maskormenacelogs | So once it would have been,--'tis so no more; / I have submitted to a new control:

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So once it would have been,--'tis so no more; / I have submitted to a new control:

WHO: Sabriel and Toby. Later, Kanaya and Toby.
WHERE: Somewhere in Heropa.
WHEN: Sometime when they're available after the swear-in and/or hallucinations.
WHAT: Sabriel thinks it's time to neuter a vampire. Kanaya wants to talk about NPC-Natalie
WARNINGS: Charter magic to bind a vampire into submission. Also, vampires talking about vampires? Will update as necessary.

Having soothed things over with Dorian, Tobias hasn't had any need or desire to feed on any natives. He's been especially careful since siring Natalie and meeting Demona, keeping Natalie hidden at Dorian's place as not to alarm his own housemates. If he could take care of her—properly—then maybe he could prove himself to Kanaya. At least, that's what he'd thought.

But then the swear-in happened, and while Tobias had arrived late, it wasn't late enough to miss out on the presentation of slander and lies. And what they'd said about Kanaya raising a vampire army? He knew that traced back to him, and wanted to talk to Kanaya about it, but he doesn't know how to broach something like that. Besides, he's been worried about Kanaya perhaps beating him up again despite all efforts to fix things.

Not to say the whole thing had slipped his mind, but Tobias has been sufficiently distracted as of late. So for him, it's just another evening stroll through Heropa. He figures he'll make his way out to Maurtia Falls to retrieve Natalie, maybe have her feed on Drew instead of Dorian or Abduxel. Especially Dorian, but that's something personal.

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"Tobias Matthews." It's kind of impressive how far Sabriel's Death sense can reach- even in a city full of teeming life, it's easy to track down one Dead creature if you have a name. Sabriel's wearing her bandolier over her street clothes.

Sabriel's not in a mood to chat- instead, she gestures, flinging a spell of immobility at Tobias without an explanation.

Tobias turns when he hears an unfamiliar voice say his name. He finds himself faced with an unknown woman when, suddenly, he can't move. Panic quickly sweeps over him, but no matter how much he tries, how much he wills himself to run, he simply can't. He swallows nervously as his gaze goes to the woman's face.

"Wh—who? Who are you?"

[Sabriel isn't actually in the habit of talking to the Dead. Beyond that, Which a surprising amount of delicacy, Sabriel draws Saraneth with one hand- and begins tracing the first marks of her spell with the other.

Then she flings the marks towards him as she sounds the bell. It's deep, and carries her will with it- something deep and impassive and terrifying in its strength. The sound wraps around him, mingling with the symbols, and Sabriel speaks- she's not singing, exactly, but the pitch of of her voice mingles with the sound of the bells, rising and falling in harmony with it.][The words are more than words- there are more marks slipping out of Sabriel's mouth as she speaks, wrapping around Toby. To the living, the Charter is generally something comforting. To the Dead, it's something utterly alien.]

[Why isn't she answering? he wonders, feelings of panic and alarm building inside him.]

Please, please... answer me... Please answer me!

[Still, she ignore his pleas, saying strange words that could be music but are not a song. And then there are marks (runes perhaps?) coming from her mouth, surrounding him. The feeling is like nothing he's ever known, which only seems more and more frightening as it continues.]

Wait. Please, wait, what is this? Who are you, what are you doing?

And you will not feed upon any imPort without their clear and informed consent.

[The master mark that seals the spell is blindingly bright- and the marks wrap tightly around him, like a net suddenly drawn tight, sinking into his flesh. The feeling is unpleasant, but not particularly painful. Still, while the spell is done, Sabriel hasn't let go of the bells- Saraneth is still ringing.]

You will answer my questions. Have you made any more of your kind since the July swear-in?

You don't have to do thi—

[Tobias cries out a little, not because it's painful but because it's strange and sudden and far from comfortable. As he squeezes his eyes shut, he still tries to move to no avail. He could feel the spell's effects in his body, programming the rules and restrictions as placed by this mysterious woman.

Once it's done, one of the bells is still ringing, and Tobias still isn't capable of moving. No, her will strangles and overpowers his own, and so he is compelled to answer.]

No, I... haven't sired any since then.

[In fact, the last he'd sired was sometime before July's swear-in ceremony.]

Kanaya never has trouble finding anyone, not if she met them, and especially if she takes enough note too to remember them. Tobias, given the circumstances of their first meeting, is exactly he sort of person whose thread she took pains to become familiar with. It makes tracking him easy.

