abyssdressing | (no subject)

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[Today, Abyss DR, you'll find one small child plopped down in the middle of a pathway. He blinks and squints in the sudden sunlight, then turns his head away to try and block it out, not realizing that raising your hand to do so would accomplish the same thing. Once he dares to open his eyes again...

He looks confused, then scared. Of course, he's not sure what that uncomfortable feeling is that seizes his chest and makes the beating in it increase its speed, but he knows that it's unpleasant, and it makes him want to get away from whatever's causing it.

Where was he, anyway? This was bright with colors and shapes he's never seen before, not the dark, muted walls of the castle. He shouldn't be here, right? He was told to wait. Well... dropped to the floor and continuously pushed down every time he tried to follow that man until he got the message, anyway. But that message still rings clear - he needed to stay there. And he's not there anymore.

So, he's going to try to scoot and drag his way to a space between two buildings. It doesn't look as bright, so it's practically the same thing, right? Still... where was he?]

[[OOC: Hi everyone! Luke is as new as I am to this place, and not only that, but he's only about... oh, an hour or two old. Have fun with that!]]

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[Hm, a good choice. Asch would have made a face if he had to be seen carting around a kid with a girlie toy or doll. His dignity was in shambles already just having Luke clinging to him when they walked around, but Asch could live with it for now.

A smirk curled on his face when Luke mimicked him, and he rubbed the boy's back and corrected, gently. Maybe even asked, just to be sure.]

This?

[Though he's sure Luke wants this canine thing. It definitely looked cool, and Asch was moving to the row of clothes next. At least three outfits for now... Two outfits and some PJs for next time - i-if there was a next time! He picked those out, something classy, but casual, then moved onto the the things he needed. Gels, a few potions and bottles, some polish for his sword, a new whetstone...and some clean bandages.]

Now we pay.

[Then home and bed for you, little dreck. 8| It's way past your bedtime.]

Deh... thh-this? Th-This!

[It was easy to say the word once he knew what he was doing. He wasn't exactly sure what it meant, but he got the gist well enough. The clothes were next, though Luke didn't really pay attention as he played with his new doll more. The colors really appealed to him, as did the general look of the thing. Definitely better than... whatever those other things were.

Once Asch spoke again, though, Luke looked up at him again. Now that he was trying to speak correctly, he didn't seem to mind trying again at it, even though he still didn't know what he was talking about. It took repeating and trial and error to learn, right?]

Paaay?

[Asch chuckle softly and would have ruffled Luke's hair, but his hands were full with supplies and a baby dreck. Luke was a smart kid, though. He'd have to really begin tutoring him so he's know what the words he was speaking meant, but for now, just enhancing his vocabulary and talking to him was good enough. Asch didn't know it, but it was opening him up to the child as well. He'd never been a talkative person, after all.

Once at the check-out, Asch placed everything down and fished through his pockets for some gald. He gently tugged at Luke's doll to take it away, jingling the coins so as to distract Luke and give them to Luke. If he's successful, Asch places the doll down and gives a few coins to the replica. Then he points to the clerk, who's all but cooing at the two.]

Yes, pay. [Asch gives a few coins to the clerk, HIS SMILE GONE, then looks back at Luke and repeats.] Pay. Go ahead.

[It's a smart move to distract Luke from the doll. Once it was taken away, he was just about to protest and maybe even cry until the jingling of the coins caught his attention. What kind of noise was that? And what were they? Luke takes them in his hands and runs his fingers along the gold pieces, his expression one of curiosity. They were cool to the touch, and hard, too... Not like his doll at all.

Luke was just about to taste-test one of those coins when Asch spoke to him again. Pay? But... what did he mean by that? Luke stares blankly for a few seconds before he blinks, remembering while idly watching Asch that he handed some coins over. Was that what these things were for? Is this "pay"?

He looks down at the coins, then slowly hands them over with both hands hesitantly, as if he isn't really sure if this is the right thing to do.]

... Pay?

