dive to the heart//Derrick

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    derrick.


    Venta had been exploring this new territory, though guilt filled her half-heart. Stupid. You should've know Vanitas would've done something, puttanna! Her ears were visibly down and she was distracted. That's when the Cartellian attacked.


    Before she knew it, she was pinned on the ground by the melanistic lion, before being stabbed, and having removed what darkness she had gotten from her mental illness.


    After it joined with Vanitas, he felt slightly bad, wrapped his other half in a robe, and placed her near the Daremo homeland to live out her last days in peace before she'd eventually slip in a coma. With that, the 'demonic' lion left.

    Derrick... didn't know how to feel. He had always been angrier than most, a short fuse and one that usually exploded in violence when it did reach the end. It happened very few times, but lately - ever since his encounter with Vanitas - it was more frequent. Even the tiniest of things would upset him enough where he had to walk away before he hurt someone. The headaches were ruthless and only made him angrier because what the hell was wrong with him? On several occasions he almost melted his wings when he unintentionally caused the molecules to move much faster, heating them up to a visible degree - the tips turned bright red and he'd have to unfurl them so they didn't burn his sides.


    Today, the headache was more like a migraine. When he moved too quickly, the pain flared and his vision darkened at the edges. Though, he was antsy for unknown reasons to himself. So, he kept walking. In fact, he was far beyond The Rift by now. He was near the family home... odd. Unfortunately before he could do much else, he collapsed. There had been no warning beforehand, it was as if his legs just stopped working. There were a few seconds that he was forced to stare at the dirt before he promptly fell unconscious.


    //ehhh, sorry the post is kind of a mess.

    What the two would most likely see despite being unconscious would be an ocean that dragged them down to a stain glass area. The stained glasses meant to represent what little they had, their heart. Venta had less than half. Her stained glass included her sleeping, without her blade, in a desolate land, surrounded by stylized Fleur-de-lis against a pastel green background. She had to watch her step to make sure she didn't fall off.

    For a moment, Derrick thought maybe he hadn't been going unconscious for whatever reason, but that he was drowning. That panic was quickly replaced by fear, and curiosity. There were also vestiges of anger. There always was. The picture of him in the glass and the fact that he seemed surrounded by... nothing, it was a little much. He stumbled away from the edge, the edge that was in the should-be center. The edge that was only there because Vanitas took half of his soul and he still couldn't fully grasp the idea. "What the hell is going on..." His voice was strained, sounding as if he would cry. He might have. Everything was so messed up and he just wanted to sleep... why couldn't he just sleep? Why was he thrown into this?

    Broken. Shattered. Useless. The thoughts came into the golden lioness' head. She snarled at herself, her paw pounding against the stained glass. Why?! I was whole for once! That's when she heard Derrick's voice. "Fratello?!" She called out, looking in his direction.

    Derrick's wings snapped half-open, down by his sides, and his hackles raised quickly in his fright. His stomach had twisted, and he quickly looked in her direction. "Ven..." Great, now he was crying. Tears, one by one, slipped down his face. Had it not been dirty, he might have been able to play it off. Instead, they left obvious tracks in their wake. "Ven, please... what's going on? I feel..." As if I'm going insane? And was this the last straw?

    Venta didn't want to tell him. She didn't even want to know. Not like this. Had she been closer, she would've reached for a hug. She watched the tears slide down his face, with a feeling of utter hopelessness.'Her jaw ached as she spoke. The words were hard to get out. Her voice felt choked. "You're dying, Derrick. We're fading out of existence. We'll be locked in comas, and this is where we'll spend our time. Welcome to your Dive To The Heart."

    Even though his brain hadn't come up with a response at that moment, he still felt choked up. Stuck on whatever words he might have spewed. Dying? When he thought about it before, it was something he would've been okay with. Live or die, he couldn't have cared less. Now, that he was faced with it, panic rose. He didn't want to die. He couldn't. He had to take care of Blair, and their unborn children. There were things he still hadn't done, yet. Then the burning rage overtook the ice cold feeling in his bones. His anger was rarely that of fire, but today was different... "What does that even mean!? What does this all mean!? This is fucking stupid! Dive to - to the Heart!? This doesn't make sense!" He was trembling, tears still falling even while his eyes held flames.

