Aqua slowly opened her eyes, waking up from her sleep. She had no trouble falling asleep in strange places, but she found that staying asleep was always the problem. The past few nights had been practically sleepless, and she truly wished she could stay asleep for longer. Perhaps if she got a drink of water, she'd be able to come back and try to sleep again? Looking to her side, she saw Larxene sleeping quite soundly on her back, her face completely at peace. Aqua smiled. Good... She needed the rest. Aqua tried her best to get up without waking her, and did so pretty successfully. Staggering as she stood, she tiredly made her way over to the bathroom in the back corner of Asha's house. Out of all the things in Asha's home, her bathroom was strangely charming, although it was more like a bath house than a bathroom. The main theme of it was the large bathtub and incense, which made sense because Asha seemed to disappear in the afternoon.
As she entered the bathroom, Aqua tried to push her thoughts of confusion away as to where the water in this house actually came from. It seemed too rustic to have modern plumbing... Who knows... Turning the sink faucet on, she cupped her hands and took a small sip of water. Feeling much more refreshed, though even more tired, she turned off the faucet and turned to leave. Though just as she turned around, she heard a sound from behind her, making her whirl around, in fear that she had accidentally knocked something over. She didn't want Asha to be angry with her, but she mostly didn't want to see the skeleton start cleaning again. Seeing nothing, she sighed and turned back around, though this time her eyes met the figure of Xigbar leaning against the wall with his arms folded, a smile stretched across his face. How did he...?
Aqua let out a small yelp as she jumped backward a few inches. "Goodmornin' Little Blue... Did ya sleep well?" Aqua didn't appreciate this sudden encounter. Even if he was trying to be friendly... it truly wasn't the proper time. Keeping her voice as quiet as possible she replied sternly, "I did... thanks for asking." She pushed past him and hurriedly made her way over to where Larxene was sleeping, trying to ignore the fact that he followed soon after her. Ignoring him further, and praying he wouldn't try anything, she sat down next to Larxene and carefully made her way under the covers. Is... Is he going to try to take me to the Ringmaster?
Surely Asha had talked him out of it... There he stood, just a few feet away from them, right at the front door. He hesitated and then spoke again, still softly as to not wake anyone. "Oh... and Aqua? One more thing." Her eyes widened as she watched him, though the house was still dark so she couldn't quite make out what his face read. Her mouth went dry, "Wh-what?" Again, the crooked smile stretched across his face, "Jus' enjoy yer stay..." And with that, he left, not bothering to hear her reply. Thanking her lucky stars, she laid back down next to Larxene, and forced her eyes shut, wanting desperately to forget that smile.
Larxene had shifted slightly, feeling the figure next to her move. Part of her thought she could hear Aqua's voice. And….another…? maybe? She drew a breath and hugged the corner of the blanket to her chest, seemingly back to sleep. Okay no, she was *definitely* talking. ….wasn't she? She cracked an eye open, though her vision still clouded with sleep. "Hn..?" She rolled to her side and draped her arm across Aqua's midsection, unfortunately pulling the girl closer to her. Larxene sighed in contentment, as sleep still kept it's hold on her. After a few minutes, Larxene's eyes shot open and she visibly flinched. The performer pulled her arm away and gave Aqua more space. She stuttered an apology, her cheeks slightly pink. Fucking shit. She *knew* this would happen. This is going to be so…..great to explain…
Jus' step outside and keep walkin'... Don't look back. Jus' like they did ten years ago... That wasn't their fault. It was his. Shaking his head, trying to get the memories to stop, he kept his pace heading back to town. One foot in front of the other. 'D-Do you really have to go back...?' Clenching his fists until it started to hurt he cursed himself. No matter what he did, he would never be able to make up for leaving her a second time... But at this point, did it truly matter? Asha had preached for years and years about the dangers of soul stealing. Why was it that she could study this art, and yet she scolded others doing the same? Sure yer own soul is gonna change in the process... but what damage had it really done? He certainly didn't feel any different. There were days that he felt more tired than usual... but that just meant that more souls were needed to be taken. Give and take in every situation, right? Give a little, gain a lot... Reaching the edge of the dusty expanse, he shook his head again. This whole demon thing though... That seemed a bit far fetched, but honestly... now that he thought about it, the Ringmaster definitely fit the "hellspawn" part. None of that mattered. All he had to do now was make sure Mags' soul was safe. Stepping back into the outskirts of the city he made his way back through the streets. Everything was eerily quiet. Turning another corner, he stopped short. A uniformed man stood directly in his path, looking straight at him. "Look who's back in town..." Just great. As if he needed yet another blast from the past. The Radiant Garden guard nodded to someone behind Xigbar, which made him turn defensively on heel. It was just his luck to have three other lackeys show up to block his other escape. "It sure has been a while. We thought you died in one of your... accidents." The men collectively started to laugh, it felt so staged, as if it were a play. He didn't have time for this. "Nah... Ya know, I'd love to stay and chat, but I really gotta get goin'." The first guard stepped closer, pulling his baton from his belt. "You're right. You do have somewhere to go. Jail. We'll be happy to take you there." Ten years... and these goons still didn't get the hint. Although this time, he didn't feel like running. He summoned his guns and stepped backwards. Priority one: Save Maggie's soul. Jumping up into the air, his guns floated around him, spraying arrows all around, hitting every target with little mercy. Returning to the ground, his rings started to glow as the four guards around him began to fade from life. Their souls floated upwards and into the trinkets, as Xigbar stepped over the bodies, not caring about the mess. The great part about soul magic was, there was little evidence to be found. Continuing back to the Circus he added another objective to his plans. Priority two: Steal anyone's soul that get's in the way. What better way to fight a Soul Demon... right? Like fighting fire with fire... or some shit like that.
