failguardian | 2 ❀ Action

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2 ❀ Action

[Guess who picked up a dog mask? Yup, that's right, it's Anise.]

[So, denizens of Luceti, you might be able to find this pigtailed loli in various humiliating situation today. Perhaps she's chasing your cat! Or perhaps she's on all fours, sniffing at your shoe and begging for scritches behind the ears! Or perhaps she's trying to dig a hole with bare hands and getting mud all over herself? The possibilities are endless!]

[Why not use this time to get some blackmail material?]

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Scaring you? I'm scaring you?

[Taking another step closer. If she's not quick, he's going to reach out and grab her by the hair. Not quite pulling it, but enough to make sure he's got a grip on her.]

...perhaps you should be scared.

[Nope. Not quick at all. She yelps as her hair's grabbed, shaking her head and yelping again as that only causes her hair to be yanked.]

Ion, why are you doing this? You're sounding like Sync!

Like Sync? [He leans down closer, his grip on her hair tightening. Though his tone is cold, he makes sure to keep his voice soft, so the effect is far more Ion-like than Sync-like. Though the words seem better suited for the latter.]

Of course I do. How could I not? We're both replicas of the same person, after all... worthless trash that the world saw fit to be rid of.

What?! [No way...There's no way Ion wouldn't think like that. She tries to ignore the pain, staring determinedly at Ion.] You're not worthless, and you're not trash! Neither of you are! [She growls a bit to prove her point.]

[Ion falls silent. Any other day, Ion falling silent usually means he's lost in his thoughts... but today, it simply means he's too angry for words.]

[Why is he angry? He's angry at Anise... but why? He doesn't know. And maybe he's too angry to care. He jerks her by the hair to the side before shoving her in the opposite direction, with the intent to throw her onto the ground.]

[His voice is completely devoid of feeling when he speaks again.]

Are you talking back to me again?

[This time, Anise doesn't speak. She's too terrified to, and the mask takes over. She whimpers, rolling over to show her belly.]

[For a moment, it seems like he's about to kick her. And he almost does: he swings his leg back and grits his teeth and--]

[But something stops him. Somewhere, deep inside of his mind, he manages to grab just enough control to make him stop.]

[He tightens his hands into fists and glares down at her, his face probably just visible from her angle at the ground.]

...stay out of my sight. You make me sick.

[And with that, he'll turn to leave.]

[Anise curls up, bracing herself and shutting her eyes tight. The kick never comes.]

[She opens her eyes warily a few seconds later, feeling confused as she sees Ion's retreating form. Hunkering down against the ground, she lets out a quiet whine. Just what's going on?]

[One thing's for sure though, she has to stick with her master, her leader, no matter what terrifying things Ion's saying. He had been pretty lenient with her, right? She wouldn't mind having her freedom restricted a little bit if it meant the old Ion, her Ion would return.]

Ion, please wait! I'm sorry! I'll be good!

[He needs to get away. He needs to get away. He doesn't know why, but suddenly that's the only thought occupying his mind. What is he doing here? Where was he going before now? What's he doing!?]

[He almost gets back control, until he hears Anise's voice. It breaks his heart. He's the one making her feel this way, isn't he? It's all his fault... he's become a monster--]

[And that's all it takes for the darkside to overwhelm him once more. He doesn't turn around, but his voice is much harsher than it had been before; he's practically yelling at her.]

Anise. I said to stay away.

But...[She slows down, hanging a few feet behind Ion.] You're my master, Ion! I have to stay with you!

[With that, he turns suddenly, snapping at her.] Did you not hear what I said!? Get out of here, before I make you go!

[He raises a hand up in the air as if meaning to cast an arte... but it's shaking. No. No. He won't hurt Anise. He won't... he can't, he--]

[His voice is strained. He pleads one last time, with the last ounce of control he can muster:] ...please.

[It was the "please" that did the trick. With one last pitiful whimper, Anise runs...but not very far.]

[She'll venture out from her hiding place behind a tree a few minutes later, moving with slow, hesitant steps towards House One.]

[By the time Anise has turned to run away, Ion will have done the same. It takes a long time for him to cool off enough to even think about going home, at which point he has a rather heated argument with Nephry before simply retreating to his room. He might have simply stayed in there and sulked until morning, but the moment that mask came off, he remembered everything he did... and everything he almost did.]

[It's rather late when he finally goes to seek out Anise, maskless. He can't just let it wait until morning... perhaps it's instinct based on the nature of this place, but he knows well enough that it's never a good idea to wait to tell someone something. Not in Luceti.]

