Within the Chrysalis (Alessandro/Fiona)

[Felicia Soler]

Dies irae.
Dies illa, solvet saeclum.
Dies irae.
Dies illa solvet saeclum in favilla.

Elysium
North Las Vegas, Nevada

She didn't bother waiting for answer from either of them and made her way across the large, open floorplan living room to where Fiona was standing next to Christian and disentangled her from her manly escort for the evening. “Sorry, I just need to borrow her for a little while.” Felicia excused her sudden interruption and hooked arms with Fiona, whisking her away.

“I can give you the grand tour. You've already seen the living room and the kitchen. We have a great view of The Strip at night.” She gestured out the windown at the sparkling lights which dotted the horizon several miles away. If they ever moved out of New York, she wouldn't have minded moving into the high desert somewhere around Albuquerque in New Mexico or Reno in her mother's home state. Maybe even Sedona. But she enjoyed the changes in season far too much to give all that up.

“There are three bedrooms on this floor and three on the top floor, though I'm assuming Ma's got all the doors locked.” Felicia ushered Fiona through the rooms on the first level of the nearly 15,000 square foot home. At the end of one hall was a spiral staircase with a polished steel banister which swirled upwards to the second level of the home. It led to a mezzanine level which overlooked the living room, and provided a bird's eye view of all the party's proceedings on the floor below.

There was a second lounge room on the top floor which was smaller and more private than the spacious living room beneath them. This lounge was complete with a bar, warm maroon coloured walls, two large couches, and an LCD television screen which dominated one wall. The sound was muted, but she could tell that a World Series of Poker match was on. Poker had never really been her game of choice. She preferred craps or roulette as far as table gameswent.

In the few minutes she'd spent giving Fiona the rather haphazard tour of her mother's large home, both her mother and Alessandro had made it to the lounge before her arrival with Fiona, and they'd already poured themselves two glasses of wine. Khalidah was sitting on one of the white suede couches with her back to the door whereas Alessandro, ever aware of his surroundings, had made himself at home on the smaller love seat, keeping the only entry point to the room within view.

“Was just giving Fiona a tour of the house. Was going to take her into the study next since it's like a museum in there. Thought she'd get a kick out of it.”

Khalidah turned around on the couch and patted the seat beside her. “Don't bother. I locked it. Sit down and join us. We don't really get to spend much time together.”

Felicia rolled her eyes. “Ma, I see you like every week. It's not like we're hurting for time, you know.” Still, she obliged, and walked around the couch to sit down beside her mother, dragging Fiona onto the cushion next to her. “Helena's pissed at me again—and why on the gods' green earth did you give her a spear?”

She looked confused. Since when had Helena had a spear? “I honestly have no idea what you're talking about.”

“Well, she had one. Or has one. Whatever. She's mad at me, so I'll just steer clear of her until she cools off.” Helena wasn't stupid; she'd probably figured out that she'd slept with Alessandro before she even had the fucking thought to do it. She glared across the table at Alessandro. “Please don't tell me you're trying to sleep with my mother. Because that would be really gross and I'd have to kill you.” She already wanted to murder that annoying ass Jason twat. He was probably hiding around here somewhere.

A lengthy silence passed over the room, only to be broken by the sound of her leather ensemble which creaked as she stood up and walked over to the bar to pour herself a drink. She pulled two low ball glasses out from a rack under the bar and took out a large bottle of Crown Royal, opened it, and poured a hefty serving of the Canadian whisky into each glass. Making her way back to the sofa, she sat down next to Fiona and passed her one of the glasses filled with the amber coloured liquid. “I don't give a fuck if you don't drink. You're drinking tonight. Bottom's up.” Felicia knocked back the double shot like a pro and shook her head as the alcohol burned all the way down to her stomach. “So what brings the two of you up here?”

She already knew what her mother and Alessandro were doing up there before she arrived with Fiona, and was doing her best not to make it look as if the LCD-clad young woman was being ambushed.

