#//Left the tavern abruptly and tried to get into his old room; almost got shot by Addie who heard him breaking in. Got yelled at for it

[dutybcrne]

When Kaeya is upset with someone he loves, truly upset and seriously hurt, he tends to storm off immediately. And completely vanish from their radars. Whether it's two hours or even days.

A trail of ice-laced footprints is all they'd have to track him immediately after the fact, but after a time, not even Mond's best could hope to find him if he doesn't want to be found.

[maybedefinitely404]

Day 17: Royality

@tsshipmonth2020 (does this still count so late?)

What’s that? Ly creating content? Unbelievable. (I have writer’s block, leave me alooone /j)

Thanks to @marshymoop for suggestions and encouragment when making this bad boy! Love ya <3

Day 17 - Everyone has heterochromia, one eye is your natural color the other is your soulmate’s natural color. Once you meet all eyes return to natural color. 

Content warnings: food/drink mention, alcohol, mentions of hangover, vampires, referring to drinking blood as “eating”, non-explicit blood drinking, being chased. 

Word count: 6.9k

THE CITY OF DEWMORE WELCOMES YOU

Patton tapped his fingers on the steering wheel excitedly, nearly vibrating as he passed the weathered sign. Beyond it, beckoning him forward, stood a forest more densely packed and darker than he’d ever had the pleasure of exploring, the achingly tall pine trees swaying minutely in the breeze, their tips barely visible through the blanket of fog. Just imagining what could be held within those depths made his leg bounce; forgotten, moss-drenched stone paths, broken stumps of fallen trees that hadn’t made a sound upon impact, patches of mushrooms scattered in the shadows, and whispering creeks. It was the perfect way to spend his spring break, and one his photography teacher had wholeheartedly encouraged him to take. If he hadn’t had so many midterms to mark, Patton was almost sure the man would have tried to join him. 

Almost an anxious tic at this point, he ran his free hand over the photography bag in his passenger seat, as if to make sure it hadn’t disappeared in the three minutes since he’d last checked. The thing was his prized possession, given to him by the very same photography professor at his university. It had been the elder’s own, before he got his newest camera, and gifted the whole set to his favorite (but don’t tell the others) students. It was full of perfectly kept lenses and two miniature tripods, extra batteries and memory cards, speedlights, and most importantly, the camera tucked safely into the biggest pouch. It was more expensive than Patton would ever have dreamt to buy, so it was truly a gift he’d never forget. Now it was up to him to finally take some shots worthy of the thing. 

The forests continued to grow denser and thicker until, in almost a shocking snap, they disappeared to reveal a quaint city that he hadn’t quite expected. The first few buildings he passed looked like they may have stood there for hundreds of years, weather worn and faded. Their signs were either scratched to nothingness or blaringly new, shining metal names standing out against an ancient backdrop. He was looking for a motel, figuring there had to be one, even in a town of less than two thousand people. His backup plan was to just sleep in his car. He’d brought his sleeping back and extra blankets, so it wasn’t a huge concern, but he’d still prefer a bed. But whenever he’d tried finding anything online, he’d come up blank. 

A fog still covered the town, and though it created an air of calm and mystery that Patton was itching to capture, he also knew the area was surrounded by towering mountains that he also desired so badly. To his right, the buildings stopped abruptly, revealing a grey beach, all rocks and no sand, criss crossed with logs, opening to a dark lake. The other side wasn’t visible through the mist. 

The further he drove, he realized the buildings weren’t improving in their modernity, just giving way to more and more old infrastructure. One stood out, a grocery store, it’s lights piercing through the evening dim. Patton didn’t get a look inside before he passed, once again surrounded antique houses and shops, a post office to his left, and a tavern just across from that. A sign above the door read “Vacancy” in peeling white letters, and that was all the enticing Patton needed to pull his car into the gravel parking lot in front of the building. There was only one other vehicle there, a matte red pickup truck that he parked next to, and what appeared to only be three more parking spots. From the high placed windows, a soft orange light bled, and a round of raucous laughter filtered through the cracked open door. Patton smiled. The photographer inside him was going to have a field day here. 

He stepped up the concrete steps and ruffled his hair with one hand so it covered his eye, heaving a sigh in hopes to calm his nervous butterflies, and pulled the door open. 

All at once, the chatter inside died, and Patton internally shrank as every face in the tavern turned to look at the newcomer. There was a moment of tense silence as he tried his best for a smile and met the gaze of the men scrutinizing him, drinks forgotten on high wooden tables, jubilance halted. Patton waited with baited breath, for someone to do something, why were they all just staring, when a voice spoke from behind the bar.

“Don’t worry about them, sweetheart. We don’t get a lot of new people around here.”

And the lull was broken as suddenly as it started, the men now ignoring him in favor of joking over mugs of fizzing ale. Patton swallowed thickly and turned to the voice, shoving his quivering hands into his pockets and shaking his head again to assure the curls were safely covering his eye. As usual. 

The man standing before him, leaning on the bar with an easy smile, was almost enough to take Patton’s breath away. If he were a religious man, he’d go so far as to call him heavenly. Eyes as dark as the depths of the surrounding forests, auburn hair pushed back from his face in what he could only think to describe as an intentional bedhead. His skin was too flawless, teeth just a couple shades too white, everything perfect in a way that was almost…

Patton couldn’t put his finger on it. 

“What can I get you, newbie?”

“Uhm-” Patton took a cleansing breath and sat at one of the barstools, all of them empty seeing as the crowd seemed more drawn to the tables in the center of the room, “I don’t come to bars that often. I don’t know.”

The bartender hummed, pushing up his already rolled up white sleeves and giving Patton a once over, almost investigating him. “You drink?”

“I… I guess.”

“Been on the road for a while, tired?”

“Do I look that exhausted?” Patton breathed a laugh, suddenly aching to pop his spine. He’d been driving since before dawn for the past three days, barely hunkering down for a decent sleep before he was off again. He’d been really excited to get here, plus he didn’t want to waste more of his meager break driving. 

“I got just what you need, darling.” With a wink, the bartender straightened up and pulled down a series of bottles, cracking his knuckles with flourish before measuring them into a silver canister. “So what brings you to Dewmore?”

“I’m a photographer,” Patton said, “Or, a photography student. Down in Florida.”

The man whistled as he shoveled ice cubes into the mix, “Long drive for some pictures.”

“I’m… dedicated,” Patton laughed, scratching at his neck nervously. “My prof recommended it, said it might be a nice place to spend my break.”

“I assume you’re looking for a place to stay then, as well?” He plopped a cap on the canister and began to shake it above his shoulder, grinning widely, “These guys are always just like, ‘Gimme a beer’ this, ‘Gimme a beer’ that. It’s great to actually make fun drinks again.” With hands flying too fast for Patton to process, he grabbed a glass, popped the lid of the shaker, and poured the deep orange drink, tossing on a green sprig and sliding the drink over. “Enjoy.”

Patton took a cautious sip of the drink and had to fight not to sigh, the refreshing taste a welcome relief after three days of gas station Gatorade and hotel sink water. He could barely taste any alcohol, more focused on the ice cold sweet tartness at the back of his tongue. The bartender looked pleased, huffing a satisfied laugh and beginning to put away his bottles. He was taking another sip, satisfied with the backdrop of joyous chatter and clinking glasses, when he remembered why he’d come in. 

“Yes, I am. Uhm, looking for a place to stay, that is.”

The bartender looked at him over his shoulder, “We haven’t had visitors in… a while, at least. You’ve pretty much got your pick of the rooms.”

“Do you have anything facing the water?” He took another sip, the photo possibilities already flowing through his mind. One through the window, just far back enough to catch the flow of the curtains and the chipped wood of the window ledge, a monochromatic lakeshore in the bottom third, a barely visible mountain looming ahead… 

“Sure thing, sweetheart. Let me just finish this up, and I’ll get you on the ledger.”

“Patton.” He downed the rest of the drink and rested his elbow on the counter, chin in his palm, an easy smile playing on his lips. 

“Hm?”

“My name’s Patton.” 

“I’m Roman.” Tossing the towel over his shoulder, Roman gave him another wink before disappearing into the back room, coming back moments later with a thick black book. He was already thumbing through the pages, finally landing on the one he wanted, and spun a pen between his fingers.

“What’s your last name, sweetheart?” 

Patton spelled it out for him, and was surprised when the man clapped the book shut after the final letter. “That’s all you need?”

“Yup.”

“No… ID, or anything?” It was at that moment when it occurred to Patton that, although he was legal, his baby face often prompted bouncers and servers back home to ask for identification. Roman hadn’t even blinked before serving him.

“Got anything to hide?” 

“Uhm… no, I-”

“Good enough for me. It’s not like we’re a high traffic tourist spot. I don’t think we’ve had anyone take a room in, like, two years, and who knows how many before that. Frankly, I wouldn’t care if you were on the run for murder. Don’t kill me, and we’re solid.”

Patton blanched, unable to tell if the man was being sarcastic. Finally his expression cracked into a smirk and he brandished a key towards Patton, dangling it by the ring. “I’m messing with you. I mean, don’t kill me, that’s legit. Here you go, cutie. Let me know if you need anything.”

With that, he sashayed away with a tray of beers (when on Earth had he filled those?), and the men whooped loudly, startling Patton. 

“Easy, boys,” Roman purred, beginning to round the tables, and Patton hopped off the bar stool to get his things from his car. He couldn’t wait to pass out in bed with the knowledge that he could sleep in however late he wanted. 

-0-0-0-

But apparently sleep didn’t have the same ideas as him, because even after he was in comfortable clothes and tucked into the covers, he continued to toss and turn. Maybe it was the concept of being alone in a strange town, or the full moon shining through the thin curtains, or just plain excitement, but he suddenly felt wider awake then he had since he started this trip. 

There was a soft rattling somewhere across the room and, with begrudging acceptance that he wasn’t going to sleep any time soon, fumbled his glasses on to search for the offending sound. With a grumble, he threw off the blankets and padded across the room to the window and tossed back the curtains, giving the moon a scalding glare for shining so darn brightly. It was the window, fitted loosely in its frame, being shook by the gentle wind that was causing the noise. Patton gave it an experimental tug, followed by a more forceful yank, and found it didn’t budge down at all. Instead, it continued to rattle mockingly, in what sounded almost like whispered giggles as he crossed his arms across his chest. 

Fine. He turned his attention to the scenic view before him, letting out a minute shudder as a small gust of wind blew through his thin pajama shirt. Moonlit waves crashed against the rocky shore, tossing up silver spray against the dark backdrop of the forest. Patton took a breath, feeling an overwhelming sense of peace just staring at the silent town, the stone spires rising above the forest-

Wait, what?

