"Angel of Death", a Ladd/Lua fanfiction
And here I go again. XD And, once again, I fail at good, original titles. *sigh* I'll have to come up with something epic for the Jacuzzi/Nice that will follow. I really should get more icons, but I just love this one of Ennis way too damn much. <3 (You're awesome, peardust!)
Title: Angel of Death
Genre: Suspense/Horror/Creepy Fluff
Rating: B for Baccano! (aka Mature Audiences only)
Warnings: Blood, death, and gore, but if you watch Baccano!, then this can only pale in comparison (especially after episode 9; Claire, you crazy murderous acrobat <3).
Lua Klein would scurry through the mansion like a frightened mouse, always careful to keep an escape route or hiding place within sight, and even better, within reach. She did not idle in hallways and rarely made a sound. She never slept in her bed, only underneath and in her closet on occasion, and not once touched a light switch even though she had grown more than tall enough to reach. Lua knew that monsters did not inhabit small, dark places, because those were the only places where they never found her. The real monsters walked in daylight and did not see well in the dark, but she had become accustomed to it and regular lighting made her anxious. She could not remember a time when she was not afraid.
She could always hear the servants from her hiding places talking about how much she resembled her mother (though they hardly ever caught sight of her and only had a painting of her in youth to compare), and gossip about the tragedy and how much of a shame it was, but they never did a thing when they heard her screaming when she was caught and beaten. They always misplaced their sympathies with the monster and never did a thing to help her.
They were the ones screaming now, and Lua passed several telephones on her way to her father's study.
Many years ago, Lua had collected several wooden boxes and stole a hammer and nails to remove the boards and fasten them to the underside of her bed to hide her from view, leaving only a few unnoticeable cracks for her to peer out and a single loose board that she would pry open to enter and leave. Sometimes, when she was less afraid and more at peace, she would wonder if this was how it felt to lie within one's coffin, and she began to wish that death would come quickly.
As if in response to that wish, death came to the mansion that night while she slept lightly. Her eyes snapped open with the creaking of her door and she heard someone step inside, though they did not flip the switch at the entrance and only the light from the hallway crept inside as the floorboards shifted beneath a pair of shoes. It was a man, but she did not recognize his voice when he uttered various sounds of confusion and searching as she remained deathly still. It was well into the night and her bed was perfectly kept by the maids who changed the dusty sheets that morning. He took some time to briefly walk through her room and check the closet, but did not put too much effort into his search. "What lucky timing to be out of the house," he said, right before peering under the cascading sheets of her bed only to see wood going all the way down to meet the floor, and whined in disappointment. "And it was such a great plan." Through the cracks in the boards, Lua saw blonde hair, blue eyes, and a hatchet. He left the room and for a moment there was nothing but silence before the screaming began downstairs.
Everything was coming to an end, tonight, Lua realized, and with that, came the sudden desire to meet it, face to face. She had wished for death and death had come happily, granting wishes that she had buried inside a deep, dark place. She only hoped to see one last thing before she sacrificed herself as payment.
The servants all lived on the first floor, and Lua could have looked over the banister or glanced down the stairwell, but judging from the sounds she heard, the images would likely make her feel faint. She could hear male laughter down below, but none of those voices belonged to the man from her room. It was likely that he was the only one of them upstairs, and there would be only one other resident he was searching for.
There were voices in the study. As she had thought, her father had drunk himself asleep again, but he was awake now. Awake, fully aware, and begging for his life as the other man laughed. Lua was skilled at opening doors without making a sound and her bare feet padded softly on the hardwood. She was not noticed until the very last second.
"Lua!" her father shouted, pressed up against a wall as the other man approached. The face she had only known to twist in anger was now twisted in fear as the man pulled the hatchet back in preparation. "Lua, help me!"
Lua did not move an inch as the hatchet descended, separating neck from shoulders, but did step closer with an odd sort of detachment she thought she would never experience to get a better look at the unexpected expression on her father's face when his head rolled to a stop in the middle of the room. The hatchet-wielding man watched Klein's body collapse against the wall, laughing uproariously before informing the dead, "It seems that you weren't prepared to mess with the Russo family, after all, old man! Too bad you've only just realized it!"