Довести до белого каления.

ф ф Word count: 940
ф ф Mood: Tired. BG go bed now.
ф ф Outfit: Same as the ones in the Hallowe'en thread.
ф ф Lyrics / Quote: Since the Machine, Aesma Daeva
ф ф Illustrations: Included in post.
ф ф Comment / Informational links: Included in post.

[Alessandro Moretti]

Alessandro and Khalidah had already made their way through the household to a large room upstairs which, going by the décor of the room, was predominantly used for meetings and business affairs. It was a rather private room and had a certain class to it that the Italian couldn’t help but admire.

Once inside the room, Alessandro had made himself at home by pouring both him and Khalidah a bottle of Spanish wine – it was crisp though had a full-bodied flavour and deep-red tone. Cherries; that was one of the notes he picked up on. He passed one of the glasses to Khalidah and perched himself on the smaller seat; the entrance to the room was well within his peripheral vision.

“It is a nice house you have, Khalidah.” Alessandro’s shoulders sank into the comfort of the sofa as he sipped on his wine, his eyes drifting around the maroon walls – it was an odd choice in colour, though it aided to compliment the white furnishings to give a room a modern look.

The Italian’s gaze turned to the door as he saw the two figures appear, setting the wine on a nearby coffee table. He watched the exchange between mother and daughter silently though his eyes remained fixed on Fiona. He’d caught the look she’d given him earlier on in the night and had noticed how, with Christian Moynahan by her side, she was confident; almost invulnerable to any harm that could come to her. She was protected and in control of her situation. And, to some extent, that was true.

Until it wasn’t.

Where was Christian now?
Where was her protection?

Alessandro smiled and spoke with a friendly, well-meaning manner, “You’re looking well… Fiona, and-” Alessandro stopped in his tracks at the mention of the spear, his gaze flitting toward Felicia and her mother, “I noticed that, too. It didn’t really suit her costume. And likely it’s me that she is… annoyed with.” He shrugged.

Helena had every reason to dislike Alessandro; he had not only publicly belittled and insulted her, but had resulted to having sexual relations with her wife. Alessandro knew what he was doing, and why he was doing it, and there was no manner of evidence to the contrary that could change his thoughts and feelings on the matter. To him, Helena was the worst thing to happen to the Company. She was nothing but a disgrace; and Alessandro hated it. But, unfortunately, he would need to suck it up. Despite everything, he did enjoy working for the Company.

“Please don't tell me you're trying to sleep with my mother. Because that would be really gross and I'd have to kill you.” Felicia hissed.

Alessandro grinned and stifled a laugh, not to cause insult, but because of the insinuation that Alessandro had an ulterior motive beyond what he had said, “I’m not going to try anything with Khalidah,” He turned to Ms. Rahal, “Without offense meant to you, of course. I am sure you’re rather exceptional in that respect.”

Turning his head to Felicia and Fiona, who seemed somewhat uncomfortable and confused, Alessandro stood up and approached the door. Should anything go wrong, the first thing that would happen is Fiona was going to try and get her keeper – the CEO of Ark Industries – to come to her rescue. That simply was not to be allowed. He picked up his glass as he passed the wine, downed the remainder in one swift chug and manoeuvred himself behind the bar.

“So what brings the two of you up here?” Felicia asked.

Pouring himself another, now stood next to Fiona, the Italian smiled, “We thought we’d get some peace from the noise downstairs,” He sipped his wine, “I prefer the Company of those much closer to my… intellectual capacity,” Alessandro chuckled, his eyes shifting to Fiona.

In person, she looked very much how she did as a child – just taller – and it caused venom to burn through his blood, “And you, Fiona? I hope you’re enjoying the party.”