Patton blinked sharply a couple times, leaning forward until his nose bumped the window and squinting through the glass. Those… things... definitely looked like manmade objects- the shape made it impossible for them to be natural- but you’d think he’d remember something that looked like a castle directly outside his window. In fact, he’d spent a significant amount of time upon first entering the room just admiring the view, and a castle one hundred percent would have been on his radar. Oh, if the thing was abandoned, imagine the photo opportunities, and even if it wasn’t he could totally just get some of the outside-

Yeah, there was no way he was sleeping now.

Before he’d even processed what he was doing, he’d slipped out of his pajamas and hurriedly pulled on the outfit he’d laid out on the desk chair, because there was no way he was digging through his suitcase to scrounge out more clothes. He threw a beige sweater over his white shirt, however, remembering the chill the night had brought and, after he’d adequate tucked them into his slacks, he threw his camera bag over his shoulder and trotted down the stairs.

Unsurprisingly, the first floor tavern was empty of all customers, overhead lights traded for softer electric lamps on the walls and the illuminated sign above the bar, where Roman was wiping down the counter, seemingly unbothered by the late hour. 

“Can’t sleep, sweetheart?” The bartender called out without turning around, tossing his rag across the counter and into a full soapy bucket behind the bar. 

“Uh, yeah, something like that,” Patton responded, shaking his bangs so they covered his eye. “I think I’m just too excited to start getting shots.”

“Mmm, you and me both.” He waggled his eyebrows and pulled a bottle of what looked like whiskey off the shelf. “What’s your poison?”

Patton snorted but shook his head, patting his camera bag, “I want to go out, and it’s probably not smart to drink before going out in a strange town at night.”

Roman shrugged before pouring himself a shot and downing it in one smooth motion.

“You’re allowed to drink on the job?”

The bartender hummed, replacing the bottle and locking the cabinet presumably for the night, “Once my tavern is empty, I consider myself off the clock. And I’m my own boss, so I hereby give myself the night off. I have a coffee machine in the back room, one of those Keurigs, if you want something fancy. Hasn’t been used in ages, but I’m sure if you wanted something, I-”

“No, it’s okay. Really.” Patton ducked his head and messed with his shirt, making sure the white collar stood above the neck of his sweater. He made his way over to the bar and took the same stool as before, leaning on the counter as Roman dumped out the dirty cleaning water into the sink. The clock above the bar, barely illuminated enough to see, revealed it was just after midnight. “Are there any old structures, like churches or anything, in the forest?”

Roman tilted his head, giving Patton a look over his shoulder he couldn’t quite understand. 

“There’s nothing there besides wolves and ticks, sweetheart,” he said slowly with an almost condescending smile, “Why? Hoping the little town in the middle of nowhere has a mystery?” He rinsed out the bucket and placed it in the cabinet under the sink.

Patton shrugged, scratching at his temple, “I saw something outside of my window.”

“Like a tree?” The rag was rinsed as well and draped over the faucet.

“No, definitely not.” He tried not to feel too offended that Roman was clearly teasing him, but he was certain what he’d seen hadn’t been a tree. They were too tall, too angular, and too symmetrically placed for that.

“Pattycake, I grew up hunting with my dad and partying in those woods, and I would know if something were there.” 

“Are you sure?” Patton implored, “There’s definitely something man made, could it be, like, an old castle, or something?”

There was a moment of silence between the two as Roman continued to look at Patton like he was crazy, the barest hints of an impish grin tugging at his lips, before he sucked in a sharp breath; as if he realized something. 

On a dime, Roman’s expression contorted into one of anger, eyes alight with fury as he leaned into Patton’s space. As he spoke, his voice almost reverberated, like a choir speaking in unison.

“There is nothing in those woods, Patton. Understand? Don’t go wandering into places you don’t belong, or you won’t like what you find.”

Patton reared back from the forceful words, hand coming up subconsciously to readjust the hair on his face. Roman leaned just a tad closer, growling out a warning, “Got it, sweetheart?” The electric lamps on the walls, once creating such a homey, soft environment, suddenly flickered and Patton flinched, whipping around to face the large room as it seemed to strobe under the malfunctioning lights. Goosebumps spread across his arms as the flashing grew faster and his hand clamped over the back of his neck when a shiver raced up his spine.

“What’s going on? Why are-”

And then the lights went out completely, an eerie quiet settling over the tavern. Roman was silent. Was he even still in the room? Could he have left so quickly? The only sound in the empty room were Patton’s shaky breaths, in through the nose and out through the mouth, as he fought down a scream. He wasn’t a fan of the dark.

A single street light barely shone through the window, too dim to even light up the tables near the glass, and Patton turned to focus on it. In through the nose, out through the mouth. In… out… in… out-

A silhouette appeared in the window. 

The lights were back to their original gleam before he could even open his mouth to scream, filling the room with a dull hum as if nothing had even happened. Blinking rapidly, Patton took a calming breath (it’s just old lights, it’s just old lights, relax) and swiveled back in his chair to find that Roman was smiling at him innocently, cleaning out a glass with a rag.

“Everything alright, sweetheart?”

“Didn’t you see that?” Patton asked incredulously.

“See what?”  The bartender placed the glass into the last space in a row of them, giving Patton that same condescending grin as before. 

Patton sighed and lifted his glasses to rub his eyes tiredly, shaking his head. “I think travelling for so long has me seeing things.” Careful as ever, in the same fashion he’d so masterfully perfected in elementary school, he shook his head to cover his eye- his stupid, left, ‘soulmate’ eye- before removing his hands and letting his glasses fall back into place. 

Other kids won’t like it, sweetie. I don’t think the teachers will either.

I know you can’t help it, my love. If I could take this burden from you, I would. But this is yours to handle until… well, you know.

I don’t know why, Patton. You’ll find them someday. And then you’ll understand. 

“Why do you do your hair like that?”

“Hmm?” Patton blinked.

Roman smirked, leaning casually on the counter in front of Patton, “Covering half of your face like that. You shouldn’t, you know. You’re a stunner.” With that, he reached forward, intent on moving that hair out of his face.

No.

“NO!” Patton yelled, stumbling off the barstool just as Roman’s hand made contact with his face. He ducked his head, roughly scraping his hair back in place with shaking hands, but the damage was done. A single cute guy compliments him and he forgets the habit he’s built up for years? How could he be so stupid-

“Everything alright? I’m sorry for scaring you, sweetheart.”

Was it possible he hadn’t seen it? Maybe Patton had moved fast enough, maybe the bartender had been too surprised to get a good look, maybe everything was fine. Roman didn’t seem horrified, or at all perturbed. Instead, he just looked… worried. 

Either way, after that reaction, Patton was aching to be left alone to stew in his embarrassment. His rented room held nothing for him that he wanted, and sleep felt farther than ever, so his only choice was outside. The promises of a maybe-crumbling ancient building, illuminated by a full moon, were far more tempting than anything inside had to offer. 

“Actually,” Patton said nervously, “A coffee would be great.”

Roman squinted at him, biting on the inside of his cheek before huffing a breathy laugh through his nose. “Alright, darling. Give me just a second to dust off the Keurig.”

The moment he disappeared behind the door to the backroom, Patton tightened his hold on the camera bag and sprinted from the tavern, into the grips of the cool night.

-0-0-0-

What would he say when he got back to the tavern? Would Roman make him leave the inn? Had he crossed a line he hadn’t known existed; would he have to cut his trip early because he couldn’t help his curiosity? Was bothering the only innkeeper in town really the smartest decision to make?

All wonderful questions that Patton wished he’d considered before running.

But if he did have to leave, and if this was his last night in this delightful and equally terrifying little town, he was going to make the most of it. At least, that’s what he’d thought he would do as he’d left the few city lights behind and treading deeper into the forest. He had a flashlight with him, thank goodness, so he wasn’t completely screwed, and he’d already gotten a few great shots. He stayed in the areas that the full moon could still shine through the trees, and some of the clouds had rolled away, so he was having the time of his life working with silhouettes against the star filled sky (thanks to the little to no light pollution Dewmore offered). 

The more prominent thought in his mind, however, were the spires steadily growing closer above the treeline. He couldn’t understand what Roman had been talking about. How could anyone living in this town not see whatever he was walking towards? 

(Admittedly, curiosity was also a huge reason he was chasing something he’d been warned to avoid. He’d never been that great at impulse control.)

It had to be nearly two in the morning when he came to an incline; a steep path constructed entirely of rocks fist-sized and larger. At the top, Patton could just barely see what looked to be the back of the castle, and he bounced slightly on his toes in excitement. He couldn’t tell from this distance the state it was in, or if it was possible anyone still lived there, but dang it if he wasn’t going to give it a go before he left. He’d walked all this way, after all.

The first few steps up the hill were the loudest thing he’d heard since he’d started his midnight adventure, and he cringed as they dropped away under his feet, knocking against each other as they fell to the ground.

“You shouldn’t be here.”

Patton spun around, his flashlight slipping out of his hands. It rolled down between the rocks, casting split second light beams in every direction as it bounced towards the source of the voice, and stopped dead in the middle between the two of them. It settled on an indent created by Patton’s steps, aimed at the newcomer. Patton breathed a sigh of relief.

“Roman, goodness gracious! You scared the bejesus out of me,” Patton laid a hand on his chest and let out a huge gust of air. Roman didn’t move, and for the first time he noticed the absolute glare the bartender was giving him. He cleared his throat awkwardly. “Uhm… sorry about the… leaving. Thing. Are you mad?”

“You shouldn’t be here.”

Well, apparently they weren’t going to talk about it. “Oh- I’m sorry, is this private property? I didn’t see any signs, I’m- Wait, but look, Roman! See, that’s what I was talking-”

“You. Shouldn’t. Be. Here.”

Patton blinked at the harshness in his words, taken aback. How was this the same easy going bartender that he’d met earlier tonight? Whatever was beyond this hill, though, Roman obviously wasn’t going to allow Patton to see. Maybe it was dangerous, or something? Either way, he couldn’t deny his disappointment.  “Yeah. I’m sorry, I’ll leave-”          

“How did you get here?”

“I… um, walked?”

“No!” Roman hissed, finally stepping forward and plucking up the flashlight from the ground, “You shouldn’t be able to see the castle, or go near it, how the hell did you get here?!”

Before he could answer, the other man froze, whipping around as if he’d heard a noise from his left. And then Patton blinked, and Roman was in front of him, pulling him back down to solid ground. He dragged him by the arm to a fallen tree that was propped up against its own splintered stump, leaving it angled just a few feet off the ground.

“How did you- You were just over there, how-”

“Get down!”

“What?”

