Isabel Marias (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
naturalcure) wrote2009-08-30 07:31 am
naturalcure) wrote2009-08-30 07:31 am
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IC Date: 08/28/2009
Isabel shut her laptop and put if off to the side with one hand and pulled up her covers with the other hand. She was currently staying in Sakana for the weekend after having come there to meet with her father earlier. Her day had been a stressful one, to say the least, but that was more or less common for her at this point. Confident in the fact that, if nothing else, her duel with her father had turned out about the best it could, she was willing to count it as an ultimately positive day and get some sleep. Getting comfortable under the covers, she shut her eyes.
A moment later, the door opened, causing Isabel to open her eyes again and shoot up, grabbing for her glasses on the nightstand and throwing them on. "Who's there?!" She barked angrily.
"It's me." Desdemona said, entering and shutting the door. Without turning on the lights, she walked over to Isabel's bed, grabbing a chair and sitting down next to it.
"D....Desde?" Isabel asked, flicking on a lamp, seeing the aforementioned sitting next to her.
"Mmn." Desdemona said. Her usually warming smile was absent. She looked...apprehensive about something. "...it's been a while since we've talked." She said.
"..." Isabel looked away. "Yeah, well...we've both been busy, an-"
"You mean, you've been avoiding me." She said. She grabbd Isabel's bag, which was currently on the floor, and pulled out her PDA. She flicked it on and checked Isabel's messages. There were several unanswered messages from Desdemona on it. Desdemona frowned at Isabel as she showed her the messages, causing Isabel to avert her gaze. When she saw this, Desdemona's gaze softened a little and she sighed. "...I'm not angry, Isabel, I'm just confused." She said. "I need you to help me understand what's going on."
"..." Isabel said nothing, continuing to avert her gaze from Desdemona.
"...Isabel," She said, eventually reaching her hand out and taking her Signer's in it. "Do you still trust me?"
Silence hung between the two for several moments, before Isabel's hand squeezed Desdemona's. "....yeah. I do." She said, her voice barely above a whisper.
A smile slowly came to Desdemona's face. She leaned back a bit in her chair, the back of it brushing against the wall. "...from how you've been speaking about Noriko...the nightmares have been getting worse." She said. It was barely a question, as she knew the answer.
"...yeah." Isabel said. "Even when I do all that stuff you told me, like reading everything twice...it's all so vivid..." She muttered. "Couple weeks ago, I woke up and started having a panic attack before I realized it was the floorboards creaking, and not me."
Desdemona let out a frustrated sigh. "Isabel...I know you don't like talking about it, but I've told you, when things like that happen, you have to tell me. Or, if not me, at least somebody. Tell Niyo-san, or your father, or even Juudai-kun if you have to! Just...you have to be able to talk if you're going to get past your nightmares!"
"I can't tell Juudai!" She snapped. "On top of everything else?! I don't want him to think I'm crazy!"
"Isabel...you're losing the ability to distinguish between your nightmares and reality. You're so afraid of what you see when you're asleep, you're taking it out on others and projecting your fears on to them."
Isabel took in a ragged breath. "I got that much..." She growled under her breath.
"...why haven't you been coming to me with this, Isabel?" Desdemona asked. "Are you...afraid that I'll do something to you myself again?" She asked. "I promise, that won't happen."
Isabel looked at Desdemona for a moment. "It...isn't that." She said in a tone that wasn't entirely convincing. "It's..." She was silent and let out a low groan. "...Noriko isn't the only think that's been in my head." She said. "...y'know that Kurochi Shiroko that came back?"
"..." Desdemona sniffer derisively. "I'm aware of her." She said. "I assume she hasn't been staying in her own corner like I'd hoped she would." It took all of a couple seconds for her to put the pieces together. "...she. Has been making that offer to you again." She said, realization dawning on her face.
"Yeah." Was all Isabel had to say. The momentary change in Desdemona's demeanor and her clenching her fists as she put them on her legs immediately belied her emotions.
"....would you like me to stay away from her in the future?" Desdemona asked slowly and deliberately.
"...yeah." Isabel said after a couple seconds of hesitation. "It's not worth it to bother with her or that stupid canary of hers. I realized pretty quickly she was trying to bait me out..." She shook her head. "I don't wanna end up in a worse situation out of falling for one of their stupid traps."
"...mmn." Desdemona nodded. "You're right. Better to leave them to their own devices than to sink to their level." Isabel murmured in agreement and both of them were silent for several moments.
After a bit, Isabel spoke up. "Can you talk to Noriko?" She asked. "I...don't want her to think I hate her or something. I just..." She sighed. "I can't talk to her right now."
Desdemona nodded. "I will." She was silent for a second. "...what are you going to do regarding Shiroko?"
