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anna amarande

31/f. happily ever after we lived, the end.

VOICE | TEXT | VIDEO | ACTION

[Ruby had only been fully back to herself for a few days at this point. Stepping out of the house wasn't exactly the easiest thing to do- She knew what she had done had mostly been contained to a small group of people. But it could have been much worse, and it had still happened to people she cared about.

She'd left Crescent Rose at home- Fighting or hurting someone was the last thing she wanted to do. More internally, defending herself from those that she had wronged was the furthest thing from her mind too.

She's making her way through the streets of Willful Machine when she sees the flash of white hair- Instantly she recognizes Anna and her silver eye catches hers for just a moment. Regret for the last time they ran into each other starts to pull at her chest. before she can think of what to do, what to say, or what to avoid, but before she can act she sees a gold moth flutter into view. In a moment of confusion she mistakes it for a butterfly, a flash reminds her of everything that happened in the garden- She looks down at her hands and she swears she sees the blood from her last encounter with Anna on it again.

She let's out a surprised yelp and without thinking she activates her semblance. Blood is pumping fast, her hands are shaking, she can't think straight. She can't do this right now- There's a flash and she activates her semblance.

But something's wrong. A flash or gold catches her vision for just a second and she's watching her rose petals fly off into the distance. And her vision is weird. There's no longer the red tinge to it from her prosethetic eye. There's another flash of white hair but it's right in her face and she's shaking harder than she felt she was a moment before.]

What- What's happening?

[The voice that comes out isn't hers. What's worse it's familiar and she feels herself sink to her knees as she tries to comprehend what's going on.]

[it would just be anna's luck, wouldn't it? the first time she comes out of her house since the incident, the first time she trusts herself to be back in the world again without worrying about running into anyone she'd prefer not to see... it's like it was written in the awful, terrible stars. she catches ruby rose's eye and her anxiety spikes, and it's close to the same thing she remembers feeling back in other trench. it just... it sends her back. it sends her right back to that lab, to the monster brain that took her eye the first time, and the constant and new pain no matter how easy it is to handle, and the way her eye socket throbs behind the bandage that's serving as a makeshift eyepatch, and it's the weird fucking purple dogs and the black-and-white landscape painted pink with her footsteps and the creature stalking her in rose's voice—]

[she has to get away. her hands are tensing already, balling into fists. she turns on her heel and whips her head around like she's trying to find the fastest way out, but she's not fast enough. she can't outrun this. there's a flash of gold in her vision that she fucking prays isn't more of ange's bullshit, and she wants to scream and run at the same time because what if the color gold triggers ptsd now, wouldn't that be fun?, and before she knows what's even going on—]

[she's gone. she's flying. she's flying again in a whirlwind of rose petals, and her mind hasn't caught up with where her body is taking her yet.]

[it won't, though. not for some time. because there are parts of her mind, parts of her soul that have remained with her body. somewhere deep within anna's chest pulses a black box that will destroy the world if it's ever handled improperly. and within that box, it's hollow but for the cells that she's created to hold the souls that dwell within her. it was A2's to begin with, but anna has always been the warden, and by pressing her hand to her chest she has communed with her inmates. the people she needs to protect from each other, from herself, from the world.]

[and since anna is no longer in the building, whoever does own her body will be the one with the keys instead.]

[within its walls, facets of anna, fragments of her soul split across universes wait, their cells lining one main hallway. in that hallway, the edges of reality flicker, aberrating into red and blue. each cell is sealed with a pane of perfect, indestructible glass, and each imprisoned being has created a world of their own within their confines. when a new warden arrives, when they detect the consciousness of ruby rose, some are unbothered. some lift their heads. one pounds on the glass.]

[it's a woman with long blonde hair; of course it is. she's dressed in a modern way, fashionable like anna could never be. she has a fur-lined coat shrugging off her shoulders, and she's glaring fiery daggers from behind the large round lenses of her glasses. everything is white in an immaculate sense but for one diamond-shaped gem hanging from a necklace between her breasts. she bares fanged teeth; she brandishes clawed fingers. and she digs another four lines into the interior glass.]

Ruby Rose. Who the hell do you think you are just waltzing in here after what you did?

