if they saw me now, what would they think [open]

[sullenstallion]

WHO: Dylas, open
WHAT: Dylas killed four people (¯\_(ツ)_/¯) and, despite mind control being the reason, has decided to hole up in the holding cell he's been staying in much to Spark's dismay. Why won't he leave?!
WHEN: Early July
WHERE: Aqures Ixen Police Station



[At least the cot is somehow big enough for him.

Dylas never thought he’d be in this position. During the day, he mostly sleeps. It’s a little uncomfortable, but being the Vampire-job bearer he is, it’s the easiest time for him to do it. It’s impossible to sleep all day with all the noise, though, so Koporo comes and goes, bringing him food and books, fearing the day that Biggs will dock his or his family’s pay after the letter he sent.

Other than that, it’s all quiet. Too quiet, really, considering his pacing doesn’t make a sound as he walks back and forth in his small cell. It’s not even a proper prison, but here he is. It’s better than being out there. He doesn’t know what the others think of him, he hadn’t even been here two months before starting to kill again. It’s better if he’s locked up. That’s what he thinks, anyways.

But he’s still bored.

Sometimes, he stands next to the bars, watching the people come and go, staring at them while they do their work. He’s been told he’s free to leave, but refusing to leave is also kind of a crime, or maybe they’re just humoring him. He isn’t sure, but here he is. Two weeks into his stay, and the police station has yet to rid themselves of the wendigo.]

Comments

[sullenstallion]

[He was reading a book when Midna arrived. It's all he'd been doing, it was the only thing he could do aside from lay on his cot, sleep, stare at the ceiling, and feel responsible for the deaths of four people, two deaths which were permanent. He tries not to think about that.

But it's impossible not to.

When Midna comes by, the station is mostly empty. It's getting to be near the end of the day, which means Dylas is at his most awake. He'll be up all through the night, like usual, surrounding himself in the solitude that comes with the nocturnal lifestyle his Job afforded him.

At first, he dismisses Midna's footsteps for something else, unused to hearing them. His ears flick in her direction, and he looks up when she stops outside his cell.

He immediately looks away and down.]

Yeah. It's true.

[fusedshadows]

( there was quiet— ) Nngh. ( as he confirmed it, her fingers tightening around the bars. she looked away, somewhere off to the side, speaking through clenched teeth. )

So what, you just don't remember anything? Some kind of mind control?

( was she supposed to just swallow a story like that?! )

[sullenstallion]

No. I remember everything. It all came back to me after a while.

[Just like when he was fishing in front of Midna, Dylas displays that ability to make his body impossibly still. His ears no longer flick, he holds his pose. Sparks had compared him to a ghost. How he wishes he could almost be one sometimes.]

Looks like I'm even less Heroic than we thought.

[fusedshadows]

( it was unfortunate, that cross-examining dylas was her only window of information. but here in the safe haven of the cells was the only place she could even bring herself to ask these questions... )

You didn't answer my second question. Are you telling me that you weren't in control of your actions? That someone else could just lay their claws into you, and have you do their dirty work? ( her head spun back around, eye narrowing as her temper rose — ) Well?! Are you!

[sullenstallion]

That's exactly it, Midna!

[It's his voice that rises now, though whether it's sarcastic or acquiescent is difficult to judge. His shoulders shake in anger, not at Midna, but at himself. How could he ever think people like Midna could get along with him? He's so much worse than that.]

And they did! Twice! I killed four people, and all because someone snapped their fingers and made me do it. I'm not going to deny it!

[fusedshadows]

Tch. ( she didn't seem to like that answer. to think that what had happened was all just some orchestration of events, that it was some show of power from those that opposed them...

midna quietened again, eye sweeping downwards once more. )

So what are you here for, then.

[sullenstallion]

Isn't that obvious?

[He starts to calm down a little, but only a little. The silence is deafening, and he finally looks over towards Midna. It only lasts for a moment before he's focusing back down at his hooves. He doesn't like this at all. Midna is different, he...likes her, or something.]

Why are you here?

