[ Oh, to hell with this. It switches to video, showing a very inebriated Ethan, who is daring to take another drink from the nearly empty bottle he's holding. When he speaks he slurs his words, but it's easier to make out than his texting. He hasn't even bothered to dress himself, so the marks on his neck from Sembene choking him are visible. ]
You're.. a good friend. Not like me. Don't be.. like me, Dorian.
[Dorian is already a much, much worse friend than Ethan, so he's not the least bit worried about being like him. He keeps his expression neutral as he appraises Ethan's situation.]
[ He squints at the screen, trying to focus on him, before he sniffs and sits back, looking resigned. ]
Apartment. Mine.
[ His eyes dart from one side to the other, surveying the room that he had trashed not long after getting home from the party. He bites his bottom lip before looking away. ]
[ Perfect sense, right? After collecting himself as best he can: ]
A familiar face was waiting for me on the 2nd floor. The man I killed, the one I told you about. He tried to return the favor, didn't work out.
[ Ethan leans out of frame to grab something shortly before there's a loud thud, as his unsteady ass fall off of the couch and lands on the floor with a groan. What the hell? He opts to lay there, rolling over to stare at the ceiling, a foot kicking at the three empty bottles nearby. Thereafter, he'll respond back quietly. ]
[Dorian is never going to get it. Ethan is a werewolf. He's only doing what comes naturally to him, and only driving himself insane by trying not to. It's like what people do with sex. But he knows better than to put it plainly like that, or to mention it at all while he's in this state.
This might be too much drama. Too much totally unnecessary, self-inflicted pain to be expected to control. Is the company really worth it? He could just cut Ethan loose and hang with the vampires (one of whom he's been pretty shit towards).
But thinking about that makes Dorian think about Ethan calling him a good friend. It doesn't feel good to think of crushing him at his most vulnerable by proving otherwise. Dorian doesn't understand what the big deal is about killing an inferior species, but maybe he doesn't have to any more than he had to understand exactly why Lily's previous life was so unbearable. To Ethan, this is the same.
Dorian isn't a good friend, but what would a good friend do?
[ Maybe it would be different had it been his choice to become a werewolf, but it wasn't. The beast had been thrust upon him by someone he had once trusted, which had only served to fuel the fire of his bitterness. It's difficult to feel any love or admiration for a title that comes with countless bodies, innocent bodies - women, children. A part of him has accepted his destiny but another part still struggles from time to time.
When the feed cuts off, Ethan sits up and stares down at the blank screen for a while before throwing the device at the wall. His anger isn't directed at Dorian, it's at himself for being so careless. He still can't decide if what he saw was brought on by the City alone, or if someone dipped into his inner most thoughts to torment him. Whoever did it, the trick worked like a charm.
My friend, Ethan Chander.
It takes him a moment to struggle to his feet again but, once he does, he stumbles his way over to unlock the door before collapsing in a heap back on the floor again. Everything is spinning, even when he closes his eyes the room seems to be swirling beneath him. Ethan covers his face with his hands, sighing shakily, before feeling a familiar stinging sensation in his eyes. The shame of acting like this, the pain of seeing Sembene again..
[When Dorian arrives and sees Ethan on the floor, he gives a sigh. First things first. He finds a glass, fills it with water, and brings it to Ethan along with a small, empty trash can. Once he spots the bottle Ethan is drinking from, he gently tries to take it away to set it out of reach.]
[ He swears creatively before: ] I told you not to come over.
[ He gives up the bottle easily, most likely because he currently sees two Dorians and isn't particularly sure which one he should be focusing on. Ethan gives him a strained smile, accepting the water only to set it down defiantly on the table beside him before giving the trash can a frown. ]
I don't need that.
[ Will he need it later? Definitely. After running a clumsy hand through his hair, he straightens up and tries to get back to his feet. Oh, it definitely takes some effort but while he's unaccustomed to being this drunk, he's no stranger when it comes to dealing with the end result of a bender. He might be standing here in his apartment with Dorian, but his mind is still back on the second floor, going toe to toe with his deceased companion. His eyes dart left and right as he tries to make his jumbled thoughts into a coherent statement. ]
It was Sembene's face but not his actions, he should have just listened to me. No, maybe I should have listened to him. This.. wouldn't have happened. She doesn't even know he's dead. What the hell am I going to do? [ He wants to tell her things, to be more forthcoming than he had been in the past, but this is her second chance. Dracula and Lucifer have no place here, not right now. The nagging doubt eating away at him is this: if they show up, especially the former, and he didn't tell her -- she would be flying blind. ]
I have to tell her, Dorian. About what's to come, about what's hunting her. About Sembene. About what I am.
