Chapter Forty

With a wave of blue fire and a dark eruption, Serana found herself in a very strange place. Her head was swimming as she tried to orient herself, up and down hard to separate and she was struggling with the painful burning sensation that filled her body. Every breath she took was like magical fire, and she sputtered in confusion as the waves of pain rolled through her. Eventually things settled out enough for her to take notice of her surroundings, her breathing still coming in pained bursts while her head screamed in agony. "I haven't felt this mortal in years," she muttered, blinking at tall black stone that surrounded her. She was on her back, not really finding the strength to stand for several minutes. When she did, her head swooned and bursts of white light filled her vision, staggering her to the side. "Yosa, how are you feeling?" She gasped, eyes closed to try and dull some of the pain. "Yosa?" One sunset eye opened, peeking around the black stone construct she was within.

"Yosa!" She shouted, cringing as the pain flared once more, and took in the emptiness around her. "Where are you?" She stumbled to the side, weariness clutching her body and sending the vampire to the ground once more. Everything around her danced with black and purple light, and she stared up at the portal above her. It gaped and sucked at the Soul Cairn, swirls of darkness and tendrils of magic sweeping down to her aching body. "Blast..." She muttered as she began to make sense of what had happened. Struggling once more to a standing position, she felt as if a great weight was trying to push her down until she was crushed beneath it. "Wherever you are I'll find you," she vowed as she looked around for an exit, nothing but tall black walls rising above her. "As soon as I find my way out of here..." She muttered, her head settling some and the pain subsiding as she inched away from the portal, feeling her way for something to release her. Eventually the wall slid away, and she found a winding staircase of obsidian hued color. Stepping down it carefully, her strength returning the further she got from the portal, Serana found herself moving slowly down.

Eventually the walls around her had holes, and they revealed the ghastly landscape to her as she passed by. Somehow she wasn't even surprised by the foreign nature of the world around her, though perhaps that was because of her studies into it alongside her mother. The pale hills that rolled with bones and crypts were unsettling to say the least, and she made a mental note to avoid them if she could. The Soul Cairn was the home of the most powerful necromancers there ever was, and she doubted going through a place with ample supplies for resurrection was a good idea. When she looked upwards she was greeted with an endless sky of dark clouds that rolled with purple light, the bolts of lightning that shot off from them uncomfortably close and occasionally she could feel a jolt as they passed by. She kept her eyes peeled for any sign of the redguard as she moved down the black tower, but alas there was nothing.

After some time she finally reached the bottom of the stairs, however it was not the bottom of the tower. Instead of the grey ground, what lay before her was a steep drop to a swift death. Her stomach rolled as she took in the height she was at, and the realization that she was in a floating tower did little to settle herself. The other half of the tower was broken and ragged, pools of white light spotting it every so often while a thick purple energy shot outwards towards the sky. She took a small step back from the drop, holding onto the wall besides her to keep steady, and tried to figure a way down. Transforming could be an option, but her wings weren't strong enough to fly only hover. Perhaps they could buffer her descent but some part of her mind told her otherwise. There was a small part of the tower she had yet to explore, a doorway just a few steps up, and so she decided to investigate.

It was void of anything of interest just like the rest of the tower, but as she stepped through something shifted and a great monolith rose before her. She cautiously approached, the dagger at her hip drawn and she prodded the black structure with the blade before touching a hand to it. It radiated warmth but did not burn, a small blue light at the top while many runes were etched into the many faces, most of which she recognized being related to necromancy. The blue light burst, and a wisp came out of the monolith as it slid back into the tower floor, vanishing from sight. "Uh... Hello," Serana said uncertainly to the floating orb of light. It pulsed twice and then floated across the way to another doorway, and with little other choice the vampire followed.

Heading back up towards the top of the tower, Serana gave chase to the wisp as it floated higher and higher up. "There's nothing up there," she argued as it paused on a platform that was walled off on each side but the one she came up from, pulsated, and then the far wall shimmered and vanished. "This is going to get real annoying," muttered Serana as she stared out to what she could now see. There was a second tower, connected to the world down below, but there was nothing between it and the tower she was in aside from open air. The black stone shimmered and pulsated with magic, an exposed side that was a decent distance away within view. The wisp floated easily across to it, and pulsed as if encouraging her to pursue it. "Do you know where my friend is?" She called out, standing at the edge of her tower. The orb of light floated silently, bursts of white hue shredding off of it for a few moments before it began to drift away.