[fusedshadows]

It's not. Didn't you just tell me you weren't of your right mind? ( there's a marked pause. ) This is a place for the guilty.

You're not the one... that did this. ( she's side-stepping his last question, her hands balling into fists again that start to shake... )

[sullenstallion]

That's not an excuse. I should have...fought it off somehow. Or it might keep happening. Everyone's better off without me on the streets.

[The words come to him easily enough; he's said them before, been asked the same question. He doesn't hesitate to share them with Midna, the movement of her hands catching his eye.]

It's not that easy. You can't say it's not my fault, not when I remember doing it or what it felt like after.

[fusedshadows]

Isn't it obvious? ( why does she always have to spell it out so plainly, ugh! )

Your feelings, what you're saying here now— everyone's better off without me it's because you care about the fates of these heroes! That's what's keeping you prisoner in an unlocked cell, isn't it?

( no dylas... you don't belong here... but someone certainly does. )

sometimes i regret signing up for this event because i didn't think through how devastated he'd be

[sullenstallion]

Who cares about the Heroes?! What about the other two, the civilians?! They aren't ever coming back! Just when I thought it wouldn't happen, it happened again! It'll always happen!

[He's shaking with anger that time, his gaze snapping towards Midna. His eyes tend to almost glow when he's angry, and—he's pissed off at himself when a snarl forces past his lips. He hates everything about this.]

I told you I wasn't going to be a Hero. So why did you come here?

sad attempts to drag him out from the abyss of misery

[fusedshadows]

They aren't the only ones never coming back, either! ( her arms raise, just to be swung violently downwards. ) And while you sit here acting like you were in on it, the longer it goes on, the longer you'll believe it...

Tell me, did you like killing those people? All of them? How about how you felt once you got a hold of yourself again!

do it do it do it

[sullenstallion]

I don't know anything about that one!

[That one. He doesn't even know that Zelda is the hero permanently dead, just that one is.]

That's...that's not how it worked. I didn't remember killing them until ten, fifteen days later. But that's not unusual for me, either.

motivational speaker midna does it worst

[fusedshadows]

Don't call her that! ( she snaps before she can catch herself, eye blazing as she shoots him a look, but tearing herself away with another audible— ) Ch.

(— as she makes an attempt to pull herself back together. ) You're missing the point that this wasn't your doing. It wasn't for pleasure, or sport... not even for survival. It was to play a part in someone else's game.

[sullenstallion]

Don't...

[The word forces itself past his lips, but his eyes go wide in confusion and then firm in recognition. Don't call her that! Whoever the dead hero is, it's someone Midna knows, then. And personally, to get that kind of reaction.

It's like the wind is knocked out of his sails all at once. His shoulders, ears, tail all droop as he focuses back on his hooves and away from Midna. He has absolutely no right to say this.]

I'm sorry...for your loss. I didn't know.

[Didn't ask.]

[fusedshadows]

( she didn't want it to come out like that. hadn't wanted it to come out at all. she knew that if she started talking about it... if she let too much slip...
midna turns away fully again. shaking shoulders just barely seen as she does her best to keep it together. )

She'd probably know all the right things to say in a time like this, you know. ( there's a pause, until she finally says it— ) Zelda...

[sullenstallion]

[He finally stands.

His job means that his footsteps don't make a single sound as he walks over to the door. Watching his feet, he knows there should be a sound. Clip-clop, just like hooves. But there's always nothing, just silence and the sound of Midna's voice and the busy world outside.

Dylas pushes the door open and then moves to sit back down on his cot. It's an invitation, but he isn't going to force Midna to take it.]

I met her once. [He manages a weak attempt at a chuckle.] You two are complete opposites, aren't you.

[fusedshadows]

Of course you did. ( there's almost a laugh— ) She always... made a point of getting to know everyone.

( and then, midna just doesn't say anything. not until she hears the door of the cell open, and turned just in time to see dylas settling back down. there's some hesitation, but she finally takes to the air and floats over, making no sound herself until she finally plops down on the cot beside him, with a comfortable distance between.

she can't stop herself from shooting a brief what's THAT supposed to mean kind of look his way, but droops her head immediately after again, considering his words. )

Light and darkness... they can't mix. That's the truth of the world that I come from. And Zelda... she was nothing short of the brightest light in Hyrule's history.

