Grounded
Summary - Lute learns that her hallucination of Adam can do more than just lurk in her consciousness.
Word Count - 900
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Lute was in Adam’s old office, leaning up against one of the ornate walls. Tall windows bathed the room in golden light, illuminating the damage she had just caused to the interior, in-song. Her arms were crossed in frustration as she contemplated her current situation.
In the corner of the room, behind the large, golden desk, stood the figure of Adam.
The real Adam had been killed the month prior, of course. But Lute, having reached her breaking point, had begun to hallucinate his presence, with the ghost-like Adam seeming to follow her everywhere she went.
Lute began drumming her fingers as she remained against the wall, her gaze fixed on the floor.
“Whatcha doin’, babe?” Adam inquired from his spot at the desk. He wore a smug expression as he watched Lute from afar.
“Planning.” She replied flatly.
Lute was focused on constructing her revenge against the princess and her companions. She couldn’t afford to waste anymore time.
Smirk not leaving his face, Adam moved out from behind the desk and made his way over towards Lute.
“They’re going to regret what they’ve done.” Lute muttered under her breath, tightly gripping her golden, synthetic arm. She barely registered the fact that Adam was now standing directly in front of her, towering over her with his height.
“Oh, they will.” Adam began, sticking out his arms and placing his hands against the wall, on either side of Lute. “You’ll make sure of it.”
Slightly startled by the action, Lute glanced up, a faint blush spreading across her face. She stared directly into Adam’s eyes, dropping her head back down just a moment later.
This wasn’t real. He wasn’t real. They took him away from her. They took him away and now she had to take something in return. Something they wouldn’t forget. Something-
Lute’s thoughts were interrupted as Adam placed a hand under her chin, tilting her head back up to face him.
“... What? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” He grinned, retracting his hand and moving in closer.
“I…” Lute had lost her train of thought by this point, her face burning hot as Adam now stood mere inches away.
Adam raised an eyebrow in a mildly-questioning look, before smirking at Lute once more.
Lute then watched as Adam slowly directed both of his hands down to her sides, and without breaking eye contact, began to wiggle his fingers into her.
Lute froze. She couldn’t actually feel that… could she? It’s not him, it’s…
Whether it was from her already highly-emotional state or the action itself she wasn't sure, but Lute suddenly found herself cracking a smile, her arms instinctually moving to protect her torso.
“Snrk-! H-how ahare yohou-”
“I dunno.” Adam cut her off, continuing the action. “Maybe you really have gone insane.”
Faint giggles spilling from her lips, Lute squirmed against the wall, crumbling in on herself as she slowly slid down to the ground. Adam followed her with ease.
“Quihit it alreheady!” Lute tucked her head down, now sitting with her back to the wall and her legs drawn close to her body.
“Can I really stop something I’m not actually doing?” Adam queried. “Remember, I’m in your head, girlie. Pretty strange thing for you to be imagining, tee-bee-aitch.”
Adam then moved his hands to Lute’s stomach, earning an additional squeal from the exorcist.
“Stahahap!” She giggled, reaching out her arms to try and push Adam away. As she got close to him, however, her hands phased directly through his body.
“Well, that sure was effective.”
Lute’s wings beat against the wall. “This ihisn’t fahair!”
“Life isn’t fair, Lute. Neither is death.”
Adam then pulled his hands back, pausing for a moment as Lute regained her breath. Not a minute later, however, he shaped his hands into claws, latching onto Lute’s wings and roughly vibrating into the feathers.
Lute felt a shiver travel down her spine at the contact. One that she could definitely tell was real.
Lute subsequently fell to the ground, landing on her side, as a slightly stronger laugh emitted from her.
“Nahaha! Ahahadam!”
“Jeez Lute, you’re falling apart at the equivalent of a gust of wind blowing past you. Kind of weak, bro.”
Lute took a swing at Adam with her leg, but once again, she phased directly through him.
“You do know that trying the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is the literal definition of insanity, right?” He grinned.
“Shuhut ihit!”
After a few more minutes, Adam let up, pulling back his hands as he shifted away from Lute. Lute remained a breathy pile on the ground, with her wings giving an occasional twitch.
“Feeling any better?” Adam asked, his tone slightly more genuine than usual.
“Be quiet.” Lute responded, pulling herself up into a sitting position. She was unable, however, to shake the smile currently present on her face.
“You and I both know that you are~”
As the pair sat there, looking at one another, the sound of a door slamming shut suddenly snapped them out of the moment. Adam and Lute turned in unison to eye the large, golden doors.
“What was that?” Lute growled.
“How should I know?”
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Quickly stepping back from the door, Abel spun himself around, speedwalking as fast as he could in the other direction.
Nope. She was in there, alone, laughing to herself for 10 minutes. Not getting involved. No siree.
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