God: -a method for the extraction of bile. Create an incision on the middle finger. All the water of the body can be thought of as a single ocean, as one drop-
God sounds like every boy you are afraid of talking at once.
God: -and extract the resulting ink. Place in a vial and explain it to the worthlessness of the treasures of the earth. Break it against a mirror, the cause of vanity-
Neptune: What a waste of time.
Jupiter: Shh, let's listen.
Neptune: Whatever.
God: -each of you shall choose. It is certain that the devil is coming.
Venus: Oh no.
God: It is certain.
Neptune: I told you.
God: It is absolutely certain the devil is already here.
Jupiter: ...
God: Parables I:I "The devil is only the shadow of man cast from the light of god." The meaning of this parable is that there is no devil. The weather is scheduled for 100 with humidity tomorrow. And now for the news-
Jupiter shuts off the radio.
Jupiter: I don't want to do this.
Venus: We should have called the captain.
Neptune: What would he have done, even.
Venus: Something else? It's okay, it's not the end of the world, it's not like being the devil means you're going to die. The devil just happens-
Neptune: Don't pity me.
Jupiter: It'll be the end of something.
Venus: It's me.
Neptune: Don't PITY ME.
3 AM
We know the devil. Sometimes it's okay to be quiet. It is nice to know we don't have to talk sometimes. But Neptune can't wait. She's coughing and running down the battery of her phone. She looks worried. Or maybe just itchy.
Jupiter: Neptune.
Neptune: Yeah?
Venus: Umm... are you okay...?
Neptune: Yes.
Venus: Ah. S-sorry.
Neptune: *cough*
Venus: Are you okay?
Neptune: I said-*cough*-God. I'm fine.
Jupiter: You're totally not.
Neptune: Ugh. You're making it worse. I need to throw up.
Venus: Again?
Neptune: Yeah-*cough, cough*-again.
Jupiter: Are you sure you're okay?
Neptune: I'm fine, I'm fine. I need to go to the bathroom. You did the best you could.
It's quiet. But it's not okay anymore. We shiver whenever Neptune coughs. Even through the bathroom, ti sounds louder than ever. Jupiter knocks on the door.
Jupiter: You sound really bad, can we get anything?
Neptune: No.
Jupiter: Do you want to go back, I mean, we can if you-
Neptune: I TOLD you, it's *cough*
Venus: Jupiter, she's-
Neptune: I'm fine.
Jupiter: Neptune. Please open up the door, okay.
Venus: Please, you gotta open up.
Neptune: I'm FINE.
Venus: Please.
Neptune: I'M FUCKING FINE.
Jupiter: You have to come out.
Neptune: Okay. Okay. You asked me to come out. So I'm coming out.
The door opens and it's her but it's not her. She grabs Venus and crushes him against the wall like he's just a little doll.
Neptune: Ha. Sorry. Stay good there Venus. Drink up.
Neptune lets the ichor drizzle off her finger. Like it's chocolate syrup. Jupiter screams and pushes her but Neptune won't even flinch. She ignores her completely.
Neptune: At least YOU know how to be decent, ha.
Jupiter punches her but she can't even move her.
Neptune: Calm your tits, Jupiter, I just need like a minute.
Jupiter slams her body into her.
Neptune: I promise to be an incredible nightmare to you too babe just wait a MINUTE.
Jupiter runs to their packs and she pulls out her radio. It's long and thin and heavy and she takes it and she swings it and she crashes the blunt of it right against Neptune's shoulder and she crumples to the ground. Jupiter grabs Venus and bolts. Neptune is already on her feet again. She just watches. Jupiter holds her radio with one hand and Venus with the other. He claws for support against the wall. It doesn't look like he can see.
Neptune: Oof. Sorry, I lied. But you should have known better. You kids are trying so hard to be good. And I guess I don't want you to. Doesn't it feel unfair? You're already good, so why do you have to try so hard to be good? It makes me mad. They want you to prove you're good. But you're already so good. What is that? Why do they do that? Why did they think I wouldn't notice that? That it should so obviously be me. That it should so obviously be you. It makes me so, so mad. I hate this place so much. Why are either of you here? Why do we have to be here?
Jupiter: Please stop. Please. Please stop. Let's just. We don't. It doesn't.
Neptune: God just stoppppp. Please. I hate this. I am trying to fuck up Venus for the rest of his entire life and you too if you if you let me and if you want to stop that I guess there is a problem and you will have to kill me. Does that kid look happy to you? Well I guess we have different opinions and you will have to stop me from making him into what he is trying very hard not to be. And Jupiter I want to do the same to you so badly. So, so badly.
Jupiter: Please-
Neptune: No. I don't want to be good ever. And neither of you should want to be good either.