[Fiona Kingsleigh]

Fiona wasn't thrilled with surprises, and she as certainly caught unaware when Felicia interrupted the small gathering around Christian.  Before she could give protest, Felicia separated her from her date for the evening.  "Umm... I'll be back soon..." announced the shy woman before being lead away from where all other guests were gathered.  While she was feeling a bit uncomfortable being alone with someone she didn't know very well, Fiona appreciated the chance to step away from the crowd for just this moment.  She looked back to her boss one more time before being directed to the fantastic view outside the giant window.  Strange, it looked like there was a butterfly on Mr Moynahan's back.  Nah, it couldn't be.

"The scenery is breathtaking," Fiona nodded in agreement.  Before she had to be more sociable and describe the Strip in vivid details (like that one art class she had to take at school), she found herself on the move again.  The pace was so quick, Fiona was having issues keeping up in the boots she was wearing.  The footwear looked great in conjunction with her costume, but they were not the most comfortable things.  They were very hard, inside and out, and quite heavy.  This much walking wasn't part of the program.  Then, Fiona saw the stairs.  A very gentle sigh escaped from her lips.

Before putting her foot down on the bottom step, Fiona noticed the very shiny banister had a butterfly perched on it.  She looked down at her dress, wondering if the pattern display was bugging out.  It looked fine, and out of the corner of her eyes Fiona thought she saw the same butterfly fluttering off, and heading back down the hallway they arrived from.  When Fiona looked up again, the fluttery insect was gone.  Maybe it was just her imagination.

Fiona stopped momentarily when they've reached the mezzanine, excusing herself for a chance to adjust her dress' laces.  She also took the opportunity to give Christian a small wave.  Fiona was already feeling back about ditching her date... wait.  The butterfly she thought she saw earlier, it was circling atop Christian's head.  Before she could get a good look, Felicia pulled her into the second floor lounge.

She let out a small gasp whe Fiona realized the room was already occupied.  Khalidah, the hostess for the night, as well as the Priest Moretti.  Now there was a man she didn't want to spend any time with, face to face.  There was something about projecting herself through technology that gave Fiona immense amounts of confidence, where she felt like she could be her real self.  She had this exact feeling while at work, where one was only judged by performance, and she was incredible at her job.  But here?  In real life?  Fiona felt timid and small.  There were ten snarky remarks off the top of her head that she wanted to use when Alessandro greeted her in that fake nice way, but all the words Fiona could muster from her mouth was "... t-thanks..."

And so the brunette was placed by Felicia on the couch, in the seat beside hers, like a large but not as pretty Barbie doll.  She was physically nervous, and when the lowball glass was placed in her hand, Fiona drank its contents when told to without any resistance.  The three other people in the room were conversing about something... something about spears and sleeping.  Her eyes couldn't help but wander over to the big door her and Felicia walked through just moments ago.  Her gaze was disrupted when Alessandro walked past it to get behind the bar.  

Fiona squinted and then raised one eyebrow just very slightly when her sight locked with yet another butterfly resting on the doorknob, stretching its black and orange wings.  She wasn't the best at animal biology, but even she knew what it was.

It was an adult-sized Monarch butterfly.

Rubbing her eyes, she was so perplexed by what she was seeing, Fiona was about to actually ask the others if they could see it too, but she was startled by the Italian creeper, now standing next to her.  Twenty witty retorts were swirling around her mind when Alessandro brought up "intellectual capacity", but instead, she simply nodded her head, broke eye contact with the man, and began playing with the horseshoe charm on her necklace.  The horseshoe sent electrical signals to the dress, which changed patterns again.

"I... I think I want to go back to the party below... I should check in with Chr--- Mr Moynahan..." stammered Fiona, sipping on her drink in hand.

[Felicia Soler]

I'll softly touch this
I'll fire up this flame
I'll hold on gently
It's time to lead the game

I want to have it just to prove, I can take control
I want to have it just to show them, I won't be fooled
I'll take it, I'll break it or force it just to let them know
Who I am, who I am

“It is a nice house you have, Khalidah.” He spoke with a tone of admiration that wasn't lost on her.