"...don't trust her." Isabel muttered under her breath. "She's trying to trick me. She's gonna force me to join that thing with that Penalty Game of hers, and then she's gonna blackmail me or trick me somehow..." She growled quickly, as if she'd recited this in her head dozens of times.
"...penalty game?" Desdemona asked, eyes widening.
"I challenged her to a duel before. She started a Dark Game, and put a penalty game on me to make me join SIDES. She said she wanted to lose to me so I would make her into someone else." Isabel let out a loud derisive snort and resumed talking quickly. "I fell for it too. She probably thinks she can switch herself with me or something. Like I'll fucking let that happen." She growled, now more talking to herself than to Desdemona. It took Desdemona placing a hand on her shoulder to make her remember she was there.
"Isabel." She said, shaking her just a bit as Isabel stared blankly at her. "...that is not what she's trying to do." She said. "She's just..."
"You've seen the way she talks!" Isabel growled. "She's always talking about how she wishes she was anybody else! She just wants to turn into someone else and then leave me all screwed up like she is so I'll listen to her!"
It didn't take much for Desdemona to see the futility in continuing trying to convince her, so she didn't. "...regardless, Isabel. You know I or your father or Niyo-san will not allow that to happen, right?"
Isabel was silent again, before she looked away and nodded quickly. "...yeah. I know."
Desdemona smiled a bit, and patted her shoulder. "Good." She then glanced at a nearby clock. "Mmn...it's late." She stood up. "We can talk more in the morning, alright?"
"...yeah. Alright." Isabel said, nodding again.
"I'd also like to speak to your father in the near future." Desdemona said as she stood up. "If you could inform him?"
"Yeah, I'll tell him." Isabel said.
"Also, I took the liberty of giving you detention for the entirety of the month and the next after classes restart. As Aki is going to be working for the Arcadia Movement now, I think you should do the work I had her do for a bit." Desdemona said.
Isabel looked like she had something to say about that, but kept it to herself. "...I got it." She muttered, before pausing. "...thanks...Desde." She added hesitantly.
Desdemona was silent for a second, before she reached down and wrapped her arms around Isabel, squeezing her tightly. It took a second, but Isabel's arms came up and returned the gesture.
"Partners, right?" Desdemona asked.
"...yeah." Isabel responded.
After a moment, Desdemona let go and stepped back. "I'll call in the morning." She said and took her leave, closing the door behind her.
For another minute or two after she left, Isabel stayed sitting up in her bed. After that, she removed her glasses and set them on the nightstand, and turned off the lamp. She then laid her head down on her pillow and slowly drifted asleep. That night, she slept a little easier.
Isabel shut her laptop and put if off to the side with one hand and pulled up her covers with the other hand. She was currently staying in Sakana for the weekend after having come there to meet with her father earlier. Her day had been a stressful one, to say the least, but that was more or less common for her at this point. Confident in the fact that, if nothing else, her duel with her father had turned out about the best it could, she was willing to count it as an ultimately positive day and get some sleep. Getting comfortable under the covers, she shut her eyes.
A moment later, the door opened, causing Isabel to open her eyes again and shoot up, grabbing for her glasses on the nightstand and throwing them on. "Who's there?!" She barked angrily.
"It's me." Desdemona said, entering and shutting the door. Without turning on the lights, she walked over to Isabel's bed, grabbing a chair and sitting down next to it.
"D....Desde?" Isabel asked, flicking on a lamp, seeing the aforementioned sitting next to her.
"Mmn." Desdemona said. Her usually warming smile was absent. She looked...apprehensive about something. "...it's been a while since we've talked." She said.
"..." Isabel looked away. "Yeah, well...we've both been busy, an-"
"You mean, you've been avoiding me." She said. She grabbd Isabel's bag, which was currently on the floor, and pulled out her PDA. She flicked it on and checked Isabel's messages. There were several unanswered messages from Desdemona on it. Desdemona frowned at Isabel as she showed her the messages, causing Isabel to avert her gaze. When she saw this, Desdemona's gaze softened a little and she sighed. "...I'm not angry, Isabel, I'm just confused." She said. "I need you to help me understand what's going on."
"..." Isabel said nothing, continuing to avert her gaze from Desdemona.
"...Isabel," She said, eventually reaching her hand out and taking her Signer's in it. "Do you still trust me?"
Silence hung between the two for several moments, before Isabel's hand squeezed Desdemona's. "....yeah. I do." She said, her voice barely above a whisper.
A smile slowly came to Desdemona's face. She leaned back a bit in her chair, the back of it brushing against the wall. "...from how you've been speaking about Noriko...the nightmares have been getting worse." She said. It was barely a question, as she knew the answer.
"...yeah." Isabel said. "Even when I do all that stuff you told me, like reading everything twice...it's all so vivid..." She muttered. "Couple weeks ago, I woke up and started having a panic attack before I realized it was the floorboards creaking, and not me."