Sleep had taken the performer seemingly just as fast as she woke. As much as she wanted to protest the night before, she was thankful for finally getting to sleep. It hadn't come easy to her as of late, and she was skeptical about sharing bed-space with another person. But somewhere deep down she missed it. Larxene reminded herself earlier, after her awkward awakening to sleep cautiously. Clearly that didn't get too far. She lay curled on her side, one of her arms found it's way across the other girl's shoulder, and her legs had themselves entwined in Aqua's, not even close to waking up.
Aqua slept soundly after her nightmare of a morning. She had actually fallen asleep fairly quickly after she forced her eyes shut. Though now, she felt something on her shoulder. The foreign touch woke her up slightly, her eyes flickering open. It was Larxene. Aqua's face turned red and her cheeks burned as she realized that their legs were entwined as well. Moving her legs slowly, trying hard not to wake up the sleeping girl, she bit her lip wondering if Larxene always slept like this. Picking up her arm carefully, she moved it off of her shoulder and placed it gently down next to her. Her face was still hot, but at least she fixed the situation. What time was it…?
Larxene stirred slightly, feeling the movement from the other girl. "mmh?" She cracked an eye open, voice slightly hoarse from sleep. She blinked tiredly in an attempt to grasp the situation. Her face is red…? Wh… Larxene's eyes opened a little wider as she shifted to her back. *something* happened. Oh Christ. "'m so sorry…" She murmured, bringing her knees closer to herself. God, hopefully she didn't do anything too weird… Aqua didn't *hit* her though, that's something. "a-are you alright…?"
Aqua smiled gently at Larxene, "O-of course I'm alright… Did you sleep well?" Xigbar's voice rang in her head as soon as she asked the question. She frowned at the thought, and sat up, refusing to think about it any longer. Stretching she yawned, trying not to make a sound, but letting out a small squeak. She hated how she yawned like that.
Larxene tried to not think about how she had woke up earlier in the morning. " I uh….yeah, I did." She murmured, wishing she could go *back* to sleep. Last night was the first that the nightmares had stopped in quite some time now. She couldn't stop the blush creeping across her face once she heard Aqua yawn. Cute. …Shit. What no. Larxene looked away for a moment and kicked herself mentally. Get it together! "What uh," She cleared her throat. "What about you…? How'd you sleep?" She hoped that she didn't wake her too often during the night. This was awkward enough as it is, she'd feel horrible if Aqua got a poor night's sleep because of her.
Aqua smiled and cleared her throat, turning to face Larxene. "I slept well. Very well actually… Which is good for the both of us because we really needed it." She didn't know whether or not she should tell Larxene about what had happened this morning. She decided not to however, because nothing truly bad had happened. If he had actually tried to take her away, then she would have the right to say something. Aqua didn't want to cause unnecessary anger. She ran her fingers through her hair, trying to fix her bedhead as best she could.
Larxene scooted to the side and sat up as well. She twisted her torso somewhat strangely to crack her back, letting out a small sigh of relief. "Yeah, I can agree to that..." good. So she didn't wake her up. Would aqua remember what she had asked the night before…? It's probably best not to ask right now. "Man, that was a weird….dream." She murmured. It was a dream, right? It had to be. She squinted her eyes a little and continued. "I dreamt that ol' skunkhead in there," She gestured to Asha's room. "Was out here, talkin' about something or other. Weird, huh?" She shrugged. "There's no way he'd be up now though, he's probably in a sex coma. Ten years is rough."
Aqua cringed a little. So Larxene had woken up a little this morning… She understood that Larxene was trying to make a joke, and she appreciated the thought, but Aqua didn't have the heart to laugh. "N-no… no… he… he left this morning. You weren't dreaming…" A sudden pain struck her back, causing her to frown and reach over her shoulder to touch her back. "H-he left again… I-I hope… I hope Asha knows. I don't want to see her upset…" Aqua shook her head, scratching the pain in her back.
