American Horror Story 1. Chapter 1

When she wakes, her first thought is the pounding at the back of her skull and the ache in her shoulders.

Her eyes are clamped together by choice of her own, and no light shines through, so she assumed that it must be night. Or she was at home, but she never got wasted enough to forget a night, so that was out of the question. Besides that, wherever she was reeked of gasoline, and reminded her of something lost in the mind of the girl who inhabited this body primarily before her.

Her mind was fuzzy and tired, and whatever it was, she couldn't shake it off. Her limbs felt stiff and heavy, and moving them seemed like too strenuous a task for her to complete. It didn't matter. She'd recover fast, she always did. She could feel her body move without her consent, and wondered if Mary Eunice was as bad as she was, or was just rushing to take the helm. She quickly reined her back in, ignoring the screams that made her head hurt, and tried to focus again.

Trying to open her eyes, and realizing that she could not, was what brought her mind back to her body's turmoil.

That was an overstatement, she could open her eyes. There was something covering them that blocked her vision however, so she quickly backed away to depend on her other senses. She couldn't leave herself defenceless and shaking just because something was on her face. The real Mary Eunice was crying again, fearing for her body, but Lilith had other ideas.

Taking stock of herself, she flexed her arms, raised above her head as they were and rotated her wrists. Rubbed bare, but she could not remember injuring herself. Metal encased her hands, clasped together s9 they could not move, but she feels as though she could rock her body if she needed too.

The room feels humid, and moving her head she notices that her hair is loose and damp, clinging to her scalp, which itched. She rolled her shoulders. She tasted metal and stale air, and gritted her teeth against the fabric she had failed to notice filling her mouth. She gasped around it for air. There was a very slightly scent of perfume in the room, which was not her own.

Straining her ears she heard nothing but her own breathing, and the whimpers that escaped whenever she accidentally brushed her raw flesh against what bound it. Her chains holding her hands up clicked and clashed together as she body shuddered, suddenly cold, though she knew she still wore her habit. Missing her wimple and scapula though.

Desperately trying to call back her last moments, nothing concrete came to mind. Briarcliff had been a mess if she remembered correctly, with people dashing around like idiots about some escapee. She had in fact been one of these idiots, but took it all with a more relaxed air. Not many people could really get out without some form of assistance.

She felt a twinge on her neck and angled against it. It hurt, and heat radiated off of it like a festering wound. That would mean she was out for much longer than a day, which couldn't be possible. Not for her body anyway. Not without something she had yet to come across on her travels through countless other bodies and that didn't exist.

Falling silent, she tried to build the world around her. As much information as she could build up would air her later. Mary Eunice was panicked but she was not. Not much could scare her. Nothing at all, in fact.

But there was a creak in her silence. Something that shattered it like glass and sent her heart beating fast. She could not melt metal to free herself, no matter what power she may hold. Her body was still human, and would die. So when she heard the sound of a something heavy weighing down on wood, it shook the air from her lungs. This was a threat that she had no control over without her sight.

A door clicked shut carefully, and there were more footsteps. They were uneven, like this person was carrying something heavy, but she concentrated on something else. Water. She could smell it in the air, and with the scent came the craving. Her mouth was dry and her headache grew like fire across her forehead.

"You're awake." The voice seemed off, words not connecting in her head correctly and she shook it to get rid of the buzzing. "Really because I think you're lying." Her voice was distinctive, but she couldn't place it.

She could hear this person, the woman, moving around, placing her items on something to Mary's right before making her way closer. Feeling unsafe, Mary Eunice swung back as far as her bindings would allow her, though it was useless and cold hands came into contact with her clammy skin. They wandered up her jaw to her hairline, brushing the hair from her face as she did. Cold air met her heated skin and she sighed. "Thirsty?"

Parched. "I'm gonna take the gag off now, but don't say anything, or you get nothing." Mary Eunice nodded, and felt the fabric being ripped from her lips as she parted them. The water was a kick in the guts, freezing cold and she gulped down as if her life depended on it. Even then, it slipped out the corners of her mouth at the angle it was being held. "Always in such a hurry?" The water was pulled away.

The voice was mocking, but something inside Mary Eunice, the real Mary Eunice, perked up at the words. She knew those words. She knew that voice. Lana Winters. The nun cried out the name silently, excited at the prospect of a kind face and possibly a more gentle hand that what she was becoming accustomed too, but Lilith knew better and kept her mouth shut, begging her body to give her her breath back.

She could call forth the memories Mary had lived through, but she knew this one already. Lana was a very popular constant in the young nun's mind at the start, when the fight for control was more of a battle, and she knew each and every memory well. She had found it ironic; that the moment she had been opened up to the idea of a relationship between women she had fallen prey to exactly that. Unrequited as it was and unmentioned as it had gone.

Silence stretched, and Lana gave her some space, backing away and rummaging through her pack. There were waves of something wafting off of this woman, and it was anything but friendly. Even Mary Eunice was beginning to feel the awkwardness and backed down.

It was a moment longer before Lana spoke up again, her voice filled with a little more purpose now. "You know who I am?"

Nodding furiously, Mary Eunice caught her breath by pure force and spoke aloud for the first time. "Lana Winters." Something crackled in the air. The devil could sense it, an emotion pouring from the brunette like lava from the crater of a volcano. She ignored it. "Are you going to take off my blindfold?"

Lana's answer was immediate, a laugh that tore through Mary Eunice's chest like a knife. It felt strange, faked. Mary Eunice knew something faked better than anyone else. It didn't suit this woman though, not like it did herself. "Not yet." Lana replied.

"Why not?" Her voice was surprisingly even and she liked that.

"Would you take it off if you were in my position? And me in yours?" Lana scoffed, because she already knew the answer, and listened to the silence echo off the walls of her basement as she did. "Thought so."

Mary Eunice would have glared if she could, and instead settled for a sneering smile. "I would." She paused for a minute. "I'd take the cuffs off too. I mean dignity is never too much to ask for."

"You want to try lying to me again?" Lana growled. "I don't think you're in any position to be so rude." Mary Eunice gritted her teeth, fighting weakly against her bonds while trying to make it look as though she wasn't. "Besides, that couldn't have been on your mind when we were inside your precious asylum… and they're not cuffs, by the way. Guess again."

Rattling them, Mary Eunice smiled. "Metal though, right?"

"Yes."

"I still have no idea." Lana shook her head at the words, spoken through laughter as they were, though her guest could not see it. Her eyes glowed under the electric light that shone down from a single light bulb, an unearthly gold and her stomach churned with the intent of her visit. This may have been her new home, but she had left the basement virtually alone as she settled back in. She hadn't dared go back to the house she had shared with Wendy (the name sent ice through her chest), and driving with Satan knocked out in the backseat had been a chore in itself, but she had had plans that could not go unfulfilled, and which required the nun's assistance to complete. The fortunes had been in her favour, and her new home had presented itself to herself as soon as she had begun to wish for it as night had fallen and the stars had made themselves visible.

Mary Eunice hadn't woken up for another two days. She actually hadn't planned that part.

But she had gone over this a million times before.

The rattle of Mary Eunice's chains brought her back to reality, and she cocked her head to the side to observe for a moment. The girl struggled, though she seemed calm. Her hands, fastened by two rounded shackles she had found in the garden (for dogs maybe) –stainless steel and well used- and connected together by iron chains, which she had fastened to the roof by throwing one over the pipes that ran along the ceiling and shortening the bindings to her liking, were raw and bloody by then. She felt a pang of sympathy that faded the moment her eyes wandered back down to her face, only to be replaced by disgust at both Mary Eunice and herself. She deserved no comforts now.

Maybe it was simply a blessing that Mary Eunice had stayed out so long. Bound only in rope, she had been much more of a liability.

Now she hangs defenceless before her, a sick comparison to crucifixion. More like a witch trial, Lana daydreamed, drifting her way over slowly. Her body was jumpy and her hands shook with adrenaline, but it didn't stop her.

Truth be told, she despised Mary Eunice. This version of her was a demon, and Lana knew that now. She'd seen it, creeping in corridors and watching the singular body wrestle with itself as if something was trying to claw its way out of the blonde. Maybe even Mary Eunice herself. It had been a while since Lana had seen that happen, and she worried for the poor girl, trapped in there with a devil.

Was she even still in there? Lana wasn't sure, but she was hopeful. Mary Eunice had been a sweeter soul than any other in that hellhole, and was the last one Lana would have sent to the Devil's doorstep during her first few weeks, but yet there they were.

"Do you know where we are?"

"That was your job." Mary Eunice smiled, but it felt more like an animal baring their teeth to Lana. She sneered back. Good, she thought, she doesn't know.

"I always kind of assumed you could read minds…" She pondered, eyeing the gun to her right and wondering if the other woman knew it was even there.

Mary Eunice shook her chains, almost losing her balance for a second, and smiled. "I'm not a magician, Lana." She replied. Lana hated the way she said her name, mocking her like she was a child. She closed her eyes and closed her fists for a moment, before relaxing her body with a breath. "I can't pull party tricks… I do know that you've been thinking pretty hard lately about something. Something big?"

Mary's habit was open at the back, as Lana had left it, and all the movement had loosened it further. It fell down around the nun's shoulders, exposing the straps of her lingerie underneath, and Lana knew exactly what she was up to the moment she saw the smallest hint of colour. Sister Mary Eunice had been very interested in her 'illness' before she had escaped, and seemed to remain that way now, but seduction was not the right way to go in this situation. But it did spark an idea that made Lana grin.

She wondered again if Mary Eunice still existed in this body before her. She dwelled on it for a moment, her heart bleeding for the blonde, but brushed it aside, mind made up. It had already been thought on, but with Mary Eunice in front of her now it seemed so much more appealing.

She could break the Devil. She was positive. It would be revenge sweeter than any killing. If Mary Eunice happened to still be in there… well she would be freed after her sufferings. Christians thought that right?

Lana had never really listened in Sunday school.

"Why am I here, Lana?" The silence was broken and with it Lana's daydreams. She'd been doing that so much lately, her mind escaping to its own devices, that it had become too hard for her to reel it back in without prompting. Good thing she had this loud mouth to keep her head on.

Squaring her shoulders, she strode forward and grasped the Devil by the hair, her hands winding in through grease and grime. A small spattering of blood soiled the gold, a reminder of her first attempt to knock out the immortal monster that lived in the nun, and was drying into a crust after the days left there. Her speech was honeyed when she finally spoke in reply. "You're here because I brought you here."

Mary Eunice strained her neck away. She could feel a wound at the back of her head crack open upon contact with Lana's hand and ooze hot liquid down her back. Lana didn't retract like she had expected at the obvious dismissal, and instead sought after the source, hands curling into stained locks and pulling her down to her height. It put strain on her triceps and she rolled her shoulders to help relax them, but it was no help, the angle they had been bent at as too much.

"And why would you do that?"