[if ruby had been expecting simple answers to come from taking up residence in anna's body, she is, as always, horribly sorry to disappoint.]

[It takes Ruby awhile to process what's actually just happened. One moment she was trying to semblance away- the next she had been on in the ground in a body that was definitely not her own, and now she's here. She's still shaking, she still finds it hard to breath. She glances down at her hands it's awkward as she adjusts to Anna's depth of field and vision. She can get around without her prosthetic eye but it was something she had gotten used to. The pain pain from the wound that she caused throbs and doesn't make it any easier.

She swears for a moment that in her blurry vision she sees her hands briefly shift back into her own before going back to being Anna's. But she's not sure if that's part of the weirdness of where she is or just vision messing around with her.

Eventually she manages to calm herself down. Steady her breathing, it's the knocking on glass that gets her attention before anything else. She glances over and stares at the angry woman- Angry Anna. And well she's confused about what's going on, but she knows this person has the right be angry with her.

She slowly pulls herself up into an awkward sitting position. She can't quite find the strength to stand yet and just stares with a sad but sheepish expression.]

Uh- I think I'm a little lost?

I didn't mean to upset you.

Uh- This time I mean.

I think.

[the intoner throws her head back and laughs while she paces her cage. she's restless. she wants to be free. she wants to break out and tear ruby rose to pieces. the red gem on her necklace shifts with her steps.]

You don't know the half of what you've done. It's funny. It's funny, you know that, right? She's going to pretend that this doesn't bother her, but you know it all flows directly to me, don't you?

[she slams her fist against the glass and bares her teeth in a vicious smile, and for a moment her pupils even seem to shrink.]

She'll tell you that it's fine. That she's already lost that eye and it doesn't hurt as bad this time. But that's always going to be a lie. She's going to hate you for this until I decide to let it go. [and she straightens her back and uncurls her fist slowly.] But I don't let things go easily. I take them from her heart and I hold them close, and I clutch them until they break. I am the one who grips, Ruby Rose, and your thorns should fear my touch more.

[Ruby just watches as whoever this is- paces about in their cage and only flinches slightly when the fist hits the glass.

It looks stable for now- The wall. Not the person she's talking to. But it seems like there's a good bit of reason for her to angry at the moment. And Ruby can't say or do much to fight against it. She had every reason to be angry with her, just as Anna did.]

...So is that it, are you just a vessel for all her anger?

[She doesn't sound afraid. If not- She might sound a little resigned if anything. She was used to having people take out their anger on her. She wasn't used to it being so justified though. She eventually pulls up from her sitting position. Wobbly on unfamiliar feet to get over toward the cage that held the person speaking with her.

She let's a hand rest up against the glass wall.]

And if that's true... Well-

If you ever get out of here- You can take it up with me then. I'll be out there and I'll be waiting for you.

[Because if anything. Ruby felt like she deserved right now.]

Oh, I'm more than that. But why don't you come in and see for yourself?

[she scrapes a claw along the glass again to guide ruby's eyes to the door to this cell. a sigil, a tied knot, sits in a diamond on the face of the door, with a handprint scanner below it.]

You're the warden of the Heart of Gordias. For now, at least—that's a fun little trick that you pulled. I'd love to see how clever you really are.

[she steps away from the wall and stands with her feet together, her palms upturned at her sides, her claws pointing towards the ceiling. the room inside transforms from the city street that it had once been in a massive ripple of what can only be described as luminous beige. the new arena? an elaborate stone pathway in front of a large cathedral door.]

Don't worry, widdle Wuby. I promise to keep your insides on the inside.

[There was a part of Ruby that did just want to ignore it, her good eye did follow along that claw as it guided her toward the seal keeping her trapped. She steps toward it and eyes it briefly, keeping quiet as she processed everything this other Anna was telling her.

If she was honest with herself- part of her wanted to listen to this thing. Wanted to break the seal and let loose whatever sort of punishment she had deserved for hurting Anna. For feeding this rage. She wasn't sure whether she could take it, but that wasn't really the point her. Her hands raise up ever so slightly and almost touch the knot.

Almost.

There's a flash as she remembered hurting Anna. The scythe piercing down into her eye and it causes her to pause. She didn't want to pull this out of Anna. Not if she could help it. Even if she selfishly thought that going a few rounds here could at least let Anna blow off some steam, she didn't know why this thing was trapped here. And she'd rather have answers to that before she did anything.]