“Get. Down!” Roman shoved his shoulders and Patton had no choice but to collapse, blending into a pile of ferns beneath the bend of the tree. “Take off the backpack, put it in front of you. It blends in better than you do.” He yanked off the dark green camera bag as he spoke, situating it in front of Patton. “Don’t move, don’t make a sound, don’t fucking breathe, Patton, I swear.” The flashlight flicked off and thumped to the ground as Roman walked away, leaving him standing in the pale moonlight. Patton debated reaching for the flashlight, but that would mean exposing himself from the foliage he was tucked in and under, and Roman had seemed really scared. 

There was a rustle in the underbrush in front of Roman, and the photographer shoved his fist into his mouth before he could gasp. 

“Roman, it’s so nice to see you back home. It’s been far too long.”

“It’s been hardly a month, mother.”

The woman that emerged from the tree’s shadows wore a black cloak, nearly blending into the forest around her as the fabric swirled hypnotically by her ankles with each step. Silver embroidery made up the tight bodice and strung together the corset front, meeting at the bottom in an intricate knot and trailing almost down to the earth in two strands. How her intricate updo had stayed intact through a walk in the forest, Patton couldn’t understand. 

However, if this was Roman’s mother, he did understand where he got his looks. The only word that came to his mind was ethereal; all smooth pale skin, those same impossibly dark eyes, red lips curved in a constant, easy smile. She was beautiful, but she was terrifying, and Patton backed up more into his fern hiding spot. 

She lifted her flared sleeves towards Roman as she stepped into the moonlit opening and he pulled her hands towards himself, kissing both of her cheeks before releasing her. 

“A month is too long, darling,” She purred, letting the back of her hand trail down his cheek. “I don’t understand why you find it necessary to stay amongst those humans when you could be with your family.”

“Because I want more than just… lounging, and talking with my brothers. Do you have to bring this up every time I visit?” Despite his slightly aggravated tone, he leaned into her touch. 

“When you’re older, you’ll look back at these choices with embarrassment and resentment.”

“Maybe.” 

“I just don’t want you to blame me when you do.”

“I could never, I promise.”

She sighed heavily, “They miss you, Roman. We all do.”

“Which is why I’m here, mom. You act as if I’ve been gone a millenia.” 

“Worrying is what a mother does best,” She smiled fondly, tapping his cheek with her finger, “You’re home, darling. Drop the glamor? It must be tiring keeping it up constantly.”

There was a moment of hesitation, where Patton couldn’t help but tense up along with the man in front of him. Then the air shifted, like it had been holding a breath it could finally let out, and though there was nothing different that Patton could see from Roman’s back, a certain jolt of fear hit him out of nowhere. 

“There’s my boy.” The woman drew him in for a proper hug, one hand reaching around his back to rest on his head. She pressed a kiss to his hair when he wrapped his arms around her in turn. Suddenly her nose wrinkled and she pulled away, holding his shoulders at arm’s length. “Dearest, you smell like humans again.”

Roman chuckled, but there was a new quiver in his voice. “The only flaw in being surrounded by them so often. Let me change, and I’ll come meet you for dinner.”

She didn’t move, eyes narrowing as she watched his face. “No… it’s not you.”

“What? What else could it possibly-”

“There’s a human here.” Her voice was utterly calm, but she pushed Roman behind her resolutely. “There must be.”

“What?!” 

A low growl filled the air, and it took Patton a few moments to realize the sound was originating from her. She stepped past Roman, her dress flowing soundlessly along with her as she glared into the woods around them. 

Her eyes flashed red.

Once again, Patton shoved his fist into his mouth to hide a scream. That same alien jolt of fear returned as she moved closer to him, seemingly zeroing in on his location. 

“Mother, come now. You’re being silly. Humans can't even come near here, remember? You made sure of that yourself!”

Patton tore his eyes away from the advancing woman and his breath caught in his throat. Roman had followed his mother, trying to placate her gently with a hand on her arm, and in doing so, had turned towards Patton’s hiding spot.

When Patton opened his eyes shortly after being born, he was taken away from his mother, despite his parent’s strong objections and his wails. He was returned hours later, much to their relief. On his birth certificate, his right eye was labeled blue. His left eye, the side usually taken by the natural color of his soulmate’s, was labeled ‘Defective’.

When he was set to start school at six years old, his mother sat him down on his bed and taught him how to properly cover his left eye with his hair. They’d grown it out enough to do so. Patton had asked why it was necessary, and subsequently learned the truth that not all people were as accepting and loving as his parents. 

When he was ten, he returned home from school crying. He dropped into his mother’s arms and she held him until his sobs turned to sniffles, until he could explain between sharp breaths that a bully at school had revealed Patton’s eye while trying to force him into a fight, and… well, his classmates hadn’t taken it well. Those who weren’t downright afraid of him, refused to eat or sit with him anymore. But it wasn’t fair. He couldn’t help it!

His eye was labeled ‘Defective’, because never before had the doctor’s seen a child born with a red eye. Not the pale color that came with pinkeye, or an allergic reaction, but the iris itself was such a bold, blood red color that it had left the team scrambling for any record of such an incident. They were left with more questions than answers. But the world had yet to understand how soulmates worked in the first place, so they chalked it up to another universal mystery.

Every day for as long as he could remember, Patton had stared into a mirror first thing in the morning, greeted with calm, airy blue on one side, and fiery, almost electric red on the other. 

So it was jarring to see such a sight, yet reversed, on another person. But as Roman tugged again on his mother’s arm, there was no denying it; the man’s own color was a gleaming ruby, and the other was Patton’s very own blue. 

“Mother, look,” Roman blurted out, scooping up the discarded flashlight from the forest floor, “This is a human tool. I’m sure this is what you’re smelling.”

She ripped the device from his hand, shaking it in his face, “That is still far too close to home, Roman! Humans have been here, and I guarantee they are still nearby.”

“And you don’t know how many there are, Mom!” Roman insisted, taking her hands. “It doesn’t matter how they got here, or why they did,” A slow grin spread across his face, highlighting a pair of glinting fangs, “Why don’t you gather the family, and we can find them together? I can’t even remember the last time I really ate.”

The woman was satiated by this answer, though she still cast the forest cautious looks. “Stay put, Roman. We’ll be back shortly.” Her nose wrinkled again. “Along with a change of clothes for you.”

And then she was gone, the only remaining trace being the tiny cloud of dust she’d left behind. Roman was calm for a moment, making sure she was really gone, before his demeanor dropped. The cocky smirk was gone, and he no longer held the confidence he’d had, either as a bartender or in the presence of his mother. 

“We don’t have a lot of time, c’mon! Let’s go!” He crouched before the log, extending his hand to Patton.

“What the hell are you?!” Patton shrieked. Interesting, that those were the first words from his jumble of thoughts that came out.

“Oh, come on, do you really need to ask? I’m pretty sure you already know!” 

And yeah, Patton was pretty sure he knew. He wasn’t an idiot. He’d had a teen Twilight phase, so of course the obvious answer was there. It just… it wasn’t possible. His brain was scrambling for any kind of other solution, anything that made sense, but it all kept circling to the same answer. 

The cute bartender at the inn was a vampire. 

… 

Okay then.

Next problem.

“I… yeah. I think I got it.”

“Good! Now let’s go!” Roman grabbed Patton’s hand and yanked, effectively pulling him from his hiding place and nearly tearing the arm from it’s socket. Patton stumbled from the sudden movement and tripped on his camera bag, yelping as he crashed into Roman’s chest. 

The vampire’s hands instantly wrapped around his waist, steadying him as he found his footing. 

“Are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m all good, I just-”

Roman was much taller than he’d thought; that was the initial thought that came to mind as he looked up at the man holding him. The second was, well, the fact that his jaw had dropped open upon seeing Patton’s eyes, and for the first time since they’d met, the guy was completely speechless. 

Patton felt his left eye began to tingle as they shifted into its own natural color. He ignored it.

“You really didn’t see it? At the bar?” Patton whispered.

“No, you moved too fast,” Roman murmured, bringing a hand up to Patton’s cheek. “You… you’re my-”

He must have sensed something, or heard something that was too quiet for Patton’s ears, because his head whipped towards the castle. 

“We need to go. Now.” Roman intertwined their fingers and pulled him into a run towards the town.

“Wait, no! My bag!” He tugged hard to try and get his hand free, but he was truly no match for Roman.

“Not important right now, sweetheart!”

 Without the aid of his flashlight, and enveloped by the darkness of the forest, Patton was totally blind, relying only on Roman’s grip to keep him from falling. Branches hit his face and roots reached up to trip him, but every time he stumbled, the hand tightened and pulled him back upright. 

A howl cut through the air. 

“What now, werewolves?!” Patton shrieked.

“Don’t be ridiculous, werewolves aren’t real!” Roman scoffed, “They’re normal wolves! What, you think just because we’re vampires, we’re unable to have pets?”

“Is this really a conversation we should be having at this exact moment?!” Patton shot back.

“You’re right, you’re right, okay.”

The howls were growing closer, and it was clear by Roman’s increased pace that this wasn’t about to be a friendly reunion.

“Can we outrun them?!”

“I take it you’ve never met a wolf!” 

Patton looked up at him desperately, already struggling to keep up the conversation and keep up with Roman. 

“I thought vampires had… like, super speed!”

“I wouldn’t be able to go for long, especially carrying you. Jump!”

Patton leapt blindly, feeling the side of a fallen log scrape the toes of his shoes. The landing was rough, sparks of pain shooting up his legs, but he was quickly pulled back upright. 

“I don’t have the energy! I haven’t eaten in months!”

There were more yowls, definitely closer this time, followed by the sound of multiple animals fighting, barely louder than a voice shouting (presumably) at the racket. Whether it was the wolves having a spat, or a prey animal that had gotten in the way of the hunt, Patton didn’t know. It drew out a small whimper from him either way.

He didn’t want to be next. 

“Do you trust me?” Roman suddenly gasped, holding his hand firmer. 

“What?!”

“Do. You. Trust. Me?!”

Patton didn’t exactly think he had a choice right now. His feet were aching, his lungs were burning, and he wasn’t sure he could run another minute without his legs giving out. “I- Yeah! Sure!”

“Good enough,” Roman grunted bitterly, screeching to a halt, and using his grip on the other’s arm to stop him too. Before Patton could even bring himself to complain, or scream at him, or just incoherently yell, the vampire was drawing him to his chest, puppeting his arms so they were around his shoulders.

“Hold on.”

