The usual thanks to all the reviewers and my Beta. Chapter update frequency is going to decrease a little since I'm back at uni again now, and have to do sensible things as well!
Chapter 8
The Scanns door sprang open, slamming back against the inside wall so hard that the inner handle removed a significant chunk of plaster. The air cracked around Richard as he strode forward, the rest of the room suddenly becoming little more than his backdrop. After a moment's hesitation – and a sharp push in the shoulder blades from Jackie – Sam went after him.
She'd taken a few steps before she allowed herself a tiny peek in each direction and gulped. Like the first and only previous time she'd entered Scanns, a moment of quiet had fallen when Richard made his entrance; but this time, unlike before, the silence held. Absence of noise shouldn't be so loud, but this was almost deafening. Heads swivelled towards them as they passed, every pair of eyes in the room glinting as they trained on the arrivals. The scene looked normal – or at least, more normal than the rest of the Terrace right now – but there was something almost predatory in the unblinking stares following their movements.
Sam glanced back and missed a breath as two things became immediately apparent. Firstly, Jackie wasn't there – the familiar, flame haired figure was nowhere to be seen no matter how desperately Sam looked. Secondly, the main crowd had followed them in and was spreading out along the walls, filling every bit of space with silent, watching figures. The watchers weren't directly behind them anymore, but the front line was still getting closer as the room filled up.
Devoid of other options, and with her heart plunging to somewhere around her ankles, Sam turned and scurried after Richard.
He hadn't even slowed down, his dark gaze fixed squarely on the raised platform at the far end. Somehow it seemed a lot higher than before. As Sam looked at it, comparing the view with her memory, she realised there had been a change. Instead of the stairs being open to the room, there was now a heavy, black oak table positioned at the bottom of the rail. Two grey files were stark against the dark wood, one considerably thicker than the other, and an inkwell with a peacock quill was positioned neatly to one side.
"I was expecting something like this."
Sam's head jerked up as the new voice broke into the silence. The tones were silken, every syllable perfectly formed as they rang clearly through the air. She focused as a figure stepped into view at the top of the stairs.
It was Kate; but she looked very different. For one thing, she glowed. Her skin was flawless, every feature sculpted out of the white marble that seemed to form her flesh. The robes draped artistically across her slim form were cerulean silver, like water turned to cloth, open at the front to reveal a dress of kingfisher-blue, and her loose, waist-length hair was more platinum than blonde. The eyes shimmering out above proud cheekbones gleamed silver-grey.
A thin, sad smile graced her lips as she began to descend the steps; her attention fixed squarely on Richard.
"You're the best of us Richard," she said softly as she reached the table, laying a hand gently on the thick file, "but you ask too much of yourself."
Richard finally came to a halt a few feet away from the heavy table. Compared to the earlier fury, his expression now was all but blank.
"What I ask of myself is my own business," he said quietly, "But right now I have something to ask you."
Kate smiled, benevolence radiating out from every inch of her. Honestly, that was the most disturbing thing so far. Scary Kate was one thing – nice Kate was quite another.
"What would that be?"
Richard leaned forward, his voice lowered to a conspiratorial level.
"Who are you?"
Kate's expression… stopped. It was the only way Sam could think to describe it. For a fraction of a second the perfect features just paused; suspended like a mask and behind them… something else…
Then it was gone, so fast it had almost never been, and the woman re-animated, giving a low sigh that seemed far more in keeping with the character Sam was used to seeing her display. She flipped open the large folder, at the back, and pulled out a page.
"And that is precisely what I'm talking about," she waved the paper, "Your actions in recent months have been most concerning. Paranoia, unprovoked rages, rash actions… It's not like you. You're Oh-Oh-See."
"I am exactly who I've always been."
Kate's eyes flashed.
"I beg to differ. How long have we known each other? Ten years? I know you Richard and this-" she tapped the file again, "-this isn't you. What I don't know is her."
Sam's stomach gave a horrible lurch as Kate's stare shot through her, contempt clear in her eyes. Richard didn't even turn round.
"Sam has nothing to do with this."
