livlaughlove | sticksandbones IC Inbox

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livio

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      Powers nerfed & gained
    Self-healing: Nerfed on arrival from near-instant to delayed by a few minutes. Think 5-10.
Superhuman strength: Nerfed on arrival. Still super strong, but not to the same extent.
Dragon Blessing - Strength: Makes up for original nerf. Plus dual sets of horns, one pair curved down to frame his face, one pair curved back and up. Sharp and harshly angled, like his sunburst tattoos.
Dragon Blessing - Balance: Thick, alligator-like tail.

      Deaths & Resurrection prices
    Death - August 2024: Killed by a Corrupted Vash.

Price: Marksmanship skill. Can no longer aim a gun worth a damn. 

      Other permanent changes
    Memory Loss - February 2024: In Razlo's heartspace, his memory of Chapel defending him to the other Masters was destroyed. He still recalls having been fiercely loyal to Chapel, but not why.
Scarring - March 2024: Scars in an enormous jaw pattern spanning from his thighs to upper arm, with teeth marks along both his chest and back.

      Temporary changes
    Hydra form - May 2025: from Event/TDM 24. A bunch of fungi made LR into some fun guys.

  
    CODE
  

weasel's note: livio's handwriting is extremely neat and uncannily consistent. every letter is always the same exact size and shape. as if simply writing perfectly in times new roman was a humanly possible thing.

livio can commonly be found where he lives at vash's house or looking after the school.

plotting contact: PM // discord @ fuckweasel

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[he tries not to give empty platitudes for this sort of thing if he can help it, he really does, but... livio already feels extremely powerless against the forest, of late. he doesn't know what else to say. he can't fix the damage or prevent her from being hurt further.]

I'm sorry.

Don't be. I brought this upon myself in the end. ... And someone has to make sure you can come home after the unthinkable.

I don't think... showing kindness should be seen as bringing something evil down on yourself. [he doesn't like talking in moral hypotheticals, either, but hell if this place doesn't change a person.]

Still. I wouldn't blame you if you couldn't do it.

( nene looks at him...

but doesn't say anything.

eventually, the twisting fog fades into a gentle mist, and the musk of the forest fades to flowers. ...

the air clears, and livio will find they've entered a wide, vast flower field. most of them are white anemonies, but others are also there. in the near distance is a sakura tree, and laying at its roots is wolfwood.

it looks like he's asleep. )

[can he livio blamed for being more than a little shocked to see nick there, in front of them, after he buried him? even knowing they were coming here specifically to collect him?

his hand loosens in nene's as he's nearly overcome with the urge to run to the tree, but... he hesitates, looking down at her. don't let go of her hand, he's heard. does that still apply in this meadow?]

... It's okay, this is safe. But please, remember that we can't stay for too long.

[livio is too caught up in his emotions to properly appreciate the area; he doesn't want to stay a moment longer than is necessary to help nick regardless of nene's warning.

with the go ahead, he rushes up to wolfwood, kneeling beside him in a motion that is... all too fresh and familiar. he's almost scared to check to see if wolfwood's chest rises and falls yet.]

Nick...?

[A dark, starless sky. The warmth of the most important people in his life, desperately trying to keep his body from going cold. The sound of their voices when his vision failed him.

It's the last thing Wolfwood remembers before there was nothing. No more pain, no more regret. Nothing to stress over, yet nothing to work towards. And as his body had been buried in the Grove, his soul took its time recovering here in the Garden. Reclaiming what had been lost, while oblivious to how much more he had yet to lose.

Time is strange in the Grove, but especially here. Livio's voice softly calls out through the darkness, telling him to wake up.

Livio will see Wolfwood's chest moving as he slowly, slowly draws breath, as if coming out of a long hibernation more than a proper sleep. His eyes are heavy, and it takes real effort to force their lids open as he looks up from where his chin lolls against his sternum, fully expecting to see the dark sky again. It feels like he just died, after all.

But here, it isn't like that. There are flowers everywhere, and crouched just in front of him is a familiar face that slowly blurs into focus. His mouth works soundless, like he can't quite remember how to speak, before finally he croaks:]

...Liv?

[it takes everything in livio's power not to burst into tears as he had the last time he was hovering over nicholas. as it stands, nene's words are fresh in his mind. another something terrible either has happened, or will happen. he has to stay strong, right now. he'll have time to break down when wolfwood is safe and comfortable. when he's home.]

Hey... I'm here, Nico. How're you feeling...?

...like I got hit by a fuckin' car.

[He mutters, having not yet mustered the energy or give-a-damn to sit up properly. He's still lounging against that tree because it feels better than moving right now, especially since he's not yet sure what will happen if he tries.