"Wait!" She shouted. Moving back to get a good distance, Serana burst into a run and jumped as she reached the end of the tower. Her heart was doing leaps in her chest as she sailed across the gap, and her arms were near to flailing until she had mostly crossed over, her upper half making it and she clutched wildly for some sort of purchase to help carry the rest of her up. Once she was safely on the other side, some part of her screaming at her for taking such a risk, she looked up to see the wisp waiting in a doorway. "Okay, let's try this again, do you know where my friend is, a redguard named Yosa'Min? She's a vampire like me and she came through a portal from the mortal world. Pulse once for yes." It pulsed, and she gave a smile. "Lead on then."

It didn't take long before she'd wound her way down the tower, stairs that were fairly straight forward if not a bit slippery taking her down to the surface of the Soul Cairn. The wisp bobbed along with a twinkle of magic filling Serana's ear, but the thought of having a guide in this strange world was certainly one that put her mind at ease. Every footstep she took made a heavy noise that made her scan the horizon for anything hostile approaching in response. The Soul Cairn seemed desolate as the wisp floated along towards a massive structure on the far horizon, so heavily shrouded in fog and the purple clouds that Serana could hardly make anything out aside from giant beacons of light that shot upwards into the endless blanket above. As she followed the wisp, a small part of her wondering if it was leading her into a trap, she kept a hand on her dagger. "How far is she?" Serana asked a touch impatient, worry at what might have separated the two of them bubbling up inside of her. She hadn't been away from the redguard without knowing where she was since the skooma den, and then she'd been certain there was a threat to her fledgling. It felt weird, terrifying even, to be alone now.

The wisp stopped floating, and Serana bit her tongue as it remained still for a few terrible moments before bursting into nothingness. Something exploded in the distance, and Serana struggled to find where it had come from. One after another the explosions reached her ears but she couldn't see anything causing them nor pick out what direction they came from, the distinct lack of thunder despite the lightning she'd been seeing making her sure this wasn't just a natural occurrence. Hoping it was because of her friend, Serana smiled for a moment before realizing she was once more without an idea of where to go. Muttering to herself in frustration, she scanned the area around her. There were more tall black structures that were floating or otherwise inaccessible to her rear and sides, in front of her was the massive structure in the distance and more rolling hills of bones and crypts. Hoping Yosa'Min was keeping out of trouble, the sire pressed on towards the hills.

A thick fog rolled around her, ambling its way like a lumbering wave before it consumed her. She could see as far as she could throw, and soon she began to rely on the massive structure that rose above it all to make sure she didn't start turning in circles. It didn't help much, considering she ended up passing a crypt she could have sworn she'd seen three times already, but it was better than nothing. After a several more minutes of wandering she was starting to grow extra frustrated. That was until she spotted something in the distance, a shape no taller than she and resembling a person. Serana's legs carried her before she could even think, and a soft laugh reached her ears as she closed on the shape. A hand stretched outwards, grasped the body's shoulder and turned around a scowling Yosa'Min. "There you are!" She said in relief, pulling the redguard into a tight hug. "What happened to you? I came out of the portal but you weren't there."

The redguard pushed her off, and shrugged. "I woke up somewhere else."

"Well are you alright? Did you get hurt or-"

"Stop worrying about me," said the redguard briskly, "I'm fine. We have more important things to do remember?"

"Right I'm just... Sorry," she apologized, frowning, "I haven't seen anything to indicate where my mother is but-" her words were cut short as another form came from the fog, an imperial with platinum hair and striking amber eyes. "What's going on?" Asked Serana warily as the mortal approached, the fog growing thicker than before. "Vex you can't be here this is-"

"Not a place for mortals right?" The imperial cut her off, "well I found a way in and I'm taking Yosa with me."

"Excuse me?" She growled, stepping forward with magic swirling in her hands. "I don't think so."

"She asked me to."

Serana blinked, looking at where the redguard was staring at her. "What? Yosa we talked about this, we'd worry about if there's a cure after my father's been dealt with..." Her voice grew thick as she spoke, "You lied to me?"

"You're the one who labeled me a liar," said Yosa'Min softly, "might as well live up to the name right?"

