Lucifer vs. Vor master post

[vorbarra]

WHO: Lucifer + the whole damn cast + a bunch of unfortunate victims of circumstance.
WHERE: Various.
WHEN: Starting 5/27 and onward.
WHAT: Lucifer has Mark kidnap Gregor. Shit hits the fan.
WARNINGS: There is definitely going to be torture and violence. Will update with specifics.


Table of Contents (roughly chronological)
Initial kidnapping -- Gregor, Mark, Lucifer
So honey, I haven't told you... -- Aral, Cordelia
Secondary kidnapping -- Lucy, Mark, Kel
Hawke vs. Vorhouse -- Hawke, Miles, Aral, Tex, Jim, Spock, Kel
Miles at the hospital -- Miles, Kitty, Tex, Ed, Jim, Bucky, Ken, Kareen, Mark, Newt, Kel
Location: rubble -- Winry, Miles, Ed, Tex
Ruined date and getting voluntold -- Duv, Kasumi, Aral
Torture log -- Lucifer, Dean, Gregor
Assignment -- Lucifer, Mark
Telepathy -- Aral, Tex, Gregor
Wagon circling -- Miles, Winry, Roy, Ed, Yuri
Requests -- Aral, Jim
Rescue -- Lucifer, Miles, Kitty, Hermann, Mark
Hellhounds -- Lucifer, Roy, Ed, Hawke, Mark, Aral
Main fight -- Lucifer, Aral, Hawke
Swamp mingle -- Tex, Hawke, Ed, Winry, Roy, Jim
Post-rescue at hospital -- Gregor, Miles, Kitty, Duv, Cordelia
Following the trail of burger wrappers and tears -- Duv, Nicolas
Hospital threads part three -- Miles, Cordelia
End of the line -- Duv, Mark
Family reunion & oath swearing -- Mark, Gregor, Aral, Tej, Duv, Miles, Tex, Winry, Ed, Simon
Recovery OTA -- Aral, Miles, Duv, Cordelia, Ed, Winry

Comments

[vorbarra]

[ He reflexively tugs Miles closer to him, the action familiar from consistent sleeping in the same bed, before turning to Kitty and blinking again several times before her words register as humorous. ]

I don't think a foghorn would've woken me up. Except Miles this excited is louder than that. [ He punctuates this with a yawn. ]

[dendarii]

[ Just as instinctively, Miles cuddles in closer to him. A sheepish grin spreading across his face. ]

Sorry. It's just extremely relieving to have you back.

[rathercommon]

God, he was a nightmare while you were gone, you know.

[ She smiles at them both. ]

I had to lay on top of him to keep him from coming after you. Broken leg and all! And I'm not exaggerating there, either, I literally lay on top of him.

[vorbarra]

Thank you, [ Gregor tells her fervently, with sloppy enunciation. ] I worried about that... constantly.

Aral said you were looking after him. Each other.

[dendarii]

[ A flicker of guilt; he had been on his way to do something ridiculously stupid, after all. ]

I get very twitchy, that's all ... But Kitty kept me safely in bed the whole time, yes. Tex has been here too.

[rathercommon]

[ With mock-offense, she says: ]

Looking after each other? Excuse me. I need no looking after.

[ But she reaches out to gently caress Miles' arm. ]

[vorbarra]

[ The link is presumably open enough that Gregor detects that flicker of guilt, and turns to look at Miles with open, unconcealed suspicion. It's certainly an opportune time to ask Gregor questions, when he can't hide anything.

To Kitty: ] You're uninjured. Aren't you? What about Tex? Is everyone back yet?

[dendarii]

[ Miles hastily tucks the feeling away to focus on answering Gregor's questions. Not something he wants to discuss with both of them right here... ]

Everyone's returned, yes. In various states, but no deaths.

[rathercommon]

You're the worst off by far. And Miles, if I'm not mistaken, is number two. Which is absolutely burning him up right now, I'm sure. He always wants to be number one.

[vorbarra]

[ This finally manages to succeed in provoking a muffled laugh from Gregor; he twists to press his face against Miles's shoulder, water coming to his eyes with the sheer overwhelming relief of it. ]

God, [ he mumbles. ] Kitty, you're merciless. Can't I have two minutes to grieve my horrible fate?