Lana's nails drew themselves along her scalp, scratching away the dried blood but releasing more as she went. "I had a way out, got one organised a while back with one of the other nuns. She knew I wasn't crazy, and after I told her what you did to Sister Jude she had more than enough reasons to get me out of there." She drew her hand back. "I brought you with me because you are Sadist, and a sickness on that building."

Mary Eunice laughed. "So you knocked me out and dragged me here?"

"Actually, I knocked you out when you came in to try and drug me… and then drugged you." Lana spat. "Not with those things you give me though, I stole some mean ones from Dr. Arden when you two went out for one of your little evening walks together. Thought the mixture might kill you but I guess not…"

A cocktail. That wasn't something she was trained too, and Lana was right, it could have killed her. "You wanted me dead?" Mary Eunice asked, voice a little breathy.

"Sorry if I've offended you, but yes."

"And you thought injecting me would do the trick? Please, Judy had better ideas to get rid of me that you did!" Sister Mary Eunice drawled her words blindly in Lana's direction, shaking her head to get her hair out of her face. Lana had let it fall there earlier. Blood had mixed in so well the yellow that it seemed orange under the light. "Even if you had killed me, I would take you instead. Then what would you do? Overdose? Hang yourself from the nearest tree when you realize that it's my hands that are trailing down your thighs in the middle of the night when you think of your dear Wendy-" The response was instant, but not what she had expected.

Mary Eunice felt her body being flung back and the words died in her throat. All of a sudden she didn't feel so confident in her manipulation, as something sharp was pressed against her neck that she could not see, and Lana's breathing send hot shivers down her back. The older woman was close now, pressed up against her front, and the real Mary Eunice whimpered where she could not be heard. She could almost taste fury in the air.

"Don't talk about her here." If she strained herself, Mary Eunice fancied the idea of what Lana looked like now, so close to her face and so engulfed in hellfire. "This isn't Briarcliff. You can't snap your fingers and have the guards hose me down. You might have power I don't know about but that can't free you." She blew out air through her noise, in a laughing kind of way. "Only I can do that."

She was smiling, she could feel it, and she pushed off of Mary Eunice so that the blonde was thrown back further, the metal of her bindings cutting into her wrists so deep as to draw a gasp from her lips. "See, now you get it." She said, quietly delighting in her accomplishment. She'd made this Devil hurt, and it felt a lot better than she had ever dreamed it could. Lana licked her lips, and placed her hands on her hips to keep them from moving too much.

Mary Eunice pulled herself forward with little effort, but she knew Lana was pleased by the sight and it disgusted her. She remained quiet, learning her lesson faster than any emotional mortal could.

She could feel Lana's presence, about a meter in front, staring her down, and the essence that remained inside of her wanted to shield her body somehow. The demon had other plans, and kept them close to her chest. Hidden was safer, after all.

Instead she let Mary Eunice curl into herself just enough to give Lana the upper hand, a confidence boost to make her big headed enough to think she could ever win. She couldn't.

Never.

* * *

Lana had left her not long after, with the knowledge that screaming was pointless and would lead to a pattern of starvation. That would have been enough on its own, but the gag was put back in its place and Mary Eunice resented it for all it was worth.

She had slept in that position for the night, and woke with her hair plastered to her body and the feeling in her arms absent. She would have cried out if not for the gag keeping her quiet, and the threat that still rang in her ears. Her stomach had ached during the night, and though it gave Lilith no issues, it made the nun inside of her cry. Her body needed that nourishment after so many days unconscious and even she had to admit that it would die without it.

She had lied to Lana earlier. She knew that she could not possess the body of the young journalist the way she did Mary Eunice's. The nun had been pure of body and spirit, and Lana was not, especially now that she had imprisoned her. Her thoughts were dark and twisted now, and her soul had been tainted by them. If Mary Eunice was to die, Lilith would have to leave this mortal realm to wait for another suitable vessel, with purity and power. That would take too long.

Yet there was a darkness in Lana Winters, one that fascinated her. She fed from it. Living so near to something as tainted as herself was a treat it itself but also a chore. This was what clashed with her, more than the brunette's sharp wit or power ever could.

All she had achieved the previous day was to piss her off. It did bring her some element of content to see Lana riled but if she were to take it out on flesh that may be a different story. Her stomach rumbled again but the pain was gone, faded away with the prolonged hunger. At the sound, as if queued, Lana opened the heavy door, carrying something again, but minus the heels this time.

"Hi," she whispered, as if nervous to break the quiet. Mary didn't even try to respond. "Sorry it took me so long, I was finishing off something in the living room. This place is a mess…" Lana placed her things carefully down on that same table to her right and removed her gag again but a flourish Mary Eunice could not see. "You know not to talk this time, right?"

Mary Eunice nodded frantically, and accepted the water she was offered, much calmer than before. Lana sighed. "I have food too if you stay quiet." It made Mary Eunice curse her stolen body for crying out to the words with sound, but she said nothing and let Lana laugh at the sound. "Never mind the last part, but the offer is still on the table."

Mary Eunice pulled away from the water, trying to land a little on her skin before Lana pulled it back and half succeeding. It spilled onto her front, unsticking some of the blood there until it was pulled away and the humid, yet cold air hit her wet skin. With some kind of effort, she used the last remaining strength in her arms and buckling legs to make herself stand again, forcing the blood in her body to flow again for warmth. Her habit had been fighting to hang at the edges of her shoulders for days, and the sensation made her feel claustrophobic but it went unsaid.

Lilith had the luxury of being able to live virtually without complaint in any conditions, but Mary Eunice was growing pained and tired. Listening to the cries get weaker and weaker was the only indication the Devil was given on her body's failing.

Lana knew though. She must look terrible to see, lying drenched in the blood Lana had let her bleed and crumpled like a broken puppet on strings. Her eyes covered, her powers were not so much useless as they would be misguided. Using her telekinesis would be difficult without being able to see more of her assailant's body mass, and even if she were to knock Lana away purely by chance, what then?

She didn't know, and the idea was stupid. Why bother, when she could break Lana slowly, over time, and work her way out? There was much this body was capable of and she knew it. That was part of what made Mary Eunice such a temptation in the first place. That and her influence, but she had no power of that sort here, and would rely on the former.

Lust was a mastery that she had perfected centuries ago, something she could smell off of mortals like a hound could blood. Inside her, the young girl screamed out but it was dimmed, her other senses blocking it as she took in the room around her. Lana was nearby, and she could smell food. Toast maybe, but she didn't care. She was easily distracted, and Lana was one hell of a distraction.

Meanwhile, Lana watched, head cocked to the side. She had made this girl bleed. She could see the shake in her legs and the redness of her wrists. Physically, she seemed weak. Lana wasn't going to take any chances on her though, not after what she'd seen.

Suddenly, a rush of memory flashed through her, hot as lava and burning into her brain. Some creatively pieced together, deaths she knew this bitch to be the cause of, and others of the nun she had been before. An innocent that had accidently led her into this world, that she almost tainted with her blackmail once upon a time. Mary Eunice, the one bound in chain before her, groaned and jolted her out of her thoughts, attempting to capture her attention maybe, but all she felt for the creature then was disgust.

The transformation had gone unnoticed for too long, and now that nun could be gone forever. A small part of Lana was upset for the lost soul, as sweet as she had been, but the larger part of her wanted to see the blonde's body's blood split over her floor and her tears leaking through her lips into her mouth when she cried, so much that she may choke on them.

The idea drove her forward, the fury she felt for the monster mixing with the desire for her blood controlling her hands. One was clasped around Mary Eunice's neck before she could so much as think about the effects of her actions, but watching the blonde draw back was enough of a reward.

Her other hand had fallen on Mary's waist to keep her own balance, and the nun's hips strained to keep in place, as if desperate to keep the contact, though the idea did not stick in Lana's mind. Instead, her eyes were locked into Mary's face, watching her teeth gritting together into a sneer as she fought back. It was too weak to be real. Silence stretched between them.

"You're a monster." Lana hissed. Her face was so close to Mary's by then that she could almost taste her breath. "You're everything bad in this world and I've trapped you here… so easily…" She drawled, voice lazy but her words alit with fire. "I'm going to ruin you."

Mary Eunice grinned. "Are you sure? Because I think it will be the other way around." Lana wasn't sure, but she thought she might have felt the blonde's hips grind against her hand. She kept herself steady.

Thought it went unseen, Lana shook her head. Her hand had loosened on the nun's neck, and rested instead on her bare shoulder, where it had moved when Mary did. Her skin was extremely hot to the touch, and her hands had been cold before. They burned on contact with pale flesh, and Mary Eunice gasped. It was put on, Lana could tell, but that didn't stop her freezing up at the sound.

It was guttural and whiney and it sent a wave of heat radiating down her body. Her breath hitched for a second. Mary Eunice leaned against her weight, and when Lana's right hand slid down from her waist to her thigh, she either didn't notice or didn't care. She drew back, looking at the girl carefully, a confused look in her eyes. The rage inside of her yearned for her to continue, and seeing the body that had once belonged to another only fuelled it.

Mary Eunice could sense something in the air. She knew that Lana was affected by her, she knew that without a doubt. So when she felt Lana's touch move she rolled her hips against her, driving her on. She could make this woman fall for her. She knew she could. Lana may have had other ideas, but she liked this one.

Lana's hand that was still on her shoulder gripped tight, to the point of bruising if Mary had been any other being. She wasn't, and if anything, it made her want it more. Lana was gaining confidence fast, her body reacting to Mary's gyrating against her and in the blink of an eye (even imagined as it was) she was on her.

Closer now, Mary Eunice felt brown hair tickling her neck, and hot breath on her clavicle. "I can break you, you know that?" Despite herself, Mary Eunice sighed at the tone, her legs shaking now for another reason. By choice, but the sensations still gave her goosebumps.

As she could make her body ignorant to its own pain, she could awaken it to its pleasures, and though she had become prone to simply ignoring her chances for this, the more playfully, devilish side of her was curious to see how Miss Lana Winters could bring a woman to orgasm. Even if it was through hate.

Maybe that could even be better.

So she nodded, and let Lana's hand part her legs. Her habit bunched up around her waist easily at the touch of the journalist's hand, and her tights had been ripped beyond recognition at some point in her capture. Lana didn't touch her though.

"You're a sinner for this." She murmured, and inside her, Mary Eunice McKee whimpered.

"I'm the Devil."

Lana laughed. "Hmm, some Devil."

Mary Eunice growled, but with her body open to the reactions of would have felt without her present, when Lana brushed against her core, even the slightest touch, she quietened. She'd stopped wearing Mary's ugly underwear sets when she had gotten her hands on Jude's lingerie, and a part of her regretted it now. She was too weak to Lana's will. "See." Lana whispered, voice lowering. The rasp made Mary groan. "You're nothing here."

Lana was gentle. Too gentle. She was hardly even touching her, brushing just enough to make her hips buck to the pressure, but not nearly enough to get her off. She hadn't had a decent orgasm since entering this body, not one she hadn't had to give to herself anyway. Those weren't the same. The only pleasure she had taken was listening to the nun cry about it.