Vex put a hand on Yosa'Min's shoulder, and gave the vampire a smug look. "Looks like you don't know her as well as you thought you did."

"Yosa'Min," begged Serana, "please don't do this."

"It's already been done," said Vex, the vampire wheeling on her as her heart ached. "She doesn't want to be a monster like you."

"A monster?" Hissed Serana briskly, snarling as she tried to restrain the anger boiling up inside of her. "I can be a monster if you want but that's not what I am," she growled tightly, stepping towards them both. "And neither are you Yosa'Min, you're only a beast if you let yourself be one!"

Something flashed in the imperial's eyes, and she turned to Yosa'Min. "Go on ahead, I'll catch up," she ordered, the redguard glancing between the pair before nodding and she vanished into the fog. "So, what kind of a monster are you, exactly?" She asked, squaring up towards Serana who was near to giving chase to Yosa'Min and demanding to know what was really going on. Something about the mortal woman however, kept her rooted in place despite her heart screaming for her to follow the only friend she'd ever known. "The killing kind? The beast that slays its enemies without a second thought or perhaps the soulless abomination that ruins everything it touches? Maybe you're the kind that sneaks into its prey's mind and makes it think all sorts of nasty things once they're caught in its web. I know you're filling my head with all sorts of dirty things."

Serana blinked at her, confused and struggling to understand what was going on. "Vex, what are you doing?"

The imperial was walking towards her, no weapons bared or signs of hostility but instead a rather enticing expression was dawned on her face. Serana felt a rush of desire shoot through her and she winced softly in response. The platinum haired woman bit her lip as she shrugged. "You tell me."

Serana backed up until she bumped into a wall she didn't remember there being before. As she stared at rather attractive amber eyes, the vampire began to laugh with relief as the pain in her heart subsided. "This isn't real," she realized, "none of this."

"I feel pretty real," replied Vex as she closed the distance between them and gave her a smirk, "Want to find out for yourself?"

One hand placing itself on Vex's shoulder, Serana shook her head. "I need to find the real Yosa, which means I can't waste any more time on visions from the Ideal Masters."

"Who're they?" Questioned Vex with a knit brow, hands placing themselves on Serana's hips and she brushed against the vampire who's mind went blank for a few moments. "I'd love to hear all about them," whispered Vex in the nord's ear, hands running up her sides slowly. "Or maybe you'd rather have a drink?"

"I'm being seduced by an illusion," said Serana with disbelief, "this is not how I thought my day would go in the slightest."

"Illusion or not," said Vex huskily, "we could still have some fun."

"What happened to me being a monster?" accused Serana, pushing her off. "I've had enough of... whatever this is." She brushed past Vex, and the imperial gave a sharp laugh.

"I suppose I am being more forward than usual. That's what you like about me right, the fact that you don't know if you can have me?" She called, Serana looking over her shoulder at the imperial who had a hand on her hip. "I might be an illusion but the fact stands that you even imagined me. Why not Mjoll, she's as big a threat as I am to stealing Yosa'Min from you," the imperial pointed out, "You want to see me again, you're curious about me and what might happen. I know you're afraid of what that means though, so you do your best to not dwell on it."

"You're wrong," spat Serana, turning towards the vision of Vex that sauntered towards her. "This place must be looking into my mind to even know who you are, but what I see before me is not real nor is it accurate."

"When you first saw Vex you were a beast, transformed and defending your fledgling," the image of Vex said, "She fought well but you didn't think much of it until you met her again on the beach. Something about her struck you, garnered your interest, and while you would never admit it you've thought of her more and more since. Tell me, where did your eyes wander when you watched her fight in that inn? It surely wasn't her hands you were watching..."

Hissing, Serana waved a hand. "How do you know all this?"

Amber eyes widened with mirth. "You come into our domain, in Oblivion itself, and think your secrets are safe from us?" She stepped closer to Serana, a hand trailing the cut of her armor, the vampire giving a soft hiss of warning in return. "You're scared of what happens when you listen to what your body wants. Deep down you're terrified of being a hypocrite, of lecturing distance from the mortals while your heart grows ever fonder for that lust you cannot enjoy yourself. You're remarkably controlled for a creature of the night, just like your mother."

"She's here?"

"Perhaps... Shall we make a trade then? We will tell you where to find your mother and you... You will make us a promise."

"What?"

