Goodnight // AU

[theboogieman]

[clans of Life-Eaters are notoriously awful.

they build these hives underground because they are too hideous to travel among humans. some make their homes in existing sewer networks, but this particular clan had cobbled together a multi-story underground bunker running the length of a full city block underneath some otherwise perfectly normal apartment buildings. it's a dismal place. some cement, metal siding, creaking floorboards, old furniture. their sense of interior decorating makes Saoirse's look festive and colorful. an unfortunate mildew smell emanates from pretty much everything.

negotiations with Life-Eaters are always pretty simple. either they agree to help the Red Queen fight against Hel and the West Court's tyranny, or Zhas brings a squad in to destroy anything in those tunnels that moves. it was thrilling for the first six hours or so, when the hunt was on--but word of further negotiation drifted in from outside, and for whatever reason, they were told to cease the killing and stand their ground.

that was a few days ago. they are not allowed, nor are they able, to physically leave the perimeter. Saoirse herself is on her way, or so Veins has told them--and they are waiting out a bet that will win them the clan's full allegiance... if they can stick it out. Zhas imagined, after the first of the Kin-Eaters started cracking, that it was easier for Saoirse to agree to than it was for them to actually see through.

Day 4. tensions are running high...]

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[theboogieman]

Mm.

[her smile drops into a small frown. she slowly lowers her hand. she turns her face back towards their new contact, though his beady eyes remain unblinkingly fixed on the ugly little thing who's gotten the Queen's attention, even as she speaks to him again.]

I'm afraid I must step away for a moment. May we continue this discussion later? [her tone remains polite and even as she reaches over to drag her long fingers through Coil's hair.] I think that the cover of night would do us all some good. My right-hand man would be happy to give you a tour of your new living quarters in the meantime.

[she also says this without giving the man much time to put in his own complaints. he seems to be calculating something as he finally drags his eyes away from Coil and the mess the boy has smeared all over his face, smirking just enough to show his sizable fangs.]

What, I don't get to meet the skull guy?

[Saoirse's response to that is quick, too.] Oh, I don't think you'd have much to talk about. A surviving member of the Shadow Clan is far more suited to your tastes, I think.

[the misdirect works, even if it comes at a price. the Life-Eater's eyes "light up" in as much as they can without definition, and he puts his weight on his own two feet again.] You do keep colorful company, don't you?

[Saoirse gives a small hum in agreement.] To prove it, I'm afraid he can only communicate in gestures. He's proficient in several languages. [she stops petting Coil's hair, pushing the tips of her long fingers against the back of his scalp as if suddenly holding him hostage. her attention never leaves their guest.] Will that suffice?

[another tension settles over the scene, a different one than before. as the Life-Eater narrows his eyes, a danger that had been lurking under a layer of polite airs and smiles suddenly bleeds to the surface. he works his jaw, likely scheming up a number of reasons to say no, to complicate things, and to twist this to his advantage.

...but at the last second, after a stifling silence, his posture gives way and he shrugs.]

Normally, I'd say otherwise... But lucky for you, I've got a blood-daughter who's lost all but the last of her voice. [he points at his own throat with a sticky chortle.] Runs in the family, and all. That hand-speak of yours has come in handy.

[which is when he gestures vaguely at Coil. Saoirse smiles again, for once sounding a little more genuine about it. the subject of children always put her in a good mood.]

Then this is a more fortunate meeting than anticipated. He will meet with you just in the entrance, there. As for the rest of my boys...

[finally, the turns with intent to go somewhere, startling the rest of the pack into attention. all eyes are on her again as she waves her hand dismissively in the air, already walking back towards the entrance of the compound.] Attend to yourselves elsewhere.

[no one has to tell them twice. the goons scatter, the guards fall back to stick around either side of the entrance, and Coil will find that Saoirse has already taken up his arm in her own to keep him from getting too far ahead.

they start moving very quickly once they're out of eyesight. mysterious swiftness, and all that.]

[uncoiled]

[Coil may no longer have a heartbeat, but there is still a nightmarish ticking sound counting off seconds in his head, marking every moment that slips away while the elders negotiate. it's easier not to fidget impatiently when you're dead, but his stillness and obedience is all an act. that imaginary clock overshadows everything else. he can't even focus on the words being exchanged over the din of it.

so, it's a good thing that she catches his arm and keeps him on a short leash, otherwise he would have raced off before it would have been considered polite. and once that element is no longer a concern and they can move quickly, he wastes no time in leading her back down the path to trouble, like a good little hound.]

[theboogieman]

[the smell of blood has only worsened. it's easy to imagine some other vampire being lured down by the scent of a fresh meal, especially in those corridors nearest to the scene of the crime. nothing gets in their way, however, not even a stray rat or a curious straggler.

when they get there, Zhas is gone.

sort of. there's a small puddle on the floor where he was sitting, and a trail of blood that leads back out the door, further down the hallway, and around the corner. there's a pulse down there somewhere, however weak.]

