tearmeanewone | neuf + action/audio

Entry tags:

neuf + action/audio

[Action - Backdated to the 18th]

[It had been an emotionally charged week for Elizabeth, but in the end she was grateful for it. She had the opportunity to see old friends, be honest with Booker and Rosalind and Robert, and see Gai one last time. It was strange, she felt almost at peace about returning and continuing on the path she knew she had to walk. When her younger self was returned, she would be happy in Elizabeth's stead, and safe from the unraveling that was about to occur.]

[After writing a few notes, Elizabeth methodically removes her more modern-looking clothes and changes into one of the many outfits hanging in her closet. Heavy winter jacket for the chill, gloves, scarf, boots... And she removes her makeup and brushes the curl out of her hair. For all intents and purposes, aside from a distinctly cold cast to her gaze, she looks like she always did in Luceti.]

[She contemplates saying goodbye in person, but there isn't time. She didn't want a scene, and if the effects of the experiment were reversed when she was in the middle of crying on Booker's shoulder, things would be hard to explain. So she leaves the house quietly and walks into the forest. She walks a good distance in, then sits down to wait. Her eyes drift shut and she appears to fall asleep against a tree trunk...]

[A few hours later, Elizabeth comes stumbling out of the forest, half-frozen and looking confused and scared. The last thing she remembers is being kidnapped by droids, and now she's freezing to death in a forest and she can't remember anything between now and then. She hurries through the village, repeatedly blowing into her hands to try and warm them as she heads home. Everyone must have been worried sick about her.]

[Audio]

I looked back at my journal, and I realized that my fight with the droids was recorded. I'm sorry, that must have been a real shock for some of you.

But I'm back now--I don't remember what happened, but I think I have all of my limbs attached where they're supposed to go and as far as I can tell there's nothing strange about my behavior (though let me know if there is something I'm not seeing, of course...).

I don't know, do people sometimes come back from being kidnapped without anything strange having happened to them?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Almost two weeks.

[Which is, technically, the truth. The Elizabeth who is here in his arms now has been gone for nearly two weeks; she doesn't need to know about the other Elizabeth who was returned, and he doesn't plan on telling her until he gives her that envelope.

Reluctantly he allows her to pull back, but he reaches up one hand to smooth her hair before placing a kiss on the top of her head. That's about all the lack of full contact he can stand before he pulls her right back into his arms, to reassure himself as much as her.]

I was so worried about you.

Two weeks... [Thinking about Gai worrying over her, maybe traipsing around in the snow all day long trying to find her, it's horrifying. And Booker, and Robert, and Rosalind--they must have been wondering what had happened to her, too.]

[She wraps her arms around Gai when he embraces her again, trying to reassure him too. She feels terrible, wonders how Gai stayed sane while not knowing what had happened to her or when she was coming back.]

I'm sorry Gai. I tried to fight them off, but they had a siphon. I thought my head was going to explode, I couldn't open tears.

[Really, all he needs for reassurance is her in his arms like this. Not that he doubted she would come back - not after an experiment they'd conducted on her like that; obviously they would want to see the longer-term effects of it, and besides, it's not as if they had control over when people were sent home anyway - but there's a difference between having that knowledge and having her there in his arms.]

It's not your fault. They're designed to be able to counter the abilities of whoever they're sent to bring in. That's how they can capture even the most powerful people here.

[And it pisses him off, to be honest.]

Well you fought them off... [There's an injured note in her voice, like she had somehow let Gai down by not being able to push past the siphon and escape.]

Because I knew the secret, and because I was lucky.

[He kisses her hair again in the hopes of mollifying her.]

I was on a mission where we infiltrated a droid production facility and made some stealth modifications to create defects in some of the droids. You can exploit them if you know where they are, but there's no guarantee that the droids coming for you will be some of the defective ones. It might not work at all.

Oh... [Now she just feels a little silly. No doubt she hadn't been lucky. After all, Gai infiltrating that facility had probably happened long before he'd known her. How long would it take to produce a droid with a siphon attached to it?]

[She sighs heavily and curls her fingers into the back of Gai's coat.] I don't remember what they did to me. Do I seem off to you at all?

No. You seem just like your normal self.