The image of Vex smiled, and waved a hand to the side, the Soul Cairn shimmered around the both of them. The desolate hills and black crypts turned into walls of stone and beautiful archways. A man stood besides a woman, and it took Serana a moment to realize they were her parents before they'd been turned into vampires. Harkon and Valerica's hands were clasped, and they looked happy as Serana saw herself walk to them, cured of her vampirism as well. They pulled each other into a tight hug, Harkon kissing her brow while Valerica beamed with pride. "We know this is what you truly desire," Vex said besides her.

"It can't happen though," said Serana tightly.

"Perhaps not on the path you are going, but we can help you."

"How?" Serana turned away from the image of her family, happy and whole once more, and looked at the illusion of Vex who gave her a look that sent another jolt of desire through her. "I know what you're trying to do, you're trying to ensnare me like you do so many other necromancers, get me in a deal that I will never win or be free of."

Vex laughed, the tone quite alluring. "You see we have done that before," Vex admitted, "but sometimes it is best for us to actually assist others when in the end it will help us both. We don't always need to ruin the lives of our partners do we? You won't come back to us for aid next you need it if we do after all! Necromancers offer us souls, and we thrive on them. We cannot capture spirits ourselves, we simply create a place for them when they are sent to us. Your parents are favorites of ours, they give us so many spirits..." Vex bit a lip, and then smiled at Serana who looked a bit afraid. "We can help you overpower your father, and you will be rid of us of Valerica, your family will be whole once more."

"The only way my family will be whole is if my father loses his madness and my mother loses her spite, neither of that will happen any time soon."

"What if I were to tell you, that we can get rid of your vampirism?"

"I'm at peace with what I am," snarled Serana, looking back at the vision of her family that remained still, a tempting offer indeed.

"Only because you have no other choice. Your past is gone, the world you knew stolen by time and you must either embrace what you've become or you allow it to consume your mind. We commend you, but we have another way."

Serana grew stiff, and she glared at the illusion harshly. "No. My mother warned me of what you were, your nature is that of a trickster scheming for more power. You don't care about those you use and toss aside in your deals... I would be nothing but a pawn to you."

"I think you're talking about someone else there Serana," purred Vex, "sounds more like some parents to me."

Gritting her fangs, Serana grasped the illusion that felt as real as flesh could, and glared into smug amber eyes. "Why have you chosen this form Ideal Master? Show me what you really are!"

"We choose many forms," Vex said, taking the chance to brush against the vampire once more who promptly pushed her away. "Whatever fits our needs. We tend to like those big floating soul gems though, seems a bit appropriate for this place... The question is, dear vampire, why am I still in this form?"

"What are you getting at?"

Vex waved her hands to the sides, spinning and the images around them faded back to the natural dismal state of the Soul Cairn. "You see this place is very special, it's Oblivion after all. It's shaped by one's mind, or rather... we shape it based on your mind. We show them what they want and we help them achieve their deepest dreams and darkest desires. What you refuse to acknowledge to yourself. So you tell me why when you thought of Yosa'Min, and of losing her you pictured Vex instead of Mjoll or perhaps both. You tell me why even after you've realized what this is you still want to see her... It must be these hips," the imperial trailed off, sliding one had down her side and then grinned at her. "I must say I haven't had this much fun in a form in quite some time."

"Vex is a threat," said Serana tightly, "she's trying to ruin everything. I know she doesn't realize that Yosa could be happy with me, and that she thinks she's doing what's right but her right is my wrong and she is my enemy."

Shrugging, the illusion gave her another look that sent Serana's body reeling. "Perhaps... Or perhaps you're thinking of what it would be like to taste her blood without trying to kill her? Maybe you're itching to find out what how she feels under that armor, or do you like all the leather that's involved?" Vex was against her, lips just inches from the vampire's who's body felt froze with lust and resistance. "We can give you the power to stop your father, to bring back your family and make you whole again. We can grant you mortality once more so you can be with this woman without having to fear you might harm her, or perhaps you'd rather turn her as you did the Dragonborn?"

With a great effort Serana pushed Vex away from her once more, and glared at the illusion. "Enough of this. I don't need your help to find my mother, nor will I accept your offers." Vex frowned at her deeply. "So you can end this charade."

"You don't seem to understand," Vex said harshly, "We control this world. We could keep you walking in circles for all of eternity if we wanted."

