#(sleepwalker caught me off guard-)

[trickstersshadow]

( Generate 10 6 headcanons )

1. Meta has an incredible long-term memory but an awful short-term memory.

Don't call him out like this- And it depends on the day-

2. Meta have a grandfather who is in prison.

They will neither confirm nor deny.

3. Meta has too many squirrels.

"Heh-?" That's a 'no', chief.

4. Meta is a sleepwalker.

No comment, none, next-

5. Meta only drinks sparkling water

"More or less. If you don't want to include coffee, or whenever I drink something else." ...So, wouldn't that be a 'no'-

6. Meta is extremely competitive.

"Isn't that just a "depends" category for everyone-?"

[syluscrows]

Sleepwalking (sylus x reader)

Okay, another one back to back with the sleep talking one - this time it's a reader who is a restless sleeper / sleepwalker, once again in the perspective of it being his first time sleeping next to you lol

Not only do I sleep walk, I also sleep stand and stare, sleep vape and sleep cuddle household objects every now and again according to my old housemate.. so I thought this would be silly to write. I kinda incorporated those into it too.

Also this was written at 3am please don't judge, its not proofread

- He's just gotten back from a busy day of back to back 'meetings', after arranging for you to come over. When he realized that he would be back late, he text you to feel free to go to bed before he got back.

- Once he slipped into bed, he closed his eyes, finally getting some well earned rest, a small smirk on his face as he wrapped his arms around you.

- This relaxed feeling didn't last long before he felt you turn over, your knee hitting him full force in the balls.

- now, he's a strong man, the leader of onychinus, one who is feared by many, and has faced near death situations many times... But this was the first time he was truly caught off guard, poor Sylus almost actually shed a tear..

- Once he got over it - although he's definitely kinda mad at you - he doesn't actually mind how often you shuffled in bed, managing to fall asleep after a short while.

- To his surprise, he found himself waking up about an hour later to an empty bed??

- However, he heard your footsteps, assuming that you had perhaps woken up to go to the bathroom... But then you stopped?

- He turned the bedside light on and his soul almost left his body - you were just standing there, staring at him. "Y/n??" He said, so exhausted at this point.

- He soon figured out that you were sleep.. staring? And he had to admit it was creepy.. and hilarious.. and his new wallpaper...

- I think he would eventually get used to it.. but he would be so moody with you the first morning after.

- He really does find it amusing after a while - especially the one time he came home to you cuddling Mephisto who was MORTIFIED.

- He would often return to you cuddling random objects, every single time taking a picture. It was surprisingly hard for him to pry them out of your arms.

- One day, he's not home at night, but he receives hundreds of missed calls and frantic texts from Luke and Kieran saying that you're possessed. "Boss! Y/n is standing and staring at us!" "They won't respond!!"

- He realises that he failed to mention that you sleep walk... And trust me, he won't actually tell them what's going on... He's such an asshole.

[blueepink07]

Since we will get Kotoko's album in one day, which includes her VD from which most probably we will find more information about her motivations and her plans in Milgram, I decided to look a bit into her attacks during prison and how I imagine things happened! (I'm fully aware that I will most probably be proved wrong when the album drops, but I'm really curious if I can actually figure out most of what happened!)

Starting off, Jackalope informs us that the order in which Kotoko attacked is: Mikoto, Mahiru, Fuuta.

Which makes sense, considering that she attacked, in order, who is closer to her cell.

(Also fun fact! The prisoners are distorted according to how many injuries they have!)

What I want to answer, however, is how she managed to attack two people without being stopped.

Mikoto vs Kotoko

From Mikoto's VD, we find out that Kotoko has attacked, while John was distracted, giving herself a slight advantage.

"Es: Like you didn’t get beaten by Kotoko…! John: Hah. That was just because she caught me off guard. We went at it again while you were asleep, and it’s not like I lost there."

Considering that they fought some time and where evenly matched, there must have been a lot of noise, which should have alerted the others. In this attack, Kotoko didn't care much about how much attention she would attract. Why? Because the prisoners were already used with John's restlessness and they wouldn't dare to go near him. Hearing those noises didn't alert them much, because they maybe were too scared and didn't want to approach or thought it was just the usual.

As seen in many timeline posts, Mikoto is avoided. The only one who wished him Happy birthday was Haruka, whom we know that is currently isolating himself and didn't wish Mikoto a happy birthday this year too...

"Mikoto: The others told me about it. How I got into a fistfight with Koto-chan and whatnot. "Es: Seems like it, yeah. Mikoto: I wonder if it’s like��� some kind of sleepwalking…? After all, I’ve been losing sleep more and more often recently… Man… It’s really troublesome, isn’t it? Es: Mikoto… Mikoto: The others are all scared of me. I can tell by looking at the way they act. Because I read the room."

Mahiru and Kotoko

From Shidou's VD, it is given the information that Mahiru suffered head injuries, more exactly head lacerations.

"Shidou: Shiina-kun’s is even worse. Head lacerations. Bruising all over her body. Left anterior compression fracture. A sprained neck. Fractured ribs. Further fracturing to the left arm. And furthermore… this may be outside of my profession, but her mental health is deteriorating as well."

These injuries are the aftermath of being hit by Kotoko.

Mahiru says some interesting things in her VD:

"Mahiru: … Ah, but this is… I think Kotoko-chan is the one who did it, so… you know? It’s not like it’s your fault. Um, so…! I’m not holding a grudge towards Kotoko-chan either. I’m sure she just thought it couldn’t be helped…"

This "I think" was always interesting to me. It implies that she is uncertain of the events that happened, like she wasn't there... Like she just a heard rumour from someone else...

However, she also tells this:

"Mahiru: … Ah– I– I—I’m sorry…! If– If you touch me so suddenly, it makes me remember… how it hurt… and I get scared…"

She remembers the pain, but not the person who hurt her. Keeping in mind that she also suffered from head trauma, I have thought that Mahiru must have lost consciousness, shortly after being hit, but not fully.

There are actually some levels of impaired consciousness, that can explain my assumption!

Confusion

Confusion is marked by the absence of clear thinking and may result in poor decision-making.

Disorientation

Disorientation is the inability to understand how you relate to people, places, objects, and time. The first stage of disorientation is usually around awareness of your current surroundings

Loss of short-term memory follows disorientation with respect to place.

Delirium

If you’re delirious, your thoughts are confused and illogical. People who are delirious are often disoriented. Their emotional responses range from fear to anger. People who are delirious are often highly agitated as well.

Lethargy

Lethargy is a state of decreased consciousness that resembles drowsiness. If you’re lethargic, you may not respond to stimulants such as the sound of an alarm clock or the presence of fire.

Stupor

"Stupor is a deeper level of impaired consciousness in which it’s very difficult for you to respond to any stimuli, except for pain."

Coma

Coma is the deepest level of impaired consciousness. If you’re in a coma, you can’t respond to any stimulus, not even pain.

From all of these, stupor seems to be what Mahiru experienced after being hit.

Stupor -> caused by head injuries, such as concussion or bleeding in or around the brain

"Stupor is characterised by impaired reaction to external stimuli. Those in a stuporous state are rigid, mute and only appear to be conscious, as the eyes are open and follow surrounding objects. If not stimulated externally, a patient with stupor will appear to be in a sleepy state most of the time."

If Kotoko hit Mahiru and caused her to have a stupor, Mahiru wouldn't even have the chance to yell or cry for help. She couldn't respond to any stimulus (sight, sound, smell, taste and touch), the only thing that she could feel was the pain.

It would make sense, in this case, for the other prisoners to be unaware of what was happening to Mahiru. Kotoko most probably made a surprise attack (as in John's situation), left Mahiru is a state of stupor and did further damage to her body.

"Kazui: I wonder. Maybe it’s because I’m used to violence. Even so… I couldn’t make it for Shiina-chan. I feel responsible for [what happened to] her."

Fuuta and Kotoko

Fuuta seems to have been fully conscious when he was being beaten up by Kotoko. He remembers every detail, unfortunately to him: the way he had been stepped on with the safety boot-like shoes, the beatings which made him think that he'll die. He even remembers Kotoko's motivations and beliefs! It's pretty likely that he was still conscious when Kazui protected him.

"Fuuta: Hey. Look at me. My right eye. It looks awful, doesn’t it? This is what happens when you get stepped on with those safety boot-like shoes. – Don’t recoil like that, that’s hurtful. According to Shidou, it’s likely that I won’t ever be able to see [with this eye] again. Sucks, huh."

"Fuuta: It hurt… It hurt so bad, I thought I was going to die. I was scared!"

"Fuuta: I mean, you forgave Kotoko, right? You affirmed her, right? Her belief that “it’s fine to do whatever to people who have done something wrong”. Es: How do you know about that…? Fuuta: She told me while she was beating me up. How she thinks it’s okay for her to do anything she wants to people who have done wrong, no matter the severity of their crime. And she left the judgment of that up to you."

What are your thoughts about Kotoko's attacks?

If Fuuta was conscious the whole time, his cries of pain or help surely must have been what alerted the other prisoners, who stopped Kotoko from doing further damage...

And so this is me trying to explain why the other prisoners noticed too late Kotoko's attacks!

I'm prepared to be proved wrong, but it was fun to write anyway!

[onigiriico]

Mikoto audio drama (t2) - English TL

[ links: Spotify | YouTube ]

Mikoto-ing again 🫡 I know I say this like every other post, but I 100% recommend listening to the audio alongside the translation! On one hand the VAs just did an amazing job on this, and on the other hand I also feel like it'll. probably make the switches more obvious than I can convey in text lol

Little disclaimer about the way I translated the DID terminology here: I know the correct term in English is "alter", but in the JP audio they're consistently referred to as "personalities" (人格 / jinkaku) while the closest Japanese equivalent to "alter" seems to be 自我 / jiga, from what I could find. I generally try to stick as closely to the JP terminology with my translations as possible, so I mostly went with "personality". I really don't want to offend anyone here so I hope that's a somewhat okay choice ahshbsdj

Okay. Okay that got lengthy. As usual, if you find any mistranslations, have questions, etc etc feel free to send me an ask or hit me up on Twitter where I drop by, like, once a month 😅 And now without further ado:

⬇️ translation under the cut ⬇️

(Es enters)

E: Mikoto…

M: Ah… Hi, Warden-kun.

E: You… are Mikoto, right?

M: Uh… What are you talking about? It really feels like it’s been a while, doesn’it? How have you been? – Huh? What’s that…? Chains? Oh, no. Take them off!

E: I refuse. You’re too dangerous. Physical restrictions are necessary.

M: Umm… (laughs) What are you saying, restricting someone who can’t even hurt a fly?

E: You really aren’t aware, huh…

M: Well, I mean… I do get it. I… go out of control while I’m asleep, right?

E: …

M: The others told me about it. How I got into a fistfight with Koto-chan and whatnot.

E: Seems like it, yeah.

M: I wonder if it’s like… some kind of sleepwalking…? After all, I’ve been losing sleep more and more often recently… Man… It’s really troublesome, isn’t it?

E: Mikoto…

M: The others are all scared of me. I can tell by looking at the way they act. Because I read the room.

