So This Happened.

I went back to the mansion on Tuesday to drop off Mr. Sunshine, ended up staying and going over things with Proctor. Ended up passing out there, too. Guess I needed it, heh. Well, I went back to the house, alone as usual, and did some work. Grabbed a glass of water, proceeded to lose muscle control after taking a sip. The glasses shattered on the tile, I collapsed and passed out.

I woke up groggily before the adrenaline punched me in the face. I was strapped to a dining room chair at an oval dinner table. The room I was in was dark, candle lit, and filled with odd... Dare I say, romantic things. I didn't need to guess who the hell this was, "So you decided kidnapping me would be the best course of action?" I sneered, fully irritated by this. I began tugging at the leather straps that kept me secured to the chair. "Don't you know what stay the hell away means?"

The faint smell in the room became stronger, the Advocate appeared from behind. He emerged into the candlelight and set down a plate of spaghetti and French bread. I bit my tongue to keep from snapping. "Don't act like you don't enjoy the attention. Heh, you don't seem to know me well at all if you think I'm one to take threats seriously." I bit harder, watching at he set another plate down and took a seat across from me. "Panties always in a bunch. Tsk, tsk, just try and enjoy yourself." He said, drawing my hunting knife (which was previously on my person) from out of thin air.

I looked at my knife he was using as a utensil before glaring back at his masked face. "You want me to enjoy being kidnapped? Kidnapped by someone working for that monstrous pig!" I scoffed, giving another tug to the straps. "You can't just kidnap people whenever you don't get your way, Advocate. This is absolute bullshit!" I seethed, trying to pull loose. His face was the last I wanted to see and his voice was the last thing I wanted to hear.

"Monstrous pig? Hehe, you give him too much credit." The Advocate poured himself a glass of wine from a bottle that sat on the table. He tilted his mask and took a sip, "Would you like something to drink? No? Hehe, I bet the last thing you drank made you feel a little too loose, eh? Hehe... Fun..." I was about to snap, but the way he said fun was off. It wasn't the usual... Well, Advocate voice. He seemed distracted, maybe even bored by the flat tone. That was the first unsettling feeling I got. Something was off. "I could have done worse, ya know. Hehe, I could have set up a date with one of your friends." He blew out the candle closest to him. I watched at the shadows engulfed his masked face. Unable to be seen he removed the mask and began eating, his chin being the only real visible thing in the dim lighting.


I twitched lightly. "If you haven't noticed my friends are mostly dead." I growled. It was the truth at this point and time. Dia was hiding and unavailable for the most part. I wasn't about to unnecessarily contact her, safer to barely hear from her. Mystery was traveling the world, training, fighting the Executor, hunting down E-Bear. Contacting her is rarer than it is Dia. Proctor just got back and has a lot to handle. Mr. Sunshine is mostly gone. And Joshua? He's just... Joshua. Only here because I'm not willing to risk letting Advocate get him, and he absolutely hates me. "Congrats, you didn't have to do a damn thing, except scare one of them out of their wits." If I could clap I would have. After what he said about removing my connections, etc. looks like he really didn't have to lift much of a finger. I took a deep breath, using every ounce of willpower to calm down. It didn't work much but at least I wasn't on the verge of wanting to verbally snap his neck. "What is the point of this?" I asked, feigning being calm by the way he continued acting.


The Advocate's head bent a moment, I caught his lips curling into a smile but he remained silent. That wasn't a good sign in my experience, and the Advocate being unpredictable made things less pleasant. He continued eating while I watched, remaining quiet and saying nothing.


I frowned further, my subconscious going nope, nope!, I leaned back in the chair to put more distance between us. "You can't treat me like some possession of yours, Advocate. Let me go." I evenly said, removing the anger to try and work another angle.


"Can't do this, can't do that." He fiddled with my knife as he said it, tracing circles on the table. "Ha."

I sighed, still trying to wriggle my hands loose. "Let me rephrase, you obviously can, but it doesn't make it ok." IT'S FAR FROM O-FUCKING-K! my mind screamed. This was pointless. Waste of time. I had Lullaby and Lenore to find, not sit here kidnapped by someone working for a third enemy. I swallowed my anger again, because Advocate's behavior was something different and I wasn't about to test it while I was secured to a chair. "What do you want, what are you trying to achieve here?" I asked with a bow of my head.


"Hehe, it's called a date, Shady. Never been on one before, eh?" He chuckled and then stabbed my hunting knife into the table abruptly. I flinched at the motion but it was the silence that followed after that made my insides uneasy. I caught the smile for a second time before he put his mask back on, once more concealing his identity. I didn't answer him, the back of my head hit the chair as an annoyed sigh followed. I frowned as I watched him, as he watched me for what felt like forever. A silent predator lurking behind a mask in dim lighting, staring at you being strapped to a chair, it's not a good feeling. He didn't make a sound or move a muscle for a few minutes. Then suddenly, he stood up and checked his watch. "I hope you enjoy the meal." I rolled my eyes as he reached under the table in front of where he was sitting. The sound of duct tape ripping could be heard, when he removed his hand my pistol was in it. The safety clicked off the gun he no doubt confiscated from my unconscious body before. Chuckling, he sighed. "Packing heat, eh?" He clicked the safety on and slid the gun into his satchel. I didn't protest, especially when he approached the chair and bent over, pressing a kiss to my cheek. During which he managed to pull out a syringe and had stuck it into my arm, drawing blood for whatever reason yet again. Pulling away he patted me on the head, I jerked away from his hand and listened as his footsteps grew quieter as he entered the darkness. The only other sound being a door clicking shut as he left.

