Chapter 71
Previously: The Rose of Whitby – Chapter 70
“That answers that,” Darcy deadpans, and she didn’t even know she could do that. Instead, she goes back to sitting next to John. Can she put a cool cloth on his forehead? But he’s not sick, he’s unresponsive. When she puts her head against his chest, his heart is fluttering and she hates it. It’s not like him! He’s always her rock, she can rely on him, and he knows her, he knows her drac, and he wants the real her.
With Gregory in the room, the mask is right back on her face and she feels like she’s betraying John with that. As if she can’t help him like this, as if she’s just one big lie. Calm, calm, Darcy, you are an obedient wife, she tells herself. All this anger isn’t doing anything. Hasn’t she learned that from the vision? So she just looks on and waits for Gregory to get back to himself, gives Arthur a smile, she can’t do more there either.
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Arthur realizes he’s still hugging the genet and… and he doesn’t want Gregory to see it. Doesn’t want him to poke fun at it, or treat it like it’s his, now, too, so while Gregory’s still caught in a vision, he quickly but carefully curls it up and hides it in the sofa cushions- then realizes Darcy saw that and blushes a bit, but gives her a pleading look. “Um… don’t tell him?” he whispers, with a head tilt towards Gregory.
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For a moment, she looks bewildered because all she can think of is ‘why would she?’ but then she realises that Arthur must worry that Gregory would tease, because of course he would, so she shakes her head. “I’d never, Arthur-dear!”
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Arthur gives her a smile for that; even while he feels kind of childish for… he’s not sure. Having a stuffed toy and treasuring it? Or hiding it? But… but he decides it’s important enough that he doesn’t care about whether it’s childish or not. He leans over to check on John’s pulse again while they wait for Gregory to come out of his vision, and he really doesn’t like how fluttery it is. He kind of wishes Dr Seward were here, maybe he could do something with normal medicine, that wouldn’t be against the rules, surely?
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Unknowingly, Darcy is mirroring Arthur’s thoughts. She feels like on that first day, she just wants to cry for her papa. But she’s not allowed to do that anymore. She’s a married woman, but somehow, she feels no inclination at all to cry for help from Gregory. What would he even do? Probably tell her that it’s all fine and just grin at her. No, she has to do this on her own and present the mask that helps. Just like in the vision. Maybe this is a useful trial after all. She did learn something, didn’t she? That has her tilt her head. “It’s about overcoming fears and weaknesses, I think. Like when you read a story to confront something safely.”
Arthur tilts his head in turn. “…You think? It doesn’t, um… feel very safe. But… but it is a vision, and not real, and… and aside from what the magic thinks is cheating, it hasn’t really hurt us, has it?”
“It’s from the fey, it probably isn’t really safe.” Scoffing, Darcy lifts John’s head carefully to put on her lap. “But it’s a trial. Winning and overcoming something is the point of a trial, right?” She can more sense Gregory’s presence in the room again than immediately see his movement, but yes, when she looks over, he’s staring right back at her.
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Arthur nods hesitantly, sees where Darcy’s gaze is going and takes his seat again, focuses on Gregory, too. “Was that your first vision? We’ve been having them since the morning, it’s a fey trial of some sort,” he explains.
“Okay!” Gregory says, like… like he isn’t scared or worried about it at all. But then… Gregory rarely is, is he? Also, he didn’t answer Arthur’s question… So he prods again, and establishes that yes, that was Gregory’s first vision, and when he asks him what it was about, Gregory starts rambling, telling them about a disturbing scenario where they all went hunting some vampire, and a man (“oh, kind of looked like Lord Godalming, maybe…”) shot a woman, and then the evil vampire shows up and kills the man who shot, and Darcy, and also Arthur, and then Lucy takes Arthur away and he thinks maybe she’s trying to turn him into a vampire or something.
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Darcy finds herself with her fangs out and snarling loudly. Nobody hurts her family! But she can see how that is a likely horror story for Gregory, her dying and Arthur having to deal with Lucy, when she knows that her mother makes him unsure so often. Her next thought is that she can guess how Gregory reacted to Arthur having to become a vampire, probably told him he doesn’t care.
She gets distracted from whatever Arthur and Gregory say next because with John’s head on her lap, she can feel him twitch. Her focus is instantly on him. She’s ready to hold him down or up, whatever she can do.