“Thank you. It's nice to know that someone appreciates this labour of love.” She'd been involved with the building of the home quite literally from the ground up. It had taken her a while to locate and purchase a plot of land large enough for the 14,000 square foot monstrosity, not including the backyard, driveway, pool, and detached casita reserved for overnight visitors who thought it perhaps a bit too intimate to share the same sleeping space with the IntelliTouch CEO. “In one of my former lives, I studied under some of Dayfa Khatun's chief architects—this was when I was living back in Syria a few decades before Felicia was born. If you've ever heard of the Al-Firdaws madrasa in Aleppo—that was kind of my brainchild. If you haven't heard of it, you can either google it, or I'm sure I've got some pictures of it from the last time I was there a few years ago. Honestly surprised it's still standing with all the shit that's gone on in Aleppo over the centuries.”

She took the glass of wine he'd offered to her and glanced at Fiona,who appeared to be doing everything in her power to simply vanish into the background.

Alessandro picked up on the young woman's sudden moment of weakness with the speed of a shark smelling blood in the water. “You’re looking well, Fiona . . . ” He failed to adequately hide his laughter when Felicia inquired about his intentions with her mother, and Khalidah snorted. “I’m not going to try anything with Khalidah—without offense meant to you, of course. I am sure you’re rather exceptional in that respect.”

She looked from Alessandro to her daughter and back again, taking a sip from her glass of wine. “A little bluebird told me that you're also an incredibly attentive partner. Wouldn't shut up about it for days--”

“Mother!”

“--so obviously you must be doing something right . . . in that respect.”

By now, the light blue makeup covering her cheeks had turned a light shade of purple with how much she was blushing. In an attempt to ignore the conversation going on just three feet from her ear, she poured herself another glass of Crown Royal and sighed. One of these days, her mother was going to embarrass her to death. It looked like today was going to be that day. It also didn't help curb her embarrassment when she found her eyes doggedly following Alessandro's form as he stood up and walked behind the bar, effectively blocking the door. Honestly, all she wanted to do right now was kick the other two women out of the room, lock the door behind them, and remind Alessandro in the best way possible of just how unpriestlike he really was.

And then she got distracted by Fiona's dress. Again. Thank God for small miracles. "I... I think I want to go back to the party below... I should check in with Chr--- Mr Moynahan..."

“I'm sure he's fine. I'll let him know where you've gone.” Khalidah knew the real reason why Fiona had been sequestered away from the rest of the guests. There were secrets hidden within her mind which needed to be unlocked in order to set other wheels into motion. With her daughter's unique ability, tapping into the blocked off recesses of Fiona's mind would be quite easy—or at least she hoped it would. Khalidah stood up and walked past Alessandro towards the door, taking hold of his shoulder to draw his attention. “Sarò proprio fuori la porta in caso le cose vanno male.” She told him in hushed tones, unaware of whether Fiona actually understood Italian. “Felicia ha fatto questo prima, e ho fiducia nella lei capacità . . . ma lei può essere po aggressivo.” She squeezed his shoulder and lifted her hand to the side of his neck which she gave an affectionate pat. “Buona fortuna.”

She left the lounge and closed the door behind her.

*****

Felicia knew the real reason why she'd been called upon to remove Fiona from the party. It was something she and her mother and Alessandro had planned some time ago; they requred her to break through Fiona's mental barriers to root out the ability which had remained buried for years—but it was there.

In the time it had taken her mother to make her way out of the room, with the aid of the alcohol now coursing through her system, Felicia had fallen into a trance-like state. Her body was numb, preparing for full possession by her ability. Most of the time it was passive; healing her finger when she cut herself while slicing vegetables, keeping her immune system functioning in top shape to prevent her from getting sick. It was a rare event when she allowed it full reign, as she didn't like the lack of control that came with it. At times it felt like a living entity inside her core, trying to claw its way to the surface before she beat it back into submission.

