[ Regardless of the hour, the manner in which she'd entered the residence β for there is no doubt in her mind that Lilith had bypassed the front door altogether β she will never be able to find it in her to turn away a friend, especially not one she holds in great regard and considers herself still in a great amount of debt to.
She steps back, giving the other woman enough berth to enter the room, the door softly closed once Lilith crosses the threshold. ]
It was... some time before I learned of your state. [ And there is regret in her tone over that, regret that she had not thought to inquire sooner. ] I assume you ventured home, as so many of us have?
[ Even already, she has been given much to mull over, the rather unexpected revelation that Lucifer's threat does not remain, at least in another world apart from her own β never mind that the woman who now stands before her has risen to take his place. ]
I suppose I should have gotten dressed if I'd known I would be entertaining royalty.
[ It's an attempt at injecting humor, a soft lilt in her voice even while she tries to fully grasp the implications of what's transpired. ]
So you were informed of what would happen before you returned.
( it does make her smile, even if there's something a little tenser about it, though the more that she's around vanessa will help to keep reminding her of what she'd built here, those more favourable things and friendships. her feelings )
Only that much, Mr Scratch didn't know what came after.
( she sighed, stepping further in the room before seating herself on vanessa's bed, a hand out to the woman to join her )
My reign wasn't fated to last, though with some involved that should have been expected.
( the realms had been fine, lucifer had been contained and she'd been ruling. but of course when sabrina had meddled everything had gone wrong. everything )
He was limited in scope, then, by his own experiences.
[ And she would not have known the full extent of what was to come until actually returning and allowing events to occur in the manner they were always intended to.
It feels somewhat out-of-order for Vanessa to be beckoned towards her own bed rather than the other way around, but she's content to follow Lilith's lead, especially when the other woman must be grappling with so many new memories alongside old ones only just recalled. The mattress barely dips beneath her weight as she gently situates herself beside, hands lightly clasped together. ]
Disgruntled subjects? [ There are only so many outcomes she can envision, although her aim isn't to make Lilith relive anything difficult, rather to glean as much of an understanding as she can of what's been endured. ] Or... was it a usurper?
The Lords of Hell believed I was-- reaching above my station.
( though given that lucifer had only ever painted her as a handmaiden and concubine it wasn't surprising to find struggle, she'd known going in that it wouldn't be simple but it also was hell )
I appeased for a time. Until Sabrina returned for her boyfriend.
( the boyfriend that was host to their dark lord, as if that wouldn't be a disaster )
They made demands and she-- succumbed, claiming the throne as her own, as her blood demanded.
[ And she does, especially given what those titles indicate about the particular demographic that makes up the rulers of Hell, those whom must exist in service to the Dark Master. ]
Was she... [ There is only so much she knows; the names themselves familiar given what Lilith has shared in part before, but in light of the chosen phrasing here there is only one conclusion she can come to after a long beat of silence, brow furrowing with revelation. ]
[ And if it was his desire to ensure his legacy on Earth as well as secure the future of his reign in Hell. ]
Only if you wish to speak of it. [ She won't press for those details unless freely given, but this is a private space with no ears to hear it save her own. ]
( it's a moment before she speaks but lilith needs this, to unburden herself in a way that in greendale she never could. the same witches that had prayed to her and sought her help had so easily abandoned her )
They managed to free Mr Scratch from his self-imposed torment, a spell transferring Lucifer into another, though I doubt they chose wisely.
( not when blackwood had his own gains )
Through some manner-- Lucifer became free from their prison, still bound within another's body but in control. He sought me out to free him, knowing only that I could.
( and as much as she didn't want to that she would, it better for her survival than pure refusal )
I cast the spell but not without taking my own-- precautions, knowing that Lucifer would kill me once I had done so. So I-- gave him something he could not kill, something to make myself useful to him for a time.
( and during those thirteen months she'd find herself a better plan for after )
[ Keeping Lucifer locked inside a fleshly prison seems to be the best way of exacting some form of control over him, of keeping him contained β and yet doing so had apparently not robbed him of his ability to wield power and manipulation, if not on the same scale then certainly with the same level of deception. It would not surprise her in the slightest if there was a part to the story that involved the Devil's tricking someone into helping him escape.
But she keeps herself positioned closely, her knees brushing the other woman's beneath the fall of her nightgown forming the only current point of contact between them, listening to the story without interruption. ]
He does only seem to harbor interest in someone if he believes he can use them in some way. Knowing that... I cannot say I would not have done the same.
[ And have, on occasion, surrendering herself to him in small increments at a time, hoping that while she fed him that way she would ultimately be able to retain enough of herself to break free in the end. ]
A long time ago I may have disagreed but now-- ( now it was easier to believe it false even if she wondered whether the curse had twisted him, wanting to be truly loved so long ago. but she'd always be useful in some way )
He would never care to admit it but he does need me. I've been able to do things he never could. For where its gotten me.
( which with lucifer around was never anywhere at all )
Then all the more reason to find ways to make yourself invaluable.
[ And she does not doubt that Lilith has done so β the woman has always struck her as having a cunning disposition, perhaps moreso than most others often expect or anticipate, although underestimating would certainly not be in their best interest. ]
Until you have found the means to free yourself altogether.
[ She knows all about the necessity of endurance, of having to persist under less than desirable circumstances in order to emerge out the other side β but she also recalls languishing in her state, uncertain if the end would be freedom or some means of escaping the mortal coil and thereby rendering her soul forfeit. ]
( she'd put a timer on her life, gotten an extension for the next thirteen months. lilith might not yet have had that little conversation with lucifer yet but it had been all part of her plan -- he couldn't kill her yet )
Though with Lucifer free-- he'll be much more guarded than before, particularly with Sabrina embracing Hell.
