🧭 dflores 002

[loculus]

I found a [...] piece of correspondence inside the library's copy of Dead Until Dark. If you believe this to be yours, please DM me with a family-friendly general overview to confirm and I'll return both the letter and its supplemental materials to you. No questions as

NIKO.

Prior to your (well-deserved) promotion, where did you seek time alone?

MARYLE.

How long does cooling off take you these

Comments

Dominiko.

[loculus]

I can at least summarize it as "not great." [...] She's not taking it as well as you did.

[...] Thank you.

Dominiko.

[oneirophrenic]

You th I didn't Yes, well. Most people would not. But she does love you, and in time that love will outweigh her anger and her hurt. It's difficult to accept that someone you love didn't trust you enough to share something so vitally important. It's hard not to wonder what you might have done to deserve that lack of trust.

Any time, Domingo.

Dominiko.

[loculus]

It had nothing to do with trust, making anyone else complicit would have been too much of a burden on them when I wasn't their responsibility.

Dominiko.

[oneirophrenic]

Absolutely not. I will not do this with you.

Dominiko.

[loculus]

You're right, you're under no obligation to play therapist for me.

Dominiko.

[oneirophrenic]

You are unbelievable. Of course you are m ou her responsibility, and she is yours. That is what what you do for people you love. There's no world in which you are a burden for confiding in someone you trust about something that has had lasting repercussions for your health. What if something had happened to you? What then?

Do you really hold m us her in such low regard? Do you really think so little of her, and of what she would choose to carry for you? You're a very smart man, Domingo, but you're clearly selective about when you choose to use that big brain of yours.

Dominiko.

[loculus]

I love and trust her, more than I do nearly anyone else, and if her complicity came out alongside the secret it could have jeopardized her entire life with the resistance because I didn't know the stakes. I couldn't be the reason her life was uprooted a fourth time.

Dominiko.

[oneirophrenic]

Did you tell her that?

Dominiko.

[loculus]

No, I didn't have the opportunity before she told me to "get the fuck out."

Dominiko.

[oneirophrenic]

You'll have the chance to tell her. But I should be honest with you — it's a nice sentiment, and it doesn't change very much in the grand scheme of things. You should have told her. You should have told me as well.

Dominiko.

[loculus]

I hope I g And if Bishop found out you'd been covering me all these years?

Dominiko.

[oneirophrenic]

A stern talking to from Bishop sounds like my idea of a heavenly Friday night.

Dominiko.

[loculus]

Nikola.

Dominiko.

[oneirophrenic]

Second to a stern talking to from you, naturally.

Dominiko.

[loculus]

[...] Recall what I said earlier about patience and answer my question, please. I

Dominiko.

[oneirophrenic]

Domingo, I can hardly presume to know how Bishop might have responded. Perhaps I would have been fired, or reassigned, or made to prostrate myself before the entire organization. All I can tell you is this: I would regret none of it. I would have preferred to know. To be able to support you when you needed it, this is what friends are for.

Dominiko.

[loculus]

I am sorry that I lied to you. It came from a place of love and care, and wanting to protect you; never distrust. [...] It's difficult to imagine what life might be like now if I'd been honest from the beginning.

Dominiko.

[oneirophrenic]

It is. And there's no point in dwelling on what you perhaps ought to have done, or on the possible repercussions of telling us. However, when Maryle decides to speak with you — and she will, in time — I suggest you prioritize making it clear that this was not a matter of mistrust. I can only speculate about what's going through her mind right now, but I imagine that's the foremost concern.

Dominiko.

[loculus]

You're right. She I will.

Dominiko.

[oneirophrenic]

[...] I'll leave my cigarettes out for you.

Dominiko.

[loculus]

I didn't realize you'd have many left after your little moment with Singh.

Dominiko.

[oneirophrenic]

He was only in need of one, Domingo.

Dominiko.

[loculus]

That's not all he was in need of.

Dominiko.

[oneirophrenic]

I can't fault anyone for not having a lighter on them in an emergency. Or in general, considering.

Dominiko.

[loculus]

Yes, the lighter is exactly what I meant. I'm surprised you're not preening.