Nightshift 39: Waiting Room/Lobby 1

[falseblack]

[From here.]

Ducking into another room would likely not keep the inevitable at bay, but it did afford the variant a little peace. Or at least made any potential outbursts all the more obvious when they arrived. That wasn't really important now; there were several pens waiting in case of an interruption.

With a steady hand, Nigredo managed to work up the lighting device. Bright light fell over the path in front of him, allowing greater visibility of the area. There were chairs lined against the wall with the occasional wooden table cropping up against the flashlight's beam. A very inviting place at daytime, he was sure.

The boy pulsed his lips in thought as he tried to match up visual to experience. A waiting room? Or a lobby? Either idea made sense, if the entrance was indeed the next room over.

Comments

[purgatio]

[from here]

The door opened slowly, like a dramatic effect from an ancient movie. The white-haired Variant took his time in entering, taking slow casual steps as he glanced around the room with a judgemental air--like a relative looking down on how another lived. His gaze settled firmly on Nigredo, smug and satisfied; his grin was wide but all teeth.

Here was where his darling baby brother was hiding. Such a delight. Such a treat.

Albedo tilted his head to the side, the grin on his face sliding into a smirk. He opened his arms and held them to the sides, proving nothing but a false show. But that was what they all were. False. Made. Monsters. Traitors. Backstabbers and betrayers. Et tu, Nigredo. You're a monster, too.

His eye twitched once, but Albedo kept his show of calm and peace, staying half the room away. "Hello, my darling little brother. Did you have a good day?"

It was steps, a dance, that they both knew to be false. But Albedo would play, and play well, and see how long the baby would continue before forcing Albedo's hand.

[falseblack]

Albedo arrived, far quicker than he'd expected. Still, the younger stayed unfazed, turning to the albino as if nothing was particularly the matter. The beam followed suit, eventually coming to rest at the edge of his brother's feet.

His free hand, of course, remained inside the fold of the pant's pocket.

"What do you want?" Nigredo said simply. It was a useless question with an equally useless answer: both were well aware why the other was there. But he supposed a brother deserved a bit of banter before they got down to business.

[purgatio]

Albedo tsked, raising a finger to shake at Nigredo. "How rude. I asked how your day was and this is how you greet me? Are we to pass on pleasantries then?" His head tilted again, almost unnaturally so, as he raised his eyebrows at his sibling. Did Nigredo not want this dance? Passing it up would speed along more hands-on ways of their special bonding.

"'Daddy' should have made you take some courses on manners, little baby." Manners, killing, backstabbing. All courses viable for the Executioner to know. Wouldn't you rather your killer be polite to you as he sticks a knife in your back?

Albedo chuckled to himself, amused. This Nigredo was so harsh, so sharp. They played at being friends before it all happened, civilities masking their mutual distaste. This one thought he had a backbone. Heh. He straightened his head, raising his chin in the air. Ah, no. Nigredo had nothing.

Nothing but Rubedo. The thing he didn't deserve, and the thing he would eventually destroy. Albedo knew that now. His eyes narrowed the smallest fraction. If Nigredo didn't play his game, Albedo would remind his sweet younger brother of all the things that truly made him the worst monster of all.

[falseblack]

The younger hesitated. He wasn't fooled by that presentation, but the reference to Dr. Yuriev made Nigredo particularly sensitive. "You attacked me twice now. Without reason," he pointed out. Granted, that might have had to do with U-DO's taint, but he wasn't so naive to dismiss some true feelings playing a part. "I think we're past 'pleasantries' at this point."

Despite the dangerous emotional footing, however, Nigredo opted to prolong their "discussion" for a minute longer. There were too many reasons to list on why talking was important. Even if he'd rather they were at the opposite ends of the institute and silent.

"When did you arrive?" The surprise on Rubedo's face indicated his twin might have been a recent patient, much like Nigredo.

[purgatio]

Albedo openly laughed. Without reason, as Nigredo said, was a subject that was up for discussion. Oh, Albedo had reasons--many of them, and if he was given enough time, he would share each and every one in exquisite detail. Touching on each would be a delight to the white-haired Variant--to lay out each of Nigredo's sins.

But not yet. Not right now. He had a game to play first.

So, surprisingly, he didn't rise to a reply, merely waved his hand like it wasn't worth his effort, before crossing his arms. Albedo had all the time in the world. They could continue this. He had no problem with answering that question first, before moving to ask his own, and far more important, question. "Last night," he replied in a normal tone, neither mocking or angry, just suspiciously neutral. "I found many fun things here. Some stupid ones. But mostly..." The grin returned. "Just... fun things."

