Outside Needful Things, Friday

[needfully_yours]

Leland Gaunt's hold on Fandom might be weakening, as more and more people were delivered from his thrall, but you couldn't tell just by looking. The fog was more sinister. The boarded-up doors and windows of the storefront were more foreboding. And the sign out front remained, as creepy as ever:

YOU SAY HELLO
AND I SAY GOODBYE GOODBYE GOODBYE
I

Comments

[sarcastic_vamp]

Carmilla was starving. She hadn't made any trips off the island to get a few bites in (literally) because she had to stay here and defend. If anyone got too close, she might just have to drink her full of them.

[wrongkindofsith]

So Cara was willing to admit at her 'get a squirrel to point out which one's Carmilla' plan had a few flaws when the fog was too thick to find the furry little bastards, or at least one sober enough to do her any good.

Still, she had to be one of the ones guarding the store, so that narrowed it down some.

[justwantfriends]

Kira had been wandering past the storefront every day to see who was still out there, and frowned when she saw there were still so many familiar faces. When she saw Cara, she approached her slowly. "Hi. Are you, um, guarding this place? Or are you helping people?"

[wrongkindofsith]

"Kira." Cara remembered her from last summer. "I'm supposed to find Carmilla, but I need a description and the squirrels are unhelpful." Also drunk, but that went without saying.

[justwantfriends]

"Oh! Carmilla's over there, with the dark hair and the pretty face," Kira said, trying to subtly motion with her head. "I was really hoping she was secretly okay, as stupid as that sounds."

[sarcastic_vamp]

The girl in question was keeping a close eye on the two of them. Kira she recognized, of course, but she wasn't about to trust anyone right now.

The blonde now, even in thrall as she was right now, Carmilla had to admit she was hot. And had nice cleavage.

[wrongkindofsith]

"The pretty one," Cara repeated, looking in the direction Kira indicated and seeing the other girl watching them. "You have good taste."

"It's not stupid to want that," she added, more awkwardly than she'd like. "Not unless you let it keep you from helping her."

[justwantfriends]

"I didn't--I mean--" Ugh, words, why did you have to suck so much? "I won't let it stop anything. Someone needs to help her." Moving closer, Kira gave Carmilla a little wave and a smile. "Hey. What are you doing out here?"

That was probably a really dumb question at this point, but she was trying to start out friendly.

[sarcastic_vamp]

"Stay back!" Carmilla snarled. She still had the thick tree branch she'd picked up to use as a club, brandishing it as if it were light as a baseball bat.

"I won't let you in, and I won't let you take her from me. So back off, cupcakes, unless you want this to get ugly."

[wrongkindofsith]

Given her choice, Cara was an agiel first, ask questions later kind of girl, but that was less of an option here, and particulars aside, she recognised this kind of tired desperation and knew how to use it.

"We're not here to take her," she said, her voice pitched calm and soothingly. "We'd just like to hear more about her."

Don't point the irony of her complete lack of hesitation here while floundering for the right words with Kira, she'd just argue they were completely different skill sets.

[justwantfriends]

Kira nodded helpfully. "She must be very important, for you to be doing all of this to hold onto... whatever it is you have."

[sarcastic_vamp]

Carmilla pressed her free hand to her chest, reassuring herself the pouch containing the letter was still there. Talking about Elle was foreign to her. She'd never told any about Elle after she got free and Mother brought her back into the fold. But maybe if she made them understand, they'd go away.

"I loved her," she said warily. "And this is all I have left of Elle now."

[wrongkindofsith]

And it was a lie, not that Cara was going to point that out yet, since it'd all but guarantee she wouldn't destroy it. After all, she'd walked open eyed into a trap because she'd wanted to believe Dahlia wouldn't lead her into it.

"I understand exactly what you're feeling." And if she ever actually let herself think about it, she might ponder how incredibly fucked up it was she could only talk about it without the words catching in her throat to manipulate someone. "But you're wrong about it being all you have left."

[justwantfriends]

Kira, on the other hand, had never been through something like this, but that didn't mean she didn't know what sort of thing might be helpful to say. "You have your memories of her, right? Of all the time you were together? You had all of that before, and you'll still have all of that with or without whatever Mr. Gaunt sold you."

[sarcastic_vamp]

"You don't understand!" Carmilla said, and if she were to take a step back and see just how unhinged she was acting, she'd be facepalming at herself.

"The last memories I have of her are horrible. This...this" -- she clutched at the pouch again -- "makes it all better! I won't give it up."

[wrongkindofsith]

"It hurts," Cara's words were blunt and matter of fact, but she kept to the same level tone. "That's how you know you lost something real. Clinging to a thing doesn't make it better it just numbs it for a while. It can help, for a while, but the only real way to see what's on the other side of pain is to accept it."

That was Cara was still the emotional walking wounded, well, some kinds of pain were messier than others. It wasn't like she was claiming it was quick or easy.

"We can help you, but you have to trust us."