Todd Wants Key's Face

Dusk: Uh... hi. I... know you're my mom now, and I, uh... I wanted to apologize for before.

Claire: *can't seem to find the right words to say, and just stands there for a moment before his sentence registers in her head* O-Oh! Right--um, come in! *steps aside to let them in, still in a bit of shock*

Sarah: *steps inside with Dusk*

Dusk: *he walks in, feeling that the visit will be somewhat... awkward*

Claire: So, um... g-go ahead and sit down... *sits down on the couch*

Sarah: *finds another chair, leaving the other side of the couch open for Dusk* ...

Dusk: *he glances over at Sarah, KNOWING she took the chair on purpose. He sits down on the other side of the couch, not looking at Claire, just down at his feet*

Sarah: *is silent* ...

Claire: ...So... So you said you remembered?

Dusk: Yeah, I... I remembered my childhood... you were definitely there with my father... I... I heard he died...

Claire: ... *looks down at her hands, which were on his lap* ...He did... *sighs* how much do you remember?

Sarah: ....

Dusk: ... Up to until after we were in Europe... I-I'm sorry I can't remember more...

Claire: ! ...It's fine... you remembered a LOT...

Sarah: ...

Dusk: ... It feels strange, having that gap filled like that... I still feel disconnected to the real world...

Claire: ... Maybe it'll feel better when you remember the rest of it...

Sarah: ...

Dusk: ... Maybe... you... you still love me... right, m... "mom"...?

Claire: *bites her lip, trying to hold back tears, and nods* I-I always have...

Dusk: ... *he nods a little* O-okay... I-I promise I'll try remembering more...

Claire: .... *suddenly leans over, and hugs him tightly, tearing up* ...I-I missed you...!

Sarah: <:( ....

Dusk: !! *he loosely hugs back, feeling incredibly awkward, even more-so since his mother is now tearing up*

Claire: *hugs him for a little while, then lets go of him, keeping her hands in his shoulders* ...I'm just happy to see you... It's been so long... <:(

Sarah: ....

Dusk: *quietly* ... I-I saw you the other day...

Claire: We didn't get a chance to talk...

Sarah: ...

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Dusk: ... I know... *he kisses her* ... Maybe I should... talk to my mother today.

Sarah: *kisses back* Are you sure? I'll gladly take you there, if you think you're ready...

Dusk: *he nods* ... I'm ready. I... I remember her now. So... so that makes me ready, I think.

Sarah: Alright. I'll give her a call, so she can expect us.

Dusk: ... And I'll get dressed. *he looks for something nice to wear - might as well for his mother, right? He finds the suit he wore for his wedding, also his father's suit, but who is Dusk to know these things?*

Sarah: *notices* ! ...

Dusk: *he goes into the bathroom to change* Seems like a special occasion, right?

Sarah: I guess so, yeah... *changes outside*

Dusk: *he puts the suit on and brushes his teeth and such in the bathroom. He wonders if, perhaps, he should shave. It... seems like the right thing to do for her, wouldn't it? Dusk finds a razor and shaves*

Sarah: *is dressed, and waiting for Dusk outside. She wonders what's taking him so long...

Dusk: *he then walks out looking exactly as he did for his wedding with Sarah. Though once again, he has no way of knowing this* Ready?

Sarah: !! *just stands there and stares for a moment, completely dumbstruck* O_O ....

Dusk: *stands there for a few seconds, then finally asks* ... What are you staring at? D:>

Sarah: ! N-Nothing, you just... *sighs, and smiles, recalling the fond memory* ...You look really nice. <:)

Dusk: *he smiles a little at this, kicking the floor a little with his shoe in embarrassment* W-well, let's get going, I guess. =^^= Are you ready, then?

Sarah: *nods* I'm ready. Off we go~ *leaves the apartment with Dusk, and gets into the car*

Dusk: *he sits in the car, riding with Sarah all the way to Claire's house. He gets out and hesitates, looking up at the building before putting his foot forward and walking to the front door. He knocks*

Sarah: *stands close behind him* ...

Claire: *answers the door, expecting Sarah, or Gilder, but she freezes as soon as she sees her son. She stares for a moment, wondering if she was hallucinating* D: ....

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Dusk: ... Okay... *he rubs where Blood Puppet punched him, then hugs Sarah tightly*

Sarah: *hugs him back, lightly touching where Blood Puppet hit him* ...Good night, Dusk...