The boy took a lazy step forward, before stopping again. The little baby, whether he saw Albedo as a threat or not (whether he was smart or not), would get too nervous if Albedo moved any closer. But Albedo wanted Nigredo on edge. And it wasn't like the white-haired Variant wanted to be that close to his sibling.

Nigredo was wretched, disgusting to him. Albedo wanted to be nowhere near him. The irony that Albedo had sought Nigredo out hadn't quite registered with him.

[falseblack]

His breath crept out nasally, out of exasperation or tension Nigredo did not know. The air was too strained--their communication too false--for an accurate internal assessment. He dug his hand further into his pocket, finding small relief in the pen wrapped around his fingers.

Without thinking, the child began counting wordlessly. How many seconds until conversation shifted to action? 1. 2. 3.

"It's not very fun to me," Nigredo muttered, his tone reflecting the words. Albedo would never empathize with the statement, not that it mattered in the first place. "What do you last remember?" Some time after their disagreement, certainly, but knowing the exact when would help more than hurt.

A sudden click and another's light alerted him to an additional presence. Nothing too remarkable; they seemed only observant. The boy turned a head at the interruption, ready to answer for the variants' presence.

Thankfully, they passed on. Nigredo returned to his brother, gaze now expectant.

[purgatio]

Albedo watched his brother amusedly, absentmindedly shifting the flashlight from hand to hand. Right, left. Right, left. His gaze followed Nigredo when the boy turned his head at the intrusion, then kept watching for a moment. Let Nigredo wait. Let him get more nervous. Albedo had no plans of moving from this spot--at least for now. But let the baby sweat it out.

Of course it wouldn't be fun to Nigredo. Nigredo was the boring one, the one who always did what he was told. This kind of adventure, this kind of possibility... It was beyond the scope of Nigredo's reasoning. He couldn't see the sheer amount of options that came from a place like this.

And Albedo would learn about them all. All the pretty little things he could use to play well with his brothers. He smiled. The flashlight shifted. Right, left. Right, left.

"What do I last remember," he repeated finally, as if considering. So many answers he could give. "Perhaps... Betrayal. Perhaps pain."

Albedo raised his eyebrows at Nigredo. "Perhaps knowledge, Executioner."

[falseblack]

The word--that title served its purpose. Nigredo forgot his counting, the interruption, nearly everything. Even the question fell away from memory, disappearing from consciousness. He knew nothing of the present.

All he could recall now was dread. Dread of doing something horrible and inescapable. "What--" His mouth snapped shut. No, that wasn't right. There was a far better question to ask.

"How did you know that name?"

Executioner. Their father had used it. Citrine had used it. Albedo should hold no knowledge of it. So why was he was standing there, nonchalant, as if he had simply called him "Nigredo"? What, exactly, had the younger done to give himself away?

He tried to shift his memory to the immediate past, only to register fragments and fuzz. They had fought, yes, but there were too many missing points in the event itself. And the discrepancy began to show on the boy's face.

[purgatio]

Oh, now this was great! The surprise, the innate fear, the confusion, the searching for answers. Here was Nigredo as Albedo wanted him, ready for the white-haired Variant to pick and choose what pieces to destroy, which pieces to hurt. Albedo's face lit up with a malicious grin. Oh, the baby would get angry. Albedo would see to it. The 'tainted' brother wouldn't need to lay a hand on the younger. Nigredo would attack if Albedo pushed him hard enough.

But only so much. Until Albedo got a chance to fully ask how Nigredo had done it. So the middle brother crossed his arms smugly and took a few more steps forward; closer, but far from being close enough to harm physically. "What name, darling brother?" He tilted his head to the side again. "Executioner?" he repeated, spitting it out like it was a curse.

Albedo made a disgusted noise, the friendly tone completely dropped. "How pathetic. I was judged for clinging to Rubedo, but at least I wanted no harm to come to him. Can you say the same, Nigredo? You who are his death sentence." Albedo's eyes narrowed, his question for the time being put aside in favor of this very real threat that needed to be addressed. "You have no right to be near him."

A part of Albedo questioned his defense of Rubedo, but that part was instantly shrugged off. Decisions, decisions, and whether Albedo chose to seek comfort or retribution from his twin, that was his to find, and to look for. And no one else, not even daddy's little darling, would harm Rubedo. No one would touch him. Albedo was resolved in this, even knowing as he did the full extent of the abomination that was Nigredo.