Obediently, Patton tightened the grip. “Why-”

And then there was a sharp pain in his neck, and his eyes widened. The sting almost immediately morphed into a pleasant warmth, the distant howling being replaced by a faint humming, the buzzing of his own mind calming, becoming numb until the only thought in his head was Roman, Roman, Roman- 

He could feel Roman’s hand on his head, not restricting it, but cupping the back of it so he could lean against him as he stared up at the night sky, the full moon, and the slow blurring of the tops of the pine trees. His other arm was wrapped around his waist tightly, holding him up, and Patton was beyond grateful for the support as his legs began to turn to jelly. The last thing Patton felt was the vampire scooping up his legs and his head being cradled against the soft material of Roman’s shirt. 

Then everything went dark. 

-0-0-0-

Patton woke up slowly, squinting against the harsh sunlight streaming through his window. He dropped an arm across his eyes lazily, letting out a low groan at his pounding headache. There were voices downstairs in the tavern, and what sounded like dishes clanging, and he wondered if somehow this place was also a restaurant. How on earth could anybody run an establishment like that? It’s like the place never slept-

A wave of nausea pooled in his gut due to the speed of which he sat up but that wasn’t important, not right now. He flung his blankets back and… oh. He was dressed in his pajamas. Last he could remember, in the woods, running with Roman, he’d been in day clothes, in the sweater and shirt that was now draped on a chair across the room. His camera bag was... on the desk. His shoes were by the door, dirt free.

He raised his finger tips to his neck, expecting to feel a raised scab, or scar, any sign that he’d been bitten. There was nothing. 

He swung his legs over the sides of the beds and immediately shut his eyes, fighting off an explosion of dizziness induced sparks that shot across his vision. It sure felt as if he’d lost some blood. As much as he didn’t want to believe he had a hangover from one drink, that could also be an explanation. He’d always been a bit of a lightweight.

A dream. Was it all just… a dream?

A feeling of disappointment washed over him and he sighed, running his hands up through his hair. Something soft snagged on his fingers and he carefully detangled it from the curls, pulling it out curiously. He blinked at the fern leaf between his finger tips. That definitely hadn’t happened between his car, the tavern, or the room... So- 

He sucked in a breath sharply as his eyes locked with the mirror’s reflection in front of him, every thought coming to a halt.

Because staring back, for the first time ever, were two perfectly blue eyes.

I have a bunch of world building ideas that weren’t included in this fic, shoot me an ask if you have any lore questions!

General taglist:

@max-is-tired

@private-snippers

@joylessnightsky

[grimweaver]

A piece from 2011. Bear in mind that a lot of details (too many to list) have been changed since then and I was fresh into writing Elder Scrolls stories at the time. 

----

PART I

It seemed too perfect to exist outside the pages of a storybook; a hillside farm house with a grand view of the Imperial City, not far from the edge of the Upper Niben. It was a piece of country undisturbed by the bothersome ruckus of town, but close enough to the city to make the weekly trip for necessities hassle-free. Aaron was especially ecstatic about the new home, but for his own special reasons. There were more insects and small animals for the young boy to catch and play with, and the nature-enthusiast had a lot of yard explore.

"Remember, this is not at all like the city!" A voice called out from the front porch. "Do not wander too far or out of sight." "Da!" Aaron blasted from where he was playing, not more than a hundred feet away. "I'm ten years old! I'm almost a man!" "Doesn't matter- there are things out here that make an easy meal out of people- boy or man."

"Yeah, and you face them almost every day!"

"Because it's been my job for almost fifteen years now. I have skills and wits that help me survive each encounter."

Indeed. Since the raw age of thirteen his father made a living as a large game hunter. Because he was one of the few that dared to take on an animal twice the size of an average man he was well respected and heavily paid. It didn't hurt that, as one born under the Shadow, he had the ability to make himself invisible for a brief amount of time- that was a valuable power for someone who had to strike his target before it even suspected that it had company. One could say he managed well for a single parent, but because he was alone it was still a struggle in the beginning. But when Aaron was older and experienced enough to share chores and look after himself, it lightened the burden his father had to carry.

Aaron noticed him wincing with a sharp, backwards hiss through his teeth. He abruptly jumped to his feet and raced over to see what he was doing, carrying the large toad he caught in his gentle hands.

After reaching the steps of the the porch he was met with an unexpected and disturbing sight. "Da? What are you doing?"

"Something I've meant to do for a long time." His father's right arm was covered in red marks, which were made by the edge of the dagger he carefully scraped over his skin. But careful or not the bleeding couldn't be avoided. Aaron was shocked and confused by what seemed like an act of insanity. Perhaps being bored out of his mind in the country was what drove him to do it. "And I think you're old enough to understand why I'm doing this."

"Ya, I really hope you do tell me why you're cut'n yerself up! Are ya going crazy?" "No." His father chuckled. "Y'know that this part of my arm was always covered, right? Wrist bands, long sleeves, gloves, gauntlets..." "Yeah, come to think of it." "And you see what I've been covering up, since I haven't finished removing it?" "A... tattoo. But da you have a few others that y'never cover up. Why this one?" "Because this one was a declaration to the world of a commitment and promise."

Aaron was in silent contemplation for a moment, sighing as he watched the remaining black marks on his father's skin turn red. He cringed, not because he was abhorred by wounds, but because he thought about how much the process of removing the tattoo must hurt.

"To ma?" Was all he uttered after being quiet for so long.

His father paused briefly as he looked down at him with his solemn brown eyes, before narrowing his brow and coldly paraphrasing. "To the woman that gave birth to you. There are probably a thousand things one could call her, but 'ma' is not one of them." He continued scraping.

Aaron's brow popped up. Had he been a boy who knew his mother at all he would've been offended by his father's criticism, which seethed with an old contention. But until he learned about how life began he thought Lucien LaChance was the only parent he ever had.

"That's gonna scar bad." Aaron pointed out, half distracted from the subject. "Probably. But it'll be much easier to look at." He smirked as he applied a disinfecting paste to his arm.

"What happened?" He asked, taking his gaze off of Lucien's arm to give him direct eye contact. "Please, da. Like ya said I'm old enough to know... and don't sugar-coat it." "I never have, and I certainly don't intend to now. You deserve the unadulterated truth."

Aaron seated himself on the old wooden chair next to Lucien, waiting attentively for what he believed was going to be a long story. As Lucien began to wrap his arm he searched the sky for his reflection.

"She got into the skooma... and then entered the world that revolved around it. She left us for it... and then it killed her." Was all he said, crunching the entire story down to a few simple sentences. Aaron sighed heavily, petting the toad as he watched it's throat bubble out each time it took in a breath.

"I'm sorry, buddy." Lucien heaved as he slouched back. "It's alright." "We've been doing just fine on our own haven't we? I've tried to be both parents... to give you a happy life..." "I know... yeah everything's fine. I never knew her so... it's not that big'a deal. I'm happy. But are you happy?" Lucien chuckled. "You make me happy, kiddo. I think that I'd be lost in this world without ya." "Aaaw." Aaron made a wry face at his father's 'mushy' words. That's when he decided to change the topic. "So, y'gotta hunt tonight?"

"No, Aaron. It's Sundas. We're going into town." "We?" "Yes, 'we'. You and I." "But what about the goats? Don't ya want me t-" "They'll be fine. I put plenty of food in the trough to keep them happy all day. Go wash up real quick cause if we want to be back before sunset we gotta leave in a few minutes. Alright?" "Sure!"

Aaron bolted through the creaky front door with zeal in his heart. Lucien picked up the toad that was sitting contently on the table in front of him and gave it a quick pat on the head before releasing him into the field.

Lucien did not 'sugar-coat' the story at all, but he withheld lot of details. He did not want to be a man that allowed his past to consume him or anyone else. That is why he decided to finally remove that tattoo, which was a part of a traditional Imperial marriage. He did not want to drown others in the grimy tales of what he had to endure since the night his ex-wife, Rosalla, started behaving strangely. He also avoided telling Aaron that it began shortly after he was born because he knew that the boy would ask if it had anything to do with him, and Lucien would have to answer truthfully. The truth was 'yes'.

No one needs that on their conscience. He thought.

As Lucien waited for Aaron, the memories he struggled to distance himself from lurched out. Memories of Rosalla's mood swings that got worse and more frequent during the five days that followed Aaron's birth; Lucien was verbally and physically assaulted every time he returned from a hunt- she was convinced that 'hunting' was a code word for 'seeing other women'. It wasn't the truth, but the quirky voice in her head told her that it was. The voice also told her that Lucien drank heavily and hit her with the broken leg of a chair, and she distributed those rumors through her equally eccentric friends. Fortunately the people Lucien had to worry about receiving those rumors knew it was a lie, seeing no evidence whatsoever that she was even pinched.

Lucien didn't know it at the time, but this was the first prominent sign that Rosalla was ingesting skooma. If he did he would've been prepared for the next appalling act that happened a week later. He returned one night to a house void of anyone but a very neglected infant. Aaron was crying at the top of his lungs over several things that were not tended to- he was hungry, heavily soiled, cold, and deprived of parental love for what seemed like the entire day. The desperate father rifled through the entire town for help because he did not have the means to feed him. Fortunately Velus of the Merchant's Inn had a good alternative to breast milk and the starving child was finally well fed.

Rosalla's whereabouts and reason for absence was unknown to him for quite some time. After another week, worry promptly turned into fury when she returned. She was not kidnapped, trapped, or harmed in any other way- she was staying in one of the hotel rooms at "The King and Queen Tavern", taking in enough shots of skooma to completely loose sense of time and concern for anything but herself. Lucien demanded an explanation, and that is when she revealed to him the shady life of self abuse that involved not only skooma but lewd activities with groups of men and women that were also lost to the substance. She poured out all of her hatred for the tedious repetition of...

"Eating, baby, cooking, baby, sleeping, baby! No more thrills! No more joy! Just routine!" She screamed.

She did not have Lucien's sympathy. Instead he expressed how disgusted he was by her lack of strength and willpower. He contested with the fact that...

"Everyone has to put up with a long stretch of dull and strenuous routine every now and then! That's life! And it's not like this all the time, you just dwell on nothing but the negative and ignore all the wonderful things that are right there within reach- I ask if you want to go out you pout'n say you don't feel like it! I ask if you want me to stay home and you say you want me to go ahead and get the hell out of the house and leave you alone! You are such a piece of work! And this skooma... and everything you've been doing... God, I thought you were above this! I never thought you were stupid enough to fall into it... do you know what it does.. or what it has done to you!"

It was pointless for Lucien to recount the fact that he didn't leave everything up to her. He helped out around the house when he was able to- but Rosalla stubbornly believed that she did everything and he did nothing. She hardly noted the many nights Lucien got less than two hours of sleep because he offered to lift the baby burdens off of her weary shoulders. But the one thing that made it clear to Lucien that Rosalla was no longer going to be in the picture was the unforgivable act of abandoning the infant. It was not going to take more than one incident to convince him to extinguish her from their lives. So the night that Rosalla returned was also the night he would see her for the last time. Out of fear of harassment Lucien decided to move out of the Waterfront District house and live secretly with Velus and his wife Janine. One month later, imperial legionnaires reported to LaChance that they found Rosalla's body in Bravil.