I glanced at my arm, the injection mark bleeding slightly. A minor annoyance compared to the bigger picture: I was strapped in the dark, in an unknown location, now left alone (for he was no doubt not returning, that much I knew). Long story short: Dislocating your thumb really does help when you're trying to free yourself from bound wrists. Hurts like hell, though, especially since I had to twist my hand and try it a few times. And those few times hurt too. But what's a little pain, am I right? Ughs...

I wasn't about to start calling for help. I couldn't see at the time I was in an apartment room, it was too dark for that. I didn't know who was in listening range and what kind of people they were. Hell, it could have been someone worse than the Advocate. So I was just trying to quietly and slowly get out. Almost tipped the chair a few times, and one free hand with a dislocated thumb (that you can't fix without another hand) is a pain in the ass when secured to a chair. I used whatever was in reach to cut loose my other hand when prying it proved impossible. And I wasn't dislocating both thumbs. That... Took forever, using a plain old dinner knife to saw through leather. You guys, you wouldn't believe the various levels of rage there are until you do this. My patience was gone the first hour, it took many more to cut loose. Many. Hours.

Writing it alone pisses me off and I just--

Ok. So I ragequit writing and took a break. -_-
I'm good now.

I managed to get my cellphone out and called Joshua.

"Where have you been?"

"Track the call cause I sure as fuck have no idea."

And that sums up our conversation. Apparently I've been gone a little over two days. Cool, awesome, yea. Super dee duper. I'm going to break-

I stopped writing again.
I'm seriously good now.

So Joshua came up the back of the apartment complex and managed to find me, via calling my name until I heard him and called back. Effective enough. He broke into the room and helped me out the rest of the way, checked my thumb out, snapped it back into place. Glorious. I snatched my knife and we left the place, walked down the front (main staircase) of the apartment complex and that's when the real fun happened, guys. Hit the last stair, don't know how, or why, but there was an explosion from the room I was just in. Joshua grabbed me and ran until a piece of plaster hit him in the back. The explosion wasn't just linked to the room Advocate put me in, it went further. It continued through the building, apartment after apartment, just gone. Every room torched and crushed, every person caught in it just... Damn. I protectively covered Joshua's head, likewise he did the same to me where we were in the parking lot. The building collapsed in on itself, the screaming of the poor folks that didn't die quickly could be heard.


"We have to go." I said, grabbing his arm and helping him off the ground.


"We have to call 911." Joshua shouted, "And get in there to-"


I squeezed his arm and yanked him forward, "We. Have. To. Go." The panic on his face was pure, he looked back at the building and I tugged on his arm. I needed his focus. "We can't be tied into this. We. Don't. Exist."


"W-what are you talking about? You're insane, all those people-we have to help whoever is in there!" He shouted back at me, I could feel him shaking under my grip. He was scared as fuck, that would be a suicide mission and help no one in his condition.


It made me sick. "Joshua, we'll make an anonymous call on the road. But we have to go. Give me the keys!"


His hand moved to his pocket a moment before hesitating. "No, you're a monster! I won't drive away when there are people being crushed and burnt to death in there!"


I pulled close and dug my hand into his pocket swiftly, snatching the keys out. "Yea, yea, yea, I'm a fucking monster. Get in the car before I show you what that means, Joshua." I unlocked the vehicle and heard where it was, with a squeeze I nudged him into the direction. Sirens already in the distance. "People are coming, professionals."


"I am about to become a paramedic, @#%$%&, and you just want me to leave people dying in there?!"


"Yes." I shoved him hard towards the car. "You want to get a job someday again? Get your ass in the car, we've spent enough time arguing."


He fought me the entire way to the car, I opened the door and forced him in. "You're not human." Joshua snarled just before I shut the door.


"Maybe." Was my only retort before I got in and drove away.


It sucks, but if he wants any chance of rejoining society someday and getting a job being a paramedic he can't be linked. I won't let his future be ruined.


We got back to the mansion and he went to his room, furious. After a silent car ride, ha. More silence. As if he couldn't hate me more, right? Ha. Whatever.
Joshua watched intently for updates and news on what happened, I didn't want any part of it. I didn't want to hear the number of survivors, if there were any, etc. Nope. Not right now.


His behavior told me enough, it wasn't good. He bit my head off a few hours later, Josie tried to calm him down. Brood wasn't happy about it, but being Brood was more focused on us not being caught. We don't exist to society right now, we're invisible. LeCroix calls us criminals, heh. We are just... Stuck in this odd limbo of existing but not being apart of world. In the underworld of it all, dealing with all the monsters.


Joshua blames me for it. He blames the Advocate just as much, but he can't scream, shake, and glare at him so it's just me. I've been taking his rage and fear-filled comments since we got home. Talking to Proctor about what happened helped as he checked my hand over, making sure it was a-ok. Despite my negative changes he's still good to me. I thanked him for being patient. I'm still thanking him.



.
.
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After a few more hours Joshua opened the hatch door to where I was in the basement, a stern look was on his face as he said, "I found Lullaby."

I dashed up the ladder, practically shoving Joshua out of the way. Proctor is back, he needed to know this. He is her father more than Thuggee will ever be. He became irritated by the whole situation the moment I mentioned it. I had to pursue him for a minute or so until he stopped just outside his room. Abruptly he turned to me, locking our eyes, "Don't hurt her, bring her back." Proctor said in a tone that left little room to argue. I nodded and he entered his room, closing himself off to the world.


I grabbed my backpack, grabbed some things and slung it over my back. "Get me the earliest flight. I'm out of here."

"What are you going to do?" Brood asked as I approached him.

"Bring her home."

I'll be replying via cellphone from here on out. Be back in a few days.

Stay safe,
-Shady

Auntie is coming, little dove.