LWC - Frankenstein's Castle - 5 Years BDC

[Hollywood Heidi]

Frankenstein's Castle

Events occurring 5 years before Dark Curse

[The Doctor]

Alphonse Frankenstein would've wanted a true burial. A Christian burial. A burial befitting the war hero he was. However, just as in life, Victor wouldn't be able to give his father what he wanted. The circumstances would simply raise too many questions, and he'd practically heard his father's taunting as he'd buried the body beneath the rose bush, to the west of the castle.

Victor was staring at the spot in the living room where the corpse had been. In one hand, he cradled a half-gone glass of scotch. In the other, he held the gun that he'd pressed to his brother's head. He'd made a damned mess out of absolutely everything. He'd forced his brother into an 'unlife', a tortured existence. He'd murdered his father, or as good as. And he'd failed utterly to ease his brother back into death. "You were right, father," he commented to the empty space. "And I'm sure that wherever you are...you are laughing away with your boots up. Well, I'd say that I'm joining you soon..."

He downed the rest of the glass, and set it aside. "But I think we'll be in different places," he finished, standing and approaching the clock on the mantlepiece. He popped open the glass, and stopped the hands. Gerhardt was, by now, in his own version of hell. As was Victor. He lifted the pistol to his temple.

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA


Etta pounded on the door of Frankenstein castle with as much force as she could muster.  She wasn't sure if she would be heard at this late hour and she desperately needed to be heard.  She shivered, not so much from the cold, light rain but from the fear and adrenaline still coursing through her veins.  She was careful to keep the satchel of notes under her coat and the light rain hadn't soaked through her first layer of clothing yet.

She raised her hand to pound on the door again but stopped.  The blood on her hands.  What if Alphonse answered the door?  She was not prepared to explain to him the situation she found herself in.  Etta held her hands under the rain and scrubbed furiously at the dried blood.

[The Doctor]

The knock at the door almost made him squeeze the trigger out of surprise. He remained still for a moment, startled out of his stupor. After a few seconds, he tucked the gun into his belt and turned for the door.

Victor pulled the door open to see Etta, standing in the rain. Dishevelled. Worried. Soaking. Still beautiful. And another person he had failed. "Etta?" he asked dumbly, standing aside a little for her to enter. "What are you doing here?"

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA

Etta quickly swept past him, gripping the ends of her coat closed to hide any evidence of the blood spatters on her clothes.  Her eyes darted around for any other signs of movement.  "You have to hide me.  I don't want your father to see me like this."

[The Doctor]

Victor shut the door quickly, bolting it. "Well, there's no danger of that," he responded, closing near her. He grabbed her by the shoulders. "Etta, what on God's earth happened? Just...start from the beginning."

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA

Etta spoke quickly, the fear and frustration still in control of her.  "I don't know what happened.  Something terrible.  I was on my way here.  Next thing, I'm waking up and the lab... everything was broken.  I don't know how long I was out."  She stepped back and looked away, unable to look him in the eyes.  "I think-- I think I--" She couldn't get herself to say the words as she was still trying to deny what she feared was the truth.

She let go of her coat to rub her temples in frustration and willed herself to fill in the gaps of memory in hopes that she was wrong, the action revealing a glimpse of her blood spattered clothing.

[The Doctor]

"Look, just...just calm down, and take a seat," said Victor. Everything had become uncertain; it was as if the whole world had been unravelling since Christmas. Reality had torn itself apart and now, here was Etta, with her own crisis. "I'm going to make some tea."

When in doubt, make tea.

"It'll be alright," he said. "It'll have to be."

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA

Etta did as instructed as Victor prepared the tea.  She headed to the sofa, removing her coat and the satchel as she approached.  Acutely aware of the present state of her clothes, she spread her coat across the seat of the sofa before sitting.

It'll be alright, she repeated to herself as she took a deep breath before starting at the beginning.

"As you know, I've been working diligently to remedy the complications of Gerhardt's mental state.  Earlier today, I thought I'd succeeded." She paused, waiting for him to finish so that she could have his full attention.

[The Doctor]

So did I, thought Victor, suddenly aware of the gun in his belt. "I'm sure you'll get to the part where you explain the blood any moment," he said, pouring the tea.

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA

Etta gave him a glare over the rim of the tea cup.  His calm and casual reaction to the blood was a bit unsettling though it did ease her.  "I decided to test it on myself.  I know," she quickly interjected, hold up a hand to stop him from speaking, "quite possible the most idiotic thing I've ever done but Gerhardt's mental state is so fragile and I--I just can't lose him again."

She felt tears burning at the back of her eyes and took a deep breath to compose herself as she placed the tea cup back on the table.  "I'd only taken a sip.  Next thing, I find myself waking up in the lab.  I don't know how many hours passed or how the bottle has been drained of its entire contents.  Then I noticed my appearance."  She held out her arms and looked down at her clothes, the harsh realization hitting her once again.  She buried her face in her hands, muffling her next words.  "I think I hurt someone."