She smiled at the memory. Lana couldn't see it, her body was still pressed to close to see her face, but as if she had, she sank her teeth into Mary's shoulder hard enough to even draw blood. The smile dropped as she cried out in pain, but the brunette didn't care. Her hand played carefully with her clit, circling it but never coming into direct contact more than a brush, before dipping back to her entrance, collecting wetness on her fingers but never entering her. Mary Eunice cursed quietly under her breath, desperate not to give Lana satisfaction of a moan but feeling it battling against her will, while Lana's teeth bit into her flesh again, leaving the marks to bleed. She nipped her way further up the blonde's neck, curiously searching for that sound again.

Mary Eunice's head feel to the side to give Lana more skin to map out with her mouth. She could feel every inch of this woman before her, pressed to her front, through their clothes. She wanted to feel it without them but that would be too much of a submission. Lana wanted her to want it.

"Are you going to fuck me?" she asked with panting breaths and a wicked tongue. "Or are you just playing around?" She could feel Lana stiffen, but her words did nothing to change her pace.

Lana's hand slid slowly through her folds, wet with her juices, and she drew them across her legs, leaving trails of damp in her wake. "Mmm," Lana hummed in her ear, voice a little higher now, normal. The hand that was not between Mary's legs moved up to caress her neck where the indents of her teeth marred milky skin. "Maybe…" Her index finger finally came into contact with Mary Eunice's swollen clit, rubbing slow figures of eight over the nerves.

"What?" Mary Eunice gasped for air, hardly hearing the words at all. Lana's ministrations on her skin were enough to turn her mind to mush. Her breathing came out in pants and her eyes were clenched shut, though she was desperate to see. The blindfold had ridden up slightly, rubbing against Lana's head, but not enough to grant her sight anyway.

"I could leave you here like this." Lana whispered into her ear. Mary Eunice's legs finally buckled under her weight and her wrists screamed in protest as they fought to keep her upright. Lana's hand pressed roughly against her centre and she mewled in shock. "Just leave you begging for more, hanging here all night." She grinned. "I think I will."

Her body vanished, but Mary Eunice could still feel her heat, so she couldn't be far off. Her hand drew back slowly, once more toying with her slowly, brushing carefully through her folds once more, and even pausing at her clit. She rubbed gentle circles there for a moment, locking her eyes with Mary's covered ones, wonder growing in her belly. She had her.

"Do you want me to stop?"

Mary Eunice rasped out her answer as quickly as her broken breaths would allow her. "N-No."

"Good." Lana pulled back, admiring the wetness on her fingers for a moment, smirk growing steadily. Mary Eunice's mouth dropped open in shock.

"What the fuck?" She yelled, pulling on her bindings. She didn't fail like that. Once she could get someone going they didn't just _stop_. Ever. "You can't just leave it there. You think you can't finish me or what?" She prompted with a tease, hoping to awaken Lana's pride, but it was all for nought.

"I know I could finish you, I just prefer not to." Lana said, voice relaxed now, like she hadn't just had her hands between the nun's legs. "Besides where's the fun in letting you cum, when I could be upstairs with a glass of wine, knowing your down here willing to beg for me?"

"I wouldn't beg for you."

"We'll see." Lana reached over to clean her hands on Mary Eunice's costume. The blonde fumed silently beneath her hand. Lana watched her breathing, heavy and slow and, satisfied that she'd pushed enough of her buttons for the night, turned on her heel. "Goodnight, Sister." She called over her shoulder, ignoring the curses that blonde hurled at her. She'd leave the gag out tonight, and fall asleep listen to that voice. Hell, she might even dose off quicker that way. "Sweet dreams."


	2. Chapter 2

Time passed slowly down in the basement.

There were no clocks to measure the hours, or even a window to let her know if it were night or day, so how long she had spent in Lana's care could only be guessed with a little logic and imagination. Though she always asked and always guessed wrong, Lana seemed to enjoy humouring her little form of entertainment.

With time her head cleared, and her senses were returned. Slowly of course, but she was recovering. Her injuries had not festered too badly, besides the one on the back of her neck, one of the deeper ones she had always felt edgy about. Lana splashed cold water on it from time to time to lessen the heat, though Lilith wasn't too bothered about it. Mary Eunice was terribly worried, of course, and the Devil could call up memories of other wounds inflicted on the girl but wasn't exactly pressed to do so.

Thankfully the soul of the blonde nun had calmed down a little, and her cries had faded in volume and even disappeared on some days. Truly, she was just glad of the peace and quiet.

Lana came down once or sometimes twice a day to check on her, and empty the disgusting bucket between her legs that Mary tried her hardest to ignore. Sometimes she brought food or drink and sometimes it was just to hurl insults. Often she tested the strength of her makeshift prison by throwing the young nun backwards against the restraints, like it was some kind of tension release for the brunette. Maybe it was, she didn't care either way. She cared more for her cut up wrists.

More often than that, Lana was wicked. Insults had never bothered the Devil like they had Mary Eunice, and pain didn't do much to break her spirit either, but Lana was relentless. Mary had always known she was a stubborn person but this was ridiculous. Lana just didn't break like the other humans she had had to deal with did. Her mind was too far gone.

It seemed as if no matter how many days may have passed or meals she had had to eat out of the older woman's hands like a dog, she had yet to build up her defence to Lana's advances. Then again it wasn't as if she could fight her off even if she wanted too, but a bit of self-control would have done all the difference for her wounded pride. She'd only ever even gotten her off once, though Mary was sure that had been an accident, so trying to get away from those wandering hands would only have been logical. Not that her body seemed to care for logic.

However, being left on the cusp of all she desired was not the worst thing about her situation. No, that honour remained firmly in the clasp of silence.

The quiet was one of the most suffocating things she had ever experienced in all her years of existence. Hell was the loudest place in the universe, but yet this drafty room deafened her.

Once or twice, she had even delighted in hearing Lana's decent into the basement, just because it broke the horrific nothing that consumed the room each day, and gave her something to listen to besides her own broken breathing. It wasn't much, but it helped her hold her head when all she wanted was to cave in on herself.

"This place is disgusting." Lana was talking to herself again, muttering as she pulled on Mary Eunice's chains to test the stability. She seemed to wipe her hands off on her dress but Mary couldn't see. "You're disgusting…" She knew the blonde couldn't answer around her gag, but seemed to take something from speaking to her anyway. "Everything needs to be cleaned. Can't even stand a few weeks, can you?" A few weeks?

Mary Eunice huffed out a sound, stiff around her gag, which made Lana eyes almost slide shut, deep in thought, travelling back further in time than she usually went. "What did you once say to me? Or to your guards, even?" She stalked closer to the bound girl, taking careful steps and smiled, hitting on the memory she wanted. "'Strip her down and boil her for twenty minutes', that was it right?" Mary Eunice pulled at her bindings roughly, as if she could pull them apart by mere willpower.

Lana pushed back some of her filthy hair with one hand. "I'm right, aren't I?" She mocked, asking questions purely because she knew they would go unanswered. "And because I know you would never have done anything to hurt me back in Briarcliff, I'm sure you wouldn't mind if I used that same prescription on yourself…" She trailed off, backing away from the former nun to assess herself. "Just how to do it…" She was thinking aloud so Mary Eunice ignored her, tilting her head back to work out a bad kink instead. Her neck had been troubling her since she first woke.

She'd found it best to ignore Lana's spiels. It pissed her off knowing that Mary Eunice would tune her out, and that was the best entertainment she could dream of whilst trapped down there. Besides, Lana hadn't ever attempted to hurt her too badly, so a little fun wouldn't go amiss. If anything it would just make the reporter angry, and a little sloppy, and she could use that.

Today was not one of Lana's angry days. In fact, she seemed to reach a conclusion in herself and turned on her heel before Mary Eunice could so much as realize she was being abandoned again. Without her food for the day. She rolled her eyes behind her blindfold, once again wishing she could get it off without acting like an trashing animal, and listened instead to Lana crashing about upstairs. She'd learned to be able to listen out for the brunette's movements, and could track her around the house if she wished it. She usually didn't, but it was something to think about when she was feeling a little more brain dead than usual and wasn't willing to let the girl she had possessed take control for a while.

The real Mary Eunice seemed to be getting lazy, and sighed dramatically every so often just to get some attention, or maybe she just didn't like the silence. The Devil had caught her chuckling to herself sometimes, and wondered if all of this was having the backwards affect desired by everyone else, and attacking the young girl instead, but it didn't particularly matter. Mary Eunice had given up her body to her to do as she pleased with it, and with Lana in now control she had two beings she was going to have to queue behind and she would have to learn the reality of that. If she broke herself so be it, it wasn't Lilith's problem.

Listening carefully, she tracked Lana outside (where she lost her for a while) and back in, carrying something she had picked up on her journeys. It must have been large enough, and Lana was struggling with it, evident in her odd gait. Mary Eunice smiled around her gag at the idea, but was clueless as to the point. She'd figure it out in due time, trying to rush anything around this place just ruined the surprise anyway.

Lana practically fell down to her in a flurry of invisible movement and loud banging. There was the distinct sound of water splashing in a bucket. The reporter cursed quietly, under her breath as if she could ever get away with it without her charge noticing, but Mary let it slide. She couldn't even jibe at her without her voice, and laughing around it only made Lana laugh too which defeated her point.

Lana had managed to get herself, as well as all she carried down the steps to be presented in front of the former Sister while her thoughts were elsewhere. She let out a groan and Mary Eunice heard a crack sound that made her recoil inside a little. It had always bugged her when people did that. Cracking their bones.

"You need a bath," Lana mused, almost too quiet to be speaking to the blonde. She wandered over to the table to the right and placed a few (glass?) objects down. "And I know that this probably isn't what you had in mind but it's the best I could do." Mary Eunice hung her head for a moment, the primal desire to see almost getting the best of her. She swallowed it down. Adrenaline went shooting up her arms at the idea, and they tensed.

Either not noticing or being too big headed to care, Lana stirred the water around with her hand, searching. She'd added some cheap soap from her own bathroom on her way down to the basement that bubbled up as she moved, shielding her prize. She was in no rush, and instead relaxed in the luke warm water. Finally, her fist closed around a rag and she pulled, ringing it out quickly and letting the water splash onto the floor. She'd always loved rooms where small mistakes like that didn't matter so much.

She let out a slow breath and lifted her eyes back to the demon in chains. "I need to get you out of that dress… without letting you…" she seemed confused, if Mary Eunice was reading her right. She usually was right, but not this time.

Before she had time to listen to her breathing change at the strain of movement, Lana was right in front of her, and something hard was pressed into her side. "You won't object right?" Lana whispered, lowering her lips to Mary's ear, close enough to feel the younger woman's unease. "To this getting a little torn up?"

