fifty words for murder and i'm every one of them

[submittome]

Who: Snakegato + Clotted Cream, White Lily, Mizuki and whomever wants to jump in after the deed
What: Suri has given Affogato a task to make Pure Vanilla suffer by harming those he loves dearest
When: The Night after returning to the Grove
Where: The Grove, round about Cookie House
Warnings: snake (in more than one sense of the word), the effects of snake venom including excruciating pain and the bodily reactions that accompany it (including emeto), death, note specific topping cws!


Affogato's been given a second, immediate order by the Black Sun. Cause Pure Vanilla pain by targeting those he loves - since hurting the Martyr himself won't do anything - in revenge for taking Nene away from it.

And seeing as how Affogato may hate the other Cookie a little, it's only something he's too glad to do.

So the night back, Affogato sets aside his little Seaborn baby Mizuki gifted him so Mizuki can "be with him" at all times, and carefully leaves the therapy building. Once outside, he dons the amulet the God gifted him with the intent to enact his will. The transformation is instantaneous and soon - once he figures out how to move - a black snake is carefully winding it's way through the grass of the Grove towards it's targets. Black dahlia patterns speckle its scales, scattered with marigolds in a stained corrupted look.

It will do it's best to avoid detection, using the dark of night to hide itself, as it winds its way towards its target.

Comments

[lilyberation]

( oh absolutely not. even if she knew what sort of snake this was, she isn't about to risk a bite. she's going to stand and leaves the room for a moment, the picture of calm. and then she returns with a broom, quietly leaving a door open. )

Come along now, let's go.

( it might be hilarious, this frail-looking woman just calmly ushering him along with the broom. but mostly it's just a little sad, with her gentle ignorance. )

[submittome]

[ Ah, she's smart. Rats. And being ushered around with a broom is humiliating. How dare she?!

He coils up, makes himself impossible to gently push around, even tucks his head in a bit so it just looks like a nub sticking out of a cinnamon roll coil. He has to wait until the broom is moved aside, he has to wait until she brings herself within biting distance. ]

[lilyberation]

... Oh, now you're just being difficult.

( she really doesn't want to risk touching the snake, for both their sakes... it must be scared, the poor thing. enough so to not even attack... but its still too great a risk, especially with her unfamiliarity with the wildlife.

unfortunately for affogato, she is wisely keeping her distance. fortunately for him, a certain green tea cream bunny is less so, as it has not a single thought in it's creampuff brain, and opportunity comes when she moves to try and keep the little thing away from the snake as it hops over to befriend him- )

Oh, no you don't...! You're supposed to be in the other room-

[submittome]

[ Oh! How adorable! For a moment even Affogato is charmed by the little green wobbly fluff of a bunny, he wants to squish it's little face. But it coming over brings Lily's hands down close enough, and before she can pull herself and the bunny away, Affogato strikes.

It's quick, a sudden dart as those powerful muscles uncoil and lunge. Needle teeth sink into her wrist, clamp tight to inject that powerful god given venom.

Before releasing just as quick. ]

[lilyberation]

( it happens all so quickly, she's not sure what happens until it's much, much too late. the bite feels like fire injecting itself into her dough, and she loses balance almost immediately.

one heart beat.

her veins feel like they are on fire, her bones like they're cracking.

two heart beats.

her hand feels numb and yet not, every joint aches.

three heart beats.

it's so cold. she can't keep her balance any longer, trembling- from an outsider's perspective, the sudden shift in her health would be too fast to see. she falls to the ground, weakly trying to force herself up but- she can't. a cold sweat breaks out and as the pain intensifies, she feels helpless-

a broken scream of agony breaks forth. )

[submittome]

[ Oh that happens so fast. For a moment Affogato freezes, then he moves quickly to tuck himself away and out of sight. With her scream, others will come. He may be able to hit another.

He may also be fucking killed if he's not hidden.

So he jams himself under a nearby piece of furniture and waits. ]

[lilyberation]

( every minute it just gets worse and worse. by the time anyone finds her, she can barely move. she's managed to clench a fist, and that's- that's about it? the scream dies into a desperate, panicked mumbling though, her eyes glassy- )

No no no don't come near me...