Dusk: ... Good night, Sarah. *he closes his eyes and tries to sleep*

Sarah: *snuggles against him, and also tries to sleep*

*the next morning*

Dusk: *still asleep, snuggled against Sarah*

Sarah: *wakes up to find him still there, and smiles. she closes her eyes again* mm... <3

Dusk: *Asleep, nuzzling her lightly in his unconsciousness*

Sarah: *gently nuzzles him back* <3

Dusk: *he wakes up from this* ... Morning... how're you...?

Sarah: I'm doing alright... You? :)

Dusk: ... I'm sad... but it's okay to be sad... isn't it?

Sarah: *nods* it's perfectly okay... <:(

Dusk: ... And I love you... and I know you can help me... because you've helped me before...

Sarah: *smiles a bit* I love you too... And I promise I'll do the best I can...

Dusk: ... You already have been... thank you...

Sarah: Anytime... *kisses his cheek, and nuzzles him* I'm here whenever you need me.

Dusk: ... I ALWAYS need you, Sarah... it's gotten to that point that... I can't imagine living my life WITHOUT you...

Sarah: *hugs him a bit more tightly* I feel the same way... I promise, I'll always be here.

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Dusk: *he eventually calms down enough, loosening his hug a bit* I-I was't s-supposed to d-do that... Blood Puppet n-never t-TOLD ME t-to do that -- I-I was s-supposed to k-kill YOU... I... I did something very, very, VERY bad...!

Sarah: ... Would you have been happy if you had followed his order?

Dusk: ... W-well... uh... n-no...?

Sarah: then why do you regret defying him?

Dusk: ... Because... because I'm SUPPOSED to obey him... it's why I EXIST... i-isn't it...?

Sarah: *shakes her head* ... Think about all those things you remembered when we visited Dr. Ferman... Do you remember seeing Blood Puppet ANYWHERE?

Dusk: *Quietly, staring right into Sarah's eyes* ... N-no...

Sarah: *stares right back* then why would he be the reason you're here if he was never there in the first place?

Dusk: NOO...!! D8> *he can deny it all he want, but Sarah is right. She's right and he HATES it... he HATES that he's been LIED TO all this time...*

Sarah: !! Dusk, shhhh...! *puts a hand on his cheek* I know this is a bit hard to hear, but you KNOW it's the truth, don't you? <:(

Dusk: ... Y-yeah... y-you're right... h-he's wrong... *is a whisper* ... I-I g-get it...

Sarah: ...I'm sorry... <:( *nuzzles him*

Dusk: *he nuzzles back* ... I-I mean what I said... I-I'm n-not his s-slave anymore...

Sarah: *smiles a bit* I'm glad to hear that... Maybe now, he won't try to bother us anymore...

Dusk: ... Maybe... but who knows with him...

Sarah: Right... Do you think you can sleep?

Dusk: ... I guess I can... can you?

Sarah: *nods* I'll be fine...

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Blood Puppet: Why, I want Dusk to come back, of course. I miss you, Dusk.

Dusk: You... you do...?

Blood Puppet: Of course I do... but you can only come back on one condition...

Dusk: What's that? D:>

Blood Puppet: ... You need to kill Sarah.

Sarah: ....! D8> *stares in horror. she looks at Dusk, then back at Blood Puppet*

Blood Puppet: *hands Dusk his old knife* ... Here.

Dusk: *he turns his head and glares at Sarah, his grip tightening on the knife. He has to do what he has to do*

Sarah: *shakes her head, still staring in terror* N-No... *slowly steps back* Dusk, y-you can't...!

Dusk: *he look like he's about to attack her, when suddenly, he instead stabs Blood Puppet in the gut*

Blood Puppet: GHHK!! *he punches Dusk hard across the face*

Dusk: !! *he stumbles back and falls to the ground from the force of the punch, but shakily gets right back up* I-I'm not your slave anymore! D8<

Blood Puppet: Ghh... hhnngh... *he wheezes from the pain, stumbling to the window he came from. He manages to hop down and run out, back to his hideout, incredibly wounded*

Sarah: *sighs in relief, her terror draining away* O-Oh god... Thank you... D8>

meanwhile

Celine: *was waiting for Blood Puppet to return with Dusk--she knows something's wrong when he comes back alone, and even more so when she sees him clutching a wound* !!! Walter, what happened?? D8>

Dusk: *he wipes quickly-forming tears from his eyes* ... Y-you're welcome...

meanwhile

Blood Puppet: *is having a hard time speaking at the moment, but manages to choke out --* Th-that... b-bastard...! *he crashes against a wall, only to slide down it and hit the ground, losing consciousness from the massive amount of pain and blood loss he suffers from*

Sarah: *grabs him and hugs him tightly, also on the verge of tears*

meanwhile

Celine: D8>?! *calls out* ANNABELLE, BRING ME THE BANDAGES!