Mary Eunice made no move to respond, and Lana drew the knife from her side up along the curve of her waist and the swell of her breasts to her throat. The blade played along the dips in her neck effortlessly, but never pricked her skin. "I'll take that as a yes." Lana chuckled, sliding the sharp edge down the nun's right shoulder, not bothered to protect her skin anymore as she turned her attention to cutting along the fabric of her habit.

Mary Eunice struggled for a moment, but was quietened by the sharp sound of a clearing throat from her capto. "Stop that." Lana ordered, voice hard. "Or my hand might slip." No more words were exchanged after that, the intentions were clear enough.

Lana's knife cut along her arms in a somewhat straight line both ways, and the dress fell from her easily once it was undone from the back fully. The air was freezing on her newly bared flesh, the dampness of the air clinging to her the moment her clothing was shed. Her red lingerie remained, giving her some sense of modesty and pride, but listening to Lana's deep, humoured breaths made her want to clamp her legs shut. She couldn't, that would mean her wrists would be taking her weight again, and she couldn't let them bleed further.

The brunette had backed off ever so slightly, and Mary Eunice could feel her eyes trailing her body. "So you wear all this," she sighed, mock confusion coating her words. In her head, Mary Eunice could imagine her gesturing to her outfit, blade still in hand, but forgotten. "But forgo on underwear?"

She was smiling wickedly, it was audible in her voice, and it made Mary wish she could wipe it off her face. She stayed quiet, unmoving with her head cast down. Better to give Lana some illusion of power than to fight her. Fighting her meant treatment that she could not live with and more nights left desperate for stimulation. Lana Winters wanted to break her. So she would be broken.

Oblivious to her thoughts, Lana kicked the bucket over to her, sloshing water onto her bared legs. It was, surprisingly, still warm. "Don't struggle to much." She heard the commands ringing in her ears. "I'm not in the mood to clean up after this, and this place is already full of leaks." She sank to her knees as she spoke, setting her knife down beside her. Mary Eunice could feel her breath on her hips and swallowed deeply.

Carefully, Lana began to lower the blonde's thigh highs down her legs, but paused when she reached her knee. "And if you kick me, I swear I will leave you and go back home, and you will rot here for as long as you live." Her nails scratched along Mary's legs and she sat back, admiring the red streaks that appeared at her touch. She received a nod and continued stripping the girl of her clothes, slowly and carefully, making sure the Sister knew where her hands were so as not to lash out by mistake.

The thought had crossed Lana's mind to try and surprise her, to let Mary kick and give herself an excuse to punish, but she wasn't feeling too cruel that day. She had offered to clean the demon after all (mainly for her own benefit however, but that thought had slipped past her), because she had known the discomfort that came with filth.

Soon enough, the blonde was left in nothing but her red underclothes and her muzzle, and Lana quickly moved forward to free her voice. "Same rules apply." She murmured, throwing aside the gag with little thought. Mary Eunice heard it hit the floor and bit back a sneer of distaste. Hopefully Lana would leave it out this time. She drew in a slow breath through her lips and released it as a sigh. This seemed to please the other woman so she said nothing to break the quiet.

"Good." Lana's hand was swirling the water again. "Would you like me to take this off?" She tugged lightly on the bottom of Mary Eunice's last piece of fabric, loving the way Mary shied away from the touch. "Wouldn't want to ruin it…" Her hands wandered along the seams of the cloth, tips of her fingers brushing pale skin lightly.

Mary Eunice's tongue peaked out to moisten her lips, running along the cracks. She smiled her most charming smile and finally replied with a resolute, "Yes."

She wanted Lana to see her, wanted to feel the lust in her eyes as she stared, as she knew she would. She might even hear her desperate gasps, trying to keep her need in check. She would know. She could sense the brunette's want even now, she could scent her in the air. She breathed deep. Lana would assume it was fear, but she knew better.

Lana reached for her blade once again, moving slowly to cut the ties that held it up on Mary's shoulders. They fell apart instantly and the red fabric leaked down her body, leaving her bare and Lana did in fact fall prey to her own curiosity.

Mary Eunice's body had fallen prey to the cold of the room and the sound of Lana's voice, and her nipples stood erect as if solely to draw the reporter's attention. Lana let her eyes wander for a second, keeping her head clear and her hands busy with one clasping the knife tight and the other on the bucket's edge, knuckles white.

"You're quiet today," she said, proud of her strong voice. Mary Eunice said nothing. "It's odd, but I like it. Are you planning to say anything today?" Lana reached down into the water, hands grasping the rag floating around in there steadily.

Mary Eunice did not answer, and Lana smiled. That was better. Confident, she drew the cloth from the water and rung in out in her hands, comforting in the splashing sounds, letting some of liquid splash onto the girl once again. This time she did not react more than a quiver of her legs as the water slid down her stomach, and Lana's eyes followed its decent until it disappeared into the small patch of curls between the blonde's legs, her throat suddenly dry.

Maybe stripping the girl had been a mistake, but it was one that she thoroughly enjoyed nonetheless. Mary Eunice had a body hidden under her costume that Lana could have worshipped once upon a time, and seeing her naked so close made her blood race in her veins. The muscles in her stomach stretched and rippled under her skin, the water still dripping down from the splashing, and Lana wanted to see more.

Carefully, as she would with a wild animal, she leaned forward and pressed the rag firmly to Mary's ribcage, running along the individual crevices and down to her right hipbone. Mary Eunice skittered away from the sensation, but a touch to her other side settled her. Her lips were parted slightly, and she breathed in and out hurriedly, yet steadily. Lana dampened the towel once again and stood, towering over Mary Eunice's slumped figure. "Stand up." She ordered, waiting patiently.

It seemed to take her some effort, but her wish was granted and Mary pulled herself up, internally delighting when the strain vanished from her upper arms but almost wanting to cry as her legs fought to support her. Water was spread along her shoulders, washing away the grime she couldn't see but that plagued her anyway. She moaned as her throat was freed from the claustrophobic hold of dried sweat and dirt, savouring the shaking of Lana's hand on her heated skin. She tilted her head back, a silent direction that was quietly followed, the grime scrubbed away from her neck slowly. Lana knew all her sensitive spots now, and ghosted over them just enough so that the tingle travelled through her entire body like electric shocks.

Lana's head cocked to the side, one hand still resting on Mary Eunice's waist while the other washed down her chest, and she watched the blonde strain towards her with some kind of amusement. "You really can't hold out can you?" She whispered, her voice failing and her throat dry. Mary Eunice shook her head wildly, breathing heavy. Her chest arched into the brunette's hand and Lana grinned, using her hold on Mary's waist to drag her closer, leaving just enough space to keep her hand steady against the younger girl's breast. Inside, Lilith growled out her desire and Mary Eunice watched on quietly from the side lines, no longer crying, only curious.

She'd been trapped long enough to know that letting the Devil take control was her best bet of escape from her bindings, and that was the only goal she had eyes for anymore. Anything else was a mere fantasy now.

Lana ran the rag across her skin, letting it rest over a bare shoulder before replacing the pressure with her hand. "You don't even deserve to be clean," she said. "You're anything but." Her fingers toyed with one of the sister's nipples almost without thinking, her eyes locked on her blindfold. "Talk to me. What do you want?"

"You." Mary Eunice's answer was quick, growled out through her clenched teeth. Lana could feel the words before she heard them as Mary's chest rose and fell under her touch. She blew out a harsh breath, her other hand massaging its way from her waist around to her ass and back again.

The blonde was quivering all over, just enough to be noticeable, dizzy with want and weak for the same reason. Lana's short nails raked across her chest and she felt her heart drop at the contact, faint pain registering in her body but mind to far gone to care. She knew, somewhere in herself, that she could have torn the woman in front of her to shreds if she wished, and at any other time, in any other settling she might have, but now she was under the brunette's control and had been for some time.

Lana reached up to snag the still damp cloth between her fingers, her other hand still stoking carefully over the younger girl's skin. Mary tried her hardest to sync her rapid breathing with Lana's much more relaxed composure, but it was a failed endeavour to begin with. She could feel herself being mocked, but it was becoming easier to ignore her pride's ugly rearing head now.

"You asked me once if I thought I couldn't finish you," Lana finally spoke up, voice laced with spite. Mary Eunice swallowed hard, the voice hissing in her ear sending shocks down her spine. "That hurt." Lana's hand shook for a moment, before lifting away when she pushed herself back with a scoff. "I could finish you with my fingers alone."

She expected a response, it was obvious in the way she left it open. She was smiling, almost visible again in thought alone. Not one to miss out on such an opportunity, Mary Eunice smiled. "Prove it."

Her grin fell to pieces like shattered glass at the sound of Lana's broken laugh. "I don't need your prompting." She wetted the rag again.

"So you're not going to do it?" Lilith had her in a tight corner now and she knew it. Lana wouldn't have a response to that, and her anger was one of the most glorious things the Devil had ever witnessed. Inside she celebrated, and when Lana closed in on her once again, washing along her lower abdomen in slow strokes, she knew better than to mention it. After all, if anyone could rival her own stubborn trait it wouldhave to be Lana Winters.

Lana squeezed the cloth tight, ringing out the water over Mary Eunice's bare legs. "But first…" She applied some more pressure, one handing snaking around to keep the Sister's hips in place. "I'm going to finish this. I don't leave things half done." As she spoke, she dragged the cloth roughly along Mary Eunice's hip and across her pelvis, lowering as she did. The force left a trail of aches across Mary's bones, but she ignored the gentle pain in favour of anticipation, her tongue sweeping out to lick her lips.

Held still by the force of the brunette's grip, Mary Eunice felt a whine build up in her throat. Lana's fingers began to toy with the flesh her upper right thigh, carefully enough to avoid giving the blonde any pressure, but brushing against her labia each time, almost like an accident. It could have been, if not for the slight twitch in Lana's hand. The demon inside could catch it each time, and smiled a little while her stolen body bit back its groans of dissatisfaction.

Lana flicked the towel between her fingers, letting it smack against Mary's clit almost playfully, listening intently for the sound of escaping gasps. The younger woman fell forward, her chest heaving as little as she could take, but did not utter a sound, hiding her face as best she could in her chest. Lana's teeth clashed and her determination flared. Taking the cloth fully in her hand, she dipped her hand between Mary Eunice's legs deftly, dragging the rough fabric along her folds in one swift stroke.

Mary Eunice cried out, jaw clenching, but it didn't give pause to Lana's ministrations. If anything, Lana seemed pleased, and even paused a moment to give the nun some recovery. No for long, however, she had ideas she wanted to try. She reached under the clitoral hood for one tortuous touch, yet quickly backed off, reversing her path and arching her body against the blonde, desperate to hear the effect she may be having on her charge. Mary Eunice was still sensitive and it delighted her.