[uncoiled]

[if there had happened to be anyone around who could have heard inside Coil's head, they would have been treated to an internal wail of panic at the sight of Zhas' absence.

on the outside, there's only a distressed hiss between the young vampire's teeth before he jogs back out of the room, and races along the trail down the hall.

for all he knows, Zhas could have been dragged off by one of the monsters, down into the dark... so, he's hurrying and already frantically putting together a plan of what to do next. he's expecting the worst, and he's expecting to have to work and search for whatever is left of his friend.]

[theboogieman]

[honestly, Zhas didn't make it very far.

at some point while he was left alone, he got it into his head that he should move. not an entirely unfounded idea; even in such a tranquilized state, he knows from experience that he was likely attracting hungry vampires. he didn't want someone else to come along and drain him. he was waiting for Coil to come back. one could not come before the other.

so, he managed to hobble onto his feet, drag himself out the door, and make it all the way down the hall before nearly blacking out where he was standing. he made it to the floor without a concussion, and it's there that Coil stumbles into him--sitting with his back to the wall with Coil's poor sweatshirt still pressed up against his wound.

his hand is covered in blood. he looks up at the sudden approach of other people, but he doesn't see them very well. he's still dizzy, half-asleep with contented bloodloss. from behind Coil, Saoirse's voice slices between the both of them.]

Stop shouting, child, you've already caused enough trouble as it is.

[Saoirse rounds the corner, folding up her parasol and frowning intently at the crumpled form on the floor. her dress billows up around her as she crouches to get a better look at Zhas, only stopping when her face is hovering only a couple of inches away from his. she seems to be looking intently into his eyes--though if Zhas can see her in return, he doesn't act like it. his gaze is unfocused, absent.]

And as for you... [she seems to say to him.] Forcing your own mother to break her vows, what a selfish boy. After all the times I'd refused...

[with a sigh, she eyes down at all the blood. though the seconds continue to tick by, she tilts her face just enough to speak to Coil again, tone low.]

...What you have done here is unforgivable. Do you understand?

[uncoiled]

[despite practically tripping over his brother in the attempt to hunt him down, Coil promptly abandons him again as soon as Saoirse arrives. she is the one who will fix everything after all, so he isn't going to further muddle things by getting in the way.

he hangs back a step, hovering and fretting while his mother-figure takes over... and he only moves from that nervous place when she slides words in his direction again. like a cold, keen little scalpel. it makes him flinch, slinking back another step along the wall.

it's not the first time he's heard those words. and so, with something in his chest hurting in a way that he'd forgotten it could, he nods.]

[theboogieman]

[it will suffice. she looks back down at her other son, bleeding out on the ground, but has one more thing to say.]

In repentance, if I should fail to keep myself... I want you to kill me.

[dead serious, of course. she kneels in front of Zhas, waiting to hear whether or not Coil can handle the task.]

Do not wait. Do you swear to this?

[uncoiled]

[Coil might have remained standing there dumbly, stunned, if it weren't for the sheer amount of urgency and threat strung tight in the air. the disbelief can only shield him for a second. with Zhas' life dripping onto the floor, he can't afford to pretend that maybe his beloved, addled mother doesn't know what she's saying.

no... she's speaking plainly, and she's expecting an answer.

unfortunately, all he can do in his horror is to shake his head in a desperate no.]

[theboogieman]

Coil.

[it's a quiet berating, to be sure. funny, her posture and dead-eyed glance look very similar to Zhas', when he's about to give Coil his second and only other chance.

she doesn't seem to care that her beloved son is losing blood by the second. this one detail is more important.]

[uncoiled]

[he's more at a loss for words than even his usual handicap makes him, but he's luckily never really needed a more sophisticated form of communication when trying to relay his thoughts to his Queen.

and really, it wouldn't be hard for most people to understand the exact way he cringes inward and slinks toward her, silently begging her not to make him to agree to something like that. he understands exactly the situation that she is implying, and that instance would mean that he wouldn't be losing only one of the most important things in his world, but both of them.]

[theboogieman]

[of course, Saoirse might have lost her mind years ago, but she would never let a "son" die right in front of her. after a tense moment of stern, expectant waiting, she gives up on Coil with little more than a small, nearly inaudible huff.]

Very well.

[she turns to Zhas again, delicately pulling the boy's hand away from his neck. blood gushes up in the re-opened wound, but she leans forward and licks delicately at the skin around it. her cheeks split along an invisible seam. her tongue is long and serpentine. she is in control and barely gets close to him by vampire standards--but her pretty face now reflects a bit of the creature that shouldn't be allowed to have any human blood.]