"She has everything to do with this!" Kate snapped and some of the control left her voice, its return accompanied by the first visible twitch of effort. "Please Richard, think about it. She was the last one before the levels plunged. You said yourself something was building; well, you'll have to face that it was her. You've seen what's happened here since she's arrived!"
Richard's expression flickered with something like disgust.
"She's got more Self than some of your little minions," his lip curled slightly, "And she was a Serena. Why in hell would she be a threat?"
"We've never seen Influence like that before, we don't know what to expect. This is something new-"
"No Kate," Richard cut her off, a strange edge to his voice, "It isn't."
Kate regarded him for a moment, then coolly flipped the file closed again, pushing it aside.
"We've been together for a decade. If nothing else, trust me on that. You are not yourself."
"Am I not?"
"You were her first Interaction," Kate continued more smoothly, his apparent consideration of her words relaxing her tone, "You'll have received the full impact of her initial Influence. It had to happen sometime. No-one blames you."
"I am not-" Richard started then stopped. His eyes glinted with the strange almost-fear Sam had seen earlier.
"I may not be under Influence," he said quietly, "But are you?"
Kate's expression iced over.
"Your eyes are a clear enough indicator, Richard. No one else has such extensive an Ocular Cycle, and it is quite clear it's affecting you."
"My eyes have nothing to do with this."
"You are under Influence!" Kate jabbed a finger accusingly in his direction, "Do not disobey me! You will give up your wand and surrender for re-sporking!"
Richard froze. For the briefest of moments, his features were unreadable.
Then his eyes narrowed.
"I have never been sporked. Nor commanded. And you know that."
Kate's lips pressed into a tight line.
"Maybe it's time you were."
"Go ahead." Richard's tone was soft, but there was something diamond-hard under his words. For once, it wasn't the colour of his eyes that was the most obvious, but the sheer intensity suddenly burning there, fierce against his previous calm. Even Kate's composure seemed a little shaken, but she quickly rallied, and nodded shortly.
"Very well. Report to -"
"No."
Kate blinked, and her glare reappeared.
"What?"
"No," Richard repeated, "You want me sporked? Go ahead. Right here. I won't resist."
"Dammit Richard!" Kate's temper broke and her clenched fist slammed into the desk, splashing ink across the already stained wood as the inkwell toppled, "You know this is for your own good! I'm not going to spork you in public!"
"No," Richard's eyes were little more than dark slits now, "You won't do it here because you can't. You don't even carry a spork anymore, do you Kate? You need a dragon hide glove just to touch one!"
"Shut up!" Kate yelled and suddenly Richard lunged forward, right hand whipping out from his cloak in a lightning movement. A loud thunk of metal echoed dully through the room, followed by a single high-pitched reverberating note that continued even through the shocked silence.
Sam was fighting very hard to remove her tongue from where she seemed to have swallowed most of it. She stared at the frozen tableau before her. Richard was standing directly infront of the desk, his gaze locked unblinkingly with Kate's. His eyes were cycling, the same flowing change of shades as Sam had encountered at their first meeting – and Kate's were reacting, flickering from blue to grey to a strange, icy silver.
Between them, plunged into the stained woodwork and casting thin reflections in the pool of split ink, the spork was still vibrating.
Richard leaned forward.
"Take it." His voice was low, dangerous, "If you can."
"I am not playing games with you, Richard," Kate hissed, emphasising the name like an insult. Her attention flicked briefly towards the silver spike and her features twisted in revulsion. Richard caught her gaze again and then straightened up, shaking his head.
"Neither am I, Katryna."
"Bastard!" Kate screeched and suddenly lunged, her fingers locked around the desktop as she shoved it forward. Richard didn't have time to dodge it and let out a small cry as the heavy wood slammed into him, knocking him backward. He landed badly, elbows impacting into the floor with a painful crack, and just managed to kick his legs up to prevent the upended furniture falling onto him. His hand moved, going for his wand, but a heeled foot kicked it aside, sending the thin white wood flying out of his grip and skittering across the floor. The direction of Kate's next kick changed and caught him hard in the ribs, audibly forcing the air out of his lungs. He half made to sit up then froze as the dark shape of Kate's own wand halted a few inches away from his forehead.