[Distraction is a success. Asch watches Luke as he touches the gald, and frowns as he's about to shove the things into his mouth. No, Luke, that's bad. You know that word from before? Bad. Luckily, another distraction works, and Luke's even' doing as Asch had instructed. He doesn't smile, not yet, but he will once out of public and the peoples' scrutinizing looks.

The teller giggles, takes the offered money, and thanks Luke with a smile. She then exchanges the coins and gives Asch his receipt, which is pocketed, and then a bag for the supplies. The doll is given right back to Luke with another smile and a quick comment.

You look just like your father.]

He's not my son! He's my...brother. ...My little brother.

[Asch merely grunts to the clerk's apology, then grabs his things and leaves without a word. Ugh...he just wanted to go home. Go home and rest. Maybe this would all be over in the morning. Over and gone.]

[Well. That snap made Luke's triumphant smile disappear in favor of looking up at Asch with wide eyes. Was there something wrong? Something the nice lady said...? Or was it him? Luke wasn't really sure, but it still makes him hold the doll close to him.

Once they're outside again, Luke leans in closer to Asch and looks up at him with big, questioning, concerned eyes. He can't ask if there's anything wrong, but he'd sure like to.]

[Damn it. Asch can feel Luke tense in his arms and he berates himself silently for his little outburst once they're outside, heading back to their room. Why had he snapped like that? Was it really so hard to accept that he was willingly taking care of the one responsible for taking his entire life away? Was that why? Or just the fact that it was the replica being mistaken for his son...or acknowledging him as something more than just "the replica"?

Asch didn't know. So he sighed and rubbed his hand over Luke's back slowly when the little dreck leaned in. Just once, though. Asch felt strangely tired, and just wanted to go to sleep.]

Did I scare you? ...It's nothing you did. [The apology is there, just unspoken.]

[Whatever Asch said, he still seemed... troubled. Or some unpleasant emotion of some sort... But what could he do?

Luke looks down at the doll in his arms, clutched tightly against his chest. He already loved it - though Asch made him feel safe and warm right now, holding onto this thing, being able to... That just added on to those feelings.

Maybe it'd help Asch?

He had to admit, Luke was hard pressed to give it up even for a few minutes. So, it takes him a minute or two, but he holds out the doll enough to let it rest against Asch's other shoulder. Maybe it'll make him feel better, too...]

[What...was Luke doing? Asch blinked and he walked, slowing to an immediate halt just outside the inn. Did he not want his toy anymore? Luke seemed to love it, though, and even hesitated to give it up now. Asch didn't understand, so just looked from the doll back to Luke with a look so confusion on his face. What did Luke want him to do?

Eventually, though, it dawned on him. Luke, and most other children, took comfort from silly little things like dolls, blankets, and toys. It was something they could always go back to and hold onto when they were upset. Was that what Luke was trying to give to him? Some form of...comfort? Asch looked at the doll and allowed a brief and small smile to grace his features. He wrapped his arms around the young boy and gave him a bit of a little hug. Deny it as Asch might, Luke was a cute kid. Maybe...m-maybe he could keep him around for a little bit.]

...Idiot.

[Have a hair ruffle, dreck. You aren't so bad at all, and Asch appreciates the effort to cheer him up.]

[Ah... That seemed to make him feel better, if the smile and the hug said anything. Luke smiled in return, even laughed from the hair ruffle, before he pulled that doll back against him. He still loves it, after all.

And once they get inside, once Luke realizes that it's warm in here, and Asch is still holding him and he's got his new doll... Well, he's a lot more tired than he thought he was. Or... whatever this unpleasant feeling is supposed to be. Luke shifts and makes a face, then lets out a big yawn before he realizes it.]

Ha-aaah? [WHAT DID HE JUST DO.]

[Good lord, Luke loves that dolly. Asch's going to be hard pressed to take it from him to wash if it ever gets dirty. Well, he'll just not think about that for now. Because now, Luke was definitely tired, and Asch was being a little more quick to get him to bed where he could sleep at last.

