fiddlestick | IC Inbox (Kaisou)

[He heaves out a sigh, a part of him was worried Elliot would rightly ignore this.]

I really wouldn't. I-I wish I could give you time to grieve but I don't think we have time.

[His tone is genuinely worried, he's not being a Dramatic Teen here.]

Has- has Snow White ever told you anything about her home life? Because she...she told me a lot about her stepmother and I'm- The way she talked about it? It sounded like she's in real danger.

Snow White?

[Oh hey, there's that knife-like feeling of dread.]

She hasn't said anything directly, but a lot of us have been concerned for awhile. Why? What did she say?

She was- well, we somehow got to talking and she opened up to me a lot about what's actually happening there.

[Does he feel guilty about betraying that trust to come to Elliot? A little, but this seemed far too important to let lie. This is a time when not doing anything was the absolutely worst thing he could do. He knows that. ]

She told me that her stepmother doesn't- she treats Snow so badly. To- to the point where I'm scared for her life. Snow told me that she...dispatches anyone who gets involved, or she moves them and hides them again. She kept talking about holding out for another four years and- and that she was trapped. I-"

[He doesn't want to talk about Gothel. He never met the woman, but he's felt the ripple effect that vile woman has had on people he loves a great deal. Her evil has hung like a cloud over Corona for twenty-one years. Longer, really. ]

I'm scared that she's gonna get hurt. Really bad. Or- or someone close to Snow is gonna get hurt bad. It sounds like someone my friend back home had to deal with. Some-someone who just hurts and keeps someone for-for their own gain.

That's-

[He stops himself, taking a deep breathe, but that word alone betrays how appalled he sounds. He'd had suspicions about Grimhilde for a long time, but this is the first time it's been laid out to paint a dangerous picture. Maybe a few weeks ago, he'd advise caution. That they needed evidence, that they needed to work slowly, that they had to move carefully not to do damage onto Snow.

But...he had tried that with Hunter. He had tried to gently pry the boy away from his uncle, to give him a loving home and a life away from the Golden Guard. He had hoped that one day Hunter would realize his uncle was bad on his own and that he could have better. He even had foolish moments where he had considered that maybe, just maybe, they could've been a family.

But in the end, it didn't work. Hunter still went back to Belos. And possibly willingly. All his careful plans had been for nothing, Hunter was in danger, and Elliot had no means of helping him.

Not again. Maybe it was his own grief spurring him, but he wasn't going to make that same mistake twice. Elliot would never be Snow's family, but he can at least silence the dangerous element.

He takes a deep breath. His voice is slightly shakey, but there's resolve there. ]

Thanks for telling me. We won't let Snow get hurt. Or anyone else close to her. [...]

Can you do me a favor? Snow told me once how she likes having dinner with friends. Can...you and Fern take her for the night, while I figure out what to do? I'm sure she'd like to spend the time with you.

Edited 2022-12-01 20:32 (UTC)

[Varian's quiet, letting Elliot process this. It's so much- even he's still reeling from it. He wishes more than anything that none of this was real. But he knows Snow is telling the truth, and he's terrified of what will happen to her...will happen to anyone near her if they let this continue.

Snow might think she can hang on for another four years, but Varian has no such belief. ]

Thank you. I'm...I'm really sorry to bring this to you when I know you're dealing with so much, but I really didn't know who else to turn to.

[Who else might be able to do something. He leaps at the idea to be able to do something himself, even if he has a damn good idea what will happen if Grimhilde is left alone. ]

Of course, we can. We can give her a really nice night out, maybe go-go see a movie or something, too. [Something that will take TIME. Someplace where Snow can hide and not think about being found.

Then, because as much as he's willing to pretend not to know what's going on for Snow's sake:]

...Please be careful

No, it's okay Varian. I'm glad you trusted me enough to tell me. I'll do everything I can not to let that trust down.

[He's aware that Varian is probably smart enough to connect the dots, but he's thankful the kid isn't voicing it either. It's for the best really, to allow Varian to have as much plausible deniability as possible]

I will be, promise. You just have a fun evening, okay? Snow needs her friends with her.

Thank you. I really appreciate that.

[He definitely connected the dots on this one. He knows a murder plan when he sees one, he made one himself, after all. ]

I'll do my best. I'll make sure she has a good time. We have a spare bedroom, so I can try and see if she'll stay over, too.

[To keep her WELL away from everything. ]

That sounds like a great idea. I'm sure she's never had a sleepover before.

[....]

I should get going. I'll check in later, okay?

I'd say that's an absolute certainty.

[She might not be convinced to stay but by god he will TRY.]

Yeah, please do.

[Elliot hangs up at that point, and there's no word from him for several hours. Eventually though, he'll send a single text]

It's over.

[And leave it at that]

[He's been pretty tense, waiting for this. He tries to not make it show, while he's out with Snow. He's pretty good at faking it if he needs to, and this is definitely a time when he needs to.

He feels...some sort of something at seeing this? Relief mostly, there's a twinge of melancholy, of guilt that this is going to upset Snow in the short-term, even if it means the better for the long-term. It's what had to be done. He knows better to drag it out, so his response is short and to the point too. ]

Thanks for letting me know.

[The less said right now the better. No use incriminating all of them. ]

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