"If you had that much power then you could have kept us from entering this place entirely. You might control this world but you don't control me, else why even bother with this illusion? I'm finding Yosa, and my mother, and we are leaving. We will stop my father without your treacherous help."

Something heavy beat in the air, and Serana nearly looked, but all her attention was on the illusion that was staring at her with spite. "So be it..." Said the Ideal Master, shimmering and Vex vanished from view. Serana let out a heavy sigh of relief, her heart beating quickly in her chest, and then a terrible roar split the air. At last she looked to see what was approaching, and her mouth fell open as she took in the sight of two dragons, one with four legs and the other with two, locked in combat. She instantly recognized the one with the extra appendages as Yosa'Min's vampiric transformation, but the other was a mystery to her. They were spinning in the air like eagles, claws clutched while wings beat and fangs bit into the other viciously. Serana gasped as the larger one kicked Yosa'Min free, and the transformed Dragonborn plummeted to the ground below.

"Yosa!" Shouted Serana, rushing towards where Yosa'Min had fallen, the fledgling struggling to rise back to her feet. "Yosa what's-" her words were cut short as the draconic vampire turned her head to her, hatred and fury burning in her eyes, soulless burning orbs slicing through the sire. "Oh no..." Whispered Serana, horror filling her as she stared at a mindless monster. Yosa'Min flapped her wings once more, and with a challenging roar rose back into the sky where Durnehviir awaited, blood covering his rotted scales and dripping with the green ichor down below. Yosa'Min was about halfway to the other dragon when Durnehviir opened his maw and the Soul Cairn shuddered. "FO KRAH DIIN!" A wave of blue air moved towards Yosa'Min who dove to the side, one of her wings getting nicked and it was laced in ice that off-balanced the vampire, sending her spiraling wildly into one of the black towers. The stone structure crumpled from the impact, and it all fell in a cloud of dust and ash.

After a minute the rubble shifted, and Yosa'Min came sailing out of it, one of her horns twisted and there was a great amount of blood on her body. She agilely dodged his next shout, the same as before, and opened her maw to return the favor. "YOL TOOR SHUL!" The waves of fire washed over the dragon, and he roared in fury as the ichor on his body melted against his scales. Spite was heavy as he gave chase to her as she zoomed past him, Durnehviir attempting to claw her with his hindlegs but missed the smaller dragon. Yosa'Min spun out of the way, twisted in the air and slashed his hips before rolling out of the way once more. Durnehviir hissed in frustration as the considerably younger dragon struck him again and again, flying just out of reach before rushing in to attack him relentlessly keeping up the assault. He was perhaps twice her size, his movements just slow enough to miss her each time.

Yosa'Min twisted around him, coming up on his backside, and clawed down his body as she climbed over him, her tail slapping his face and she flipped with a certain grace that the large dragon lacked. She opened her maw, wings wide to catch herself, and blasted his face with a heavy stream of fire. Durnehviir roared in fury, and lashed out at her, trying to snap her in half but once more she slipped from his grasp. Rotten eyes look around, trying to find where she had vanished but the ancient dragon failed to see her as she flew up from below, and her claws struck his gut. He quickly slashed her across the face in return. Ichor was covering the hybrid as she pulled away, a sizzle and small pain on her scales but she ignored it as her heart burned with fury at the beast before her.

Turning as she tried to bank around him, the dragon snapped down on the hybrid's neck, catching her and forcing her down as he closed his wings. Yosa'Min thrashed wildly, clawing at his face and chest but nothing was going to get him to release her. They crashed into the ground with an explosion of dust, Durnehviir clamping down harder on her neck as his claws tried to rip the protective scales off her belly. She kicked out at him, enough of her neck free for her to snap at his nearby wing. After a few minutes of realizing he wasn't going to be able to bite her neck in half, the elder dragon flapped his wings and began to ascend once more. Yosa'Min quickly seized his tail as it whisked by, and he roared as she pulled back, tasting blood in her mouth. Jumping up from the crater their crash had made, Yosa'Min raked her claws down his back and bit down where his wing met his body. Wrenching her head back, she pulled with all her might as Durnehviir struggled to get her off of him. Using her foreclaws, the vampiric dragon raked again and again on the thin membrane that allowed him to fly, tearing it to ribbons as a sick colored blood left his body in streams.