She moved away from Fiona and left the couch, only to start pacing around behind it like a caged animal. After a few turns, she approached Alessandro, careful to keep her eyes averted as they gradually lost focus behind the silver, mirror-like sheen of her ability which gave them a truly alien appearance. She could still see—extremely well, actually—but the activation of her ability gave her the visual acuity and sensitivity of a raptor, and she could quite literally see through someone. It was both distracting and overwhelming; keeping her eyes closed or her gaze fixed on something inanimate helped her keep her focus.

“C'è una calibro 45 nel cassetto laggiù.” Felicia gestured at a small liquor cabinet, the base of which had four mahogany wood drawers. “La pistola è armato e caricato. Se sembra che sto diventando un po fuori controllo, prendere la pistola e spararmi in testa. Starò bene.” It would either take her several hours to recover and heal from the wound, or her mother could revive her instantly and save her the time.

Fiona seemed to have picked up on the fact that something was awry and was preparing to retreat. She'd abandoned her seat on the couch and was headed around the side of the large wraparound piece of furniture closest to the bar. Having given Alessandro sufficient warning and instruction on what to do if things got out of hand, Felicia met Fiona halfway. With the speed and precision of a viper, she grabbed Fiona by the throat with her left hand, and squeezed. Argent strands of energy flowed over Felicia's hand and penetrated through the skin on Fiona's neck. There wasn't any pain associated with the invasion of Fiona's body; just a pleasant numbness that would have spread instantly through her central nervous system, rendering her completely unconscious.

Once Fiona's struggles ceased, Felicia laid the woman's body down on the couch nearest them and knelt over her, keeping her hand fixed in place on Fiona's neck. She watched as the luminous threads of her ability travelled under Fiona's skin, trying to find the path of least resistance into her mind. It was like she was trying to plug into The Matrix, and in a sense, the analogy wasn't that far off.

חלדה רהל חלדה רהל

∞ Word count: 1416
∞ Mood: I go nini now.
∞ Outfit: Same as previous posts.
∞ Lyrics / Quote: Who I Am, After Forever
∞ Illustrations: Lounge room, courtyard of the Al-Firdaws madrasa, the mihrab at the madrasa
∞ Comment / Informational links: “It was an adult-sized Monarch butterfly.” Not even gonna lie, when I first read that line, my mind went here.

[Alessandro Moretti]

“Thank you. It's nice to know that someone appreciates this labour of love.” Khalidah responded, her eyes drifting to look around the room – admiring the work of her immediate surroundings. And it was true, Alessandro did admire the finesse and attention to detail that was prominent throughout the architecture and design of the whole house. Every little bit of furniture and décor had a place – and a reason for said place – from the large statues in the courtyard, to the threads on the throw cushions; everything was meticulously planned out.

And it looked stunning; picturesque and magnificent.

Alessandro nodded as Khalidah spoke, his eyes watching her intently; listening to every word. He could tell by the way Khalidah was speaking that she had great passion for her work – for her achievements and accomplishments and it made her quite the conversationalist though Alessandro knew she’d likely tuned her social skills to a fine art through all of her years on the planet. After all, what else do you do when you’ve all the time in the world?

“People like keeping beauty alive, sí? Humanity… we like vanity. And sí, I have heard of it, though haven’t had the pleasure of… witnessing its… sfarzo. Perhaps after tonight, you can show me some of your pictures.” Alessandro smiled and handed her the wine; which she graciously accepted.

Alessandro’s own eyes followed Khalidah’s as they planted themselves to keep watch on Fiona. She was making an exceptional effort to not impose on the two and should she had been anything other than instrumental to Alessandro’s plans, perhaps she might have succeeded in drifting into the shadows. Though, as it stood, there was no such luck. She needed to be here. After all, on this night, Fiona Kingsleigh was the centrepiece to the party.

Soon after, Alessandro had returned his attention on the Rahal’s; a comment from Felicia had caused quite a… conversation starter between the two and Alessandro couldn’t help but smile and sip on his wine as the two spoke. Well, it wasn’t quite speaking – moreover, Khalidah doing the motherly thing and embarrassing her daughter.