Dusk: *shaking, he then breaks down into sobs*

meanwhile

Blood Puppet: *the blood running out of his mouth leaks out of the single mouth-slit in his mask. He has completely blacked out. His thin blood pools out rapidly on the ground under him*

Sarah: *hugs him more tightly, rubbing his back, trying to hold in the tears for his sake* ...Th-That was a very brave thing you did...

meanwhile

Annabelle: *rushes over with the first aid kid, freezing when she sees her father injured* D8>!!?

Celine: *Takes the kit from her, and desperately tries to stop the blood flow* D8>

Dusk: *shaking and sobbing still* I-I-I shouldn't... I sh-shouldn't o-of...!

meanwhile

Blood Puppet: *passed out, bleeding far too much, mask hiding the expression of pure, twisted pain he is in. If he were awake, Blood Puppet would have had his infected instinct mode set off. Not that a common can do as much damage as a hunter*

Sarah: *quietly, gently* Shhhh... shhh, shhh... It's okay... We're safe, that's what matters...

meanwhile

Celine: *manages to stop the bleeding, and wraps the bandages around his wound--all she can do now is wait, and hope he wakes up* D:> ...

Annabelle: *watches* D8> ....

Dusk: *he just hugs Sarah and sobs, so very unlike Sam, capable of shooting someone in the foot to get information and without a second thought*

meanwhile

Blood Puppet: *passed out and not moving*

Sarah: *continues to try and comfort him* Shhh... come on, let's go back to bed... <:(

Dusk: *quietly, through tears* ... O-okay... *he stands up and stumbles back over, into the bedroom, and crawls into bed*

Sarah: *follows him, and also gets into bed, immediately hugging him* ...

Dusk: *he hugs her back rather tightly, scared and upset*

Sarah: ! Careful... *gently nuzzles him, combing a hand through his hair, trying to get him to relax*

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Dusk: *after he finishes cleaning what he can* ... To bed, then? Is... is that next?

Sarah: *nods* Mhmm. :) I need to shower first, though, you go ahead...

Dusk: Okay. :) *he goes to the bedroom, taking off his shirt, getting into some sweatpants, and crawling into the bed*

Sarah: *goes to take a shower. she comes out a while later, hair still slightly damp. she gets into bed* X)

Dusk: *immediately snuggles against her as soon as he can* <3

Sarah: *snuggles back, nuzzling him* <3

Dusk: *he kisses her, touching the side of her face, warm and happy*

Sarah: ! ... *gently, briefly kisses back*

Dusk: ... So I guess you don't mind babysitting me that much? <:P

Sarah: No, not at all... <:P

Dusk: So you admit that you're babysitting me, then. XP

*suddenly there is a thumping in the other room*

Dusk: *he quickly sits up, this noise starling him. He stares at the closed door to the rest of the apartment, his eyes narrowing* ...

Sarah: ... *goes to get out of bed*

Dusk: *he then also quickly gets up and walks out*

Blood Puppet: Hello again, Dusk.

Dusk: B-BLOOD PUPPET! D8

Sarah: D8!!! *backs away, stepping back* W-What do you want? D8>

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Dusk: ... I... uh... I can't... uhh... s-spaghetti?

Sarah: *smiles* Spaghetti it is. :) *starts pulling ingredients out*

Dusk: *watches her* ... Would you like some help?

Sarah: ! ... Sure, I'd really appreciate it. :) Could you grab a pot from that cabinet *points* and fill it with water?

Dusk: *does as he's told and then hands the pot to Sarah* Here you go. :)

Sarah: Thank you. ^^ *sets it to boil, then pulls a frying pan out of another cupboard* Do you think you could grab the ground beef from the counter and start forming it into meatballs?

Dusk: Yup. XP *he does so, enjoying being able to help Sarah*

Sarah: *is happy that Dusk is helping her--it feels like he's finally starting to think more independently now.. which was a good thing. a very very good thing. eventually, they finish cooking, and they sit down to eat*

Dusk: *he eats the spaghetti, feeling happy. This life he lives with Sarah is enjoyable. Perhaps just as good as serving Blood puppet*

Sarah: *also eats happily. things are really starting to look up...*

Dusk: *he finishes the meal somewhat quickly and takes care of his dish*

Sarah: *takes a little bit longer. eventually, she gets up and takes care of her dish as well*

Dusk: *he then begins cleaning the pot, happy to help* ^^

Sarah: *is glad to see him doing things like this--they were little things, but things nonetheless. she cleans off the frying pan, shooting him a content smile*

Dusk: *he smiles back at Sarah, feeling rather warm*

Sarah: *finds that she enjoys spending time with Dusk*

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Dusk: ... Do you still love me, Sarah? <:/

Sarah: ... *nods very slightly* ...

