A Nightmare on Luceti Street 2: The Reapening

[poppetry]

Who: poppetry, and her numerous victims: shadedsunlight, consultmybooks, perplex_me, cakeblocked, ofthediaphragm, magiconcehad, vanityunbcoming, and last but not least, a surprise appearance from skulljokelol.
What: Xion finds this mask in her room. How mysterious. But things start to go wrong after she's compelled to put it on.....
When: Afternoon through early night of the 23rd.
Where: Starting at KH house, then ranging all over the village.
Summary:

Comments

[poppetry]

[ Xion has flickered in an out of conscious awareness over the course of this night. Most of the time she has been riding along in her own body like an impartial, detached observer - she sees, she feels, but she does not experience. Except, perhaps, for very brief, painful moments when she has control -- when she can, for just an instant, care.

It is in such a moment that she sees Giles and Ginia outside of Seventh Heaven. ... had she known he was injured? When had it even happened? Who was that woman he was with? Why was she here? Why was this happening?

... why ... why did they have to walk out, just then? There is a cry in her soul for them to run, leave, go back inside, get away from her. But she does not voice it. And with a smooth, silent mental click, the mask reasserts its control.

The nature of her movement is odd. She seems almost to glide over the ground, though she walks like any normal person would. But in the dark, her glowing eyes are more eerie than ever.

Xion sees their clasped hands. She smiles. And she giggles, quiet, childlike in the dark.

And she closes the distance, her movements careful, with all the studied relaxation of a predator before too-easy prey. ]

[consultmybooks]

Let's.

[He pulls himself upright and dusts himself off. He keeps a hold on her hand, however, because tonight is a night for reassurances. He's had his own bad encounters with the experiment already. As always, it's nice to be normal for a little while.]

Much as I hate to admit it, we'll both probably think more clearly under our own roofs again.

[But years of Sunnydale senses don't fade quickly, and even as he turns back towards Building 7, Giles goes still as his senses scream that they aren't alone.

He looks left, right, trying to make the movements as subtle as possible as he looks for the hidden presence.]

[shadedsunlight]

/Certainly. How about some tea before we call it a night?/

[Even after a few months in Luceti, Ginia still hasn't lost the edge of a hunter. Tension sneaks back into her body as she senses someone watching them. Just as subtly, she pans the area the area in front of them and to the side. She smiles up at Giles and uses the motion to glance behind him, eyes flicking behind.

There. A shadow of a figure behind them, difficult to see in the lighting, but definitely there and definitely slowly approaching them. Her hold on his hand tightens as she leans closer to him, keeping her signs hidden.]

/One person behind us, following slowly. Not hiding. Plan?/

[poppetry]

[ Oh, dear, oh dear. This just won't do. They're still walking. That makes her job rather harder than it needs to be. Perhaps she can get them to stop...

From the darkness she calls out. And her voice will sound perfectly normal, if concerned. But if either of them care to listen closely, they'll detect the tremor beneath her words.

No, no, she can't do this again, please no...

But the mask, as ever, wants what it wants. ]

Giles? Giles, that's you, isn't it?

[consultmybooks]

[Giles stops, tilting his head curiously.

Yes, he knows that voice. And she doesn't sound well. But he addresses her directly, and doesn't start walking again.]

Xion? Is everything all right?

[shadedsunlight]

[On the other hand, Ginia doesn't recognize the voice and everything about it is telling her to get out of there. But she knows Giles and Giles apparently knows her so Ginia stops and watches, hand still gripping Giles' as her other hand drops casually for her knife.]

[poppetry]

[ Oh, Ginia. You're the smart one here. Or maybe it's just fortunate that you don't already know this sad, fragile, sweet girl. She might take you in, too.

But Giles stopping is enough. Xion stops a few feet shy of them, and even in the dim light the outline of her mask and cowl should still have a suitably creepy effect. Her eyes glow dully in the gloom. ]

I'm glad you stopped.

[ She approaches. Will you draw your knife, Ginia? Will you stop her?

Because if not -- if neither of them thinks to run, to flee from this little girl who is such a nonthreat, why, why ever run from her? So sweet and unassuming is she.... -- then, well.

She'll close the distance and reach up, without pause, to put a hand on each of their faces.

Her touch is like ice, burning and clinging and sticking. Because now, yes, now she's stuck to you. Or you to her. Or some greater force will be immobilizing them both. Try to flee. You can't. You can't.

Xion smiles benignly. ]

I was really hoping you would.

[consultmybooks]

[Gina might. Giles...well, he sees the mask, it's not hard to see that mask even in this gloom, and he knows immediately that it's wrong. That Xion is somehow not herself, somehow affected.

But it's Xion. Probably the least threatening person he's ever met. Battered, unlucky, sweet Xion, who he always meets at the worst possible times and laughs about it with later. So his first thought, irrational as it is, is to try to stay and help, try and figure out a way to get that mask off.

By then, of course, unless Ginia drags him away, it's much too late. And he winces visibly at her touch and tries to pull back, and...

...can't.]

[shadedsunlight]

[There are things to be said about the sweet ones. It's always the nice ones that get you when you least expect it. Ginia knows it because she's fooled many a person with her pretty smile and nice demeanor. Luceti is a bit different because most nice sweet people are still badasses deep down inside, but otherwise still quite nice.

But glowy eyes, a cowl and that mask spell danger and that unassuming smile isn't helping. Ginia's hand remains close to her knife as she watches, knowing they should run and get away... but she doesn't. Can't. She's fixated, entranced, not by fear, but rather some feeling that... this is okay. That the end is approaching, but it'll all be okay.

Xion's hand is icy and Ginia sucks in a breath, instinct telling her to jerk away. She doesn't, can't, and when she exhales, it feels like more than just her breath is leaving her body. Probably her spirit and life too.]

[poppetry]

[ Her smile vanishes. As the mask's power draws the two of them in, turns their skin and bones to ice, as their own new masks materialize.....

Xion's expression breaks down under her mask. In its sated state, she can get away from its control for just a moment -- not enough to really act on her own, though. Just enough to really understand what is going on around her, to hate it, to feel the sudden urge to cry. ]

I'm sorry...

[ She withdraws her hands and takes a smooth step back. Enjoy your new masks, Ginia, Giles. The glow in her eyes, the cant of her head, are baleful things. Bu it is not the two of them with whom she is angry.

Without a word, she'll melt back into the night, leaving them to their unfortunate fates. ]

[consultmybooks]

[Oh god. He knows this cold. Knows it knows it knows it didn't ever want to feel it again why why why, he was so close, just a few more days and he would have been whole again.

And in a few minutes, after the wrongness of this passes, he'll realize that it's just another mask and he's not actually going to go through another week of waiting. Here and now? Rationality is not high on his list of priorities.

He squeezes Ginia's hand tight enough that his bones creak before the mask takes hold and he fades into intangibility. And he gives Xion a look of mingled hurt and pity as she walks away.]

[shadedsunlight]

[This must be what dying feels like. It's a strange thought to have, to feel it and still be conscious. She can feel the squeeze of Giles's hand around her own the last hints of warmth and contact before that too disappears. Then it feels like a weight being lifted off her shoulders as the mask takes hold.

It's a strange thing, being a ghost. A thought that would never be possible outside of Luceti, but here they are now. Ginia tugs on the mask, struggling to make it budge in the slightest before giving up for now.

...Great. Now what?]