interstellar5555 | I'll tell you all how the story ends

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I'll tell you all how the story ends

Who: Ghost Quest kids and all those who want to see them.
What: So as it turns out, going against the label might've been a bad move. Who knew, right?
When: Feb 3rd and after
Where: Pride HQ
Warnings: Talk of torture, aftermath of violence, aftermath of brainwashing, dudes there's some dark stuff.

For the past three days, the troublemakers and ghost helpers of Pride Records were kept locked away from their friends and their bands.

As far as everyone else knew, they were just gone. And then they were back.

They are all worse for wear, some far more than others and some much more mentally than physically, but they are all returned to their penthouses, finally, at the end of their ordeals.

But, at least they're back. Somewhat in one piece. For the most part.

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[When Squalo takes her by the shoulders, the sheet comes away from her neck before she can catch it.]

[It looks much like her ankles, though it also sports some very angry looking bite marks. And from the way Luci hurries to cover herself and looks at Squalo like a scared animal, it's probably evident that they weren't done with her consent.]

What about Yuffie? Fetch? Poe? Terry, Jamie, Nariko, Maxxie--?

[ He looks about just as shaken as her, withdrawing his hands as if he'd gotten burned, and stares at her. There's a hint of regret in his expression. ]

I -- I don't know, I'm sorry. I barely know most of them, half my own band was gone and --

[ Priorities. He was friends with Fetch, though, and now that he thinks about it -- ]

-- actually, I haven't really seen Fetch since the charity concert.

[She can't blame him for prioritizing his own band, and the news that half of MANTICORE was gone too is just as distressing. What the fuck was going on? What had she missed?]

Shit. Shit-- [Her head is spinning, she can't process this while she's falling apart herself, but she has to. She has to force herself to do it. Sheet fisted in both hands, she covers her face and takes a deep breath.]

[It's slowly starting to sound like she's hyperventilating instead of breathing.]

Elevator-- elevator now.

[ Two out of four, not counting him. Yeah. Kind of massive. ]

Voooi, breathe, alright?

[ He pushes the elevator button a couple more times, then after a moment of hesitation he shrugs off his coat and hangs it on her shoulders. She needs something better than a sheet if she's gonna be panic-running through half the HQ, alright? Luckily, he's wearing long-sleeved shirt underneath today. His left arm still looks a bit lumpy, but not outright suspicious like this. ]

I'm trying-- [She holds onto the coat, trying to use it to keep the sheet around her, though with holding her shoes she's having difficulty juggling all of them.]

[The elevator finally arrives and Luci hurries inside, hitting the button to close the door repeatedly. The plastic starts melting under her fingers, the sheet is starting to brown in her fist.]

They're back though, right? If, if you thought that what happened to me happened to them, they're back, right?

[ He'll do the top button for her, then, so it's pretty much a giant leather cape but she can still move her arms if she decides to. Or, you know, actually put them in the sleeves, but ain't nobody got time for that. ]

Yeah. Yeah, they're both back. So probably others too.

[ He's not sure why he feels an overwhelming familiarity at seeing her hands melt things. As if he did it every day, he reaches out to put his hand around hers and pull it away, not at all concerned about getting burned himself, while there's still some of that button to salvage, and then firmly presses it himself. ]

[ A few seconds, and the door closes. Guess he'll escort her for a bit, then. ]

[Luci's hand is warmer than it should be, like she's running a fever worthy of hospitalization, but what melted plastic doesn't seem to hurt him. She looks up at him, holding his hand tightly as if both expressing her gratitude for staying with her and anchoring herself.]

I had no idea. Lesedi, she just brought me into her office... It was just me and her. Small favors, I guess.

[ It's... strange, but considering he's seen her light it on fire and, just now, melt plastic, he's not going to question it. It's actually surprising that it doesn't hurt, though. ]

[ Unlike Xanxus' flame, a thought comes out of nowhere, and he quickly shakes it off. One Satan was enough to deal with for now. He'll sort of squeeze her hand a bit as a reassuring gesture, but otherwise his grip is pretty relaxed. ]

Ah. [ Pause. ] Think that was it?

[ You know. The thing. ]

[Luci snorts and shakes her head.]

Before I knew what was happening, I was in her office and she was reminding me I owed her a favor. And that it was starting right then.

[After a beat, Luci opens up the sheet. Squalo's seen her naked so she doesn't imagine he'll be shocked seeing her without clothes on-- but the rest of it is what she wants to explain without actually saying anything.]

[There a bruises from restraints, vicious looking hickeys in suggestive places, and marks Luci probably earned when she didn't move the way Lesedi wanted her to. Or because the CEO just wanted to hear Luci make some pained noise.]

[After a moment, she covers herself again. Now she doesn't have to say anything.]

She didn't ask about anybody, and I didn't say a word.

...

[ Oh. Well. He sort of expected it after seeing her in the sheet, to be honest, but the extent of those bruises is rather... well, extensive. ]

...that almost feels preferable right now. Will you be alright?

[The damage is indeed extensive. Squalo knows well that Luci doesn't shy from kink, but he also knows she's safe about it. There's nothing about what's been done to her that looks safe or sane.]