[falseblack]

Pieces of memory jostled together in an attempt to recall. To remember. The best the variant could manage, however, was the sensation of dying. Nigredo knew the cause and the aftermath but nothing on the process. This obviously meant several truths, none of which he was ready to accept.

The grip around the pen tightened further, to the point the nerves on his fingers began to turn numb. A part of the child urged himself to slip away in self-realized shame, an act he was sure the other boy would gloat at. But doing so would confirm every word out of Albedo's mouth. It would lead to accepting the fact he didn't belong at their elder brother's side.

And Nigredo could not face that outcome.

"I don't--" he stammered, only to cut off his own words in an attempt to salvage the situation. No amount of protests would appease the accusation; in many ways, that, too, was confirmation.

Instead, he dropped his eyes and forced another question. Albedo was putting him on the spot for a reason. He had to find out just why. "What do you want?" repeated Nigredo through gritted teeth.

[purgatio]

Delight and frustration danced within Albedo. Seeing the unemotional Variant so off guard was refreshing, absolutely grand to watch. But Nigredo still had enough control to skirt Albedo's questions, ignore them like they weren't there. And as Albedo had said earlier, that was nothing but rude.

The black-haired boy needed to be shaken further. Albedo's mind flitted between points to rest on, and decided to return to his reason for stalking this brother tonight. They would discuss Rubedo later.

Albedo stepped forward once more, decreasing the gap between them. "Are you going to pretend you don't know? You can't tell me that." Albedo tipped his head down, glaring up at Nigredo. "Are you going to say you don't remember trying to kill me, Nigredo? Using what was made for Rubedo against me?"

Emotions and thoughts clashed extravagantly inside the white-haired boy. Small as it was, there remained a dash of hurt that Nigredo would have did that to him. Larger still was the chance of indignation, that Nigredo didn't remember because it wasn't important enough. Sense dictated that that wasn't true--Nigredo almost died as well, Albedo had seen to it, and that wasn't something that was forgotten so easily. The protection for Rubedo warred with the urge to destroy the both of them, and all of it was wrapped in the knowledge that Nigredo would take what he said the wrong way.

Albedo hadn't come looking for revenge this night. That would be far more sweet and well-planned. Tonight was simply to gain his powers back. Hopefully, as a rational individual, Nigredo would see fit to release whatever hold he had. But otherwise... Albedo wouldn't argue with beating it out of him.

[falseblack]

Did he remember? Not exactly.

But Nigredo knew, beyond the shadow of a doubt. All lines of logic pointed to that conclusion; there was no other way Albedo could have known. It might have still been speculation, but according to his brother's twisted little logic, it probably counted.

"You tried to kill me first," he answered as he felt the back end of his molars grind against each other. So childish. He normally wouldn't stoop to such a comeback, but what else could Nigredo say? It was the perfect truth.

The reference to Rubedo, on the other hand, he had nothing. It fell into the same category as the last; rejection was simply not enough. So instead, he went straight to what he perceived to be the point.

"Whatever you have to say, just say it." He looked up, eyes and lips set. "You're wasting both our time."

[purgatio]

"I did," he answered smugly. "It didn't seem to take though." No, no, Albedo had underestimated the younger, and that wouldn't happen again. Albedo would tread carefully, and not give in to the temptations of emotions and instinct.

Even when his instinct wanted him to rip off Nigredo's condescending little head.

His brother's (brothers? bonds of blood were so easily broken after all, and laying claim to that as family seemed laughable at best; truly disgusting at worst) words sent a sharp edge through him, tightening the muscles in his back and arms as his jaw clenched. Wasting time? Wasting time? He had all the time in the worlds to waste!

Again, emotions clashed within him. Albedo was hurt now, in a way he wouldn't admit, that Nigredo saw him only as such. But more was his pride hurt from the superior air that Nigredo was draping himself in. The baby, better than he? Oh, no. That wasn't true at all.

It wasn't true.

That thought helped him regain some sort of calm as he stood staring, glaring fiercely at Nigredo. His empty fist clenched at his side. Albedo wouldn't make a move. If he attacked now, Nigredo would use his wretched power, and Albedo wasn't confident enough that he would come back with his abilities lessened as they were.

...Whether or not Albedo wanted death at the moment was not the issue. Nigredo would not be the one to kill him.