Jupiter tightens her grip on her radio. Venus holds her shoulder.
Venus: I'm okay.
Neptune: Ha. Try not to kill me, okay? But don't like, go out of your way or anything.
4 AM
Her stare is as quiet and black as the surface of the lake, like she's tempting us to drown. The only chill of summer is in that lake, and even in August, it still holds places we can freeze to death. Neptune reaches for us. She's a flood, of every wicked thought, and they are pouring out of her mouth. The devil is lonely. We kicked out the devil and it misses us. It keeps begging to be let back, for us to let it in. And Neptune did. Every terrible thought belongs to it. Water to give, and thirst to take. Nothing can escape this flood. But we will. Neptune can't stain us. We chose to stay clean. And the devil only ever gets one moment. For revenge, for desire, for "please think of me." But there is nothing to fear when there is two against the devil. Venus brings the light. His radio whines and wriggles and coils around itself. Jupiter brings the storm. Her radio blares and shrieks and the weight of it shudders. Our radios scream and crash against her and the devil is destroyed.
5 AM
We have to drain Neptune and the lake. So we hang our feet off the endge of the bridge over what's not a gross dirty crater while the rest of the groups hack and pick away to make sure nothing's left. The Captain says we don't have to do anything but keep Neptune clean, which is our reward we guess. But it's probably just to punish everyone else for not seeing it coming. Behind us, Neptune is draining on an ugly blue tarp. We used to have to change it every half hour. It's running a little clearer now. So we change it. Jupiter puts on rubber gloves and gently picks her up and Venus bundles it up and throws it in a nasty green dumpster.
Venus: How long, you think?
Jupiter: It feels like it's getting closer. But it feels like it might take forever, too.
Venus: Hey. Neptune?
But Neptune isn't going to talk. We sit by the lake again.
Venus: Some of my friends, I talk with a lot. But other ones I don't. Like we don't do small talk. Speak only when necessary. But they're still my friends. I wonder how that works?
Jupiter: My mom says that if you really know someone you don't have to check in so much? Like it's just obvious how you feel. I don't know how true that is. I don't know if worked for her all that well, now that I think of it. I guess for some things words don't work very well, though.
Venus: That's true. I guess we have a lot of time to figure this out.
Jupiter: Yeah.
We go to check on Neptune. We ask her if she can speak, but words or no words, nothing gets through.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
♀ + ♃
God sounds like every boy you are afraid of talking at once.
God: -and extract the resulting ink. Place in a vial and explain it to the worthlessness of the treasures of the earth. Break it against a mirror, the cause of vanity-
Neptune: What a waste of time.
Jupiter: Shh, let's listen.
Neptune: Whatever.
God: -each of you shall choose. It is certain that the devil is coming.
Venus: Oh no.
God: It is certain.
Neptune: I told you.
God: It is absolutely certain the devil is already here.
Jupiter: ...
God: Parables I:I "The devil is only the shadow of man cast from the light of god." The meaning of this parable is that there is no devil. The weather is scheduled for 100 with humidity tomorrow. And now for the news-
Jupiter shuts off the radio.
Jupiter: I don't want to do this.
Venus: We should have called the captain.
Neptune: What would he have done, even.
Venus: Something else? It's okay, it's not the end of the world, it's not like being the devil means you're going to die. The devil just happens-
Neptune: Don't pity me.
Jupiter: It'll be the end of something.
Venus: It's me.
Neptune: Don't PITY ME.
3 AM
We know the devil. Sometimes it's okay to be quiet. It is nice to know we don't have to talk sometimes. But Neptune can't wait. She's coughing and running down the battery of her phone. She looks worried. Or maybe just itchy.
Jupiter: Neptune.
Neptune: Yeah?
Venus: Umm... are you okay...?
Neptune: Yes.
Venus: Ah. S-sorry.
Neptune: *cough*
Venus: Are you okay?
Neptune: I said-*cough*-God. I'm fine.
Jupiter: You're totally not.
Neptune: Ugh. You're making it worse. I need to throw up.
Venus: Again?
Neptune: Yeah-*cough, cough*-again.
Jupiter: Are you sure you're okay?
Neptune: I'm fine, I'm fine. I need to go to the bathroom. You did the best you could.
It's quiet. But it's not okay anymore. We shiver whenever Neptune coughs. Even through the bathroom, ti sounds louder than ever. Jupiter knocks on the door.
Jupiter: You sound really bad, can we get anything?
Neptune: No.
Jupiter: Do you want to go back, I mean, we can if you-
Neptune: I TOLD you, it's *cough*
Venus: Jupiter, she's-
Neptune: I'm fine.
