The Erotic Mind-Control Story Archive

Magic is not doing a great job at winning me over lately, but if this works then at least we’ll have a bit of an edge over Lia. I’ll take that any day. It’s bad enough I know she has Sarah because I saw her with my own eyes. Sarah can break through everything that bitch is going to throw at her, at least until she gets what she wants.

But Aurora doesn’t have that. Aurora is vulnerable. She’s tough as nails, but I remember how easy she broke into tears over what felt like a chance for her to see Sarah again.

I run over the steps in my head one last time. Leora was nice enough to magic my clothes from those boring white robes into a pretty close resemblance of what they were before. The colors are wrong but I didn’t feel like worrying about it. My tops still green, my shoes are still purple, and the skirts still black. That’s really what matters, right? It’s bugging me to no end but that’ll just give me another reason to take that stupid rusty bitch down a peg.

“So all I have to do is just step onto that rune, think really hard about who I want to go see, and when I’m ready to bring them back look upwards and give you a thumbs up? That’s really all there is to it?” It really sounds too easy, but Leora did manage to get no less than six priestesses to help with this so maybe it isn’t all that simple.

“Yes, Lady Sylvia! We’ll be scrying on you from here. We are sworn to secrecy, so anything that occurs is between you and Athena. We’re only here to help you!” Exceptionally perky is not something that I ever associated with priestesses in my mind before. This woman is definitely changing that. Her eyes are only about half silvery, half blue, but she still looks my age. It is entirely too tempting to thank her for her assistance. Obviously I mean after this is all over, but that should go without saying.

With a soft nod I click my way onto the rune and close my eyes. If we get Sarah back, then the first thing I am doing is learning how to teleport around. She never made it look very easy, but I am really regretting never picking it up.

There’s no bright flash or any wooshing sound effects. Colors don’t stream by me with a bunch of white lines. It might be hard to see if they did with my eyes closed but I don’t want to suddenly imagine the wrong person and end up in the entirely wrong place. It takes way too much effort to keep my mind on Counter Spell.

If scrying worked on Sarah or even Aurora right now we could just jump right to that, but of course that option isn’t there. How great is magic if it can’t do what you want it to do? After this is all over I am going to buy a whole bunch of electronics out of spite.

“Uhm, Sylvia? I know you two are pretty kinky, what with the whole incest and mind control thing going on between you, but if you’re going to involve me in your bedroom games you should probably ask me first. And Mina. In fact, you should probably start with her. I don’t think Whitners are as out there as you crazy LaSilvases.” From the sound of it I definitely teleported to Counter Spell. That’s step one done, so I’m happy about that. “Are you even going to open your eyes?”

My cheeks burn. Damn it. “Of course I’m going to, I was just—” Counter Spell is wearing panties. That’s really all. It takes me a few moments longer than it should to stop myself from checking her out. I can definitely see what Mina sees in her. I know she’s a decent person too, but that’s only half of it. “Look, it’s complicated. Aurora is in trouble. Big trouble.”

Counter Spell frowns and throws up her hands. She yells out something that’s probably elvish, and probably not very happy or polite.“Of course she is. I figured she was busy in bed with you so I was hoping to take the night off.”

“I’d love to let you have it, but I really need your help. And if we can save Aurora we’ll be saving Sarah too, so you might finally be able to help me convince her to take a damn vacation.” I pause for just a moment. “A long vacation, one where you don’t need to worry she’s going to get herself killed or worse if you run away with Mina for a weekend or more.”

“Good point.” Counter Spell pauses too, blinking as she stares back into my eyes. “Could you like turn around or something? I can slip into my robes, but it feels weird with you just staring at me like that. I know you have all sorts of groupies and stuff like that, but I’m really not like that. At all. I’ve had my brush with super villainy, failed thanks to your sister, some time with Doctor Lys, and then I’ve been pretty good about being happily boring sexually. That means having learned how to feel weird when your crime fighting partner’s sister stares at you when you’re naked.”

