Thread: The Butcher's Bill (Prince x LeatrixSage)

She had been stepping toward him - feral with the raw power clutched in her left hand, seething just beneath her skin and begging to be released - when his hand came at her. She thought he meant to hit her and put her arms up, content to absorb the blow, it would work in her favor. She wasn't strong enough or talented enough to throw energy. Elisa needed contact to use what she'd gathered. When the net fell over her, her stomach heaved threateningly. Bile rose in her throat as every line in London seemed to be ripped from her mind. Their music faded until only the major lines were left, those lines that could kill the one using them as well as the victim. She sucked in a breath between her teeth as she realized what was happening. She had felt this before. The net was made of iron, or at least had iron in it. Panic squeezed in around her heart as she flailed to throw the net off. The first manacle closing around her right wrist made her shout in disgust. She flung out her left hand, desperate to slam her palm into his chest. Before it could meet its mark, the other shackle fell into place. Elisa buckled as the air left her lungs in a rush. Every nerve ending seemed to burn, seared from the heat of the leyline as every drop was forced from her body. She landed heavily on her knees, pain shooting through them as she doubled up over herself, clutching her middle and gasping for air. She heard him speak, the door close, and felt him move about the room. When he sat on her bed near her, her head snapped up to see him. Rage and horror fought for supremacy inside her. They were gone. A distant echo that left her feeling broken and starving. They had always been, always were... now they were gone. The pain of loosing them was near to breaking her when his words snagged at her thoughts. Demon, it was a whisper, utter confusion breaking through the panic that threatened to consume her. I'm not... Demon?... No, no, you're wrong, I'm not a demon! Elisa staggered as she got to her feet and shuffled backward until she hit the far wall. I'm not, my parents... her throat closed, and Elisa stopped. Her head fell forward and she stared at the floor while painful memories swirled through her thoughts. I am.. me. Just me... I don't know why I am different, but I am no demon. She saw her father standing over her mother, the knife in his hand, the blood. So much blood... more than should be in a woman as slight and frail as her mother had been. His eyes... God, the hate in those eyes. Slowly, Elisa slid back down the floor, hugging her waist and shaking as she shook her head back and forth desperately. I'm not a demon! And, I don't know what happened to Claudia! I left her... I left her behind. At the theater on Fleet Street. She wanted to watch the rest of the show. I had to get to the Dowager Crone. I don't know what happened... I left her... Elisa's eyes burned and tears flowed freely, but her voice was clear. High pitched and frantic, but clear. Far clearer than her mind, which seemed to break away in little pieces as she spoke. I'm not a demon, she repeated over and over again, as if she were trying to convince herself more so than Ethan. I'm not. I'm not a demon.