Asch gave an amused snort at the questioning sound Luke made after he yawned and held him close again, so the little dreck could rest against his shoulder before they got back to their room.]

You're ti--...sleepy, Luke. You just yawned.

[He won't press him for that word, though. The poor kid's mind must be a fog from fatigue. Straight to bed! Asch takes Luke back to his room, deposits the clothes he got for him on a dresser, and lays the boy down on the bed again, tucking him in with his new doll.]

I'll be right next door...so don't whine. [He hesitates, before smoothing Luke's hair back, like his own mother used to do, and sighed.] Good...good night...Luke.

[Ah... Asch held him closer. Well, that extra bit of warmth made him snuggle closer and nearly doze right off there on Asch's shoulder, though he still listened to what he had to say. "Sleepy" "Yawned"... What weird words.

Maybe he'll learn them someday...

And once he's down in the bed, he doesn't protest quite as much, now that he's much more tired and has something to hold on to. He does still look up at Asch with apprehension, because... what if he does disappear? What if he doesn't see him again?

But Asch smoothing his hair back helped him calm a little, and... well, he's too tired to think further on it. He'll just have to hope for the best... for Asch to come back and for that scary man to stay away forever.

The thoughts, without words as they are, make him hold his doll closer as he finally shuts his eyes and already starts to drift off.]

[Once Luke closes his eyes, Asch can move out of the room quietly. He turned to look back at the small child one last time as he hovered in the doorway, then turned again and shut the door with a soft click. He should be all right now.

Asch sighed for the nth time today, pushing his bangs back and away from his face as he headed toward his room to undress and get comfortable in bed. He won't exactly go to sleep - he never could sleep very easily - but he does lay down to stare up at his ceiling in thought. His mind felt muddled, and every thought that passed was one about Luke. His little replica sleeping soundly next door to him. Asch closed his eyes, and immediately heard Luke laugh, saw him smile, and something tight clutched at Asch's chest.

Could he give that up, now? He...had to. Asch wasn't fit to raise the replica! Maybe now, while he's small, but when he grows, and Asch is reminded of the replica he knew, back then...would he still care for him like he did now? Would he lash out and - Yulia forbid - strike him? Would he call him words like "dreck", "trash", and "reject"? He couldn't chance that happening. It wouldn't be right.

Problem was...Asch didn't want to give Luke away. Not entirely. And that thought made him toss and turn as he tries, desperately, to get some semblance of sleep.]

[It's a good thing Asch hasn't gone to sleep yet. Because along with the events of the day come the terrors of night, especially since it's so dark in the room. Luke had clutched his doll close and ducked under the blankets, and that had helped a little... but it didn't ease his mind. Thus, his consciousness provided the unease he was trying to ward off.

He dreamed of the dark, of waking up cold and not knowing a thing about the world. Of someone crying next to him, though he couldn't reach out to him... Of his wrist suddenly being twisted by a hand made of ice, of terrifying blue eyes that seemed to bear down on him, a scowl as the grip suddenly loosened, only for him to hit hard, solid ground. The ghosts that would flicker in and out of sight were suddenly close to him, reaching out and threatening him, and all of them had the same eyes as that man, and no matter how much he tried to get away, they were everywhere-

Even in his dream, he let out a scream and covered his head to try and get away from them all. He didn't seem to realize that this was happening outside of his dream as well.]

[Perhaps it's because Asch hadn't been sleeping - or just barely nodding off - that he heard Luke's cries of terror so easily. The fact that he was just next door helped quite a bit as well. It was a second or two later that the ex God-General's eyes open and he sat up, flinging the covers off.

Luke was cryi--no, Luke was screaming. Survival instincts kick in and Asch is up and awake in no time.]

LUKE?!

[BIG BROTHER IS COMING.

Asch flies out of bed and hurls himself into Luke's room, flicking on the lights and half expecting some burglar or whatever to be hovering over his bed or something.

