Reverie [The Distortionist x reader]

Chapter 22

(Art by madness-within-the-mirror on Tumblr)

And sure, I'm the one

Who swung the metal bat

But hey, I can't control the urge!

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A day after a whole afternoon of working, you're once again caught in a journey a few cities over with Stia. This time, it's in the opposite direction to the Casta Carnival. You're going to the prison that holds Christopher, a place quite far away from where the crime occurred. Thankfully, the boredom of a slow, rumbling carriage ride is complemented with chatting.

After a few hours of the distraction, a certain piece of conversation got highlighted in your memory. "I never did truly thank you for letting me stay over for so many nights," you say.

"Don't thank me, it's the least I can do," she chuckles. "But I am thinking of a change of pace for where you're staying."

"Do you mean I should look for somewhere else to sleep?"

"No. Quite the opposite, actually."

"Then what are you thinking?"

"This might be a little biased, but... I think you should go back to your home, back to your sister and niece. From what I saw with your friend Henry and from previous expeditions, humans don't take well to me, mostly, so though this might hurt our investigation, I think it's important to have a close bond to the people in your homeworld. And this is because..."

"Because otherwise I might choose to stay permanently with Chris?"

"Correct. Again, it might be selfish of me to have a preference of what you choose, but I feel that if you chose to go to his world, you would be unhappy."

"Is that a magical sensation, like your power to feel if a big event is about to take place?"

"Not even that. It's just the common sense I gained with experience."

"Hm. Well, don't worry about it! My reflection nags me about it enough to take it off the table."

"Alright. But please go back to your family for me, okay? Just in case. I know something will happen there but I suppose you already expect that?"

"I know, and fine... I'll do so."

"That's wonderful! Thank you for listening to me. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about."

"Sure. Oh! I have a couple questions for you."

"Go on."

"The first is if you sense that something big is going to happen in the prison."

"No, actually. I feel as if this will go smoothly, which is a good sign."

"Ah, I didn't expect that! But it's better than what I did expect anyway. My second question is - will you... leave after your duty is done?"

"I have to, doll. I'm loyal to Father and He sees many missions in my future."

"..." You cough, punctuating the small change of subject that was to come. "Well, do you have anything that you need to do in the prison?"

"I need access to his world, and for that, I need his permission," she says simply. "I need to be able to have further information on him while he's a breacher."

"Oh, that makes sense," you comment.

After that, the conversation lapsed back to prosaic, unremarkable chatting. It was just a way to fill time until the carriage rolled into the gated entrance to the prison complex.