    Venta, fearing a recoil even with the distance, nearly fell off of her Dive, before forcing herself up. She had to remain calm. And if need be.. Fight with confidence and calmness, or else you won't be able to control the outcome. She repeated those words said by a dear friend over and over until she regained her composure. "Derrick. You must calm down. You are here because part of your soul is missing. And you're dying because of it. The Dive to the Heart is the journey into this area. This stained glass represents your heart, shattered. It's not stupid." She could see why Derrick didn't want to die. He had so much to live for.

    Derrick clamped his mouth shut, his teeth grinding as he struggled to contain himself. Telling him to calm down was a mistake, but it needed to be done. "Calm down!? Venta, what the hell! You expect me to stay calm. I AM STANDING A PIECE A GLASS IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE!" Literally. He moved forward and he forgot about the edge in his fit. His paw hit nothing and he fell, nearly tumbling off. He let out a strangled, nonsensical yell, throwing himself back so he didn't fall. His heart was beating a million miles a second and his breathing became labored. His next strangled noise was a sob. His breaths hissed out through his clenched teeth. There was a panic attack on the horizon. "Shattered... why... what do you mean... part of my soul is missing?" He didn't look at her now, he couldn't. Instead, he stared off, gaze unfocused. Though, it seemed he was just staring at the ground.

    Venta clinched upon his words. Was she only so calm because this had happened before, though it doomed her? The young lioness drew in a sharp breath. She watched him fall. Her mind shouted. Use your Blade! Bring him up!!! Don't lose him! Her face flooded with worry, fear, and hopelessness as she watched him, heard his nonsensical cry, and his utter sobbing.


    Noting the panic attack on the horizon, she had to think. She closed her oceanic orbs briefly, and a bridge between the two's Hearts appeared. It was white and black, but glassy. Venta approached, her claws making noises as she did so. That's when she tried to embrace Derrick in a hug. "My best guess is that when.. Vanitas..." she began, though her mind replaced Vanitas, with I."He split your soul. And when the soul is split... you fall into a coma. And fade out of existence."

    Derrick shut his eyes, leaning into the embrace just slightly when he felt here near him. He didn't care to ask how she managed to get over to him. Soul split. That's what that had been. A trembling paw reached up to his chest, over his heart. He could feel it pulsating softly against his pads. He felt it would leap out of his chest, though. "He... s-stabbed me... with that... that key thing... in the chest. Is that - is that what he was doing?" He would fade out of existence, just like that. "I-I don't-!" -wanna die! He felt like a child again. The feeling of dread and fear of death that washed over him was less than irrational now that he might actually die. Would actually die. His eyes snapped open, "This is it then?"

    Venta tried to keep him calm. As best she could, muttering soothing words as a mother did to their child. "That's correct, for the most part." She felt his racing heartbeat, the swirl of emotions surrounding him. But, one part he was wrong with. She could barely, just barely smile. She tried to meet his eyes, her tone calm, comforting. "No. This isn't it. I can save you. But you must trust me; you must have faith in me, okay?"

    Derrick slowly looked to her, eyes still wide. The tears slowed by now, but they still welled in the brim of his eyes. If he could trust nothing else in this unforgiving world, he could and would trust his sister. Always. "Please... Ven. I trust you... I really do, but how... how can you fix this?" It seemed unfix-able.

    Venta didn't want to tell him. It would most likely mean ultimately destroying herself in the end. She drew in a breath, and using what strength she had, her blade appeared in her maw. "It's simple. I'm making your soul whole again." She fumbled with the blade, but due to how it was backwards, she couldn't stab herself.


    "Derrick. This... this may be hard for you to do, but, you're gonna have to stab me." She dropped the blade on the ground, slowly nudging it towards the tiger.

