He dreams of an impossibly tall creature stalking his sister. He dreams of it standing at his bedside. He dreams of it wrapping it's hands around his throat and it's cracked and creaking face inches away from him. The cracks rub together and it's impossibly white lidless eyes bore into his and...and...
And the thing has a name. It's name is Azazel the scapegoat, Azazel the fallen, and 7 year old Richard was told to sit still and stay quiet.
He has never sat still.
For all of Howard's faults, he taught both his children - intentionally or otherwise - to never sit still and Azazel...
Azazel was impressed. A naturally psychic child who stood up to a hellish creature? Richard was not impressed. Richard was scared and his father had beaten him and called upon God and Azazel had laughed through him and Richard had begged...and begged...
She's on her way.
Richard is dressed immaculately. Dark gray jacket, dark black tie, white shirt. His hands are gripping his chair as he writes. The same word over and over again.
"I know." Alex.
Alex was the first person since Coralee to break though his defenses. Alex, Alex, Alex. The first person he hadn't used, the first person he hadn't murdered.
No more we?
"We haven't been we for a long time." Richard's voice was soft, "I'm a realist. I won't lie to myself." He stood, adjusting his cuffs, "There's me. And there's you. And we've blended together enough that if we were to be split we each would carry parts of each other."
And you hate that Richard. You hate that I've left clawmarks on you and that I took your humanity-
"I hate you!-"
The doorbell rang and Richard turned abruptly. Alex.
Alex. Azazel murmured, When we raise Tiamat, when we knock the pretender and bastard from the heavens we could take her and lay her at our feet-
"Stop it."
Are you fighting me because of her?
"I said - stop it"-
The door opens and there is Richard. He is immaculately dressed, polished, the image of an attractive mysterious figure.
"...Alex. You haven't been answering my calls." He smirks, "It's painful. Being on the other side of that. I'll give you that much."
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He dreams of an impossibly tall creature stalking his sister. He dreams of it standing at his bedside. He dreams of it wrapping it's hands around his throat and it's cracked and creaking face inches away from him. The cracks rub together and it's impossibly white lidless eyes bore into his and...and...
And the thing has a name. It's name is Azazel the scapegoat, Azazel the fallen, and 7 year old Richard was told to sit still and stay quiet.
He has never sat still.
For all of Howard's faults, he taught both his children - intentionally or otherwise - to never sit still and Azazel...
Azazel was impressed. A naturally psychic child who stood up to a hellish creature? Richard was not impressed. Richard was scared and his father had beaten him and called upon God and Azazel had laughed through him and Richard had begged...and begged...
She's on her way.
Richard is dressed immaculately. Dark gray jacket, dark black tie, white shirt. His hands are gripping his chair as he writes. The same word over and over again.
"I know." Alex.
Alex was the first person since Coralee to break though his defenses. Alex, Alex, Alex. The first person he hadn't used, the first person he hadn't murdered.
No more we?
"We haven't been we for a long time." Richard's voice was soft, "I'm a realist. I won't lie to myself." He stood, adjusting his cuffs, "There's me. And there's you. And we've blended together enough that if we were to be split we each would carry parts of each other."
And you hate that Richard. You hate that I've left clawmarks on you and that I took your humanity-
"I hate you!-"
The doorbell rang and Richard turned abruptly. Alex.
Alex. Azazel murmured, When we raise Tiamat, when we knock the pretender and bastard from the heavens we could take her and lay her at our feet-
"Stop it."
Are you fighting me because of her?
"I said - stop it"-
The door opens and there is Richard. He is immaculately dressed, polished, the image of an attractive mysterious figure.
"...Alex. You haven't been answering my calls." He smirks, "It's painful. Being on the other side of that. I'll give you that much."