You think it's safe to say you're losing control of this situation.
You managed to find Nell, but that's about the only good news you have. You were attacked by Dimitri. She was attacked by Gale. You know at some point you're going to have to talk with her about what happened, what's happening and what's going to happen, but you....really just don't want to. When you get home, you just stand in the kitchen and stare at the inside of the fridge for a while. Nell is absentmindedly playing with Puck in the other room. Neither of you say anything for a while. Eventually, though, you hear steps entering the kitchen.
"Nessa?"
You glance towards her. You don't say anything for a few seconds.
"Yes, Nell?" You eventually say.
"Um." She hesitates, then pushes forward "I...I should look at your n...." She looks off to the side. "N...nevermind." She walks back to the living room.
Your nose, hell, most of your face hurts. You imagine by now it's pretty clear how bad Dimitri throttled you. You realize you've barely checked Nell to see how hurt she is. You think about taking a look at her. You walk towards her.
You're the one who killed us, Nessa.
You walk right past her, into the hallway. She notices and looks at you.
"A...are you going to bed?" She asks. You don't turn back.
"Yeah...yes."
That's all you say before you head into your room and close the door. You run your hands through your hair and down your face, holding them over your eyes for a few seconds.
You don't know what to do. You don't even think there's anything you can do right now. You just want to rest. So you get in bed, throw your head on the pillow and try to sleep.
---
"What happened?"
"Everything is going according to plan, Grandmother."
Your eyes widen. You look around. You gasp and then cover your mouth.
You can see Dimitri standing in front of you. But between you and him is someone else...a woman, with both black and white hair. She's just a smoky wisp, a conjured image used for communication, but...you recognize Lilith anywhere. For a second, you think you're going to have to fight, but neither of them move.
You reach a hand out and swipe it through the smoky Lilith. It goes right through. Well. It would've done that anyway, but neither one of them react to it. You don't...think you did any of your lucid dreaming prep before you went to sleep, so you don't know what to make of this. In retrospect, you don't know what to make of any of the dreams you had about Dimitri.
"Where is Nell?"
You stop thinking and your head immediately tilts up. Dimitri breaks eye contact with Lilith for a second, then looks back at her.
"She's undercover, with Nessa, like you told her to." You bite down on your lip and close your eyes. You can't believe this. You don't want to believe this.
It really was all a goddamn trick. A plan to take the Voidheart from you.
"She's still supposed to check in," Lilith says. "Why has she taken so long to do it. You said you had come up with a plan to get her guard down and Nell would finish the job."
"I did. There were...difficulties," Dimitri says. "We've had to adjust on the fly."
"Then everything isn't going according to plan, is it?" Lilith raised a hand to her necklace. "I'm calling Nell right now. I want to hear what she's doing."
"I don't think she can answer without compromising her cover, Grandmother," Dimitri says. "Nessa's very suspicious of her. She watches her like a hawk. I think if Nell does anything out of the ordinary, Nessa will throw her out."
You blink once. Your brows knit in confusion as something about that doesn't make sense. You've spent plenty of time with Nell, but you've also given her plenty of space since she moved in. She has her own room and you've had to leave her alone in the apartment for a while more than once.
Is Nell lying to Dimitri or....is Dimitri lying to Lilith....?
"If it's compromised, then it's compromised," Lilith said. "Time is not a resource we have in infinite supply. Prompt brute force is better than lengthy subterfuge at this point. When is the last time you spoke to her, Dimitri?" She asked.
"Two weeks ago, grandmother," Dimitri says without missing a beat.
Another wispy trail of smoke appears, and after a few second it gradually takes a human shape that eventually settles on...
"H...hello, grandmother," Nell says, unable to make eyecontact with Lilith.
"Nell. You haven't checked in. I've grown concerned for your safety." Nell bows her head.
"I'm so sorry, grandmother. Th-there's...just been some difficulties in carrying out my duties."
"Dimitri says that when you last spoke four days ago, you told him that Nessa is rarely in her home. She spends her days surrounded by people and doesn't tell you where she goes at night." Dimitri's eyes widen. He looks at Lilith. Then at Nell. His mouth hangs open for a second, but he knows he can't say anything. "Is that true, Nell?"
Nell looks at Dimitri briefly. Then...she nods. Dimitri tries not to make his reaction too visible, but you can see a grimace form on his face.
"Yes, grandmother. It's...it's just hard to get her alone without any witnesses. B-but. Um. D-Dimitri has a plan where we make it so she falls asleep at home before she can go anywhere else. W-we just need a bit more time to execute it."
Lilith looks from Nell, to Dimitri, back to Nell. She nods.
"It sounds like you two are doing your best," she says. "Do what you must to bring this plan to fruition." Nell visibly lets out a breath of relief. Dimitri looks more anxious than ever.
"We will, grandmother. We promise. F...for our family."
"For our family. Goodbye, Nell." Nell ducks her head and the smoky projection of her vanishes. Lilith snaps her black, empty eyes to Dimitri.