E: …

M: It’s pretty tough, isn’t it? (laughs) Ever since I came here, so much has been happening that I don’t understand…

E: … You really… do laugh when you’re suffering, huh?

M: Huh?

E: You don’t get angry. You don’t scream. You laugh, like it’s a minor inconvenience.

M: Ah… I guess so. I might have that kind of trait.

E: …

M: Usually, if you just laugh and pretend, things work out in the end, right? I’m pretty good at that. Making things work out to the best of my abilities.

E: Is that so…

M: (laughs) …But… it’s not coming to an end. All of this. With things I’ve never even heard before, the whole ti—

E: …

M: —the whole time… I have to make all these irritating experiences…!

E: You came out, huh.

M: Hey. Looks like you haven’t gotten a beating yet, Warden brat.

E: …!

M: Hah? What, are you scared?

E: Like you didn’t get beaten by Kotoko…!

M: Hah. That was just because she caught me off guard. We went at it again while you were asleep, and it’s not like I lost there.

E: Multiple personalities… Am I right with the assumption that the you I’m talking to right now is another personality of Mikoto’s?

M: Well, I guess that’s about right.

E: I see. What do you want me to call you?

M: Huh? You’re accepting this pretty readily, aren’t you. Wouldn’t the whole multiple personalities thing normally raise some eyebrows?

E: Yeah. I also didn’t think it was real, at first.

M: Figures. If it wasn’t me, I wouldn’t believe it either. I’d just think it’s a lie someone came up with to get away with murder.

E: But Milgram acknowledges that [it is real] in your case. I simply accept that as the truth, and develop my thoughts from there. So? What do you want me to call you? Your name.

M: No clue about that. Just call me whatever.

E: … For convenience, I’ll be calling you John.

M: Sounds like a dog’s name.

E: It’s derived from John Doe, the name given to unidentified bodies. Do you like it?

M: Can’t say I’m very fond of the way you’re flaunting your knowledge.

E: … Anyway. You’re acting pretty calm today, aren’t you? I thought of you more like a monster of some sort. I wasn’t expecting to have such a proper conversation with you.

M: Don’t get cocky! If not for these chains, I would’ve beaten your face in by now, brat.

E: Ohh, scary, scary.

M: Hmph.

E: John, you are not a prisoner of Milgram. The fact that Milgram’s usual restraints are ineffective against you is more proof for that than anything. Milgram has judged that Mikoto is the prisoner, and you, as his alter, are an exception.

M: Huhh, I see. So that’s why you believe that there’s multiple personalities.

E: That’s why I thought I would try and talk to you as a key witness today. I’m rather glad that you’re being cooperative.

M: But, you know… This isn’t a good thing, probably.

E: What do you mean?

M: I (boku) might be trying to disappear.

E: …

M: Evidently, the time I (ore) have been fronting has been getting longer, so this “me” has been able to stabilize. Isn’t that the reason we can talk properly?

E: …

M: If I had stayed a monster… maybe that would be better.

E: …

M: What?

E: You’ve turned out to be much more rational than I expected… I’m surprised.

M: I’m a university graduate, after all.

E: (sighs)

M: As for alters… Why do you think they’re born?

E: In precise terms, it’s called dissociative identity disorder – generally speaking, [it refers to] when a person experiences severe pain or stress, and a new personality is created to try and isolate [the original personality] from the resulting trauma.

M: Yeah. I… probably come out to ease the stress Boku experiences. The fact that I come out for longer just means that Boku is constantly under extreme stress.

E: Stress… Namely the environment of Milgram, right?

M: Right. Especially the fact that you judged against forgiving Boku is causing a lot of stress. That’s why he’s entrusting me with his heart.

E: I see.

M: Not like I can blame him. From his point of view, he’s being blamed for a crime he can’t even remember.

E: If that’s the truth, then… you’re the one who committed the murder?

M: Yeah, it’s me. I killed them off.

E: …

M: So Boku really didn’t do it.

E: Can I ask… why you killed them?

M: They annoyed me.

E: Who did you kill?

M: Just someone who was walking around nearby.

E: … How many did you kill?

M: Can’t remember. I was first born back then, you know. It’s kinda fuzzy.

E: How can you talk about that so calmly?

M: (sighs) According to the law, how would this go for Boku?

E: With a psychiatric evaluation, there’s a chance of a reduced sentence, but depending on the number of victims… the death penalty might be inevitable.

M: …! I– I’m the one who did it! Boku was just sleeping!

E: Is this really something that works that conveniently?

M: Just put yourself in Boku’s shoes for a moment! He was bottling up all his stress! He kept dealing with it all by himself the whole time, until it exploded! It’s not like he just decided that he wanted to hurt somebody!

E: …

M: He’s not the type of person who could do stuff like that! He always looks out for others, always reads the room, always tries to get along with people around him! He can’t do stuff like that… He was on the verge of exploding! That’s why I was born. It’s obvious, isn’t it? Boku didn’t do anything!

E: Even if that’s true… Even if it wasn’t what Mikoto wanted – someone’s life was still lost.

M: …!

E: Even if it was you, John, who was in [your body at the time] – there’s no way for you to prove that. At the very least not in a way that would be accepted in court. It could still be judged that you’re pretending—

M: You…!! What do you think?

E: I…?

M: I’m the one who did it! Boku didn’t do it! You know that because of Milgram! I don’t care about the law, I want to know what you think!

E: …

M: Please… forgive Boku. I’m the one who did it.

E: … I can’t… judge that right away. It’s not something that I can easily decide to forgive. In fact, Mikoto’s mental footage was so violent… it’s unforgivable. That’s how I judged.

M: That could also just be a fake or owed to the multiple personalities, right?! Boku really isn’t at fault! I’m the one who killed them!

E: …

M: Are you really satisfied [with the unforgiven judgment]? He turned into a murderer overnight!

E: What you did could still be considered a sin, though!

M: …! … I think… I might be the person Boku wishes he was. The person who stubbornly stands his ground, who doesn’t cry himself to sleep from stress, who gives people their payback. If I, the “ore” personality, hadn’t been born, I’m sure Boku would have reached his limit and fallen apart.

E: John… you…

M: It’s true that I was the one who wanted to destroy everything… and the weakness of Boku, who couldn’t stand up for himself all alone, might have been the origin of that. But… that’s all there is to it. Is that a sin?

E: I’ll be considering that after this.

M: After talking to you, I get that you couldn’t forgive what I did. And I’m fine with that.

E: …Yeah. That’s right.

M: The one Milgram is supposed to judge is Boku – Mikoto, right. He’s not me – so, not John.

E: Precisely.

M: Please, forgive Boku. If you don’t… I’m sure he won’t be able to deal with this any longer.

E: “A sin committed by another personality isn’t a sin”... you’re telling me that’s how I should judge?

M: Yeah. If you forgive Boku… I’ll disappear.

E: …

M: That’s right. I’ll have to disappear eventually, anyway… Disappear, and take all of it with me. I… was born to protect Boku, after all.

E: You were… born for it…

M: Yeah. If it’s for Boku, I’ll… do anything.

(machinery whirrs, bell rings)

E: John…

M: W…what? A dog’s name?

E: Mikoto…?

M: Warden-kun, you own a dog? What breed? No, wait, let me try guessing first– A toy poodle? Actually, maybe you surprisingly prefer the ugly-cute kind… like a French bulldog!

E: … No…

M: A pug, then?

E: It’s not the name of a dog!

M: Ehh… Then what…?

E: … It’s the name of your… friend.

M: (laughs) I don’t know anyone like that~

E: … I bet you don’t.

M: Huh…?

E: Prisoner no.9, Mikoto. Sing your sins.

[maristelina]

Mikoto T2 Neoplasm Voice Drama Translation

Take my translation with a grain of salt. I did try my best.

Es: Mikoto Mikoto: Oh…Hey Warden, Es: You… are Mikoto right? Mikoto: Eh? What are you talking about? It feels like it's been a while, doesn't it? Have you been well? Huh? What is this? Chains? I hate these, Take them off Es: Request denied. You are too dangerous. Physical restraint is essential. Mikoto: Uh.. Um… What are you saying, capturing such a harmless person like me? Es: As I thought, you have no self-awareness. Mikoto: Well, I get it. I must have caused a ruckus while I was asleep, right? Everyone told me that I really went all out with the chaos. Es: It seems so. Mikoto: I guess it's something like sleepwalking disorder. Lately I've been feeling drowsy more frequently too. Oh man, that's troublesome, isn't it? Es: Mikoto… Mikoto: I can tell from everyone's attitude that they're scared of me. I can read the room/atmosphere… I… Es: Hmm… Mikoto: It's frustrating, isn't it? I've been confused ever since I got here. Es: You really laugh when you're in pain/troubled, don't you? Mikoto: Eh? Es: You don't get angry or yell. You laugh like you're in a bind/at a loss. Mikoto: That sounds about right. I might have that kind of trait. Usually, if I laugh and gloss it over, things go well. I'm good at that kind of thing, so I manage somehow. But, it doesn't end, does it? My head is filled with things I have no memory of doing. Orekoto: I constantly feel irritated Es: There it is. Orekoto: Seems like you haven't been beaten up enough, huh, you brat of a guard. Es: Ah… Gr….. Orekoto: Hah? Cat got your tongue? Es: Even though you got done in by Kotoko. Orekoto: That was just because I was caught off guard. We fought while you were asleep, it's not like I lost or anything. Es: Multiple personality disorder. Is it correct to understand that you, who are speaking now, are a separate personality from the Mikoto earlier? Mikoto: You're accepting this quite normally, aren't you. Multiple personalities is ridiculous, right? Es: Yes. I didn't think something like that could really exist either. Mikoto: Yeah, exactly. If it wasn't me, I wouldn't believe it either. I'd just think it's a lie to escape the guilt of killing someone. Es: However, Milgram recognizes you as such. I'm just accepting it as fact and moving my thoughts forward. So, what should I call you? Orekoto: I don't know man. Call me whatever you want. Es: For convenience, I will call you John. Orekoto: That's a dog-like name. Es: It's used to refer to a person of unknown identity. It comes from "John Doe". Do you like it? Orekoto: Is it okay to show off knowledge like that? Es: But you seem quite calm today. I thought you were a monster. I didn't expect we could communicate this well. Orekoto/John: Don't get cocky. If it wasn't for these chains your face would be smashed in by now brat. Es: Oh? How scary. I'm scared. /s Mikoto: Hmph. Es: Then you are not Milgram's prisoner. The best proof is that Milgram's restraints are not effective on you. Milgram has judged Mikoto to be the prisoner, while you, a separate personality, are an exception. Orekoto/John: Ah I see. So for you, multiple personalities has been anything but confirmed. Es: That's why today, chair creaks I thought I'd hear you out as an important witness. I'm very glad we are able to have a proper conversation. Orekoto/John: But you know, this isn't a good thing. Probably. Es: What are you trying to say? Orekoto/John: I(Boku) might be disappearing (?!) Es: gasps Orekoto/John: Clearly, the time I'm(ore) out in front is getting longer. Thanks to that, my existence is becoming more stable. Isn't that the reason we can talk properly now? Es: makes a concerned sound Orekoto/John: Maybe it would have been better if I (ore) stayed a monster. … Oh? What's with that look? Es: I'm surprised to hear you speak so rationally, contrary to what I expected. Orekoto: I have a college degree after all. How does one develop Multiple Personality Disorder?