She set a gentle pace, rubbing back and forth as she had on the rest of the blonde's body, if not slightly faster. Despite her best efforts to stay silent, Mary Eunice began to pant, a needy sound that she despised coming from anyone's lips, especially her own. Even more so when she was like this, after her power was stripped away and offered up to another person to do with it as she pleased. It was humiliating.

Lana didn't care for her blush, and drew back for a minute to gather more water. Mary Eunice took a moment to herself, swallowing to moisten her dry throat. If only she's thought of this when it was Lana in chains. She would have loved to see the plucky little journalist in the state she knew that she must be in.

The remnants of the girl she had possessed made a soft noise of disapproval, almost a judging kind of sound, before she quietened down again. Lana was done, and standing perhaps, a little to the right again. Mary Eunice often wondered what she kept on that little table, but actually found a small comfort in the mystery of it all. She didn't have much time to wonder anyway. She could almost hear Lana watching her, and her skin crawled.

There, the tell-tale sounds of skin against skin. Lana rubbing her hands together? Did it even matter?

Suddenly, those hands were on her shoulders, slightly wet still, massaging the torn up muscle. Lana hummed and Mary Eunice bit into her lip. She winced when she tasted blood, where she must have cut herself earlier trying to stay quiet. "These are pretty bad," Lana said. "I shouldn't have hung you so harshly… sorry. Could you even stay up if I let you cum?" She was genuine, and Mary nodded, confident in her body's strength. Worst case scenario she'd earn some sympathy and maybe even soften Lana up enough to get down. Or maybe that would be best case scenario, she wasn't sure anymore.

"Okay, then it's your problem if you're wrong." Lana's hands slid down from her shoulders, taking purchase on her breasts once again, kneading in slow circles over delicate flesh. "I'm going to make good on my promise." She was whispering as she ventured down Mary's body at an agonizingly slow pace, taking in every tiny response made to her touch.

Meanwhile, Mary Eunice readied herself for the upcoming storm that would rock the tiny lifeboat that had become her life. If Lana left her on the verge again she was sure she might lose control, or cry or something equally out of character (from what Lana knew anyway), that would devastate her. Then again, she had lied. Her arms would most certainly give out if she couldn't find the energy to keep them strong, and she was struggling now.

While Lana mapped her body in grazes, Lilith brought her head back into a controlled state as much as she possibly could. It wasn't much better, as her body reacted to each tough to her more sensitive areas, but it was enough to keep her feeling dignified in her place. But when Lana's hand finally ghosted across her clit, her efforts were destroyed in one foul swoop and she felt her chest lurch with shock.

Lana smirked. "Told you."

"You haven't gotten there yet." Mary Eunice gasped out, exertion evident in her voice. "Keep up trying."

"Don't order me around," Lana quipped, instantly tilting her fingers so that her blunt nails scraped delicate skin hard. "I'm in charge here." She dragged her fingers slowly through Mary Eunice's folds, as she had many times before, and smiled when she heard the soft groans echoing off the walls of the basement. "And I'll do what I want."

Mary Eunice kept her mouth shut, though her jaw was slacked, and her eyes slid shut. She felt sick, her stomach jumping with every touch and every breath. Lana might have noticed, but if so it egged her on more than it gave her any pause. She seemed to know what she was doing anyway, and breathed heavily against the younger woman. Mary couldn't bite back her moans for much longer, and in the back of her mind, Lilith drew up her memories of being in similar situations and coming almost without simulation at all. She shook her head to clear it, but she was becoming dizzy in her overly tired body. She felt her blindfold hit against Lana's shoulder, dislodging a little. Lana spotted it but wasn't bothered to do anything. Instead she met her eyes with a glare and a raised eyebrow.

Lana smiled. "Better." She rasped, her voice deeper than usual, and it made Lilith moan, going against every fibre of her being. "Now was that so hard?" Lana's jibe went without an answer, and the reporter picked up speed, rubbing fast circles on the nun's clit, watching her for reactions. Her eyes, bluish now, shut tight.

Mary Eunice was shaking hard in her arms now and Lana dipped her hand lower, tracing her opening just enough to feel wetness spill onto her hands. She smiled, and slowly eased one finger inside the blonde, setting a painful pace that did in fact make Mary Eunice want to cry. Lilith kept her eyes clamped shut, though she could feel her hold over her body being taken from her. Sister Mary Eunice was creeping on the side lines, eyes wide open and watching the Devil exhaust her body and herself. She had to time her attack well if she wanted some control. Her body's eyes flashed golden but she didn't care for the demon's tricks anymore.

Lana didn't notice the change going on inside the girl before her, and instead picked up her pace. She could tell she was coming close to her edge, from personal experience she knew how fast it could hit when you were deigned as long as Mary Eunice had been. She loved knowing that she was going to be the cause of the greatest thing this creature would ever get to feel. It gave her enough of a confidence boost to ignore the tiny side of her that wondered why she continued this. The girl inside this monster was gone forever from what she had seen.

Then why was it that she didn't have the heart to just kill it?

She didn't know, and didn't even care anymore, and when she felt Mary Eunice's inner walls clamp down on her fingers she gasped along with the Devil, her thumb massaging her clit in slow circles and figures of eight. Mary tensed up, her arms flexing as her body spasmed and pulled against her bonds. She heard her shoulder crack but felt nothing in her throes of pleasure.

Lana kept up her pace, leaning back to spot bright golden eyes staring back at her, wide and bright and terrifying as she had expected them to be, yet unseeing in that moment. She didn't miss a beat, and kept pumping into the blonde as she rode out her orgasm, hard as she could from the angle.

However, when she saw Mary's eyes shut tight the minute she stopped shuddering, and the constant smirk of her lips fade into a grimace of pain, even she was confused. The Sister rolled her shoulders and cried out, eyes darting open, bright blue and panicked. "Lana!" She cried out. "Lana, it's me, oh please it hurts!" Mary Eunice was struggling but her body was weak, and her shoulder looked oddly out of place. Lana swallowed deep, backing away a few paces.

"Lana, help me, please let me down, I'm alright now, it's me," she was crying, and Lana felt like her legs were heavy blocks of concrete that she could not move. "Please unlock the chains, let me out!" She slumped forward, her body spent, but she kept her eyes trained on the brunette. "Please, my shoulder…"

Lana sprang forward. She didn't have the keys on her person, but curiosity got the best of her. "Sister Mary Eunice?" She asked, voice a little nervous, shaky. The girl in chains ducked her head, eyes closing and features clearly pained. The Devil had never cried in front of her before, but Lana still didn't trust her. "Are you okay?"

Another shudder and Lana took another step forward. Suddenly she didn't feel as confident that her wish had come true. Mary Eunice's sniffles quietened a little and she rolled her shoulders, gasping at the pain. A dislocation most likely, but Lana was never much for doctoring.

She reached out to touch the girl, titled her head back up and found her eyes closed and her face screwed up, concentrating. Mary Eunice whimpered, and snatched her face away for a moment, doubling up as much as the bonds allowed her too, and blinked for a moment, shaking her head wildly.

Lana backed off a few steps. She'd seen it, that glimpse of gold, and she knew what came with it. She took in a deep, slowly breath. "You're not Mary Eunice." She said, deadpan voice unfamiliar even to her. "Even when you might be you're not really."

"Go figure." The voice was cold now, nothing like the desperate childlike voice from before, and Lana's heart sank, and her frustrations build. "The failed journalist actually sees some things." Lana couldn't fix this one, and she knew in that moment she never would. She lunged forward to fix the nun's blindfold, aware of the chances she took without it before bounding back to her place.

She breathed in one single slow breath, her gaze wandering over to the table. Sitting there were the two glass syringes she had left over, stolen for Dr. Arden's offices on her way out of there. She didn't know what was in them, but it had worked before.

It would work again.

Mary Eunice, without energy now, smiled blindly towards the girl in front of her, and listened to the wails from the nun inside her. They were more beautiful than all the music the world had to offer in that moment, and she savoured every last scream as if it was the last sound she would ever hear. This was the reason why she failed to notice Lana moving over to the right, and the scrape of glass against wood.

She opened her mouth to speak, but as Lana closed in she became aware of her prank's failings. She had nothing left to use against her now, and the idea worried her. Still, she kept her teeth together in a snarl and her head cocked to the left, hoping she could scare away the shorter woman with a few cruel tricks.

But when she left a needle prick her skin and Lana's breath on her throat, her smirk fell and her muscles became jelly like. She fought to breathe, and she could almost hear the sounds of liquid being pushed into her system. The same cocktail maybe, but she felt her head getting weak the further into her neck Lana pushed the substance.

And, just like that, her whole world faded to black.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I lost this whole chapter after my laptop blanked out on me, and rewrote almost all of it over the course of one night when I couldn't sleep. I actually prefer this version; it's a lot less planned out and I like that. Thank you for reading this far, enjoy the ending.**

Lana's breathing was ragged, exertion raging a bitter war against her, but she wouldn't dare pause to rest. She didn't have the time. She leaned forward, tying off ropes in knots she wasn't sure would hold, her head spinning with ideas, none of which came together enough to work. Her mystery cocktail was bound to wear off sooner rather than later, and she still had no idea what she doing.

She was on her knees, and though they scraped painfully against the rough concrete floor, she suffered it. The sight of her blood was nothing too her anymore. There was already enough red staining the floor, in a straight, but broken line that she had seen created before her very eyes. She drew back for a second, breathing deep, steeling herself. Mary Eunice lay, spread out like a patient on an operating table, on the ground before her.

Lana's fingers flexed. She still felt the girl's muscles under her hand, popping back into place with a little pressure and just enough force. Her shoulder had been out so far she didn't think she could have put it back together. Now, she wished she hadn't even tried. She shivered. There was a draft in her basement. She had never noticed it before.

The day had long since withered into twilight, but the time was kept a secret to her. The windowless walls of her makeshift prison cell kept her in darkness, no matter the hour. Lana felt her arms tire, and quickly finished the knot she was retying to relax them at her sides, staring down the unconscious girl practically on her lap. The idea made her gag.

The sound of Mary Eunice's monotone breathing was almost like a clock, ticking back and forth, counting the seconds. It drove Lana mad, almost forcing her to her feet, prompting her to leave the job half finished and just abandon her home, but she never did. The idea scared her.

The blonde stirred, and for a moment Lana froze, her hand whipping to her side in a frenzy. She had placed one of her kitchen knives to her left in case of emergency. Though the idea of using it made her feel a little shaky, she had concluded in her mind that she could kill this girl, if the scene grew too intense, and the decision alone was keeping her steady.

But Mary Eunice did not move further, her body stiffening and then relaxing again, as if merely flexing in her sleep. Maybe that was exactly it. Lana didn't care what it was that made her move. For all she cared, electric currents she had been unaware of could have run through the copper pipes and electrocuted the demon before she had put her out. This was unlikely, but that didn't stop her minds from racing. She simply didn't care.

As yet another chill set its course down her back, Lana felt her throat close up. Mary Eunice's cries still echoed in her head, she couldn't stop them. They made her stomach churn with the reality of them, the pure terror in her voice something Lana hadn't heard since Briarcliff. Not like that anyway.