[He sets the trash can to the side, within Ethan's reach. That done, he begins to rub a hand across Ethan's back comfortingly. Of course he's at the stage of drunkenness where he's having brilliant ideas. Dorian covertly looks about for Ethan's phone. Best to keep it away from him.]
It can wait till morning. [When he'll be sober and can consider this decision carefully.] Tell me about Sembene. He was Sir Malcolm's manservant, wasn't he?
[Maybe talking about him will help Ethan get some of these feelings out. It worked when their positions were reversed, after all.]
[ Ethan jerks away from the touch but the momentum makes him stagger, so he turns and latches onto Dorian to support himself before defeatedly resting his forehead against the other man's shoulder with a sigh. Eventually he reaches up and grabs a handful of the back of his shirt, desperate to make sure all of this is real, that this isn't the city messing with him again. Having decided that Dorian isn't a figment of his imagination, he continues. ]
More than that. He stayed because he wanted to, they respected the hell out of each other. [ Everyone within the walls had a past, had some kind of darkness within them, but Sembene had been the best of them. A quiet man who protected everyone he cared about no matter the cost to himself, no matter how brutal the action may have seemed. Because he was the cause of his death, he never thought to question Malcolm about the significance of their relationship. They were both still grieving in their own way. ]
He was a man of few words but, when he spoke, you listened. There was a weight to his words, word I should have listened to. He told me not to go that night, he knew it was going to be a full moon, but I couldn't let her go alone. [ He finally lets go of his shirt, arms returning to hang limply at his sides. ] When Sembene looked at you he saw you for who you are, not what you are.
He.. kept my secret, even knowing I could kill someone.
[Oh boy. Dorian is going to have to really watch this guy's back. Forever. And sentry duty is so boring. But if Ethan couldn't even stay home on a full moon when Vanessa was in trouble, this particular guardianship will probably get exciting periodically.
Still, he's starting to understand why Ethan is so fearful of his own nature. Sembene was a true confidant, the like of which Dorian has only dreamed of having until now. And he has killed him, against his own will.
Being under the sway of that ghost on the second floor of the dorm was...interesting, but Dorian wouldn't do it again. As much as he'd looked down on Louis, he hadn't wanted to harm him. But the worst thing about it was being influenced by something else. Ethan is fully controlled by something else. Horrible.]
There are few in the world like him, and they are all precious. [The sentiment is sincere.] I am sorry for your loss.
I was going to put a bullet in my head that night. To protect him, to protect them.
[ Ethan states this as casually as possible, pulling away from Dorian to grab for the couch and take a seat. His gaze lingers on the bottle he took from him but, rather than grab for it, he rests his elbows on his knees and puts his head in his hands before continuing to tell his tale. ]
He stopped me, took my guns away so I couldn't try it again. Said my life held more value than his.
[ How could one life be more precious than another? Even now he doesn't understand Sembene's sacrifice, or maybe that's just the denial creeping in. A death that was completely avoidable and all he could clearly remember was begging him to kill him first, knowing how much of a blow it would be to Malcolm and Vanessa to lose him. ]
He didn't think so. [And Dorian agrees with Sembene. Ethan is special. Though come to think of it, humans usually aren't so willing to admit something like that. They like to think they're at the top. If anything, wouldn't Sembene stress Ethan's human origin over his elevated state?
But he's not sure he actually wants to question Ethan about this while he's too drunk to know what he's saying. It didn't end up feeling so great to try to pry information out of a semi-possessed Vanessa, even if it wasn't really her he was trying to gain information about.
[ Ethan lets out a shaky sigh, lifting his head in an attempt to look up at Dorian. It would be a lot easier if he wasn't seeing two of him right now but, somehow, he manages. ]
I don't know what I was thinking anymore, I just knew I couldn't let Vanessa go alone. [ He told her they couldn't go that night, even tried to make a convincing argument, but she didn't listen. But he doesn't blame her, because he would have done the exact same thing if the roles were reversed. ]
But the option was there. For them? I would have done it.