Es: To be precise, it is called Dissociative Identity Disorder. Generally, it is thought to occur when another personality is created and separated in order to protect oneself from suffering, stress, trauma, etc. Orekoto/John: Hm. 多分俺は僕の受けたストレスを解消するために出てきてる。俺が長く出てるってことは、それだけ僕が強いストレスを受け続けているわけだ。 I'm (ore) probably emerging to relieve the stress he's (Boku) under. The fact that I'm (ore) out for longer means he's (boku) under more severe constant stress.

Es: Stress huh? It's probably because of Milgram, I see. Orekoto/John: Especially the verdict of "GUILTY/Not Forgiven" He (Boku) feels tremendous stress. So he leaves his heart/mind to me. Es: I see. Orekoto/John: It's no wonder. To him, he's being blamed for a crime he has no memory of. / It's not unreasonable. From his (Boku) point of view, he is being blamed for a crime they have no memory of. Es: "If that's true, are you the one who actually committed the murder?" Orekoto/John: Yes. It was me. (Ore-da)

Orekoto/John: I'm (ore) the one who killed them. Es: ん… Orekoto/John: So, I (Boku) really didn't do it. Es: Why did you kill them? Let's hear your explanation. Orekoto/John: (むしゃくしゃして。) I was frustrated. Es: Who did you kill? Orekoto/John: (そこら辺歩いてた奴。) Some guy who was walking around.

Es: How many did you kill? Orekoto/John: I don't remember. That was the first time I emerged. It's hazy. Es: You have the audacity to say that without any shame. Orekoto/John: Legally speaking, what would happen to me? Es: You might get a reduced sentence based on a psychological evaluation, but depending on the number of people you killed, you might not be able to avoid the death penalty. Orekoto/John: (いや、やったのは俺だ。僕は寝ていただけだ。) No, I (ore) was the one who did it. He (Boku) was just sleeping. Es: As if things could be that convenient.

Orekoto/John (Boku): 僕の身にもなってやれよ。僕はただストレスに耐えていただけなんだぜ。一人でじっと耐えていたんだ。爆発するまで誰かを傷つけようなんて考えてなかったんだよ。 Put yourself in my shoes. I (boku) was just enduring the stress, that's all. I (boku) was enduring it alone. I (boku) never thought about hurting anyone until it reached a breaking point.

そういうことができない奴なんだ。気を使って空気を見て、周りの顔色を窺ってばっかで、そういうことができないから、爆発しそうだったから俺が生まれたんだ。あんまりだろう。何も捨てねえんだぞ。 I'm (boku) not the kind of guy who can do that. I'm (boku) always worried about the atmosphere/the room, watching people's expressions, so I (boku) can't do things like that. That's why I (boku) was about to explode, so I (ore) was born. It's too much. I (boku) haven't done anything wrong!

Es: Even if that's how it was, even if it wasn't Mikoto's intention, human lives have been lost. Orekoto/John: Urgh… Es: Even if the one inside was you, John, there's no way to prove it. At the very least, it won't fully hold up in court. It could even be deemed as a lie.

Orekoto/John: YOU!! Es: ! Orekoto/John: (お前はどう思うんだ？) What do YOU actually think?! Es: Mine? Orekoto/John: I (ore) did it. He (boku) didn't do it. You're just going by what Milgram says. Why the hell does it matter what the justice/criminal system thinks, what about YOUR judgement?! What do you think about me? Es: ... Orekoto/John: Forgive me (Boku) already. I'm (ore) the one who did it...

Es: I can't judge right away. It's not something I can decide to forgive so easily. In fact, Mikoto's mindset/emotional landscape was far too cruel. I judged not to forgive. / I've decided not to forgive. Orekoto/John: (You're saying that because you think) That's probably because multiple personalities could be fake. I (boku) truly did nothing wrong. I (ore) was the one who killed.

Es: …

Orekoto/John: Can you be satisfied with that? Imagine waking up in the morning and finding out you've become a murderer.

Es: The act of creating you could be called a sin. / It might be said that the sin is in having given birth to you.

Orekoto/John: !!!!!!!!!!!! … You are probably right…

Orekoto/John: I (ore) am his (boku) ideal self. I'm (ore) the one who doesn't just lie down and resign ourselves to unfairness and stress. If I (Ore) hadn't been born, he (Boku) would have surely reached his limit and broken down. Es: Then… you… Orekoto/John: It's true that I (boku) wished for an existence that could break everything. Maybe it's because of my (Boku's) weakness that I couldn't face it alone. But that's all. Is that a sin/crime?

Es: That's for us to consider moving forward. Orekoto/John: Talking with you, I (ore) understand that what I (ore) did cannot be forgiven. I (ore) accept that.

Es: Yeah, that's right. Orekoto/John: Milgram's subject of judgment is him (Boku), Mikoto. Not me (ore)… John that is. Es: That is correct. Orekoto/John: Please forgive him (boku). Otherwise he (boku) won't be able to endure anymore. Es: I see, you want me to decide that since it was another other personality that committed the crime, it doesn't count as his (Boku's) sin.

Orekoto/John: Yes. If you forgive him (Boku), then I'll disappear.

Es: !!

Orekoto/John: That's right, in the end I (ore) have to vanish. I'll take on everything and vanish. I will.

…Because I (ore) was born to protect him (boku). Es: For that purpose. You were born. Orekoto/John: If it's to protect him (Boku), then I'll do anything.

Bell Chimes

Es: John… Mikoto: Hm? What is it? A dog's name? Es: Mikoto… Mikoto: Warden, you have a pet dog? What kind of breed is it? Wait, let me think, not a Toy Poodle, but I might surprisingly like the ones that are ugly-cute. Not a French Bulldog or anything like that. Es: That's not it. (irritated) Mikoto: Then a pug? Es: It's not a dog's name! Mikoto: Ehh? Then, what is it? Es: It's the name of your friend. Mikoto: laughs No way! I don't know anyone with that name!

Es: Deep Inhale I suppose so. Mikoto: Huh? Es: Prisoner #9, Mikoto. Sing your sins…

[a-vctlan]

only have 3 check-ins to do during my shift so i'll try to answer some more asks in the downtime after dinner since i can't cut posts ( so this is your excuse to send me more >:3c ) but also here's a random wish list for possible threads ( for dmc n ffvii )

CREDO & KYRIE: - credo post "revival" where he's stuck in his demon form - credo requiring your muse's help to get some demon blood - kyrie plays therapist to your muse - kyrie gets kidnapped and then rescued yay :) - something in their ff7 verse

ANGEAL : - it's rare to see angeal anything other than composed, your muse catches him - your muse and angeal go out for lunch, only to be flanked by his/your fanclub - angeal protects your muse during an assigment / attack on midgar

BARRET: - he's strong, but at night phantom pain and terrors get to him :( - barret talks to tifa about cloud being Obviously Unwell - barret reminisces about myrna / his life before

BIGGS: - biggs talks about how he grew up ( info dump excuse :) ) - biggs is hanging around the sector 5 orphanage and crosses paths with your muse - biggs is mid mission only to be caught by your muse

CLOUD: - cloud gets caught "sleepwalking" ( following the reunion call ) - cloud is obviously hallucinating and your muse has to handle it the best they can - cloud does something that is very Zack that has your muse pause

KUNSEL: - you're tasked with babysitting him and he keeps trying to lose your muses - security guard job where he has to follow your muse around - kunsel is close to Losing It (tm) and if one more thing goes wrong -- - party randomly starts getting tip offs from an Anonymous Source (tm) - post game / ac - kunsel is writing his tell all book on shinra's secrets and interviews your muse for their information

HOJO: - your muse is under hojo's care :) - someone your muse cares for is under hojo's care - your muse is tasked with protecting the most hated man alive - your muse tries to kill him / he tries to kill yours - your muse is forced to help hojo do his crimes against humanity

RUDE: - ... - he's tasked with following your muse around - rude is injured and stumbles across your muse ow ow owie - your muse is on house arrest and rude has to watch them

[wickedsrest-rp]

Name: Thea Liang Species: Werewolf Occupation: Janitor at the Grit Pit Age: 22 Years Old Played By: Ria Face Claim: Chase Sui Wonders

"If you or anyone you know has been eaten by me, you may be entitled to damages."

TW: Parental death, memory loss (due to shifting)

Her father called it ‘moonwalking’, most medical professionals called it stress-induced sleepwalking. Her mother didn’t think it was so cute when Thea sleepwalked right into her packing her bags. Her father didn’t know what made his daughter worried enough to take off in her sleep but Thea, only eight, had a pretty good idea why. Most divorces ended with drawn out custody battles but for Thea’s parents it was simple: her mother didn’t want her.

As it turned out, the secret to making a hassle-free child was simple: a dash of abandonment, an anxious disposition and a strict father that was often too tired to take care of his daughter. Thea learned to be good, taking action to minimize the burden of her existence. She cooked her own dinners of boxed macaroni and cheese, forged her father’s signature on school trip forms and never asked for anything unless she had a PowerPoint presentation on why she needed it. She was neat. She was polite. She was as normal as girls like her came and she always made the right choices.

Thea studied hard, avoided parties, worked minimum wage at Tim Horton’s with a smile despite the bagels flung at her. She graduated as the valedictorian of her high school with a scholarship to The University of Toronto. Most people called her boring but her life went unchallengingly; all according to Thea’s safe plans. Her best friends agreed to split the rent on a shitty house with her, her father was proud, her mother and her new family threw Thea a party.

Cutting across Queen’s Park during a full moon shouldn’t have been any different than every other time she did it but her condolences didn’t reach the security guard that responded to her screams. The creature that bit her leg made a full meal out of his body and Thea used the distraction to run away. When she woke up in the hospital, feverish and missing a chunk of her calf, she could only wonder at what choice she’d made that meant she deserved this.

In a little less than a month, she was able to be released and her father took her in. Unbeknownst to him, her friends had hatched a plan to kidnap her for a girls’ night. Unbeknownst to them, Thea was hungry. She woke up with flesh between her teeth, an aching across her bones and a fullness in her stomach. She convinced herself that she’d started sleepwalking again and was taken back home. The next night, it was her father she turned into a stain. This time, her transformation was caught on the old sleepwalking camera she set up in her childhood bedroom. On the third night, she wasn’t even sure who she ate but the next morning's replete stomach told her enough. Thea left without goodbyes.

She tried to make good choices. She locked herself up, tied herself to trees, camped in forests and pursued dead ends for a cure. Every full moon bore the same story: naked, flesh in her teeth, blood under nails and the distinct feeling of a stomach after a feast. The constant undoing was tiring. Thea could try all she wanted to piece a life together, and she did try, only for it to unravel. Yet, there was nothing else to do but try. More full moons went by. She found herself across the border. She tried again. More full moons and full stomachs. She tried and tried and tried her way into Wicked’s Rest, Maine.

