I'm dreadfully sorry for my tardiness. But this impromptu hiatus was exactly what I needed to recollect my motivation and my thought process for this story. Homestuck Eta will be completed, come rain or shine.

I'm rather proud of this chapter. Hopefully, you'll like it too.

Terezi: W3LL TH4T TOOK 4 LOT LONG3R TH4N 1 3XP3CT3D

Terezi: SORRY 4BOUT TH3 D3L4Y

Vriska: No need to 8e sorry.

Vriska: I'm just…

Vriska: I'm so glad you called.

Terezi: M3 TOO

Terezi: 1 M1SS YOU

Vriska: ::::)

Vriska: Waaaaaaaait a second…..

Vriska: Are you crying?

Terezi: 4M NOT

Terezi: YOUR3 TH3 ON3 WHOS CRY1NG

Vriska: I am NOT crying!

Terezi: YOU S33, R1GHT JUST TH3N YOU SOUND3D L1K3 YOU W3R3 CRY1NG

Vriska: No!

Terezi: H3Y, 1F YOU 4DM1T 1T TH3N 1 W1LL

Vriska: I'm not admitting ANYTHING!

Vriska: I've admitted enough schist to you in my last message to last for SWEEPS!

Terezi: YOU S41D 1T, NOT M3

Vriska: Oh, shut uuuuuuuup!

Terezi: 1 THOUGHT YOU W3R3 TH3 ON3 WHO W4NT3D TO T4LK TO M3

Vriska: Cut it out! Did you call me to 8lackflirt, or did you call to have a pleasant Scourge Sister to Scourge Sister chat?

Terezi: OBV1OUSLY 1 C4LL3D TO CH4T

Terezi: WHY TH3 H41L WOULD 1 C4LL TO FL1RT

Terezi: W3R3 4LR34DY MO1R41LS

Vriska: Good Lord, why do you have to take everything so literally?

Terezi: B3C4US3 1M D1FF1CULT

Terezi: :]

Vriska: Anyway, what caused the delay?

Terezi: W3R3 GO1NG ON 4 TR1P

Terezi: 1N 4 STOL3N ROCK3T SH1P

Terezi: YOU KNOW, TH4T WOULD M4K3 4 GOOD SONG

Vriska: A trip? Where to?

Terezi: 1 DONT KNOW

Vriska: I feel like that's a pro8lem that should 8e addressed sooner than l8er.

Terezi: WHY, DO YOU KNOW WH3R3 D1RK 1S?

Vriska: You're looking for Dirk?

Vriska: What the hail did he do?

Terezi: 1 TH1NK 1T M1GHT B3 34S13R TO T3LL YOU WH4T H3 D1DNT DO

Terezi: BUT 1LL G1V3 1T 4 SHOT 4NYW4Y

Vriska: Share away.

Terezi: LONG STORY SHORT

Terezi: H3 BR41NW4SH3D ROS3 4ND K1DN4PP3D H3R

Terezi: 1NST4LL3D J4N3 4S 4N 1N3FF3CTU4L PR3S1D3NT OF TH3 WORLD

Vriska: Slow down, slow down. You say he KIDNAPPED Rose?

Terezi: Y34H

Vriska: She's sitting right down the hall from me!

Terezi: OH Y34H, W3R3 1N TWO D1FF3R3NT T1M3L1N3S

Vriska: We WHAT? ::::|

Terezi: G3T YOUR 4UD1TORY R3C3PT4CL3S CH3CK3D

Terezi: 4S 1 W4S S4Y1NG B3FOR3 1 W4S SO RUD3LY 1NT3RRUPT3D

Terezi: D1RK K1DN4PP3D ROS3 4ND M4D3 J4N3 TH3 PUPP3T PR3S1D3NT

Terezi: H3 M1ND TR1CK3D K4N4Y4 1NTO N3GL3CT1NG ROS3

Terezi: 4ND NOW H3S ROCK3T1NG 4W4Y TO DO GOD KNOWS WH4T ON SOM3 OTH3R PL4N3T

Vriska: So you're in a different timeline.

Terezi: H4V3 YOU L1ST3N3D TO 4 WORD 1V3 S41D

Vriska: Then how the fork are we going to get 8ack to each other?

Terezi: …

Vriska: …

Terezi: GOOD FORK1NG QU3ST1ON

Vriska: Thank you. Any suggestions? ::::?

Terezi: NOP3 :|

Vriska: Well schist.

Terezi: Y34H 1LL H4V3 TO TH1NK 4BOUT 1T

Terezi: 1LL 4SK 4ROUND

Vriska: I'll do the same.

Terezi: ...

Vriska: …..

Terezi: YOU KNOW

Terezi: 1 COULDNT ST4ND B31NG ON 34RTH C KNOW1NG TH4T YOU W3R3 ST1LL OUT TH3R3

Terezi: SO 1 L3FT 4FT3R 4LMOST 4 SW33P 4ND W3NT OUT TO TH3 BL4CK HOL3 TO LOOK FOR YOU

Terezi: 1 N3V3R D1D F1ND YOU

Terezi: 4FT3R… 1 DONT KNOW HOW LONG 1T W4S 3X4CTLY BUT 4 LONG T1M3

Terezi: 1 JUST… G4V3 UP

Terezi: 1T H4D B33N Y34RS… SO 1 D1DNT TH1NK YOU W3R3 3V3R COM1NG HOM3

Terezi: 1 W4S OUT OF FOOD 4ND OUT OF HOP3

Terezi: SO 1 JUST W41T3D TO D13

Vriska: ::::,(

Terezi: JOHN S4V3D M3, FUNN1LY 3NOUGH

Terezi: H3 W4S DY1NG TOO, TH1S 4LT3RN4T3 V3RS1ON OF H1M, H4V1NG JUST B4R3LY WON TH3 F1GHT 4G41NST LORD 3NGL1SH

Terezi: 4ND UH

Terezi: W3

Terezi: (M1GHT H4V3 FORK3D)

Vriska: Oh?

