Quoted By:
>Hey it's me
At the very least, if he knew it was you, it'd buy you some time. You don't think he'd leap straight to murdering somebody he knows, even if he knows you mostly for being a thorn in his side. Well, he's a thorn in your side, so there.
If he didn't have his hand over your mouth, you could just say who you are. Of course he has to mess that up. Damnit! You are going to have to struggle a bit, even if he gets tetchy. You raise your arm to grab his off, and he recoils, clamping harder. Fine! You lick his palm.
That does it. Ellery keeps the crossbow to your throat, but he wipes his saliva-y hand on his slacks, leaving your mouth free. You make the most of it. "You stupid ass! I'm Charlotte Fawkins!"
"Ha-ha. Funny joke. Did some oppo research, huh?" Ellery yanks you backward. "Why don't you go ahead and prove it, then. Quick. Should be easy, since she's such a colossal—"
"A colossally... impressive... hey!" He's going to rip a hole in your turtleneck, jabbing like that. "Okay, geez. Here."
It doesn't matter who you are, or where you are: The Sword is there when you want it, and right now you want it flaming gloriously in your hand. You point it straight out, illuminating the space around you— wide, short-ceilinged, and tiled with familiar linoleum. You didn't break out of the manse, did you? You don't think so. The pit and sky are still above you. Everything down here is beaded with water.
Ellery lets go immediately, backing several steps away. You turn to face him, illuminating him too: that's Ellery, all right, except he doesn't have a face. There's a ripped-in hole where the face should go. His voice comes out of it. "What the fuck?!"
"I told you so," you say.
"You stole that guy's fucking <span class="mu-i">BODY?!</span> I know you weren't him from the start!" He hasn't lowered the crossbow. "Is he still in there?!"
"Yes? I'm not letting him out, though, or he'll be really mad. Also, he's evil, so who cares? Also, can you stop pointing that at me? I don't want to stab you."
You do, a little, but you won't say that. You're not sure if Ellery believes you. He hasn't moved. "You're not human."
God, again? "We talked about this already, Ellery. Multiple times. I'm sorry you're jealous of my—"
"You're in a guy's fucking BODY."
"So? It's not like it was hard. Maybe you're just lame. If you bothered stealing some guy's body, Casey wouldn't be chasing you around, and you wouldn't be stuck in a hole."
"You—" Ellery clenches his free hand. "You STUCK me in the hole, you—"
"And would I have stuck you there if you stole some guy's body? I bet not! I don't see how that changes my point at all." You wave The Sword at him. "Also, you wouldn't be chased around if you <span class="mu-i">stayed home,</span> which is exactly what we agreed on doing, so this is entirely your—"
There's a breeze and a <span class="mu-i">thunk.</span> You blink, then swing around to double-check. Yes, there's a bolt embedded in the wall behind you, an inch higher than your head.
"Shut up," Ellery says.
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