The town was achingly mundane; a real Murder, She Wrote sans the murder. Her occupation desperation got her an offer at a place she knew to be less than legal and yet, for the first time, she would have a job that provided a measure of stability. She took it eagerly. Thea never asked for much but this town and its promised normalcy was something she wanted. For once, she dared to be selfish.

Character Facts:

Personality: Optimistic, anxious, friendly, compassionate, good-humored, flighty, distant, independent, prone to tunnel-vision

Thea goes across the border every month to fulfill her prescriptions. As she doesn’t have a car, she carpools with a woman named Pollenina who plays nothing but plant erotica audiobooks during their drive.

Anytime she hears about a death or a disappearance, she assumes she ate them.

She used to go by Cynthia but is trying to distance herself from her past and now exclusively goes by “Thea”.

While thankful for her job at The Grit Pit, Thea is actively looking for other revenue streams. Saving up cash has been the most successful survival technique from her months of city hopping.

Thea still sleepwalks on occasion but it’s really nothing compared to transforming into a wolf and eating people.

Thea has entirely all the wrong ideas about Wicked’s Rest but once she sets her mind to thinking in a particular way, it’s hard to get her to see reason. Even if she did want to leave, her job is a lot more permanent than she realizes.

Thea is lactose intolerant.

[steveharrington]

ngl I wish simone would be more mm maybe supportive of taissa with her sleepwalking. I understand it's horrifying and she's clearly worried for her child, but instead of telling her "you need to get help. you're a danger to everyone." I kind of wish she stepped up to actually help? similar to how van chose to stay with taissa back in the cabin. taissa isn't choosing to do these things, obviously not, and telling her she "looks like hot shit" and telling her to seek treatment without much else is mmm I dont know but it makes me really feel for tai :/ on one hand taissa is choosing to put all her attention into being senate and is choosing to prioritize that over much else but I still feel bad for her. also realistically I completely understand simone's reaction of the situation

it’s one of those situations where i do feel deeply for tai while also completely understanding what simone is thinking. i think the main reason simone is reacting so strongly is because she thinks taissa is aware of her actions and intentionally not being honest. when she confronts her about biscuit, she very confidently says “that thing in the basement” without explaining and seems caught off guard when tai doesn’t know what she’s talking about. i think that’s the main difference between simone and van, just the details surround what tai is going through. i also think it’ll drive tai back to van, because no one who wasn’t there in the woods will ever really know what it was like and what’s happening currently. plus i think simone is scared for her baby’s safety and i mean ultimately i cannot blame her at all for prioritizing her kid

[lianailia]

Update:

So a lot has happened! I went and saw a condo that went up on a Fri. We went on Sun. Put in an offer, not thinking we were going to get it. Found out the next day that I got it!!!! I'm so excited! It's not closed on until the 13th and then I'll want to paint and clean the carpets. Then I can move. Lol and everyone is like "She can have this thing!" And I'm like chill. I won't know until I get in. But I do appreciate everyone offering and I'll have my Aunt's truck and trailer to move. And their help. Plus all of my friends. It was just kind of like the house we live in now where it came up, parents made a cash offer. It was accepted that same week. Crazy. (Now the market is crazy and houses and apartments cost way more. So this condo really is a Godsend.) Plus we have a great realtor. Then I meet with the disability lawyer soon and figure out how to move my assets so I can qualify for SSI, so that I CAN pay rent. But signed the contract saying it was in my name and ahhh! Next is getting a car. Might go tomorrow just to look. Then I have this week to test drive. I have no clue what I want. Heh

Next awesome thing happened on Thurs. Met with some friends from the Slayers chat before the Lindsey Stirling concert! Dinner was fun. We went to an Irish pub. Then the concert....

Please go. Please please please. Even if you don't like classical or instrumental music, she has something for everyone. It really is not just pretty violin music. She has such creative set designs, she makes all of her costumes, and has all of the choreo for her dancers. She's learned the acrobat ring and has a crazy act with that during one of the songs. I'm not giving too much away. You still will be amazed. Especially during the one song. The only thing is I wish Surrender was played. It's my fav from the new album. And I would have liked Sleepwalking, since I couldn't record it the last time. (My phone was dying because of the space.) But other than that perfect. Walk Off the Earth was the OP band and they were great. They had 2 songs with her. First one was during their set. She came out for it... wearing a cheese head hat! Because I'm in WI. It was hilarious. Sarah from the band was like "what is this? Oh, it's CHEESE!" And we were dying. I was sitting with mom, dad was on the end. We were kind of in the nosebleeds. But it wasn't as big of a place as I thought it was going to be. But the stage was still cool. They also had their kids perform. Which was hilarious. They had a little drum set! It was cute.

Then Lindsey opens with Eye of the Untold Her, which the way she does it on stage is so cool. I'm glad Evil Twin was closer to the middle. Serenity Found was really pretty. (I was kind of right with the spinning thing.) She did Shatter Me with the ring. She played Underground, Arena and Spontaneous Me from older albums. Untamed was cool even though I don't care for the song much. Firefly Alley was awesome! She told how she wanted there to be fans around her and the dancers and was explaining it to her stage designer. She said yeah, they'll be on wheels and be on us the whole time with ribbons! And he was going "fans? As in people?" She was caught off guard. Heh anyways, highly recommend going. She's my fav next to Kalafina. If I hadn't seen them she definitely would be first. And Piano Guys. Hoping she comes back next yr.

But I'm excited for the future. I will have my own place and car! Car I really don't care about too much, since I don't like driving, but it's still exciting getting to pick it out this time. I'm using my backpay. Things are happening so fast but finally happening! 😀

[ofxhollows]

She couldn't discern if her nightmares had guided her to this place. Recollections of sleepwalking eluded her, blurring the lines between wakefulness and dreams. The presence of another person added to the mystery, prompting questions about his purpose here. Yet was that truly her true concern? no. But the subtle lack of emotion and the waning light in his eyes kept her interested.

As the lantern's glow cast its light, it traced the lines of his face, momentarily dispelling the darkness. She found herself drawn towards that beacon, forgetting the shadows that surrounded them as she stepped forward. Fear of the night was ordinary for most, but she was no ordinary person. A survivor by nature, she knew the dangers and terrors lurking in the darkness. However, what was most terrifying was what humans were capable of -- monstrosity. noone is who they say they are.

There was a distinct absence of genuine concern, and it strangely, she found it didn't bother her. Emotions, after all, were unpredictable, and many were ruled by them. However, the longer she gazed at him, it felt akin to staring into a void - devoid of warmth, filled only with icy detachment. While this should have been chilling to discover, it evoked a different kind of chill within her.

one that awakened her and all her senses.

"That is of your own volition," Evelyn replied coolly. Though she was accustomed to being armed for her own safety, and his offer still caught her off guard. Tilting her head slightly, she glanced at the shovel he held, a subtle reminder that he could easily be the one responsible for burying a body. "Who are you trying to reassure? Me or yourself?" she can't help but be drawn to the fact he carried a weapon. "Or is that shovel your go-to accessory for 'missing body protection'?"

"I did." The taller man affirmed, keeping his blue eyes on the woman. They didn't search for any deeper meaning, nothing hidden under the veneer of idle curiosity. She was a stranger, as was he, and he was neither afraid of her nor willing to concede from his original stance.

Her question, however, gave him the briefest of pauses and his blue eyes that seemed to glow in the light of his lantern lifted to look into the darkness that wrapped around itself behind her. Nights in Antioch were either rambunctiously noisy and lively or so still and quiet that it seemed fitting more for the dead than the warm bodies that lingered like ghosts of their own, unwelcome visitors in a life not meant for them. The same blue eyes that looked into the darkness, seeing nothing, drifted as they briefly chased a shadow he knew wasn't there.

Then the gaze returned to her, still icy, and still looking into her without searching. Staring at the cover of a book, not knowing what was inside but not entirely curious enough to want to find out. "It's Antioch." He replied. "Shall I accompany you to safety?" As he asked, he subconsciously rotated the shovel in his grip. "Bodies like yours go missing. It's not preferable to be out alone after dark."

[pet-pet-peet]

May i request the dorm leaders with an s/o who sleep walks and sometimes gets hurt because of it? (Like imagine s/o sleepwalking and accidentally falling down the stairs or hitting their face in a wall) thank you :))

This sounds like me while I’m awake, wdym lololol

100 follower event Masterlist

Tw: implications of confusion induced panic, but nothing too severe; mentions of injuries

Pairing(s): Riddle, Leona, Azul, Kalim, Vil, Idia, Malleus x gn reader who sleepwalks (separate)

He was concerned that you always seemed to have bruises and scratches on you

He thought you were being bullied and didn’t tell him

So when he sat you down and asked if you were okay, you explained that you accidentally hurt yourself sometimes when you sleepwalk

Kinda caught him off guard, since he’s never met someone who sleepwalks-

He tries to help out as best as he can, though

He knows he’s not supposed to wake you up, so he instead tries to make your environment as safe as he can

Notices when you get out of bed and watches you to make sure you don’t hurt yourself

Takes note of things that you somehow find a way to knock against, puts it into an area you couldn’t reach when it’s time for bed from then on-

When you get injured in the night, he’ll care for your wounds the next day

Kisses your wounds so they can heal faster

He asked pretty quickly what was going on since he noticed your wounds from prior nights

When you explain, he doesn’t really react and moves on

He takes it seriously, though, he just thought you might feel weird if he made it a big deal

Like Riddle, he makes sure your environment is safe

When he wakes up to you sleepwalking, he gets up and gently guides you back to bed

Accidentally woke you up once, doesn’t want to again

Still likes to take naps with you during the day, he read somewhere that it could help so he uses that as an excuse

Asks other members of Savanaclaw that he trusts to lead you back to bed if he doesn’t notice you leave

Takes care of your injuries if they look really bad, but otherwise says you’ll be fine

So gentle when touching your wounds it’s uncharacteristic, but very sweet

He definitely noticed the bruises, especially since he has experience with bullying, but doesn’t want to approach you directly

He waits it out for you to come to him while watching you in the distance so he can catch the assumed perpetrators in action

He starts getting confused and even more concerned when he noticed no one approached you, but that made him think it was happening in the background

He asks you upfront after a while of (stalking) staking out, slightly embarrassed when you said you weren’t being bullied and you got your injuries from sleepwalking

Starts doing research on sleepwalking symptoms and how he can help

He goes to the extreme to help protect you from then on, making sure to lock anything he deems dangerous away for the night

Tries to help you talk over what’s stressing you out to help you get it off your mind, since he read that it could be a cause of sleepwalking

When you do sleepwalk, he watches you to make sure you don’t hurt yourself, moving anything out of your way that he needs to

You have to calm him down a bit when he’s treating your wounds, he tries to go to the extreme-

Very passionate about helping you, especially if it’s with something like this that can hurt you

He asks at the beginning of your relationship that you both let each other know anything that may be important, for the sake of transparency

That’s how he figured it out, so he asked you what he needed to do to help you

Might be a bit freaked out the first time he sees it, so he woke you up

Felt bad that you were so confused, so he learned not to do that unless he has to-

Usually finds a way to bring you back to bed, sometimes has to ask Jamil for help so you don’t bump into anything on the way

Tries to look into how to help you, but doesn’t understand much of what he can do (he’s trying so hard omg sweet bean)

Asks Vil if he can make a potion you can try to help you, it kinda works..some nights

He learns somewhere that a decent sleep schedule can help, so he tries that out for you

When you get hurt he takes care of you and asks Jamil to make you something that’ll make you happy to eat or drink

Confused bby is trying his best, he’ll figure it out in time!

