Reache sighed.
"I know that feeling... being pussshed back... denied freedom... control..." he muttered in a wobbly tone. "And the dark...? ... my dragon would stay awake all night jussst ssso hisss cyan eyesss would light up the room for me when the candlesss died... Ah... isss Deo ssstill alive? I hope ssso..."
Now he was just mumbling to himself.
"Ah... Esssprit? I'm sssorry. But you sssaid that Echell wasss your... mother?"
Dangit Traders sTOP BEING SO PRECIOUS))
"Uh, yeah...$he wa$n't very motherly, though..." Esprit said, ears flattening.
Green tears spiked the edges of his eyes.
"Sssshe usssed to be, though. Oh, God, ssshe usssed to be ... and ssstill would be if ... i-if I hadn't..."
then the poor man started crying. Not hard, but... there were still tears and hiccups of sharp breath.
"Trader, what are you whining about now?" the snake with a hauntingly familiar voice hissed at Reache.
Reache lifted his head up in a snap, ears pricked and eyes wide.
He slowly tilted his head in the direction of the voice in a ... strange, unstable manner.
"... Wiberr?"
"Reache...? the snake hissed, confused.
Oh yes. The snake would have been met with hauntingly familiar red and gray eyes.
Reache faked a smile, "... vecchio amico*!" he said, standing up. "It'sss been a while, hasssn't it, Wiberr?"
[[ *old friend ]]
Poor little Esprit was so confused, and just sat by, glued to her spot. Wiberr snorted,"I guessss it hasss," he returned.
Reache's eye twitched, but just a little; not noticeable behind Ravenn's hair.
He held his smile, "Why don't you turn back into what you are, and sssay ciao to me... propriamente*?"
[[ *properly ]]
He snorted, and turned back into the towering teal royal he always was. He was old and tired looking. Way past his prime.
Esprit was still confused, and quite obviously scared.
Reache chuckled a little, and patted Esprit on the head. "It'sss okay, Esssprit. He'sss jussst your... sssnake..."
Reache turned back to Wiberr, and stood up. "Been keeping sssecretsss, have we, amicco? You... were going to tell thisss bella young lady that you're her papa... weren't you?"
His eyes narrowed, and he had that signature, wicked Trader smirk that meant he was up to no certain good. His ears were pricked in morbid curiosity.
Esprit backed up. Papa? Wiberr hissed, "God damn it, you idiot! Echell made me ssswear to sssecrecy!"
"Sssecrecy? For what?" his voice became even more noticeably unstable, "Ssssomething that wassss your fault?"
"Ssshut up, you pathetic parasssite!" he hissed back, pupils thinning.
Reache's grey irises shrunk down to almost nothing, making his eyes almost a complete, angrily-glowing dark crimson.
He bristled, head reared back. "Parasssite?!"
Reache was like a flash as he took Wiberr by the throat and harshly pinned him against the floor before just beginning to wail out on him.
"WHO'SSS THE F-CKING PARASSSITE NOW, YOU SSSELF ENTITLED PIECE OF SSSH-T?! IT WASSSS YOUR FAULT SSSSHE LEFT AND CASSST THAT SSSPELL ON HERSSSELF! YOUR FAULT THAT SSSHE DIED AND HAD A CHILD THAT SSSHE COULDN'T LIVE LOVE! YOU TOOK HER AWAY FROM ME! I COULD HAVE PROTECTED HER! I LOVED HER!"
The words were shrieked from the limeblood's throat as tears welled from his eyes like an oil spill. His blows were, at first, very rough and he probably broke a few of Wiberr's ribs, as well as busted up his jaw and broke his nose.
They slowed down and got softer, though ... and his voice got quieter. "I could have protected her... you failed... you failed..."
"You were the lasst one to sssee her! If you were ssso good to her, why didn't you ssstop her!? In fact, you're the reassson we were fighting that ni-"
"$TOP IT!" Wiberr was caught off by Esprit's shriek, "BOTH OF YOU JU$T $TOP!" Both of her eyes were black and red, and ruby tears pricked their edges as she tugged at her hair.
(Ravenn's probably like 'yoU'RE MAKING HER CRY')
Reache didn't hear her.
"What ... the f-ck... did you sssay...?" he hiccuped, trying to sound harsh but really sounded just as terrified as Esprit was.
"I'm... the reassson you were fighting...?" his voice was barely just a whisper.
Wiberr growled, wiping his bloodied face, "You heard me. She wasss alwaysss working late, ssso I assumed you were over-working her. Her check wasssn't getting any higher."
Esprit stood there, shaking, watching them.
He shook his head, "Sssshe wasss working late... becaussse sssshe wanted to. At leassst... I thought ssshe did. I never assssked her once to ssstay beyond the ssschedule I gave her, and that... wasss jussst a few hoursss..." he said, wiping some tears from his eyes.
"I couldn't raissse her paycheck, you d-ck. Everything I paid her with came out of my own pocket..." you could tell he was trying to keep himself from sobbing again.
wait hOW DID YOU KNOW I WAS THINKING HE MADE HOT CHOCOLATE))
Wiberr closed his eyes and stood up, sighing. He did his best to hide his own teal tears as well, tugging at his royal robes.
Esprit had balled up in a corner, watching them both, shivering.