[sullenstallion]

She told me she was going to use...optimism and cheer to defeat the Calamity.

[His tone is reverent, respectful of the dead, even if the cynic in him thinks that her death kind of proved his point. She was too optimistic, too naive, and now she's dead. There's no point in bringing it up. At least he has the tact to keep it to himself and not share it with Midna. Besides, it's such a petty thing to think about to begin with.

Just thinking about it makes his tail move, thudding against the cot (and maybe Midna once or twice) in frustration. Sometimes, his body speaks more loudly of his feelings than he can.]

You don't sound like you didn't get along to me.

[So Darkness and Light must have mixed, that's what he's saying.]

[fusedshadows]

( there was even a bit of a snort in response to that first bit. ) Of course she did. ( that sounded just like her. ) All smiles, a kind word for everyone...

( the movement of his tail only earns a slightly side-eye. she was used to travelling with an animal. as much as she insisted link do otherwise, they couldn't always control it. how stupidly... nostalgic. )

People like that... they have an appetite for wanting to get themselves killed. ( small hands grip at the thin mattress... )

[sullenstallion]

[He needs to bite his tongue. He has no idea how to respond considering he thinks that attitude is ridiculous, but he doesn't want to disrespect the dead, either.]

Well, you weren't wrong about that.

[No, that still kind of makes him out to be an asshole (which is fair, because he is one).]

What're you going to do about it?

[fusedshadows]

( normally midna wouldn't even be this open with how she really felt. but the blow was still fresh. it... hurt to know zelda would never come back. the girl that had actually made her believe... )

I... ( there's a pause, and eventually, a quiet sigh. ) I don't know. ( the confession made her feel dirty, curling up her lip in disgust of herself. )

This is a deadly blow to the people of Crystallis... and otherworlders alike. Some of us have been made to kill one another... and innocents. The masterminds are trying to sow fear and uncertainty.

And from the looks of it... ( there's finally a glance your way, dylas. ) They're succeeding more every day.

[sullenstallion]

Maybe you aren't as dark as I thought you were.

[He's not even sure himself if he's teasing her or trying to point something out. Dylas had always considered Midna to be a being that walked in the darkness, but now she talks like someone who's got more light in her than he does. She sounds fond of her, of the people here.

He's not so fond of the people here himself, but he doesn't know them, either.]

If they locked me up for real...at least they'd have a scapegoat. People might calm down. I'm not worth keeping around.

[He doesn't sound unsure of himself when he says that last line, he sounds like someone who actually believes it.]

[fusedshadows]

( there's a flat look towards him at that.
literal princess of the world of semi-darkness here, buddy. there's a flick of her wrist, as though she was shooing the comment away. it's just that terrible zelda-effect talking... definitely. )

Hn. Light and darkness don't mean right and wrong. ( and killing people needlessly, no matter who you were, that was wrong. dylas believed it too, she was sure, that's why he was here wasn't it?

wait, "not worth" ... did he really mean that? how sad. ) My! What a serious thing to say. ( she didn't deal well with sad. ) Do you really care if it calms them down? Do you suppose their pitchforks will still be sharp enough for the next incident, too?

( because it was just going to keep happening. you're not doing anyone any favours, mister horse. )

[sullenstallion]

I already know that. That's not what I meant.

[What's more frustrating for Midna, the fact that Dylas looks annoyed or the fact that he's not going to tell her what he meant? He moves right away from it, looking from her and then toward the wall they're facing as the awkward conversation continues.

Perhaps worse is the fact that Dylas doesn't feel sad when he says it. He has a lot of issues to work through.]

I think I know enough about myself to make an informed decision on whether or not I should be locked up. [It all comes back to that. This time, it's his hands that tighten where he grips the cot with one hand, a slight tearing sound following as his claws dig into it.] I'm used to pitchforks. I think I could handle a trial and real imprisonment.

[So he's not looking to die. Just to...really, really be locked up. Is that a comfort?]