#🌻𝐼𝒞: 𝒜𝓁𝓌𝒶𝓎𝓈 𝐹𝒶𝒸𝑒 𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝒮𝓊𝓃

[famiglia-lealta]

" I'm open to exploring!"

[famiglia-lealta]

"..Seems like I'm going to have my hands full of the injured for awhile."

[famiglia-lealta]

There was something to be said about one's own hands being the instruments of destruction.

In her 'temporary' placement within the Varia's mansion, Neri had played the silent observer to a lot of atrocities that ranged from the mildly manic to downright despicable. Psychologists would have had a field day detailing the behaviors that seemed so common place to the usual residents.

Death was a scent permanently lingering in these halls - and yet, business would continue as it always had. Fresh bodies constantly to the grind like a never-ending revolving door and nobody seemed to bat an eye about why any of this might be cause for concern.

Truly - it made her feel sick to her stomach.

Not that she would ever dare to voice her thoughts on the matter. Weakness or the faint of heart weren't tolerated in the homes of hardened assassins - and she was barely tolerated as it was already. If the mafia in a wider, general collective thought she wasn't cut out for her work, the Varia was ten times worse.

Still, most of them were manageable. She'd formed something of a tentative bond with the Strategy Captain, although he made it very clear loudly so that this didn't prevent any grousing, nor would he hesitate to kick her out if she didn't pull her weight. The best she could hope for was the brief moments shared in a common room over a hot drink after a particularly difficult day, swapping banters about why swords were mightier than a pencil and a bandaid.

As for the rest of them, occasional pranks, violence or cruelty for the purpose of hilarity, she could handle all of that relatively fine. What she hadn't found a management style for yet - doubtful that she ever would - was the one sitting above them all, watching the roaches scurry around him, knowing full well that he could squash them at any time.

Xanxus.

Neri often found herself pondering on the best way to describe the sheer intimidating presence that this one individual carried with him wherever he went. Something akin to how a rabbit must feel with the eyes of predator trained onto their every breath of a movement. A constant, crushing dread that weighed heavy whenever he would entire a room. Even worse if he bothered to even look at you.

Never would there ever be a shade of red that would evoke the same chilling, petrifying fear as that stare. Textbooks would describe the fight or flight response in a moment of peril - but under the weight of that gaze, there was no fight.

You could only pray he'd be merciful enough to let you run.

"Oi. You got a problem, trash medic?"

Blinking out of her rather dark thoughts, Neri looked up to see that he was addressing her. Of course he was - she was pretty sure she was the only health-related staff here. "A problem, sir? What do you--"

"You were staring. Again."

Ah. That. Terribly bad habit, that. Getting so lost in her thoughts and pondering, trying to determine one's motives or character, she would run the risk of just staring intently at the target of her ruminations without even realizing she was doing it. Certainly not her smartest course of action when it was him involved.

"..Sorry, sir. I was just--"

"Always fucking staring." This was exactly the problem. If one happened to draw attention to themselves, the target might as well have been locked on. Her shoulders immediately stiffened as he turned to advance towards her. "I really didn't mean anything by it-- just daydreaming, lots to think about in a day-- really, you don't have to--"

Again, as always, he'd cut her off. He didn't need to listen to her, not when there was a point he clearly wanted to make. And as he'd learn forward into her small bubble of space, she would automatically lean back.

"You were staring earlier too. When that piece of shit fucked up my steak." His lips cracked into the beginning signs of a cruel smirk. An opportunity. A new game to play, another hole to pick into. "Looked pretty murderous, for a healer."

Her jaw tightened at that. Earlier. From what she'd overheard, the kitchens had been pretty busy running around trying to get each and every Varia member satisfied with their specific 'dietary requirements' - one of the poor chefs must have left the meat on a little too long. Still, they weren't the one to deliver it to the devil himself.

She'd watched the trembling man place the shaking plate down on the table. Watched those eyes move a fraction, assessing the quality of what was presented. The slight twitch.

People would assume that the most dangerous weapon Xanxus possessed was the matching guns he'd always kept on his person, routinely pulled out to shoot somebody if they'd displeased him. However - they would be wrong.

She could only ever watch as the much larger hand would latch onto the waiter's face, the edges of his palm beginning to smoke. Some stupid little remark about overcooking, and all that would be left after the burst of flames would be the charred remains of what was once an absolutely terrified face. Just another black, cindered stain for such a simple mistake.

Gods, how she hated him.

"There it is." He sneered, reaching out to snatch her chin in his hand, jerking it up so he could get a good view of how angry she was. Because for whatever his sick reasonings were - the sight of her losing her temper was some sort of 'proof' that she was no better than the killers she shared a roof with. "If you had such a fucking problem with it, why didn't you do something about it?"

Because he was her superior officer. Because.. it wouldn't have changed anything. Because she would have ended up in the same condition for her efforts, and she couldn't--

"Because you're a fucking hypocrite."

Neri let out a small noise of discomfort as her skin felt uncomfortably hot, the edges of his fingers burning faintly orange. Her heart must have been hammering loud enough for the both of them to hear it - and somewhere in the midst of the panic, the dread of whether today would be the day he'd finally reel the damn line in and stop toying with the fish - the worst feeling of all.

Wrath.

Suddenly, her head was jerked to the side, and he was hissing vitriol against her ear as if the mere presence of her disgusted him. "The next time I catch you staring at me, scum - you better be ready for me to do something about it."