Sam's body didn't seem to want to move. She felt utterly paralysed, aside from her heart, which was slamming a machine-gun beat painfully hard on her ribs. This…this wasn't happening! She had to do something…didn't she…?
Kate brushed a stray lock of platinum-blonde out of her eyes and glared down at Richard's prone form.
"Maybe I can't spork you," she hissed, then suddenly let out a cold laugh, so unlike any sound she'd made before that it almost seemed as if it had been dubbed on, and leaned closer, "But there's plenty of other things I can do." She stood back, a strange smile on her lips and raised the wand.
"Imper-"
"Accio Spork!"
Kate span round as the second voice rang out, somewhere behind the crowd, which turned out to be a mistake. The silvery metal hummed as it tore out of the wood and shot through the air, drawn by the Summoning charm, but the space between it and the caster wasn't empty. Kate let out a shriek of pain as the sharp prongs plunged into her forearm, and a further agonised howl as the flesh charred, oily smoke rising from the wound. Richard didn't waste the chance and kicked hard, knocking her aside, and leapt to his feet. His cloak swirled out around him as he span round and started running, making it difficult to tell where the clothing stopped and the man began – which turned out to be very useful as the room suddenly exploded in a storm of scarlet Stunners.
Sam threw herself sideways, just avoiding a blast that shot past her head and took a chunk out of the bookcase nearest her, showering her with charred paper. She gave a yelp as someone suddenly grabbed her arm, almost pulling her off her feet, and looked up into Jackie's mismatched gaze.
"Get to the door!" The red-haired woman yelled and shoved her hard, before swivelling back and sending a fresh stream of scarlet across the room. Sam nodded and stumbled forward, hunched over and running like an inverted L. She could feel the edges of her eyes getting hot and fought to control the panic, her world narrowing to the movement of her muscles as she scrambled, almost on all fours, towards the door.
She didn't get far before her view suddenly vanished in a swirl of black and she found herself wrenched into the air. The world span dizzyingly as she was slung across broad shoulders like a bad rucksack, and it wasn't until she caught a glimpse of dark green that her panic stopped skyrocketing.
"Impedimenta!"
"Rela- Damn!" Richard's voice was slightly strained and Sam felt something skim over her head, "Fine! Incendio"
More yelling erupted. Sam hit the floor as Richard dropped her, shoving her through the doorway behind him. Kate's voice rang out above the chaos.
"Forget the fire! Get them!"
Sam didn't hear anything else as Jackie dived through the door, slamming it shut behind her and took over the Sam-dragging as Richard used his wand to seal the lock.
"We're all?"
Jackie nodded and Richard swore loudly as they pelted down the stairs. Doors sprang magically open as they approached and locked themselves behind them. Sam was trying very hard not to think about what had just happened. She'd been just about getting used to the idea of the Terrace, but now… She didn't know what to think. The look in Kate's eyes…She shivered.
Richard skidded to a halt when they reached the kitchen. He didn't waste time. The fireplace was ignited instantly and the three of them piled in, flames flaring green around them. Sam buried her face in Richard's cloak as the world lurched erratically, worse than any other time before, and she had to try very hard not to throw up. When her feet finally hit the floor again she had to cling on to him to stay upright.
She managed to look round and blinked. They were in the same decrepit room she had found herself when Richard dragged her off the station… when? A few months ago? It seemed like a lifetime. Surely this couldn't be the best place to escape to, there weren't any doors…
Richard had clearly considered this. He sent out two more blasts, one reducing the fireplace to a heap of rubble, the other taking out a window, and motioned to the hole.
"There's a broom shack here, grab two."
Jackie vanished through the broken frame. Before she could start to follow, a hand caught Sam's arm lightly. She looked round, and met Richard's gaze. His eyes were grey.
"It's not your fault."
"She said it was," Sam realised her voice was shaking and fought to control it, "Have…have I done something to you?"