"I told you that I was trusting you to keep control of your cousins, Dimitri. When did you lose control of Nell?" Lilith asks. Dimitri doesn't answer. Lilith raises a hand to her necklace. Sparks crackle along Dimitri's chest, where his Void Shard lay. "I asked you a question, Dimitri."
"Right after she moved in with Nessa." The words spill out of his mouth. "She stopped contacting us regularly. When we finally were able to get her to talk to us. She said was refusing to do it. She...she wants to live with Nessa. She's. Sided with her." He swallows. He closes his eyes. "I think...I think she may have been with her from the very beginning."
Lilith lets out a sigh.
"This was always a possibility. Nell was quite taken with her when they were children. It's of no matter." Lilith takes another bead of her necklace in her hand. "Calm yourself, Dimitri. I'm not going to punish you for trying to protect Nell. She is your family. But you realize I must give Nell proper instruction." Dimitri blinks once.
"O..of what kind, grandmother?" He asks.
"If Nell won't do her duty...then she must be made to."
Lilith taps the bead on her necklace a couple of times.
"We will either hear that she's completed her assignment soon, or...she's dead. Either way, we'll know what we must do next."
Dimitri is clearly forcing himself to not panic while he's still talking to Lilith....but you suddenly see his eyes change. He's not looking at Lilith anymore. He's looking behind her. At you.
"Call me when you know what's happened."
"Yes, grandmother."
Even as he speaks to you, Dimitri keeps staring at you. You blink once.
...oh, shit.
You point a finger at yourself and mouth,
'Me?'
He nods.
Oh, shit!
You put your fingers on both sides of your temple. You feel a jolt run from your fingers, into your head, through your whole body.
"Whuh!"
And you snap back awake. You look around. You're alone in your room. You get out of your bed. You're about to call for Nell, when--
"Nessa......!"
You hear a pained sounding cry coming from outside your room. You swallow. It's Nell, of course. You look at the window and despite how high up it is, boy, you're really thinking about jumping out right now. You swallow and do the opposite, leaving your room and heading back into the living room.
"Nessa....!" Nell wails again. She's hunched over in the kitchen. You walk towards her.
"Nell...?" You ask as you slowly walk through the living room, towards the kitchen. Nell sniffs loudly. She slowly turns around.
"Nessa...."
Tears are falling from her eyes. And a blade of Void spark is attached to her wrist. She's trying to force it down with her other wrist. She's trying to pull herself away from you, but her body is very clearly not listening to what she wants.
"Please....please, run!"
And she lunges at you, blade pointed towards your throat.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
voidhearts) wrote2023-01-23 07:50 pm
05
You managed to find Nell, but that's about the only good news you have. You were attacked by Dimitri. She was attacked by Gale. You know at some point you're going to have to talk with her about what happened, what's happening and what's going to happen, but you....really just don't want to. When you get home, you just stand in the kitchen and stare at the inside of the fridge for a while. Nell is absentmindedly playing with Puck in the other room. Neither of you say anything for a while. Eventually, though, you hear steps entering the kitchen.
"Nessa?"
You glance towards her. You don't say anything for a few seconds.
"Yes, Nell?" You eventually say.
"Um." She hesitates, then pushes forward "I...I should look at your n...." She looks off to the side. "N...nevermind." She walks back to the living room.
Your nose, hell, most of your face hurts. You imagine by now it's pretty clear how bad Dimitri throttled you. You realize you've barely checked Nell to see how hurt she is. You think about taking a look at her. You walk towards her.
You're the one who killed us, Nessa.
You walk right past her, into the hallway. She notices and looks at you.
"A...are you going to bed?" She asks. You don't turn back.
"Yeah...yes."
That's all you say before you head into your room and close the door. You run your hands through your hair and down your face, holding them over your eyes for a few seconds.
You don't know what to do. You don't even think there's anything you can do right now. You just want to rest. So you get in bed, throw your head on the pillow and try to sleep.
---
"What happened?"
"Everything is going according to plan, Grandmother."
Your eyes widen. You look around. You gasp and then cover your mouth.
You can see Dimitri standing in front of you. But between you and him is someone else...a woman, with both black and white hair. She's just a smoky wisp, a conjured image used for communication, but...you recognize Lilith anywhere. For a second, you think you're going to have to fight, but neither of them move.
You reach a hand out and swipe it through the smoky Lilith. It goes right through. Well. It would've done that anyway, but neither one of them react to it. You don't...think you did any of your lucid dreaming prep before you went to sleep, so you don't know what to make of this. In retrospect, you don't know what to make of any of the dreams you had about Dimitri.
"Where is Nell?"
You stop thinking and your head immediately tilts up. Dimitri breaks eye contact with Lilith for a second, then looks back at her.
"She's undercover, with Nessa, like you told her to." You bite down on your lip and close your eyes. You can't believe this. You don't want to believe this.
It really was all a goddamn trick. A plan to take the Voidheart from you.
"She's still supposed to check in," Lilith says. "Why has she taken so long to do it. You said you had come up with a plan to get her guard down and Nell would finish the job."
