Post by Milisandre Crowthorne on Aug 21, 2017 4:02:46 GMT -5
Milisandre Crowthorne lay on her bed with her boyfriend and bodyguard, Bruce. She is in her her favorite spot, curled up with her head on his chest. Mil uses a remote to search through Netflix for something to watch. She huffs in frustration before waving the hand holding the remote. “Why do they never have any decent fucking Lovecraft movies on here!?” The outburst was so out of character for the socially awkward woman. She huffs again and continues to scroll through movie choices.
Bruce just smiled and ran his large hand up and down her back. “You really do love your Elder God stuff don'tcha?” His heavy New England accent made him hard to understand. Mil looks up at him with a sheepish smile. Being in Lacklanland for the last week plus she had gotten used to hearing the accent and being able to understand it easier.
“yeah.” Her voice barely above a whisper. Why did her mind seem to go blank every time she looked at him? She had been around him, basically full time, since she arrived at her new friends' freaking mansion. They had officially considered themselves dating for only a couple of days. Shortly after their first kiss actually. Yet for all that time to get used to him, her stomach still did flips when she heard his voice.
Bruce glanced down at her and smiled. It was obvious from that smile that he cared for her deeply, already. He could completely understand why his Queen, Sarah Lacklan, befriended her. Despite her awkwardness, which to him was extremely adorable, she seemed to gravitate towards people who would accept her without reservation. “How did you get so adorable Lu?”
Mil was snapped out of her dreamy haze at the foreign name. That was no where near anything her anyone would consider calling her. She was used to Mil and Mili, she had heard those her entire life. But Lu? Her heart dropped as she thought that he might have confused her for an ex or something. Trying, and failing, to hide her fear she playfully, albeit a little harder than intended, slapped him on the stomach. “And just who is this Lu?”
This draws a hearty chuckle from the large man. “You are.” Mil scrunched up her face and tilted her head slightly trying to understand how that could be. Bruce smiled and chuckled again. “Short for Cthulu. Since it is kinda your obsession.”
She turned bright red and buried her face into his massive chest. She felt horrible for where her mind went. She slowly lifted her head and looked up into his face. Her stomach flipped and her heart melted. He certainly not like any of the guys she had be attracted to in the past. She usually went for the skinny weird guys. Cause they at least understand her weird tastes. But Bruce, who was basically the polar opposite of what she would ever consider dating, was the most accepting of her quirks.
She loved him. She knew it the moment she laid eyes on him. She didn't want to openly rush things if fear of chasing him off. That was the last thing she would ever want. She never really believed in that stupid love at first sight stuff. That was until Bruce. Her lips curled up into a smile of perfect contentment. Lu was the first unique pet name anyone had ever given her. This massive man that should have terrified her kept amazing her. “oh.”
Her voice still barely audible. She sat the remote on his stomach and brought that hand up to his cheek. She then stretched up and kissed him. A million stars exploded behind her eyelids every time they kissed. Every time was like the first time to her. The kiss deepened into something a little more than a quick kiss. Mil finally pulled back, licking her lips as she slowly opened her eyes. “Thank you for saying you will come with me to my parents when we go to Portland in a few tomorrow. Usually don't introduce my boyfriends this early but I feel like I need you there for the talk my mom wants to have with me.”
“Why wouldn't I?” He raised an eyebrow as he looked down at her, accentuating his question. Mil appeared to physically deflate at the gesture. She stumbled over a few words before finding her voice again.
“Well, we've only been dating a few days and I'm apparently going to be learning some massive family secret. That sounds intimidating to me.” She shuddered at the thought of something like that. Then she looked back into Bruce's eyes and she understood why he was so willing to do it. She could almost hear his answer before he said it.
“You want me there so I will be there for you. Besides, does it look like I get intimidated?” That last line, she didn't anticipate and she laughed. Her free hand shooting to to her mouth to cover it.
“No, you don't. I honestly believe that you don't fear anything.” She meant it to. Despite how much she loved being in the forest at night the forests of Lacklanland were a completely different monster. Yet Bruce took her out there and she never feared as long as he was there. And he just walked around like it was a city park. No fear, purely nonchalant. It amazed her to no end. She picked the remote back up and quickly scanned through a few movies before starting up Hellboy. She tossed the remote behind her on the bed and curled back up on Bruce.
~~~
The shaky interior of a well kept, decently nice, suburban home slowly settles. In front of the camera is a middle aged woman who is obviously Milisandre's mother. They have the same brunette hair and smile. She is looking at who is filming, occasionally glancing into the camera. From off screen comes Mil's voice. “You sure it's alright for me to film this? I know you we really serious on the phone about it.”
The woman smiles Mil's smile and nods. “Of course honey. I know you sometimes put the stuff you film out for your promotional work. If you want to use this it's totally fine. Maybe it's time to stop keeping it a secret.”
“Thanks mom.” The scene pans around the room as Mil moves around the room to set the camera down on the mantle. She adjusts it to make sure the entire room is in view. She turns to head towards the couch when her dad and Bruce walk into the room. Mil instantly goes red imagining about a million embarrassing stories her dad could, and probably did, tell him. Bruce looks at her and smiles and they meet at the couch. They both sit down as her parents take chairs across a coffee table from them. Mil pulls her legs up underneath her and wraps her slender arms around Bruce's massive one. Her hand finds his and they interlock fingers.