He knows Livio, though. He can tell by the look on his face and the flowers all around them that they are not currently still in the Grove. It's why he's quick to close his mouth again, brows furrowing.

Wolfwood does try to keep his eyes open though, not wanting Livio to go away for even a second.]

What's...what happened? Where are we?

[so long as nick is too weak to sit up, liv will settle for reaching for his hand to hold. he does his best to keep a straight face, but... yeah, that isn't happening. he sure looks ready to start bawling all over again, even though he somehow manages to avoid doing so.]

We're in the garden. [he's pretty sure, anyway. he's heard as much.] You... You died.

...hah. Damn.

[Wolfwood huffs a humorless laugh, yet when he feels Livio reach out to take his hand...he'll squeeze it right back, immediately.]

Guess I owe you an apology. ...well. 'Nother one.

[at that, liv's brows furrow almost angrily.]

You don't owe me shit, Nicholas. [despite his face and his words, he lays his other hand atop wolfwood's as well, holding it as gently as possible in both of his. his voice softens, as welll.] Christ... I'm just glad you're here now.

[Well. He knows better than to press that particular issue right now. He has no way of knowing the scope of just how long he's been gone for without discussing it further, and he's not sure that's something Livio wants right now. Hell, he's not sure that's something he could handle. Just the idea of being dead (as in DEAD dead, not dying but revived at the last second) is still struggling to fully sink in.

For what it's worth, he isn't just going to keep laying there.

He'll use his grip on Livio's hand to pull himself up and forward a little, grunting deeply under his breath. He can still feel the distant, aching soreness of the old wounds that the serum healed over, yet for a mercy they're no longer there. Even if the serum killed him in the end, it at least did its job.]

Yeah. ...yeah, me too.

[His other hand comes up, shucking through his hair as he glances around the Garden for the first time, only just now noticing Nene nearby.]

...the others. Are they-?

[The Grove was attacked. It was attacked, and it was his fault.]

[of course livio allows himself to be used as leverage. he even moves one hand to wolfwood's back in an effort to try holding him up better.

... shit, he should have led with this.]

They're fine. It... was just you. Even Elsword's recovering.

[now his brows turn up. surely nick is concerned about vash. and... livio doesn't know where the hell to start. doesn't want to worry him. not when they haven't even left the garden.]

...thank God.

[And he means that, genuinely. Like, he doesn't have time to unpack how he's feeling about everything that happened right now, but. Boy, does he have feelings about it.

His hand tightens its grip on Livio's hand, just as his other reaches out to carefully rest along his shoulder.]

Help me up. We need to get outta here.

[He needs to get back. To figure out...what to do next. But, more than anything?

He wants to see Vash. His dog.

He wants to be in his own "home".]

[and here livio is, still painfully aware that there's a cost for leaving. still unsure whether or not it's already been taken.

nonetheless, he holds nick steady as they stand.]

Take it easy, okay? Nene said we can't stay long, but that doesn't mean you gotta push yourself...

I got it. I'll be fine.

[Ha...haha...

He manages to stand, at least. He's still feeling sore, and his body hardly feels fully like his own, but the longer he's awake, the more aware of being alive he is. His heart beats in his chest, he's able to draw breath. It feels all too lucky, but it wouldn't be the first time he's cheated the reaper.

Wolfwood exhales slowly, still leaning against Livio a bit as he looks out past the flower-laden Garden again.

He knows about the Garden. He knows about people returning from it, like Gnosis said would sometimes happen. But the notion of losing something...that he hasn't recalled.]

She brought you here. [He muses, glancing over at the little girl once again.] ...thanks, kid.

Of course. Mom says your will to live helped you heal way faster than normal... Most people take months.

( "months".

though maybe that just says a lot about the previous people who died. maybe she shouldn't out them like that. or maybe wolfwood's just especially voracious for life despite everything.

...

she wouldn't know. )

Once we leave the mist and re-enter the forest, it will take something from you. Felicity and Add lost an arm and an eye respectively, but it may also take a memory or a skill. You may not even notice it. But, me and Livio are here to help you get back home regardless.

[His will to live, huh? That's almost funny. But...

...ah. That's the catch, isn't it? You don't just get to live again for nothing. You have to lose something. The Forest has to take once more.

For a long moment, Wolfwood says nothing, leaning against Livio with his hand in one pocket. It's hard to tell what he might be thinking, though with the way his jaw subtly moves, it's obvious he wishes he had a cigarette.]

Whatever it is...I'll handle it.

[Even if he doesn't remember, should that be the price. It's said in a tone, like "I brought this on myself, so I'll take my licks".]