Maybe it should be. [ No, he doesn't mean that in the slightest. ] I had a lot of choices, I just made the wrong one. Nothing I can say or do will bring him back.
[ Did Sembene know what his death would do to him? To the others? At the time, he showed no fear and only seemed to care about him surviving. A small part of him understands and that's the whole reason he's spiraled like this. ]
I don't.. [ He even gives him one of those are you serious looks before leaning over to retrieve the glass, taking a small sip. ] Satisfied?
[ He pauses, turning so he can stretch out across the couch, as the physical and mental exhaustion catches up to him. Stretching an arm up to cover his face, he lets out another sigh. ]
You don't have to stick around. [ Ethan reaches out with his other hand and grabs the sleeve of Dorian's shirt, like a child. ] Thank you.
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[ Short, sweet, to the point. If he types slow enough, you can almost make out what he's trying to say! ]
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re q good ftkdgd
[ Oh, to hell with this. It switches to video, showing a very inebriated Ethan, who is daring to take another drink from the nearly empty bottle he's holding. When he speaks he slurs his words, but it's easier to make out than his texting. He hasn't even bothered to dress himself, so the marks on his neck from Sembene choking him are visible. ]
You're.. a good friend. Not like me. Don't be.. like me, Dorian.
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Where are you?
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Apartment. Mine.
[ His eyes dart from one side to the other, surveying the room that he had trashed not long after getting home from the party. He bites his bottom lip before looking away. ]
Dorian. Don't come over.
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Are any of us safe here? I'm safe enough.
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[ Perfect sense, right? After collecting himself as best he can: ]
A familiar face was waiting for me on the 2nd floor. The man I killed, the one I told you about. He tried to return the favor, didn't work out.
[ Ethan leans out of frame to grab something shortly before there's a loud thud, as his unsteady ass fall off of the couch and lands on the floor with a groan. What the hell? He opts to lay there, rolling over to stare at the ceiling, a foot kicking at the three empty bottles nearby. Thereafter, he'll respond back quietly. ]
.. I'm safe.
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This might be too much drama. Too much totally unnecessary, self-inflicted pain to be expected to control. Is the company really worth it? He could just cut Ethan loose and hang with the vampires (one of whom he's been pretty shit towards).
But thinking about that makes Dorian think about Ethan calling him a good friend. It doesn't feel good to think of crushing him at his most vulnerable by proving otherwise. Dorian doesn't understand what the big deal is about killing an inferior species, but maybe he doesn't have to any more than he had to understand exactly why Lily's previous life was so unbearable. To Ethan, this is the same.
Dorian isn't a good friend, but what would a good friend do?
After this long pause, he speaks quietly.]
I'm coming over.
[The video feed ends.]
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When the feed cuts off, Ethan sits up and stares down at the blank screen for a while before throwing the device at the wall. His anger isn't directed at Dorian, it's at himself for being so careless. He still can't decide if what he saw was brought on by the City alone, or if someone dipped into his inner most thoughts to torment him. Whoever did it, the trick worked like a charm.
My friend, Ethan Chander.
It takes him a moment to struggle to his feet again but, once he does, he stumbles his way over to unlock the door before collapsing in a heap back on the floor again. Everything is spinning, even when he closes his eyes the room seems to be swirling beneath him. Ethan covers his face with his hands, sighing shakily, before feeling a familiar stinging sensation in his eyes. The shame of acting like this, the pain of seeing Sembene again..
It's too damn much. ]
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[ He gives up the bottle easily, most likely because he currently sees two Dorians and isn't particularly sure which one he should be focusing on. Ethan gives him a strained smile, accepting the water only to set it down defiantly on the table beside him before giving the trash can a frown. ]
I don't need that.