Her head fell back, the breeze cooling her neck as she breathed, trying to sync hers with that of the nun's. It helped some, but she couldn't open her eyes to look upon at her own mess again. The madness of it all astounded her in moments like these, when she was alone in them.

She had already made up her mind. Subconsciously, perhaps, but she knew what she had to do.

"There's someone here."

The voice startled her eyes open, wild brown staring down into cloth covered golden. Or she assumed they would be golden. It only seemed logically that gold would be coupled with the malice in that voice. "You're awake?"

"Clearly." Mary Eunice didn't move more than that, as if it could be comfortable to lie as she did, on her stomach with her hands behind her back. "And there's someone here."

Lana's eyes wandered across the knot she had tied in Mary Eunice's new bonds. Only rope. It should have concerned her, but the manacles that had held her before had dug in so deep that she couldn't leave them there. The blonde's wrists were covered down by crisp white bandages, dotted with red and yellow. The fact that she had even done that small service to her captive was enough cause for concern. "How can you tell?"

Mary Eunice struggled onto her side, tilting her head. If she could prick her ears, Lana imaged she would have. If only for dramatic effect. "I can hear him." She didn't lie, and Lana's heart raced.

"Kit?" Lana couldn't breathe and struggled around the name as if it would curse them.

"How the fuck would I know?" Mary Eunice's eyes glowed golden, Lana could see them through the gauze. Her hands clenching into tight fists, her nails digging into her palms, leaving a half dozen glowing red half moons indented there. "Now finish what you started, I have no patience for this today." Mary Eunice continued in a growl, turning her head to lie against the floor, head hitting with a thud.

For a minute Lana forgot Kit, if only for a moment. "What?"

"Kill me if you're going to do it!"

Lana did laugh then, quietly and into her hand as if that would muffle it at all. "Kill you?" She gasped her words out in a laughing scream that made them both flinch. "I'm not going to kill you." She stood, balancing carefully on the kitten heels she wore every day. "Not now anyway. Not after all this." She ran a hand through her hair in a last ditch attempt to tame it. She hadn't pinned it up since her last time out of the house. That was a week ago. She smiled.

"Why would I kill you? You're the best guard dog I've ever had."

Mary Eunice gave a defiantly weak struggle, twisting her wrists like a demonic monster from one of those new horror films Lana hasn't dared to see. "I'll be back soon," She whispered. Confident in her hair, she dropped her hand to her side. "Just gotta say hi to an old friend first."

She almost went to turn around, but at the last moment paused. "Oh, and try not to make any sound." She said, just an octave above a whisper. "Or I'll kill both of you." Mary Eunice could hear the threat dripping from Lana's lips like venom, and did not reply.

She left her then, her stomach churning in worry. She had forgotten all about Kit's visit, and he couldn't have come at a worse time. Still, she would not let it give pause to her plans.

She had left her kitchen knife where it lay.

* * *

Mary Eunice listened to the click of heels, stepping up upon creaking wood, on the first of the steps up into the real world, and imagined the change taking place in her captor. Would Lana's eyes become softer as they fell on this man, her fellow survivor?

It may have been astounding, if only she could see it. She had seen it in herself more than once. Mary Eunice wondered if Lana got the same childish delight from the sensation, or if it only saddened her, like it did any human she had taken hold of.

She liked to imagine it were the former. Only a beast could take joy in its own tendencies to threaten and lie as Lana did.

A familiar breeze from a source she could never place brushed itself against her bare body and she shivered. The nights were getting warmer, but it seemed as though the basement never warmed to her. She could feel the damp sweat covering her body chill and it made her want to fold into herself, but Lana would know. And Lana would laugh that manic laugh she did when she saw the mess she would make of herself. Mary Eunice did not move, but she felt the whine in her throat building as the seconds trailed by.

In a moment of awareness, she felt her bandaged wrists rub up against rope, and the change startled her. She didn't make a move to investigate further, though curiously had gained a hold on her. Mary Eunice furrowed her eyebrows and drew in a slow breath. For a moment, her bindings were forgotten.

She could scent something in the air. Something new. A clean strip of stainless steel.

Meanwhile, Lana shut the door behind her as softly as she could, turning the lock and slipping the key into her pocket with practiced precision. Her fingers traced the outline of the metal through her dress, and it brought a twisted excuse for a smile to her face, one that Kit imaged was for him. "Lana." He spoke her name with relief, as if he had worried that she had given him a fake address. She would not lie to herself, and she had thought about that very thing, but her desire for normal human interaction had outweighed the idea at the time. She almost regretted it now.

His arms wrapped around her neck in a hug, and she felt herself return it with the same vigor, drinking in the scent of his aftershave, something she had noticed when she had run into him some days earlier. It still seemed slightly out of place on him, in her mind. "Kit," she replied, giving him one more squeeze before breaking away. "It's been far too long… I'm so sorry to hear about Grace."

The story of Grace's demise had reached the news, and though it had caught her attention, she had never written. She never had time anymore, even if she wanted to work on her book. Kit grimaced. "Yeah… it's just me and the kids now." Lana wouldn't know about Alma, and the idea of bringing up the second of his lovers wasn't what he was come for.

Clueless to this, Lana reached forward to clasp his hands in a grip just soft enough to seem comforting. Kit only smiled in response, turning his hands to grasp her own, almost as if he didn't believe she was really there. Maybe he didn't. He wasn't out as long as she, and reality did take its time in returning. Lana grinned up at him, enjoying the attention that existed without any hint of malice.

Kit closed his eyes for a beat, swallowing something down very obviously, but Lana did not push. She waited for his cheerful demeanor to return, and for him to speak again. She didn't have to wait long. "But how're you? Writing, I'm hopin'."

"I have something of a rough draft." She batted him away stand, lifting the kettle onto the hob. That had been a lie. That was, unless the first two thousand words written on thrown about pages counted as a complete book. She had had no time to write lately. "Tea?"

"Sure." Kit made himself at home at her table, toying with the checked tablecloth. The tattered state of Lana' home did not go missed by his eye, but he said nothing to bring attention to it. "Jude is missing."

Lana paused for a beat, barely enough to be noticed, but Kit's eyes were keen. From below, she heard a scratching sound, almost as if there were rats in her house walls. "I thought she would be."

"They say she's dead."

"She's not dead." Lana scoffed out the words, her throat tight. "Judy wouldn't die without a fight big enough to reach the papers."

Kit smiled, a weak smile that made Lana's chest hurt. He looked tired. "You think I don't know that?" He rubbed the back of his neck, his other hand reaching into his shirt pocket for a cigarette. "You got a lighter?" Lana tilted her head towards the counter, where a lighter lay, well used and almost to the point of uselessness. He nodded his thanks and puffed out a stream of smoke, relaxing back into his seat. "Something must'a happened to her."

Lana licked her lips. "I assume you've come with a plan?"

"Publish your book," Kit leaned forward, elbows leaning on the table. His eyes bore into Lana's, glowing under the fluorescents, as a person's eyes were meant to glow. "Get people listening, make them hear what we've got to say. They can't keep Sister Jude hidden forever." He shook his head. "I visited Briarcliff, you know? She wasn't there. Arden and Sister Mary Eunice aren't around anymore either. No one's seen them, and there are no remains." He was different now, Lana concluded quietly. Scared of his own shadow. "I don't feel safe at night. I see them everywhere… Don't even trust my own eyes anymore."

Mary Eunice strained her ears to listen. She had heard her name, and the slightly accented voice of the man she had always known to be one of those innocently imprisoned at Briarcliff. Jude and Arden were missing too? Wonder who kidnapped them, she thought to herself, almost laughing. Her whole self ached, and she struggled against her bonds for a moment. She heard the rope crackling. It was weak, but now weak enough to give way. At least now without some force.

But her battle would not be won so easily, and her energy was draining faster than she had anticipated. Mary Eunice groaned and slumped down, the blood drying on her forearms making her feel woozy. The body she inhabited had always hated the sight of blood, and the smell of it made her nauseous.

With her last burst of defiance, Mary Eunice rolled over, her side coming into contact with the freezing metal of the knife. She gasped at the icy feel of it against her heated skin, but somewhere in her mind she saw it for what it was.

She choked out a laugh that sounded like a jackal's cry and Lana's head snapped up at the sound, her teeth clenching. Her hands flexed under the table, grasping her own legs with restless fingers. Kit had been startled enough to almost drop his cigarette. His fingers loosened, letting it droop between them lazily. "What was that?" He asked, so innocent in his inquiry that it made Lana want to throw something. The shatter of china may have woken her to exactly what she had begun.

"Nothing," she answered with a little flourish of her hand, distracting herself with lighting up her own tobacco stick, a sweet addictive distraction from the world she had built. "Bad pipes, they creak like Hell." She smiled, but it didn't feel right on her own lips. To Kit, it was a baring of teeth, but he let it slide. He knew his smiles looked like that sometimes too, when he was parted from the safety of his family, and thrust into the company of others. Sympathy panged in his heart and he reached forward to touch the woman sitting across from him, his heart bleeding. Lana could have been sick.

"Hey, Lana," His voice was so soft it made her drop her faux smile. "Come back to the house with me. Meet up with the kids. Come on, it'd be good for ya." His voice was almost a whisper, almost enough to convince her that he might be right, but the deranged screaming she had endured only the night before still rang true in her ears, and she felt her stomach contract in horror. "They'd love you." Kit was grinning.

There was only a second of silence, but in Lana heard the click of a lock being turned and her stomach dropped.

"No." It came out so wickedly that it even made her flinch. She softened her voice almost by force. "I have to work, Kit. I have to finish the book, you said so yourself… We can save Jude with this." She smiled again, genuine this time, her eyes brightening at the idea. Her logic was motives not so much.

Kit was no one to be easily rocked when he had an idea, but he could see the hesitation in Lana's eyes, and remembered the way he had reacted when confronted with the return of his wife (and his child). He backed off. Lana wasn't ready, and he respected that with all he was. If he couldn't stand for that, what could he hand for, after all?"All right." He said, his thumb running across the back of her hands, soothing but it made her want to back away. Her blood raced. "But the invitation still stands, for when you get done, I mean."

Lana's eyes were thankful, filled with light despite their darkness. "Thank you."Something scuttled in the corner of her eye, behind Kit's right shoulder. Something crawling out of the basement like a shadow. "B-but its getting late, don't you have to be getting home to," She scrambled through her thoughts. His children had been named on the news broadcast. She could not recall them, but Kit shook his head and reached forward to pat her arm.

"You're right, I can't afford overnight sitters anymore." He muttered, glancing at his watch with suddenly startled eyes. "Its later than I thought. Shit, I'm gonna be payin' high tonight." He drained his cup and stood, grabbing his jacket off the back of the chair. "I'll visit again soon though, and see how you're getting one, okay?"

