Have to agree with Marianne here. I'm sure I'd love to read a follow-up story having Lutecia and Vivio still in a relationship and how they would deal with Lutecia sleeping with people as part of her job for the NSIS, but in canon... With the emotional wreck Lutecia was in "Sunrise" I don't think she would have been able to lie to Vivio about this... but that's only my opinion, of course.

Anyhow, good story. I liked seeing a darker Lutecia, even if I prefer the canon ViCia Lutecia.

So... You're rethinking making this canon? Though I have to admit I'm interested in seeing just how much this could actually affect Lutecia's relationship with Vivio, I'm not sure it would be fun for either of them should this become canon. After reading "Border Crossing" in AS, I can't help but hold on more tightly to that opinion; for I highly doubt things would go as smoothly as they did there. Maybe a continuation of this AU would be the answer? Vivio was mentioned but nothing about their relationship was mentioned.

That being said, it's great having read something by you again. Hope

to see more Shadow goodness.

/Miranda must be rolling over in her grave/, the Belkan summoner thought with a rueful smile. - Perhaps one of the most powerful phrases in the entire fic. It shows just how deep in it Lutecia really is. Miranda, having been Lutecia's partner, and mentor in a way, would really roll in her grave out of grief if she knew what her former partner is up to these days. It really makes me wonder just how much Lulu would really hate herself if she stopped to think about what she does for a moment. A darker, more depressing version of her "Sunrise" self, this Lulu has more than enough mental material to give Freud a field day and to need some serious counseling sessions *cough*. She might have trained herself to react to situations, but can she keep her thoughts at bay? In "Shadow" and "Sunrise", she already had a bad opinion of herself and couldn't stop the thoughts from taking flight, "She could commit murder and other cruel acts without blinking, feeling an inner twist of guilt and disgust, but never showing any sign of it outwardly." - but this is "Sunrise" Lutecia. Adding to those thoughts the fact that she's basically exchanging her body for information, vital but still, would she really be able to live with herself? She strikes me as a person who's already unstable enough to need to spend some serious time at a psychoanalysts' couch trying to regain an inkling of self-esteem and self-respect and to add this on top of everything, I'm having trouble seeing just why she hasn't committed suicide yet. I think this version of Lu would distance herself from friends and family, harboring feelings of being "soiled" and the like, so...

"She had to believe that, for her own sanity; that in having sex as a Shadow, she wasn’t losing anything important.

Because if she believed otherwise, she’d never forgive herself for it." But thoughts aren't something that can be shut up at any given time. What does she think of herself and how does she view herself compared to others? Would she still be able to have a relationship with Vivio, knowing she not only lies, steals and assassinates, but also sleeps with other people? Would she really be able to look at her in the eye and be honestly not disgusted with herself as she talks to her girlfriend, who let's not forget, is revered as a religious icon and a deity of sorts? I honestly think not.

Anyhow, I liked reading something else by you, despite it's dark nature. And don't mind me too much if this review doesn't make sense... it's 4:20 in the morning after all, ha!

Very powerful and very iffy, if only because such things from your Lutecia make me wince. I have to admit, I wondered, since lying and killing have already made a huge impact, if her sleeping with people for information would do worse for her relationship with Vivio. I imagine it'd almost be hypocritical. "I've lied, I've stolen, I've killed, and you don't bat an eye, but this repulses you?"

Nice to see you posted this here, and wrote it in the first place I suppose since we even mentioned the idea! I apologize if parts of this make little sense, my brain's not working right...

I like the extended metaphor of guilt clawed hand. I also like how Lutecia seems to be accustomed to her job, yet reveal little details that tell the reader she truly isn't.

What makes her mission more disturbing is that her informant wasn't abusive or cruel, but gentle-we'd like to think of Lutecia's job as a violent affair, but the whole thing is drawn into a gray area from details like that.

Idioms! XD Even better that they're chopped up for effect )

I would have liked to see a bit more of Vivio in this, even if Lutecia distanced herself from Vivio in this AU. It would really be a drastic way to show how this Lutecia is different from the main continuity one, seeing how she interacts with Vivio.

Great short!

Well, you already know my reaction to this fic (i.e. "it inspired me to write a response fic"), but it bears repeating. It's a sad and angsty story, but nonetheless it fits well with Lutecia. The "honey trap" is a classic espionage tactic, and I suspect that sooner or later no-longer-loli-Rider would be requested to act in that direction. If she didn't turn it down, for whatever reason, I can see her responding like this, both in the way she feels and in the way she (foolishly) hides her reactions from her own co-workers.

That in and of itself is the bitterest irony, because if she was to admit how the act made her feel, she wouldn't draw these assignments (either because of fundamental decency towards, at least, the Shadows themselves; or if not that then simply because it would affect the ability of the agent to function on mission). But she's so busy hiding herself from the reaction (at least partly, I suspect, because her relationships to other Shadows has been warped since Miranda's death) that she can't do it.

It does go a long way towards explaining, though, why she was able to keep her hands off Vivio until Vivio was eighteen.

Probably the best part of this story, though, is just to see you writing a new ViCia/Shadows fic!