IdentityV - Oneshots

♠︎ The Dogs - Naib x Emily

It was storming again. Loud thunder and bright flashes of lighting kept the Doctor awake. No, she wasn't afraid of the loud booms, or bright flashes. She was afraid of what they reminded her of. The Clinic. And when she thought about her sins, she couldn't sleep. Hence her walking around in the dark of the night, the quiet halls of the manor.

As she walked, she couldn't help but cross paths with someone. "Hello Naib." She said softly to the Mercenary sitting at a large window. He turned to the woman. "You're up late." He said lowly, not much conversation coming to his mind. "I could say the same for you." She provoked. She knew Naib had a habit of not sleeping, she tried to get him on a normal schedule but it was no use. She wasn't surprised to see him in the middle of the night anymore.

"You only stay up when it's storming out." He mumbled, turning back to the window. Her face scrunched into unease of him knowing what kept her up. "Well, what about you? Sometimes you do go to bed, but not once have I seen you sleep when there's thunder." She retorted, in a tired and strained way. "True. The thunder sounds like those heavy machines in war, and the lightings flashes are like explosions."

Her eyes widened, and he turned to her with no real expression on his face. It was a blatant fact that everyone knew, the Mercenary had deep trauma inflicted on him, and it was no surprise that he wasn't fond of storms. But telling the Doctor of his reasoning was simply an offer, an offer to receive back an answer. What was so scary of thunderstorms that she had to stay up?

She held the lantern in her hand tightly, before shuffling over and sitting by the mercenary. Setting the dim light on the floor, she looked outside, and he mimicked her. "I'm not scared of them." She said softly, but a bit of force was laced in her words. Perhaps to fight the fear and regret that was set heavy on her shoulders. "They represent, certain... events."

"That's boring." She scowled at her reflection at Naib's words. "We were all bad people once, what's the harm in it now." He husked. "How bad do you think I was?" They never looked at each other. For the Mercenary, maybe it was just his personality of not knowing how to connect with others. For the Doctor, she felt if someone looked at her long enough, they'd know everything. "Couldn't be as bad as me."

She barely glanced at him. It sounded like he believed that statement whole heartedly, should she dare ruin that good view of herself? The longer she thought about it, the more it wanted to come out, so she let it out. She spoke, but she did so in the most vague manner she could muster, just the thought making her sick. "The dogs."

And for the first time that night, the Mercenary gave her his full attention. "On nights like this, they would show up. I knew they would, it's why I even... put those bags out there."

The Mercenary knew nothing of what she did, or who she used to be, but the way she phrased that the way she did. It felt like the only idea in his head, was what the truth was. Bags of... He was surprised to hear this. The Doctor that took care of everyone here with a smile and gentle touches. The hands she would use to heal people, were the same hands that had caused one too many people grief and pain. Death.

"The rain would carry the blood, and the wind would carry the smell, and every night they came." She began to look down, not standing to bare the sight of her own reflection. "I would listen to them rip open the countless bags. And I-... smiled. Knowing how easily my sins were erased from the face of the earth."

Naib sat there in silence. He supposed for the first time in a while he was surprised at something. The hands of the Doctor who had been taking care of everyone including himself, were also used to make pain and suffering. "Well, then our exchange is finished then." He stood up and noticed the stiffness of Emily who had not made a sound since she finished.

"I guess we'll have our sins in common then, if that makes you feel any better."

He turned to see her shoulders tense up before they rested, and she release a breath she was holding quietly. He turned back around in better spirits at her comfort, even if it wasn't much. "Good night."