Sometimes the immediate future is all we can foresee, especially considering the occasional... volatile element.
[ And Lucifer is, at his very core, unpredictable, impossible to foretell. Sometimes she thinks she may have given up on attempting to understand his machinations altogether. ]
Which... was something he wanted. [ Maneuvering the chess pieces to ensure that his offspring inherited the throne in his stead. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
[ Regardless of the hour, the manner in which she'd entered the residence β for there is no doubt in her mind that Lilith had bypassed the front door altogether β she will never be able to find it in her to turn away a friend, especially not one she holds in great regard and considers herself still in a great amount of debt to.
She steps back, giving the other woman enough berth to enter the room, the door softly closed once Lilith crosses the threshold. ]
It was... some time before I learned of your state. [ And there is regret in her tone over that, regret that she had not thought to inquire sooner. ] I assume you ventured home, as so many of us have?
no subject
( the place that was more her home than what she'd endured in greendale, even if she'd found things to enjoy there )
I lived what Nick had promised -- Lucifer was dethroned, contained and I became Queen.
no subject
I suppose I should have gotten dressed if I'd known I would be entertaining royalty.
[ It's an attempt at injecting humor, a soft lilt in her voice even while she tries to fully grasp the implications of what's transpired. ]
So you were informed of what would happen before you returned.
no subject
Only that much, Mr Scratch didn't know what came after.
( she sighed, stepping further in the room before seating herself on vanessa's bed, a hand out to the woman to join her )
My reign wasn't fated to last, though with some involved that should have been expected.
( the realms had been fine, lucifer had been contained and she'd been ruling. but of course when sabrina had meddled everything had gone wrong. everything )
No one listens to a Queen.
no subject
[ And she would not have known the full extent of what was to come until actually returning and allowing events to occur in the manner they were always intended to.
It feels somewhat out-of-order for Vanessa to be beckoned towards her own bed rather than the other way around, but she's content to follow Lilith's lead, especially when the other woman must be grappling with so many new memories alongside old ones only just recalled. The mattress barely dips beneath her weight as she gently situates herself beside, hands lightly clasped together. ]
Disgruntled subjects? [ There are only so many outcomes she can envision, although her aim isn't to make Lilith relive anything difficult, rather to glean as much of an understanding as she can of what's been endured. ] Or... was it a usurper?
no subject
( though given that lucifer had only ever painted her as a handmaiden and concubine it wasn't surprising to find struggle, she'd known going in that it wouldn't be simple but it also was hell )
I appeased for a time. Until Sabrina returned for her boyfriend.
( the boyfriend that was host to their dark lord, as if that wouldn't be a disaster )
They made demands and she-- succumbed, claiming the throne as her own, as her blood demanded.
no subject
[ And she does, especially given what those titles indicate about the particular demographic that makes up the rulers of Hell, those whom must exist in service to the Dark Master. ]
Was she... [ There is only so much she knows; the names themselves familiar given what Lilith has shared in part before, but in light of the chosen phrasing here there is only one conclusion she can come to after a long beat of silence, brow furrowing with revelation. ]
His heir? How is such a thing even possible?
no subject
( unfortunate ones for anyone involved, something that lilith now intimately knows )
I'd like to say that Sabrina reclaiming dear Mr Scratch is where this ends but-- it's more troubling.
no subject
[ And if it was his desire to ensure his legacy on Earth as well as secure the future of his reign in Hell. ]
Only if you wish to speak of it. [ She won't press for those details unless freely given, but this is a private space with no ears to hear it save her own. ]
no subject
They managed to free Mr Scratch from his self-imposed torment, a spell transferring Lucifer into another, though I doubt they chose wisely.
( not when blackwood had his own gains )
Through some manner-- Lucifer became free from their prison, still bound within another's body but in control. He sought me out to free him, knowing only that I could.
( and as much as she didn't want to that she would, it better for her survival than pure refusal )
I cast the spell but not without taking my own-- precautions, knowing that Lucifer would kill me once I had done so. So I-- gave him something he could not kill, something to make myself useful to him for a time.
( and during those thirteen months she'd find herself a better plan for after )
no subject
But she keeps herself positioned closely, her knees brushing the other woman's beneath the fall of her nightgown forming the only current point of contact between them, listening to the story without interruption. ]
He does only seem to harbor interest in someone if he believes he can use them in some way. Knowing that... I cannot say I would not have done the same.
[ And have, on occasion, surrendering herself to him in small increments at a time, hoping that while she fed him that way she would ultimately be able to retain enough of herself to break free in the end. ]
no subject
He would never care to admit it but he does need me. I've been able to do things he never could. For where its gotten me.
( which with lucifer around was never anywhere at all )
no subject
[ And she does not doubt that Lilith has done so β the woman has always struck her as having a cunning disposition, perhaps moreso than most others often expect or anticipate, although underestimating would certainly not be in their best interest. ]
Until you have found the means to free yourself altogether.
[ She knows all about the necessity of endurance, of having to persist under less than desirable circumstances in order to emerge out the other side β but she also recalls languishing in her state, uncertain if the end would be freedom or some means of escaping the mortal coil and thereby rendering her soul forfeit. ]
no subject
( she'd put a timer on her life, gotten an extension for the next thirteen months. lilith might not yet have had that little conversation with lucifer yet but it had been all part of her plan -- he couldn't kill her yet )
Though with Lucifer free-- he'll be much more guarded than before, particularly with Sabrina embracing Hell.
no subject
[ And Lucifer is, at his very core, unpredictable, impossible to foretell. Sometimes she thinks she may have given up on attempting to understand his machinations altogether. ]
Which... was something he wanted. [ Maneuvering the chess pieces to ensure that his offspring inherited the throne in his stead. ]