He felt no remorse.

The first five years did not simply roll by- they sluggishly moved through a horrible grit. Such times in Cyrodiil were unkind to single parents.

But we made it. I don't know how... but we always found a way. Lucien thought. One can get through anything if they have unwavering faith and spiritual endurance.

Lucien did not give up, and keeping his son in mind inspired him to preserver.

[georgecrecy]

Charlie 5

“Ladies and Gentlemen! Ruffians and thieves from across the galaxy! Welcome, one and all, to the renowned fighting pits of the Hub!” The roar of the announcer bounced several times off of the surrounding rock, but the echoes were quickly squashed by the cacophony of hundreds of responding voices. The announcer held up all four of his arms to quiet the crowd from his position in the announcer’s box, his figure repeated by the massive screens which floated and circled the massive ceiling of the arena, projected by hovering transmit-a-bots.

With the noise of the many excited members of various species quieted down, his booming voice continued, “What an exciting lineup for the bouts today, with creatures and monsters from hundreds of worlds, all ready and rearing for a fight against our champions of the arena! Place your final bets, for now the fights shall begin! Send out the main event!”

Again, the arena erupted into roars, claps, and screeches as the many stands packed to the rafters all emphatically replied, many motioning for the betting girls to tally their last minute bets as they referenced their combi-pads. But all took note as a gate at the far end of the arena floor opened, and the seats shook in response to the pounding of heavy feet as a humongous bellow reverberated into the very core of everyone present. A huge, lizard-like monster thundered its way into the arena, and after an overawed moment of silence, the arena again erupted into frenzied applause. The thick scales were scored in places by fresh scars, and several drops of blood from the freshest of gashes, which glinted in the light cast down by the floodlights above. It roared again in challenge as another gate opened on the far side.

The green-uniformed and cat-like officer immediately found the grungy tavern he had just stepped into to be quite disgusting. The crackling and barely working lights could only hide so much of the grime and dirt which festooned every surface. His sensitive nose sniffed the air, and he could immediately tell that it had been a while since an inspector had visited the kitchens too, given the stench of mold and decay that wafted from that area. He was glad that his only need for being in here was sitting at the bar, slumped and nursing a glass of unknown but probably very alcoholic liquid.

Slipping delicately into the stained seat next to the dejected figure, he motioned away the tired-looking waitress, who pursed her purple lips disapprovingly and continued on to attend the few others in the room. The officer’s ears seemed to scan the room like twitchy radar dishes as his yellow eyes focused on the human seated next to him, inspecting the orange jumpsuit which had obviously long been in need of a wash. In a smooth voice the officer said, “You haven’t been taking care of yourself, James.”

Slowly looking up from the drink clutched in both hands, James looked up with bloodshot eyes over an unkempt beard at the officer beside him. Suppressing a belch, the miner replied as he looked back to his drink again, “Colonel Eahn, what bruh... brings a Colonel of the Vlexeene Guard to these parts?”

The Colonel’s eyes narrowed, but they betrayed pity in their yellow depths, “You do, James. Princess Saevi was heartbroken when she received news about Charlie, but she was even more heartbroken when you refused her calls. It’s not good form to keep a princess on hold, you know.”

James took another swig from his glass, and mumbled under his breath, which the sharp ears of the Colonel heard him utter, “Didn’t feel like talking.” The Colonel continued, “His Majesty called for a damn day of mourning for that big lug and you. When you didn’t show up for the proceedings, the Princess didn’t come out of her room for two days. The Queen Mother, the stars bless her, fretting about and suddenly being snappish to the servants. We are all worried about you, James. Your many friends are too, if your inbox messages are anything to go by.”

James, jolted as if by an electric shock, turned sharply to look at Colonel Eahn, though his eyes were unfocused and bleary, “How’d’you get in my mail, you nosy prick?” The Vlexeene merely smirked, ignoring the insult as he twirled a finger in his moustache. “Call it a friend’s prerogative, that and I had to track you down somehow. The king was breathing down my neckfur to find you, so I had my IT division hack into your accounts. That doesn’t matter though, what does matter is I have some news you need to hear, and we need you sober, come along now.” Throwing a few credits onto the counter, the Vlexeene grabbed the miner’s dirty jumpsuit and hauled him up from his seat, almost reeling at the heavy smell of sweat and cheap alcohol. James put up a bit of resistance, but the senior guardsman cuffed him a bit and sent him stumbling out the door. For the few patrons inside, most of which had been watching the two with interest, with their entertainment now gone were left to continuing their murmured conversations between themselves as the lights above crackled.

Outside in the comparatively bright sunlight, two more Vlexeene guardsmen flanked a jumpcar parked near the door, their uniform and chest insignia showing them to be of a junior rank. Both came to attention as the two exited, and both also wrinkled their sensitive noses in disgust at what the Colonel had brought out. He motioned to them for help, and James was quickly settled into the backseat in a drunken stupor. They found their own places in the car as the pilot Vlexeene punched in a set of coordinates. Once the air controls had been set to vent the overpowering stench, the jumpcar shot into the air almost vertically before joining the teeming mass of other air traffic. They headed towards the far side of the city, where a sea of large freighters and other ships were moored in their respective dockings. As they closed the distance, they could see that many of the ships swarmed with activity as goods and passengers were transported on and off, and dock workers worked in an orderly chaos, looked over by their foremans shouting out orders, or reprimands for those trying to get a lazy moment in.

The Vlexeene jumpcar set down in a quieter docking port where a brown, battered mining freighter sat moored. The colonel exited the jumpcar while the two junior guardsmen dragged the semi-unconscious figure of James out of the backseat. The four then proceeded to the ship, entering through a port which opened when the Colonel put his clawed paw up against the hand scanner to the right of the airlock door.

Through the bowels of the ship, the Vlexeene maneuvered their drunken cargo until they reached the spartan crew quarters, which at that moment was uncharacteristically strewn with dirty laundry and empty bottles. The two guardsmen set the miner down on the bed, and were glad to leave the smelly room and their charge when the Colonel motioned them away. He made sure James was comfortable, and then headed towards the cockpit, in part to get some coffee and wait for his friend to wake as much as to get away from the smell.

Several hours passed before James finally woke to the beautiful smell of coffee nearby, as well as a severe pounding in his head like he was using his old jackhammer on his own skull. Moaning in pain, he sat up from his bed. Getting up was just as painful, but he pushed past it and turned toward the head, his feet sending bottles careening. He was startled by a familiar voice which stated, “When you’re done in there, I got some proper victuals for you.” James swiveled unsteadily to see the green-clad Eahn sipping coffee as he leaned on the doorway to the cockpit, his eyes glinting with humor. The grizzled miner grumbled and continued on to his much-needed destination.

His head still pounding, James returned to the crew quarters, where the Colonel was waiting at the fold-out table. A steaming plate made from a carb-heavy food pack and a cup of coffee waited in the empty spot opposite the officer. James sat down and dug in hungrily, not looking at the Colonel at all, who continued to sip at his own cup. After a minute, the Colonel piped up to break the silence, “You know, you have to tell me where you supply your coffee. Since you humans introduced us to it, I’ve developed quite a taste, but we get the worst brew at HQ; it tastes terrible. This stuff is quite nice.” James continued to scarf the food down instead of answering, and the Colonel could only look on in pity. The man he had met during the festivities at the return of Princess Saevi to his grateful people was bright and cheery, always flanked by his gargantuan friend. They had developed a friendship when they had worked together on several mutual operations. The person now in front of him seemed but a broken shell in comparison.

He shook his head, and continued, “Look, I’m here on more than just royal business, my friend. I’m also here because of an investigation I’ve been looking into recently. To put it succinctly, it’s about Charlie.”

James slammed his spoon down on the table with a clatter, and stood up abruptly, startling the Colonel. Reaching out a paw, Eahn tried to object, “James, please don’t-” James grunted out as he stomped to the cockpit door, “He’s gone. Don’t you be darin’ to bring ‘im up. Thanks for the food, now get goin’.” As he put his hand on the door frame, the miner heard his furry friend quietly say, “I think he’s alive.”

James rounded on the Colonel, almost screaming at the top of his lungs with tears streaming down from already red-rimmed eyes, “I WATCHED HIM DIE, YOU FUR-FACED BASTARD! THEY KILLED ‘IM RIGHT IN FRONT O’ ME! HE AIN’T EVER COMIN’ BACK!” His shoulders slumped down as his head hung low from his expended fury. Colonel Eahn saw frustration, anger, and grief in his human friend’s eyes that he knew went deep, and he hoped to all in the heavens that he wasn’t wrong about what he had discovered. He shook his head again and stubbornly continued, “I think you saw a show, James. A horrid show, but only a show. Please, sit down and let me explain.”

He could see James shaking, trying to control an indeterminate rage. After several moments, the miner slowly made his way back to his seat across from the Colonel, his hands clenching and unclenching as he stared intently at the table. The Colonel nodded and cleared his throat. “Several days after we heard about… about it, I looked into the company. With all my years as a guardsman, I could tell that nothing about it’s operations seemed legitimate. I had my men look into the Adrax Laboratory, for one, and it seems they never received a Tilluxian for study.”

James’ intent stare swiftly switched to look right into the yellow eyes of the officer, who returned the stare as he continued on, “Leads dried up quickly after that. One of the doctors I thought might help and his family completely disappeared. I got the sense that someone found out about our little investigation and began to clean up. Several weeks passed with nothing. However, I was getting reports from Red Division, our intergalactic piracy task force? They were hearing about a brand new attraction in the Hub pits. Those blighters are always looking for something new for their short attention spans, and a few months ago they seemed to have found something big. From what our informants have been telling us, it’s a recently acquired Tilluxian Dragon.”

James now had the chance to narrow his eyes at the Colonel. “I knew that desk job was gonna set that mind to jelly, you fat, furry idjit. That could be any Tilluxian.” The Colonel straightened the front of his jacket as he scowled across the table. “I know you’re hurting right now James, but less of your insults would be appreciated. Now I am fully aware that Charlie isn’t the only Tilluxian Dragon in the universe, but there is a connection. The Vice President of Operations of Southtech, Crassus Jaul - who I believe you’ve had the displeasure of meeting - has reportedly been in contact with Takrex. The Lord Takrex. We’ve been trying to pin down that elusive Narx Rat for years. Financial records we obtained also seem to show a substantial sum going into Jaul’s personal accounts through various shell corporations around the time of Charlie’s execution. It took us three months just to discover that convoluted combi-trail, let me tell you, but we are sure it must be a payments from Takrex.”

