Four hours later...
Verossa raised an eyebrow as he saw Lutecia sleeping. "I'm almost afraid to ask..." He trailed off, looking at Due, who whistled a soft tune. "Just what did you do?"
"What? Just because I might have slipped a sedative into her drink a couple of hours ago doesn't mean that I did anything wrong at all." Due tried her best to look innocent.
Which failed a moment later when Megane grabbed her, threw her to the door and blasted her with a purple energy blast. "Stay out, you maniac!"
Verossa sighed and shook his head, "anyway," closing his eyes, he put a hand on Lutecia's forehead and took a deep breath as he dove into her mind again. 'Now then, what am I..?' His thoughts trailed off as he saw what he was looking for, an inky black mass that swirled around in Lutecia's mind. 'What the hell?' His eyes widened as his mental body was stabbed with inky blank tendrils. 'UGH! Okay, that hurt,' he grimaced, thankful that the pain wasn't physical, otherwise he'd be dead at that moment.
He was about to remove the substance from his mental body when he heard an echo. "Master... Obey... Please me."
'What the hell?!' Verossa mentally screamed as he attacked the inky black mess, getting it to dislodge from his body. The next thing he saw was the ink suddenly split into dozens of small bits and disappearing completely. 'What was that?' Looking down, he saw a piece of black sludge slide onto his foot.
"Master... Need... Where..? Help me."
'Lu, what's wrong with your voice? What is going on here?'
"Need you, master... Where are you?'
Verossa's eyes widened. 'You have got to be kidding, even with her missing memories, she still has a compulsion for needing a master?' Though, he had a feeling that she needed more than just a master. 'I don't have the experience, what is it that you need?' He threw his head back and screamed as several tendrils pierced his body.
Oddly enough, none of them were causing him pain, in fact, it was almost pleasant. 'Wait a second, I'm getting stabbed by these things and I'm not in pain?' His eyes widened as a flash of memory struck him, driving him to his knees. 'Lu... Oh damn...' Closing his eyes, he forced himself free from her mind. The next thing that Verossa knew, he was back in his body and laying on the floor. "Ugh... I feel sick..." He looked at Due and Megane's concerned faces. "Let me get my thoughts in order and I'll tell you what I found out."
It was about an hour later at the kitchen table where Megane was staring in shock at what Verossa told her. "You... But you erased her memories..."
"Muscle memory," Due spoke up as she stood by the refrigerator, "even if the reasons for it are gone, her body hasn't forgotten." She slapped her forehead and groaned, "can't believe I didn't realize it sooner."
Verossa sighed and looked at Megane. "Believe me, if I could have avoided this, I would have. I doubt I can ever get rid of the conditioning that she went through. That doesn't make this situation helpless though. I might be able to put some blocks in that can reduce any of those feelings in her."
"I don't like the thought of someone messing with her mind too much, but the alternative is to find her someone to be intimate with her?" Megane winced, Lutecia was only thirteen, even if she looked a bit older.
"I think finding her someone to help her isn't a bad idea." Due shrugged, getting a glare from Megane. "I'm not suggesting myself, if that's what you think. I prefer older men to younger children."
"What are you suggesting, find her some sugar daddy to help take care of that?"
Due shrugged at Megane's question. "If it helps." Seeing Verossa wince and the way that Megane narrowed her eyes, Due held her hands up. "I was kidding. I don't want to whore Lulu out, if that's what you're thinking." Due turned to look at Lutecia's room. "But anyway, can you put a block around that stuff?"
"For awhile, maybe a year." Verossa rubbed his eyes and stood up. "Shouldn't be too hard, but it might take me some time."
"I'll get to making dinner then." Megane stood up and pushed Due out of the room. "You get to explain to Zest when he comes back tonight."
Due's face went completely white. "Why do I have to explain?!" When Megane gave her a smirk, she sighed and went outside. "Great, just great... Why do I feel like my daddy's going to be mad at me when he gets home? Zest isn't even my father!"
She just hoped that Zest wasn't in a bad mood when he got there.
(---)
Hours later...
Verossa staggered out of the room and groaned as he leaned against the wall. Closing his eyes, he took several deep breaths while trying to calm his nerves down. Getting that stupid compulsion that was seemingly etched into Lutecia's mind and body under control was a pain. Opening his eyes, they were angry and troubled. Standing up fully, he made his way to the kitchen and nodded to Megane. "She's fine, she'll be a little confused when she wakes up, but she should be fine. I really don't know what else I can do for her."
Megane nodded to him. "Thank you." Both of them turned as Due walked in with Zest. The big man instantly looked at Verossa, who sighed and nodded to him.
"Lutecia's fine for now. I don't know what else I can do for her right now." Verossa then looked at Due and narrowed his eyes. "Normally I wouldn't speak ill of the dead, but I'm glad that your sister was killed. If she was alive right now, I'd see just how far my mental abilities can go and use her as a test subject."
Due shrugged at that. "I don't blame you. I just wish I could go back in time and finish her off myself."
Zest looked at Megane and nodded. "Excuse me." He stepped out of the room.
Sighing, Verossa walked over to the table and sat down, taking off his jacket and draping it over the back of his chair. 'What next?' He thought to himself.
"What's this?" Due asked as she picked up something on the floor. Verossa turned to look over his shoulder and his eyes widened as he saw her opening a small box. "Woah! Who's this for?"
"Give me that!" Verossa grabbed the box and shoved it into the inside of his coat pocket. His face reddened and he looked away as Due giggled at him. "Guh... Stop acting so smug." It didn't help that Megane had a knowing look on her face. "Just... Knock it off, it's for my girlfriend, okay?"
"I hope it works out for you then." Megane nodded to him and went back to finishing up supper.
(---)
Zest looked at his sleeping daughter before kneeling down next to the bed and brushing the hair away from her sleeping face. "I never was much of a father, was I?" He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "It's not fair to either of you, is it?" Opening his eyes, he nodded to her. "You deserve better than what I've been giving." Gently cupping Lutecia's cheek, he smiled as she started to nuzzle it.
Thankfully he had already made arrangements. After next month, he was going to get a long-deserved vacation.
He wanted to be with his family, after all.