Look.

I don't exactly know how I ended up in here. Or why I ended up in charge of you guys while I'm here. But I'm pretty sure the last thing Anna would want is for me to go all spring break on the prisoners in here.

Even if I have to stare you down in the end one way or another.

...You're going to have to find another way out if that's the only way to settle this.

[her eyes turn red in anticipation as she watches ruby rose reach for the door. let her out. let her out. let her rip and tear until it is done. ruby rose has no idea the amount of rage contained within her and she will not stop until ruby discovers it.]

[and then. and then despair. her face falls to despair, her smile vanishing as she begins baring fangs, and her stance breaks from cocky to aggressive once again. she is a predator—she is the predator of the heart of gordias. and whatever ruby is saying doesn't matter. whatever ruby is doing that isn't letting her out doesn't matter.]

[she screams, drowning out the tail end of this petulant girl's speech, and the scream slowly morphs into something melodic, something almost synthesized in its unnatural, quarter-tonal essence. the gem around her neck shatters, leaving a patch of blood on her perfect skin, and with it, she transforms. her body glows so hot it's white, her hair becomes a wild halo around her head, and the bloodstain is the only contrast for a moment. when the color returns, she's aberrating the same way that the hallway outside is, like she's not entirely there in one plane or another of existence. her claws are longer, reaching down her legs, and her eyes are absolutely manic. she snarls and unfurls a tongue framed with gnashing fangs, and she drives her claw directly through the glass of her cell.]

[it's only four holes. it can't be too dangerous of a breach. but she screams wordlessly and plunges her other claw in, and she pulls both of them down the pane in front of her. the lines she'd been scratching when she had been contained are the perfect guideline for this, and though it's nowhere as neat as any sane person would want it to be, the glass itself is splintering into spiderweb cracks that are all too easy to push through.]

[nearly the whole pane falls to the floor, some pieces in glitter and some held together only by whatever film is designed to stop shards from getting everywhere, when the awakened intoner shoulder-checks it. she sings as she does, a melody that is incorrect, that doesn't belong. there aren't words to it, really, but ruby's name is a major component.]

[Ruby wasn't sure what she had expected. But it wasn't for this other Anna to start screaming, transform and literally break out of the cage that had been holding her for as long as she had. Ruby had been holding the literal and metaphorical keys to this prison for a grand total of five minutes and she was already dealing with a jail break.

As if her current mindset toward herself and Anna wasn't bad enough. Anna had kept this in check for how long? Now Ruby had apparently fueled her rage enough to let this loose.

She didn't have a lot of time to really consider what to do. And panic wasn't really on her to do list. She knew she deserved Anna's rage, her ire, and she was willing to take that on. But she also had to clean up this mess so Anna wouldn't come home to it. She hopes.

So the first thing she's going to do is lightly circle around the this thing, giving it a wide berth.]

That's it.

You want me? Come and get me.

[This was a terrible idea.]

[six doesn't need an invitation.]

[she's been begging for something like this for months. everything that her beloved warden has shoved down, every bit of completely justified hatred she's repressed at the world, at the people within it. every time she'd wanted to lash out and smash a glass against the wall when she discovered trench had taken another from her. and oh, everything after that ill-fated meeting with the reckoning. everything she'd swallowed and kept inside, hidden from the world, hidden from everybody who might be afraid of her if she let it out. all of it a boiling vat of lava waiting for someone to tip it over.]

[the latest inmate, the one who can't stop blaming herself for everything, that one had only been a motivator to the intoner who is now staggering to her feet, her eyes wide, her teeth set in a menacing smile. it's a wonder the kinds of things that a girl will repress when she starts fearing her own fury. not just for the good of others around her but for the good of herself. it's astounding how docile she'll make herself when she imagines the consequences hard enough.]

[six stands there in place, her hair falling over one eye. where's your anger? where's your fucking rage? forget the words and good intentions. she throws herself forward faster than anything should be able to move and grips ruby rose by the collar tightly. she's strong enough to lift her up, but she won't be doing that yet; no, the fingers of her other hand just curl into a fist and pummel this intruder in the stomach. at the same time as her punch connects, she lets ruby's collar go. send the bitch flying. send her across the room.]