Dusk: ... Okay... *he leans over and nuzzles her* I was afraid you don't anymore...

Sarah: Hah... *nuzzles back a bit* I-It takes a lot to sway my opinion of someone...

Dusk: ... Maybe I should have known that by now... sorry... <:/

Sarah: *mumbles* s'fine... don't worry about it...

Dusk: ... Oh god, I'm probably being way too apologetic - I'm sorry! D:>

Sarah: *can't help but laugh a little bit at this* I-It's fine, really! ^^;

Dusk: No it's NOT! DX

Sarah: Shhhhh, yes it is. Just don't worry about it. <:P

Dusk: ... Okay... <:/ So, uh... so what now?

Sarah: *sighs* I don't know... want something to eat?

Dusk: ... okay. Sure. *he gets up off the couch and offers a hand to Sarah*

Sarah: *accepts the assistance* Thank you. :) *makes her way over to the kitchen* What do you want to eat?

Dusk: I never know, Sarah. Never.

Sarah: Mmh... pick something random, then.

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Dusk: ... Do you think it's that sort of thing that makes Blood Puppet do the things he does? Like... it's not HIM, either? Like, the real him?

Sarah: *doesn't like that comparison at ALL* ...I wouldn't know. NO ONE knows...

Dusk: ... Maybe he knows?

Sarah: *through her teeth* Not like I want to go ASK...

Dusk: *quietly, shying away from her* ... I'm sorry...

Sarah: *looks away from him, and takes a deep breath, trying to calm herself--but that only makes tears come out* ......

Dusk: D:> *he moves closer to her and pulls her into a one-armed hug, hoping that maybe this would help*

Sarah: *is a bit upset with him, but she tries not to lash out--no, we don't need him jumping out of windows again. instead, she lets out a quiet sob* ...

Dusk: ... Please don't be upset... I don't like when you're upset... D:>

Sarah: *nods slightly* I don't like being upset either... *looks over at him* ...Could w-we not talk about this again?

Dusk: *quietly* ... O-Okay... we won't... D:> *he tightens his hug*

Sarah: *leans against him, sniffling* ...You can ask about anything ELSE... if you want...

Dusk: ... I don't really think I have anything else to ask... <:(

Sarah: Alright... *wipes her eyes* ...

Dusk: *he helps her wipe her eyes with his index finger, then puts his hand on her cheek* <:(

Sarah: *leans her head into his hand, closing her eyes* ...

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Dusk: ... Does... does it hurt to think about it?

Sarah: ...Only when I remember how he died... I-I try not to think about that too much...

Dusk: ... I won't ask how he died, then... why do I feel... AFRAID of him...?

Sarah: ...He scared us one day... he ran out of medicine...

Dusk: ... Medicine... medicine for what? D:> *he realizes that whatever may have happened must have become a suppressed memory for him, as he never recalled it during the session with Dr. Ferman. "Scared us one day" is probably an understatement*

Sarah: ...There was a, um... an incident. He hurt a lot of people... he had to take anti-psychotics for a while...

Dusk: ... Hurt a lot of people...? What - what was so GOOD about your father?? D8>

Sarah: Everything but THAT! D:> That... th-that was all that was ever bad about him... b-but he never did it on purpose... he just... snapped under all the grief... ANYONE would have, if they had gone through the same thing...

Dusk: ... Sarah... what EXACTLY happened to him...?

Sarah: *clenches her hands into fists, though she keeps them on her lap. she doesn't enjoy remembering* ...It was during the second infection... y-you were probably too young to remember... M-Mom and I, w-we both caught it... he thought we were gone... h-he snapped...

Dusk: ... And then he hurt people?

Sarah: *only nods--she REALLY didn't want to remember this...*

Dusk: ... So why was he such a good father?

Sarah: ... He loved me and mom... he loved us more than ANYTHING... He tried so hard for us... even AFTER that whole disaster, everything he did was all for us... He was the most caring person I knew...

Dusk: ... Oh... That... that actually seems really nice... but unfitting for what he did before...

Sarah: *shakes her head* That wasn't him... th-that doesn't count...

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