"No," Richard shook his head and a small smile crept onto his lips, "No one gets me under thrall. I face Sues a hundred times more powerful than you on a weekly basis. If Katryna Malfoy and Adrastos Riddle can't keep me down, you are nowhere close to a threat." He rested a hand on her shoulder, squeezed lightly, and straightened up. Sam followed him, puzzled. Katryna Malfoy? He'd called Kate Katryna earlier, just before everything went to hell…
…but who on Earth was Adrastos Rid- …?
…
… no …
Sam felt her eyes widen and she quickly scrambled through the hole. She landed outside and looked round. They were in the middle of nowhere. Punctuated hills swept out away from them, swathed in purple-flecked cloaks of wiry heather and scattered with rocky outcrops. The building was huddled in the faint shelter of a particularly large outcrop and was even more dilapidated on the outside. Frankly, it looked about three gusts of decent wind away from collapsing.
Finally, she spotted Richard climbing up the outcrop, his robes billowing around him in the breeze. Any thoughts of trying to follow him broke as Jackie emerged from a derelict shed leaning up against the rockface, carrying two broomsticks. She flashed a smile, although it was clearly forced.
"Only two in working order, rot's got the rest. They're old, but they should get us to something approaching civilisation."
"Where are we?"
"Middle of the Yorkshire moors I think," Jackie glanced round and shrugged, "I haven't been in the Field for a long time, and obscure waypoints were always Richard's speciality. We'll hit a village sooner or later, find somewhere to stay for tonight."
"Jackie?" Sam asked quietly, stubbing her foot into the ground, "What are we going to do now?"
The older woman regarded her for a moment, then sighed and shook her head.
"I don't know. But this isn't the time to discuss it. C'mon, you can ride with me."
-x-x-
Sam didn't like flying. She discovered both this and the location of every seam in her clothing very rapidly after they left the ground. She spent most of the journey with her face pressed into Jackie's back, shivering. When they finally did land – the ancient brooms on the point of disintegrating – the only comfort Sam could draw was that her feet were touching the ground below. A few moments later, in testament to the universe's particular sense of humour, the clouds opened. Richard's rain-warding spells dealt with the problem of wetness, but the pelting grey sky did little to lift anyone's mood as they trudged along sodden country lanes towards the faint group of lights visible in the distance.
The village they arrived in wasn't large, or particularly impressive, although it seemed to be enough on the tourist routes to boast a small Bed and Breakfast. Richard removed the charms for a while before they entered, answering Sam's protest with a curt snap of "It's raining. Muggles get wet." When he decided they looked suitably bedraggled, they went inside.
The place wasn't much more than a converted house. Sam looked around at the overtly flowery wallpaper with matching borders, all in slightly faded pastel shades. There was nothing familiar here. Sure, if the view down the hallway was anything to go by, this place had a lot of bookcases too, but the Terrace had been rather devoid of delicate lace doilies and china figurines… Sam felt a lump rise in her throat as she realised she'd just thought in the past tense about the place she'd almost been calling 'home'.
A new voice succeeded, thankfully, in diverting her attention.
"Can I help you?"
Sam looked up at the figure that had emerged from a room off to one side. A Muggle woman, by her dress, with grey-streaked hair wound up in a severe bun. Pale eyes stared out from a set of features locked into a faint, mechanical smile, suspicion clear on her face as she watched them. Sam could see her point – they did make an odd group. Richard had removed his cloak-like outer robes, leaving him looking rather like an unmasked ninja in army boots. Jackie had more usual Muggle-style dress anyway, but there was no getting away from her hair colour, so Sam herself probably looked the most normal of the three. After the earlier 'blending' exercise, they were all also dripping rhythmically onto the welcome mat.
Richard answered, his voice calm and business-like.
"You have vacancies?"
A little of the suspicion drained out of the woman's expression, but not much.
"One double and a single, is it?" She eyed Jackie, with a distinct look of disproval as her gaze reached the shock of scarlet hair, then she moved over to a large brown book on a nearby table.
"How long do you intend to be staying?"
"We're... undecided."
The woman gave a small sound, rather like a sniff, and arced a brow at them.