My cheeks burn hotter and I turn around with a quiet grumble. “I wasn’t even looking! Anymore. I already got a good look. You’re cute.”

Has Aurora told her that much about me, or does everyone just know that I sleep with my fans if they’re cute? My relationship with Nikki has been pretty publicized, but considering that she’s involved just as often as she’s hot, it’s not like that’s mutually exclusive.

Maybe its more the dynamic that she’s fallen into with Aurora. She can’t be an easy person to have as a partner like she’s been lately. If the way I found her was any indication she’ll throw herself head first at anything if it means saving Sarah. Considering the way she threw herself at Rust was probably a close approximation of how that went I get the feeling I’m not very far off.

“All right, all dressed. Sorry if that was a little rough, but you did appear in my room out of nowhere. I didn’t know you could do that.” I turn back around to find Counter Spell looking just as magical as when I found her. She looks in a lot better shape this time but that isn’t especially hard. “So, just what did the chrometop get into now.”

I frown. “Well, it’s a long story, but I guess I should tell you a little about where we’re going.”

I’m not sure how long I’ve been on the floor, but it hits me like a grand revelation that it’s time to stand. All at once I know that my legs will support my weight and that the floor under me is solid again. With a small yawn I blink away my metal and finally rise.

“Sorry, Rust. I don’t know why that took me so long.” I slide my fingers through my hair to smooth it out. I feel like such a mess. At least my new uniform doesn’t look dirty to a quick glance. “I think that you wanted to arrange a little reunion?”

When I look up to her she grins and slowly nods. “Of course, my sweet dawn. We’ve kept her waiting quite long enough, haven’t we?”

Her hand reaches down for mine. It feels so right to give her hand a squeeze and let her lead me off towards my destiny. Whatever Rust’s planning, I’m going to help her. Whatever she wants to happen, I’ll help. I’ll be right beside her, eager to learn whatever she wants to teach me and put it to use in the way that would please her most. More of those laughs, and more of those smiles on her sweet mismatched lips sounds like such a beautiful future to look forward to.

One quick explanation later and Counter Spell is getting to work with Leora and the High Priestess to see if her magical expertise can’t figure out some way to put everything right. From the sound of it she even has an idea or two for what to do about the magical force field stopping us from freeing the Wardens.

I’ve never second guessed Aurora’s decision to give her a second chance. She’s shown time and time again she can be counted on. Even with that in mind it’s still really nice to have a bit of proof that people can change.

I step back onto the runes again, but this time I don’t close my eyes. The perky priestess smiles at me as the six of them work their magic, and the world around me begins to dissolve away. Thankfully Aurora is just as nostalgic as ever so I dont have to hope that thinking of names instead of imagining the actual person works. Any situation would be a nicer way to meet more of Aurora’s friends but something tells me if I wait I’ll be meeting them in much more desperate straits.

When the world comes back into focus I’m standing on a grassy hill overlooking the beach. It’s late, and dark, but that just makes the ocean look that much more beautiful. I’ve always loved going through California on your even if a part of me was worried that I’d run into Aurora.

Looking back on it that could have been the best thing to happen to either of us. She might have caught me during a time when Miss Corvi was using me, and I might have helped her past some of what she was dealing with. Oh well.

Peeking out against the ocean are two silhouettes. As I step closer through the grass they come more into focus. One of them has flowers in her blonde hair, and the other has a mousy cuteness that makes it hard not to imagine her working in a library even though I know she works in an office. “Hey you two, sorry to interrupt your night! This looks like a really romantic spot, too. Maybe you could tell me how to find it for some other time.”

“Who the hell are- Sylvia! It’s so nice to see you again!” Flora grins as she hops up from the grass. She throws her arms around me in a hug so tight It almost hurts, but the sweet scent of her flowers makes it easier to just laugh and hug her back. “Sorry I didn’t recognize your voice! It’s been too long, and we only really met a few times!”

