GAH it's been forever since I've written something for the hyperdimension girlies!!! Like the previous part, this one's on the angsty side (^w^;;)
Vert x Reader - Cute...? Part 2
-> Part 1 here
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She had to clean up the glass on the floor.
There honestly wasn't much she could think about other than that. Maybe because if she processed the reality before her even a fraction deeper, it would destroy what little tranquility still managed to flutter around in her heart. She didn't want to think about the Sharicite. She didn't want to think about Chika. And she most certainly did not want to think about you—not the present version of you, all confused and grotesque and sweet and innocent and so terribly vile. Nor was she interested in remembering the you of the past, the one she had a creeping feeling was destined to be left behind and ground into dust and then into nothingness.
None of that mattered. In that moment, she had to clean up the glass on the floor. That was all.
The task dragged on for hours on end—not out of necessity, she was self-aware enough to realize that, but because she never could find a place to comfortably stop. It was only once Chika's hand gently pulled her back to reality that her broom finally came to a halt.
"I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry." Chika's lips trembled and made every word warp. "I didn't mean to... I'm so sorry."
Vert's arms wrapped around her. Neither pretended it held any warmth.
"How are they doing?" Vert whispered into her ear.
Earlier, Chika had taken it upon herself to look after you, hurriedly guiding you towards your past living space while your lover remained stagnant on the glass-riddled Basilicom floor. You, surprisingly, went along with it rather easily. At least they managed to confirm that the specific brand of corruption you'd fallen victim to only affected your physical form, not your temperament. Good. If that weren't the case, she may have to... No, there was no point thinking about disgusting things like that. You were alive. And, in some horrific way, you were still you.
"They're..." Chika trailed off. "They're still crying, but otherwise, they seem okay."
"And still no signs of aggression?"
"None at all."
"Good. In that case, I have a job for you." Vert pulled away to lock eyes with her. "You go and figure out how to return them back to normal. I'll be in charge of watching over them while you're gone."
"What?! But Lady Vert, what if you get hurt?"
"It's fine. You said it yourself: they're not showing any signs of wanting to attack people. And even if they do try, I'm more than capable of handling them. Or are you judging my capabilities?"
"N-no, but..." Chika frowned.
"Then quit arguing and let me take care of them."
Even at the sound of hissed breath and unsure grumbling, Vert continued to hold her ground on the matter, only untensing her shoulders once her companion relented and left to go and make herself useful somewhere else. She couldn't relax all the way, though. Not yet. She still had you to check up on... whatever that entailed. Honestly, doing this probably only served to hurt the two of you, but hey. It's not as if hurting was anything new.
The door to your room opened aggravatingly smoothly—at least to her, a woman who silently wished for resistance to meet her outstretched hand. Oh well. She had to face the truth head-on eventually, she supposed.
"Darling?"
You didn't respond. Not that she expected you to; Chika's previous time with you made it clear that although you can understand them just fine, the most you could do to express that fact was obedience. She took another step forward.
"Where are you..."
Her heart skipped a beat. Surely you hadn't run away while they were busy talking, right? No. You wouldn't do that.
If you did, though... she would have no choice but to—
Muffled sobbing broke through the barrier of your bathroom door, leaving her so simultaneously startled and relieved that she nearly lost her balance in the process of running your direction. Her hand wrapped its way around the doorknob. It failed to budge.
"Hey... Let me in." She cooed out. Your cries only grew louder.
As the seconds ticked by, it became increasingly clear that you were unwilling to listen to her instructions. It couldn't be that you didn't want anyone to see you; if that were the case, Chika's endeavors would've found themselves equally fruitless. So then... It wasn't that you didn't want anyone to see you. You just didn't want to see her.
The fact itself didn't hurt so much as the knowledge that you were entirely justified. She was the one who called you cute every day, the one who flaunted you around as her adorable lover to everyone in sight, placing so much emphasis on the softness of your eyes and the charming nature of your smile. And when you lost those, she was the first to deem you a disgusting monster and try to murder you.
"Darling, I'm... I'm so, so sorry." She dropped to her knees in front of the still-locked door, almost like a prayer. "Please forgive me. Please..."
The sound of shuffling closer. That's progress. She continued.
"I didn't mean to scare you. I just wasn't thinking clearly, that's all. Everything's okay, so please... Open the door."
Click.
Your bodies collided with one another like bare feet sinking into wet stains on the floor. The bile in her throat almost made that a reality. Still, she managed to choke it down in the name of caring for the person she loves the most. Even if she has to remind herself the entire time who that person is.
"It's okay. We'll be okay." Her arms coiled around your form as best as they could. "Everything will be back to normal soon."
The words only rolled out of her mouth once, yet her mind was another story. After all, you weren't the one she'd been working so hard to comfort.
-
"Oh, you're back."
Vert let her words draw out with a lull. Nonchalance might've not been exactly the most fitting mask for this encounter, but the alternative—panic, rushing, full-blown terror at the thought of what words might spill out of Chika's mouth any second now—hardly appetized her. So, there they were. Standing in place. Avoiding eye contact. Anything but pushing forward and doing what had to be done.
"Have you been well?"
"Ah, yes..." Chika blinked hard. "Planeptune's Basilicom is never short of snacks."
Of course. If there was anyone in the world who would know what to do in their situation, or at least who else to ask, it would be Histoire. At least Chika got that much right. Still, for her to have properly followed through on Vert's orders just to come back with that same morose expression...
"Let's not beat around the bush any further. I see you've clearly spoken to Histoire about the matter at hand. Go on, tell me what she said."
Chika flinched. Not good.
"Well, ah, she said, uh—"
"Say it."
"...There's nothing we can do. As far as we can tell, they'll be this way forever."
The words barely came out as anything more than a whisper before her choked sobs took over, and yet they echoed against the walls loud enough to send Vert reeling with vertigo. Her vision wobbled, as did the floor. When did she get down here?
There's nothing they can do.
She could see Chika's face in front of her own, streams of tears rolling down her cheeks, but no sound.
You'll be this way forever.
A drop of water ran down her own.
Forever.
"Good morning, darling."
The door clicked behind Vert as she strolled into your room. Once again, you had made a home out of a section unviewable to the naked eye, but only for a little while. It wasn't long before she heard a familiar shuffling noise, followed shortly by the sight of you clumsily making your way forward. Apparently you hadn't quite gotten the hang of your new body yet. Not like she could blame you. She forced herself to smile, praying that it looked believable enough. You responded in kind by inching forward a little further. Good. Just what she wanted.
"Chika returned home yesterday with news."
You visibly perked up, although she really wished you hadn't. There was only so much of your sobbing her poor heart could take; knowing that her next words would wipe away that smile and bring all that sorrow back... No. It had to be done sooner or later.
"Unfortunately, it's not good news. There's no way to change you back. You..." Her lips quivered. "You'll be this way for the rest of your life."
The information wafted in the air towards you slowly, suffocatingly—and just like suffocation, it was only a matter of time before you were left wheezing and dry heaving and shaking and wishing for anything that would make things right again, anything that would stop the pain, anything to stop your own existence from feeling so terribly wrong.
Her arms wrapped around you. After all, what kind of goddess would she be if she couldn't even grant the desires of her most loyal devotee?
"Sh... It's okay, it's okay..." The words rung out with a warm, gospelesque tone. "Don't be afraid."
She held your thrashing form in place with all her strength, patiently waiting until, at long last, your body slumped onto hers. Then, she let out a long, drawn-out sigh.
"I love you, darling."
The dagger collapsed onto the floor.
