, but he gingerly reached his fingers out to the Pomeranian to sniff, but he hesitated to pet her as if he expected rejection.
He cleared his throat. "Uh... Lydie-- Lydia. I uh..." He shifted awkwardly on his feet. "Sorry for scaring you. But it was important."
He gestured out the window down to Hver. "That's my friend, Hvergelmir. And when we leave tonight, I'm not coming back. So I just. Wanted to come say goodbye. You've been my best friend for a long time, and the two of you are probably the only two friends I've got right now. So, before I disappear I just wanted.. to uh..."
He had repeated this corny speech a million times but now that it was go time it was all falling apart as he stumbled over his words and started stammering. His stomach dropped at the stupidest things, up to and including wondering if it was offensive to call Hvergelmir his friend when he didn't know anything about her and had spent just about every time they met being angry and insulting her and throwing a lot of tantrums.
He could feel a shade of deep red rising in his dark complexion and if he hadn't been powered down he probably would have teleported away out of embarrassment.
"I-... I uh. I mean. I. Okay that is all."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Nov 07, 2014 11:15 pm
Deep breath in, deep breath out. Rinse, repeat. As Cass climbed into her room, Lydia tried to get her breathing in check. His mention of a text message made her look guiltily at her bag. "My phone's off, so I didn't know. I'm sorry."
There was more to that story, like why her phone was off, and why she didn't really want to speak to anyone, but she didn't want to get into that. Cass was there, and she wasn't going to chase him away. Not if whatever he had to say was important enough for him to show up at her window.
She took a few steps back, trying to give him space. Mariposa, too excited about the visitor to even think of backing off, began to lick his fingers.
When he started his speech, she had a hard time understanding. It was odd that Cass would bring a friend, but not totally shocking. But why wouldn't he come back? Was this about her new place? Or something with her parents?
How was he planning on disappearing?
Realization began to sink in, feeling like a rock in her stomach. The details were still unclear, but it was obvious that Cass was planning on cutting himself out of her life. Again. That had been hard enough the first time, and she wasn't about to let him repeat that mistake. "Who's this person taking you away?" she demanded, marching towards the open window and sticking her head outside.
If she had been powered up, she would have sensed the knight standing on her lawn. Without her magical senses, she might have mistaken the woman outside for a normal person in a fancy gown. Except she had seen the woman, and the gown, before. Her presence gave new meaning to the words she had puzzled over, and made her even more afraid than she had been before.
Lydia slammed the window shut and turned back to Cass, the color slowly draining from her face. "I need you to tell me exactly what's going on. Right now. I won't let you leave until you do."
Depending on what the situation was, she wasn't sure she wanted to let him leave at all. But she needed to know what was happening. And she needed to hear it from him.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Nov 09, 2014 11:12 am
Cas let his mouth form a straight line that stretched across his face until it indented in his cheeks. And awkward frog face only broke so he could make a few stammering attempts. This was not going well.
He poked his head out shortly after Lydia to look down at Hvergelmir and give an exaggerated shrug. How do communicate complex issues to friends?
He looked around and nervously ran his fingers through his hair. "I-... uh. Look, Lyddie, I..."
He swallowed and powered up. At first it wasn't to make a statement, he was just incredibly nervous and his coping mechanism was to teleport the hell out of there. But once he'd done it, he had a new idea for some new words. Cheesy, expository words. "I did some bad things, and I can't go back home," He concluded finally. "It's hard to explain."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Nov 10, 2014 10:02 pm
From the moment Lydia spotted the knight in her yard, she knew that whatever Cass told her was going to be bad. And that she would have to be calm and understanding, no matter what he did. So when he powered up, she wasn't really surprised.
Who he powered up into, on the other hand, shocked her. She found herself letting out a strangled shriek as she reflexively jumped backwards, tripping on a pair of shoes she'd left in the middle of the floor, and falling, awkwardly, against the bed.
She knew him. From when they were both younger and inexperienced and fighting for no reason. And then, when they had both learned some things. That Captain had seemed so sad, and it still bothered her that she hadn't been able to help. The fact that all along, that had been Cass, was almost too much to believe, even though it made so much sense.
There was a brief moment where she wondered exactly what he had done. How closely he had followed the Negaverse's ideals. If he was anything like the General she had met, willing to go to terrible lengths to achieve her goals.
But if he was like that, he wouldn't be there talking to her. He was trying to make things right. More importantly, he was her friend. Everything else was secondary compared to that fact.
