anothercontinuity | (no subject)

[ Silence, save the lapping of the water, distant bells from the Chantry, the rustle of wings overhead. He has no soothing words, only shared experience. Nightmares. With the Venatori, it only ever got worse the deeper you dug.

Tony doesn't need that right now. He's shaken. Fiercely independent as he was, he needs a sense of control to cling to.

Carefully, Lucanis reaches into his vest pocket, drawing out a familiar-looking vial filled with swirling red liquid and holding it up to the light to catch Tony's eye. ]

Here. I thought you'd want the chance to destroy this yourself. When we're back to the villa.

[ tony wrestles the surge of emotion back down, but in the aftermath finds himself still feeling opened. he's not sure what to make of it, but when lucanis offers him the vial, tony takes him at his word.

he should just tell lucanis to throw it overboard so he never has to lay his eyes on it again. instead, he reaches out, sporadic splotches of blood having seeped through the bandages. once given it, he slowly rolls the vial between his fingers and thumb. it looks like blood inside—he's seen enough of it tonight—but the way it still languidly swirls is unearthly. alien. magical. ]

I don't know what to do anymore, [ he rasps brokenly before he realizes it. the weight of feeling lost, which he's been steadfastly running from these past months, suddenly crushes him. ]

[ It is a sentiment he can fully understand. At least Lucanis had the work to fall back on, the familiar routines. Tony has none of that, building this new life from scratch and only now realizing how little he truly understood of this world.

There is a pause between them, not overly long but present, before he reaches across the space of the boat and gently rests a hand on Tony's shoulder. Only that, nothing more. ]

...there will be no easy answers.

[ It is not a kind truth, necessarily, nor a brutal one. The truth simply is, and he sees disguising it as far more cruel, in the end. ]

But you do not need to seek them alone.

[ painfully swallowing, tony risks a glance up to lucanis's eyes. it might because of the rawness showing through his own, or it might because of whatever he finds, but he ducks his head back down quickly after. even still, despite that, despite the tumult inside of him, the hand on his shoulder becomes an anchor in the storm.

tony encloses the vial in a loose fist. after a shaky, short-lived smile, he finally whispers to him, ] Thank you, [ and means it sincerely for maybe the first time. ]

[ It feels like something in that wall between them has cracked, and that is a start, perhaps. Lucanis's hand squeezes silently in response, before he turns his focus back to silently paddling them down the canal. What Tony needs now is food, medicine, rest.

It won't be much longer before the city streets turn into residential walkways, until the canal itself is lined by lush flowers and robust gardens...and then finally carries them to the dock at the base of the villa.

It's quick work, tying off the boat and stepping out before reaching to help Tony do the same. Kitchen, first. Much of what he'll need to see to his wounds will be down there, and it'll avoid any notice from the servants at this time of the evening. ]

[ vial still clasped, tony steps onto the dock and looks ahead first to the main estate past the garden and two brass statues and then to the pathway branching off to the guest house. his first objective: water. easiest to address any immediate concerns right now, step-by-step. almost unconsciously his right hand fiddles with the vial, turning it, pressing different points of it into his palm. ]

You headed back to your side of the fence? [ are they going their separate ways here, he's asking. their spoken language sounds the same, but colloquialisms don't always translate. ]

In a while, perhaps.

[ He has no intention of letting him slump off to attempt to deal with his own wounds, not in the state he's in.

One hand gestures ahead of them, towards the guest house, before drawing in to walk alongside him just as before. The grounds are dark, pools of light spilling out of tall street lamps across the gravel and stone path, leading past meticulously trimmed hedges and bushes. ]

We still have some business to see to, you and I.

[ at lucanis's gesture the fiddling stills, back into a secure clasp. tony falls into step beside him. ] Right. The vial. [ destroying it. that's the obvious answer to him, about what business there is. ]

[ He's not entirely wrong. That's one thing still left to deal with. ]

You brought some of your tools from the smithy back with you, didn't you? To work on certain projects during the night, when you could not sleep.

[ how does... right. the spies. not like tony isn't used to being followed, and here the stalkers only report to one guy. ] Just some old tools Will had. Rest I found at the market.

Edited 2024-11-22 23:50 (UTC)

[ This time, it's a pure guess.

But Tony's response tells him he's right, and that's enough. ]

Something that can break glass, I'd wager.

I could repurpose one or two. Donate to the cause. 'Fore that, though, I need a drink. Water, if you're worrying, though something stronger wouldn't be remiss.

[ There's good brandy, but water first isn't a bad idea. Tony's been without food or water the entirety of the day, likely as not. It's also why he's sticking close to his side, in case his legs decide to give.

But they're managing fine so far. Better than he might have expected. The guest house is a familiar sight by now, and Lucanis nudges the door open before nodding down the hall, towards the dining area. ]

Take your ease a few moments. I'll be back.