The thing she has to do first is dodge. He’s swinging blindly. She doesn’t think he’s awake, but that would have been a good left hook right there. His pale face gains colour, turns red, and she can feel the tension in his entire body increase. She wants to cheer him on. Oh, blast that mask on her face, she has to be good for John just as much as for Gregory, so she lets her drac growl along with John as he suddenly sits up straight with a shouted “Get your fucking hands off my kid!” and another swing before he realises where he is and turns to look at her. There’s a symbol stroking itself onto his forehead in glowing lines that force her to squint it’s so bright, but she just closes her eyes tight and leans into him. “You did it. Of course you did!”
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Gregory’s vision sounds terrible, but… but he actually doesn’t seem that upset? Arthur supposes he’s glad vision him is not completely dead, though he doesn’t know what he feels about being turned into a vampire… He’d rather have a lot more information about the consequences of that and what it’s really like before it happens to him. Is a vampire him still going to be the same person as regular him? Would he still have his magic? Would he have to… kill people? That vampire in Gregory’s vision certainly sounds like a bad person- Arthur very much doesn’t want Darcy or Art to die! But he’s distracted from more questions by John’s sudden movements- and then he wakes up! What’s the meaning of that symbol? Arthur squints, but he doesn’t recognize it. And is that going to do anything to John? Some kind of fey magic?
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When Gregory tries to jump in and make it a group hug with John, he has Darcy bark at him, yes, outright bark, nothing human about that. And John isn’t having it either, it’s not a side step or leaning away, he has his fists up. He’s fucking had it with guys, any guy, laying a hand on him. Or that little girl that apparently was his daughter, a daughter he had to give birth to, for that matter. It’s still the worst fucking nightmare he ever had to deal with, the memory of that worse than all the horror visions he’s had all his life about how it must feel.
But still, in the end, that’s his little kid. He wants to be a dad so fucking badly. He loves kids, always has, he just is so scared that if he shows it too much, everybody is going to think he’s a woman after all. But all that doesn’t matter if he gets confronted with any guy trying to hurt his kid, or his girl. That poor fucker of a version of him didn’t have a girl, but he’ll protect his kid just as fiercely. Or maybe that person wouldn’t, but he definitely would. And that’s him. Deep down that’s him, even if he’s paralysed with terror at being in a woman’s body and having a husband. Nobody touches his kid, and just because his fists were smaller in the vision doesn’t mean he won’t use them to protect those he loves.
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Seeing how John clearly isn’t keen on anyone except Darcy getting too close to him right now, Arthur stays where he is- can’t help but lean in just a touch to squint at John’s forehead, but the symbol is gone. “Um… are you okay? Do you feel alright? Do you need any healing?”
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Finally allowing himself to put his fists down when the threat, or whatever else got Gregory to sit back down, worked, John puts both his arms tightly around Darcy and for one second just looks at her. She’s his girl and he’ll protect her no matter what. That’s what he does, that’s who he is, and she’s the one he wants to know that. He’ll have to tell her later, sure as fuck not right here, not in front of Arthur, and never in front of Gregory. “I don’t think I need healing. I’m feeling… good?” There’s a lot of things he does feel but nope, those are private, he doesn’t want to seem emotional.
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Arthur lets out a breath of relief. “You were unconscious so long, and your pulse was really worrying…” He ducks his head. “…I’m sorry you got hurt trying to help me…”
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Okay, fine, fine, he’ll allow himself that little bit so he reaches over and punches Arthur on the arm. “Protecting is what I do. Not sure it did anything that helped, but glad to see you back up.”
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Darcy leans back from where she was rubbing her face all over John’s chest and explains what they’ve learned meanwhile, making John laugh, yes, actually laugh. That’s her strong man. He shakes his head and she thinks he looks maybe just a little bit meanly at Gregory when he tells him that they will all have to deal with their own issues alone then.
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Arthur shivers again at the reminder of having to deal with that vision again, wraps his arms around himself. “Still, thanks for trying? So, um… what’s involved in ‘dealing’? Is there, like… something specific we have to do?”
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Looking down at his fist, John chuckles. “Not sure it’s very you, but have you tried punching your father?”
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Arthur feels himself blanch. “Um… no?” His voice comes out as a squeak.
“I could!” Gregory interjects with a grin and Darcy puts her claws out. “I said I’d bite him for you! But that’s not helping since I’m not there.”