The ears of the Colonel twitched in annoyance at the sound of more bottles sent scattering as James stood up abruptly and began to pace across the decking. Eahn could see that James’s mind was racing. His grief and anger had now been replaced by confusion, and for the first time in several months of guilt and helplessness, there was an inkling of hope. James then stopped abruptly as if stopped in thought, and again Eahn was startled when James careened towards the cockpit door in a flurry.

Before Eahn had fully gotten out of his seat, cursing when he nearly spilled the hot coffee down his impeccable front, James had returned to the common area with a combi-pad in hand. “Here! Here it is! This has to be important! Surely you can figure it out, you and your smartypants IT folks.” Eahn stood rather dumbly in response, hesitantly taking the combi-pad that James had been waving in his direction. Confusedly, he said, “Have what, James? What is on here?” The Colonel noticed the screen was covered in oil streaks from lots of use, and several parts were rather stained with questionable food or drink stains.

“Well, I got a head on my shoulders Colonel, I made a copy of all the documents those bastards sent me when I was doin’ their dirty work for ‘em. I can’t make heads or tails of all the accoutin’ stuff, but I know enough that a few things seem out o’ place in the inventories and order receipts for the Vashas, for instance. I just can’t put my finger on the rest of it.”

Eahn gingerly wiped the very dirty screen with his sleeve before opening several documents already cued up. Inventories, accounting records of several outstanding accounts, order receipts, mining survey reports, and a host of other records flashed by in a whir before Eahn had a chance to sit down and begin to translate the mess. He soon noticed issues with the breakdown reports of the mining equipment used by the Vashas, and the portfolio of the Yallarian colony just didn’t add up in his head. Looking up from the reports, he saw that James had seated himself on the edge of his bunk, leaning forward in anticipation and eyes that bored into the yellow slitted pools of the Colonel once he had looked up.

“Well James, I certainly agree that something is wrong with these operations, and these aren’t the only ones I’ve seen to be similarly ‘fishy,’ as you humans are apt to say. I’ll send these on to some agents of ours in the Guard, they might have some luck at deciphering this convoluted mess, but with any luck this might help us. In the meantime, whether or not it is our mutual friend, I believe we have a big lizard to save.”

James’ taciturn face, which had seemingly been stuck on that setting for months now, finally broke out in a wide smile.

He had done this sort of thing one or two times before, but he could never consider the earpiece to be comfortable. It was designed with Vlexeene ears in mind, so it didn’t quite fit right in his own human ear canal, where every step would send a dull and uncomfortable jab of plastee to remind him of its presence. However, the adrenaline coursing through his veins and the excitement of the situation were helping him ignore the discomfort. In front of James was the captain of a smuggling ship the Guard had tracked down but not arrested yet for the express purpose of this mission. Given that the fledgling operation had been relatively easy to uncover, and that the Lou-Maxi captain of the crew wasn’t the brightest star in the night sky made it so he wasn’t a high priority in the first place, and the perfect pawn to help get James into the Hub.

The miner smiled to himself as he saw Captain Choep eye him appraisingly up and down in a lopsided attempt at being intimidating, but his fleshy and iridescent cheek bags giving him a dumb bloodhound sort of look ruined the attempt at the outset. Instead of the usual orange jumpsuit, James had been outfitted with a faux-leather bomber jacket and dark cargo pants that he thought was ripped right from a certain Harrison Ford character. He was sure that this wrinkled imbecile wasn’t a fan of ancient Terran films though, who might otherwise blow the cover of this copyright-infringing smuggler’s costume.

The cheek bags didn’t help the squat captain add any intimidating qualities to his speech either, which was predominantly overshadowed by the amount of spittle that sprayed dangerously close with each grating word spoken. Fortunately for James, the translator box on his shoulder-strap didn’t have a salivary gland, as it worked the words into common. “Stho, you tbhink you’re wortbhy of my crew, eh? What can a human offer in muscle tbhat my Gruat can’t? What could any human oftfer to a crew, eh? Eh?” He warbled out a chuckle that was shared by the other crew on his ship, including the bulky Gruat in question. James crossed his arms and looked contemptuously back, drawling out, “Heh, I could go toe to toe with ‘im. But I ain’t here to fight so much as get you in on the ore tradin,’ which is what you’re lookin’ for in the first place, right? Least, that’s what my sources said. But if you don’t need my extensive knowledge on the inside track on the market from here to the Vega cluster, that’s on you. I got other folks that’d appreciate the leg up.” He turned to leave the gangway but was stopped short - as planned - when he heard the almost desperate plea of the captain behind him, “Waitbh! Maybe… maybe we can use you. Justh waibth a moment.”

James slowly turned back, an eyebrow raised quizzically. He could see the captain’s gears turning sluggishly inside an unimaginative brain. James looked about the rest of the crew, their eyes either on their captain in anticipation, or on him in undisguised suspicion. The Gruat was certainly eyeing him up, probably assessing his fighting prowess as only a former gladiator could, the varied scars about his body giving away the possibility. The large alien shrugged contemptuously and crossed both pairs of arms before looking towards the captain. James merely smiled inside, it’s only unlucky or stupid fighters that have so many scars, and even being in his more golden years James believed he could give this hulking muscle the run-around.

However, chief among the crew which caught James’ eye was an arthropod-like species from one of the darker parts of the galaxy, and underneath the flak armor was a jet black chitinous hide ending in at least eight jointed appendages, though one of which was missing from some battle. The compound eyes situated on the skull seemed to bore into James, and when he looked back, the eyes merely narrowed in heightened suspicion. He leaned toward the captain still deliberating and said quite loudly, “Tktktktktk! We should not trust this one Captain Choep! I do not like him! Tktktktktk.”

The captain waived away the suggestion, the bottom of his flabby arm undulating from the movement. “Bah, you thbink too much Argax! Sthop pestering me! As for you, human! What do you say to three percent?”

James didn’t even need to pretend to think, considering it was a pittance being offered for the position. “Three? What do ya take me for? A scrubber-bot? I’d be finding the best prices for our… wares…. I want eight.”

Choep blinked several times, a purple color creeping up his jowls. “Eight? Eight? Nah, you gothta earn eight, scrounger! Six, and no more!”

Again, James pretended to think, he was going to take it even though it was still a low offer, those listening in through his earpiece were depending on it. He looked back up at the rather underwhelming captain, who had swelled out his paunch to appear bigger, which was a common show of superiority among his toad-like people. To the grizzled miner it was rather laughable. Finally, James nodded once and begrudgingly said, “Fine, but i'll be wanting my fair share as time goes by.” The captain nodded back several times, as did some of the other crew members, though some looked glum at the fact they wouldn’t be toasting him off the dockyard as their hands gripped tight at their holstered combi-blasters. The Lou-Maxi looked quite pleased with himself as he said to his new crew member, “Good, now make shture you get back before too long with your gear, we’ll be taking ofth soon.”

James nodded stoically, and turned about to make his way back to the dive he had rented for the night at this backend port. In truth he hadn’t even bothered unpacking, partly because of the mission, and partly because of his suspicion for the cleanliness of the place. As he turned he locked eyes one more time with Argax the Anthropoid, its many eyes showing nothing but dislike and undiminished suspicion. He knew he would have to step carefully the next few months to avoid the ire of that one. But now phase one was complete of their plan, and soon he would be on his way to possibly finding out if Charlie was alive. Worming away at his consciousness was the idea that it was just a random Tilluxian that was unfortunate enough to have been picked up alive by the indiscriminate pirates, but the burbling spring of hope that had sprouted during the conversation with his friend Eahn would not fully allow the possibility. He shrugged his shoulders and sped up his step. It had to be Charlie.

It had to be.

The next several weeks were rather harrowing for the older miner, and the stress of the facade James constantly had to maintain was getting to him. But he continued on with a stoicism born from desperation and an end goal. Not helping the situation was the constant presence of the multi-limbed menace James sometimes referred to as “Stubby,” that being Argax the arthropoidal alien who seemed to dog his every step with a nasty specist remark and an even nastier glare. He could have had the luxury of talking to a friendly voice using the communicator temporarily embedded in his ear canal, but without the masking of many communication channels a station as big as the Hub would afford him, he couldn’t risk any illicit transmission being picked up by the smuggling ship’s sensors. But several months of work in his role as the inside man (in more than one capacity) went by quickly, and finally the inept Captain Choep announced to the crew that some shore leave at the Hub was coming up.

James cheered and clapped hands with the rest of the pirates, but inwardly he wished the place would become little more than space dust. The hollowed out asteroid was a den of some of the most villainous elements in the galaxy, filled with slave markets, brutal gladiatorial chambers, and a booming black market trade, all orchestrated by one loathsome being: the self-styled Lord Takrex. He held an iron fist over the good-sized pirate fleet he controlled, and was connected enough that he somehow skirted the attention of the systems big enough to take him and the well fortified asteroid station head-on. In the meantime, the systems and colonies most plagued by his nefarious bunch were not large enough on their own to defeat him.

Again, James found himself somewhat day-dreaming as the stars outside the porthole passed swiftly by, thinking of what laid ahead for him, and the reunion he desperately hoped might happen. That worm of doubt reared its ugly head again inside the pit of his stomach, overwhelming his reverie with a sour thought. It isn’t Charlie. It is some poor schmuck of a Dragon who they got their claws into. All of this will be for nothing. Or even worse, if it was Charlie, he had spent these long months in captivity and cruelly-delivered pain while James had been moping about from bar to dingier bar, not even bothering to try and find him or try to do something. The grizzled miner pushed the thought away, but not before a tear began to trace a groove down his cheek and into the stubble where the tousled beard had been several weeks prior. He looked back up into the porthole, but his reflection had been joined by a multi-eyed head!

Turning swiftly, a hand going to his combi-blaster, he found Argax looking back at him slyly from several feet away, taking up most of the doorway. His mandibles clacked out a chuckle. “Tktktktktk, slow human, I have killed Narx Rats faster than you. And what is this, your face is wet! Have you finally cracked under the pressure? Tktktktktktk.” James cursed his little moment, acting like some blubbering fool, but outwardly sneered at his recently-acquired nemesis. “I’m afraid not, Stubby. I was merely crying with joy at the thought of what sort o’ bug spray they might sell big enough to put you on your tubby arse. Or do you think they might have some really big fly swatters? It’s my first time there.”

Argax, already naturally tall, grew taller still as he stalked menacingly toward the leather-clad miner, his eyes narrowed in fury. “Tktktktktk! That is not my name, barkok! I will teach you to-” He was cut off as the pounding of feet on metal decking came down the corridor outside, and both turned to see one of the other crew, another Lou-Maxi named Lorg, as he stopped at the door, his portly frame out of breath but cheery. “Thbe Hub! We’re ath thbe Hub!” He hardly failed to notice the tension in the room, and as he did, he awkwardly paused before nodding to both, and continuing hurriedly down the corridor.