    "No. I'll die before anything happens to you." It was there, on the tip of his tongue. He could be a brave brother, let her know that his loyalty to her was more important than his life. He could be the all-noble knight. Instead, he still trembled, he still looked utterly pathetic. Unfortunately, he was stuck. If he let himself die, and Venta survived who would take care of her? And he made a promise to Blair. Often, he didn't seem like a guy that stuck to promises, but when it came to family, he did. He couldn't leave his children alone in this awful world... full of people like Vanitas. There was hesitation, his movements were jerky. He reached down, so slowly, and the click of his teeth against the blade's hilt sounded so deafening to him. His vision darkened, a memory coming to the surface. The moment he killed Venta. When it was him and not some demon looking to ruin his life. The scene was sickening, but he couldn't look away. It began to fade and for a moment, the image of his sister's bloodied body and her standing there now became one before the visible memory was gone. He felt the blade slipping, so he tightened his grip. You've done it before. You've hurt her, killed her before. Just do it. The voice wasn't his own, yet at the same time it was. He felt if he continued biting down on the hilt, he would crack his teeth. He stood, taking a step back. His eyes were full of emotions that he couldn't comprehend. The struggle to decide a fate was obvious. Then he moved his head aside, and swung, aiming to stab her as she instructed.

    She had to keep her composure during this. It may help Derrick gain some of his. She was half-expecting the blade to deem Derrick unworthy and to appear once more in her maw. But it didn't. Her body trembled, she was shaking. She watched him, a mix of memories forming. The first time, Vanitas' creation. Derrick was temporarily replaced by a dark lion, and his remarks. "Use the darkness! And form for me, The X-Blade!" "But, Master; I can't, I'm not strong enough!" "So... you would rather die than use the power. Fine, then I will take your darkness myself." She shook it off, before she saw him strike her chest.


    Even with it being expected, there was still a lot of pain. She felt her body crash onto the stained glass. It felt like her heart was being torn from her blood vessels and away from her mind. She gasped in pain, her body twitching. From her chest, a half-heart prism shape appeared, before falling into Derrick. For the time being, as she was in a lot of pain, she couldn't really make sounds except for pained gasps, until her oceanic eyes became dull and she laid limp, her body having to adjust to the change.

    Derrick immediately let go of the keyblade, a sound that was a sobbing scream escaping him, ripping at his throat. The memory flashed back when he shut his eyes tight. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." He muttered it until it became a fumbling mess of words in his mouth. Regret was the first thing he felt, right after. He heard her body fall, but he couldn't open his eyes. If he just kept the image of her bloodied body in his mind, it would be okay. His ears were pinned against his head, he didn't want to hear her and he didn't want to hear any of the crap his mind was playing back. Which was a lot. So much, he couldn't pick out any of it to make sense. He couldn't even move to sit down, he was stuck standing there, shaking. For several minutes. Slowly, very slowly, his breathing leveled. His body still trembled, but he was able to force his eyes open. He glanced toward his sister and whimpered very quietly at the sight of her. He pushed aside the blade, nearly falling over himself when he stepped closer to her. What would happen to him now? Was he okay? He didn't feel so... empty. The difference between emptiness caused by a mental illness and emptiness caused by losing half your soul was noticeable. And he noticed that. He sat down, his wings unfurling again and spreading to their full span, before he let them relax and wrap forward. It would look like he was trying to protect her with his wings. He reached forward carefully with his paw, brushing it against her cheek. She saved me, but I don't think I wanted to be saved in the end.

    She could hardly feel. Physically, that is. One could notice most of her stained glass dissapearing in a brilliant flash of light. She had a hard time comprehending things. She could barely understand his fumbled apologies. She managed to keep a tad, so she could talk to him. She wanted to run over to him, seeing that he nearly fell over.


    Her ears pinned slightly as she felt a wing brush over her. She felt protected. It felt nice. A touch she hadn't felt in so long. Her dull eyes drifted down towards the paw that brushed against her cheek, and she would gently grasp it. "P-please..." she began, her voice weak as she gasped slightly. "Don't a-apologize. I-I chose this."

    Derrick stare down at her, brows furrowed as he the tears began to flow again. Her holding his paw calmed him, yet it only made the sadness worse because how much longer would he have that? Why couldn't he take it back? "Ven... sh, please don't..." He didn't want her to tell him not to apologize. He would anyway. Not because he was stubborn, but he really meant it. "Ven, I'm so sorry... I shouldn't have..." Shouldn't have done it? No, his fault started further back. "I should've never been there. I shouldn't have let him do this. I could have... prevented this, but I was arrogant. And angry and it got in the way... I..." His voice faltered, face contorting in pain that was far worse than any sort of physical pain. Despite being whole, his heart still felt as if it was ripping itself apart. He had promised to keep her safe, to never hurt, but here she was dying again... her blood was on his paws, again.