"And how do you intend to be paying, Mr-?"
"Richard," he said shortly, "Only ever Richard. The rooms are upstairs?" He nodded to Jackie without even waiting for an answer. The redhead nodded and gently took Sam's arm, leading her towards the stairs.
"Excuse me," the woman started forward, "I need a surname and a deposit before y-"
Before what was never established as Richard sighed and snapped his fingers. The woman froze mid-sentence and mid-stride, giving the impression she was a paused video. Except – Sam realised – for her eyes. The pale stare was still moving, flicking between them with sudden terror.
"Ward us in," Richard said quietly, "Every crack. I don't want oxygen getting through without being vetted."
Jackie's grip around Sam's arm tightened as she drew her away again, despite the girl's reluctance to move.
"C'mon kid," she muttered, "It's time you learnt some half-decent wards."
"But what about her?" Sam protested, "You're not just going to leave her like that?"
"We shall have a small chat," Richard's cold smile was distinctly unpleasant, "I'll be up soon."
Finally, Sam allowed herself to be led away. As the hallway dropped out of view of the stairs, she just had time to see Richard draw his wand and turned back to the petrified proprietor.
The first door they came to yielded to Jackie's touch and Sam was quickly, but firmly, pushed inside. The interior was about what she'd expected – pale shades and a mild over-ornamentation of crockery and doilies. Before she could say anything, the redhead slid past her and drew her wand, muttering as she swept it scientifically around at the walls. Briefly, the wallpaper seemed to go out of focus and shimmer, but it didn't last for long and Jackie soon relaxed. She must have caught Sam's expression because she smiled slightly.
"You want a go? I've done all the major stuff, and Richard'll check it all anyway, paranoid as he is-"
"Better paranoid than walking blind."
Sam span round so fast her whirling hair caught the dark figure behind her across the chest. How on earth did he move so quietly? She'd have sworn she hadn't heard the door open…
She shrank back a little as Richard glared at the pale fronds tangled on his shirt buttons.
"Get that cut," he snapped, unhooking her, and then turned his attention to Jackie, "We secured?"
"Best I can do. C'mon Sam, I'll sort your hair while he prowls."
Sam followed her gesture and dropped down onto the edge of the double bed, where the gelatinously-soft mattress rose up to claim her hips. She was dimly aware of Jackie muttering severing charms, accompanied by a lightening sensation at her scalp, but that wasn't what was occupying her mind. Now she was still, not being dragged along frantically, or attempting to keep her lunch on the back of a broomstick, or even trudging mechanically through sodden fields… she had time to think.
To remember.
The images rose. Ranks of silent, gliding Sues marched anew across her mind, glittering, jewel-like eyes scanning her greedily, then Scanns, Kate's bizarre alternation between facets of personality until finally-
-Richard, flat on his back and for a moment the crack in his expression as Kate's wand zeroed in between his eyes, a brief flicker of some agonised fear Sam had never though his features could hold-
-sickening wet sound as the spork plunged into Kate's arm, great clouds of smoke boiling free of the flesh as in the back of her mind Sam felt the scream, the cry of enraged pain, betrayal-
-the scent of burnt hair assaulting her nostrils as the Stunner flew past, missing her so closely and vanishing into the screeching throng of Sues, of the people Sam had been starting to get to know…or thought she had. How much was real? Was any of it?
-Kate's eyes, swirling silver and the laugh, so high, so pure, so-
"Sam?"
The mental slideshow shattered, flinging broken shards of memory across her mind as Jackie's face swam into view, twisted with concern, and Sam suddenly realised there were hands gripping her shoulder so tightly that her own violent shivering was being translated up the older woman's arms. She tried to breathe, calm, push the bubbling tide of memory away, but it was too strong, too much, and she was so tired…
"… sorry …" She was dimly aware of being pulled into a tight hug before her vision faded and she pitched forward into unconsciousness.
-x-x-
Quiet voices filtered slowly into Sam's mind, dancing lightly on the edge of hearing.
"…hardly your fault…"
"I should have listened to my instincts. Now look where we are."