[The Doctor]

"I decided to test it on myself.  I know,"

Victor was ready to launch into a spiel about such dangers before she lifted her hand.

"quite possible the most idiotic
thing I've ever done but Gerhardt's mental state is so fragile and I--I
just can't lose him again."

His stomach twisted in guilt. "He's my brother, Etta. I know what you mean," he said.

"I'd only
taken a sip.  Next thing, I find myself waking up in the lab.  I don't
know how many hours passed or how the bottle has been drained of its
entire contents.  Then I noticed my appearance. I
think I hurt someone."

Victor wanted to comfort her, to place a hand on her and let her know it was all fine. He just wasn't...sure how. He hadn't a single clue. "My father is dead," he said, finally. "Gerhardt killed him to protect me. And Gerhardt died in the first place because of me." He lifted his eyes to her. "So if you hurt someone, then we're both killers."

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA

"My father is dead,"

Etta's eyes shot back to Victor in surprise.


"Gerhardt killed him to protect me. And Gerhardt died in the first place because of me."  "So if you hurt someone, then we're both killers."

His words weren't exactly comforting.  "What frightens me the most is I have no recollection of what happened but there was a commotion in the village as I left.  I don't know if I hurt someone or--" she swallowed hard, "or killed someone."

She paled as another thought occurred to her and she once again found herself frantic.  "My God, what if it happens again?  Please Victor, you must help me.  Look over my notes."  She pushed the satchel toward him.  "Lock me up until we can be sure."  Her eyes dropped to the gun in his belt.  "And I think it best you keep that close at hand."

[The Doctor]

"My God, what if it happens again? Please Victor, you must help me. Look over my notes. Lock me up until we can be sure. And I think it best you keep that close at hand."

At first, Victor lifted his hands to deny the notes she thrust at him. "Etta, I can't," he pleaded. "I don't have the...I don't..." And then he saw those eyes wet with tears and it was difficult to do anything but agree. He sighed, closing his eyes and placing a weary hand to his forehead. Finally, he pulled the satchel toward him.

"I'll read the notes. But I'm not going to lock you up, Etta," he insisted. "I won't do that. And I won't use this-" Victor motioned to the gun, before closing his coat back over it. "-on you. Too many people have died already."

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA

Etta stood and walked to the fireplace.  She watched the flames as the heat took away the dampness of the rain.  "That is precisely my point, Victor--too many people have died.  Not knowing what I did is driving me mad.  Word of what happened will probably reach us soon and I know I will spend the rest of my days with the weight of it on my conscience."  She turned to face him.  "Whatever it was, it cannot be undone but I will do whatever it takes to ensure it does not happen again."

Etta moved the satchel to the table and sat down next to him.  "There are the notes to review but I also need to run tests and I'll need to be monitored day and night."  She reached out, taking one of his hands between her own and squeezing it with urgency as she pleaded.  "I cannot do it alone, Victor, and I cannot bear the thought of my father knowing so I must ask you."

[The Doctor]

Victor felt his blood pump just a little faster as his brother's fiance grasped his hand. He turned the decision over in his mind for a brief moment, but he already knew there wasn't much in the way of viable options. "Etta," he began, and sighed. "You can stay here. It's fine. I'll keep an eye on you, give you use of the lab and Igor, and...and we'll find a way to fix this. You have my word."

He tried to give her a comforting smile, all the while knowing there was little real comfort to be had. The fire continued to burn and battle with loud sparks behind the grate of the fireplace. Victor knew then, with absolute certainty, that Etta had become his responsibility.

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA

Her shoulders relaxed as relief took away some of her tension.  "Thank you," she said, releasing his hand.  "I'll send word to my father and send for a few of my things."  She knew her father would be glad of the arrangement until panic subsided in the village.  This place was a fortress.  He would also assume she was properly chaperoned.  "I won't make mention of your father."

Now that she was more at ease with her own problem, she recalled Victor's earlier words and her brows furrowed in confusion.  "You said Gerhardt killed your father to protect you.  I know your father is--was," she quickly corrected, "sometimes hard on you but I cannot imagine he would ever physically harm you.  What happened to make him believe you were in danger?"

[The Doctor]

"I
won't make mention of your father."

"Thank you," he said in a long, relieved exhale.

"You said Gerhardt killed your father to
protect you.  I know your father is--was, sometimes hard on you but I cannot imagine he would ever physically
harm you.  What happened to make him believe you were in danger?"