Larxene blinked, letting Aqua's words sink in. he… did leave? He certainly wasn't a morning person, why would he…? Could they have fought about something? …the kid, maybe? She shook the thought and spoke. "Did he say something to—" Her eyes widened a little at the other girl's sudden actions. "A-Are you alright?" This was strange. Could it have been from sleeping on the floor? Larxene shivered at the thought. She didn't want to see that woman get angry either, if she can summon skeletons just for cleaning who knows what else she's capable of. Her stomach turned. Something was telling her 'no'. Who would be the one to tell her..?
"Y-Yes I'm alright… just a little achey, thats all. But yes.. he told me to enjoy my stay, and then left. Nothing else. It wasn't anything bad…" She looked to Asha's door, and noticed something odd. It seemed…. Darker somehow. "Larxene… Do you see that?" She spoke too late. A thick black substance seemed to be crawling out from under the door. Not just the door. Aqua looked around the room, and the same substance was creeping across all corners of Asha's home. Aqua moved closer to Larxene in fear. Somehow, she knew that this was Asha's doing. The room was growing darker and darker by the second. Aqua gripped tightly to Larxene's hand, eyes wide in fear. "P-Please let this stop soon…."
She arched an eyebrow in confusion. That didn't make sense… not to mention that was a little rude to say wasn't it? Considering what he threatened last night… "Look, I'm s—" She quickly fell silent at the other girl's sudden question. "s-see wh..?" turning her attention to Asha's door as well. The performer narrowed her eyes a little. What on earth? Oh. Oh no. *no*. She cursed Xigbar with every fiber of her being as the reality of the situation sunk in. If they died because of whatever backwoodsy-voodoo bullshit this was, Larxene swore she'd come back from the grave and beat him to a pulp. She flinched a little, feeling Aqua's hand on hers. When did she get that close? Shaking the thought, she tried to keep her voice from wavering. "I-I'm sure it won't…..hurt us," She said, hoping she sounded remotely reassuring. If she needed to, Larxene was sure she could find some sort of strength to protect them.
"Larxene… I-I can't do this…" Aqua hid her face in Larxene's shoulder, just before the whole room was filled with this black substance, ending in a neat circle around the two of them. The onslaught of darkness oozing from Asha's room stopped completely. Somehow, Aqua felt it, and looked up and around the room. It truly had stopped. But then… "THAT SON OF A BITCH !" Asha's voice rattled the walls of the cave, and just like that, the darkness retracted back under her door. Aqua shook a little, though she was thankful for that nightmare ending. "Larxene… I'm going to lay down… I-i don't feel well." Aqua felt very ill after witnessing that, but she was sure it wasn't solely because of that. Her back ached, it ached to a point where it made her feel sick to her stomach. Easing back onto the pillows, she shut her eyes in pain.
Larxene blinked a few times in silence, trying hard to keep her cheeks from turning pink. "But look, it isn't coming near us, you see?" She pointed at the apparent circle around them. And just like that, it was gone. She flinched and swore under her breath when the walls rattled. "I-I'd say she uh….knows, now." At least neither of them had to tell her…? She drew her attention to Aqua when she heard her name. She nodded numbly. She didn't look too well either. What is happening here? "A-Alright, yeah, here…" She scooted to the side to give the girl more space. Aqua looked ill, Larxene was sure she wouldn't want anyone to crowd around her. She glanced up to Asha's door. Should she go get her? She looked like she was in pain, somehow. Did Asha do this? …..did Xigbar? Shit. Larxene was stuck. If she were to ask for Asha to come out, who knows what'd happen after that lovely little horror-show. She sighed to herself and eyed Aqua worriedly.
Aqua's mind was spinning. She put an arm across her eyes, trying hard to not make herself sick. She could hear the sounds around her, but just barely. It was beginning to fade. And with that, her consciousness went as well.
Asha pressed her back against her door and sat down hopelessly. She gripped tightly to a note in her hand as tears began to sting her eyes. She knew. She even knew last night that he couldn't possibly stay. That he wouldn't possibly stay. Ten years… Damn him if he made it eleven…
Larxene watched the girl quietly. There wasn't much she could do now, except wait. Could Xigbar have done this? He was definitely going to get an earful the next time she saw him. Her stomach growled in protest, which she tried her best to ignore. She looked down at Aqua. This poor girl couldn't catch a break. First the douche boyfriend, then, ….wait. The boyfriend. God. What was his name? Would he try looking for her too?
Larxene's stomach turned at the thought. The dull ache in her chest was slightly more persistent today. No. She promise Aqua. She owed her that, at the very least. The performer hugged her knees to her chest and rested her chin on one of them, watching over the other girl in silence.