No it's fucking not. [Luci snaps, fingers digging into the sheet again.] I'll heal, this will go away, she'll move on to tormenting somebody else-- but putting anybody else's ass in the frying pan? That would haunt me long after all of this goes away.

[She leans back on the elevator wall and after a beat slams the back of her head into it.] You know what's not alright? I can't even be angry. I can't even find it in me to want to peel the skin from her bones over the span of three days, because every time I think about it all I can remember is how easy it was for her to just slam me down on her desk...! I was too scared to say shit!

[ Oh, he does. Almost a shame, really, but he'll keep that thought to himself. It's the reasonable thing to do, to go about it the way she does. ]

...that's kind of heroic. [ "Lucifer died for our sins", indeed. He quickly adds, ] And I'm not taking a piss at you, I really can't guarantee I wouldn't try saving my own ass first in that kind of situation.

[ At least he's honest? And also completely unphased by that "peel the skin from her bones" sentiment. He's even giving it an approving nod. ]

I don't blame you. [ As an attempt to lighten it; ] Think she ever sleeps?

...you could if it was Genos in her cross hairs. Or Tamara. [She gets that feeling about him-- that he'd give his life for the right person. It just has to be the right person.]

[She gives a little, quiet, unhinged chuckle.] No, I think she strokes her own ego and that's how she recharges at night. Just sitting up awake at her desk going, 'Who's a vile and torturous CEO? Me, that's right, me~' On particularly exciting nights, she gets somebody else to say it for her.

...you're probably right. [ He gets some kind of feeling, too. About honor and sacrifice, at least regarding those he deems worth it. ]

[ Quite possibly her, too. ]

[ And hey, he did take a knife for Tamara just a couple months back. ]

[ But, sorry, he's covering his mouth with his hand and doing his best to keep from snortlaughing at that. ]

Shit, that's spot on. I almost thought she was here for a moment.

Edited 2016-02-11 09:51 (UTC)

Ugh, I'm way hotter than she is. I should take offense to that comparison.

[She gives him a small and weak smile, still leaning against the elevator.]

You're a good guy, Squalo. You know I think that, right?

That's true. All the more credit to your impressions talent.

[ ... ]

[ There's a small pause. He... probably didn't until now, but of course he flashes teeth at her a moment later. ]

Funny you'd describe it that way. Don't think there's a line for 'good' in any of my PR.

[ ...yeah just trying to laugh it off, apparently. It's not that he doesn't think he's amazing, far from it, but 'a good guy'?.. For some reason, he feels like that's an absolutely wrong assessment. Even though he hasn't exactly done anything bad outside of publicity stunts... right? ]

I don't care about your PR, you're good to me. That's all I care about. Me.

[She huffs a little laugh and shrugs, shaking her head.] I thought the only thing anyone would say was that I should have known better. That feeling that no one would sympathize, or care, was so strong I had no idea if I'd make it out of there. Very few people have sympathy for the devil.

[ ...that gets an actual, genuine smile out of him. It doesn't even look like a grimace or a leer. ]

That's a good way to look at it. More people should be that way.

[ ...There's a lot of things he could say to that. That yeah, she should have known better, but also that he can understand perfectly why she did what she did -- and that there was no way to know what Lesedi would want. That none of it would make it her fault. But instead, he's thinking of shadows. Of glinting knives and spikes and blood splatters. ]

While some people are the devil. [ A pause, and for a moment, the image of Varia is clear as day, a perfect still before fading away. He smirks in that menacing, toothy way of his. ] And some people are their court of demons.

Most people are that way-- they just won't admit it because that would mean admitting people are selfish by nature. Plenty of people are nice. That doesn't mean they're good.

[She's said that before. To someone she'd just slept with. Who, though? The face doesn't ring a bell. Neither does the star over his eye.]

[Luci puts the memory aside and smiles at Squalo.] You think I should start an application process for my court?

True. Some just like to pretend they're beacons of purity and all that is good, but that's simply not a human thing to be.

[ He gives her an encouraging grin. ]

Only if I get a spot. [ ...It's on the tip of his tongue, so he blurts it out; ] You could start with your own set of deadly sins.

Well that's an intriguing idea... [Luci smirks, just a flicker of her usual personality coming through.] So I already have Pride and Wrath... [She muses, tapping her lips with a finger in thought.]

They're the best ones, so you're halfway there already.

[ ...why doesn't he need to ask who Wrath is? Well. ]

Any other potential candidates?

[She ponders, gnawing her lip.]

Koumei for Sloth. What do you think?

Hmm. He might give a few too many fucks, but it's probably as close as we'll get. [ Plus he's somehow convinced that Sloth is supposed to be genius levels of smart, and Koumei seemed pretty damn clever from what he knew of him. Not mentioning the 'general' part, but. ] I approve.

[ ...that elevator's probably going to stop at one of their floors soon. ]

[Probably, but it's been nice for the time being. Luci's almost forgotten that she's wrapped in a sheet and losing her mind.]

[She looks up when the elevator dings and opens, and she looks at Squalo for a sign of what he's going to do.]

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