English Green #14, English Red #16, Bistre #6

[shadowsong26]

Name: shadowsong26
Story: i want you to know
'Verse: Lux
Colors: English Green #14. Lord, what fools these mortals be! (A Midsummer Night's Dream, III.ii), English Red #16. Then must you speak of one that loved not wisely but too well (Othello, V.ii), Bistre #6. Her smile went through me like a spear.
Supplies and Materials: bichromatic, miniature collection, oils, feathers, novelty beads ("I've been in bed, I've been away/I've been the blamer and I've been the blamed" - "Driving Blind", Grace Potter), glitter ("Sometimes it takes a good fall to really know where you stand." – Hayley Williams)
Word Count: 549
Rating: R
Characters: Lux, Mariko
Warnings: References to war, the fire, interspecies sex, and rifling through someone's memories. If I missed any, please let me know.
Notes: Constructive criticism welcome, as always.



i want you to know.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"I want you to know," Lux said quietly, "why I didn't wait for you to free him."

"I had a plan," Mariko insisted. "And now he's alone, and God knows where, and--"

"I was able to restore his memories."

"What? How?"

Lux looked away, and Mariko watched her run her fingers along the edge of the desk. "I never gave you the name for my species, did I."

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

but i can't find the words for it.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"No, you didn't," Mariko said, her interest caught. And of course she hadn't asked--that wasn't an appropriate question, by any measure.

"We've had contact with your species before--ongoing contact, for centuries. Since well before official First Contact." Lux still wasn't looking at her.

"How is that...?"

"We fought a war. It spilled over onto your planet. My siblings, and those under their command, have kept your people under observation since--it is against the tenets of the Holy One to do otherwise, when we may have damaged your kind."

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

i need you to know.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"The siblings who hurt you?" Mariko asked.

Lux inclined her head. "I lost the war," she said simply. "I never intended--well, my intentions don't really matter. What matters is, I lost. And other species--others we had contact with...they want to reopen our war, and so they freed me from my prison. And there is no way the damage will be contained this time. My siblings know this. It is why Simon was placed near you. He is my nephew, though he didn't recall it when you met."

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

but too much has passed between us, and you won't hear what i'm actually saying.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"But Simon was..." Mariko trailed off.

"His mother was human," Lux said. "It's a complicated story, but one of my sibling Michaela's plans required what he is. Michaela asked our brother Gabriel, and he conceived the child."

Mariko shook her head. "None of this makes sense. Why...why are you telling me this?"

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

i want you to understand.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"Because," she answered, "because you need to understand why he's dangerous. He is obedient to orders he doesn't know he has, but he is flexible enough to do horrible things, things no being of my species could. He is the greatest weapon in my siblings' arsenal. And you...they have plans for you as well."

"What plans?" Mariko asked, trying to swallow back the fear.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

but how can you, when you've heard another, bastardized version of my story?

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"I don't know the details," Lux said. "I could only take bits and pieces from Simon's mind before I set him free. But it has to do with us, with my love for you."

The word is like a knife to the gut--love. They had never said it, not even before the fire and for Lux to do so now...

"I think," Mariko said, quietly, "that you should stop dancing around it. What are you trying to tell me?"

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

i need you to understand

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"Your people call us angels," Lux replied, looking up at her with a sad smile.

Mariko's eyes widened.

...wait.

"Your name..."

"Lux is a piece of it."

"Tell me your name."

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

but how can my war, my world, my crime translate into human terms?

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

"Your people call me Lucifer."

Comments

[serpentine]

Ooo. I really like the suspense in this and the reveal at the end. It was done really well.

[shadowsong26]

Thank you.

[bookblather]

Ooh, I mean, I knew who Lux was but this still was like. A punch in the gut, imagining what Mariko must be thinking. Great job.

[shadowsong26]

Thank you.

[clare_dragonfly]

Whoooooaaaa this is awesome! :D I love the reveal!

[shadowsong26]

Thank you.

[shipwreck_light]

I did not just do a spit take I did not just do a spit take I...

OK, theoretically if I did it was because ^______________^.

(I did not know that part.)

[shadowsong26]

Thank you.

I'm glad I was able to surprise you with this :D