Rook seemed distraught so Vil asked what was going on

Rook told him that he saw you walking around during the night and run into a lot of the chairs and tables

This troubles Vil, so he asks why you woke up so late in the night and you explain that you have issues with sleepwalking

He understands and starts looking into things that can help you

He’ll ask you to try different potions he made to see if they help you at all, takes notes on which ones are and aren’t effective and his theories on why

Reads in his research that you might have a time after you fall asleep that it starts, so he stays up some nights so he can time how long after you fall asleep it starts

Baby-proofs cabinets and drawers that have dangerous potions or supplies stored inside

Asks Rook to help keep track of what you get hurt on so he can figure out how to fix the issue, since Rook is so observant

Always puts treatment on your injuries when you both do skincare

Lots of hugs when he’s done and he tells you that he’ll find a better way to help once you get farther in the relationship

He noticed the first night you slept in the same bed

I lowkey headcanon that Ortho had issues with sleepwalking when Idia first created him, so Idia kinda knows what to do but it’s a bit different with someone organic-

He goes into research mode and finds all of the reasons, treatments, and self care he can

Makes sure to store away any glass merch or figures he has so you don’t step on them or knock them off and bump into a broken piece

He’s usually up late, so when you sleepwalk he’s still awake and keeps track of you

Focuses on helping you keep calm and ease your stresses, and (ironically) keeps you on a strict bedtime so you had as good a rest as you can

He goes full big brother mode, and we all know how he is when he’s focused on something

If he can’t stay up, or he has something to do, he asks Ortho to help you and cinnabun always agrees

He’s like Leona and doesn’t really make a big deal about your injuries, but will take care of them if they look bad or get worse

Probably the best person to have around when you sleepwalk since he’s always awake it seems-

Speaking of always awake-

He notices because he saw you in the act

Immediately wakes you up to make sure you were okay, but feels bad when you get so confused you actually seem a bit panicked

He asks Lilia the next day what he can do since he doesn’t like seeing you like that, and bat daddy explains that he should try to guide you back to bed gently instead

He tries that the next time and is relieved when he sees it works

Since he doesn’t sleep, he stays up all night watching you and making sure you don’t hurt yourself

He learns from Lilia that doing a routine to relax you before bed can help lessen the chance of you sleepwalking

He follows you around when you walk around and tries to guide you away from anything sharp or dangerous

He kisses any wounds you get, which become more rare when he’s watching over you all night

Genuinely feels really bad when he notices you still got hurt when in his care, so the kiss is both an apology and a well wishing that it heals quickly

*All Images are official art from Twisted Wonderland and do not belong to me. They are the Lab Coat Groovy card art

[beauleifu]

Any of the Spiders x reader comedy maybe? Please and thank you ^^

OK so I've decided to do all of the spider babes and instead do little headcanons for all of them, mostly comedy so the line isn't too blurred lmao

Hope you enjoy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~LMK HEADCANONS~

Syntax, Huntsman, Goliath, Spider Queen

SYNTAX

Insanely good at keeping secrets. If you tell him you accidentally killed someone he'd take it to the grave (especially if you asked him personally not to tell anyone)

Also incredibly good at telling when someone is lying. But looks like a freaking demon while doing so. Will stare at you with a deep frown and narrowed eyes, figuring out if you're lying with just the slightest change in your voice. And then proceeds to call you out on it.

Will hold a grudge. If you get coffee on his clothes he won't talk to you all day.

Love language is physical touch and intellect (DUH lmao). He's a touch-starved bean, but will absolutely fall in love if his significant other is smart. But not as smart as him or it'll be a competition.

He'd also fall in love with a total idiot. Like an I forgot to flush the toilet, accidentally burnt the toast kind of idiot.

You have to kill him to make him sleep (not in my story tho lmao)

He has a weakness for bargains. Will perk up with interest the second you suggest one. Like "Okay, how about this-" Syntax looks up sharply, eyes laser-focused on you. "If you go to bed with me, I'll watch you finish constructing your doo-hickey tomorrow. And I'll also listen to you explain everything."

Boom. Sealed. He's a sucker for boasting his big brain. He'll sit you in his chair as he moves around the room, or even in his lap if he's sitting down, going into deep detail about everything.

You understand none of it, but at least he's sleeping.

Gets jealous easily. If someone so much as smiles your way he's all glares and stiff replies until you're back home. Then he'll devise a plan to track said person down and figure out if they already have a partner. If they do, they're safe, but if they don't - well, they'd better prepare for a very personal and deadly warning at their doorstep.

Actually loves to cook. Like as long as you're cooking with him, he won't mind preparing dinner for the clan.

Is the reason spam calls are a thing. Don't ask. It's because of you.

Secretly judges everyone. Will tell you exactly what he thinks, no matter what. He may be very blunt, but he has a high emotional intelligence, so will refrain from saying something hurtful. He'll just put it in a nicer way.

Has a few pet names for you but mostly calls you by your name. Called you darling once and he's never been the same. Neither have you.

Loves calling you darling now.

HUNTSMAN

Actually believes taking you to a wrestling match is a fantastic idea for a date. He's all like "Weaklings. I could beat all of them to a pulp. See now, why you're so lucky to have me instead of these twerps?" You do love it but sometimes wish he could like- actually take you out. With a knife? Or on a date? Who knows.

Will definitely touch you inappropriately. He'll smack your ass to catch you off guard, or he'll sit you in his lap in front of everyone. Just for fun. I mean, he won't instigate anything unless you're somewhere private and he can tell you want to get feisty.

Walks around shirtless at least half the time. It pisses the hell out of Syntax but you find it kind of adorable. Besides, he has a nice set of abs so it's not like you don't get a view.

This man sleepwalks. One time you followed him all the way to the local market. He was SLEEPING and you're lucky you caught him because while at the market he tried to steal a few packages of meat. Eyes closed. Everyone thought he was crazy.

Hates electronics. It's most likely because Syntax is obsessed with them. Will definitely swipe your phone and hide it so you can spend time together.

Will seize the opportunity to show off his weaponry. this man will freaking carry you to his quarters if necessary, all to show you the newest weapon he'd crafted. He's super prideful, and any complement will only boost his ego. But if you don't, then he literally won't talk to you and instead polish his knives. All while refusing to let you leave.

Incredibly stubborn. Bro hates it when you give him the silent treatment. Will literally lock you in his room until you guys work shit out. Yes, this includes him glaring daggers at you from the bathroom or whatever.

Is a huge boast, and a bit of a blacksmith, hence why he makes his own knives and shit.

Love language is gifts and mutual respect. If you clearly show how much you respect and love him with gifts or whatever, he's head over heels. Won't admit it, but still. Not much of a physical person unless he's in the mood.

Instant death for those who wrong you.

He's very quick to judge, like always assumes the worst kind of guy.

PET NAMES. THIS DUDE. Pet names in public, in private, in bed, you name it. And he'll come up with the weirdest shit in history.

GOLIATH

A gentle giant - literally. He's a cinnamon roll and will offer to carry you anywhere if you want.

Gullible. He'd give you a 20 if it's all he had, but he'd also kill someone he doesn't even know if you claimed they needed to stop breathing. Like it was a JOKE and LUCKILY you stopped him.

He's very considerate, like won't say anything that's meant to insult unless the other deserves it. When it comes down to you, compliments and gifts galore.

Love language is gifts. Spider demons are suckers for gifts, and even Syntax is starting to lean towards them. Goliath likes homemade things, he considers them more meaningful than something purchased at the store. He won't refuse something store-bought, though, cause it's from you.

Enjoys poetry, and will always show you the newest poem he devised.

Ok they're terrible and mostly involve shit you don't understand, but you admire his dedication.

Will DEFINITELY knit with you, no matter what. If it's 3 in the morning and you're up for knitting a sweater, so be it. Bro will go through hell and back for you.

Is the first one to comment on how empty the fridge is, and also the first one to fill it up. Everyone else is just lazy. Yes he fills it up with only partially edible things like berries or severed limbs. No, you don't vomit, you just gag.

Really wants to go shopping with you, like out and about, but can't wear a disguise since he so big.

DEFINITELY uses his size to his advantage. And he'll be the worst tease about it. If you need to go through the door, he'll stand in your way like "what's the fucking password, tiny baby." But without the fucking. Cause he's a pure boi and wouldn't swear even if you threatened him.

Calls you sweetheart most of the time.

Is more of a listener than a talker, so he'll stare at you with starry eyes as you explain something, nodding along and only providing commentary when necessary.

Really, really enjoys music. Will lay on the floor with you for hours listening to your favorite songs.

Mentally, he's a stone wall. Like for a soft guy you'd think he's sensitive, right? Nope. Not only can he take three full grown men at once, but he can also take insults like a pro. Nothing phases him - unless it comes from the people he cares about. That's where the tables turn.

But hey, you've only insulted him once and you never did again.

SPIDER QUEEN

Spoils you like a pro. You want that? The manager will die if he refuses.

Babe has a heart of gold. First on her bucket list is conquering the world, and second is making sure you're the happiest person alive. You know nothing of this list and never will.

She complains a lot. Honestly, it's like she has a set of expectations for you. No really.

Can't cook to save her life - unless she's making her personal stew. No one knows what goes in it. If she tried making something normal like pancakes you'd end up with a burning stove.

Has a difficult time apologizing. She's the Queen, for crying out loud.

But if she's made a mistake, she WILL make it up to you.

Let's say you and her are arguing, the normal, all fun and games, until she says something surprisingly hurtful and you're rendered speechless. She'd drop all retorts, eyes wide, and approach you slowly while saying, "Oh. Oh, hell, is it something I said?"

Love language? You guessed it. GIFTS.

Babe will put on a brilliant disguise in order to visit the nearest market to buy that thing you'd stared at for only five seconds.

Yes, she notices everything.

You sneeze? She'd chuck a tissue box in your direction. You yawn? Pillow to the face.

She'd act nonchalant about it, like it's the most normal thing ever to take care of you as though you were her own kiddo. But really, she's just hoping you get better so she doesn't feel bad when berating you.

Will host long conversations with you, mostly discussing opinions. She's a very opinionated person and most of her actions are motivated by what she thinks of the subject.

Considers cold showers a death threat.

Next time you walk in after she showers, you're blinded by steam. And the Spider Queen STILL says the water was lukewarm.

Won't do anything that doesn't fit into her schedule.

LOVES PRANKS.

OH MY GAWD. Ok half the time she pranks you out of boredom, and it's a silent command to entertain her, but other times she just loves making you mad.

She loves making anyone mad. It boosts her ego.

&lt;3 <3 <3

[gamerbearmira]

Not a art request. Just leaving it here as it was collecting dust and I am to shy to do anything with it. Sooo... Enjoy?:

It was morning, Mirabel was doing her wake up calls when she saw it. Her mama, Miracle bless her, had again sleepwalked to the kitchen in the morning and hadn't seen it. Casita rattled some tiles in front of Abuelas door and Mirabel had looked at it to find that it no longer was 'Abuelas' door, but rather 'Bisabuelas'.