Pushing her back against the wall, the Varia's head would turn away to continue on his original path, indifferent to how her legs buckled underneath her, sliding down to sit on the floor. For him, it might as well have been business as usual. Irrelevant. A small speck of entertainment, then life as usual.

For Neri though, trembling fingers felt against her face, still feeling the stinging warmth from that hand grasped against her skin. That hand, portraying as a God's that determined the difference between existence and oblivion. Being so close to the inferno of one's own demise..

It's not something so easily forgettable.

[famiglia-lealta]

All this talk of coffee, letters, flowers..

"..When was the last time I'd had anything like that..?"

[famiglia-lealta]

furby-organist // war flashback to the "vox has ass cables" rumor on here from back in the day

"I'm trying to decide if that was better or worse than the Vox has USB nipples debate."

[famiglia-lealta]

Nobody calls me Nerinda.

"My name is Neri." The freckled woman would give a warm, genuine smile every time she introduced herself to someone new. "Nerinda Salvai, but everyone just calls me Neri."

Nobody calls me Nerinda.

"Hell of a mouthful, isn't it?" The other officer scoffed sarcastically, "by the time anyone gets through with saying that name, they'd already be getting buried in the ground!"

Nobody calls me Nerinda.. Unless a situation becomes dire enough to warrant it.

"Oi, brat! Get the fuck up!" The harsh grunt was thrown over his shoulder as he'd kept ramming the door wish his shoulder. "How you gonna bitch about nobody gets left behind when you're staining the carpets?! Get up, Nerinda!"

Nobody calls me Nerinda.. Unless it's someone who knows the sentimentality behind the name.

"If the color of jewelry is in question, it would make sense that with skin such as yours - rich, vibrant golds are a must." Fingers that would gently brush along jawlines and cheeks dusted with pink. "I don't mean to embarrass you with my compliments, Nerinda.. but you truly are beautiful.

Sometimes, a name can be used to hurt--

"You're nothing but a naive child. This is how the real world works, Nerinda. You either grow the fuck up, or you don't grow any older."

..But they can also be reserved for the ones you love most.

"I wish your mother could have seen you like this, Nerinda. You truly are my shining little girl."

Names are a form of power and status - meaning and impression - no different than the clothes that we wear to show what kind of person we aim to be.

And it is to some, the strangers, the friends, those whom I help along the road - I am but simply Neri.

To those for whom I would entrust my life and maybe more;-

Should you call me Nerinda - I will answer your call.

[famiglia-lealta]

Unexpectedly -

... I may have found a friend.

[famiglia-lealta]

jetblackknight asked: ( the below coupon seems to be made in haste only because of the owner's extremely recent knowledge of Nerinda's birthday. )

( on the back is a printed note which reads ' at least until I can gift you something better ' . the text is still as elegant as the script on the front, as if written with care. The torn edge seems to be that of an unspecified journal. )

Really, she'd only mentioned her birthday as a passing thought - she hadn't been expecting anyone to go to any fuss over it. Especially not in the form of such a sweet gesture, never mind if it was on a torn out journal page or not. If anything, that just made it feel all that more personal.

"Who on earth is going to want a six hour long hug?" Neri chuckled to herself, rubbing at her eyes for a minute before placing the gift in the front of one of her own journals for safe-keeping, staring at it with a fond smile. "Tu, uomo ridicolo. I'll have to thank him by using it, the next time that I see him."

[famiglia-lealta]

"Goodness, where does the time go..?"

"I've been so busy lately, I almost forgot about my own birthday!"

[famiglia-lealta]

"Vooii. So if the spider shit married your pops, making him your mother - if I shacked up with him, would that make me the stepdad?"

"I'm not listening. You're all incredibly immature and I hate you."

[famiglia-lealta]

arachn0philia "Now you gotta."

"I'm not entirely sure which sells the best image."

"Here are the assassins! The medic might heal you up if you're lucky. Or here's the medic! When she's not looking, we'll kill you!"

[famiglia-lealta]

boundcd asked: "So when do I get to look forward to you learning to control me?" to neri lmao

"..I beg your pardon--?!"

"When-- Why would I need to control you?!"

[famiglia-lealta]

Anonymous asked: hey nerrrrrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiii- somethings happening

"Per fotte.." Neri muttered under her breath, massaging her temple. Giving Squalo a meaningful look, she grabbed a bottle of tequila and put two fingers in her mouth, giving a sharp loud whistle.

"Dinner's on!"

[famiglia-lealta]

Anonymous asked: And if these silver haired not-boyfriends met, would they get along or would it be a disaster? How many stitches would be required because swords? 🤔 -mentioned @jetblackknight

"From what I already know, they seem to be fairly similar in their values - at least, when it comes to things like honor and pride." Neri mused, rubbing her chin as she pondered. Not to mention the similarities of Vergil's brother seeming to favor firearms, and Squalo's boss being practically glued to his guns.

"They might even manage to enjoy one another's company, if they can get through the initial period of Squalo's preference to fight anybody with a sword to learn their fighting techniques.."

[famiglia-lealta]

Anonymous asked: Do all your boyfriends have silver hair?

"Squalo is a comrade. A work friend, not a partner. And if you're talking about Vergil, I barely know him besides having my hands in his insides."

[famiglia-lealta]

Anonymous asked: Are demon bodies and human bodies the same?

"Not always, as I'm continuously finding out."

"I had to turn away a gentleman the other day and suggest technical support, because his entire intestinal system was made out of phone cables."