"Could be worse-"
A sharp, humourless laugh cut the other sentence.
"Please, enlighten me on how?"
Dreamily, Sam let the words slide across her ears, not paying any of her fragment attention to their meanings. It was almost comforting, the tones were familiar, so very-
- then the world came crashing back. Sam sat bolt upright with a gasp, knocking aside the bedcovers that had been laid gently over her as the last few hours of consciousness played at blurring speed across her mind. The Terrace, the Sues and the old shack, then here and her hair and she'd passed out…
"Sam? How'd you feel?"
Sam re-focused on the chintzy world around her, and turned in the direction of the voice. Her two older companions were seated in the corner on wickerwork chairs, a small coffee table between them. They were both watching her closely, and Sam felt a blush start to bloom on her cheeks.
"Um… a bit wobbly, I guess…"
"You need tea," said Jackie firmly as she reached down to a tray by her feet, where a large cream teapot was steaming gently. "Since our hostess was kind enough to bring this up. Well, I say kind, she seemed rather convinced my name is 'Bobby' and kept asking me how the church fete went, so confused may be a better description."
"Mild side effect," Richard didn't even turn to meet the pointed glance in his direction, "All I did was a memory charm. She won't be scrambled for long."
"While she is, shall we try for biscuits?" Jackie winked as she poured milk into a cup and heaped in several teaspoons of sugar. The actual tea was somewhat of an afterthought. She moved over to the bed and handed Sam the cup, smiling sagely.
"Hot, sweet, milky tea. Cures damn near anything, even stuff chocolate won't scratch."
Sam took the drink. The cup was decorated a little too over-enthusiastically with painted roses, but it was warm and reassuringly solid. She felt strangely detached from everything, as if she'd suddenly skipped a chapter in a very involved and complex novel and couldn't go back to check the missing pages.
The others were still watching her. She didn't really feel like making eye contact, and concentrated on the tea. All that prevented the next few minutes from being oppressively quiet was the dull drone of a vacuum cleaner filtering up from downstairs.
"What happened?" The question was so sharp, so sudden, that it took Sam a moment to realise the voice that had spoken had been her own.
"Don't worry, you just passed out. Pretty expected, considering -"
"No," Sam cut her off, "What happened?"
There was another detached moment before she realised she was standing up, fists clenched at her sides, as the abruptly discarded teacup rolled under the bed as if seeking sanctuary there. She swayed a little, but stayed upright. She was very tired of being left utterly in the dark!
Neither Richard nor Jackie replied at first, but Sam caught the quick glance that passed between them. She pressed it.
"I don't understand! And I can't if you don't tell me what's going on."
More silence.
"Okay," Jackie said finally, and with a strange edge of reluctance in her voice. She looked up and Sam could see conflicting emotions fighting in her expression. The red-haired woman fidgeted.
"I told you we were in the Terrace from early on, right? Well… there's more to it. We started the whole thing, and as far as we know we were the first to gain control over our Sues. It happened about the same time. In sixth year-"
Sam blinked.
"You were at Hogwarts?"
"Of course we were!" Richard snapped and the arm of his chair creaked dangerously as his fist clenched, "Where d'you think they all aim for? The school's the largest concentration of potential Influence in the country."
"As I was saying," Jackie shot a small glare at him before continuing, "We were the first. Or rather, Kaleidoscope-iris over there was. And Kate. She was Katryna Malfoy at the time of course, and Richard-"
"Wasn't."
"Oh for-" Jackie gave a quiet snarl of frustration, "Will you just let me tell this?"
She got a non-committal grunt in reply and rolled her eyes.
"Anyway. They realised it first, that we just couldn't be who we thought we were. It wasn't possible. There's a very long tale of bizarre self-conflict, extracurricular research and dumb luck behind finding out what we actually were, and I had very little to do with it. I was in the year below and I'd barely even seen either of them around before Kate found me, dragged me off into the Room of Requirement and tried the first Suppression. Didn't work massively well, but it gave me Self enough to hear what they were saying."
Sam frowned.