"No," Lydia said, barely able to choke the word out. "You didn't do anything wrong, Cass. They did, by doing this to you. It was never your fault."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2014 5:59 pm
Zippeite's first reflex was to reach out and attempt to save her when she started falling, but once she landed on the bed leaving him standing there with his empty hand out, he cringed and even made an abandoned motion to pull his hood down and duck.
"A lot of stuff is my fault," He countered from beneath the heel of his palm, barely peeking out at her.
This was going badly. His face flushed with embarrassment. These big gestures were supposed to go flawlessly like in every story, and this was not, at all. He put himself out there, and it was a complete disaster. What's worse is Lydia's phrasing seemed to indicate some understanding of what he was and he decided this had been a complete mistake.
"I... so... okay, bye," He said, turning and jumping out the window, landing on the lawn with an 'oof' before he got his footing and moved to grab Hvergelmir by the wrist for the purpose of tugging her along. "This was a mistake, let's just hurry and go find Camelot."
DivineSaturn I can't believe I tagged myself orz
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2014 7:35 pm
It was hard for Lydia to believe that Cass was capable of doing anything worse than cutting her out of his life (again). At the same time, she didn't want to cheapen his confession by saying it wasn't true. What sort of courage must it have taken for him to come here and talk to her like this? If she was in his shoes, would she be able to do the same?
Considering she'd done nothing but hide in her room for the past few days after her own terrible mistake, the answer was probably no.
"A lot of stuff is my fault, too." If he had the guts to own up to what he ded, even a little bit, then she needed to as well. And she was moments away from spilling her guts, but before she could, Cass escaped out the window.
Her first thought was that he was going against her express wishes, and where did he get the nerve to do that?
Her second thought was that if she let him leave, she would never see him again. It had been hard enough pretending that everything was okay for the few months where he'd been shutting her out. If he went and vanished, no amount of pretending would make it better.
So she gave chase, charging out the window after him. In the moment after she took her leap, she realized that she probably should have used the henshin pen in her pocket first.
Then she fell, shrieking at the top of her lungs before landing awkwardly in the large rhododendron planted beneath her window.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Nov 13, 2014 4:22 pm
Hvergelmir, who had been standing out on the lawn admiring the greenery, could not exactly say she was very well-informed on what was going on up above, in the window of this mystery house belonging to Zippeite's mystery friend. What she did know, however, was this: 1) Zippeite had just flung himself down from the window and, in what was beginning to seem like very characteristic behavior, was now skittishly trying to flee from some kind of an awkward situation as quickly as possible. He looked afraid, but she thought she knew that look. She'd worn it quite enough herself: it was the difference between visceral, gut-born fear and unwanted, unhelpful anxiety. This looked more like the latter. It couldn't possibly be wise to take him to Camelot in this state, she knew. Panicked and acting on raw, shove-the-problem-away impulses, it would be irresponsible to support his actions without having a care for his frame of mind in pursuing them. So, when he grabbed her wrist, she held firm, rather than going along with his insistences. Because she had, a second piece of information became immediately apparent: 2) Someone who was very much entirely a civilian -- in aura, in grace of fall, in apparent lack of recovery -- had just flung themselves out the second-story window right after him. 3) Into a bush. Hvergelmir tugged her hand away and made for the rhododendron bush instead. Its leaves were going dead with autumn and curling themselves into tight, hard little scrolls. "Wait," she said to Zippeite; and then, to the partially damaged bush, she said, "Hello? Are you alright? Are you hurt? Don't move if you're hurt, we can help you."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Nov 13, 2014 6:50 pm
A high pitched shriek had escaped Zippeite that he would later deny as soon as he comprehended that Lydia had jumped after him out the window. He stopped trying to coerce Hvergelmir away from the scene and ran to the bushes.
A creature of impulse, he immediately picked her up, intent to rescue the smaller teen. Half a second later he remembered when people fall you should not move them, probably, and so in mid heroic rescue he dropped her and stuck his two index knuckles in his mouth to bite down on them. A weird way of preventing himself from moving anything or touching anything ********, are you okay?!"
And then he suddenly remembered her father-- who would no doubt kill him where he stood-- was somewhere in the building they were next to and he ducked as if Iosif were marching out the door with murder in his eyes right this second.
He barely knew how to function on a good night. How do this?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Nov 13, 2014 8:21 pm
Well, that was a colossally stupid move, Lydia thought.
But fortunately, she realized as she tried to determine the extent of her injuries, it could have been much worse. A single story drop probably wasn't going to kill her unless she landed on her head, or maybe her back. As it was, her legs took most of the impact, which was lessened by the presence of the bush. She definitely owed the gardener her thanks, and probably a present besides.