[Anise is in her room, huddled at the edge of the bed facing the wall. She had been in that same position for over an hour already, but she still couldn't sleep.]

[The mask is off. Her dirty clothes are in a pile at the corner of the room, but she hadn't washed, so there's still bits of grass and dirt in her hair. She knows she should clean up, but she doesn't want to run into Ion. What had happened to him? Was itjust because of that weird mask? Or did he really hate her that much?]

[Well, he had good reason to. But no, there's no way he knew that she was a traitor, right? If he knew, he would have confronted her, wouldn't he...? Anise clenches her hands into fists, tossing and turning restlessly.]

[It's at this point that Anise will hear a soft knock on her door, followed by a familiar voice. But unlike the last time they spoke, his voice is just as it normally is: quiet, soft... and perhaps a bit sad.]

Anise?

Y-yeah...? [She stills, tossing over to fully face the wall. She didn't want to face Ion right now.]

May I come in? I need to talk to you.

[He isn't quite sure what he'll do if she says no. What if she's still under the influence of the mask? He might not be able to even talk to her until the experiment ended... and the thought of that just hurt.]

[She hesitates, then sits up, running a hand nervously through her tangled hair. They had to confront each other sooner or later. There isn't really any point in delaying it. Anise steels herself. If Ion really had found out about all her deceptions and wanted her to leave, she'd do it. Luceti had plenty of other places to live, and she could probably find someone to stay with if she looked hard enough...]

Okay. [Her stomach twists painfully and she takes a deep breath.]

[When he opens the door and sees her sitting there, he feels that same horrible twinge in his chest that he felt when he first tore off that mask... when he first realize just how terrible he'd been to her. He doesn't even know where to begin apologizing...]

[He lingers in the doorway only a moment before stepping in and closing the door behind him. Should she turn to look at him, she might notice he's holding that same mask from before in his hands, and it's broken in half.]

Anise, I... about earlier. I have no idea what came over me to make me act that way. I said so many terrible things to you... I'm so sorry.

[She's sitting up, but she's hunched over into herself and her hands are fisted tightly in the sheets. Unwilling to meet Ion's eyes, she fixes her gazse onto her own lap.]

[But the words coming out of Ion's mouth are completely different from what she had expected. She was waiting to be yelled at, cursed, thrown out, or perhaps just Ion's normal calm, soothing tone telling her to get out and never show her face near them again.]

[In the end, the only thing she manages to say in a thin, wavery voice is:] What...?

[Ion has no idea what's going through Anise's mind right now, and as such, has no idea how to interpret that small, unsure-sounding voice. Did she... not believe him? Had he simply gone too far? What if she couldn't forgive him?]

[...]

None of the things I said were true. I would never talk to you like that, Anise... the only reason I did was because of this mask. [He moves his hand just enough so that she can see that he's holding it, provided she's looking at him.] The moment I took it off, I realized just how horrible I'd been... all the terrible things I'd said...

But...Ion...

[She swallows. Ion's voice is entirely truthful. She couldn't detect one hint of malice in his voice, and that makes her feel more nervous. Is he just trying to get her guard down?]

[But, no. She stares at the dog mask in her hand, remembering the way her mind had suddenly cleared when it had came off. What Ion's saying seems to be reasonable. There's no way he would hate her, right? Ion isn't that type of person.]

You don't need to apologize, Ion. [But she can't resist adding, her voice quiet and anxious:] You don't...hate me, right? Everything you said was because of the mask, right?

[That was unexpected, and it certainly shows on his face. Hate...? Did this really shake her trust in him that much? ...no. No, there was more to it than that, wasn't there?]

[Setting the mask aside, he walks over to the bed and sits beside her.]

I could never hate you, Anise. [Though his voice is soft, the words are strong and sincere. That Anise could think, even for a moment, that he hated her... just the thought of it was enough to tear his heart apart.]

No matter what happens between us, that isn't something that's going to change.

[Anise smiles, although her heart isn't completely in it. Ion sounds sincere enough, but once he knows what she did, everything will change. Well then, she just had to keep it a secret forever, no matter how much it hurt. Revealing the truth would just harm everyone.]

[She reaches over, and gives Ion a small, loose hug.]

I'm glad...

[If she only knew... of course, telling her he knows the truth would only lead to a conversation as to how he found out. And that wasn't something Ion ever wanted to have to tell her. It had been so painful telling Luke, and he wasn't the one who blamed himself for it...]

[He doesn't say anything, but he does return the hug, with perhaps a bit more fervor than hers. He doesn't know whether she truly believed him or not, but... he wished she could.]

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