Okay first off… I am SO sorry about the slow update. That was a combination of my laziness, senior project for school (BLARGH!), and Thanksgiving holiday. Next, my reviews!
Lunar Lilly Muse: Leave her alone Raz! Just because you went crazy in my story doesn't mean you can pick on my reviewers!
Starlight's Delight: Thank you so much and I shall keep going as long as I get reviews and think of stuff to write... shifty eyes
Lovava: Well at threat of foot chopping you inspired me to finish the chapter I had held in limbo. Huzzah for you! And more foot watching for me.
Now for a Lili chapter everybody…
In terms of houses this one fell in the "well that's pretty cool come Christmas time but why do they refuse to take the lights down in July?" category. If you compared it to the ones around it though suddenly it became much better looking. It's not that the houses we falling apart or creepy from disuse. Quite the opposite in fact. Actually, the houses around here looked TOO pristine and opulent. Save the house that Lili was standing in front of which was beyond that. By which I mean, very rich looking.
The steps into the house reminded Lili of the back of a monster that had been in her nightmares for… a long time. She ignored them and walked up to the porch (still covered in Christmas lights) and knocked on the door. Dogen was just behind her shooting a death glare at a flower that must've been telling him to kill someone.
"Something wrong Dogen?" she asked, a smile belaying her slight exasperation.
"It… It's. It told me that I-" he shook his head, "But it lies. Yeah. It's a LIAR!"
Lili patted Dogen on the head and turned back to the door.
During that fateful summer she had met Raz, Lili had learned that Dogen had no parents and his aunt took care of him. She'd hated him though and treated poor Dogen like an animal (likely this is part of the reason for Dogen's strange behavior). Upon learning this Lili just could not let it stand and had taken Dogen with her back home. Once Lili turned eighteen however Dogen came with her as no one else in her house could stand him. At times even Lili could barely stand him.
But Dogen was like the little brother Lili had never had and she loved him. Like a brother you sick perverts! God!
Lili knocked again and she heard someone moving about inside. Hopefully coming to open the door.
"Dogen, could you go get my bag for me?" Lili asked over her shoulder. Dogen complied and went to fetch Lili's bag, currently located halfway down the street.
Lili had left it there on purpose though. She'd left it there so she could ask Dogen to go get it. She didn't want Dogen to see this.
The door cracked open and in the shadows behind the door Lili could just barely make out two small, slightly disfigured eyes, staring out at her. "Hello there Lili," said the man in the doorway.
"Hello Ban," she replied.
"I assume you're not here for tea?"
"You assume right."
"Damn… Do you think you could let me put some pants on?"
"Well, no. Can't risk you running off."
"Please? I'd rather not die in my underpants."
"Sorry Ban."
The silhouette shrugged and opened the door completely. Lili walked inside, a large psychokinetic, purple hand hovering behind her. The purple hand quietly closed the door as Lili and Ban, a man in his apparent forties, conversed. Ban was tallish but certainly not skinny which made staring at him in a white sleeping t-shirt and briefs all that more disturbing. Lili almost gagged when he walked towards the kitchen. "Do you mind if I ready some tea anyway?"
Lili shrugged, "If it'll make you feel better go ahead."
"Thanks," Ban trudged over to the kitchen and pulled the window separating the two rooms open. You know what I mean don't you? Those random windows they have in those 70's houses. The ones that lead from the kitchen to the living room. I mean seriously! Why have a window from the kitchen to the living room? Unless you have a maid or something… But the houses they put those window things in aren't made for people who have maids so it seems kind of useless. Ah but I digress…
So Ban opens up the window in the kitchen right? And as soon as he does Lili's psychokinetic hand grabs his head and crushes it to just within an inch of his life. Ban's still alive, barely, but he's fighting valiantly to correct that as he claws at his eyes and face in an attempt to end the pain he's feeling. Lili felt no pity for the traitor as he thrashed in the air (Lili's hand was holding him about a foot off the ground).
"Now Ban, answer me truthfully and I'll make it end quickly… Lie and I'll leave you like this to die like this, hours later from brain hemorrhaging. Not a nice way to go old 'friend'," she said contemptuously.
Ban's vocal cords still worked and he could still gasp out what was needed, "Whatever you want… I'll say it. Just please don't leave me like this!"
"Okay then," she lowered him to the ground and lessened his pain slightly, "Where is my dad?"
"He's…gone."
"Wrong answer," She squeezed the hand somewhat. Not enough to kill him but enough to worsen the pain.
Ban thrashed in agony, "HE'S DEAD!" the once high government official broke under torture and let out all his secrets. "he's dead… and so are the rest of the psychonauts."
"You liar. Even your contemptible country acknowledged the need of a universal psychic agency."
"We did, true. But we didn't kill him."
"Oh?" Lili said sarcastically, "Then who did?"
Ban laughed, "It's true we were going to kill him soon enough if you nosy daddy kept busing in on our business but luckily your father bit the bullet before we needed to do the job."
"What do you mean?"
"That psychopath Rasputin killed your pathetic daddy off when he blew up the Vatican you little bi-" and Ban's words cut off sharply when his vocal cords were severed by a blade of psychic..ishness.
Lili leaned real close to her prisoner and whispered in his ear. "I told you I'd kill you quickly if you told me what I wanted. Well I never promised that I would and you've managed to piss me off even more than I was. So now I'll make you regret ever mentioning anything you said and make you wish to the God you once believed in that I had just left and let you die of brain hemorrhaging."
Dogen was sitting on the porch of the house waiting with Lili's bag in his lap humming a jingle he'd heard on the television the other day. Lili had told him it was ripped off of a Queen song completely illegitimately and that whoever had made that commercial should burn in hell. But it was a catchy tune nonetheless.
Lili came out of the house and seemed in a bad mood so Dogen choose not to say anything and just follow her.
"We're going Dogen…"
"Ah, um… okay."
"We're going to Ground Zero, because I need to learn the truth and find out what I need too." Lili sometimes did this. She would talk to him as if he were responding to her and then when she answered herself it seemed more like she was rationalizing something in her own head rather than caring what Dogen thought about said idea. Dogen didn't really mind it just seemed kind of strange. Maybe Lili was a little crazy perhaps? Oh well. Off to the Vatican!
I know, it was dark. Sorry, it just sort of came out that way. I did try to not go TOO much into gore and violence. Did I succeed?
Now some questions that may arise about the chapter: After much deliberation I have decided to place the setting for Psychonauts in our own reality. Also, that Queen song I was talking about that a commercial ripped off… Under Pressure. The same song Vanilla Ice ripped off. That guy should burn in hell too. Seeing that just made me incredibly mad as not only to I hate plagiarism but Queen is one of my favorite bands! The product it was advertising for? I don't know, I forget. Think it may have been a car or something.
So farewell everybody and see you next time! I'll try not to take so long again. Thanks for the reviews!