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[devoutish]

Yeah?

[That's it, that's all you get.]

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[devoutish]

If you died again--

[He doesn't know how to finish that.]

[bywolves]

Not died again. [ Royce says, and this time it's firm. ] Didn't help. If losing myself, I'll get inside.

[devoutish]

[And he'll have more options, with more houses around him. Alfie relaxes, just a little bit.]

Go next door. That's all.

[bywolves]

[ He makes a confirming noise. He'll go in a minute. First, though. ]

Anomaly. [ A beat. ] Her. [ And he nudges the tablet so Alfie can hear Gwen laughing to herself, a little hysterically. ] You?

[devoutish]

I--

[He'd killed her. It. He'd killed it. He'd killed an anomaly, he hadn't killed Fiona.

He squeezes his eyes shut, trying not to think about what he's been wondering for hours now: if what he saw when he bashed its head against the wall was similar to what the Joker had seen when he'd beaten the real her to death.]

I.

[bywolves]

[ There's a long pause, and then Royce lets out a low, wounded sound. ]

Alfie. [ He hopes that conveys how sorry he is. He's very carefully thinking around what he has to do. In fact, he doesn't think he will. He'd rather be this than have to kill her. ]

[devoutish]

{Alfie makes a sound that's almost a whimper. He'd killed her without hesitation, but. Still.]

[bywolves]

Hurt. [ He understands. The cloak gathers up around the tablet. ] Ssss - sss.

[ He can't say sorry - all he has is the start of the sound. ]

[devoutish]

Hurts very much. Yeah.

[He swallows.]

Are you going to--

[bywolves]

No. [ Royce says, near immediately. The cloak ripples angrily. ] No.

[devoutish]

[Maybe ordinarily, he'd get worked up about this - it's not really Gwen, it just looks like Gwen. But he finds that he can't manage it, now. Maybe he could if it were about something less abstract, but who even knows what the lights are, anyway? Who knows, maybe they're a bad thing.]

Your light?

[bywolves]

Didn't help. [ He sounds miserable. ] Her. Alfie.

[devoutish]

Don't listen to it. Lis-- listen to me.

[bywolves]

[ Gwen's in the background - Royce is quiet, though the cloak is trembling, so her voice comes even more clearly. It didn't even help, she sobs. It isn't enough, this one isn't good enough, I can't keep it, I need mine. ]

[devoutish]

[Alfie casts around desperately in his muddled brain for something, anything to talk about. Distractions for Royce. Words for Royce.

I can't tell a story. My head's not-- right for it.

[bywolves]

[ For a second Alfie's going to hear Royce clacking at the floor with his knife-fingers. If he thinks about it, he might realize Royce is trying Morse and failing miserably. He can't remember the letters, they're fuzzy. All that ends up happening is he taps the letter 'o' over and over before just giving up.

He jams himself up in a corner. ] It all right. [ Royce murmurs. ] Don't need. Walk.

[ Soon. ]

[devoutish]

[He starts tapping out the alphabet, but gets stuck on G - he can't remember it.]

Miss you. Glad you're alive. Eh?

[bywolves]

Glad alive. [ Royce mumbles. He buzzes for a couple of seconds, and then almost reluctantly: ] Miss you.

[ The nice and not so nice thing about being an anomaly is that all of his emotions are loud. He can feel that he misses Alfie and wants to get back, can feel that Gwen in pain is agonizing - he can't stop himself from saying it. ]

Her hurts. [ Royce mutters, half to himself, wisps of smoke cracking and snapping out from the cloak. She's still crying, and it hurts him. But he doesn't want to get close. ]

[devoutish]

Not her.

[He touches the screen again, as if that'll make any difference at all.]

It's an anomaly. A trick taken fr-- from your memories. It'll be-- all right.

[bywolves]

Trick. [ Royce knows. Long, long pause. Almost so long that it's like he's hung up, and then: ] ... Alfie. Hurt her?

[ Should he? She's in so much pain, it looks like. ]

[devoutish]

[Alfie lets out a ragged, rumbly breath.]

It hurts. It hurt hurting mine, even though I kn-knew she wasn't real. It hurt-- hurt hurting you. It hurt. But she'll stop crying. She'll-- stop. Stop acting like she's hurt.

If you do, I'll-- I'll stay with you while you do it. I won't hang up. I'll stay.

[bywolves]

[ She's falling apart. Royce can see it, even through his monster lens. It isn't her. It isn't her, it can't be, but - even if it is. If it is, it's his responsibility to make sure she doesn't hurt. He can't just let her cry and not try to fix it. And he can't, not any other way.

Royce lets out a low, anguished noise. He wants to tell Alfie that he doesn't have to stay, that it's just another death he has to listen to, but the selfish part of him wants someone there. He has to do it and leave.

Funeral home. It's a good place to do it. He can make sure she rests. ]

Need to. [ He says finally. He can't cry, but - he's close. ]

[devoutish]

I know. I'm here for you, mate.

[Even if he cries.]

[bywolves]

[ Royce turns off the video, and Alfie gets to hear what happens.

He moves forward, slow and quiet on the ground. He stops right next to her, and rests a hand on her arm. There's no response at all, just hysterical sobbing, and Royce can't deal with it. He wants to hold her so badly that he can't breathe. She barely even seems to realize he's there, though - and it's like the last time all over again but worse. He has to kill her. And he doesn't even get to say goodbye.

Royce lifts off the floor, curls up around her like he's trying to keep her warm, his cloak body gently settled on her, and then he slits her throat, quick and easy. She chokes, gurgles, and Royce very carefully holds her, lowers her down to the floor.

Royce doesn't come back to the tablet. He just wraps around her and holds for a while. ]

[devoutish]

[It's quiet, and the tablet isn't very close, but there's enough sound that he can make a pretty good guess as to what happened.]

Royce.