[And she does, after a week of having that other Elizabeth. He'd enjoyed it, to be sure, but this is the Elizabeth he knows best and initially fell in love with. This is the Elizabeth he plans on asking to marry him.]

Are you hurt anywhere?

No. [She rubs her nose against Gai's shoulder, trying to warm it up.] Just cold. And damp. I woke up on the ground in the middle of the forest, if you can believe that.

That's not the worst place I've heard of people waking up.

[He pulls her closer, rubs her back and arms with his hands to help with her quest to warm herself.]

I've heard some people have ended up dumped in the lake. The Malnosso must've been especially bored on those days.

Well that's how I first arrived. Guess they weren't in the mood for repeat performances. [She hums happily as Gai warms her. It just feels good to feel his hands on her again.]

One of the few times they've done us a favor.

[He's happy to keep warming her like this for as long as she wants, though he suspects it won't be long before she wants to go inside to get out of the cold and the snow.]

[She shivers again, full-bodied and long, and then she feels warm in Gai's arms. After a moment, she pulls back and looks at Gai, alarmed.]

Oh God, Booker and Robert and Ms. Lutece.

[He keeps his arms around her, one hand still rubbing at her back as she looks up at him.]

They're all right. They're worried, but they've survived so far. They haven't even set anything on fire while you were gone.

Nevermind the fires, I must have worried them. [Elizabeth sighs, upset and distraught.] And you... what did you do? You haven't been out in the snow every day, have you?

Not every day.

[It's both the truth and a lie. He hasn't been out at all before today because she was here until just a few hours ago, even if it wasn't exactly her.

She can take his words how she likes; he'll save the real truth for later.]

Oh darling... ['Not every day' means that some days he was. Elizabeth cups Gai's cheek and brushes her thumb over his cheek.]

[Then she makes a decision and stretches up to put a kiss on Gai's lips.]

[That response is along the lines of what he'd been expecting, and he's glad for it-- it means he won't have to try to come up with any sort of fabricated story about what he'd been doing during those two weeks.

That kiss is very much welcomed, however, and he leans into it, kissing her back with all of the feelings that have built up over her absence.]

[Finally she pulls back, tucks some of Gai's hair behind his ear, and lets her fingers drift down his face again.] I'm sorry. I must have hurt you.

[The corner of Gai's mouth lifts into a tiny grin, and for a moment it almost looks as if he's going to say something in response to that. He is going to respond, but not verbally-- he just leans down to capture her lips in another kiss before she has the chance to apologize again.

He would never, ever blame her for this, not ever.]

[Well, yes, it was probably best for them to put it all behind them. It was over, Elizabeth was home, Gai was warming her up again. She wanted to stay with him, go back to his apartment and get under his blankets just to be warm be held by him. But she had to go home and reassure the others.]

Oh! [She pulls back and looks up at Gai, slightly panicked.] What day is it?

It's the 18th. Nearly two weeks, like I said.

[Of course she wants to go home and see Booker and the Luteces. He doesn't blame her for that one bit, nor will he protest if she says she needs to go see them. In fact, he'll probably encourage her to do so.]

'Like I said', he says. That only works if you remember what day it was when you were kidnapped, mister. [Which, she has to admit, is a little odd. If it would be an easy thing if it had felt like it had been just yesterday, but it feels like she's in a daze. Like she isn't quite sure if she's been gone or away or here and in her room.]

It would have been a disaster if I'd missed Christmas.

It was the 7th.

[He remembers the exact date; there's no chance he would forget something like that.]

And I wouldn't have let that happen. If it had gone on for too much longer, I would've gone straight to the Malnosso myself and demanded they bring you back.

[Never mind that it wouldn't have worked for various reasons. He would at least have tried, even if he likely would have ended up kidnapped himself in the process.]

[Elizabeth laughs. She knows she shouldn't, but the idea of Gai kicking in a door and demanding the Malnosso give Elizabeth back is a little funny.]

And I'm guessing you also know where they live, too. So you could actually go straight to them and demand me back.

[The laughter is welcomed, as he'd been aiming for an amusing mental image with that. If there had been a door to kick down, he would've done it.]

I figured I'd be hard to ignore if I stood out in the middle of the plaza and yelled for them.

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