Getting up was slow and sloppy, and she couldn't get far before she found herself swept up in Cass' arms. Only to be dropped back into the bush moments later. This time, she only let out a small yelp of surprise, flinging her arms out to cushion the much shorter fall.
Was he mad at her for doing something stupid? Scared of something- or someone- nearby? All of the above?
"I'm okay," she said, once she was sure that she was. Her legs felt like jello that hadn't set properly, but since she could move all of her fingers and toes without wanting to scream, she decided she was fine. Not ready to try to crawl out of the bush again just yet, but still fine. "Just some scratches. It's nothing I can't handle." If being a senshi had taught her anything, it was how to keep moving with minor injuries, though her definition of minor had changed over the years.
And then she found herself at a loss for words. When she'd tried to follow Cass, there was no time to come up with a step two of the plan. She wasn't even sure what she wanted, other than for him not to disappear on her. The simplest way to do that would be to prevent him from leaving. But that wasn't terribly feasible. If it came down to a show of force, she had no doubt that Cass was stronger, especially after the tumble she took.
And there was the lady knight's presence to consider as well. If they worked together, they could easily get away from her, off to- Lydia wasn't sure where, really, though she had a hunch. And if her hunch was right, stopping him from leaving wasn't in anyone's best interest. It might protect him temporarily, but how long would it be before someone came to hurt him for violating whatever orders he might have been given?
If there was no way to make him stay, there was only option left.
She turned, carefully, to face Cass's companion. "Miss Knight, I hope you won't be offended by what I'm about to say. I'm sure you're quite capable, and I can see that Cass trusts you. But I refuse to let you two disappear into the night, with only half an explanation. And so I must insist on accompanying you, to wherever you may be going."
He wasn't getting rid of her that easily. Jello legs or no, if they ran now, she was determined to pursue them.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2014 6:21 am
Miss Knight, the fallen civilian Zippeite had called Lyddie said. In her mind's eye, she saw Quenton again, raising a hidden knife to drive it deep into Bischofite's side. That was a mistake she'd made once, and it had very nearly cost a man his life. Risking that again with Zippeite, a poor scared kid who'd asked Hvergelmir along because he didn't want to go alone, seemed unforgivable. She didn't know this Lyddie. She didn't know what the young woman might be capable of. All she knew was that Lyddie had called her Miss Knight, which either meant Zippeite had told her that in their brief conversation, or Lyddie knew more than she was letting on. "No," Hvergelmir said firmly. "I'm sorry, I'm afraid it's not possible to take you where we're going." If this Lyddie wanted to argue the point, she was going to have to reveal what she knew. "But -- " She looked at Zippeite, still evidently in a panic. "Let's talk for a few minutes. I can understand your concern."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2014 8:14 pm
Apparently insisting didn't get a person as far as it used to. It was tempting to argue, but Lydia decided against it. That would surely drive them away, and while she was determined to follow no matter what, she didn't want to make it harder than it had to be.
Instead, she got to her feet, brushed off the leaves that clung to her clothes, and nodded. "By all means, let's talk. Would you like to come inside? My parents are attending a seminar in New York, so it's just me and Mari- my dog- at the moment." She moved as she spoke, pausing at a glass door a few yards away from the flattened rhododendron. "While I understand you may prefer standing out here, it does make it hard for me to play the host. And it may be easier to discuss important matters somewhere less exposed."
And if they were inside, they couldn't get away as quickly. It might even the odds, give her a chance to catch up, if it came to that.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2014 8:28 pm
Zippeite was trying to get his bearings, at least enough to speak English.
He remembered his tongue in the time it took Lydia to suggest going inside for... what? Discuss how he had been slowly alienating her since high school because he was secretly part of a big, evil, Chaos murder machine?
No. In fact, he had very limited time before Gently came home, found his note, and hunted his a** down.
Something he felt like maybe he should inform Hver of, which resulted in an awkward lean over to give a strained grumble in her ear about how he had left his caretaker and roommate a note that he was leaving.
He gave her a look that expressed agitated urgency and then said between his teeth. "Painite."
He looked to Lydia and squared his shoulders before holding up one hand, an attempt to look authoritative and serious. He used to be an inch or two shorter than Lydia, all through junior high, but between his training and a late growth spurt, he had gained on her in height and muscle. And now he was using all of that stature in an effort to intimidate her into backing off.
"Lydia," He started, pausing for a beat to make sure she was paying attention. "I can't stay. We need to leave, and I can't come back again. I'm sorry, but it's complicated. This was just a good bye."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
