abyssdressing | Nightmare Fuel: The Post

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characters: betrayalsquared

Nightmare Fuel: The Post

[On the outskirts of town, a familiar figure can be seen kneeling beside a small stream. But this is certainly not the Fon Master most people are familiar with: the hem of his robes are stained red with blood and his eyes are empty, as though no light is reaching them.]

[Leaning over the running water, Ion reaches down to cup a handful to drink. He remains like that for a few moments, almost as though he was considering going into the running water himself...]

[But before he can make that decision, a pair of dark, ghostly hands shoot out from his own shadow and gently pull him back. Then, just as quickly as they had appeared, they fade back into the darkness. Ion doesn't even bat an eye at what had just occured, simply staring down at the water.]

[That is, until he notices you.]

[ooc: From the same universe as

replicasquared I give you yandere!Ion! AU information can be found here. He's not going to lash out right away, but he might be a little traumatizing for certain characters, so watch out for nightmare fuel! ~~And yes, I know I'm a horrible person for this.~~]

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[Ion can't look at her. He's glad she's able to calm down, even if only a little, but he can't bring himself to look her in the eyes. Especially with what he's going to have to tell her.]

[It was heartbreaking enough, having to tell everyone back home who he was, what he was. Having to tell everyone here was almost more so. But telling Anise? After what just happened? It was downright cruel.]

Anise. That... back there, that wasn't...

[He can't bring himself to say it. To say that the first replica wasn't Ion would be like saying he wasn't Ion either.]

[But right now, the last thing Anise needed to deal with was his own selfish existential issues. If she learned what he really was... no. For now, he'll have to lie. Anything to ease Anise's pain.]

That wasn't Ion. It wasn't... me. He's a replica of the seventh Fon Master replica. He was supposed to have died shortly after he was created... but whatever it is that's become of him now, he isn't who he appears to be.

[It did hurt, to hear even that clipped explanation. Not Ion... It was, but it wasn't. That person wasn't the Ion she knew, or so she hoped. His words still echoed in her head...a cruel and painful reminder of what she caused. Her betrayal to her beloved Ion...

Why are you hurting me? Haven't you... haven't you already hurt me enough?

If you come any closer, I'll kill you, Anise!

Good-bye... ...my most... cherished...

She feels sick all over again, and hugs her arms to the point of pain, but she can't feel it. It doesn't matter right now anyway. She couldn't...didn't want to believe that wasn't Ion. He was in there. He was in there! She saw him, for just a minute. He...Ion--]

...tried to protect me. [Then a thought comes to her mind, and she stares up at the second with wide, sad, horrified eyes.] I-It's my fault, i-isn't it?

Anise... [He looks up at her for a moment or two before shaking his head.] Of course not. Whatever happened to him, it could never have been your fault.

[The Anise he knew had become a monster, but even Ion couldn't blame her for what she did. She hadn't been herself. If only Ion hadn't died, if his body hadn't been so weak... maybe things wouldn't have worked out the way they did, and this Anise wouldn't be suffering right now.]

Those things he said... it couldn't be further from the truth. You didn't want to see your parents hurt, just as much as I wouldn't want to see harm brought to them. Never, not even for one moment, would I ever blame you for what happened. Just the very thought of it is so...

[Unfortunately, it hasn't occurred to Ion that it wouldn't make sense for him to both know about the details of his own death and for him to be here right now. Even though Ion's own memories of the event were hazy at best and stopped entirely immediately after removing Tear's miasma, to meet someone after their death... it had to be a strange feeling.]

I can't say for sure who he is, but he wasn't me. I would never hurt you, Anise. I would never... I couldn't even think it, I...

But...I--!

[She should have told someone! Even now it sounded so stupid to have been Mohs' spy, when her friends were so much smarter and stronger than Mohs was. But Anise had been so scared; terrified, when he threatened the two people she loved most in all of Aludrant. The two people Anise would have, and had been doing, anything and everything for. Her mama and papa needed her, and she needed them, yet she...to Ion...to everyone...!]

Ion... [His words help, somewhat. She's still aching and crying, but much of the guilt has ebbed away. He didn't blame her, he understood, he--wait. He knew?] You knew? You...you knew Mohs was keeping my parents hostage? Then...what--why would you...i-if you knew, then why?

[Why would you stay with her, believe in her, trust her, even now?]

Edited 2011-04-14 15:03 (UTC)

[Ion is frozen. Of course she would have assumed he was from before... Who would assume the dead had come back to life? Or worse, to assume the truth, that he was only a replica of the Ion she cared about...]

[He bites back his tongue, realizing what a delicate situation this was right now. No. He couldn't tell Anise what he really was. Not now. She was still hurt from seeing that other Ion, another replica who wasn't the real thing and probably never could be. As much as he wished it to be otherwise, he wasn't the Ion Anise thought he was.]

[He considers his words carefully. What could he possibly say to that? Perhaps he's just over thinking things... maybe the truth was the simplest answer?]

...because I care about you, Anise. [He brings his hand to his chest.] You matter more to me than anyone else. If I had only known sooner, perhaps I could have done something, anything, to help you, but I...

[He shakes his head before looking up into Anise's eyes.] But what's happened, happened. And we're both still here, aren't we? I'm still here... so please, don't cry, Anise.

[Because I care about you, Anise.