Arthur’s not sure he wants to talk about it, but also not saying anything would feel like lying, so he ducks his head and admits: “…I don’t think vision you would. She seemed to like him…” He slants a look at Gregory. “…And you’re not really there.” Well, he is- maybe? He’s not sure what vision him was doing with that demon and the man- well, apparently making the demon more controllable? By… taking away Gregory’s personality? He shivers again. Does that mean vision him killed Gregory, too, not just that man? He didn’t seem to feel at all bad about what he was doing… Arthur doesn’t want to be like that. That’s not him, that’s… Well, he realizes, that’s also something he’s scared of: Being that kind of version of himself. Being like his father.
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Hearing that has Darcy do a double-take, but then she pouts. “Arthur-dear! That’s mean of you to assume. If I like-liked you, then I’d want to protect you even more! Tell her she’s being bad for you. That’ll show her!”
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“…Well, she called him ‘Unca’ and kissed him on the cheek…” Arthur isn’t about to say what else she did or said, definitely not in front of John and Gregory. No, he doesn’t want to think about it- bad enough he’ll have to face it again… But, no, he’ll fight back. He has magic now- surely vision him has magic, too? Other than demon summoning or whatever? He’ll have to… he’ll have to try it out, as soon as he’s in there, whether he can reach for the spells.
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Sitting up a bit more, Darcy feels some indignant anger but it’s diffuse, she can’t figure out at what or whom it’s directed, but she states: “I’m an obedient daughter. I’d be an obedient niece, but…” She blusters up and it comes out louder than she meant it to be. “But if she loves you, she’ll be more obedient with you!”
John knows exactly where that outburst came from and he can tell that Gregory… he’s not actually sure what the fuck is up with that guy anymore. Is he too stupid to realise how much his wife is suffering? Is that why he’s grinning at her or is he enjoying it?
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‘Obedient’ isn’t really what vision Darcy seemed to be, that Arthur can tell… Well, not towards him, maybe towards his father… Not that he… thinks he’s interested in that? He wrinkles his nose a bit. That’s so… hierarchical. And it doesn’t really… fit Darcy? He thinks? She always takes charge, and he thinks she’s good at it, too. “Well, I guess I’ll see how it turns out…” he says- and he really, really doesn’t want to.
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“Think you’ll have to wait your turn.” John tells him as he settles Darcy against himself. He could see her willingly fall backwards a moment before her eyes glazed over fully. She let herself fall into his arms to keep her safe while she fights her own demons… He wishes she could fight the one across from them, too. But still, his girl trusts him to hold her and it makes him smile, he can’t suppress that.
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She knows that melody. Darcy’s heard it before, at the blasted official wedding of hers. At least this is tiny, there’s not even her papa walking her down the aisle, and her wedding dress is a bad excuse. Of course it is, she’s no tailor and she now remembers Lancaster pulling it out from the very back of a closet, telling her to fix it up. This must have been Arthur’s mother’s wedding gown.
Once again, she’s glad for her emotions being vague and distant, she thinks she would have trouble keeping the smile on her face for her soon-to-be husband. She’s also glad for the vague emotions helping her not to snicker, because he looks impatient and that’s just so him. This pathetic man that her Arthur is so afraid of. He’s a nothing already and he will be even less once she just has her drac back.
But for right now, she focuses on being the perfect woman, the perfect demure little wifey he thinks he can control. No, she may be Gregory’s obedient wife, but Gregory is hers, kind of. This man, he’s just a tool to use. A tool that can’t even get a kiss at the altar right, really, at this point she’s just terribly unimpressed with him. But at least he’s predictable, consummating the marriage so she can’t annul it. He lets himself be bound by all those silly human rules when he so wants to be above them. No, there is nothing to be scared of, he’s just another human. She doesn’t like humans, they scare her when she has to be social, but this is not being social. This is a story she’s telling. He has no more real agency than any of the toys she played with as a little girl. He’s not real, the same way that any other supporting characters in her life aren’t real.
Of course she has no emotional reaction even when he finally hands her her drac back. Wedding gift, sure, call it what you want. Watch her be delighted, watch her pretend to let him test his little wifey. Her drac knows what to do. It shoves all its power, untapped for weeks, into the hunting bite and he doesn’t even struggle. Arthur will never have to be afraid of him again. Darcy can’t wait to do this to her real Arthur’s meanie father. She snarls down at his lifeless, bloodless form and it feels so, so right to snarl again with her full self.