Roaring in agony, the dragon pushed with all his strength and rolled them over, squashing her beneath his hide and the spikes down his back did a number on her underside. He rolled off of her, and his head pulled back as he hissed. "GAAN LAH HAAS!" He shouted, waves of purple energy battering against the stunned hybrid, and a stream of red magic connected between the two, his wounds closing while hers only grew worse. Yosa'Min gargled in pain, several puncture wounds down her body that bled profusely, a distant look in her eyes. When she did not rise, the dragon thinking her beat, he roared in triumph. "You fought well for a creature of your ilk," he praised, "but now it is time to finish this." He reared his head, and took a moment to gather his strength to kill her in one mighty blow. Then he felt a surge of pain, and turned to see Serana transformed into her vampire lord body, streams of red magic from her outstretched hands draining him of his power. "Fos los daar, What is this?" He bellowed with indigence, "Who dares interfere!"

"Her friend!" A pair of ice spikes punctuated the shout, tearing through his other wing and Durnehviir roared in fury at the interruption. He jumped from Yosa'Min's stunned body and snapped at the vampire who dodged in a cloud of bats. She moved with desperation, not a moment of hesitation allowed else the dragon would gobble her up. She flicked a hand and sent a ball of dark magic rolling into a pile of bones, and from it rose a trio of skeletons who began to send arrows at the dragon who quickly squashed them with one sweep of his tail. Hissing as she had to use her magic to dodge again and again, Serana was quickly starting to regret challenging a dragon. Rearing his head up with a great fury, Durnehviir shouted with his ice breath once more, catching her on the curtails and she froze in place, sheets of ice covering her body.

"Your loyalty has been the death of you," he growled as he flapped awkwardly towards her, rose his head and snapped down to bite her's off. Instead, a furious hybrid dragon grabbed him by the snout, wrenched backwards and he failed to harm Serana. As soon as she was freed of the thu'um's effects she dodged away, and gaped as Yosa'Min put everything she had in tearing his jaw apart, wings beating powerfully as she roared. He spasmed and flailed, trying to shake her off of him and then something cracked, and a moment later the upper part of his maw broke free from the rest of his body, and the dragon roared in sheer agony. Yosa'Min tossed the shattered jaw aside, and with a loud hiss bit down into his neck where the scales had been torn away, draining him of his blood and quickened his death. She pulled back as Durnehviir's body shimmered, a purple fire claiming him, and licked her fangs. The rot and flesh evaporated away, leaving bleached bones that moments later turned to dust, Yosa'Min frowning as she did not consume his soul but instead it went upwards to the sky.

Serana stared at the draconic vampire, waiting to see if she would have to fight her friend as well when Yosa'Min smirked. "Found you."

"Yosa... are you in control?"

"Enough."

Smiling in relief, Serana gave a heavy sigh and transformed back to her normal form. The sound of bones popping into place didn't phase the Dragonborn, Yosa'Min looking around their surroundings instead until the nord spoke up. Her wounds were healing slowly due to the blood she'd stolen, scales shifting back to cover the holes that had formed from their fighting. "What in Oblivion is going on in this place?" The draconic vampire somehow managed a shrug.

"Hop on," urged Yosa'Min, lowering herself so that Serana could reach the top of her massive form. "I think I know where your mother is."

"What, how?" Serana asked as she carefully made her way onto Yosa'Min's body, straddling her just at the base of her neck.

"In that fight I noticed something special about that big castle in the distance, Durnehviir seemed very keen on keeping me away from it." She flapped her damaged wings and with a wince rose into the air, Serana clutching one of the spines on her back fretfully as the ground quickly was swept away from below. "Let's see if I'm correct!" The castle was swiftly growing less shrouded, the large spires and jets of magical light acting as brilliant beacons in the desolate wasteland that was the Soul Cairn. Yosa'Min's body pulsed with power beneath Serana as she climbed higher into the sky in order to clear the vast walls. In just a few minutes they'd crossed a distance that would have taken hours, and Yosa'Min landed in a wide courtyard with tombstones and plants. Serana scanned the area, and froze as she spotted a shocked woman standing on the far side, holding a bowl in her hands.

Waving a hand awkwardly, Serana cleared her throat. "Hello mother."

Valerica responded by dropping the bowl, and the sound of it shattering was the only thing that followed.

AN: Thanks for reading, I'd love to hear your thoughts!