Aftershock (Tag: Aurora & Chel)

Chel hesitantly stepped inside the room after knocking, just like all the other times she had come in. The bed was still clearly not slept in and the food remained untouched. Her dad was still in the same position he had been in when she had come in to check on him that morning. "Dad? There's some lunch downstairs if you want it." She whispered quietly as she took the tray of uneaten food from it's place. They had buried Nita the other day, Naveen hadn't left his room to attend the funeral. Her own hands shook a little as she glanced at the bed, the sheets had been stripped and so had the mattress but she could still remember seeing Nita's body lying there. It felt like a nightmare, she never would have thought Nero would have been capable of killing his only daughter. Especially not since she had been carrying his child, it just didn't make any sense. She was almost tempted to pay Nero a visit and give him a piece of her mind, maybe slap him a few times. Guilt surged through her entire body then, she hadn't told her dad what she had done with Nero during those nights she had spent with Nero and Nita. She knew her dad would only be disappointed in her and rightfully so, she had betrayed Nita by allowing Nero free reign of her body.

Chel's body shook when she heard that tortured voice from Naveen. Never before had she heard him sound quite like that, and her heart broke still further upon hearing it. "I'm so sorry dad." She said quietly as she saw him glance towards the bed. Nita's death had shaken everyone who had known her, but had affected Naveen most of all. He had lost her so many times over the years and just when it had seemed like they could finally be together she had been killed. She had liked Aunt Nita, hell she had been like another mother to her. Aurora cleared her throat and Chel glanced back to see her standing near the doorway. Ever since Nita had died, Aurora had spent as much time with Chel and Naveen as she possibly could. "Can I speak to you for a moment?" Aurora asked as she gave her a sad smile. Chel nodded and wiped at her eyes which had become tearful again. She glanced back at her dad but he had gone back to staring out the window. It was as if he had given up on everything, her dad had been going through a lot of emotional extremes and seeing him like this was probably the worst. Chel almost wanted him to yell at her, so that way she could at least hear his voice. She picked up the tray and followed Aurora out into the hallway, watching as Aurora shut the door behind her. "I need to talk to you." Aurora said with a frown as she sent the tray in Chel's hands to disappear. Chel blinked at Aurora's tone, "What is it?" She asked curiously, but Aurora merely took her by the arm and moved off down the hallway. "I believe your aunt is still alive." She said quietly, glancing back to make sure that no one was following them. Chel froze and swung around to face Aurora, "Ok as much as I'd like to entertain that notion, you saw her body! There's no way my aunt could have survived all of what she went through!" She pointed out in a low hiss, but she could feel a slight flicker of hope even as she said the words. "Plus, who on earth would go to all the trouble of-" She broke off mid sentence with a curse. "Oh he has got a shit ton of nerve! That fucking bastard! I'm going to go over there and rip his spine out through his mouth and then force feed it to his hounds!" She hissed, her eyes narrowing into slits before she turned and started making her way to her room. Nero would have the balls to do something that horrible, when she got his hands on him she'd throttle him. Aurora followed after her, "Who are you talking about?" She asked, barely managing to keep up with Chel as she burst into her room and grabbed her weapons. "Fucking Nero, that's who!" Chel snapped as she yanked a handheld axe from her chest and strapped it to her thigh.

Chel had just grabbed her pack when she heard her dad's voice, tired so deadly tired. She froze and glanced back at him, wondering how much he had heard. Although judging from his mournful expression, he probably hadn't heard her mention Nero. "I just need to get out of town for a few days...gather my thoughts, maybe go hunting." She said evasively as she pulled on the strap of her pack. Her eyes landed on her dad's hand and she froze when she saw the necklace there. The necklace that Aunt Nita had been wearing faithfully ever since she had come back, only now she could see that the chain was broken and bloody. Her grandfather really was a sick, evil, person to openly taunt her father like that. It was just one more reason for her to dislike him. "You could come with me? Get out of the house for a few days? We could go to your favorite city?" She offered hopefully. It killed her to see her dad so down, and she felt partially responsible for it. She stepped forward and held out her hand for the necklace, "I can get this repaired for you if you want?" She offered quietly as she studied her dad.