[ Will he need it later? Definitely. After running a clumsy hand through his hair, he straightens up and tries to get back to his feet. Oh, it definitely takes some effort but while he's unaccustomed to being this drunk, he's no stranger when it comes to dealing with the end result of a bender. He might be standing here in his apartment with Dorian, but his mind is still back on the second floor, going toe to toe with his deceased companion. His eyes dart left and right as he tries to make his jumbled thoughts into a coherent statement. ]
It was Sembene's face but not his actions, he should have just listened to me. No, maybe I should have listened to him. This.. wouldn't have happened. She doesn't even know he's dead. What the hell am I going to do? [ He wants to tell her things, to be more forthcoming than he had been in the past, but this is her second chance. Dracula and Lucifer have no place here, not right now. The nagging doubt eating away at him is this: if they show up, especially the former, and he didn't tell her -- she would be flying blind. ]
I have to tell her, Dorian. About what's to come, about what's hunting her. About Sembene. About what I am.
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It can wait till morning. [When he'll be sober and can consider this decision carefully.] Tell me about Sembene. He was Sir Malcolm's manservant, wasn't he?
[Maybe talking about him will help Ethan get some of these feelings out. It worked when their positions were reversed, after all.]
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More than that. He stayed because he wanted to, they respected the hell out of each other. [ Everyone within the walls had a past, had some kind of darkness within them, but Sembene had been the best of them. A quiet man who protected everyone he cared about no matter the cost to himself, no matter how brutal the action may have seemed. Because he was the cause of his death, he never thought to question Malcolm about the significance of their relationship. They were both still grieving in their own way. ]
He was a man of few words but, when he spoke, you listened. There was a weight to his words, word I should have listened to. He told me not to go that night, he knew it was going to be a full moon, but I couldn't let her go alone. [ He finally lets go of his shirt, arms returning to hang limply at his sides. ] When Sembene looked at you he saw you for who you are, not what you are.
He.. kept my secret, even knowing I could kill someone.
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Still, he's starting to understand why Ethan is so fearful of his own nature. Sembene was a true confidant, the like of which Dorian has only dreamed of having until now. And he has killed him, against his own will.
Being under the sway of that ghost on the second floor of the dorm was...interesting, but Dorian wouldn't do it again. As much as he'd looked down on Louis, he hadn't wanted to harm him. But the worst thing about it was being influenced by something else. Ethan is fully controlled by something else. Horrible.]
There are few in the world like him, and they are all precious. [The sentiment is sincere.] I am sorry for your loss.
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[ Ethan states this as casually as possible, pulling away from Dorian to grab for the couch and take a seat. His gaze lingers on the bottle he took from him but, rather than grab for it, he rests his elbows on his knees and puts his head in his hands before continuing to tell his tale. ]
He stopped me, took my guns away so I couldn't try it again. Said my life held more value than his.
[ How could one life be more precious than another? Even now he doesn't understand Sembene's sacrifice, or maybe that's just the denial creeping in. A death that was completely avoidable and all he could clearly remember was begging him to kill him first, knowing how much of a blow it would be to Malcolm and Vanessa to lose him. ]
The wrong person died that night, Dorian.
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But he's not sure he actually wants to question Ethan about this while he's too drunk to know what he's saying. It didn't end up feeling so great to try to pry information out of a semi-possessed Vanessa, even if it wasn't really her he was trying to gain information about.
Moreover, there's something else that's disturbing him.]
Did you join them thinking you would either prevail before you could transform, or shoot yourself?
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[ Ethan lets out a shaky sigh, lifting his head in an attempt to look up at Dorian. It would be a lot easier if he wasn't seeing two of him right now but, somehow, he manages. ]
I don't know what I was thinking anymore, I just knew I couldn't let Vanessa go alone. [ He told her they couldn't go that night, even tried to make a convincing argument, but she didn't listen. But he doesn't blame her, because he would have done the exact same thing if the roles were reversed. ]
But the option was there. For them? I would have done it.
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[Dorian would have stayed behind without a care, but Dorian is also a bad person, and he knows it.]
Drink your water.
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[ Did Sembene know what his death would do to him? To the others? At the time, he showed no fear and only seemed to care about him surviving. A small part of him understands and that's the whole reason he's spiraled like this. ]
I don't.. [ He even gives him one of those are you serious looks before leaning over to retrieve the glass, taking a small sip. ] Satisfied?
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[ He pauses, turning so he can stretch out across the couch, as the physical and mental exhaustion catches up to him. Stretching an arm up to cover his face, he lets out another sigh. ]
You don't have to stick around. [ Ethan reaches out with his other hand and grabs the sleeve of Dorian's shirt, like a child. ] Thank you.
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Drink.
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