A very uncertain "Mooom!" with a crack at the rather long o. Had Julieta standing at the bottom of the staircase and asking "What is it mija?" Mirabel gesturing to the changed text "You gotta see that." Julie had made her way up stairs, and looked. A whispered "Dios, mio…" and an excited "Pepa!" rang through the house. The healer was at her sister's door in seconds, banging on it like someone's life depended on it. The grumpy weather witch exited her room clad in a nightgown and a dressing gown. "What?" "Tía, look" Said Mirabel gesturing to the newly changed doors.

There was a moment of silence and a sequel rang through Casita with a rainbow over the house. That was the moment that Alma Madrigal had chosen to exit her room.

Alma had seen a lot. Had lived a long and eventful life, but only once before had she seen her daughters squealing and gushing at her doors. She took a moment to compose herself and looked. Her right hand automatically rose to grip her dress and medallion over her heart. There it was in magical writing.

"Mirabel, do you know which one of you is responsible?" "Ughhh… No?" "Mira, mi vida?" "Wha…" "Sobrina." Mirabel's eyes went wide in a moment of panic "No, nonono no no. Absolutely not. I don't even have that close friends, not to mention a boyfriend. Besides Lola is the one engaged."

There were more people out. Felix and Augustin were standing looking blankly at the changed door.

All eyes went to Dolores "Mija?" "Ep! No, I… me and Mariano did not, not that far at least. We had not." "You know that penetration is not required for conception, right?" Trew in Isabella. "Like you and your current girlfriend hadn't tried" "As far as I know Maria lacks certain equipment." "Meaby the two of you tried hard enough to define all odds." "And basic science?" "We have magic Isa, no-one ever tried before."

A sleepy Camilo comes out of his room "What all the noise is about?" Felix was the one to answer "Mijo, you answer me and answer me honestly did you have sex?" "WhAt?! I might kiss and tell but I still have my V-card!" "Good." Augustin came out of the haze. "Luisa, princess?" "What, no it's not like I've got a secret novio or anything…" Her eye twitched. Camillio sing-sung "Someone got a secret novio~~" "Lu…"

There was a ruckus and Bruno nearly fell through his doors yelling "I've got baby rats! Mama I've got grandchildren!" And there was the synchronized "Que!?!"

Casita rattled some tiles in laughter.

BRO FR CAUGHT ALL THEM MFS OFF GUARD SCREAMINGGGGG💀💀💀

Nah but. Caught all of them off guard. AND LUISA??? AYOU GOT A MANNNN WHATTTTT👁👁

[reidology]

Dying in a bathtub - Hotchreid

Summary: Hotch gets nightmares and hides in the tub, so Spencer makes it comfy for him <3

Word count: 4.4k

Content warning: discussion and description of nightmares, smut, brief description of physical abuse, light angst, quite fluffy, happy ending <3

AO3

__________________________________________

The first time it happened Spencer woke up shivering, the cold of a missing body beside him seeped through the sheets chilled his bones. He braved a lazy glance to his bedside, squinting to see the alarm clock blinking big and aggressive red numbers. 05:25. Aaron must have gone out for a morning run, something Spencer never understood. In fact, his reasoning of ‘why run, when sleep?’ whenever Aaron attempted to get him to join always earned him an affectionate eye roll and kiss on the cheek, so why would he ever give that up? No promise of endless coffee can get Spencer Reid to wake up before 7am, much less for exercise.

Reluctantly the sleepy man made his way to the bathroom, knowing he might as well shower and get ready for work now, there’s no way he could get back to sleep without his human furnace of a boyfriend covering him completely. Only, through his grogginess he failed to notice the boyfriend-shaped body softly snoring in the tub.

So he padded over to the semi-closed shower curtain and blearily reached in to turn the water on for it to heat up while he got ready.

Almost as soon as the water turned on, a high-pitched shriek assaulted the young agent’s eardrums. Spencer did what, in his opinion, any caught-off-guard fully trained FBI agent would do— he squealed in shock and fell back on his ass. A moment later the shower curtain pulled back, revealing a very irritated -and very wet- Aaron Hotchner.

“Babe what the fuck,” the older man whined, wringing out his shirt and turning the freezing water off, “I was sleeping!”

“Oh this is my fault?!”

“Yes! Couldn’t you see me?!”

“I just woke up!”

“Me too!” Aaron pointed to his wet shirt as if to say you have no excuse for this.

Spencer let out a frustrated sigh and pushed himself up from the floor. Somehow he upset his boyfriend, he guesses apologies are on the table. He carefully stepped into the bathtub to face his dripping boyfriend and wrapped his arms around the soaking man’s neck, “I’m sorry,” he pouted quite prettily, “But honey, why were you sleeping in the tub?”

“I didn’t sleep in the tub. I went to sleep in our bed, then you woke me up in the tub.” Aaron grumbled.

Spencer thought Aaron looked positively insane. His eyes focused on the older man’s pupils as his hands checked for a fever.

“Do you have a concussion?” He couldn’t help but fret about the man who is usually so well put together. He was obviously in distress though what kind of distress completely eluded the dry man. Aaron waved Spencer’s worried hands away from his face, “No. Spence, I’m telling you, I didn’t sleep in the bathtub.”

“Then how did you get here?”

Aaron shrugged and swatted Spencer’s nosy hands away that were trying to inspect the grumpy man for any injuries, “Who knows? Let’s get some breakfast.” He calmly stepped out of the tub and headed out, leaving Spencer confused (for once).

“... But it’s 5 am.”

_____

Two nights later, it happened again. But this time Spencer awoke to the sound of sobbing. His heart just about broke in two at the sight of Aaron curled in on himself in the porcelain tub, shaking and covered in sweat.

The Unit Chief used to have terrors most nights. After Foyet, all of life’s problems seemed to unravel in his dreams. The sounds and images were so vivid that upon waking up he believed he had done what he’d dreamed. That he’d hurt his family or that Foyet had come back to finish the job.

During hard cases, Aaron would forgo sleep completely, knowing his mind would only haunt him with terror beyond his conscious capabilities. It left him exhausted and agitated for the rest of the investigation. The team and LEOs got frustrated but none had the guts to confront him, except for one young agent who took special notice of his boss.

So Spencer stepped in, and after weeks of getting closer and learning more about each other than they had in the past five years of working together, Aaron digressed and accepted the help that was offered. The following three months ensued so smoothly, the therapy was helping and Aaron couldn’t believe he was sleeping full nights again. He knew it was all thanks to Spencer, who had taken up a very special place in his heart. Aaron knew that Spencer would always be there when he woke up, like an anchor. Something real to hold on to and keep him in place.

It had been a while since Aaron had such a bad episode, luckily Spencer knew just what to do and jumped right into action. Without missing a beat, the younger man climbed into the tub and sat by Aaron’s head, taking hold of one of his white-knuckled fists and gently coaxing it open by rubbing his thumbs from the palm to the back of the hand. Constant pressure, soothing, real. With one hand he threaded his fingers through the brunette’s damp hair, stroking softly at his scalp, willing his nightmare mind to latch onto the familiar touch.

“It’s okay, you’re safe.” He murmured sweetly like a mantra.

Eventually Aaron’s panicked sobs dissolved into pained whimpers, his body lost some of its tension, allowing for Spencer to gently lift his boyfriend’s head into his lap and off the hard floor of the tub. The whimpers died down to light trembles and Spencer shushed him comfortingly, continuing to sooth him with gentle strokes to his head. Slowly Aaron’s eyes opened and Spencer felt the moment panic set in. The taller man’s breathing quickened and tension returned to his body, frozen in fear. God, Spencer should have turned the lights on.

“It’s just me, darling. You’re home, Aaron. This is home. You’re safe.”

Aaron trembled more, his eyes glazed over as if reliving the nightmare, “Shhh you’re safe.”

Spencer placed a feathery kiss on his boyfriend’s forehead that seemed to anchor him immediately. Tentatively, Aaron looked up at his rescuer, relieved to be in his lover's arms and away from the nightmare universe that had felt so real. He burrowed further into Spencer’s lap, wrapped his shaking arms around his boyfriend’s steady hips. He tried to focus on Spencer’s heartbeat in an attempt to regulate his own. Spencer was warm, Spencer was safe. Always safe.

“Foyet?” Spencer asked cautiously, breath fanning over the older’s forehead. Aaron stilled at the name then nodded. The younger man knows that Aaron needs to talk about it immediately, even if it’s terrifying. It allows him to discern dreams from reality, so that the events and sensations of the night terror don’t ingrain themselves into the man’s memories of reality .

“... and Scratch,” Aaron gulped, “They had Jack. I couldn’t... I didn’t know what was real. Couldn’t tell if it was really Jack. He made me hurt him. Oh god, Spence… I hurt him.” Sobs wracked the pained man’s body once again, unable to forget the horror of the dream. Spencer rocked them back and forth.

“Shh… Jack is fine, he’s at Jess’s. You would never hurt him, Aaron.”

Aaron was spent, he couldn’t muster up the energy to talk. He fell asleep once more in his partner’s comforting hold.

_____

The next morning they woke up with aching muscles from being in the bathtub for so long. Spencer couldn’t help but be worried about his boyfriend. There was definitely something going on, and though he respected Aaron’s privacy immensely, he was afraid of the older man getting into a dangerous situation. Was he sleepwalking to the bathroom? What if he tripped and hit his head on the edge of the tub? But most importantly, why were Aaron’s nightmares leading him to the bathtub?

Spencer nuzzled Aaron’s neck in an effort to wake him up a bit more. “Darling, we need to talk about this.” The worry in Spencer’s voice was audible and prompted Aaron to sit up and sigh deeply. He didn’t think this part of his life would ever come back up to the surface, he’d avoided thinking about it for decades and he didn’t know what triggered the habit to resurface. But now it’s affected Spencer, and he knew he couldn’t keep the love of his life in the dark, but some things were so hard to talk about.

Aaron found himself panicking again, flashes of Foyet and his father clouding his mind once more. Images of Sean taking cover in Aaron’s arms while their father pounds on the bathroom door-

“I know. I-” He was cut off with the sweetest kiss.

“You can take your time sweetheart. No rush.”

Even at this stage in their relationship, Aaron wasn’t used to being treated so well. The kindness that naturally radiated off his boyfriend was enough to make his insides melt, the understanding words never ceased to choke him up. But he knew Spencer would be there to put him back together once he gave him all his pieces. He buried his face in the younger’s neck, breathing in the scent of his shampoo, relaxing into his hold. Spencer wrapped his arms around Aaron’s lean form, offering a safe space. Aaron had never been this vulnerable with anyone before his relationship with Spencer.

After a moment of just holding each other, Aaron’s breathing mellowed out and his voice cracked as he explained everything.