When Argax turned around, the first thing he saw was the barrel of James’ combi-blaster aimed directly at his face. Argax’s smile was venomous but he conceded the situation, backing out of the room slowly with a parting jab. “Watch your back, human, you never know what lurks in the dark! Tktktktk.” James kept the blaster handy as he said, “Cowards mostly, I suspect.” Argax’ smirk vanished, snarling as he turned and stamped noisily down the hallway.

The disguised miner holstered his combi-blaster with a tired sigh as he thought of the good timing. He was glad this mission would be over soon. A drop of salty water that soon fell to the dirty deck plate, however, belied the doubts that continued to harbor themselves in the dark recesses of his mind.

Read the other parts of the series!

Part 1: https://georgecrecy.tumblr.com/post/183762132696/charlie-1

Part 2: https://georgecrecy.tumblr.com/post/183787102041/charlie-2

Part 3: https://georgecrecy.tumblr.com/post/183794906326/charlie-3

Part 4: https://georgecrecy.tumblr.com/post/183805565796/charlie-4

Part 6: https://georgecrecy.tumblr.com/post/183819131196/charlie-6

Part 7: https://georgecrecy.tumblr.com/post/183819391261/charlie-7

[pyrewriter]

Explanations (Part 1)

"I Can't believe that stupid, no-good cat, first I hear that he doesn't help look for Adrien then he just blows me off for patrol" Plagg heard a voice exclaim. He looked up at Adrien to see if he too had been woken up by the noise but he was out cold.

"Heh, guess those incense things work pretty good" Plagg thought to himself.

He heard another voice, this one even more familiar than the last "I'm sure Chat has his reasons, but didn't you notice all the things that were off about him?".

The first voice became muffled as it moved "Oh you mean his dumb wardrobe change? Yeah I noticed, what about it?". The voices became harder and harder to hear as they seemed to move into the building, Plagg decided to go through the wall to hear better. Adrien was wearing a hoodie and before he left Plagg put the hood up to cover his head in case he was spotted while he was gone. As he entered the room that familiar aura became stronger the closer he got to the voices, he hid under a bright pink sofa with white polka dots listening in.

"-the point here"

"Then what am I supposed to notice Tikki, what is the point I'm supposed to get when he ran off before I could get a good look at him".

Plaggs eyes went wide "Wait 'Tikki' but that's Ladybugs Kwami?" he thought to himself, he listened closer.  

"Marinette, I think you should gather the facts before you go jumping to conclusions" Tikki said 

"Oh don't worry I'm going to ask him some questions alright" Marinette replied sounding angry.

"Maybe you shou-" Tikki started to say then stopped abruptly "Wait I feel something..." Plagg winced ,he knew his cover was blown.

 "Your Kwami's right you know, you really shouldn't jump to conclusions before you know the story" he said floating through the sofa spotting them on Marinette's bed.

"PLAGG!" Tikki yelled.

He flew across the room to Tikki putting covering her mouth "Shh" he gestured to the wall that Adrien was just on the other side of. 

Tikki pushed him away, whisper yelling now "Plagg what are you doing here?" she asked. 

"Tikki, who is this, another Kwami?" Marinette asked as well.

Plagg placed a hand over his chest "I am Plagg and I am Chat Noir's Kwami, the one you appear to be so unrightfully mad at to be specific" he explained.

Marinette furrowed her brow at his remark, Tikki sighed "Yes Marinette, this is Plagg, an old friend of mine and Fellow Kwami" she said reiterating his words. She turned to him "Now what are you doing here and where's your wielder?" she asked.

"He's...within earshot but he's asleep and I think it's best if he stays that way" he really didn't want to tell them Adrien was just on the other side of the wall. Plagg looked to Marinette "Huh so it was you the whole time huh I guess that's not too surprising all things considered" he said shrugging. 

Marinette crossed her arms "hmpfh did you come here to scrutinize me or was there something else you wanted?".

Plagg shook his head "I was going to explain what happened but you seem to be in an understanding mood so maybe another time" he turned starting to fly away.

"Wait" Marinette's voice was calmer than it was a moment ago "I would like to know what happened, and I need your word that you won't tell him you know who I am" she said pointing at Plagg.

Plagg smiled and turned back to her "I wouldn't dream of it and if you insist-" Plagg explained what he felt she needed to hear from someone other than Chat. He told her about the Akumas appearance and that he fought despite being severely injured and why he was acting so friendly with Willy when she saw them. He glossed over the finer details like Adrien being shot repeatedly, the alley surgery, coughing up blood and his life before Paris telling her "It's best if Chat answers any questions you have". Plagg wasn't sure how much of Adriens life Marinette knew or how much of it he wanted to be known, he was certain that Adrien would want to tell it himself.

Marinette sighed heavily "Thank you Plagg, I still have a lot of questions and I'm still mad but I know little more now" she said with begrudging understanding in her tone. 

Plagg nodded saying one thing before he flew through the roof "Never judge a Mask Maker by what he shows you". 

"Thank you for hearing him out, Marinette" Tikki said yawning.

Marinette flopped onto her back and muffled an annoyed scream with a pillow when she removed it she lazily waved her hand "Goodnight, Tikki". She laid there staring at the ceiling, her mind still flashing back to what Plagg had said "Never judge a Mask Maker by what he shows you" she mumbled trying to decipher the phase. After half an hour of futilely trying to figure out what Plagg meant she flipped over grabbing a framed photo "Oh Adrien, please be ok" she muttered closing her eyes and shedding a tear. 

Outside Plagg had returned to Adriens pocket "You owe me three pieces of Camembert now buddy" he said quietly not wanting to wake him. 

Morning was coming and Adrien had slept like the dead "Ugh hello again ass-crack of dawn, how are you today" he groaned stretching "Plagg you awake?". No response came "Guess not, well I'll let him sleep. I need to visit Fe' anyway" he thought to himself, "What about you, Belial?" he asked aloud.

"Meow"

"Morning to you too, come on we gotta see if Fe' is up yet" he said before starting the climb down. When he got to street level he dusted himself, adjusted his mask and walked across the street to Fe's apartment and knocked on the door. He was surprised when she opened the door only a few seconds later dressed in pajamas with a cup of fresh tea in hand "Mornin" he said giving a wave.

Fe' stuck her head into the hall looking both ways "Mornin Adrien, come in, come in" she said with a smile before turning around.

"Fe', did you sleep at all?" Adrien asked closing the door behind him taking a few steps inside before stopping to remove his mask stuffing it in his pocket.

"I got a few hours in at the tavern but I'm still lagged so I've only slept two or three since you dropped me off" she explained sipping her tea. "I have been productive though and I already found a job to apply for, all I gotta do now is wait a few hours". 

"Already? Where and when would you start?" Adrien asked surprised that she had already found employment. 

Fe' smiled deviously behind her mug "Well if they accept me ,and they probably will thanks to my name, I would start later today as a counselor and assistant..." she took a long sip.

Adrien's head snapped to her eyes narrowing "Where..." he asked dangerously.

"Your school" Fe' said slowly with an ear to ear smile on her face. 

"Goddammit" Adrien face palmed for a moment then ,looking at Fe', "You planned this didn't you?" he said pointedly.

Fe's smile only widened "A little" she said giving an innocent shrug "Don't worry my lips are sealed tight". Her smile faded and her tone became serious "After all above all else you and me are family ,blood or otherwise, remember?". Adrien chuckled, put his feet together and placed fist over his heart before raising to the sky as if to give a toast holding the pose. 

Fe' stood to return the gesture and they both sat down "When was the last time you used that salute" she said chuckling.

"Well I've practically started completely over but I like bringing the good parts of my old life" Adrien thought back to the last time the salute was used, it was the day their eldest brother left. They talked about how their lives have been since the move to Paris, even though Adrien was a hero Fe's life had been by far the more eventful one. Adrien listened very intently whenever she would talk about her transition and clenched his teeth whenever she would mention how people sometimes treated her. No matter how many times Fe' tried to console him he still kicked himself for not being there like he had been when they were young.

Adrien looked at his phone standing suddenly "I need to get to work" he realized he was late for morning patrol, they had been talking for almost two hours. Ladybug was already miffed at him over the whole not helping look for himself and if she caught him skipping patrol no excuse was going to stop her from ripping his ears off. "Swing by the tavern ,alone, and let me know if you got that job, drinks'll be on me if you do" he said smiling before walking to the door. He exited the building through the roof access waking Plagg and transforming on his way up the stairs, once outside he did a less than thorough sweep along his normal route. 

"Morning, Chat" Ladybug said dryly as she heard him approaching, Chat only replied with a grunt and tip of his imaginary hat. She took a deep breath "Do you mind if we patrol together for a bit?" she asked.

"Thought you were mad at me" Chat reminded her.

"I am" Ladybug stated crossing her arms "-but you haven't had a chance to explain yourself" she turned to look at him to see raised eyebrows and question marks on his mask. "Don't give me that look and explain your new look while you're at it" she said gesturing to his clothes.

"If it means I get to keep my head then whatever you ask Ladybug, I will answer but I get to refuse if it's too personal, deal?" 

"Deal" she replied, Chat didn't explain much more than Plagg did and any time she asked him to go into detail about the night he refused telling her it was best if only he knew the whole story. He was willing ,however, to explain why he carried a lighter, showing her the rolls he had made which she later learned were "I.C's" and a vague reason of why he uses them. After all her questioning she was only able to learn that he had been injured but tracked the Akuma anyway and when he tried to subdue them while they slept he was severely injured. All of which partly explained his new look but nothing specific and she still didn't know why he refused to aid in the search for Adrien other than he was with the Akuma. All she had now was a reason to not strangle Chat and more questions than answers.

*KABOOM* "AGRESTE!!" a voice screamed followed by the sound of panicked screaming.

Chats mask changed to an annoyed frown "Son of a- It hasn't even been 24 hours" he face palmed "No rest for the Wicked I suppose" he said running toward the sound jumping from roof to roof.

"Chat, wait" Ladybug shouted reaching for him but he was too focused to pay attention to whether or not she was with him. She retracted her hand thinking back to what Tikki and Plagg had said "Didn't you notice all the things that were off, Never judge a Mask Maker by what he shows you". Ladybug stood with her hand to her chest for a moment "He hasn't called me his lady and not a single cat pun...which mask is he wearing now?" she thought. Shaking her head she shoved those thoughts to the back of her mind for later, right now there was an Akuma and that took priority over troubling thoughts.