M'ready whenever you are.

[it's... sure not fun, hearing about this again, but still, liv holds steady for wolfwood's sake.]

I'm here for you, Nico. [it isn't merely an echo of what nene said, but also holds a silent correction: we'll handle it. it may be nick's pain and loss on the line, but he's nick's partner, and nothing if not empathetic. it's their burden.]

Once we're out, one of you has to hold my hand.

( she'll lead the way out though, back through the gentle mist. the air is cold and clear, and the entire forest is silent.

... )

[...

Wolfwood will take Nene's much smaller hand in his own as they begin to walk out of the Garden, all three of them. Livio is welcome to hold her other if he'd like, but he feels like he needs to do this, even so.

He has no idea what to expect. He's been warned, and- if he's lucky- the Forest will simply take what it wants and leave him wondering what that might have been, exactly. He would hate it no less, of course, but. You can't miss what you don't remember losing.

It feels too still. Too calm. The anxious wait for the other pin to drop is agonizing, yet it's one that Wolfwood keeps silent to himself as they trudge slowly forward. He walks with intent, one foot in front of the other, thinking more about what he'll meet with back at the Grove than anything else. Surely, he will not be welcome. He wouldn't be surprised if the others didn't want to see him again, alive or not.

The thought lingers at the forefront of his mind as the trio take their first steps out of the mist and into the forest proper. The silence, at this point, has become suffocating, like walls are trying to close in on him. Around his body, his chest, his head. A massive weight seems to settle, the trees crowding uncomfortably close to them the further they step. Wolfwood is tempted to try to turn a different way as the forest grows even thicker, but all that does is drive him headfirst into the thickest undergrowth yet.

He hesitates, just for one moment. His glasses are missing. He can't see whatever safe paths may be out here, relying entirely on Nene's guidance to ensure they don't walk face-first into the fog wall.

That is the least of his concerns.]

[The trees come alive at once.

Branches twist and crackle, gnarled restraints like fetters around Wolfwood's chest as they snake around him with more force and speed than he's capable of fighting back against. He feels his body wrenched forward uselessly like a ragdoll, torn away from Livio yet no matter how hard it tries to pull him from Nene's grip, her hand manages to keep hold. A mercy, given that the Forest has him, and seems unwilling to let go.

Wolfwood lets out a wordless snarl of rage, kicking out with his right leg at what ends up being the air as the trees bow forward, branches like cages hemming him in. His hand flies to his side instinctively, to his gun that would have been there, but now isn't. But what is a bullet to a tree, bark unyielding no matter how much he thrashes and tries to break free?

He continues to struggle, yet even that, too, is fruitless. It isn't long before the grip of the trees manages to bind him so tightly that he can't move at all, heavy like the force Legato would place upon him like a cat toying with a mouse. It's a reminder of just how powerless he is, that no matter how hard he fights, he will never be free.

Eyes darting wildly, he feels the branches continue to coil around his limbs, both arms and legs, each side squeezing independently. Deliberating. Choosing.

Then, the branches begin to pull. And they pull. And they pull, like a child pulling the wings off a butterfly.

Wolfwood doesn't even realize the howling voice in the woods is his own as his right leg, from just above the knee, is torn from his body with a sickening crunch of bone, the flesh coming clean with it almost too easily. The branches curl around the limb now divorced from Wolfwood's body, pulling it quickly back into the darkness. They drop Wolfwood's convulsing body back to the ground just as remorselessly, leaving him there to bleed, unable to stand, unable to feel-

He can't breathe. He can't catch his breath. It hurts.]

[one moment, everything is eerie but still, and the next -- nick is ripped away from him. and whether it's the forest keeping wolfwood out of reach, nene holding liv back, or his own horror keeping him rooted in place, livio can't get back to nicholas. just as nene said, he has to watch, helpless in the face of what's happening. his own desperate cries mingle with wolfwood's, as well as the creak of trees and snap of bone and tear of flesh.

then just as quickly, it's over. at least, the forest's attack is over. nick's suffering is only beginning.

whether or not he should still be holding onto nene, he throws himself next to wolfwood instead. he may not have medical training, exactly, but he's seen more injuries than most people ever will, and he knows how many major blood vessels are now pumping into empty air. the first thing he does is rip his belt off and get a handle on nick's thigh despite the slick of blood. he chokes out a likely unheard --] Sorry. I'm so sorry -- [as he works to tighten and tighten the leather strap above the amputation and slow the blood flow.]

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surprise bitch bet you thought you'd seen the last of me

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1/2

CW: blood/dismemberment

Re: CW: blood/dismemberment