She waits until he's left the apartment, it's easier if he's isolated. That, of course, demands the cover of night, and she doesn't mind working in those conditions. It makes it easier to go unseen, for someone already rather skilled at going unseen. Suddenly appearing behind him and matching his pace is a simple matter of course. He'll likely smell her before he hears her, her blood is bound to smell odd.

"There's an alley ahead to your left. We need to talk, you and I."

Whatever species Kanaya is in addition to being a vampire, Tobias doesn't know. But he certainly does recognize that scent; how could he not, after their first meeting? Still, he waits for her to speak before stopping in his tracks. For a moment, he considers turning around to look her in the face. Well, there's plenty of time for that later, so instead he quietly nods and resigns himself to the alley on his left.

Once he's gone far enough into the alleyway that they won't be seen or heard unless someone truly makes an effort, he turns to face her and notices the greenness of her eyes for the first time. It's a curiously strong color, he thinks.

"About the swear-in, right? Did you send that lady with the bells?"

The confrontation was hardly an enjoyable experience, after all, and he wants to know if Kanaya had a hand in that.

It's a very strong color, even standing out despite how much her wardrobe tries to downplay it, with an overwhelming amount of black. She's goth in a way that isn't indulgent enough that she'd look out of place at a funeral, but her mood and disposition would definitely give the impression that she wasn't especially fond of the dearly departed. In this case, the funeral is Tobias', only a couple centuries late.

"I told her who you are, what you'd done. If that qualifies as sending her, than I suppose that is a thing I did." Even if she doesn't trust Sabriel any more than she does Tobias, she could still use her to handle the problem he creates. "You've proven that you're incapable of controlling yourself, so the onl option is to have someone else do it for you."

She cocks her hip to one side, resting a hand on it. "You made another one, didn't you?"

He swallows at her accusation but answers with slightly more confidence than he might otherwise muster in Kanaya's presence, "Yes, I did. One thing led to another, but all those things are all just. Excuses. But I've been taking care of her, trying to take a page out of your book since I was responsible for it. For ruining another life."

With that out of the way, he wonders what more there is to say here. He doesn't exactly look happy about it, but that might easily be pegged on the fact they're having this confrontation at all. But this time... this time, he's coupling action with remorse, so he can't help hoping and feeling that maybe things won't be so bad between them anymore.

Then he quickly dismisses that last thought because wishful thinking won't actually help his situation. At least he has his breathing under control, and is fairly composed; he knows he can't just cower before her and expect forgiveness or understanding. He's also rather sick of how his pleas for mercy only ever seem to fall on deaf ears nowadays.

"So, fine. You were right—I lost control of things. And now, I'm on a leash. There won't be a fifth or any thereafter, there won't be any more than the ones you know now. What else do you want; what are you looking for?"

Mercy has never been a quality Kanaya's practiced with any regularity, but she saves it strictly for victims, never perpetrators. Letting him walk away in one piece is the extent of her mercy, but letting him go indefinitely, that would be irresponsible, and that's a quality she more actively avoids.

With him bound by Sabriel now, for as long as she remains on this world at least, her responsibility only leaves one loose end untied.

"What do you think I want? I want her! Do you honestly think I could in good conscience leave her to the care of you and your reprehensible boyfriend?" And if Tobias had any question of how she learned of it, well that's rather a hint.

"She deserves proper care, and the fellowship of her own. That doesn't mean being forced to endure the coward who did this to her and the depravity of his typical company!"

Tobias grits his teeth as Kanaya speaks. Not because he argues her judgment of character; rumours have always surrounded Dorian, and there are more bad ones than good. Things have been challenging, but Tobias thinks he's taken decent care of Natalie and deserves some credit for his effort. He'd just wanted to prove he'd do good by at least one of his victims, to prove to Kanaya that he could take responsibility for his actions, and to prove to himself that he was nothing like Ivar.

Once again, however, Kanaya won't have any of it and is completely unmoved and indifferent. And so, Tobias starts asking himself if it's really worth seeking her approval. Then, there's the fact that Natalie has been staying at Dorian's for weeks, for nearly a month. Dorian hasn't complained about it any, but Tobias knows they've been imposing. As much as he wants to keep trying, maybe... maybe Kanaya has a point.

"...All right." He sounds reluctant and resigned but fairly composed considering his frustration. "Her name's Natalie, by the way. I'm not going to argue with you—maybe you know better than someone who's never done this before. At least let me talk to her, give her the chance to collect her things and prepare for yet another move."

"She's been living with you?" The question is pleasantly surprised, but appalled. It tells Kanaya just how much he's upended Natalie's life, that he isn't teaching her how to survive on her own, only to be dependent on him. Getting her away from him simply can't wait.