Chel's expression fell at his words and she felt an urge to cry, "No dad of course I'm not mad at you. I'm mad at Nero...for taking her away from you...from us. I could never be mad at you for mourning the woman you love." She pointed out gently and reached for him, only pulling away when she saw how broken her dad was. Nero really would pay for bringing Naveen down like this, that man had no heart. How she ever thought she could develop feelings for him was beyond her after seeing him do this. "I'll stay...I just want you to know that I'm here for you dad. You don't have to mourn her alone...I know I didn't know her as well as you did but she was like a mother to me." She continued carefully, not entirely sure how her dad would react if she spoke about Nita. Her eyes darted over to Aurora who was so far keeping her mouth shut, but she met Chel's gaze with a small frown. Chel thought about what Aurora had told her earlier and her back straightened in determination. If there was even the smallest hope that Nita still survived then she'd keep looking for her. She couldn't get her father's hopes up, if Nita really was dead then he deserved to mourn her.

As soon as her dad hugged her, Chel lost it and clung to him shaking with unshed tears. "I miss her dad." She whispered as she hugged him. The few tears she had denied herself earlier on finally fell down her face as she sobbed. She had tried so hard to put up a brave front for her father's sake, but she really did miss Nita. And no matter what she'd get her back, even if she had to fight the whole way. There was no way she'd let Nero get away with this kind of behavior. She never would have thought Nero would stoop so low, but now that he had she wanted nothing more then to punch him in the face until her knuckles bled. "She was the best mother I could have ever asked for." She tearfully admitted, her birth mother had only ever lied to her and had been ashamed of her.

Chel cried even harder at his words, she couldn't imagine how her father must have felt, to have lost someone so important to him so suddenly. "I'd do anything to have her come back to you too." She admitted in between sobs. Nita had always been so kind to her, and had welcomed her so easily. Most other women would have probably scorned her, but not Nita. From the moment she had met her, Chel had only looked up to her and loved her. And her aunt had always looked out for her, always thinking of Chel's safety sometimes before her own. It was what had really made Chel admire Nita, she was a very selfless person and caring to everyone she knew. "I'm not much but I'll be there for you." She whispered quietly, the last thing she wanted was to leave her dad alone. If that ever happened, her dad would give up. She knew that already, she had a feeling he wasn't going to resort to drugs or alcohol now. But she was still worried for him, she didn't want to see him sink so low again. It took awhile, but eventually Chel was able to get her dad downstairs and eat something. He didn't spend much time down there, and Chel could tell he was drained from even being there. Once she had gotten some food into him, Chel took him off to bed and had Eric watch over him. Then she finished getting her axes and the rest of her gear together. She hadn't lied to her dad, she had no intention of leaving his side but she had some unfinished business with Nero. The fact that he had hurt her dad so terribly, and had gotten away with it was beyond her. So she made her way away from Eric's Mansion under the cover of nightfall. She knew where to go as surely as she knew where Eric's Mansion was. The whole way there, she all but marched towards Nero's hideout silently fuming. By the time she had reached Nero's place, she was angry all over again. "I know you're here Nero! Now come out so I can give you a piece of my mind!" She snapped, an axe in hand as she said this.

Chel blinked as Nero suddenly appeared directly behind her with his hands gripping her waist. "Oh that is not going to work on me this time mister!" She snapped and pushed herself away from him as she turned on him with her eyes blazing. "How dare you kidnap Aunt Nita again! And how dare you make it seem like she died! My dad is heartbroken because of you!" She snapped and then she slapped him. "I am not going to let you touch me ever again! Not after what you've done!" She continued as she glared at him, barely seeming to notice how her eyes were burning a dark red. "I am this close to ripping your spine out through your mouth and force feeding it to your stupid mutts!" One of the dogs growled at that comment, but Chel paid it no mind. "You may think you're justified by your actions, but all you're doing is proving everyone right about you. That you are nothing more then a cold, selfish bastard." She snapped and pushed past him, intent on leaving now that she had said what she had been wanting to say ever since the other day.