Had their Persephone never eaten from the same pomegranate her demons had, perhaps she would’ve lived a better life. Had Julie not wanted to keep her best friend close, perhaps Susie would’ve lived a better life. Throughout it all, the regrets of every passing day stacked like books in a library, filled with endless chapters labeled “Friendship,” “Ego,” “Love,” and “Betrayal.” If she could give everything back to her best friend, if she could suffer in silence without her… She would.
“You deserve another chance.”
Though her voice was gentle, her words hit hard, a sword striking the unarmored chest of a knight. She felt ashamed of herself. She wanted better, brighter, for her friend. Taking Susie’s palms into her grasp and trailing delicate fingers—though they had brandished blood and scars—Julie held her tongue for just a moment. And though she didn’t believe in there being Gods or Masters, she prayed and made a vow.
“I’ll find a way. I don’t care how many bodies pile up before me, I don’t care how fucking long it takes, I’ll find a way for you to go back. You can pretend you never knew us, you can follow your hopes and dreams. You’ll never have these hands bloodied ever again.”
HER HEART BROKE. Not metaphorically, not poetically, not following the laws of gods and men. Her heart literally shattered within her breastbone, breaking into a myriad of jagged smithereens that pierced through her flesh and made her bleed, made her weep, made her wish that she was strong enough to rebel against this and save her best friend’s life ─── Save everyone’s lives. Tangled in a thousand different apologizes was her tongue, dry and paralyzed by feelings that remained unspoken, for they carried more than just fragments of dreams and hopes: they held everything Susie had never been capable of expressing.
❝ No. ❞ Albeit soft-spoken, her response was void of hesitance. Of course, the pink haired girl dreamed of a brighter future, dreamed of blue skies and chirping birds, but she would never be able to enjoy such things if her best friend wasn’t there with her / They had started this nightmare together, so it was just fair that they ended it together, too. ❝ I don’t want you to promise me such things, if you’re not going to come with me ! How could I ever be happy knowing that you’re still here, stuck in this hell, with no choice but that of continuing to hunt and kill and suffer ? We cannot be kept here forever... There must be a way. ❞
It was just foolish talking, hopeful words that the Entity would have probably forced her to swallow again as soon as paranoia and nightmares took over once more. ❝ We’re in this together. You and I ─── And Frank and Joey, too. ❞