laurence nimith (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
outdistanced) wrote2025-03-03 07:56 pm
outdistanced) wrote2025-03-03 07:56 pm
Entry tags:
memory: assembly (cw: child abuse)
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With the biannual assembly finally here, the Tower's younger folks from twelve to twenty wait in the Skydome, all crowding together by the stage. Just before it begins, you hear a voice call out to you - it's that old hag Iris loves to hang out with again, and when you try to ignore her, she insistently shoves her way to your side. She claims to be looking for Iris, says you're obviously keeping tabs on him, and it makes you sneer with disdain, but she's right to accuse you of noticing something's off about him lately. You wonder, for a second, if it's your fault - maybe you punched him too hard? But no, you didn't do anything wrong. He was the one cheating at that race.
Your thoughts are interrupted when Iris calls out to the old lady, and while they're busy catching up or whatever it is they're on about, you push through the crowd to get away before you're pulled into the conversation, too.
Besides, the assembly is starting. You can hear the telltale clicks of Madam's heels, and she emerges in a flourish of white. Angelic, almost, as applause and cheers welcome her to the stage. Everyone's always adored her. The perfect, all-powerful leader of the Seattle Correctional Flora Tower. There's the usual introduction, of course, for the younger crowd - and then it's down to business.
The peace of the Tower was disturbed by an intruder this week, three guards dying to protect them all. Everyone bows their heads, appropriately mourning, as Madam introduces them, segues into a vow of vengeance, and...
...calls Iris up to the stage? You stare through the crowd at him in shock as the other kids start jeering, shoving him to get moving. He's obviously reluctant - he never liked being the center of attention, same as you - and up he goes, to stand beside his mother. She asks for applause (only a few of you bother), and starts to speak of the Tower's values - sacrifice, loyalty, honesty - and asks if you all agree that you, as demiflora, must never betray each other's trust. And then she turns to Iris, and asks,
"As a resident of this Tower and my only son... Do you have anything to say about the night an intruder broke in?"
There's a sinking feeling in your stomach as you watch him deny it. He's always been a bad liar. It's obvious from his face that he knows something, but it's Iris. What could he do? As you're wondering on that, the guards drag another person out, throw him to his knees on the stage. Someone you've never seen before, but Iris clearly has. Madam ignores Iris's pleas as she introduces this man as the Tower's intruder, saying plainly that Iris himself gave shelter to this man that put you all in danger. The intruder - with pink eyes? a demiflora? - argues with her, claiming he'd never seen Iris before, but the second they threaten to cut out his eyes right then and there, Iris fesses up, and you're filled with dread.
Acting now as if the intruder was never there at all, Madam finally acknowledges the trouble that Iris has given everyone over the years. Once upon a time, just a few days ago, even, you would have felt vindicated. Always flying in the face of the rules, it's about time that Iris finally faces some consequences. But this - this is entirely different. This isn't using his powers to make some stupid shoes or whatever, this is the safety of everyone in the Tower. And now Madam is removing her gloves, saying it's time to set an example.
"As such, I will use my Iris powers just this once, and show my son what it means to be a demiflora without restraint."
She turns to him, asking for his marker, and forces him to strip down to his underwear before all of you. When the intruder starts to fight in his defense, he's knocked to the floor - and you?
You're stuck in the crowd, unable to leave or even tear your eyes away as Iris trembles before Madam. She begins to draw, first on his hand, then up his arm, black ink cutting into Iris's skin like a knife and leaving trails of blood dripping onto the stage floor, smearing as he stumbles under her attention. You listen with horror as he begs her to stop, over and over and over again, his own mother drawing agonized screams that will haunt your dreams as she marks every inch of his body you can see. She doesn't stop as he falls to his knees, dizzy from pain and blood loss. She holds him close for just a moment, to whisper something none of you can hear, right as Iris finally collapses, unconscious.
With the biannual assembly finally here, the Tower's younger folks from twelve to twenty wait in the Skydome, all crowding together by the stage. Just before it begins, you hear a voice call out to you - it's that old hag Iris loves to hang out with again, and when you try to ignore her, she insistently shoves her way to your side. She claims to be looking for Iris, says you're obviously keeping tabs on him, and it makes you sneer with disdain, but she's right to accuse you of noticing something's off about him lately. You wonder, for a second, if it's your fault - maybe you punched him too hard? But no, you didn't do anything wrong. He was the one cheating at that race.
Your thoughts are interrupted when Iris calls out to the old lady, and while they're busy catching up or whatever it is they're on about, you push through the crowd to get away before you're pulled into the conversation, too.
Besides, the assembly is starting. You can hear the telltale clicks of Madam's heels, and she emerges in a flourish of white. Angelic, almost, as applause and cheers welcome her to the stage. Everyone's always adored her. The perfect, all-powerful leader of the Seattle Correctional Flora Tower. There's the usual introduction, of course, for the younger crowd - and then it's down to business.
The peace of the Tower was disturbed by an intruder this week, three guards dying to protect them all. Everyone bows their heads, appropriately mourning, as Madam introduces them, segues into a vow of vengeance, and...
...calls Iris up to the stage? You stare through the crowd at him in shock as the other kids start jeering, shoving him to get moving. He's obviously reluctant - he never liked being the center of attention, same as you - and up he goes, to stand beside his mother. She asks for applause (only a few of you bother), and starts to speak of the Tower's values - sacrifice, loyalty, honesty - and asks if you all agree that you, as demiflora, must never betray each other's trust. And then she turns to Iris, and asks,
"As a resident of this Tower and my only son... Do you have anything to say about the night an intruder broke in?"
There's a sinking feeling in your stomach as you watch him deny it. He's always been a bad liar. It's obvious from his face that he knows something, but it's Iris. What could he do? As you're wondering on that, the guards drag another person out, throw him to his knees on the stage. Someone you've never seen before, but Iris clearly has. Madam ignores Iris's pleas as she introduces this man as the Tower's intruder, saying plainly that Iris himself gave shelter to this man that put you all in danger. The intruder - with pink eyes? a demiflora? - argues with her, claiming he'd never seen Iris before, but the second they threaten to cut out his eyes right then and there, Iris fesses up, and you're filled with dread.
Acting now as if the intruder was never there at all, Madam finally acknowledges the trouble that Iris has given everyone over the years. Once upon a time, just a few days ago, even, you would have felt vindicated. Always flying in the face of the rules, it's about time that Iris finally faces some consequences. But this - this is entirely different. This isn't using his powers to make some stupid shoes or whatever, this is the safety of everyone in the Tower. And now Madam is removing her gloves, saying it's time to set an example.
"As such, I will use my Iris powers just this once, and show my son what it means to be a demiflora without restraint."
She turns to him, asking for his marker, and forces him to strip down to his underwear before all of you. When the intruder starts to fight in his defense, he's knocked to the floor - and you?
You're stuck in the crowd, unable to leave or even tear your eyes away as Iris trembles before Madam. She begins to draw, first on his hand, then up his arm, black ink cutting into Iris's skin like a knife and leaving trails of blood dripping onto the stage floor, smearing as he stumbles under her attention. You listen with horror as he begs her to stop, over and over and over again, his own mother drawing agonized screams that will haunt your dreams as she marks every inch of his body you can see. She doesn't stop as he falls to his knees, dizzy from pain and blood loss. She holds him close for just a moment, to whisper something none of you can hear, right as Iris finally collapses, unconscious.