[Ruby had talked a tough game. But at the end of the day that's all it was. Talk. There was a moment where she stared Six down with intent to go on the offensive. To fight back and at least defend herself, but the moment she stepped off to meet her she saw a flash of Anna bleeding on the ground. It was like the wind had been knocked completely out her sails.

By the time reality sets back in she's already being held by the collar. The next she's sailing across the room and crashing into another one of the cell's and sinking down to the floor.

She let's out a gasp for air and there's a moment where her fingers curl up into fists. Then there's another flash of her driving the scythe down into Anna's eye. she let's out a strangled gasp for air and her fingers unfold and hang uselessly at her side.

Maybe she deserved this.]

[and almost before ruby has even landed, six is there at her feet. she bends down on the ground and plants her knees on either side of ruby rose, straddling her uncomfortably while she snarls. her fists ball up and she slugs ruby in the stomach one more time for good measure.]

[(the inmate whose cell they crashed into, another blonde-haired woman who looks more like the dirtbag that everyone knows and loves only with both eyes and no android parts, puts down an xbox 360 controller and turns her head only very slightly. she doesn't say anything, not that she can see much through the light haze of smoke filling the cell.)]

Do you even fucking know how lucky you are? [when six speaks in that wretched voice, it's got a few different undertones talking all at once, like a spoken-word chorus where they can't get the unison quite right.] That this is the only thing I'm coming after you for? Oh, do you think this is the first time you've pissed her off? [she laughs with teeth and punches ruby again.]

Your wedding. She fucking hated seeing you so happy when she came so close to losing everything. And the house, when she put so much blood and sweat and tears into building that fucking thing and you just let your wife throw it away with her magic. You just let yourself fall so, so fast—and that's what pissed her off the most, you know? That's what she's hated the most about all of this.

[she reaches down to ruby's right hand and grips her trigger finger just tightly enough to put the fear into her. just enough to make her think that maybe, maybe six is going to break it.]

She sees someone who tries to do it all. She sees someone who prides herself on being strong, on being the hero. And she's been watching that hero fall for weeks now—and you've been falling like you don't even know you stepped off the cliff. What she hates the most about you? [she laughs again, more sinister, no humor at all. her teeth are bared.] You've never had to fight for people to love you. You've never had to prove that you're worth it. You've always been surrounded by people who love you—and you're too fucking stubborn to even ask them for help.

[she breaks ruby's finger.]

[Ruby hardly has a chance to react as she's straddled by Six. The punch to the gut prevents her doing much else as she feels the air get sucked out of her lungs. But that's not what hurts her most. The words stab hard at her core because they ring true.

She had everything here. A loving wife, a family who cared for her. People she could protect and people who would protect her too. And all that had slipped away because she had let herself get more hurt and corrupted as they went along- It didn't matter that she had come back from it. The damage had been done, the hurting she had caused had obviously not stopped.

She grits her teeth as she feels the pressure of the grip on her finger. She doesn't fight back. Her good eye just stares up at Six with a mix of pain, and regret in it. Then she feels pain build up as it breaks and she sucks in a cry. She didn't deserve to let on how much this was hurting her.]

...Because I don't need help.

Because I never deserved it.

Oh, shut up.

[she holds herself back from punching ruby again, but it is a hard fight, and she clenches her fist so tightly that one of the knuckles cracks. she's content, after saying that, just watching ruby stay there and deal with the pain, but even then it's not enough. it's not entertaining. it's not satisfying. so she starts talking again instead.]

Nobody wants to hear this "woe is me" bullshit from you. We both know you don't even believe it. "Oh, I don't need help, I never deserved help"—shut the hell up. You're human, you deserve help, it comes free with your fucking XBox. [and that is not meant to be a comfort. she drives her fist down next to ruby's head, hard enough to leave a dent on the surface behind her.]

But she isn't human. And she hates herself for it. And we all know she hates herself for it. You don't even get it. [she growls and leans in close, her skin still iridescent white, her form hard to focus on.] Everything feeds into me. So by all means. Keep deprecating. Keep acting like you're some worthless piece of shit. You have 192 unbroken bones left, and I have all fucking day.

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