"Of course." Lana wasn't sure how subtle she was being, but ushering him out was the prime objective now. He needed to be gone.

* * *

The embers of Kit's last smoke hit the ground, a little dot of fire against the darkness for only a moment, before it was snuffed out by the all-consuming black. He hardly noticed the change. His thoughts were too deep to dwell on the details of his surroundings.

Lana was different now. How, he could not tell, but the change was far from invisible, and her demeanor towards him was startling without the dark, cruel walls of Briarcliff to make it so. Still, he considered her a confidant, and the idea of losing her friendship so soon after discovering her again wasn't his first choice.

He wandered slowly towards his car, walking with a slow purpose and only somewhat aware of dark eyes watching from Lana's porch, mapping out his trail. It would have almost startled him, if it had been any other person. Lana had always been overly cautious, and he didn't expect that to change any time soon. Still, he glanced back with a wide grin and a wave, catching her eye. She only smiled.

It was only the corner of his eyes that spotted it, but he was sure he saw a light shining along Lana's foundations. Maybe it was only a trick of the night, but they seemed to glow with a blackish light, as if she had trapped both heaven and hell down in her basement to war there for eternity. Kit shook the thought away with a shake of his head. As he turned his head the light flickered, finally shutting off. He climbed into his car. In the rear view mirror saw Lana finally disappear back into her home and felt his shoulders rise, a weight lifted from them. There was something about her now that made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. He'd call back soon. Just to check on her.

For a moment, Kit glanced up, running his eyes along the building Lana had made her home. It was a fine house, two stories high and heavily built. It had been the structure that caught his eye, and so it was only the flash of blonde that attracted him to one of the rooms upstairs. A light had flickered on earlier, and he had assumed it would be Lana herself getting ready for bed, but now was not so sure.

He had always known of Lana's 'afflictions', or whatever Jude had called them, and narrowed his eyes playfully. "She's good, I'll give her that." He muttered.

He turned the key, and the engine roared to life. He patted the dash, grateful for its loyalty and spared one last glance up to the bedroom. There was no more blonde, and Kit shook his head at himself.

Mary Eunice was nowhere near here. And even if she was, Lana's bedroom was the last place she would be.

He was sure of that.

* * *

What was it about a restless mind that turned a brightly lit scene so dark? Lana wasn't sure, but while she paced through her own home, in that moment, she felt as though she was seeing nothing.

The house was silent, almost as if she was alone. Maybe setting a demon free in her home was not the correct way to dispel her, but if Lana was to be honest with herself, she had toyed with the idea of her death by the blonde's hand. It didn't bother her like it once would have.

She would never admit it, but now, faced with that very thing, she didn't want to die.

The wind whistled outside, blowing in through the windows where glass met wood. They were cheap, poorly installed. It chilled the house. She had never noticed the cold of the place until now. It froze her down to her very bones. She clenched her fists, backing her way into the kitchen carefully, her eyes everywhere but at the same time nowhere at all.

She didn't like that thought, and brushed it aside as the second it processed, reaching with a blind hand into a drawer, feeling for something sharp. She found it, and her hands wrapped around the handle of the carving knife like it would the wrist of a lover. The feeling of smooth, polished wood against her skin soothed her, and she let out one single shaky breath that she seemed to have held for longer than she could recall. She had not won the night, but now the fight was on level grounds. She hoped it was anyway.

Mary Eunice was exhausted, weak, and Lana knew it. She had seen her body crumble under the stress she had forced her to endure. If she was to face her as a mortal, she would lose, but Lana knew that she would never be offered such a fight.

The Devil was notorious for fighting dirty.

The stairs creaked under her weight and for a moment Lana winced at the sound. But of course Mary Eunice would know where she was. She always knew where she was, and what she was doing. She used to ask if Lana had enjoyed a particular meal she had prepared for herself in the kitchen, for Christ's sake. The time for sneaking by her was long gone. She had, after all, granted herself sight again.

Still, Lana crouched low, her body tensed up like a coiled spring as she scaled higher. They squeaked but she no longer gave it attention. She had climbed those stairs many times before, but now, with the light blasting from her bedroom guiding her to the top, she felt like an intruder in her own home. She bared her teeth, keeping low. She was at the top now. Her fingers played over the grip of her knife, mimicking the motions of a tune she had been taught to play on a whistle as a child, though she did not make this her intention.

She could hear her own breath in her ears. It roared through the silence, shattering it. Mary Eunice would have her in her sights now, if she wished it. A little logic told Lana that if the former nun had truly wanted her, she would not have hidden in the bedroom. She had lit it so brightly, it could only be a trap, but yet it seemed that her mind was not on the track of thought. She wanted the final battle, not this dancing foreplay.

But by the time she stepped over the threshold of her room, Mary Eunice was gone, the open window testament to the fact. Everything in Lana slumped, and she straightening. Her weapon felt strange between her fingers. Like it didn't fit.

Lana did not sleep that night. She didn't trust her instinct, that told her Mary Eunice had left. Instead, she sat with her back to the wall and her knife by her side, writing furiously on her typewriter.

If she were to die on Lilith's return, she had one last thing she had to say.

* * *

The smell was putrid, but she didn't care. The cabin was a roof over her head, and it had rained now for three hours straight. One corpse would not spoil that for her.

Mary Eunice had long since steamed off in front of the fire, and was now lounging on the ratty old couch in leisure. Her heart still hammered in her chest, though her eyelids drooped with fatigue. Her legs, hanging over the edge of an armrest, twitched, exhausted with still buzzing with adrenaline. She'd dumped the (former) owner's body where he had fallen; in the doorway dividing the living room and the bedroom. She didn't have the energy or the drive to bother moving him at that moment, the stench didn't bother her enough. Besides, dumping him outside would have drawn attention, and she couldn't have that. Not after the night she'd had anyway.

She knew she had found her way out. She could steal what she needed from this man; clothes, money, whatever he had had in his possession before he met her. It was hers now. She knew this for a fact, yet could not bring herself to rise and make it into a reality.

Stiffly, as if it caused her pain, her eyes slid open, orange flame dancing in watery blue irises. She needed to deal with Lana Winters, sooner rather than later. She had the power to destroy her now, and given another day to relax, she would even be able to take pleasure in it.

She was sure she could track her own path back to Lana's house, and she had only run for an hour. She could kill her that very night if she likened to the idea. She wouldn't, of course. Lana would be ready for her, and that kind of fight was not what she desired from the woman. She wanted to shatter her.

Mary Eunice smiled, lips closed. But first of all, there was a shower back there she could take advantage of.

* * *

It had been three days and Lana was getting antsy.

Everything was so eerily quiet now, and the house seemed to creak with the knowledge of her terror. The thought was foolish, but yet she could not shake it off. She could not even shower, for fear of closing her eyes and opening them to see _her _face staring in through the window.

Lana was writing now, as she had promised Kit, but truthfully the television was too loud and books did not capture her, so it was all she had left to do. Even then the words were bland and lifeless, she didn't dare read over them. She breathed deeply, but slowly, her ears straining over the quiet of the night, desperate for sound.

At the point, she would have taken a break in. Just as long as it was not Mary Eunice.

The clock on the wall ticked by the seconds, keeping her mind awake but not thoughtful. The words she had sprawled made no sense. She threw them aside with a growl and a groan. "This is insanity." She muttered, leaning against one of her hands. She was tired, the nights of broken sleep taking their toll on her, and she knew it was only a matter of time until she fell into the sleep her body needed. She couldn't fight it forever.

She sure as hell would try though.

Standing, in a singular jerking motion that made her feel empty, Lana felt her way to the fridge. Outside, she could hear the faint sounds of crickets, and suddenly it seemed as if, if she took slow enough breaths, the weight in her chest would disappear. For a moment at least. Her fingers flexed around the grip of her pistol.

She'd bought it only the day before, but she'd not trusted herself to leave the room without it since. The permanent fixture was somewhat good for her, and the safety of a loaded gun was an added bonus. Lana didn't know what would kill the Devil exactly, but unloading a few rounds on her couldn't hurt. She shivered at the thought.

With a rough tug, Lana pulled the door open and rummaged around, but her hunger was fading fast. Didn't matter, she didn't need it. She slammed the fridge shut. Inside the contents fell from shelves. She didn't care.

The clock read only three pm, but it seemed later somehow. The darkness of night seemed to live now in daylight, and it always tricked her, made her want to sleep when she knew that that hadn't been an option to her for days. She cleared her throat, and walked on shivering legs towards her the living room, moving carefully, her body stiff and heavy.

She felt weak and she hated it. Lana felt along the wall just to feel the wallpaper under her fingertips, the barrel of the gun bumping against her thigh as she moved. She hardly even felt it.

The waiting was getting to her, and even though in the back of her mind she knew it was borderline idiotic to await Mary Eunice's return as she did she couldn't help but do exactly that. Getting caught off guard wasn't something she going to be trying again anytime soon, and a quicker death in a fight was better than whatever that demon had planned after all. She could only imagine how much anger Lilith held.

Whatever resentment Mary Eunice herself, the nun, would keep inside was something else entirely. Lana had decided that she was real, that she still existed somewhere inside that body, but reaching her seemed so unrealistic now that it made her stomach churn. Or maybe that was just nerves.

Either way, no part of that poor girl wanted her alive now. Maybe it had been stupid to break her. Lana felt an ache in her neck and twisted against it. Power napping on the couch had not done her body any favours.

There was a light shining in from the outside, faint remnants of sunlight that her blinds had failed to catch. It caught the lighter strands of hair that had fallen onto her face, and gave them a golden glow, reflecting around her like heaven's light. The sight of it made her quiver with something not quiet fear. _Revulsion_, she thought to herself. _Definitely revulsion._

She sank down onto her sofa, resting her elbows on her legs and her head in her hands, weapon still between her fingers and pressing coldly against her skull. It felt good though. The chill seemed to keep her headache from spreading through the rest of her body. Lana's chest felt heavy and her body was sagging under the weight.

Somewhere in her mind, she registered the arrival of a car, heard the roar of its engine and the sputter of a bad exhaust. Yet it was the slam of the door that woke her into action, lifting her head from her hands slowly, as if it weighed tons. It was only Kit, and she knew that. Mary Eunice would not attack so casually. Or maybe she would, Lana didn't claim to know her, and Lilith was prone to the most shocking of entrances.

Besides that, Mary Eunice wouldn't bother finding a car unless she had too. And even she had to, Lana was sure it would have been much flashier than Kit's loud machine.

She shook off her smile, the pure audacity of the Devil turning up on her doorstep in such a manner getting the best of her. Kit would think her crazy at this rate, if he didn't already. The idea of one smiling to herself, while handling a gun and an open bottle of wine (which had gone untouched on the table) were not good signs of a stable mind and Lana knew this.

That, however, didn't mean she cared. She still tucked the pistol under one the cushions before standing. She took a moment to fix her skirt. Lighting a cigarette with shaking fingers, Lana met with the door the moment Kit's fist made to knock. "Kit."