“It’s really okay! I’m just glad that the magic could find you.” Aurora has told me plenty about her team over the years but right in this moment I can’t believe she doesn’t mention how hard it must have been not to just kiss every square inch of green skin. It even has that just slick enough look to it everywhere that makes it so adorable. She wasn’t with Psiona when they first met, either, at least not the way Aurora makes it sound. Maybe we just have different tastes in women.

Psiona rises up from the ground with a much softer smile than her lover. I’m glad that she was able to get past looking like a redheaded bombshell all the time. Her telepathic or telekinetic costume put me to shame in more ways than just two. She waves, and I wave back.

Having a team like this had to be a special feeling. Aurora was part of a super powered family ready to kick ass and save the day at a moment’s notice. That had to feel nice.

“Sorry that I’m not here for better reasons, but we’ve got a major situation on our hands.” It’s hard to stay calm. Aurora is in danger. I just want to scream at them to hurry up, but they don’t deserve that. You don’t ask for someone’s help by appearing out of the blue and yelling loudly while shaking them to hurry up. Besides, they were close. I won’t need to do much convincing.

Psiona (I think her name was Heather if I remember right but it might be Ashley) frowns as she steps closer to Flora. They look so right together when the smaller woman’s arm wraps around the plant and they just melt together. It’s like their bodies were meant to be together, or they made them that way. Knowing just a little bit about how Psiona works the latter seems a little bit more likely. Fate didn’t draw them together. They did.

I’m not sure what that says about me and Aurora. Right now I’m not sure I want to know. Did we just think things were always going to work out?

“What’s wrong, Sylvia?” Psiona snaps me out of my inner monologue. Now’s the time to get down to business.

I take a deep, slow breath and try not to frown any more than I have to. “It’s Aurora.”

Each step we take down the stone hallway brings us closer to her. It’s been so long since I’ve seen her. It was too long the moment I heard she was missing. It seemed so obvious who had her at first. Why wouldn’t it be Yana if she’d really been Quillspawn all this time?

Too easy. It’s never that easy. If it was that easy to do what I do then everyone would do it.

Click, click, click.

There’s something oddly satisfying about the feeling of my sharper heels on the floor. Each step feels more reinforced by the accompanying click. Distantly I remember being glad that my heels were blockier before. Now it doesn’t make any sense.

I can fly. Why would I need to worry if I lost my footing? My leg would just turn to metal if somehow my ankle started to twist or I managed to fall.

“Are you excited to see her again, my sweet dawn? You look deliciously driven.” Rust’s voice sends slick drops of heat down my back. I love the sound of her voice. I love the feeling of raw power that flows from each and every word. The best part is that she knows it. She knows what she’s capable of. She’s drawing my thighs tightly together with each word and she knows it’s coming each time before it happens.

I couldn’t be in better hands.

“So excited, Rust. I’ve wanted to see her again for so long. There are so many things that I’ve wanted to say to her. I’ve searched everywhere for her.” My lips twist into a wickedly pleased grin. Oh just the idea of seeing her again makes me feel so good. “Hearing her voice again will be so blissful.”

Rust laughs. I don’t know why, but I know that it’s what I wanted to happen. That matters a lot more to me. “Perfect. She’s been just as eager, I assure you. She might be somewhat exhausted, but don’t let that fool you.”

“Of course not, Rust.” On instinct I wrap my hand around Sarah’s pendant. Before my fingers are even half curled I draw them back. Sharp bumps and dry flakes are not what I’m used to squeezing. I pause for a moment to brush off my hand and frown down at the red thing hanging around my neck before I keep walking. Wearing rust isn’t unpleasant, but I was expecting something smooth and soft. That was what I wanted.

A glimmer of red somewhere I can’t place only makes it worse.