"So you didn't know each other?"
"That's one of the complicated bits," Jackie ran a hand through her hair, "You see… Sues don't like cooperating, and unless they're part of the same… er …" She waved a hand in the air, as if trying to pick a word out of the space around her head, "… I guess storyline is the best term. Whatever game they're trying to play with reality. If they're not in the same one then they're good at blanking the other out. Kate was in my own House, but I'd never really seen her until she cornered me."
"So… Kate and Richard…?"
"Yes," Richard cut in sharply, "We interacted. Our obligate mind-parasites must have known each other."
"The entire school was divided into camps pledging allegiance to one or the other!" Jackie shook her head, "They were so close… I don't think they'd expected internal resistance, not from 'residual personality'."
"What happened?" Sam was almost afraid to ask. She watched Richard's face twist into a decidedly evil expression. He laughed quietly, but there was no humour in the sound.
"What happened? We got names. There's a very old power there, in a name. It's something to be around, a core of Self. They found something they couldn't break, and it was in their heads."
"They found themSelves," Jackie nodded slightly, "Then they found me. There were others, two, I think, but not enough Self. We… er … had to leave rather abruptly. Nowhere to go in the Muggle world, classed as Dark Creatures fit only for instant death in the Wizarding one, what else could we do? We rented a few rooms in an old terrace and things kinda expanded from there."
Sam was starting to get the familiar 'too much to take in' feeling, but she ignored it. Interesting though back-story might be, they still hadn't answered her real question.
"So what just happened?"
Jackie shuffled uncomfortably.
"Well… I guess normally we'd call it a sporking failure, but that's not quite…"
"'Not quite' being the stupidest underestimate you've come out with in a long time."
"Richard? Shut up. Right," Jackie turned back to Sam, "the simplest answer is we don't know. The whole Terrace seems to have regressed, but the scale is like nothing we've ever seen. Plus they're working together. Sues aren't naturally co-operative, they're either dominant or subservient and they'll fight to the death not to be the latter."
"That's because Kate's in control?"
"Kate isn't in control." Richard growled, his fists clenching again, and when he next spoke it was as if he were talking mostly to himself. "We've never had help. Everyone, from Jackie onwards we sporked, but not us. Never us. We prided ourselves in our self-control. We didn't need help. We could handle it alone. But…" He trailed off, and for a second that strange pain was in his eyes again. Jackie picked up the thread again.
"-it looks like Kate can't anymore. It's understandable I suppose, she's always handled the initial sporkings, and we know the Sues fight back hard. That much Influence… and it is cumulative… "
"So… Kate's not in control of what she's doing?" Sam hazarded. A low snort from Richard cut her off. His eyes were the strange oily black again.
"That wasn't Kate."
"But-"
"That wasn't Kate!"
"No," Jackie's hand snaked out and dropped onto Richard's forearm, squeezing gently, "It wasn't. Katryna's back. However much we don't want to admit it."
The Silence descended, worthy of its capital letter. After a few seconds, San realised she had to break it or her ears were going to explode to fill the void.
"But… why us? Why are we the only ones not… y'know…?" She knew she looked bewildered – fair enough, she felt it – and focused her question on Jackie. Richard's eyes were unnerving her too much to look directly at him. The redhead sighed.
"You haven't been here long enough for any thrall to affect you much, plus you were only sporked recently. As for us-"
"Zitkalasa is too strong. So's Adrastos," Richard muttered, venom dripping from each syllable as he spoke the name, "Katryna wouldn't have been able to do more than aggravate them."
Some questions, no matter how persistently they hammer on your skull, are best left unasked. Sam had yet to learn this. As she looked back at Richard, the words crept traitorously past her lips before she had time to consider what she was saying.
"So… you're… Astrasmos?"
"Adrastos," Richard hissed and suddenly he was on his feet, features twisted very far away from handsome, with pure hate burning in his obsidian stare, "And Sam?"
Sam was trying very hard to blend into the wallpaper. The look on Richard's face was reaching deep into her mind and setting off centres for terror.
" … y-yes…?"
"Never call me that again."
-x-