Minutes passed as the white-haired Variant kept up his unnerving staring. Albedo had wanted to prolong the game a bit, push the younger a little further, but in the end, Albedo was only frustrating himself. Not being able to fully attack and destroy his sibling was irritating. Business then. Fun would come. The boy opened his mouth to speak, tracing his teeth with his tongue. "How'd you do it?" he asked confidently, before shaking his head.

"No, no. The how isn't really important is it? More--the why." Albedo's head tilted to the side eye, eying Nigredo with an ever-growing madness that was currently becoming present. Even in his weakened state, seeing Nigredo as something other than the canary to his cat was difficult. Especially knowing as he did how fun Nigredo could be. How intimate the cries he made in pain were. "Of course, the why for then is simple. So how about the why for now?"

Albedo's features sharpened as he grew serious, his tone hard. "Why did you limit my powers here, Nigredo? You should know very well how unhappy that would make me."

[falseblack]

Perhaps Nigredo had been unwise to be so forward. Albedo appeared unappeased, even flustered at the boy's response. What little snippets of emotion he observed could hardly be classified as pleasant. Older brother was angry, that much was certain; a physical attack might not be far behind.

The younger, on the other hand, could not bring himself to care. The gauntlet, as the saying went, had been thrown. Nigredo was more than capable of returning anything in kind. Almost, anyway.

Then, something happened. The words which Albedo spoke next did not quite register correctly in the younger's brain, leaving the child to stare blankly. "Limit your powers?" he repeated slowly. The claim sounded off, illogical. It was not as though Nigredo could call forth those powers like his waveform and sap off every life in the vicinity. Executioner required more finesse; it was not a simple ability for anyone.

Not to mention, the very thought of using that again disgusted him far more than dealing with Albedo.

[purgatio]

"Tch," the older responded in annoyance, before speaking through his teeth. "Stop pretending, Nigredo. I know very well what you're capable of. You've done it before, after all." His eyes narrowed even further. "Shut off the spiritual link, made it so I couldn't access my..." There was a twitch of a bitter smile. "Skills."

Albedo crossed his arms, fully uncomfortable now. Nigredo had the upper hand, and if he chose to use it.... But no, the baby was the good child. Whatever reasons Nigredo had for doing this couldn't be enough to continue. That would be torment, and that area of expertise belonged to Albedo, not his younger brother. Nigredo wasn't capable of it.

Still annoyed, Albedo looked off to the side, breaking the gaze-lock he had kept for the past minutes. "You must have learned a lot in a week," he added reproachfully. "To make it so I have a slower regeneration rate as well."

He eyed Nigredo for a moment, then dropped his gaze again. "You obviously weren't practicing on Rubedo at least."

[falseblack]

Nigredo resisted the impulse to sigh. It seemed so easy when the words came from Albedo's lips, enough to make arguing back a very difficult task. Indeed, the variant was capable of doing exactly as outlined by his brother. Only here, the existence of this ability was moot.

Didn't Albedo know? Whatever bindings came from Landel's, not the youngest.

"That's beside the point," he replied, almost in chastisement. "I don't have any reason to seal off another U.R.T.V.'s powers." Particularly Albedo's accelerated healing. Threats and hurt feelings aside, he didn't want to the albino to be dead.

"It was likely them," concluded Nigredo in a flat tone. His eyes narrowed at the form before him.

[purgatio]

The still-calm tone in Nigredo's voice was like an itch in Albedo's mind, something altogether too annoying to let sit. Didn't the perfect child have more than bland responses, even now? Hate, anger, annoyance. Whatever had been growing within the black-haired boy seemed to have vanished. Albedo's eye twitched. The fact that with everything said, Albedo still hadn't broken Nigredo's characteristic blandness was infuriating. Completely and entirely.

"You deny it?" the boy asked, voice rising on the last syllable. A mythological 'them' gave Albedo nothing, and the fact remained that Nigredo had pulled something like this before, if not to this extent. So it had to be Nigredo. A small twinge of doubt questioned the entire sense of that, but it was quickly brushed off, much like other issues earlier in the night.

The simple truth was that Albedo would blame Nigredo whether the other boy had did anything or not, simply to focus his mind on things other than pain and loss and abandonment. Whether this was truly conscious or not was the real question. It was at least to a degree, as Albedo saw that continued talking would result in some kind of... resolution, as it were. Perhaps not one that would even things between them, but some uneasy truce just the same, by focusing on a similar enemy.

And Albedo was not willing to go down that road. Not now.