Nothing. Just a bad dream, then. A nightmare. A nightmare...]

[Asch immediately goes to Luke, not thinking twice before he reaches out and tugs the young boy into his arms. A nightmare, just a nightmare... Asch can't be upset - he knew how bad that nightmare must have been. Luke had just been made, right? Then he must have remembered...

Asch closed his eyes and tucked Luke's head under his chin, rubbing his back slowly. He knew, he knew how scary it was. He experienced those same terrifying dreams. He still remembered some of them, too. The pain, the cold...the betrayal.]

Shh...Luke, you're fine. You're fine, hush. It's okay, just be quiet, now.

[Luke doesn't even realize where he is or what's going on - that was his first nightmare, the first time he's ever slept, and he's not sure what it was supposed to be. For all he knew he was actually back at the castle with that man, with all of those terrible ghosts, and for all he knew the sudden movement and the feeling of someone holding him was the man again, coming back to take him away...

Luke struggled at first, screamed and cried - most of all, he cried out for someone.]

Asch!

[Aside from his own, it was the only name he knew, the only person he'd met and come to trust. It's no surprise that he's trying to call for help from that man... But once he wrenches his eyes open and sees who it is, he just-

Starts to cry. It's no longer the hysterical sobs of a boy who's scared for his life, but the quiet ones of a boy who's just found his savior. Asch was here, and that man was gone. The one with the blue eyes... He was nowhere in sight, nor the ghosts or the cold, or... None of it was around.

So, he leans into Asch's hold and just cries, the memories of that horrible experience fresh in mind. After a moment, though, his sobs start to quiet down, and soon enough, they're just little sniffles. The comfort is certainly helping, along with the knowledge that he's somehow escaped from that castle again.

He's okay. He's okay. Asch is here.]

[The wriggling child in his arms wasn't anything Asch wasn't used to. In fact, it didn't bother him as much as it should have. He was used to things like this - nightmares and struggling against any and everything that seems like it's holding you down, even if it's just the sheets of your bed. Asch knew the pain, the suffering, the horror that Luke was experiencing. They had shared that horror, after all.

What really bothered Asch, however, was that Luke cried out his name. Asch.

Curling his arms around the small child when he finally just breaks down into tears, Asch holds and hushes the little child as quietly as he could. Luke's terrified cry of his name echoed in Asch's head, and he pressed his face into Luke's feathery red hair, rubbing his hand against Luke's back and letting him cry for a little bit, all the while speaking softly and reassuring Luke that it was all right. It was just a bad dream...]

Shh...shh...you're fine now.

[Asch pulled Luke away gently, wiping his face with the corner of one of the sheets. But after that, Asch allowed Luke to lay against him again. If he was so reliant on Asch's presence for comfort, then Asch would grant it to him this night. He picked Luke up into his arms and took him right to his room, where the bed just a little bit bigger. Enough space for two people to fit comfortably.]

You can sleep with me tonight, so nothing else can scare you. I'll be right here with you this time, Luke...I promise. I'll be right here all night, and I'll be here in the morning. So no more tears... [Asch paused. Those words...they were words from the lullaby his mother used to sing to him when he was sick. Maybe...maybe a lullaby would help?]

[They were moving again, Luke could tell that even with his eyes still full of tears. It was still dark, so he pressed his face against Asch's shoulder and shut his eyes. Even with someone there, his nerves were only lessened, not relieved fully - he couldn't see anything, and that man could be hiding anywhere... or those ghosts...

Even once they're in the bed and situated properly, and Asch is there and everything feels better, Luke's hands shake a little, and he finds himself still unable to sleep. How could he? He had gone back to the castle when he slept; what if it happened again? What if this was something Asch couldn't stop?

He was so tired... but he didn't want to sleep. Not if it meant going back there. So, he just lets out a quiet whimper and presses close to Asch. No, he won't sleep. He won't. But his body aches, and his eyes hurt...]