"I thought you agreed not to make mention of him," said Victor, attempting a joke and finding he couldn't say a thing without a bitter inflection. "When he saw Gerhardt, he was..." He turned his gaze away from Etta, wearily running his hands back through his hair. "Well, I would describe his attitude as 'unreceptive'. He attacked me, he...well, he just pushed me. And Gerhardt's attitude to that mirrored that of my father's moments before."

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA

She looked down at her folded hands and said sadly, "I see." Apparently he was much worse off than she knew to have killed his father. Unlike Victor, they'd shared a close bond.

"May I see him?" she asked, glancing up.

[The Doctor]

Victor didn't need a single second to consider it. "I don't think that's a good idea," he said firmly, avoiding her gaze and concentrating very hard on his tea. "He's not...himself. He's prone to fits of violence and the like. I can't have him hurting you."

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA

She was momentarily taken aback by his firm refusal to allow her to see Gerhardt.  It was said with such finality and with the way he concentrated on his tea, she assumed he thought his reasoning left nothing to discuss.  Etta squared her shoulders, her chin rising defiantly as her eyes bore into Victor, willing him to look at her rather than his damned tea because this discussion was not over.

"Gerhardt would never hurt me," she said adamantly.  "You cannot keep him locked up and alone and deny him visits from the only other person who loves him and knows you have brought him back to life.  That is no life.  If you treat him like a wild animal, then he will become one.  Until I can come up with a formula, I believe the best thing we can do is to show him that we care.  Talk to him.  Reminisce.  Remind him of who is he."

[The Doctor]

Etta's gaze drew his, locking his eyes onto hers. It became very difficult to look anywhere else. She had eyes that were more than beautiful: they pulled you in like a whirlpool. Victor could practically see little images of himself drowning in them. "I..." he began, his jaw slack. He wanted to tell her yes, and he wanted her to be right.

Wouldn't that be simple, he thought. True love solving everything?

"...I can't. I can't let you," he finished, and saying it didn't lessen the weight of it. "You're all the family I have left."

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA

The fight went out of her and she couldn't help but smile, touched by the fact he considered her family even though it had never become official.

She reached out again, momentarily squeezing his hand to emphasize her words. "You're a good man, Victor." She paused before confessing, "I didn't mean all those horrible things I'd said to you when I learned of Gerhardt's death. I don't blame you for what happened. I was hurt and angry and I took it out on you. I'm sorry."

[The Doctor]

Victor nodded reactively. "That's quite alright. Thank you, Etta," he said, any coherent thoughts blocked by the warmth of her hand on his. "You can stay here as long as you need to. And I promise you, I will find a way to help you."

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA

"Thank you, Victor." Now that she was more at ease and no longer running on adrenaline, Etta suddenly found herself exhausted. She stood up and draped her coat over her arm. "Would you mind showing me to one of the guest bedrooms? I'll write a quick note to my father and after that, I'd love nothing more than a bath and a good night's sleep."

[The Doctor]

"Of course," said Victor, standing with her. "And Etta...I am sorry. For all of it." He didn't wait for her to react; he simply ended the statement and gestured for her to follow him. Taking a candlestick, he took her up the stairs.

"You know your way around, Etta," he said. "The bathroom is just across from this guest room, so you can just walk from the bath to your room with...with your clothes and the towel and you won't be walking around with just a towel. Or I suppose you'll keep your clothes with you in the bathroom, unless...well, you'll figure it out." Victor cleared his throat uncomfortably. "If you need anything, I'll be in my own room. Don't be afraid to wake me up."

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA

"Of course," "And Etta...I am sorry. For all of it."

Thankfully, she didn't need to muster up a smile or reply as he didn't wait for one. She followed him up the stairs.


"You know your way around, Etta," "The bathroom is just across from this guest room, so you can just walk from the bath to your room with...with your clothes and the towel and you won't be walking around with just a towel. Or I suppose you'll keep your clothes with you in the bathroom, unless...well, you'll figure it out." "If you need anything, I'll be in my own room. Don't be afraid to wake me up."

"Actually," she said quickly before he could walk away, "I would rather burn these than to put them back on," she said, gesturing to her clothes. In fact, it's what she planned to do. Not just because they would connect her to whatever she had done but also because she didn't want the reminder.

"My things will probably not arrive until the morning so if you have clothes I may borrow...?"

[The Doctor]

Victor nodded. "I understand. There aren't really any clothes for women around, not since mother died," he replied. "But if you don't mind, I have some clothing I've never worn. It could tide you over until I can send Igor to fetch your belongings."

[Hollywood Heidi]

HENRIETTA

"That would be fine, thank you. You can leave them outside the bathroom door." She stepped into the bathroom and turned back toward him. "Goodnight, Victor," she said as she closed the door.

[The Doctor]

"Goodnight, Henrietta," said Victor, and stayed in place for a moment after the door closed. Then he turned, and disappeared down the hallway.