[purevanillacookie]

[ Lily's scream pulls Vanilla from a fitful fretful sleep. His head swims and he seems disoriented, but he knows her voice. Even with the agony in it being clear.

It takes him longer than he'd like to finally stumble down beside her, his hands trembling as he touches her shoulders lightly. He left his Staff behind in his panic, so he's fumbling blind.

Her mumbles make him hesitate. ]

Lily-! Lily it's me, my love, it's Pure Vanilla....!

[lilyberation]

( she recoils from the touch with a cry- it hurts it hurts it hurts don't do this- )

DON'T!

( by this point she's certainly in tears, breathing heavily. )

[purevanillacookie]

[ He jerks his hands back to the cry, unsure of what to do. What hurt her? How- Was it Suri again?!

Instead he hovers his hands near her and tries to heal. Though it's dampened here into the slow over time trickling, he will force it, as much as he can. Ease the pain, while his brain swims. ]

No, no, shhh, I won't touch you, but let me heal you, it's just me, it's okay, I'm here....

cw emeto

[lilyberation]

( there's a splotch of dark red on her wrist, love, staining the dark green. his attempts are kind and gentle, but she still pushes him back again- this time it's because the pain is so severe and maddening that she's about to throw up right there and is concious enough to realize she doesn't want to do that on him. )

[purevanillacookie]

[ HE'S BLIND, WOMAN, HIS STAFF IS IN THE ROOM STILL. Despite that, he will feel the wetness against his fingers as she pushes at him to get him away, moments before he hears that familiar sound. ]

Oh, Crumbs-!

[ He rubs his fingers together, sniffs. Blood?! No, he needs help, his voice raising. ]

Fel! Cacao! Clotted Cream, please! I require aid!

[ For obvious reasons Fel is Sir Not Appearing In This Story. He doesn't know what's happening. Did his healing do nothing? His heart is lodged in his throat, pounding away as he reaches again, trying to find where she moved to. ]

A-ah, please, wait, let me-!

[ He stumbles to his hooves again and moves as quickly as he can to find his staff so he can see. What does he do what can he do whats hurting her ]

[lilyberation]

( yeah, felicity's not home right now and this will burn her up later.

lily coughs a little, trying to push herself away from the mess and breathing heavily. all the while there's just a low, drawn out and weepy moan of agony. )

Vanilla...? Vanilla... T-they're everywhere, the vines- it hurts so much--

( when clotted cream screams too she flinches, but- she can't keep herself up much longer. shaking, lily finally just... falls to the ground. )

[purevanillacookie]

[ The words are pure ice in his veins, his breathing shuddering out as Clotted Cream screams and he- he freezes. Two of the people he loves the most, in agony. His thoughts swirl, coaxed by the faint poison in him from his spiked drink.

He was warned, wasn't he? ]

You...

[ It's a quiet, grief filled whisper. Devil. Monster. Then he shakes himself, tries to refocus. Makes his way back to Lily's side - he can hear Cacao moving towards Clotted Cream - groaning to her laying there. ]

No no no-!

[ He moves quickly to scoop her up, whispering apologies because he doesn't know if it will hurt her, and move her to the couch in the main room. Now he can check her thoroughly, the Staff landing on her wrist. The dark on the green, the faint tears in the wrappings. ]

I'm sorry, my dear, I'm sorry.

[ Quickly he begins to unravel her bindings, talking as he does to. Well. ]

Leave them alone, please just leave them alone...

[lilyberation]

( lily whimpers as she's moved, and simply hangs limply in his grip until she's placed on the couch. his guilt and fear goes unheard. she can see the vines all around them. dark enchantress cookie looming in the doorway, urging her to just crumble already. shadow milk's laughter. the snake, larger now, coiling around the room.

...

at some point though, the pain wins- she simply cannot endure any more. her eyes close and her chest rises, and that is the only sign she is even alive still. )

[purevanillacookie]

[ When she stills, he panics. Reaches for her to place a hand over her mouth to- oh. Oh, Witches, okay, she's still breathing. He groans a little and moves his hand, undoes her wrapping.