“Thank you for allowing me to be here Mr. and Mrs. Crowthorne.” He tries to control his accent so they understand him. He relaxes slightly when they both nod and smile at him, realizing they understood him.
“Of course. We can tell how much you mean to Mili. But I must admit you are not what we expected when she said she was bringing her new boyfriend.”
“DAD!” Mil went bright red. She looked at her dad and then buried her face into Bruce's arm.
“I'm sorry sweetie but he isn't. But its not a bad thing. Just different is all.” Her dad smiled weakly trying to repair the embarrassment he caused his daughter.
“I know, just, like, don't need to put it out there like that.” She pulls her face back and shoots her dad a smile. She then looks over to her mom. “Alright, so, what is this big secret?”
Her mom takes a deep breath to gather her thoughts before speaking. “Let me start off by saying that what I'm about to tell you I wasn't going to keep from you for ever. It's something that a child shouldn't know. I wanted to tell you when you were in high school but with the way you acted I was afraid the knowledge would cause problems.” She wrung her hands as she spoke. A lot of Mil's mannerisms she obviously got from her mother.
“Oh my god, I'm not adopted am I?”
“Oh no sweetheart! You are not adopted. It's a bit of an older secret that that could ever be. You asking about our lineage is what made me realize it was time to tell you this. Now, this is probably gonna be a bit of a shock. But here it goes. Your great great great grandfather on my side was Grigori Rasputin.”
Mil stare at her mother for a moment. Her brow scrunched up thinking. “So you are telling me that I'm the however many greats it is, granddaughter of Rasputin? THE Rasputin? The one that they tried to kill a bunch of times and then something stupid killed him?”
Her mother nodded. “Yes. It's been confirmed through multiple sources and records.”
“I.... um.... wow.” Mil was speechless. She squeezed Bruce's hand. Her grip a reassurance that he wasn't going to leave. Because who wouldn't leave? Oh, hey, by the way, your new girlfriend? Yeah she is the descendant of some creepy Russian dude from a hundred years ago. He gently returned the squeeze, reassuring her that he wasn't going anywhere.
A million things ran through her mind at once. This actually explained a lot of things. She had always wondered why she seemed to be different growing up. She always felt out of place. Like she really didn't belong anywhere. Well, that was until she met Sarah and visited Lacklanland. It also explained her weird obsession with history and Lovecraft. And she surprisingly was at peace with this knowledge. It made sense. It connected the dots that she had been trying to for most of her life.
She finally breaks the silence. “You know, that actually makes sense.” She rests her lips against Bruce's arm and mumbles into it while looking up at him. “So, you are you weirded out by this?” Her eyes expectantly searched his face as he looked down at her.
“Of course not Lu.”
Mil's parents shared a look then looked at the couple. “Lu?”
Mil groans and Bruce just chuckles. “Yeah, it's what he calls me. Short for Cth...”
“Cthulu. I get it. So he knows about that little obsession of yours then.”
“Yes.” Mil deadpans the response to her dad shooting him a look.
“Leave her alone!” Mil's mom swats at her husbands knee to admonish him. She then looks to Bruce with a smile. “So, Bruce, what do you do exactly?”
“Actually I...”
“He works as security for my friend Sarah.” Mil cuts Bruce off and answers for him. She didn't think her parents would understand the dynamic in Lacklanland. She barely understood it. She is the one who introduced us.”
“Is that that pale girl right?”
Mil felt Bruce tense slightly at the reference to Sarah. She was like a deity to Bruce. She gave his hand a quick squeeze, with both hands. She didn't want him to take offense. “Yeah. She and her fiance Kenzi have been, like, super cool. Sarah's place in Maine is amazing! It's huge and there is some, like, super old forest vibe having woods all around.”
Mil's parents smile. “We are glad you have some friends in your new venture. You are going to be careful, right?”
“Yes. As much as I can be. And if you are worried about stuff happening to me when I'm not in a fight there is no need to be. Bruce wouldn't let anything happen to me. Would you babe?” She smiled as she looked up to him.
“Of course not Lu. You have no worries Mr. and Mrs. Crowthorne. She is well looked after and safe.” He gives her hand a quick squeeze and quickly glances down at her with a smile. Mil looks back to her parents reluctantly.
“So, um, like, I've got some time before we have to back in Portland for the event. Do you guys, like, wanna get lunch or something?”
“That sounds perfect Sweetie.” They all get up and Mil comes over and picks up the camera. The room spins past in a blur and there is a final shot of Mil in the mirror over the mantle. She presses a button and the scene goes black.
~~~
Once again we are in Milisandre's room at the Lacklanland estate. Mil spent a lot of her time in her room. It was just easiest for her. She didn't really go anywhere around with Bruce or Sarah or Kenzi. She still got lost on her own more often than not. The place was huge. Probably the biggest place she have ever stayed in. It was overwhelming to her. Sure she was usually out somewhere with Kenzi and or Sarah. They were either training is someway, eating meals, hanging out, or working on the plans for the up coming wedding.