The door looms in front of us, closer and closer with each and every step. “Where are we anyway, Rust? This place seems a little big and empty.”

“Oh, it’s a place that one of my aunts used to use for her rather large collection. Your mother was a part of it once before she managed to crawl her way home. Still don’t understand how she managed that, to be honest.” I know that should mean something to me, but my mind is too focused on my goal for the memory to come easy. “Remote enough to serve my purposes, and a place I spent time before I was taken to the temple. It felt appropriate.”

My hand rests against the door. All I need to do is shove, or pull, and there she is. Sarah Lucia LaSilvas. My mother. The real Silver Girl.

Rust rests her hand on my shoulder and gives a slow squeeze. Her hand is so warm that I can’t resist rubbing it with the side of my face. My vision blurs red as I moan without feeling it. I only know its me because I recognize the sound. She’s so warm, and after Sarah gives her whatever she wants I just know she’ll be even warmer. I can feel her need becoming more mine with each passing moment.

“It’s time.”

Psiona and Flower Chylde might not know anything about magic, but they know how to make themselves useful. I’m really lucky that they were okay with having their date interrupted to help me save my sister. It would probably be helpful if I had any idea where to look but that’s what Leora is supposed to be helping with.

Now there’s just one last place to look for a little help. I know that she’ll be just as worried about Aurora as I am. I’m mostly not sure if Aurora will be very glad I looked to her for help.

I could visit katie in River City, and get her and Jimmy, maybe Lacie . . . but when I think of them all I can think of is Lacie ending up chained beside mom, or Katie’s light being twisted against her. Jimmy’s luck might just do us all in. Aurora said we didn’t have time, and we don’t. I can reform Aurora’s team and take her place leading them, but I can’t risk them too. If this all goes south someone needs to be ready to stop Rust, and probably all of us too.

“Just one last trip! I really appreciate this, priestesses. More than I can put to words. If we can pull this off then I don’t know how I’ll ever repay you but I’ll find a way. Maybe something like a concert just for you.” Would priestesses in a temple like this even like my music? They aren’t worshiping a very puritanical pantheon, and any temple that could have a statue of The Domina has to be at least somewhat permissive, but-

No, I’m worrying too much about the wrong things.

The enthusiastic priestess smiles and her eyes flash so adorably bright. “That would be wonderful! Of course, only if it were what you desired. We would do this for you without reward. Your mother’s sacrifice is something that we could never repay.”

“I think after this she’d probably disagree!” I put on my biggest celebrity smile and flip the priestess a big thumbs up. “But we should get this moving. One last little trip, and we should be ready to go.”

Again I step onto the rune. I might have met all of Aurora’s team before, but there’s one of them that I don’t need to struggle to remember clearly in my mind. Something about the time I spent as her lover makes it hard to forget her face, the way she kisses, and that beautiful look her eyes get when things go just the way she wants them to. I can still remember the way her emotions tasted on my nebula.

Temple dissolves, and with it goes all of the light. For a moment I’m worried that the spells gone horribly wrong before the sound of clattering keys fills the air. I don’t know where else I expected to find Rebeca.

There is some light here, but only the bare minimum. A single LCD monitor is not proper lighting. It does make it easier to see the smoke filling the room so I can cover my mouth and keep my coughing from disturbing her. The pace of her typing is inhuman. I know she doesn’t have any super powers but this might have gone undocumented.

“Another fencepost. Sloppy. Lazy. Don’t know how this made it to the end user without bricking the test boxes. Luck.” A sharp hiss fills the air followed by a quick series of loud coughs. “Don’t know why Monique still keeps me around. She knows everything. She’s practically her aunt, and she knows what I did. How do I keep me around? I know it better than anyone else. Not enough cigarettes in the world to burn it all away. Not enough booze to drown it in.”

Nebula is already surrounding my fingers when I rest hands down on Rebeca’s shoulders. She still almost jumps out of her chair. This way she settles down quicker.