Instead, he twisted it, letting anger flow up inside of him. Nigredo was lying, of course! The them he was referring to was false, something to distract Albedo while Nigredo either fulfilled his mission to destroy Rubedo or stole him away. And Albedo would not let that happen.

Slowly an off-color violet glow coalesced around the white-haired boy; a deep undercurrent of hot anger surging upward at the same time. Nigredo did not deserve to be around Rubedo. (Albedo did not deserve to be around Rubedo.) Nigredo shouldn't touch him. (Albedo shouldn't touch him.) Nigredo should die. (Albedo would....)

Though the night had started off differently, Albedo found himself facing a reflection of his faults once again, and his words from earlier haunted him. (I am your darkness as you are my light.) A spear of pain shot along the link, before it hardened back into anger that Albedo forced down it. {No,} he sent violently, wincing against the strange pain that came with it.

"You won't get off that easy this time." Powers be damned. (Just as they were.)

[falseblack]

Here, Nigredo committed his first grave mistake, as evident by the waves of violet seeping out of his brother like mist. He should have realized the futility of his words; reasoning went so far when it came to their relationship. Furthermore, U.R.T.V. units had the privilege of objectifying their anger so when logic cracked, the result was destruction personified. And the younger was likely on the receiving end.

It was good, then, that he had anticipated as much since the beginning.

He slipped the pen out of its cap before pulling it out of its place altogether, readying the object behind a closed fist. The hurt and the rage that filed through the link were set aside in favor of an ideal defense, though there were parts that registered on Nigredo's face. They made him regret his own choice for callousness. Never mind Albedo would never extend him the same courtesy; shared sentiments were not to be taken lightly.

Sadly, that feeling came too late. He simply had to deal.

"Do you want to kill me that badly?" For the first time in this talk, his voice carried a degree of resignation. As if everything that transpired had been pointless, which honestly wasn't far from the truth. "My answer is not going to change," he murmured softly. "No matter what you did."

[purgatio]

The energy that composed Albedo's waveform blinked out abruptly as the anger suddenly fled. The boy blinked, startled in spite of himself. Even so, his answers came as expected. "Of course," he said, although now it sounded the slightest bit forced. "You took everything."

He hadn't meant to say that. Had he? Albedo wasn't sure anymore. Hearing Nigredo ask that, as maybe he asked that day... But Albedo wasn't open to hearing his brother then, Nigredo was just a toy--And what was different now? What had changed again?

The shift inside was subtle, liable to slide backwards in a downward rush if pushed, but for now it was stuck, holding its own against the hatred born from pain that encompassed Albedo's being. But Albedo wasn't ready for that. Not willing to let that change move his actions and desires. Now now. Not so soon.

The white-haired Variant resembled a child once more, not something fully murderous and tainted. "Do you want to kill me that badly?" Of course he wanted to! Of course Albedo wanted Nigredo wiped off the face of that earth, so he couldn't bother Rubedo! And of course Albedo could come up with a varied surplus of methods and techniques for that to be accomplished. But doing so... While he retained at least a portion of his self....

The boy's face drew closed and confused, frustration evident. His head snapped up, some unreadable emotion that wasn't anger in his eyes. "Why are you so damned calm? Doesn't anything effect you?!"

[falseblack]

Gone. Both the energy and the indignation disappeared from his grasp, leaving Nigredo as thrown off as his white counterpart. Never had he expected to touch the very edge of Albedo's patience and come out unharmed. Of course, the danger had yet to pass--a downward spiral could occur at any given moment--but the fact he was still standing was significant.

In his shock, the pen slipped and clattered onto the floor. He never noticed.

"But I..." His voice sounded odd in his own ears. Nigredo wasn't someone who easily flustered in speech; having it happen again felt so foreign. "I don't want anything from you," he finished meekly.

Those, however, were all the answers Albedo would ever receive. They were the truth, certainly; coveting was a useless vice to him. What would he accomplish by taking what was another's in the first place? Obviously, the black variant was not equipped to understand his animosity, his line of thought.

So the younger of the duo resorted to what he did best when faced with the unknown: closing up outlets and staring blankly ahead. A reply would leak out matters he could not afford to lose. They were in dangerous territory on multiple factors. The last thing he should do is reflect his brother's emotions, even when that line of origin began to blur.

Let the albino think otherwise; he was better unaffected.

[purgatio]

The reaction was what Albedo was searching for however; and the small taste wasn't enough. Be it through pain or emotional discord, Albedo wanted something from his brother, some reflection of self, of emotion, that would show... Show what? Something. Anything. It didn't matter. Albedo just needed a reaction.