[As Asch took Luke back to his room, where the bed was larger, he tried to remember all the lyrics of his mother's lullaby for him, pushing out the questions of whether she sang that song for the replica at all or not. It was supposed to be his lullaby. Now it was just another thing the replica had taken from him--

No. No, that's not right. Stop thinking that.

Asch squeezed his eyes shut, angry with himself for straying down that bitter road once more, when Luke so desperately needed him, and began to rock the little boy gently in his arms as he - yes, Asch, himself - began to sing. It was quiet, barely above a mumble or a whisper at first, then began to grow as Asch grew more confident. It's not like his voice was bad or anything, quite the opposite, but Asch had never done this before. He never thought he'd have to! Ever.]

Goodnight, sleep tight...no more tears. In the morning, I'll be here. And when we say goodnight...dry your eyes. [He wipes at Luke's face again, for anything that remained.] Because we say goodnight...and not goodbye.

We say...goodnight and not....goodbye.

[Ah, what an ironic lullaby. It both pained and calmed Asch, but he kept his emotions hidden away, focus all on Luke now. Please sleep, little brother. You need to sleep now.]

[For a long moment all Luke could think about was everything that happened back in the castle - the dark, the cold, those eyes, those ghosts... It was all he knew back in that other world. No one came for him after he was told to stay...

But those thoughts break once he hears Asch's voice again, and not just speaking to him, but... what was that? It sounded so... pleasant. Soothing, peaceful... He strained to listen, and it was as if all of those dark thoughts floated away, as if the melody washed over him and made him feel... better. Safe. Home...

It was the first song Luke had ever heard. And judging by how quickly he relaxes and how he shuts his eyes, shuffles closer and begins to breathe deeply, it works. Luke didn't know it, but he was a replica, made of nothing but the fonon that embodied sound. Of course, that meant that hearing such a soothing sound would have a tremendous effect on him.]

[Asch is amazed by how rapidly the lullaby took effect to calm his little replica down. He looked down at him for a moment of two then started again, singing the song again and he shifted slightly to lay down in bed with Luke in his arms. It'd be better this way, even if Asch hadn't slept with anyone in his entire life. Luke wouldn't feel as scared if he was right there with him.

The movement of Asch's hand on Luke's back, and over his hair, was slow and tender, trying to lull the small child to sleep. Asch hushed him again, watching Luke's face as his lullaby dimmed to a slow and steady hum. It's okay...it's okay if you take this. He'll give it to you this time, replica. Just this one time, Asch will share something important of his with you. You need it right now, don't you? He understands.]

[Yes, he certainly needs it right now. But don't worry, Asch... That song is still yours. You're only sharing it for a while. That doesn't mean Luke won't want to hear it again, though.

Once they're laying down, Luke shifts closer to Asch and fists his hands lightly in his clothes while resting his cheek against him. He can feel Asch breathe like this, and the movement and the warmth, as well as Asch's actions and most especially his singing, serve to soothe him even further. It isn't long until his breathing evens out and deepens, a sure sign of sleep, and he doesn't go to the castle again. He's here and safe with Asch, and his dreams won't be remembered in the morning. He'll only remember the lullaby.]

[Asch remains awake even after Luke is lulled to sleep by his song, rubbing his back, petting his hair, or just watching his face. He sighed softly, and leaned his head on his pillow. This...wasn't so bad, really. Luke was warm, and having a body close to him - a body he trusted to be near him in his most vulnerable state - was strange and even comforting.

Asch tucked the little replica's head under his chin and pressed his face into Luke's hair, smiled into it as his eyes shut and sleep began to overtake him. Maybe, just maybe, he'll have good dreams tonight. Perhaps he could actually sleep easily this one time, and greet the dawn without bitterness.]

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/watches her soul wither away slowly. 8|

/popcorn :|

you are a horrible person. 8| /FLIPS

/SOBS because the popcorn is now ruined

/LAUGHS EVILLY.

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1/3

2/3

3/3

LUNCHBREAK TAG

THE BEST KIND.

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