Chat arrived on the scene first, the Akuma looked like a kaleidoscope puked out a rorschach test on a human canvas. "HEY RAINBOW INKBLOT" he yelled getting the it's attention "-what do you want with the Agreste boy?".

"I don't care about him I want the other Agreste child, the one that robbed me of my livelihood" he yelled throwing an ink blob that changed and morphed at random as it flew. 

Chat dodged "Guess that answers that question" he thought to himself as the blob flew past and hit a pigeon ,engulfing it, a small box took its place. Chat leaped over to see what had happened, inside was a maze with several pigeons ,each of a different color, inside. 

"The hell did you do to this bird?" he asked genuinely confused. 

The Akuma laughed "I ,The Kaleidotherapist, gave it the chance to search within, to see what really goes on inside of itself, to find, to see how whole it really was, and to show the world it's inner machinations. Just like I've done with all my other patients, but you can call me 'Kaleido' for short". 

"Patients?" Chat said looking down the street, as far as he could see were the mazes of the Kaleidotherapist's other "Patients" some big, some small. He looked for where Ladybug had moved to but saw no one on the nearby rooftops, pulling out his staff Chat readied himself for a long fight. 

Kaliedo hugged himself writhing in twisted pleasure "I must admit Chat Noir, I have always been absolutely enthralled by what goes on in you and your partners heads". 

"How do they get out?!" Chat demanded.

"You're no fun, only when they face all of themselves and find all of themselves will they be released from their examinations" he replied readying himself "Now let's see if you're an enigma or if you're simply a jigsaw puzzle". Chat was able to hold his own but he couldn't hold out forever and he couldn't tell what the Akuma had attached itself to. His best guess was a pair of glasses hanging from a coat pocket but even if he was he would need Ladybug's help to get close.  

"Sorry I-" Ladybug started.

"Fantastic, first I put you both through examinations then I take your MIRACULOUS!" Kaliedo said throwing an ink blob at Ladybug. 

Chat lunged pushing her down "Move-!" he yelled swinging at the blob with his staff like a bat but the blob stuck to it. Before he could throw his staff it was already devouring his arm, he raised his free hand "CATACL-mmmh" the ink had shot tendrils covering his mouth engulfing him faster. He struggled and writhed as the ink covered and converted him, Chat felt himself being ripped into pieces. 

"CHAT!" Ladybug yelled as she watched frozen in place unable to look away.

The Kaleidotherapist leaped onto the roof a few feet from Chats box "Oh~yes it's just as I imagined" he said shivering with excitement "He's an Enigmatic labyrinth".

Ladybug got to her feet "Don't you touch him" she screamed.

Kaliedo threw another blob at her, this one only pinning her to the ground "Wait for your appointment Ladybug, for now just sit tight" he told her. He sat down and peered into Chats labyrinth watching intently like a child watching their favorite movie .

Ladybug ground her teeth "LUCKY CHARM!" in a flash a dozen water balloons fell on her, Kaliedo turned to her with an annoyed look. Some of the balloons popped when they hit her, the water caused the ink to run and lose its hold on her. She picked up one that hadn't popped and threw it at Kaleido hitting him in the face making him stumble. She used the chance to push him over and grab Chat's labyrinth and a balloon before zipping off in a random direction, she just wanted to get away from Kaliedo. Ladybug ran until she was almost out of time, taking the water balloon she popped it on the labyrinth hoping it would free her partner. When it didn't and Marinette de-transformed Tikki was drained ,she began to panic, she didn't know what to do but she couldn't leave his labyrinth lying around somewhere.

"Take him to the Guardian, he may have something to help free Chat Noir" Tikki suggested biting into her cookie Marinette had given her. 

Marinette nodded "You're right, maybe he can use magic or something" once Tikki was ready to go she transformed and headed for Master Fu's place.

Meanwhile the Kaliedotherapist was arguing "I did not let them get away" he said seeming to talk to himself.

"Do not forget who gave you these powers Kaleidotherapist, because I can just as easily take them away" Hawkmoth threatened.

Kaleido shook his head "You're impatient and that makes you rash ,give it time, when I find the other Agreste child Ladybug will have no choice but to come out".

"And what if Chat Noir finds his way out of his maze, what then?" Hawkmoth asked. 

Kaleido laughed "With a labyrinth as complex as his I doubt he'll be out anytime soon, even if he does get out he won't be the same person he was".

Hawkmoth was silent, then "Carry on, I will watch" he said before cutting his connection before turning to walk away. Taking the Elevator down he grabbed his tablet and checked the pages he had book marked about the search for his son, "Have you found anything yet?" he asked scrolling as he looked for updates.

"None yet Sir, but the Police and many volunteer groups are still scouring Paris" Nathalie said standing near by looking at her own tablet "-and what of your other child, Sir?" she asked hesitantly. 

Hawkmoth walked back to the elevator "Inform me of any changes" he said, as it took him up, Nathalie nodded solemnly.

Ladybug had made it to Master Fu's without drawing the attention of anyone, once inside she de-transformed and knocked on his door "Master Fu, are you there? I need you help". When Fu answered the door Marinette pushed past him and inside placing Chat's Labyrinth in the center of the room. 

Master Fu poked his head out of the door looking up and down the hall "Marinette, what happened, what is this box?" he asked concerned. 

Marinette was pacing back and forth "It's Chat, he got hit and now he's stuck in there" she stopped looking to Master Fu "-is there anything you can do to help him?".

Fu looked into the box seeing seven different colored figures navigating respective areas of the labyrinth inside, some were farther along than others but each was roughly halfway through their section. He stroked his beard "Perhaps" he said grabbing various containers and viles mixing their content together, Marinette continued to pace as he worked. Wayzz and Tikki talked about the disappearance of Adrien and subsequent appearance of the other Agreste finding it too much of a coincidence. 

Tikki floated along Marinette's path telling her "Marinette, I think that when you get the chance you should talk with the other Agreste to see if they know anything about Adrien".  

Before she could respond Master Fu had finished his concoction "AHA! this should do it, this is the strongest seal breaking brew I know how to make" he said confidently. As he approached the labyrinth Marinette stopped and stared, Fu poured liquid over the box and they both held their breath. The box began to shake violently and spew beams of light from its transparent top, after a few seconds the commotion stopped suddenly. Master Fu and Marinette had thought the ordeal over and had begun to approach it but then cracks formed across its top and beams of light poured from them, each beam matching the color of a figure inside. Small projections of each color surrounded the box displaying their respective color and the immediate area around them.

Blue carried a bandolier of masks and was surrounded by a cage that seemed to weigh on him, he carried it around everywhere he went. Red walked alongside a faceless figure with the words "Bro/Sis" on its face with a larger faceless ghost labeled "Big Bro" following them, Chat fought with all he had, taking every hit to protect Bro/Sis. Green sat rocking back and forth in place with a bottle labeled "Ale" in hand and an I.C. in his mouth the ashes and broken bottles strewn about, he ran anytime a black mist would come near. Yellow walked aimlessly looking lost and wanting help but destroyed everything in his vicinity, a crowd of faceless followed him labeled "friends" but he ran, not wanting them to touch him. Purple had cracks across their body like fractured glass with a heart shaped hole in his chest growing little by little as more pieces fell from him.

Master Fu and Marinette watched them wonder and navigate their way through their sections of labyrinth, each changing as they progressed further through. Red had joined Yellow causing both their faceless to disappear but Red also chose to bare the scars that Yellows presence gave him with pride, together they traveled to the center. Upon entering the center their colors became muted and they sat staring into the labyrinth ,presumably waiting for the others. Blue had made it to the center but his color did not dull, he was on the verge of collapse from the weight of his cage trying to hold his mask on. Yellow approached him and grabbed the bars of his cage, destroying it, Blue fell to his knees clawing at his mask trying to tear it from his face. 

Red walked to him kneeling down to Blue's eye level grabbing his hands and putting them down before grabbing his mask and gently removing it to reveal a crying face, only when his mask was gone did his color become muted. Their heads snapped in the same direction having been alerted by something ,it was Purple ,what was left of him anyway, he was within arms reach of the center but what little held him together began to crumble. The others rushed back into the labyrinth to help him, Red ran deeper collecting all the pieces he could hold to try and put him together but large parts were still missing. Blue offered his masks but they could not fill the holes as they were, then Yellow shattered them using the shards to fill in the gaps.

When they were sure that Purple was stable enough to move they held him as he walked to the center, once inside the cracks mended leaving faded marks. The shards of Blue's masks changed to match his muted purple color and he no longer had a hole in his chest. Green had run himself into a corner and the mist was closing in threatening to overtake him but as it grew closer a Black cat appeared. He followed it to an alley with a building labeled "Haven" looking over his shoulder, he saw that the mist would not follow past the alley's entrance. Green took a breath entering the building to see it was a tavern with a single faceless working the bar, he sat and was handed a bottle and ashtray. 

The others were sitting in the center as they waited for their final color to arrive but after a few minutes of waiting they stood looking determined and entered the Labyrinth once more. Blue, Red, Yellow, and Purple navigated the labyrinth until they encountered the mist, they looked at each other and nodded before traversing through the cloud. They three entered the tavern taking seats around their fourth companion to talk to him, Green picked up his I.C. and passed it around. Each of them took a puff or two ordering drinks for themselves, as they shared a drink Green's color dulled until he too reached a muted shade. When they were on their last sips Green proposed a toast, clanging their bottles together they knocked back the last of their drinks. Each raised the empty bottle freezing in their poses and began to align, when the last drop was gone they had blended into Black. 

He stared at the bottle with a smile, standing from his seat Black thanked the faceless behind working the bar raising the bottle above his head before bringing it down smashing it at his feet. The image cut and the box began to shake violently again before melting into a pile of goo then stretching into a shape resembling a human.

Marinette panicked "Tikki, Spots On", after a few moments the human shaped blob became a more defined shape eventually disappearing and leaving behind a completely untouched Chat Noir.

He groaned rubbing his eyes "Ugh, well that was inconvenient and annoying" then he realized he didn't feel roof tiles on his back "Who picked up my box?" he said sitting up. Looking around he saw Ladybug to one side and a familiar face on the other "Aren't you the old man who snuck Plagg into my bag?" he asked. 

Master Fu nodded "I am, call me The Guardian".

Chats eyes widened with understanding "Ooooh, you and me have a lot to talk about but-" he said standing and checking himself over "that can wait until later, how long was I out".

"An hour and a half" Ladybug answered "But are you sure you're ok, the things we saw in there-".

Chat raised a hand "Wait you could see what was happening?".

Ladybug stammered "W-w-well when we tried to free you it damaged the box and, and it 'projected' images of you in different colors and-".

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