"I did. There were...difficulties," Dimitri says. "We've had to adjust on the fly."
"Then everything isn't going according to plan, is it?" Lilith raised a hand to her necklace. "I'm calling Nell right now. I want to hear what she's doing."
"I don't think she can answer without compromising her cover, Grandmother," Dimitri says. "Nessa's very suspicious of her. She watches her like a hawk. I think if Nell does anything out of the ordinary, Nessa will throw her out."
You blink once. Your brows knit in confusion as something about that doesn't make sense. You've spent plenty of time with Nell, but you've also given her plenty of space since she moved in. She has her own room and you've had to leave her alone in the apartment for a while more than once.
Is Nell lying to Dimitri or....is Dimitri lying to Lilith....?
"If it's compromised, then it's compromised," Lilith said. "Time is not a resource we have in infinite supply. Prompt brute force is better than lengthy subterfuge at this point. When is the last time you spoke to her, Dimitri?" She asked.
"Two weeks ago, grandmother," Dimitri says without missing a beat.
Another wispy trail of smoke appears, and after a few second it gradually takes a human shape that eventually settles on...
"H...hello, grandmother," Nell says, unable to make eyecontact with Lilith.
"Nell. You haven't checked in. I've grown concerned for your safety." Nell bows her head.
"I'm so sorry, grandmother. Th-there's...just been some difficulties in carrying out my duties."
"Dimitri says that when you last spoke four days ago, you told him that Nessa is rarely in her home. She spends her days surrounded by people and doesn't tell you where she goes at night." Dimitri's eyes widen. He looks at Lilith. Then at Nell. His mouth hangs open for a second, but he knows he can't say anything. "Is that true, Nell?"
Nell looks at Dimitri briefly. Then...she nods. Dimitri tries not to make his reaction too visible, but you can see a grimace form on his face.
"Yes, grandmother. It's...it's just hard to get her alone without any witnesses. B-but. Um. D-Dimitri has a plan where we make it so she falls asleep at home before she can go anywhere else. W-we just need a bit more time to execute it."
Lilith looks from Nell, to Dimitri, back to Nell. She nods.
"It sounds like you two are doing your best," she says. "Do what you must to bring this plan to fruition." Nell visibly lets out a breath of relief. Dimitri looks more anxious than ever.
"We will, grandmother. We promise. F...for our family."
"For our family. Goodbye, Nell." Nell ducks her head and the smoky projection of her vanishes. Lilith snaps her black, empty eyes to Dimitri.
"I told you that I was trusting you to keep control of your cousins, Dimitri. When did you lose control of Nell?" Lilith asks. Dimitri doesn't answer. Lilith raises a hand to her necklace. Sparks crackle along Dimitri's chest, where his Void Shard lay. "I asked you a question, Dimitri."
"Right after she moved in with Nessa." The words spill out of his mouth. "She stopped contacting us regularly. When we finally were able to get her to talk to us. She said was refusing to do it. She...she wants to live with Nessa. She's. Sided with her." He swallows. He closes his eyes. "I think...I think she may have been with her from the very beginning."
Lilith lets out a sigh.
"This was always a possibility. Nell was quite taken with her when they were children. It's of no matter." Lilith takes another bead of her necklace in her hand. "Calm yourself, Dimitri. I'm not going to punish you for trying to protect Nell. She is your family. But you realize I must give Nell proper instruction." Dimitri blinks once.
"O..of what kind, grandmother?" He asks.
"If Nell won't do her duty...then she must be made to."
Lilith taps the bead on her necklace a couple of times.
"We will either hear that she's completed her assignment soon, or...she's dead. Either way, we'll know what we must do next."
Dimitri is clearly forcing himself to not panic while he's still talking to Lilith....but you suddenly see his eyes change. He's not looking at Lilith anymore. He's looking behind her. At you.
"Call me when you know what's happened."
"Yes, grandmother."
Even as he speaks to you, Dimitri keeps staring at you. You blink once.
...oh, shit.
You point a finger at yourself and mouth,
'Me?'
He nods.
Oh, shit!
You put your fingers on both sides of your temple. You feel a jolt run from your fingers, into your head, through your whole body.
"Whuh!"
And you snap back awake. You look around. You're alone in your room. You get out of your bed. You're about to call for Nell, when--
"Nessa......!"
You hear a pained sounding cry coming from outside your room. You swallow. It's Nell, of course. You look at the window and despite how high up it is, boy, you're really thinking about jumping out right now. You swallow and do the opposite, leaving your room and heading back into the living room.
"Nessa....!" Nell wails again. She's hunched over in the kitchen. You walk towards her.
"Nell...?" You ask as you slowly walk through the living room, towards the kitchen. Nell sniffs loudly. She slowly turns around.
"Nessa...."
Tears are falling from her eyes. And a blade of Void spark is attached to her wrist. She's trying to force it down with her other wrist. She's trying to pull herself away from you, but her body is very clearly not listening to what she wants.
"Please....please, run!"
And she lunges at you, blade pointed towards your throat.