“After Sean was born, my dad started drinking. He’d always been somewhat aggressive, scary even. He- he’d get angry and take it out on my mom… and if she wasn’t there... But when he started drinking it got a thousand times worse. I vowed to myself to protect Sean at all costs, I promised him I would never let our dad get to him. So I took the brunt of it when he was sober. But when he was drunk… he would chase us, try to get to Sean specifically. He was just a little kid 5 or 6, I was 15. He would scour the house to find Sean so I took him and locked us in the only room in the house with a lock… the bathroom. I’d carry Sean in my arms and make a run for it. I blocked off the door with a cabinet and we sat in the tub until he passed out.. My dad couldn’t get in but he would pound on the door so loudly, his voice was so angry-”

Aaron inhaled hard, the grip on the back of Spencer’s shirt tightened and his breathing shallowed. Spencer continued rubbing soothing circles on his back, allowing Aaron to take his time.

“The bathtub was the only safe space for Sean and I. We spent whole nights in there, waiting for my dad to pass out. Sometimes we’d tell stories, play games, but other times we cried and I covered his ears with my hands, not wanting him to hear the horrible things our dad was saying. This went on until I went to college, I tried to take Sean with me but my mother wouldn’t allow it. My dad died a year later, when Sean was 9.

“I- because of that, if any of us had nightmares we’d go into the bathroom and sleep in the tub, because no one could get to us in there.”

Aaron swallowed thickly and timidly looked up to the honey-haired man. Had he sounded pathetic?

But Spencer cupped his cheek once again and kissed him lovingly.

“Thank you for telling me. You’re the strongest person I know, Aaron. I'm sorry you had to go through all of that.”

Aaron’s heart skipped a beat, warmth spreading through his chest. He swallowed down all his uncertainties and let Spencer in, he was proud of himself. Both of them yawned in succession, still exhausted from last night and uncomfortable from sleeping in the bathtub.

With a cheeky grin the younger man announced, “Let’s go to bed, I’ll get us the day off.” Aaron was so grateful.

While he called in sick, Spencer had an idea, and he knew just who to call.

_____

“Boy Wonder! How wonderful to hear from you on this frabjous day! We miss you and the Bossman dearly. We are definitely… working. Work is happening, and we’re doing it, and it’s getting done. You can trust me on that. Definitely no piñatas in the break room, where would we even find one on such short notice? Emily doesn’t even know where to get balloons! Anyway, what magical service may I bestow upon thee today, my little lord?”

Spencer bit back a chuckle, “Hi Penelope. Listen I need some advice on… interior decorating-”

Immediately, he got cut off by a squeal, “I’m on my way!”

“No! Garcia- after work-”

The line goes flat.

“Dammit. I should’ve just texted JJ.”

_____

Despite her best efforts, the rest of the team did not let Penelope leave the BAU for a ‘design emergency’. Fortunately for Spencer, that gave him some time to plan what he wanted to do while cooking lunch for his sleeping beauty.

After a full meal of soup and grilled cheese, Hotch retreated to the living room hoping to watch some History Channel with Spencer. They love watching the conspiracy shows together and debunking the awful propositions. Though Hotch learned quite surprisingly that Spencer is very open to the idea of aliens on Earth. However, he has a suspicion that that’s mostly wishful thinking on the part of Spencer's inner child. Nevertheless, it’s adorable and Hotch was excited for it, and waiting patiently for Spencer to finish cleaning himself up.

Before he could question what was taking so long, their doorbell rang a sweet lullabye sound (they had to change it from the awful buzzing that it was- it was too overwhelming for Spencer). Not expecting any company, Hotch was puzzled as to who could be at their door.

“Who is it?” He spoke through the intercom.

“Bossman! Sorry to hear about your incurable case of Work Sickness! If you could let me up, I brought you some warm soup!-”

Spencer bounded through the foyer from the bedroom, practically hopping over furniture and knocking down a flower arrangement, “I got it! I got it!” he heaved frantically.

“Babe, what’s Garcia doing in front of our building on a weekday?”

“Nothing Aar don’t worry about it, Penelope and I are just going out for lunch, see you later!”

Spencer grabbed his satchel and was out the door.

“But- Spencer you just had lunch!” The curly haired man was already running down the steps, “Bye!”

It was Hotch’s turn to be left alone and confused.

_____

In Penelope’s car, Spencer explained his idea to Penelope, without going saying too much about Hotch’s nightmares. In true Penelope fashion, the bubbly bits-and-bobs connoisseur knew the perfect place to get what Spencer needed. Penelope dragged Spencer around the independently-owned home goods boutique like a lost puppy for about two hours. She ended up with more bags for herself and Sergio than what Spencer needed.

A few texts and one missed call from Hotch wondering what the hell was taking Spencer so long prompted them to leave. Spencer thanked Penelope in front of their apartment and air kissed her goodbye, promising to show up at girl’s night next week..

Spencer walks into the foyer as quietly as possible and hides the bags behind the living room’s entertainment center.

“Spencer?”

“Yeah! I’m home!”

Aaron walked out of their bedroom with a soft smile. His round glasses were on, meaning he’s been reading… or looking at case files.

“Are you going through the case?” Spencer scolded.

The bespectacled man didn’t waver. “There’s something the victim’s parents said that doesn’t add up, they said that every Thursday Mandy went to soccer practice after school and swim practice in the next town over in the evenings. She takes the bus so if the unsub was stalking her he’d either have to take the same bus and risk getting caught or have a car- which goes against our age profile- so that would mean there’s someone driving him. Spencer, there are TWO unsu-” He was cut off by being pulled into a kiss. He hummed into it and wrapped his arms around Spencer’s slender waist, pulling them closer together. When they pulled apart Spencer whispered “Two unsubs. The team knows, they’re working on it. You-” he tapped his finger on the older’s chin for emphasis, “need to relax today.”

The resulting pretty pout was swiftly kissed away. None of that now.

“But I don’t know how to relax. I’m Aaron Hotchner, stoic as a statue, stern glare extraordinaire, Mr. Emotionless…”

Spencer rolled his eyes and trailed his hands down Aaron’s hard chest, “I know how to make you relax…” The other man grinned “Oh is that right?” Spencer smirked and led his boyfriend to the couch.

_____

That night when Aaron was gone to bed, Spencer quietly retrieved the bags from behind the TV and set his plan in motion.

_____

He’s trembling. And he can’t recognize his own thoughts, he can’t think straight, all he can see is his son- and Haley with terror written all over their faces.

He barely registers the sound of Jack’s wailing because, as if from right behind his ear, he hears a voice that he interprets as his own thought ‘shoot him’.

‘What?’

‘Pull the trigger’

He looks back up to his sobbing, terrified son, and without hesitation- click- BOOM-

Aaron bolted up from the bed, gasping for breath. His eyes darted around the dark. Jack? Where is he- Jack ohmygod-

His vision landed on Spencer’s sleeping form, breathing shallowly and folded into himself like a pretzel, sleeping soundly like an angel. Spencer. Real. Safe. He took a deep breath to regulate his heart. In for 4, hold, out for 6, repeat. This was exhausting.

Groggily, Aaron slipped out from under the covers and headed to the bathroom to get a drink of water and maybe splash his face a little. He thought of getting into the bathtub for the comfort he desperately needed right now, but he’d be embarrassed if Spencer found him in there again. Who does that? But nothing could have prepared Aaron for the sight before him when he opened the door.

Lights. Yellow, green, purple electric lights on strings, illuminating the room in a beautiful calming glow. They were suspended from the curtain rod of the bathtub, taped to the walls. Gorgeously scented candles perched on the sink, some on the ground, a few tea lights lining the edge of the tub. It smelled glorious and comforting and Aaron couldn’t tell what it was. Pine? Sandalwood? Campfire?

The most breath-taking part was the inside of the bathtub. Patterned sheets hung from the walls and draped over to form a delicate roof. Fluffy pillows perfectly laid out to coat every inch of the porcelain interior, and soft blankets piled on top for added comfort. Lights lined the inside of the sheet tent as well, it looked fantastical. Like something out of a book.

Aaron was floored, to say the least. Was this what Spencer had been doing today? He was flooded by a new emotion, something he couldn’t quite put his finger on. Spencer had done all of this for him? To make him feel safe?

He was still standing just barely in the room, taking everything in and getting emotional when he heard soft footsteps behind him and felt Spencer’s long arms slink around his waist. A chin hooked over his shoulder and a kiss was pressed to his neck.

“Are you alright? Did you have a nightmare?”

Aaron nodded, “You did all this… for me?” A tinge of awe decorated his voice.

“Yeah,” his boyfriend whispered back, “So you don’t hurt yourself when you sleep in here.”

Aaron felt stupid for ever thinking his wonderful, thoughtful boyfriend would ever feel embarrassed by him. Of course Spencer took everything he admitted seriously, of course Spencer cared about what he’s been through, Spencer cares… that's what he’s been feeling. Taken care of. Important. For once in his life, he feels like he’s allowed to let himself be loved.

The stunned man seemed to be frozen in place, not knowing how to respond. His mind was overwhelmed with love for his boyfriend. Spencer pulled away and grabbed the older’s hands, Aaron let himself be led to the makeshift fort.

They climbed in together, careful not to knock over any of the burning candles. Spencer settled on one end of the tub and pulled Aaron into him before he could even think of not cuddling with him. He made space with his legs for his boyfriend to settle between, chest pressed to back, arms wrapped around his love. Safe, warm, and comfortable in a sea of cushions like twin yolks in a shell.

Laying here, in his lover's arms, surrounded by low tranquil lights, and the gentle rise and fall of Spencer’s chest, Aaron felt as serene as he’d ever been. Spencer slid warm hands under Aaron’s shirt, bringing one up to rest cozily on his heart. Aaron turned his head and nuzzled further into Spencer’s neck, feeling the familiar tingle of the man’s touch and murmured a low hum of approval.

Spencer’s other hand, that wasn’t on Aaron’s heart, was used to tip the taller man’s chin up to look at him.

“I know what it’s like to be afraid of your own mind,” he cooed, “sometimes it’s impossible to take yourself out of that world. But in our home, Aaron, I want you to feel safe and protected at all times. I want you to be vulnerable and unashamed. You’re free to be everything you are in here, and I hope that you feel you can be everything you are with me, too.”

Aaron lost himself in his partner’s deep gaze, glorious hazel eyes boring into him. Completely enamored by the words spoken to him, all he could do was nod and lick his lips, trying to regulate his heart rate for a completely different reason now. Spencer had never been so… authoritative before and his sincere but stern tone sent thrilling sparks down his spine. A blush rose up his neck.

Spencer tracked the slow movement of Aaron’s tongue sliding over his bottom lip, and didn’t fight the impulse to drag his thumb over it. “You’re always safe with me.” He barely whispered before angling his head down to catch those lips in a languid kiss. Aaron sighed into it, waiting a little while before pushing himself up to fix their awkward angle. He positioned them so that Spencer was laid down flat on his back, allowing Aaron to lay between his legs once more, chest to chest. They tangled themselves in each other, lips colliding again like a match to a box, igniting a fire in the both of them.

Both were still tired from waking up in the middle of the night, but the desire coursing through their bodies was a more pressing matter. Spencer lifted his hands to frame his lover’s neck and wrapped his legs loosely around his waist, inviting Aaron to grind down onto him, both already half hard from the anticipation. Spencer groaned into Aaron’s mouth. A sound that went right to Aaron’s dick.