Desdemona let out a frustrated sigh. "Isabel...I know you don't like talking about it, but I've told you, when things like that happen, you have to tell me. Or, if not me, at least somebody. Tell Niyo-san, or your father, or even Juudai-kun if you have to! Just...you have to be able to talk if you're going to get past your nightmares!"
"I can't tell Juudai!" She snapped. "On top of everything else?! I don't want him to think I'm crazy!"
"Isabel...you're losing the ability to distinguish between your nightmares and reality. You're so afraid of what you see when you're asleep, you're taking it out on others and projecting your fears on to them."
Isabel took in a ragged breath. "I got that much..." She growled under her breath.
"...why haven't you been coming to me with this, Isabel?" Desdemona asked. "Are you...afraid that I'll do something to you myself again?" She asked. "I promise, that won't happen."
Isabel looked at Desdemona for a moment. "It...isn't that." She said in a tone that wasn't entirely convincing. "It's..." She was silent and let out a low groan. "...Noriko isn't the only think that's been in my head." She said. "...y'know that Kurochi Shiroko that came back?"
"..." Desdemona sniffer derisively. "I'm aware of her." She said. "I assume she hasn't been staying in her own corner like I'd hoped she would." It took all of a couple seconds for her to put the pieces together. "...she. Has been making that offer to you again." She said, realization dawning on her face.
"Yeah." Was all Isabel had to say. The momentary change in Desdemona's demeanor and her clenching her fists as she put them on her legs immediately belied her emotions.
"....would you like me to stay away from her in the future?" Desdemona asked slowly and deliberately.
"...yeah." Isabel said after a couple seconds of hesitation. "It's not worth it to bother with her or that stupid canary of hers. I realized pretty quickly she was trying to bait me out..." She shook her head. "I don't wanna end up in a worse situation out of falling for one of their stupid traps."
"...mmn." Desdemona nodded. "You're right. Better to leave them to their own devices than to sink to their level." Isabel murmured in agreement and both of them were silent for several moments.
After a bit, Isabel spoke up. "Can you talk to Noriko?" She asked. "I...don't want her to think I hate her or something. I just..." She sighed. "I can't talk to her right now."
Desdemona nodded. "I will." She was silent for a second. "...what are you going to do regarding Shiroko?"
"...don't trust her." Isabel muttered under her breath. "She's trying to trick me. She's gonna force me to join that thing with that Penalty Game of hers, and then she's gonna blackmail me or trick me somehow..." She growled quickly, as if she'd recited this in her head dozens of times.
"...penalty game?" Desdemona asked, eyes widening.
"I challenged her to a duel before. She started a Dark Game, and put a penalty game on me to make me join SIDES. She said she wanted to lose to me so I would make her into someone else." Isabel let out a loud derisive snort and resumed talking quickly. "I fell for it too. She probably thinks she can switch herself with me or something. Like I'll fucking let that happen." She growled, now more talking to herself than to Desdemona. It took Desdemona placing a hand on her shoulder to make her remember she was there.
"Isabel." She said, shaking her just a bit as Isabel stared blankly at her. "...that is not what she's trying to do." She said. "She's just..."
"You've seen the way she talks!" Isabel growled. "She's always talking about how she wishes she was anybody else! She just wants to turn into someone else and then leave me all screwed up like she is so I'll listen to her!"
It didn't take much for Desdemona to see the futility in continuing trying to convince her, so she didn't. "...regardless, Isabel. You know I or your father or Niyo-san will not allow that to happen, right?"
Isabel was silent again, before she looked away and nodded quickly. "...yeah. I know."
Desdemona smiled a bit, and patted her shoulder. "Good." She then glanced at a nearby clock. "Mmn...it's late." She stood up. "We can talk more in the morning, alright?"
"...yeah. Alright." Isabel said, nodding again.
"I'd also like to speak to your father in the near future." Desdemona said as she stood up. "If you could inform him?"
"Yeah, I'll tell him." Isabel said.
"Also, I took the liberty of giving you detention for the entirety of the month and the next after classes restart. As Aki is going to be working for the Arcadia Movement now, I think you should do the work I had her do for a bit." Desdemona said.
Isabel looked like she had something to say about that, but kept it to herself. "...I got it." She muttered, before pausing. "...thanks...Desde." She added hesitantly.
Desdemona was silent for a second, before she reached down and wrapped her arms around Isabel, squeezing her tightly. It took a second, but Isabel's arms came up and returned the gesture.
"Partners, right?" Desdemona asked.
"...yeah." Isabel responded.
After a moment, Desdemona let go and stepped back. "I'll call in the morning." She said and took her leave, closing the door behind her.
For another minute or two after she left, Isabel stayed sitting up in her bed. After that, she removed her glasses and set them on the nightstand, and turned off the lamp. She then laid her head down on her pillow and slowly drifted asleep. That night, she slept a little easier.