Sangria 1 w/ Hot Fudge and a Cherry On Top
Oh hey, it's been a while! This place is a lot less active than I remember. Probably has to do with a lot of people migrating to Dreamwidth from LJ. Anyways, I was reminded of this place while looking through some of my old writing and decided to do some short prompt-based stuff to help get rid of my chronic writer's block.
Quick note: Only the two most recent stories before this one are still canon (Mango #16 "Two Types of People" and Sangria #5 "Nothing Will Fix Me".) Everything else is outdated and kind of bad but you're free to read anyways!
Now, without further ado...
Author: intothewolves
Challenge: Sangria #1 (Two roads diverged in a wood - Robert Frost)
Toppings/Extras: Hot Fudge (Aoi/Suzume-centric), Cherry on Top (Experimental writing style/formatting)
Story: Leech Child
Rating: PG-13 (a few f-bombs are dropped)
Wordcount: 759
Title: Hold Hands and it Will Happen Anyway)
Summary: Aoi and Suzume aren't that much different.
Notes: Suzume is a version of LC's main villain, Aoi, from an alternate timeline where she ascended to godhood and messed with Aoi in the main timeline to further her own goals (and eventually have Aoi replace her). The LC universe (and all the other unwritten but under development worlds in it) canonically has alternate universes/timelines. Story title is the title of a Liars song. Concrit appreciated but not necessary. I love regular comments too! AIso apologizing in advance for any issues the formatting causes.
Suzume has a sort of flawless perfection that I don't remember ever having. She's really beautiful.
(It's unnerving. When we were born we were the exact same person.)
The down on her chest is smoothed, flecked with a pristine cream pattern that hasn't dulled.
(I haven't groomed my feathers in months. I hardly see the cream anymore, it's been caked with blood to the point that it looks brown.)
Her eyes are a bright red. They're expressive and reflect the light nicely.
(Kagami tells me it's taken years for her to learn to read me because I don't signal with my eyes the way other people do. I think my eyes are usually bloodshot, too, but I never bother to check.)
She has a full set of sky blue feathers on her right shoulder.
(I've plucked that spot to the point where they'll take months to grow back.)
There's no scar on her face, either.
(That's right. She never actually had that fight with Kagami, at least I don't think so.)
She pours some tea into a shallow dish and offers it to me.
(Her hands look smooth. Her claws are sharp and well-kept. Mine are dirty and chipped, and my hands are calloused.)
"Drink," she says. The sleeves of her kimono billow out gracefully, like they would in the wind.
(I would've given anything to wear a kimono just once. I asked dad one time but he said I'd have to choose between a kimono and a month's worth of toys. I chose the toys.)
I take the dish in my hands. It's carved from jade, and the green tea is brewed to perfection. I take a sip. It tastes nice.
(I never learned how to make tea. Kagami actually knew, despite being a enslaved gaki. She says she learned it from her grandmother.)
Suzume sips her own tea. Her beak is still sharp. When she opens it I can see she still has all of her teeth.
(Just how bad did I screw myself over? I think of my own missing teeth, knocked out when Madara actually worked up the courage to punch me.)
"I know this might be intimidating," she says. "I have to say I'm actually quite nervous meeting you face-to-face like this."
(I don't believe you. I'm the nervous one here, not you.)
"It's fine," I reply. Short and sweet. Too much information will put me at a disadvantage. I have to try and stay calm.
(She's me, and that means I have even less reason to trust her. She's a liar. She's manipulated everyone. She's just come out of it in better shape than I have.)
"I believe I've already covered the basics with you. It's up to you whether or not you want to accept my offer. Godhood is quite the burden and though, as you're aware, you've been... groomed for the position, I don't want to push anything on you."
(How much longer are you going to put up this facade? We're the same. You know me. You helped shape me into what I am. You're just as bad as me.)
"I'll think about it." I take another drink from my tea dish.
(Keep it short, ambiguous. I can't give anything away.)
It's silent. The starry void we're in spins slowly around us. It's odd, thinking the creators lived here, way back at the beginning, and all that's left of them is an ancient table, some straw mats and a teapot.
(Suzume told me "There are as many shades of our universe as there are stars in this place." I was one of these stars. So was she. We're the only two that are different. Hundreds of thousands of mes - ones with nice happy families. Ones who have never been here, who never even came this close to godhood. What are their lives like?)
"Suzume, can I ask you something?" I set the empty dish down gently.
(It's a dumb question. I should know the answer.)
She smiles at me.
(It's the same insincere smile. Madara asked if I loved him and I smiled just like that.)
"How did I fuck up so badly?"
(I know the answer. I just need to hear it again.)
Suzume smiles wider. This time she looks sincere, which was actually pretty rare for me too. "Aoi, I know you know this, but I'll humor you. All of those other Suzumes and Aois you've never met, they haven't lived any better than us.
The truth has always been that we were fucked from the beginning.")