Her father's murderer only seemed to become aware of her presence after turning around to examine the remainder of his handiwork, because he was quiet for a moment before he continued to speak. "Well, there you are. You realize that you've completely ruined my fun, don't you? I was planning to kill you in front of your old man to teach him a lesson before moving on to this."
"It wouldn't have mattered," Lua found herself replying in a quiet voice. Her father was dead and there was no need to be afraid anymore. "He would have just used it as an opportunity to escape." Having got all that she needed from her father's face, Lua raised her eyes, only wanting to know one last thing. "Please, before you kill me, I'd like to know your name?"
"But you aren't going to run?" the man asked, hypothetically, looking pointedly over to the door which remained wide open and at Lua in her nightgown only a few feet away from it. He gave her a few more moments to flee, but then sighed to himself and stepped closer, brandishing his weapon. "My name is Ladd Russo, and I was sent here today to make an example out of your family to the rest of my uncle's enemies. There will be no one alive in this house when the sun rises."
Ladd pulled the hatchet over his shoulder, ready to swing at any moment, and Lua closed her eyes, feeling peace wash over her, ready to be delivered to somewhere better than this place. Ladd grunted in exertion and she felt air rush by her face, but, whatever she expected, it was not a meaty thunk followed by shattering glass.
"GOAL!" Ladd shouted, shaking the hatchet at the ruined window, and Lua opened her eyes to find her father's head missing from the floor. The Russo family's assassin dissolved into laughter once more, taking his time to explain himself.
His swing had splashed a drop or two of her father's blood on her cheek, and Ladd wiped it away with an unstained finger, leaning in to get a closer look at her face as he said, "As expected, it really isn't any fun to kill someone who wants to die. But I can't just let you get away. So, I've decided--you're quiet and pretty, so wouldn't this be a good match? You can be my woman for now, and once I've killed everyone else in the world who wants to live more than you, I'll kill you in a glorious climax. Doesn't that sound nice?"
Lua could not think of anything in response, though with his unexpectedly gentle touch, her face heated and her heart sped. Ladd tossed the hatchet into his left hand so he could take her wrist with his right, and pulled her from the dark room into the lightened hallway with a grin. His hand was slippery with her father's blood dripping down and Lua ran it experimentally between her thumb and forefinger, savoring the sensation as the last memory she would weave in that monstrous house.
C&C: Comment if desired & Criticism is welcome. :)
Title: Angel of Death
Genre: Suspense/Horror/Creepy Fluff
Rating: B for Baccano! (aka Mature Audiences only)
Warnings: Blood, death, and gore, but if you watch Baccano!, then this can only pale in comparison (especially after episode 9; Claire, you crazy murderous acrobat <3).
Lua Klein would scurry through the mansion like a frightened mouse, always careful to keep an escape route or hiding place within sight, and even better, within reach. She did not idle in hallways and rarely made a sound. She never slept in her bed, only underneath and in her closet on occasion, and not once touched a light switch even though she had grown more than tall enough to reach. Lua knew that monsters did not inhabit small, dark places, because those were the only places where they never found her. The real monsters walked in daylight and did not see well in the dark, but she had become accustomed to it and regular lighting made her anxious. She could not remember a time when she was not afraid.
She could always hear the servants from her hiding places talking about how much she resembled her mother (though they hardly ever caught sight of her and only had a painting of her in youth to compare), and gossip about the tragedy and how much of a shame it was, but they never did a thing when they heard her screaming when she was caught and beaten. They always misplaced their sympathies with the monster and never did a thing to help her.
They were the ones screaming now, and Lua passed several telephones on her way to her father's study.
Many years ago, Lua had collected several wooden boxes and stole a hammer and nails to remove the boards and fasten them to the underside of her bed to hide her from view, leaving only a few unnoticeable cracks for her to peer out and a single loose board that she would pry open to enter and leave. Sometimes, when she was less afraid and more at peace, she would wonder if this was how it felt to lie within one's coffin, and she began to wish that death would come quickly.