Ah, there are her emotions back! Yes, she’s taking a moment to hug her drac and kiss it and dance with it. They are free! As long as they are together, they are free. They are a night creature; they are free to howl at the moon, they are free to let all those humans believe they are looking at a little lady. What’s looking back is a drac.
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Arthur watches somewhat worriedly as Darcy is hit by the vision- but she doesn’t show any signs of being actually unconscious, or having a bad physical reaction. Not like John did, or like he apparently did, to prompt John to try and jump in. Well, Gregory seemed pretty fine as well. And Darcy did pretty well with her previous visions, even if she said it was the worst, not having her drac, she didn’t act like she was scared– more… annoyed? Aggravated?
He still startles when suddenly, her forehead blazes- a symbol, like with John. But not the same, best as he can make it out through the light. He tries to sketch it before it goes out, and really hopes it’s not going to have some unpredictable… fey magic side-effects. He’s not sure he gets the details right when the light winks out again, and he focuses on Darcy’s face, and sees her big, fanged grin. Hesitantly, he smiles back. “So… you won, too?”
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Maybe she’s riding her triumph out a bit hard, and her drac here feels even closer now, but it’s out before she can think it through. “Your father can’t kiss to save his life, but at least he tastes not too bad. Deserved it, too!”
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With a facepalm, John snorts. The only time he sees his girl this free and unreserved is normally their dreamscape, but he can only guess what Arthur’s going to say in response to that declaration.
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Arthur’s pretty sure he’s literally turning green. “Gross!” he manages to choke out, and that’s the understatement of the century, but still encompasses that entire statement of Darcy’s. He… doesn’t want to know. He really doesn’t. His stomach definitely doesn’t want to know.
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She just shrugs, throws one furtive look at Gregory because it’s really wrong to say something like that in front of her husband, isn’t it? But he looks… bored if anything. Only that he’s giving Arthur a look, oh no, she knows what he’s getting up to. Arthur looks so upset and that means Gregory is going to try to tease him and she’s not having it! Instead, she jumps in and asks if she also had something on her brow? Could Arthur see it well enough? Does he think he could research it? If this is a trial, maybe it’s her stamp of passage or something.
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Arthur is very grateful for the distraction- yes, there was a symbol! Here, he tried to make a sketch of it! He turns his notebook to show her. Not that he’s sure he got it right… And, um, he’d love to research it! Of course, he only has to ask before the house plops a stack of dictionaries of various scripts and symbols down in front of him.
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John checks the notebook; his angle was bad for seeing Darcy’s symbol, but he prides himself in his visual memory, so he makes a second sketch right next to Arthur’s, changing some small things that he thinks Arthur didn’t get quite right. That script looks intricate; he suspects the angle on that line might change the meaning. Not that he has much luck figuring this out. Fuck, fey script is a bitch, and there he thought copying those Asian symbols he occasionally had seen was difficult.
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Should Darcy feel so smug at having totally derailed Gregory’s tease before he even got to it? She noticed that she definitely got it right, he pouted at the interruption and then tried teasing with them always being with their noses in the books, but that pearled off them, of course, because why would that be a bad thing?
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These squiggly fey symbols are really hard to figure out, Arthur finds. It’s not that they all look the same, not when he’s looking at them next to each other… but the moment he looks away, he’s forgotten what half of it looks like.
But that frustration is nothing compared to the bolt of terror that goes through him when he feels/sees that encroaching darkness on the edges of his vision, has just about time to shove the book back on the table so he doesn’t drop it. Everything in him rebels, he doesn’t want to, but he finds himself right back where he was- back to the wall, vision Darcy plastered to his front, looking up at him with that totally wrong sort of inviting expression. The back of his mind is chanting: “No, no, no, no!” but… but he has a plan.He can… he can do this, he doesn’t… have to just let things happen, he can fight! He reaches for his magic, and it’s there– he can remember the matrices, and he can feel the magic ready to flow into it. It’s the plasma bolt spell he reached for, he realizes, and part of him feels bad for it, because this is Darcy, but… but it isn’t his Darcy. Still. He’s not just going to lash out. “Let me go,” he manages, even manages to keep his voice even.