[ There's a wavering quality that makes it clear Gregor is only being held back from said grieving by some high quality anti-anxiety medication. ]

[dendarii]

It's a point of pride, after all.

[ Time for a distraction though. Miles glances over at Kitty, making eye contact with her before he leans down to press a light kiss to Gregor's forehead. The gesture is swift, light; leaving room for Kitty to lean over and do something similar, if she likes. ]

Not with us here. Not allowed, I'm afraid.

[rathercommon]

Besides which, I'm not quite sure what horrible fate you're referring to.

[ She joins Miles in pressing a kiss to Gregor's head. ]

You're alive and well. And you might have a few new scars coming out of this, which - I'm not sure about Miles, but which I am really looking forward to. Scars are sexy, you know.

[vorbarra]

[ He shivers once, lightly, at each kiss, and feels no urge whatsoever to lift his face from the crook of Miles's shoulder. One hand blindly reaches behind him to find whatever part of Kitty he can grasp onto, realizing a moment later that it's his bad hand and stilling abruptly as the sensory input comes in belatedly, remotely. It leaves him just resting it flat against her rather than grasping.

He intentionally tries to redirect away from anything too intimate, even teasingly. Gregor feels alarmingly like he might be making at least a brief return to that all too familiar feeling of finding any close physical contact unnerving altogether. That worry is one he can't attend to right now either; it's too profound, touches on too much, and accordingly it is wiped away into an abstract pondering in the back of his head.

Instead, he sighs. ] My horrible fate of having to act as Emperor while drugged to the gills, or in pain. It's going to have to be the latter. [ Because duty always filters back to him first. ]

[dendarii]

[ Miles can't quite identify the exact register of that feeling, but something feels off. Thus he stills rather than teasing further. He's still close, still warm and physical and present, but he keeps his active touching to what Gregor wants to do, for now. He can figure out exactly what's going on later. ]

Well. I for one would be entertained to see the former. [ He says that with good humor. ] But I'll gladly take your pain for a little while if you tell me when you plan to be properly Imperial.

[rathercommon]

See?

[ She's less aware of Gregor's internal fears, his unhappiness. She keeps smiling, just petting his hand gently - just a touch worried, aware of how injured that hand is, only stroking the unbroken skin. ]

We're here for you. Not such an ordeal when we're here.

[vorbarra]

[ He wishes Miles were less aware, sometimes... Gregor doesn't know himself what he wants right now. It's all too new, too raw, such a muddle still.

It's simplest to lay here and accept the petting and let the drugs push away any complications to that. It's nice with him unable to fret about it; soothing, honestly. He can't help the guilty, selfish pang of relief at Miles's offer. ] I have to speak to Captain Galeni-- I have to get your brother back, Miles, [ he explains. ] You're welcome to stay for it, Kitty. As a mouse or something. I'd... rather not be alone either.

[dendarii]

[ His brother ... Miles wants very much to see him safe and sound, yes. Hermann brought him to the hospital, this much Miles knows, but the only thing the nurses had been able to tell him afterwards was that he'd run to god knows where. Not exactly comforting.

He swallows a bit, carefully quieting his own worry on that subject. If anyone can convince Mark, Gregor can. ]

I could stay as well. [ He offers quietly, though there's a part of him desperate to check in on his father again. He glances over at Kitty - if she wants some alone time with Gregor, well ... That changes things too. ] We've gotten good at avoiding nurses shooing us out by now.

[vorbarra]

... Visiting hours? I hadn't thought of that.

[ This provokes a rather humorous mental image, but Gregor only looks at Miles soberly, attuned to his mental nuance as ever. ] I'll rest better if I know you're checking up on everything and it's all sorted. Otherwise I'll feel compelled to ask everyone for sit reps, and they don't need me disturbing them.

[ This is half truth and half maneuvering to get Miles, who is prone to getting restless, out of Gregor's hospital room at times. And out of the room for his conversation with Duv. Kitty's not Barrayaran so her covert listening seems alright, somehow; but Miles had been Galeni's subordinate once upon a time. Gregor's not about to take him to task in front of him. He's learned that much. ]

[dendarii]

[ Miles hesitates, temporarily caught between wanting to stay with Gregor and needing to get up for a while. The latter wins out, barely. ]

All right, all right. I'll make the rounds.