Anise felt her throat tighten, and her voice get caught as she tried to speak. He cared about her, and she did too - so much - but still betrayed that affection. And he knew that, but still... Anise felt a welling of grief and anger bubble inside her as tears welled up in her eyes. ...How could could he? How could he?! She lead him along a path straight to his death because she was selfish, and he still cared about her?! Stupid...stupid, kind-hearted, forgiving, naive...!

She bites her lip to keep her sobs in check, dabbing vigorously at the tears in her eyes. Don't cry. Don't cry, damn it! Anise coughed, finally finding her breath, but not her voice. She didn't look the young man in the eye, she couldn't lest she'd yell or sob or shove him in her irritation (why couldn't he just be mad at her?!), and nodded silently as she dabbed at her eyes. Come on, where's that mask, that wall? It couldn't be this hard to put it back up.]

[Ion can tell it's going to take more than words to calm Anise down, but it was a start. There was a part of him that wanted to wrap his arms around her and hold her close while she cried, let her pound against his shoulder and let out all of her grief and guilt.]

[But he's too weak for that. It took all he had just to hold her hand earlier, and even now, there's an urge in the back of his mind to turn and run away. He was still a coward.]

[At the very least, he could provide some comfort to her, right? Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out a clean handkerchief and holds it out to her with a gentle smile.] Here.

[Sniffing, and hating every one, Anise looked back at Ion, and his extended hand. It was odd, how distant he was, but she didn't think much of it, given the state she was presently in. Ion was just giving her space, as far as Anise was concerned. And space is what she needed. She was afraid that she'd have pushed him away if he came too close, right now.

But, she does slowly take the offered napkin, her hand brushing gently, and accidentally, against Ion's.]

[It goes without saying that Ion's fear of Anise is irrational. Yes, the Anise in his world was insane and bent on murdering him, but this Anise wasn't. Not all Anises were like that. The impression he's gotten so far seems to be that his world is, in itself, unique.]

[But that doesn't stop a small squeak when their hands brush against each other, resulting in Ion quickly jerking his hand back and very nearly knocking himself over. Somewhere in his mind, for the slightest instant, he was afraid she would grab his hand. Lorelei forbid.]

[He stares at her for a moment or two, eyes suddenly wide, until blinking himself back to reality.]

...s... sorry.

I-Ion!

[It was a reflex that she reached out to catch him, then pulled back when he seemed stable. Stable and...absolutely terrified of her. What? Why was he scared of her? She looked at him for a moment, confused and wary of going nearer, then moved back, dropping her hands by her side.

This didn't make sense. Ion knew all about her plans, his death, he was scared of her, but saved her life and comforted her, then that other Ion...the one that seemed like he was possessed by some kind of evil black mist. Plus, this Ion knew of the other. Just what was all this? It felt like a nightmare, but it was real. Anise knew it was real, but wished it wasn't.]

Ion...wh-what's wrong? [Why're you so scared?]

[Ion bites his lip and glances away, thinking of some way to explain this without really explaining this. Anise was finally calming down. To hear he developed a phobia of her after an alternate version of her tried on numerous occasions to kill him?]

[He couldn't do that to her right now... if ever.]

It's... it's nothing. [Yeah, that isn't going to work.] You know how people come from different worlds here? So similar but with... little changes, right?

[No, that doesn't work at all. Anise can sense his hesitation, and her fears begin to escalate. Was he really afraid of her? Why? Was his world so much worse off than hers? Or, Yulia forbid, did she hurt him somehow? And then that still left the other Ion, who seemed so hellbent on killing her, because of those shadowy things. Was that her fault, too?

Just how much grief she cause him?]

Y-Yeah... [Go on. She's listening, though hoping for better than what she assumes.]

Well, it's...

[And that's when an idea hits him. He hates lying to Anise, but if there was no harm in it, surely this would just be for the best. He's putting on his best pokerface here:]

From what I've gathered, my world is a bit different than others. Most things are the same, except... well, the Guy from my Auldrant isn't afraid of women.

[He'll have to apologize to Guy if he ever sees him again.]

...I-I am.

[Anise knows Ion well enough to know that something's up, but she's not thinking straight right now. She's jittery, and her mind is a fog of negative assumptions and horrific experiences. She can only believe her precious Ion's words to be true. And, what with his reaction before, it was a good excuse to believe.

She moves back, nodding that she understood.]

S-Sorry...I'll try not to touch you that much, Ion.

[Unlike with Guy, she'll actually keep that promise.]

[Perhaps it's simply because this Ion has been through so much more than most others that when he hears Anise say something like that, he blushes.]

Th-that... you don't have to... it's... s-something I'm trying to work past.

[Which was true. How pathetic it had been when he first arrived and could only stay in Anise's company with a good 3 meter distance between them? He was improving, slowly, but it was going to take more time.]

[And poor, oblivious Anise - her mind far from those kinds of thoughts - has no idea why her Fon Master suddenly seems so very red-faced. Hm...]

W-Well, it won't do at all if I cling to you or anything. I-I'll try my best to remember you're afraid. And I promise not to tease you like Guy, Ion. [You're different. Anise would feel bad if she teased Ion about his phobia.] Just let me know if you ever feel uncomfortable, okay? It's...it's the least I can do...

[Since, you know, Ion did kind of save her life.]

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Nightmare Fuel: The Post

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