Her cigarette falls from her finger, and I crush it before the dying embers catch on something. “There’s a lot more good you can do alive than dead, ’beca. There are people who need you. You grew a conscience. It just took you longer than most of us. That doesn’t mean you should throw yourself away.”

“Sylvie . . . How’d you . . . Never mind. I never asked Tunnel how she found her way down here. She always did, you know?” Rebeca’s voice chokes as she falls back into her chair. Her head rests back against my chest. Its too easy to remember when I was planning on spending the rest of my life with her. Rebeca Draupnir, heiress, engineer, and superheroine all in one package. There’s still an allure to the concept. “I really tried to be good to your sister. I never really pulled it off, but I really fucking tried.”

“I know, ’beca. I know.” I let my lips melt against her forehead, channeling just enough of my current to feel good and calming. It’s less than leora felt after Rust played around with her. “Aurora needs you. I need you.”

Rebeca shakes her head almost violently. “If she’s got you, she doesn’t need me. That’s all I did. I made me you.”

This is what she’s been since Lys’s project fell apart. She spirited herself away to work for Monique and Draupnir Inc while letting herself waste away in a smokey room. As horrible as what she did to Aurora was, the lows she’s felt are enough to make me ache.

Feeling defensive of the woman who made my sister into her lovesick pet feels strange, but that was the sister who raped me. Eventually things are going to feel a lot less strange. Sooner would be better than later.

“You did more than that, Rebeca. You gave her a family. Psiona, Flora, even Tunnel, that was all because of you. You brought them together.” I kiss her forehead again before bending down to kiss along her nose, and right beside her lips. She tenses, hands grabbing at the arms of her chair. “Relax. I’m not here to hurt you. Really. I’m here because Aurora needs all the help that she can get, and I know that you can be that for her. Please.”

“Mmm . . . Really, there’s nothing I can do. I’m not Hope anymore. Monique didn’t ask me to give it up, I just did it on my own.” Her lips quiver, and I kiss the other side. The poor woman is so tense that every time she relaxes a little it only makes it easier to realize how much more she could be relaxing.

Nebula sparkles from my lips to between hers. She moans as they seal shut, body falling slack as I melt my lips against hers. There’s not time to convince her that Aurora needs her help more than she needs her to feel bad about herself. There’s no time to hope I can convince her to stop giving up on herself no matter how much easier that would be. I push more and more of my nebula into her, and quiver as I feel her mind start to melt under the pleasure.

Missed being Hope . . . Missed Aurora . . . Want to help, just not sure I cam. Don’t want to let her down again, don’t want to hurt her . . . Mmm Sylvia tastes so good . . .

Her thoughts flow so freely through the conduit of our lips. Loyalty tingles through every small piece of worry and doubt. Something so close to love shines even deeper than that. She thinks Aurora’s name with such bright adoring light. She really did start to love her for all of the right reasons. If Tunnel had never sold them to Lys they might still be together. Aurora might still be living on California.

I break the kiss squeezing her shoulders tight enough to make her gasp. “Aurora is in danger. Serious danger. You’re going to look inside of yourself, and see that you’ll feel so much worse if you sit here. You’ll never know if you don’t try. You’ll always know you abandoned her. You don’t want that, do you?”

“N-nnoo . . . Don’t want that. Want to help her. I need to help her. So bad. Miss wearing that wig . . .” She might sound a little drunk from the half empty bottle sitting beside her keyboard, but she sounded a lot less before I added in a little of my power.

“That’s right. Aurora needs you. Our Aurora needs you. So you’re going to get that wig, and that tight bodysuit of yours, and any little gadgets you’ve been working on, and we’re going to save her.” I kiss her bottom lip, stretching a silver arc across her bottom lip to pull her into another kiss. She moans against my lips, and I kiss her harder before whispering against hers again. “She’s too important to let self pity get in the way. So you’re going to do what I ask, for her, as much as for me. And once this is all over, we can see about helping Rebeca. What do you say?”