Of course, it also tell her that she'll have to arrange new living arrangements for the woman, possibly with Amanda until she can determine a better permanent solution. This is going to be a long night.

"Only if I go with you. I want this done now."

"Sure, just—" His voice falters somewhat as he takes out his device and slowly goes through the screens to call someone. "See, I have other housemates, so she hasn't been living with me."

Then, he brings the phone to his ear and waits as it rings.

She folds her arms as she waits, generally trying to communicate as passive-aggressively as possible that she is not feeling patient about this. Foot tapping, huffing, sighing, occasional eye-rolling, and endless glaring. But the moment she hears him say "Miss Maryam" she just has to interject.

"That should beMs., if you really don't mind! Is there anything we can do to expedite this whole process?"

"All right—I'm sorry, Miz Maryam," Tobias says in a quiet aside, trying not to hiss at her in annoyance. It's a difficult enough ordeal that the two are hardly on good terms with one another.

Naturally, he feels completely awful after Dorian's outburst and winds up apologizing. Where did everything go so wrong, and how?

And, great, now Dorian's explaining himself as if he's the one to blame for this fiasco. Tobias swallows; it's barely audible. Quickly, he tries to wrap things up before finally ending the call with a small, quiet, and tired chuckle, followed by, "Of course, I'll stay afterward. See you soon, Dorian."

As he continues to talk, she impatiently scans the alley, not for anything in particular, but just for something to do. There's no one around to eavesdrop on them, she knows that already, she can read it in Space, but having someone to at least idly follow would at least pass the time.

She lets out a sigh of relief when he disconnects the calls. "Finally. I imagine we'll be going wherever he is, then?" That might've been a better use of her time, when she was inventorying her threads. Dorian's she can recognize, she's encountered him enough as Faust that she made sure she'd know it if she came across it again. The distance makes it harder to pick out from here, he doesn't seem to be anywhere in Heropa. Somewhere farther north, nearer to her own residence in Maurtia Falls.

"Yeah—his apartment in Maurtia Falls. Natalie's been staying in the guest room," he answers, but Kanaya's probably figured as much. "She's fed off other immortals—with their clear and informed consent, of course."

And she does that without the sort of charter magic leash that Sabriel put on Toby after the fact. It still grates on his nerves when he thinks about it, if only because Natalie was the last one he'd sired, but with what happened at the swear-in? In fact, Tobias is surprised that Sabriel hadn't confronted him earlier.

"So, um. Going about it through your portal?"

"It isn't Dorian's consent to her biting him I'm concerned with. It's her consent to his ancient beast awakening from its slumber to prod into her thigh as she does."

Toby's a vampire, he's dating Dorian, there's no way he doesn't know about his fetishes. And if Kanaya knows too, she finds it very unlikely that Natalie doesn't. Sure, he's a convenient meal, but she could never imagine setting him up with a vulnerable fledgling.

"Not the whole way," she finally answers his question, as she starts to weave her threads. "We'll be stopping through the Porter base, it's quicker that way." By the time she's finished talking, the portal's already open, the base laid before them. She motions Toby to go first.

Tobias knows, too, about Dorian's fetishes and his conquests. He knows some stories are rumours and others are unlikely truths; he knows Dorian has charmed his way into many situations, and destroyed people on his way out. But Dorian broke off all his intimate relationships just to be with Toby, and so Tobias cannot suffer the ancient beast comment for long.

He listens to her response, seething all the while before answering, "Fine." Before going through the portal, he adds, "And despite what he's done in the past, Dorian wouldn't do something like that. Not since I arrived. You don't know my Dorian Gray."

"I'm sure I don't," she responds, following after him. "But I have to wonder if anyone does, other than you."

It's an inevitable truth, someone is never quite the same person around the one they love. Dorian, as Tobias knows him, is bound to be different from Dorian as Kanaya knows him, she's not been exposed to the positive qualities that he must be attracted to. She does know the petty, bitchy criminal, the unprincipled hedonist who doesn't care about anyone but himself.

She doesn't know him well, but there's nothing she would put beyond him, certainly not dishonesty with Tobias. There are very few things she'd put beyond him.

She lets her threads go, slipping back through her fingers, and the portal shuts behind them.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

So once it would have been,--'tis so no more; / I have submitted to a new control:

Tell me if this is okay?

I'm cool with it, he doesn't really have much in way of defences anyway.

Tell me if this is okay.

Yeah, he really can't do anything anyway, seriously. I'm good to roll with it. XD

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this can be after the thing with sabriel if you want!

Yup, that works totally fine for me.

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