[ when tony attempts following through the doorway to the kitchen for some water, lucanis bars his way and shoos him off. go, sit, he's told; lucanis is getting the water. tony frowns and watches him go.

he doesn't sit. while he's alone, he leaves and retrieves a pair of long-nose pliers and a jewelers hammer. it must take no longer than a couple minutes, half of which he spends selecting different tools until he decides on those two (is there some...special way he'll need to destroy the vial?), but when he returns to the dining room, lucanis is already there. all right, so...tony also stopped by a bathroom sink on the way and drank some water from his cupped hands, and his track record with time isn't the most stellar. it might've been more like a handful of minutes.

that's one stern frown from an assassin. ] What? I was being proactive. [ taking the seat beside lucanis, he sets the tools down, swaps the vial to his left hand, and grabs the provided cup of water. ]

Edited 2024-11-23 16:22 (UTC)

I need you to be sitting.

[ Firmly, as he gestures for him to take the chair nearest to him. There's more than the glass of water there: bandages, a basket with various vials of potions and herbs, even thread and needle if needed. A small bowl of clean water and a towel is where they'll start, as he beckons for Tony to present one arm so he can begin carefully unwrapping it.

The elfroot balm is tacky, smeared through with red, but at least the wound doesn't appear infected in any way. Now, to begin carefully cleaning, making sure nothing's there that shouldn't be.

One hand steadies his forearm from beneath, in a warm firm grip. The other carefully dips into the clean water before dabbing at the edges with methodical precision, dark eyes focused solely on their task. ]

I doubt she would have used poison. Not if she was planning to put you to work. But safer to check and be certain.

[ "i am sitting," tony mumbles into the glass once seated, eyeing the other items on the table. they're taking care of the cuts first. okay. washing up was on the list of priorities after drinking water, anyway.

he presents the left arm first, his right hand occupied with the glass, from which he takes measured gulps. in his periphery below, with his left side closest to the table, he sees lucanis's hands unwrapping the bandages; glimpses an impression of red blood on olive skin, of darker slashes in a semi-circle. a subtle shift in his face and posture, tony tenses. he grips the vial tighter.

eyes trained on the vials on the table, he hums, ] Mmhm, [ and tips the glass back to fill his mouth with water, which he swishes slowly between his cheeks, alternatively puffing them out. ]

[ As Tony tenses, the cords in his forearm stand out further, and Lucanis hums quietly. ]

Deep breath. Try to loosen your shoulders, if you can. That strain is not going to help matters.

[ One of the vials is swiftly taken and uncorked. There's almost a minty smell, sweet and soothing, carefully applied with a fresh hand towel over the open wounds. ]

That should assist with healing. It will itch, but that's just the skin knitting itself together again. Let it do so, and the scarring will be less noticeable.

[ aside from a flick to the uncorked vial, tony resolutely holds his attention on the table. only when the itching begins, and the cuts are covered by the towel, does he stop swishing and look down at his own arm.

he's seen vials like these in the markets. potions, the merchant called them, and tony brushed them off as snake oil or homemade tonics. herbal medicine, at the very best. not worth his time. ]

[ Fresh bandages come next, and Lucanis's eyes suddenly narrow. ]

Mierda. Not now.

[ It's more under his breath than anything, clearly not directed at Tony. Hard to say who he might be addressing. The room seems empty, beyond the two of them, as Lucanis starts to rewrap Tony's forearm.

Not too tightly, now, they needed the bloodflow to help him heal quicker. ]

[ without taking his eyes off lucanis wrapping his arm back up, tony swallows the water in two gulps, clears his throat, and then says, ] You're doing that thing again.

Edited 2024-11-24 02:00 (UTC)

What thing?

[ He hasn't paused, only motions for the other arm, though now with a vague sense of irritation that hadn't been there previously. ]

[ tony sets the cup down to offer his right arm. this one he keeps more out of his line of sight. he relaxes again, a little. ] Acting like you hear voices.

Edited 2024-11-24 02:30 (UTC)

...ah.

[ He goes still a moment, calculating. Clearly weighing how much he wants to say.

Then, he goes back to unwrapping the initial set of bandages, now stained through, in order to clean and rewrap them as well. Practical, simple task. Something to focus on. ]

The Venatori can do worse than bind you. Given how many of them I've killed, they decided my punishment had to be...creative.

Wasn't I the lucky one.

[ it's grumbled. tony can't imagine much worse than his body turning against him and his mind being taken over, but if tonight's taught him anything, it's to expand his horizons. he sighs. ]

What'd they do?

Edited 2024-11-24 04:48 (UTC)

Torture, of course.

[ It's almost matter-of-fact, the way he says it. Lucanis keeps his eyes on the wounds, reaching for the hand towel to start cleaning once again. ]

But that wasn't enough for them. So, they forced a demon into my body, and bound us both.