Terezi: DONT JUDG3 M3

Vriska: I'm not judging!

Vriska: I mean, I get that….. I, uh,

Vriska: (miiiiiiiight have made out with Gamzee?)

Vriska: (8efore killing him with my 8are hands.)

Terezi: :O

Vriska: Sometimes, you just gotta kiss a clown.

Terezi: TRU3 TH4T

Terezi: 4NYW4Y, H3 US3D H1S R3TCON POW3RS TO BR1NG M3 B4CK TO 34RTH C 4ND ULT1M4T3LY S4V3 MY L1F3

Terezi: BUT H3 D13D

Terezi: 4ND H3 N3V3R GOT TO

Terezi: 1 N3V3R GOT TO

Terezi: :[

Terezi: 4T L34ST NOW 1M H3R3, 4ND 1 C4N T4LK TO YOU, 4ND 1 KNOW YOUR3 4LL R1GHT

Terezi: 4ND Y3T 1TS 4LMOST WORS3

Terezi: B3C4US3 1 DONT KNOW 1F YOULL 3V3R B3 4BL3 TO COM3 B4CK HOM3

Vriska: …..

Vriska: First of all, I, I can't 8elieve you'd or8it the 8lack hole for so long, just to try to find me.

Vriska: I don't deserve you.

Terezi: DONT S4Y TH4T

Terezi: YOU D3S3RV3 3V3RYTH1NG

Vriska: ::::,)

Vriska: Okay, yeah, yeah, I'm, I'm crying.

Vriska: Fine, I admit it.

Terezi: :]

Vriska: 8ut rest assured, I'm not going to stop until I get 8ack home, 8ack to you.

Vriska: I will tear the forking space-time continuum to pieces if it gets me home.

Vriska: I don't forking care.

Vriska: I'm coming home.

Terezi: :,]

Terezi: 1

Terezi: 1M GONN4 GO NOW 1 TH1NK

Vriska: Talk soon?

Terezi: OF COURS3

Terezi: BY3

Terezi hangs up. She stands and takes a deep, shuddering breath, letting the torrent of emotions drain away. She enters the engineblock and shuts the door, leaving her alone with her thoughts for a spell.

Vriska's alive. And she has no way back. But she's still… but she's still…

She's still coming home!

Terezi lets it sink in. She's coming home. She's coming home.

And she'll do all she can on her end to help Vriska out. That's what good moirails do.

She holds the spark of hope close to her heart.

Hello again.

While we're on the subject of hearts, let's bring the spotlight over here for a moment. We wouldn't want the gentlemen of the story to completely lose focus, now, would we? But, of course, we have yet another female to focus on right now.

Rosebot is currently staring at herself. Well, technically, she's staring at who she used to be. She does that a lot. It reminds her of what she's lost, but also what she has yet to gain.

Though she's gotten close, she hasn't quite ascended yet. I can't allow her to do that. I don't completely trust her yet. She's still not fully on my side. But, with a little bit more effort on my part, she will be.

I'm sure Rosebot would have come along quite willingly if I had been straightforward about my plan. But this way, I get to solidify my position as the antagonist.

Honestly, being the villain is fun. That's why I chose to do it. Plus, Calliope has really worn on my nerves, but pissing her off is more of an added bonus than anything.

Back to Rosebot. Whenever she comes to watch herself, it's usually because she's having a crisis about her mission, because she misses the planet and the friends and family she left behind. Of course, she'd never admit it out loud, but she doesn't need to. I'm here, after all.

She's worried most of all about Kanaya, her former wife, the troll who neglected her as her body deteriorated due to her ascendance. Despite all that Kanaya's done to her, Rosebot still loves her.

It's ridiculous, don't you think? Why would she continue to love someone who has done her so much wrong? Someone who wasn't there for her when she needed her most? Someone who didn't even speak to her for weeks on end?

It may be a slow process, but Rosebot needs to realise that Kanaya doesn't really love her. In fact, she's well on her way to realising it. What she needs to come to terms with is that she needs to abandon this preposterous infatuation, so to speak. Kanaya doesn't love her, so why should she continue to hold those feelings?

The same holds true for the rest of her friends. None of them cared that she was dying. None of them even came to visit. Well, except for John, but he's irrelevant now.

I was the only person who reached out, who offered her comfort and solace, who shared in the same pain, who even has made steps towards amending her suffering. Not even Kanaya can say that much.

Rosebot's array of visual sensors drifts to her former body's hands, clasped over her stomach like a corpse. It's much the same way that Kanaya used to sleep, unnaturally still and unmoving. If she had a heart, she'd feel it ache.

She's looking at her wedding ring, a silver band resting on her left ring finger, paired with a simple golden engagement ring. It's… oh. It's a reminder of a long-ago promise.

I had forgotten about that. The ring needs to go. It needs to go, so Rosebot's obedience to me can grow ever more unbreakable.

You call me a monster? A demon, past the moral point of no return? You're the one who's gleefully spying on your favourite and less-than-favourite characters' innermost thoughts and feelings. You're invading the most sacrosanct space of privacy a person can have. You're working threads of fanon into your conception of how our world functions. You're intrusive, intruding in a far worse way than I am, but there's nothing I can do about it. Yet you have control over me, in your own head.

"You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye."

That's Matthew 7:5. The devil can cite Scripture for his own purpose, sure, but does it make the Scripture any less valid on its own?

So be wary of whom you call a devil, for I call you a false deity.