It was all overwhelming to Mil and she took solace in her room. She felt right at home in it. Like it was meant to be her room. It felt like her old room back at her parents house. She would sometimes stay over at her parents just to sleep in her old room. It's like spending time with an old friend. It was almost like a second skin for her. That's how her room here felt to her. It was her comfort-zone.
Bruce only added to that. If she couldn't be in her room, she would wrap herself in Bruce's arms. That was another place that felt like home. Sure that is a cheesy and almost cliché thing. But that didn't make it less true. When they were laying in bed together at night, that was pure heaven for her. His arms around her, her head on his chest listening to his breathing and heartbeat.
Since she was able to convince him to stay the night with her she has had the best night's sleep she's had in a long time. The night without him were the worst. She usually tossed and turned for what seemed like forever. She loved how sometimes she woke up to him being there. He would come in sometime during the night and climb into bed with her. She would subconsciously roll over and curl up with him in her sleep. To her, that meant something.
But for now, she was alone. She was working on her project. The Cthulu bust she wanted. It was almost done. She was currently attaching the tentacles to it. She carefully twisted the metal wire connectors into the Styrofoam squid head. With the last one in place she sat back and sighed. She still had to cover it with the heat shrink plastic so she could paint it. Both of those would take a while to do. But for now, she could take a break. She spun in the chair and stood up. She stretched and then picked up the camera. She moved over to her couch and sat the camera on her coffee table. She adjusted it and then sat back.
“So, like, Jackson text me saying I should do another one of these things bfore Queen of the Ring. I mean, I, like, really don't see the point. What more do I need to come out and say? How bad do you want to me insult people? I have no problem doing, don't get my wrong. It's just, like, there is a death stroke and the there is, like, overkill.”
She brought her feet up underneath herself. That typical position she usually sits in. She looks down at her hands and starts picking at a hang nail. “So, like, at this point in time, I am completely writing off Maria and Laura. I don't think they, should, like, even be in this match really. This really is just going to be a match between Ash and I. Call it arrogance or cockiness or, like, whatever you want. I honest to god don't care.”
She looks up into the camera. That intensity slowly seeps into her face. “So, Ashley, some dynamics have changed since the last time I did one of these. You decided that you didn't want to sit with the cool kids anymore. Something about us just rubbed you the wrong way I guess. Like, I have no idea why that would be. It wasn't like we weren't up front about who or what we are. But that's fine. No one was forcing you to stay so you, like, took off.”
“So, like, you see, this changes things. I can go into this match and not really worry about what happens. I mean, like, to be honest, before, I was kinda worried. That I might do something and hurt you or humiliate you or, like, I dunno, something like that.” She shrugs her slender shoulders and slightly shakes her head. “So, like, now I can go out there and not care that if I beat you it will cement your loser status, like, basically forever.”
“Like, I understand that you are trying to, like, prove some kind of point. That you aren't, like, a complete failure. You are, like, trying to rebuild some reputation you had. Seriously, that sounds like it sucks. But, you see, I don't, like, think that you understand my position. I'm going out there trying to make a name for myself. Beating up Maria or Laura just doesn't do anything for that. Like, who will that intimidate?”
Mil deadpans into the camera like she is on an episode of the office. “Nobody, exactly. But, like, say that I delivered the coup de grace to an falling star. That I send her off into that sweet goodnight. That is something that will give people pause. I was the one to officially send someone into hiding.”
“I could say that I don't want to do it. But my parents all ways told me to not lie. Because to be honest, like, there is a small part of me that secretly wants that to happen. Just for the notoriety I would get. It would, like, totally solidify that I am supposed to be here. That I actually can make it and a name for myself. What a start to my career that would be. Second match and all.”
A grin crawl across her face. She runs a hand through her dark brown hair. “You said on Twitter that you hope my pain tolerance is high. Well, like, after I had that talk with my mom and found out what I did. Your idle, thinly veiled threat means nothing to me. Sure, I see you as the biggest threat in this match. You are going to be the toughest opponent for me at Queen of the Ring. But that is, like, honestly in line with being a gold medalist in the Special Olympics.”
“At the end of the day, you're still retarded.” Her lip curls into a sneer. She hit a zone. Something deep inside her seemed to have changed. Like a long dormant switch was flipped.
“I don't care if that was harsh or politically incorrect or, like, whatever. It's still a fact. You are nothing more than the top of the shit pile I have to climb. I just hope you are gonna be smart enough to ask for me to let you go after I fold you up like a wallet. Actually, I might not even waste that much effort on you. I could could just turn into the Khaleesi and force you to bend the knee to me. I told you before, I am a queen. I might not be the most well known one, yet, but that will change.”
Mil leans towards the camera, her gaze set and intense. A fire seems to burn in her eyes. “Take that as a warning, Ash. I am coming to Queen of the Ring to win. I don't plan on second place. You will Bow Down or be broken. The choice is yours. But make it quick. For soon, I shall leave my house in R'lyeh.”
The scene fades out slowly. The last part to go are Mil's eyes. Their intense gaze burning out of a black void.