In that respect, evidently, Alessandro did have prowess. He swallowed hard on a large sip of wine and bowed his head slightly, “Grazie.”

Alessandro watched Felicia blush, inhale at her mother’s comment, and proceed to pour herself another drink. This was going to be a fun night and though it was undeniable that Alessandro’s feeling toward Felicia were, on the whole, ill-ridden; he could not deny that the intimate moments the two had shared were anything but: - they were intimate and it felt special, almost as if the two were destined together. Which, of course, was absurd.

Alessandro, after seeing how uncomfortable Fiona seemed, had moved himself behind the bar; standing by the door. She wasn’t going to leave before she needed to.

"I... I think I want to go back to the party below... I should check in with Chr--- Mr Moynahan..." Fiona finally chirped up after a moment and Alessandro’s rolled his eyes, and ran his fingers across the various bottles in the small wine cabinet. Khalidah had a good selection and had stocked up well.
“I'm sure he's fine. I'll let him know where you've gone.” Khalidah responded and Alessandro rested his fingers on a French red; a rather tasty looking Bordeaux. His picked the wine up, nodded at the 2005 label, and set it on the table before scanning the bar for a corkscrew. He’d all but zoned out from whatever was going on around him before he was drawn out of his reverie by a hand resting on his shoulder. He looked up and listened to Khalidah's words.

“Niente volere andare male. Ma va bene. Grazie.” Alessandro responded, turning his body away from Felicia and Fiona; his full attention now on the elder Rahal,
“Felicia ha fatto questo prima, e ho fiducia nella lei capacità . . . ma lei può essere po aggressivo.” Khalidah said, squeezing his shoulder,
“So aggressivo lei può essere. Mi occuperò con esso se ne ho bisogno.”
“Buona fortuna.” Khalidah smiled, and Alessandro didn’t respond. He knew he didn’t need to. He just nodded and turned as she left; hearing the loud click of the door as it locked.

Now it was time for some fun.
He nodded, at Fiona, toward Felicia in a gesture for Fiona to look at the younger Rahal as if to say ‘look’.
Alessandro was familiar with Felicia’s power and though it made him feel sick to his stomach seeing that kind of power in a person, he knew it was necessary. The Italian visibly tensed up when Felicia approached her; her eyes looking away from him and toward an inanimate point away from everyone in the room.

“C'è una calibro 45 nel cassetto laggiù.” Felicia said, her voice calm yet apprehensive. He nodded and picked up the bottle of wine. Sliding it back into its position in the wine rack.
“La pistola è armato e caricato. Se sembra che sto diventando un po fuori controllo, prendere la pistola e spararmi in testa. Starò bene.”
Alessandro grinned, “Non ho mai pensato ci si chiedere.” He said before leaning down and opening the cabinet; grabbing the pistol. It was well weighted; loaded with a single bullet. He flicked the safety on and held it in his hands; his fingers running across the grip, his eyes slithering down the barrel until they drifted to Fiona.

Alessandro had no reason to intervene now. He just needed to watch and allow events to unfold. He leaned against the back wall of the bar and placed the gun in his mouth; his fingers were wrapped around the grip, his index running along the barrel, and used the somewhat pointed corners of the metal design to pry any bits that were stuck in his teeth like a rather rudimentary, if not somewhat dangerous, tooth-pick.

He watched intently when Felicia took grasp of Fiona and no longer had it started, did it seem to be over. Fiona’s body went limp and Alessandro stepped forward; placing the gun on the counter; his hand hovering over it just in case. His elbows rested on the bar-top and he waited.

He waited until Felicia did what she needed to do or got out of hand.
He waited for his chance to do what he needed to do.
And then, after Fiona awoke, he would begin to correct all of his mistakes.

After all, this was all to make amends for the mistakes of his past. He was doing this for Alice. Fiona needed to pay for what she’d done and Alessandro knew that having her memories returned would force Fiona to see what she was. She was to blame for everything.

And now she was going to know.