As if in response to that wish, death came to the mansion that night while she slept lightly. Her eyes snapped open with the creaking of her door and she heard someone step inside, though they did not flip the switch at the entrance and only the light from the hallway crept inside as the floorboards shifted beneath a pair of shoes. It was a man, but she did not recognize his voice when he uttered various sounds of confusion and searching as she remained deathly still. It was well into the night and her bed was perfectly kept by the maids who changed the dusty sheets that morning. He took some time to briefly walk through her room and check the closet, but did not put too much effort into his search. "What lucky timing to be out of the house," he said, right before peering under the cascading sheets of her bed only to see wood going all the way down to meet the floor, and whined in disappointment. "And it was such a great plan." Through the cracks in the boards, Lua saw blonde hair, blue eyes, and a hatchet. He left the room and for a moment there was nothing but silence before the screaming began downstairs.
Everything was coming to an end, tonight, Lua realized, and with that, came the sudden desire to meet it, face to face. She had wished for death and death had come happily, granting wishes that she had buried inside a deep, dark place. She only hoped to see one last thing before she sacrificed herself as payment.
The servants all lived on the first floor, and Lua could have looked over the banister or glanced down the stairwell, but judging from the sounds she heard, the images would likely make her feel faint. She could hear male laughter down below, but none of those voices belonged to the man from her room. It was likely that he was the only one of them upstairs, and there would be only one other resident he was searching for.
There were voices in the study. As she had thought, her father had drunk himself asleep again, but he was awake now. Awake, fully aware, and begging for his life as the other man laughed. Lua was skilled at opening doors without making a sound and her bare feet padded softly on the hardwood. She was not noticed until the very last second.
"Lua!" her father shouted, pressed up against a wall as the other man approached. The face she had only known to twist in anger was now twisted in fear as the man pulled the hatchet back in preparation. "Lua, help me!"
Lua did not move an inch as the hatchet descended, separating neck from shoulders, but did step closer with an odd sort of detachment she thought she would never experience to get a better look at the unexpected expression on her father's face when his head rolled to a stop in the middle of the room. The hatchet-wielding man watched Klein's body collapse against the wall, laughing uproariously before informing the dead, "It seems that you weren't prepared to mess with the Russo family, after all, old man! Too bad you've only just realized it!"
Her father's murderer only seemed to become aware of her presence after turning around to examine the remainder of his handiwork, because he was quiet for a moment before he continued to speak. "Well, there you are. You realize that you've completely ruined my fun, don't you? I was planning to kill you in front of your old man to teach him a lesson before moving on to this."
"It wouldn't have mattered," Lua found herself replying in a quiet voice. Her father was dead and there was no need to be afraid anymore. "He would have just used it as an opportunity to escape." Having got all that she needed from her father's face, Lua raised her eyes, only wanting to know one last thing. "Please, before you kill me, I'd like to know your name?"
"But you aren't going to run?" the man asked, hypothetically, looking pointedly over to the door which remained wide open and at Lua in her nightgown only a few feet away from it. He gave her a few more moments to flee, but then sighed to himself and stepped closer, brandishing his weapon. "My name is Ladd Russo, and I was sent here today to make an example out of your family to the rest of my uncle's enemies. There will be no one alive in this house when the sun rises."
Ladd pulled the hatchet over his shoulder, ready to swing at any moment, and Lua closed her eyes, feeling peace wash over her, ready to be delivered to somewhere better than this place. Ladd grunted in exertion and she felt air rush by her face, but, whatever she expected, it was not a meaty thunk followed by shattering glass.
"GOAL!" Ladd shouted, shaking the hatchet at the ruined window, and Lua opened her eyes to find her father's head missing from the floor. The Russo family's assassin dissolved into laughter once more, taking his time to explain himself.
His swing had splashed a drop or two of her father's blood on her cheek, and Ladd wiped it away with an unstained finger, leaning in to get a closer look at her face as he said, "As expected, it really isn't any fun to kill someone who wants to die. But I can't just let you get away. So, I've decided--you're quiet and pretty, so wouldn't this be a good match? You can be my woman for now, and once I've killed everyone else in the world who wants to live more than you, I'll kill you in a glorious climax. Doesn't that sound nice?"
Lua could not think of anything in response, though with his unexpectedly gentle touch, her face heated and her heart sped. Ladd tossed the hatchet into his left hand so he could take her wrist with his right, and pulled her from the dark room into the lightened hallway with a grin. His hand was slippery with her father's blood dripping down and Lua ran it experimentally between her thumb and forefinger, savoring the sensation as the last memory she would weave in that monstrous house.
C&C: Comment if desired & Criticism is welcome. :)