Jupiter: Neptune. Please open up the door, okay.
Venus: Please, you gotta open up.
Neptune: I'm FINE.
Venus: Please.
Neptune: I'M FUCKING FINE.
Jupiter: You have to come out.
Neptune: Okay. Okay. You asked me to come out. So I'm coming out.
The door opens and it's her but it's not her. She grabs Venus and crushes him against the wall like he's just a little doll.
Neptune: Ha. Sorry. Stay good there Venus. Drink up.
Neptune lets the ichor drizzle off her finger. Like it's chocolate syrup. Jupiter screams and pushes her but Neptune won't even flinch. She ignores her completely.
Neptune: At least YOU know how to be decent, ha.
Jupiter punches her but she can't even move her.
Neptune: Calm your tits, Jupiter, I just need like a minute.
Jupiter slams her body into her.
Neptune: I promise to be an incredible nightmare to you too babe just wait a MINUTE.
Jupiter runs to their packs and she pulls out her radio. It's long and thin and heavy and she takes it and she swings it and she crashes the blunt of it right against Neptune's shoulder and she crumples to the ground. Jupiter grabs Venus and bolts. Neptune is already on her feet again. She just watches. Jupiter holds her radio with one hand and Venus with the other. He claws for support against the wall. It doesn't look like he can see.
Neptune: Oof. Sorry, I lied. But you should have known better. You kids are trying so hard to be good. And I guess I don't want you to. Doesn't it feel unfair? You're already good, so why do you have to try so hard to be good? It makes me mad. They want you to prove you're good. But you're already so good. What is that? Why do they do that? Why did they think I wouldn't notice that? That it should so obviously be me. That it should so obviously be you. It makes me so, so mad. I hate this place so much. Why are either of you here? Why do we have to be here?
Jupiter: Please stop. Please. Please stop. Let's just. We don't. It doesn't.
Neptune: God just stoppppp. Please. I hate this. I am trying to fuck up Venus for the rest of his entire life and you too if you if you let me and if you want to stop that I guess there is a problem and you will have to kill me. Does that kid look happy to you? Well I guess we have different opinions and you will have to stop me from making him into what he is trying very hard not to be. And Jupiter I want to do the same to you so badly. So, so badly.
Jupiter: Please-
Neptune: No. I don't want to be good ever. And neither of you should want to be good either.
Jupiter tightens her grip on her radio. Venus holds her shoulder.
Venus: I'm okay.
Neptune: Ha. Try not to kill me, okay? But don't like, go out of your way or anything.
4 AM
Her stare is as quiet and black as the surface of the lake, like she's tempting us to drown. The only chill of summer is in that lake, and even in August, it still holds places we can freeze to death. Neptune reaches for us. She's a flood, of every wicked thought, and they are pouring out of her mouth. The devil is lonely. We kicked out the devil and it misses us. It keeps begging to be let back, for us to let it in. And Neptune did. Every terrible thought belongs to it. Water to give, and thirst to take. Nothing can escape this flood. But we will. Neptune can't stain us. We chose to stay clean. And the devil only ever gets one moment. For revenge, for desire, for "please think of me." But there is nothing to fear when there is two against the devil. Venus brings the light. His radio whines and wriggles and coils around itself. Jupiter brings the storm. Her radio blares and shrieks and the weight of it shudders. Our radios scream and crash against her and the devil is destroyed.
5 AM
We have to drain Neptune and the lake. So we hang our feet off the endge of the bridge over what's not a gross dirty crater while the rest of the groups hack and pick away to make sure nothing's left. The Captain says we don't have to do anything but keep Neptune clean, which is our reward we guess. But it's probably just to punish everyone else for not seeing it coming. Behind us, Neptune is draining on an ugly blue tarp. We used to have to change it every half hour. It's running a little clearer now. So we change it. Jupiter puts on rubber gloves and gently picks her up and Venus bundles it up and throws it in a nasty green dumpster.
Venus: How long, you think?
Jupiter: It feels like it's getting closer. But it feels like it might take forever, too.
Venus: Hey. Neptune?
But Neptune isn't going to talk. We sit by the lake again.
Venus: Some of my friends, I talk with a lot. But other ones I don't. Like we don't do small talk. Speak only when necessary. But they're still my friends. I wonder how that works?
Jupiter: My mom says that if you really know someone you don't have to check in so much? Like it's just obvious how you feel. I don't know how true that is. I don't know if worked for her all that well, now that I think of it. I guess for some things words don't work very well, though.
Venus: That's true. I guess we have a lot of time to figure this out.
Jupiter: Yeah.
We go to check on Neptune. We ask her if she can speak, but words or no words, nothing gets through.