"Lana," he greeted, but there was no fire in it. She didn't comment. "Hey."

"Hello." Lana smiled and stood aside, an open invitation to enter.

"I've been thinking on somethin' I thought I saw in your window the other night. Ya know, when I first visited?" Lana felt her stomach drop and her breathing beg to quicken. She held her breath instead, prompting him on only with a nod of her head.

Kit made his way into her home, head bowed and hands clenched tight into fists. The movement made Lana nervous. "What's wrong?" It came out so beautifully considerate that even she was frozen in place for a moment, but Kit turned almost immediately to her, worry in his eyes.

"Lana," he said her name in that way that made her chest hurt. "I think… I _know_ I saw Mary Eunice in your room that night."

Her wide eyed terror may have been misinterpreted because Kit quickly put his hands out in front of him like a shield. They had shuffled their way into the living room by this point. "Now, I know you're gonna say something to try and make me think I'm crazy again but I'm not, okay! I saw what I saw… she was in there, just looking through all your stuff." He looked exhausted, black ringing his eyes, and Lana wanted him out of her house. Her hands itched with the desire, but she could not move him and she was very much aware of that fact.

He ran his hands through his hair, leaving it standing just a little and spoke with a voice that was almost tearful. "I know I saw her…" Lana licked her lips, suddenly craving a drink to moisten them.

A tense moment passed, in which Kit sat comfortably down on one of Lana's armchairs and Lana made her way back over to her previous seat, feeling the hardness under her body that kept her from comfort but was almost the only thing that helped her sleep at night. The shifted in her seat. "Are you having those dreams too?"

It was almost a whisper, as if she wasn't sure she wanted Kit to hear, but he did, and his eyes pierced into her like a million red hot needles.

"What?"

Lana swallowed, preparing herself for the lie that was to come. He face hardly moved. "The dreams," she said, barely a mutter. "The nightmares?" Kit only blinked, but it seemed to add up in his head. Lana was grateful. She didn't want to add to her trickery any further.

Kit sat back carefully, resting his head on the headrest, his arms on the armrests with his fingers clenching along the edges. He closed his eyes and Lana saw the way his faces relaxed for a second. She knew that feeling all too well. Once again, guilt surged within her. The stress she had brought unto them both was much larger than she had first thought, even feeling it herself as she did.

It was a few minutes before Kit spoke aloud again, and in those minutes Lana watched him. There were worry lines stretching along his forehead now, and his cheeks looked hollowed and sick. Even his skin was tinged green slightly. She was about to ask if he felt well enough to drive home, but he interrupted. "You know they took my kids away?"

"What?" Lana started, shaking her head wildly. "Why did they… why?"

"'Said I can't take care of them no more. They think I'm not right after bein' in Briarcliff so long…" His voice was shaking. "I don't know what I'm supposed to do for them anymore, Lana." Light brown eyes snapped open to lock on her own, which seemed almost black with her back to the light. He couldn't look into them for long. Lana didn't break eye contact, even to blink, and it unnerved him. Being alone for so long seemed to have affected her too. That's what he imaged anyway.

It wasn't late, but Lana didn't feel right. She had never been much for comforting people, and this put her completely out of her depth. "Kit, I-"

"I know you're sorry." He quietened her with a harsh voice and hard eyes. "But I still want to know if Mary Eunice was in your house."

He was desperate. The grate in his voice and the shaking of his hands made it clear. "I never saw her." Lana answered. She smiled and shook her head. "Why would I ever invite her in?"

Kit shook his head and stood, pacing the room like an animal she'd left cooped up for too long. Lana felt her throat dry up. "It's just… you haven't been right since you got out either. You're closed in and quiet and you didn't get in contact for weeks after I found you. I'm just wonderin' if she got to you first… hurt you in some way."

At any other moment Lana could have laughed. Laughed manically, in fact, at the pure innocence of this man before her. She didn't, of course. She couldn't. Kit would think she really was crazy and she was not going to end up locked up again where Mary Eunice could stroll in and retake her place. Take her. So she only shook her head, bowing it slightly. "She hasn't touched me." Lana murmured. "I can take care of myself, Kit."

"Can you?"

She gave him a look, raising her eyebrows just a little, even though it made her head spin. He grinned, and it seemed as through years melted from his face. "I know." He said. "I just worry about you. You know that."

She nodded and he rounded the room to stand in the doorway, as if readying himself to leave but not moving towards the exit. Instead, he met her eyes and let the smile on his lips melt off like a candlewax down an altar. One of his hands had reached out to grab the door frame at some point, and he leaned on it heavily as his face fell into a grimace. "But I think you're lying to me."

His words bit her like snakes and forced her to her feet. "What do you mean by that? That I've been letting her in?"

"That you've been harbouring her!" Kit spat back. He didn't move anything but his head, which leaned forward slightly. His eyes were so wide it made her want to laugh in his face like a hyena. "I mean, it all makes sense right. The way she walked around you..."

"She did that for everyone."

"Only times I ever saw it was when you were in the room."

"That was the _common room_," Lana narrowed her eyes. "And I don't like what you're trying to insinuate here."

Kit ran his free hand through his hair, pushing off the wall slightly. "Look… I'm sorry, alright. I just… got a lot of my plate." He sucked in a deep breath and closed his eyes. Lana had seen them fighting to close all day. "Maybe I did just see it but I can't be sure of what I see anymore. Not after the beetles in the fuckin'…" He trailed off and Lana couldn't reply. She stood, about two meters away, not calm enough to sit or feeling confident enough to approach. This was her fault and she knew it.

She had lied to his face and gotten away with it. At a cost to his sanity maybe, but she was home free, as long as she could make him leave soon. She didn't like something about today.

Outside, Mary Eunice stepped on some branches with enough force to snap them. Something about the loud arrival made her feel powerful, and the crunching under her feet made her anticipation grow with each piece of splintered wood. Glancing up through golden tinged eyes, Lana's house came into view and she smiled.

The rush was one of a predator closing in on its prey, and she barely even paused to glance at the car in the driveway other than to take a look at her own reflection. She'd stolen some clothes from the cabin in the woods, and the shower had done her some good, but the sight of herself made her angry. The scars on her wrists had driven her from her hideaway in a blind rage, and this sighting only spurred her faster.

Her eyes, glowing now, guided their way to the windows, where she could pick out the back of Lana's head. She was not alone in there, the car told her that, but it would be no problem. Mary Eunice held the razor between her fingers delicately, putting it in and taking it out of its sheath in rhythmic motions to keep her head clear. She didn't need that hobby, but it felt good. She kept going.

It gave her an idea.

"You know…" Kit trailed off for a moment to admire something over Lana's head with squinted eyes. "I was never too good at telling when people are lying to me or not. I haven't gotten any better and that makes me wonder if I'm getting the whole truth from you, or just what you wanna tell me." His eyes slipped back down to her.

"What?" Lana asked, sceptical and smiling. Kit was harmless, but keeping him happy was sill high on her priority list. He was her friend first and formost.

"I mean she's here."

Lana's blood ran cold in her veins, and it seemed as though a pain she could not place spread down her body, from her head to her stomach. Kit was shaking his head. "Why didn't you just tell me? I could have gotten over whatever your doin', if you, I don't know, cured her or whatever, but you coulda-"

The door slammed open and Kit turned on his heel, so Lana didn't see his face when he cried out in pain, and his body began to spasm before her. She could have screamed when he sank to his knees, and when blood splashed red all over her crystal white walls, but her own blood was ringing in her ears. Maybe she was screaming. Either way she couldn't hear it.

She felt dampness sent in waves over her shins and all of a sudden they were weak. She saw a flash of blonde and let them give way under her, searching desperately for the pistol she had stashed and letting her heart soar when her fingers closed around it. She had bruised her knees. Her eyes were burning, and Kit finally slumped to the side, energy draining out of his body and residing instead in pools of crimson on the floor. Lana felt sick just looking at it.

But when her eyes lifted from him and scanned above, Mary Eunice was not there. There was no demon, standing with blood dripping down her body as Lana had dreamt of. There was no smirk that would rival a dog's growl. There was only empty air.

Lana scrambled to her feet, the world a dizzy mess. Kit blocked the door, and Lana felt herself backing away without even giving herself room for thought. _The window._

It was large enough to accommodate her, or at least she guessed from a glance through tear filled eyes. Her fingers shook and refused to cooperate with the clasp. "C'mon." she grunted through clenched teeth and it felt open at her request, as if waiting for it. Lana grinned in excitement but it was short lived as the smell of blood caught itself up in her senses and refused to disappear. She would have cursed it but didn't have the time, and practically fell out the window in her desperation to escape.

The ground crumbled beneath her, and the sound of her shoes colliding with it made her want to freeze up and listen but something drove her on.

So she ran.

* * *

Mary Eunice made herself comfortable on the couch, settling down among the cushions with a sigh of comfort.

This house wasn't what she had pictured when she used to listen to Lana moving about upstairs, but it had a certain homely touch that she liked. It had no pictures hanging on the walls or other personalised items, but the amount of light that shone through was borderline heavenly. She hadn't bothered moving Kit, but had taken the time to clean her blade off on his shoulder before she stepped over him to make herself at home in the living room.

Lana had fled, like she had known she would, and she wasn't going to wait for her to return. A little rest was in order and she was determined to enjoy it, relaxing on Lana's couch with one of her beers and one of her (precious few) friends dead beside her. This went better than she had expected.

She had thought Lana might try and fight her, attack her with whatever she might have gathered over the past few days. She thought herself foolish now for thinking up such a strange universe in which Lana was still that vicious.

She downed a gulp of her drink and gritted her teeth, her body unused to the taste. The shred of a soul left in her whined but made no more sound. She never spoke anymore. She'd been shocked into complete silence as soon as her body had entered the reporter's home and slit Kit's throat, and sliced belly open just to watch his guys spill out on the carpet, and Lilith had wondered if she'd lost her. Apparently not, but it didn't bother her so much. Mary Eunice was hardly a threat to her now.

She had stolen up to Lana's room to steal some better fitting clothes, and marvelled slightly at the sight of it. She'd never thought to look before, but it was a nice little room. Little furnishings of course. It seemed Lana believed one day she would have to rush away without anything holding her back.

She was right.

Blue eyes flickered down to Kit's body, and she wondered what he might have seen that could have driven him back to Lana's side. Must have been something important. She'd been watching the brunette from the safety of the tree line long enough to know that Lana was almost broken by her, and broken people don't hold friendships the way they once had. No matter, the importance of it was long gone now.

She wouldn't wait for Lana to return, but she wouldn't leave her mess here for Lana to see again. She would move Kit's body somewhere else, burn him maybe. The red she had smeared on the wall with bloodied fingers would have the effect she desired alone.

The words themselves were a lie. A lie so destructive that she knew it would ruin the woman once and for all.

_I'll be back for you._


End file.