A reaction, or was it a connection? The black-haired Variant was so closed off--perhaps it was weight on both of whatever souls they had that they had no stronger connection than mutual distaste. For a moment in time, Albedo had paused his angry tirade of vengeance, because for a moment, briefly, he had truly seen Nigredo. As a person. As a brother. As something more. Something that couldn't just be....

The tide of emotions inside were an undertow now, and pulling out one from the rest to label it was impossible. Hate and desperation surged together freely. Amusement only danced for the briefest of moments at the dropped pen, before getting washed away. "Don't want anything?" he echoed, as surprised as the other. "What about Rubedo?"

Maybe he wouldn't have said that, moved that way, if not for the same circumstances they were in. As it were, Albedo was entirely confused by this situation, one that wasn't turning out at all in any of the ways he had planned. And still, still!, Nigredo had the gall to stand there, so effortlessly unemotional, like a signpost pointing out Albedo's flaws. Again, that emotion laced his eyes. His voice dropped dangerously. "Don't... just stand there."

[falseblack]

The subject of Rubedo had become taboo. His own stream of emotions closed in upon itself before Nigredo had a chance to process. If the conversation had been different... If the phrasing wasn't that... If they had never touched the topic of Executioner, the child might have offered his usual range of responses: Rubedo was his brother, not a possession. You weren't supposed to want people.

Instead, his mind produced nothing. Nigredo locked eyes with his brother with the same (forced) quiet stare as before. Lips and expression remained sealed, though an acute observer might note the tension laced in his posture, like crutches attempting to hold up an overflowing levee. Perhaps nothing wasn't really nothing at all.

He only moved when the other boy spoke, who talked in a tone he unfortunately recognized. Green eyes broke away and fell to a spot on the ground, noting with some irritation he had dropped his pen. Without a word, Nigredo stooped down, aiming for retrieval.

[purgatio]

That was it. Any chance that Nigredo had at civilities was thrown out the door. If the boy had talked, spoke with the tainted Variant, things might have turned out differently. As it was, Albedo's temper flared yet again.

Condescending, and now ignoring him completely--not even seeing fit to respond to his non-hostile questions. If there was ever an example that Nigredo thought nothing of him, and saw Albedo as a waste of time, this was it. Nigredo was shutting him out. Closing him off. Just like before. Just like Rubedo had.

The moment of some kind of understanding had passed. Albedo allowed his fractured psyche to weigh the blame on Nigredo once more, and react accordingly.

Nigredo didn't want to talk. Fine. Albedo wouldn't try to talk anymore.

When Nigredo leaned down to pick up his pen (more ignoring, more uncaring), Albedo leapt forward in the distance between them. The flashlight he had toyed with earlier raised up; the bottom end aiming for the back of his sweet little brother's skull.

[falseblack]

About time. It wasn't like them to hold a delay in these matters. What tension he held vanished at the sight of the attack, and the younger variant revealed exactly how uncaring he could be.

His low stance placed Nigredo in a favorable position. The rushing albino could only focus on the very tips of his hair, allowing him to see the rest and strike out favorably. This should come as a surprise; he really should have considered his feet first, that Albedo.

Nigredo swerved his head to the side, narrowly missing the butt end of the flashlight by mere millimeters. Using what momentum available, the child then struck out a foot in a sweeping kick, aiming directly for his brother's unstable legs. Nothing too drastic. Albedo always had a chance of countering.

But thankfully, incapacitation was not his aim. Catching the elder off guard would do adequately.

[purgatio]

The shift in mentality was strong and fierce when Nigredo dodged and then defended; training took over from where hurt left off. Never one to dodge, Albedo stepped into the kick, putting more force behind it to send his upper half slamming towards his brother. Familiar--yes. But altogether effective just the same. His empty hand shot out at the same time, going for Nigredo's neck. The black-haired Variant might dodge one, but Albedo was counting on Nigredo's speed not having improved over the past week to the point of dodging both.

Either way, they had all night, and Albedo was only starting to shove down anything that might be real in favor of the more exquisite pain that was to come (but to which, it wasn't preferred). A few more minutes, and he might be laughing and mocking the younger. As it was, Albedo was eerily quiet, as if copying the other boy.

A few more minutes, and maybe he'd still be as quiet. Maybe he had took this more seriously than was previously thought. Regardless, a dance was a dance, and he knew these steps all too well.

Albedo understood this language far better than anything else.