Her body is so used to feeling silver. There’s a special shiver that I’ve only felt from a lover that I’ve had for a long time, or that I’ve gotten to after Aurora. It’s hard to describe, but she’s attuned to our power in a way that makes it hard to resist filling her with so much more.

She nods, her lidded eyes almost seeming to be lit as much with residual silver light as her monitor. “Yess . . . Just might need some help getting in the suit. It’s been awhile . . .”

I press my lips to her ear, blowing in a gentle stream of my power. “I think I can do that for you, ’beca.”

The door opens easier than it feels like it should be able to. For a door leading to a goal I’ve had for over a year all it is in the end is a door. There’s nothing more or less to it.

“Go on in, Aurora. There’s no reason to be shy.” Rust’s hand gently shoves the small of my back and I stumble forward. I almost trip, but a little of my silver and I catch myself at just the last moment. I didn’t need blocky heels for that after all.

I step deeper into the room, but I could see her as soon as the door was open. Sarah isn’t super strong, not even to the level I am. There’s something so powerful about seeing her hanging from bulky metal chains. Rust could have used something much simpler and it would still work just as well. Those chains look strong enough to hold me. The thought sends a shiver down my spine.

“Aurora?! You fucking . . . ugh! Rust! I know you’re there! I can’t . . . Let her go! Let her fucking go!” Sarah starts to tug and thrash in her chains, but it doesn’t do her any good. I don’t know where she’s getting this surge of energy from, but it’s almost frightening. All of her skin shines, and her eyes are pulsing so bright. “Aurora, you need to fight her! She was just in here with your sister, with Sylvia! I know how much you love her, and you can’t let her do this to her! Or to you! Please, please fight it!”

“There’s nothing to fight, my dear sister. Aurora is quite happy with me. Sylvia proved to be a poor pupil, but Aurora is fitting in rather nicely.” Rust’s arms wrap around my body just under my breasts. I let my eyes flutter closed as I squirm back against her, savoring how warm she feels. “See? She’s happy, Lucia.”

The sounds of Sarah’s struggling only get louder, before they slowly start to die away. There’s no way she can fight her way out of those chains. She’s helpless there as I am in Rust’s embrace.

All I want to do is just squirm back against her and feel how nice it is to be small and wanted. I’m being what she wants me to be, and she’s happy. She isn’t pushing me away or wanting more. I’m living up to all of her expectations. I’ve never felt this calmly happy without my thoughts turned completely off.

Even Hope never helped me feel this at peace without her helmet.

“I missed you, mommy. It’s been so long . . . You look really pretty in chains though, you know. Really pretty.” When I can finally manage to flutter my eyes open it’s impossible to stop tracing them along every curve of her suspended body. I’ve been in positions like hers so many times. Did I look that good bound and struggling, body covered in a thin sheen of sweat?

Maybe I can have Rust chain me up beside Sarah and give me a mirror to look into. There are already mirrors nearby pointed at mom. It shouldn’t be too hard.

Not something I’d ask for right now, but something to think about in the future.

“Aurora . . . please! You need to hear me, not just the sound of my voice, but what I’m saying! Rust is using you! She’s using you just like she was using your sister, just like she wants to use me! She doesn’t care about anyone or anything but her own twisted ambitions! You can stop her right now! Just spark her until she can’t think! Please!” Sarah’s eyes sparkle brighter, but only because of the tears hovering in her eyes.

Her eyes are so pretty. Mom has always had such passion in her eyes. It feels so good to have it directed on me. She’s so worried. It makes it easier for me to smile and let the bliss shine through my eyes. “But I do hear you, it’s just that I’m not worried. Rust is making me feel so good. I’m happy, mommy. Happier than I’ve been in so long.”

Sarah of all people should know how good it feels to be used.

