The Drow Queen of Glaley [Very NSFW]

[The Iron Bull]

There's a soft clatter as the copper coin he'd been fidgeting with hits the ground. Before the second bounce, Bull is kneeing on the side of the bed. "Coquette?" he whispers, worry and hope warring in the name.

[Coquette Blacquin]

"Cindy," she replies, quietly. "What... happened? Why am I...?"

[The Iron Bull]

Bull's eyes widen and he shakes his head. Lifting a finger to his lips, he signals for silence. He rocks back off the bed, then prowls away. She can barely follow him with her eyes, her entire body feeling limp and sore, as he checks the door, the window and each wall. Almost blankly, she makes note of how all the wall decorations are piled on a table nearby, all the pieces of furniture pulled away from the walls and the door blockaded. Finally, after the second circuit, he returns to the bed. "Cindy," he breathes, hand pressing against his chest. "Who... who else is..." he gestures vaguely at her head.

[Coquette Blacquin]

"J-just me, I think. Noire told me some of what happened, but she didn't know the end of it, and Little Bitch isn't fit to tell."

[The Iron Bull]

"...you can't tell?" he asks, startled.

[Coquette Blacquin]

She hesitates, her hands running down her stomach, and then her eyes widen. "The babe! Is-- is she alright?" she demands, her voice shaking. 

[The Iron Bull]

"Wha-- shit, you said you don't-- yes! Yes, she-- it's a daughter, just as predicted-- she's fine," The Iron Bull babbles rapidly.

[Coquette Blacquin]

"Thank Ciren," she breathes, laying back against the pillow. Tears form in the corners of her eyes. "I missed it," she murmurs. "I missed her birth. I'll never get that back."

[The Iron Bull]

Bull sags a little, head nodding. "I didn't realize..." He swallows thickly. "I'm sorry. I could... I could tell you about it?" he offers, knowing it's not enough. Not nearly enough.

[Coquette Blacquin]

She nods. "But... later. For now... Noire said... she said you..."

She sits up a little, squaring her shoulders. "Bull, she said you picked Varisia over me. What was she talking about?"

[The Iron Bull]

Bull's face blanks and his jaw tightens. "Noire is a sexist dick who called me a sex-toy to my fucking face. And then she put a n--" Bull cuts himself off, a ragged breath tearing itself from his lungs. He sucks in another, left hand clenched so tightly the bones creak audibly even to Coquette. 

[Coquette Blacquin]

"She doesn't mean anything by it," she says quietly. "Noire loves Varisia. She'd say, do, believe anything if she thought it would get her loved in return. She's hurting, badly. The idea that Varisia doesn't respect her, let alone love her... it's done something awful to her."

[The Iron Bull]

"What does that even mean?" Bull snorts loudly, rolling his head sharply from side to side. "She didn't have a hint of--" He shakes his head again, then mets her eyes. "I love you, Cindy," he says in a low, earnest voice. "Have for years now, even if I didn't know your name exactly. I care for Cedric a great deal, and I wager it's only the little time we've had that's keeping it from more. But I hate Noire. I know you need her to survive but she-- She isn't-- Damn it all to the Abyss."

[Coquette Blacquin]

"She's part of me," whispers Cindy. "I know I said to treat us like separate people but... at the end of the day, she's as much Coquette as I am. And she's necessary. She is the one best adapted to this environment. She is what Varisia is making of us. If you can't... if you want to leave, I can understand..."

[The Iron Bull]

"Maybe, but I wouldn't," Bull refutes quietly. "I figure it's like... like a blend of having a sister-electi you hate and, well, hating some facet of a person but loving the whole. I'm not going to fuck you and Ced over to spite her or anything. I'm sure there are parts of me that you're uncomfortable with, maybe dislike, maybe loathe." He lifts a shoulder and drops it in a feeble shrug. "Broken blades, even if you and Ced vanished, I'd not walk away from Little B. Don't love her, least wise not even close to how I love you, but... But I'm not about to abandon her. So yeah, I guess-- I guess my point is that I can accept and cherish Coquette even if I hate Noire. Ugh, this is all coming out clumsy, sorry."