Her blackened hand doesn't give him a pause. He's seen it before. Instead he focuses on the bite mark, and has the same idea as Cacao. Draw the venom out, if his healing is doing nothing.

He seals his mouth around the mark and sucks, raising his hand up high to clamp it down on her arm. Almost immediately he pulls back to spit and grimace. The taste is rancid, far worse than he thought it would be, and his tongue feels like it's going numb. It also makes the swimming in his head worse, so he gives that up and tries to heal her again. ]

I'm here, my dear, I'm here. I am beside you. Please.. Wake up! Wake up, wake up...

[amethystic]

( while he's focused on lily, felicity has come home- and what a mess to come home to. barking, distressed animals, the cries of pain and panic alike-- and her father in the center, holding white lily, trying desperately to heal her. she mutters a promise to be with cacao shortly but first- first she has to see him.

she announces herself with a gentle touch on the shoulder as she crouches beside him, calm and steady. a pair of golden frames with rainbow-reflective lenses sits before her eyes. )

I'm here now, okay? We'll help them.

[purevanillacookie]

[ He's so focused on White Lily he doesn't notice Felicity returning. His hands touch the bite mark, tries to heal it, tries to draw the venom out. It has to be venom. Spider? Snake? He doesn't know. It's mindless attempts, his mind not working as he tries over and over.

The touch to his shoulder makes him jerk, and he turns his head. ]

I can't-

[ Wake her up. It's not working. What is he doing wrong. Why can't he think. The black sun around the wound blooms and he knows, he knows it's Suri but his fogged brain can't comprehend it. ]

Why...

[amethystic]

( she frowns a little and hugs him as best she can before sitting down beside him. )

The black sun. ... It's him again, isn't it?

( ... hadn't he tried to draw the venom out already? even the day they were attacked in their sleep, he'd been more coherent, too. even if he adores white lily, surely he wouldn't just break, right...? he's- he's a king and a war hero, or something. )

... Hey- hey. It's not working, right? So let's try something different. ... Didn't you say that he smelled like lavender?

[purevanillacookie]

[ It's him. The words rotate around his mind. It's him again. It is. But he can't find a way to answer that. He knows it is. He was warned. The black sun mocks him.

He drags his hand down his face, smearing a bit of Lily's blood there as he does, unaware he's doing so. Think, Pure Vanilla, stop being so useless. So weak. So pathetic. ]

I-

[ Rot and decay, fire in his throat, the hard press of jewelry into his back, of silk. Lavender. ]

Yes.

[amethystic]

( felicity presses a little kiss to the side of his head, brief and quickly pulls away- a dose of calm, contentedness, clarity without leaving her exhausted. maybe it will help. )

She's right there, right? Me and Cacao are close. I'm going to get some lavender and stuff. Alright? I'll be right back.

[purevanillacookie]

[ Clarity. It's like a fog being swept away and he inhales sharply. Ah. He's affected by something. ]

Lavender. Please grab me a moonstone, you will find one in a box on my dresser.

[ If they can't draw it out, they can prevent the spread. He doesn't know if it will kill her, but ... he won't allow it. He considers his Soul Jam, the life powder within it. Realizes at least three people here would cry at him, decides against it. Now that he's thinking clearly again. ]

[amethystic]

( she nods and tries to avoid disturbing anyone else as she goes. when she returns, its with lavender flowers, tea and dried flowers- any way he could possibly use it- alongside the moonstone he requested. )

[purevanillacookie]

[ Bless you, Fel. When she returns he will be studying the mark on Lily's wrist, frowning. His Staff is propped up so he can use both hands. ]

Thank you, sweetheart.

[ It's obvious he means for everything. He makes a spot beside him again, setting Lily's hand down. He takes the moonstone and tea, and promptly crushes the stone into it. Minotaur strength. Powders that thing. Into the tea also goes the lavender, rolling the fresh flowers between his palms to crush and powder them as well. ]

Please tilt her head back and open her mouth.

[amethystic]

( holy SHIT dad. the display of power gets a startle out of her, if only because it was so unexpected given that it is, you know, a rock. felicity watches curiously but then does as told. )