Rust’s arms around me loosen, and I slowly step closer. “Really, mommy. It’s okay. Everythings okay. Just give Rust what she wants. Please? Once she has what she wants then she can let you down from those chains and we can make everything better. Please, mommy. I want to hold you, but I can’t get you down from those chains unless Rust wants you down. If you did what she wanted, maybe that would be enough to convince her. Please, mommy.”

It’s been years since I begged for something from her like this. I never used to do it with my arms on either side of my breasts to push them out. I definitely never did it batting my lashes and pouting my lips. I’m not even sure why I’m doing it now. Maybe its because seeing her chained up is making me feel so wet.

“Aurora . . . Aurora please don’t ask me to do that. You don’t know what she wants. You don’t understand what she is! She’s worse than Quillspawn. She’s worse than Red . . . Please . . .” Tears slide down her cheeks, and identical droplets of moisture slide down my thighs. “She doesn’t care about anyone but herself, she just wants more and more and more . . . Please, Aurora, stop her! I can tell she didn’t do to you whatever she did to Sylvia! Please!”

A lazy smile slowly spreads across my lips as I step up to the magical barrier surrounding Sarah. “I met The Lady, mom. She hooked me up to a pretty machine. Put pretty words in my head. I got to be just like the real Silver Girl for awhile. I was Jesse Colloten’s, too. I want to share more with you. Just give Rust what she wants.”

All at once the last of Sarah’s strugling stops. She hangs limply in her chains. She doesn’t even whimper.

“It’s so simple, dear sister. Just give in. Help me open the path to what I desire, and I can set you free. No more chains. No more struggling knowing you’ll never break free on your own.” Rust’s arms drape over my shoulders, and her head rests on top of mine. It feels so good to be so useful. “We both knew you couldn’t hold out forever. Your pretty light only goes so far. So too, does my patience.”

Her fingers are suddenly in my hair, pulling it back so hard that I don’t even feel it when I drop to my knees. There’s just red aching warmth, and I’m on the floor. It feels so good I cant stop myself from running my hands all along my thighs. I even lick my lips just so mommy can see how turned on I am.

“Stop hurting her! She’s obeying everything you’re telling her to do . . .” Sarah speaks back up, but she sounds so distant and confused. “It’s not her fault that—”

“But she’s the one who will suffer, Lucia. You see, I’ve grown tired of this game. Things have all aligned just so, and I’m through waiting for you. I’m through giving you time to realize the inevitability all on your own.” Hot red lashes against my back making me arch out at the intense feeling of it. Need. Want. I practically maul my breasts trying to squeeze and knead them through my top. “You saw her before, yes? Writhing in a helpless blur of red? I’m going to make the red never end. Maybe, after you’re done helping me we can—”

“No! Please, don’t! Fine . . . I’ll do it. I’ll do it.” Sarah’s words finally fulfill the desire that Rust has had for longer than I’ve been missing mom. Knowing that I’m the reason mom can’t hold out anymore sends me over the edge.

Screaming, on my back, legs spread, body arched, I’ve never felt so much like I’ve done everything so right.

“Then tomorrow morning, Sarah . . . We can finally stop playing this game.” She doesn’t laugh, but the satisfaction in her voice feels as good as if she had. I mewl and squirm, letting my hands feel how nice the warm glittery costume feels against my body. “As soon as Aurora recovers her footing, we’ll leave you to rest, and if you change your mind when next we arrive—”

“—I won’t, Rust. I won’t.” My thighs shudder, almost enough to make my toes curl again. “I love you, Aurora, I promise we’ll get through this, I promise.”

Except for my heavy breathing everything is so quiet until I finally feel strong enough to stand. Rust lets me squeeze onto her hand and lean back against her before I have my balance back. I meet Sarah’s eyes and hold her gaze for a long moment before blowing her a kiss. “Don’t worry, mommy. We will get through this. And you’ll be happier than ever.”