They explored each other’s bodies with a youthful novelty, eager to feel more skin. Never once pulling their lips apart. Aaron slipped his hands under Spencer’s shirt and shoved it up under his arms, digging his fingers into those delicious hips. Finally he broke away from the kiss to pepper the younger’s face with sweet ones. Aaron’s heart grew three sizes at Spencer’s soft giggles and let out a low laugh of his own. How ridiculous were they, making out like teenagers in a bathtub fort? Neither much cared to answer that question though, because the impatient genius bucked his hips up to meet his boyfriend’s, who was still in his boxers, let’s get those off.

Spencer eagerly reached for Aaron’s underwear and palmed at his bulge just until he heard that impatient sound from him. He pulled the man’s cock out now fully hard and dripping with precum. A groan escaped the both of them at the sight and sensation. They wasted no time in getting Spencer out of his nerdy physics flannel pajama pants, and grinded their dicks together. Lighting sparked right through the both of them, Aaron balanced himself on one arm near Spencer’s head and took both of their lengths into his right hand.

The rub of their slick cocks together was spectacular as Aaron kept a slow and steady pace, making sure to draw out all the best sounds he knew Spencer could make by nipping at his neck, where he knew the younger man was ticklish. Spencer whined at the excruciating pace, turning into a desperate whimpering mess. Making Spencer wait was so fun.

Spencer’s hands find grip in Aaron’s short hair, keeping him close, feeling the pull of Aaron's big hand on his dick and grinding up to meet him. It’s intoxicating bliss, being taken over the edge by the man he loves.

Their worlds minimized to just the slide of their cocks and the lips on their skin. The whimpering man felt the familiar build up in his abdomen, moaning freely now as he chased his orgasm, guiding Aaron’s hand with his own to feel his touch everywhere.

“Yeah baby,” Aaron encouraged, his own orgasm coming on quickly, “Cum for me baby.”

Spencer sputtered his release over both of their hands and stomachs, momentarily suspended in the intense bliss of his orgasm. He laid there spent, feeling like putty in Aaron’s hands, and pulled him down for a passionate kiss. He took his lover’s cock in hand and pumped him quickly, thumbing the head of his dick on each upstroke. Aaron came with a groan and a shudder, his arms gave out. They laid there catching their breaths for a while, ignoring the drying stickiness between them and tracing slow patterns on each other’s skin. They were so lucky to have each other.

“How are we going to shower now?” Aaron looked up and pouted.

“There’s a perfectly good sink just 5 feet away.” They laughed, Aaron pulled a blanket over them.

------------------------------------------------------

Taglist: @foxtrot91 @physics-magic @ssa-sarahsunshine @hearteyedhotch

[whaleofatjme1920]

Waking Up Confused in Both Hotel Rooms and Forests [Jay Merrick X F!Reader X Masky/Tim Wright]

[Jay Merrick X F!Reader X (kinda) Masky]

[Warnings: firearms, slight language, slight blood]

[AN: I originally had Masky in the spotlight but couldn't like, directly fit him in like that. Also big thanks to Entry 32 and slight Entry 76.]

You could hardly breathe as you ran further and further through the trees. Panic seeped through your veins. Your only guiding light was the light of the moon. You weren’t supposed to be here - why the hell did you agree to begin with? You had no time to regret your actions as you continued to run. Where was Jay? Was he okay? No time to think of that either, Alex was catching up. But you had to find him. You just had to.

A few weeks ago, you woke up in a hotel. You had no recollection of even leaving your apartment. Strange, very strange. Confused, and unsure of how you even got there, you attempted to leave and get back to your life only to find you were hopelessly lost with practically nothing to support yourself. All you could do was remain.

The first few days were awkward. You managed to find some food and stock up the minifridge but other than that, your days were a little lonely, and mostly confusing. The longer you stayed, the hazier your memories and thoughts became. What have you been doing for the past year? Huge chunks of time, gone in an instant. Where even were you? None of your questions were answered and the days began to blur together.

Things only grew more confusing when you were given a neighbor. You had woken up, decided to get some fresh air and passed by a man wielding a camera in the hallway. Your eyes had quickly scanned over his features - it almost felt alien to look at another person. The entire time you’d been at this odd hotel, you hadn’t seen a single soul here but yourself. And it went on like that for a few days, just passing by each other in the hallways, politely nodding, sometimes saying hello, but nothing further. It didn’t take long for you to realize your rooms were conjoined - the only conjoined rooms in the hotel. Strange, how strange.

Feeling bold, you plucked up your courage to speak with him, albeit awkwardly.

“What’s the camera for?” You asked, a small smile on your face to set him at ease.

The man shifted a little uncomfortably but smiled back. “A documentary on, uh, hotels. Y’know?” He said in a more than awkward tone. He shifted slightly after a painfully pregnant pause took place. “I’m Jay and you-”

“Oh! I’m Reader,” you answered back, more than caught off guard he asked you a question. “I’ll see you around?” You said in a slightly unsure tone.

“Y-Yeah. I’ll see you around.”

And the two of you parted ways.

That’s certainly not the last you’d ever seen of Jay though. If it had been, you wouldn’t be running from a maniac with a gun at this moment.

You and Jay continued to cross paths, awkwardly saying hi, sometimes commenting on the weather until you had finally reached a head. The previous day, you’d tried to prod him to see if he had any inkling as to what was going on when he sloughed it off as if your concerns meant nothing. Deep down, you knew he was going through the same mess as you. Frustrated, confused, you got up in the middle of the night to interrogate Jay. You lept out, slipped on your shoes, and knocked on his door. Immediately, you were greeted to his camera.

“Can I uh, ask you something?” You began, eyes dark and desolate due to the haze that swarmed in your mind.

“Sure?” Jay sounded confused. His eyes darted down to the camera and back up to you as you scratched at the back of your neck.

“Why… Why did you answer the door with a camera?” A slight frustration began to come to your tone.

“Well, I mean, I had it in my hand already-”

“Look, Jay,” you said in an increasingly exasperated tone. “I know you’re lying. First you tell me some stupid thing about a hotel documentary and then you tell me your house is being renovated, but then! But then you tell me your job was being relocated. What is going on?” You questioned, voice strained and harsh.

“It’s- It’s complicated I-”

“You’re not acting like a normal person-”

“W-What’s it matter to you? You’re just some stranger,” he tried to shake off. He looked at you like you were crazy, but his eyes conveyed something deeper.

“I think… I think something is going on,” you said, brows now furrowed together. “I know something is going on,” you took a pause and breathed in deeply. “I don’t know how I got here. You’re the only person I’ve seen in this hotel other than the staff and we have adjoining rooms. I don’t even know you. You said it yourself! I’m a stranger! Haven’t had any kind of memory loss at all?” You raise your hands and dragged your fingers across your scalp. “I-I think I’m going crazy,” you said with a small laugh, unsure of what could be considered real and what couldn’t. “Jay, I’m losing HUGE chunks of time. I’m having pounding headaches and coughing fits and I can’t even sleep, but when I do sleep, I feel like I’m still moving, like I’m sleepwalking.” You were pretty much shouting at this point and allowed all your anger, frustration and fear to bubble over.

“Reader-”

“And the worst part? I keep having these dreams back when I was a kid and I feel like something’s watching me-”

“Stop,” Jay sighed, his hand reaching out to hold your shoulder. “Let’s… Get your shit together. I’ll tell you everything, I promise, I just need to get some of my own things together.”

You nodded with shot nerves and let him go as you went off to your room, quickly getting everything together. From your room, you could what Jay rummaging around in a safe. What a mess everything had become. With a heavy heart still rife with confusion, you had begun to pack.

You never really completed packing, as the moment you touched the drawers, hands were wrapping around your face. A quick breath was all it took to black out.

Later, you woke up confused in the forest. Jay was by your side. Twilight had fallen over the land, you were unsure of how you got here, and all you knew is that you both had to get out. You were the one to wake up Jay, your hand nudging him.

“Where… Where are we?” He asked groggily, slowly sitting up before his hands pat at his chest. The camera was still attached.

“Was hoping you could tell me,” you mumbled, trying to make heads or tails of the place you were in. It looked like the two of you were laid in the middle of a burnt clearing.

“It’s a park, I think,” Jay said as he slowly began to stand up before helping you up as well. “We should make it back to the parking lot or something. Not safe to be here.”

“Not safe?”

Jay shook his head as he checked his pockets for his keys and nodded for you to follow him once he confirmed they were there. The two of you passed through the trees and greenery of all kinds before finally coming to an uneasy stretch of woods. Here, tunnels lined the sides of the paths, making your hair stand up. Every part of your body told you to run.

You did so and remained walking beside him in a tense silence before finally opening your mouth. “So, what were you gonna tell me back at the hotel?” You asked softly.

“I have some thoughts,” Jay began. “Like-”

Before he can say anything, a gun shot rang out, making you scream and jolt as Jay ducked, hand immediately gripping at your wrist.

“Don’t run, you coward!”

That voice sounded familiar, oh so familiar. When he stepped out from the dark recesses of the tunnel, you knew him. You felt it deep down inside, but you couldn’t but a name to his face - not even when the remaining sunlight stopped obscuring his eyes when the light glare subsided from his glasses. But how could you forget him? You knew him - you knew him.

“Let her go, Jay,” the man said as his eyes narrowed. The barrel of his gun was pointed directly at you two, barring you from running past him to get to the parking lot.

“Alex, please,” Jay said in a strained voice, refusing to let go of your wrist.

“No, you know what has to be done,” Alex growled as his steps got closer and closer to the two of you.

“Come on man, you know her,” Jay attempted to reason. “She was Amy’s roommate, you can’t hurt Amy like that.”

A pause.

“All the more reason to shoot you dead where you stand.”

“Alex please,” you whimpered, eyes looking at him with a light that pained him to even consider snuffing.

“I’m sorry,” Alex apologized as his eyebrows furrowed. “It has to be done - there’s no other way. I have to stop it.” Alex sounded absolutely at war with himself as he continued closer and closer to the two of you. “I’m sorry, Reader. I’ve been sorry.”

His finger rested on the trigger.

The sun set; the park is bathed in darkness.

Before the trigger can get pulled, Jay momentarily let go of your wrist and punched Alex with all his might, sending the gun flying in one direction, and Alex careening to the floor.

“Stay down!” He shouted, moving to keep him on the floor.

Your eyes struggled to adjust to the dark, but you could hear something. Something growing closer and closer until it was practically on top of you. You let out a slight screech as a man in a tanned coat came zipping past you, shoving aside Jay (with an odd about of care) before pummeling Alex back into the earth.

“Stop staring and get the fuck out of here!” The man’s voice boomed as he continued to wrestle an invigorated Alex.

Jay reached for you again in the darkness, and you reached back. The two of you ran.

Somewhere in the confusion, you’d managed to get separated from Jay right around the time more gunshots rang out throughout the forest. You could almost hear Alex in the back of your head after they’d ripped through the silent night.

And that led to now. Running scared through the never ending, godsforsaken forest where static seemed to invade your head every other minute. You could feel Alex on your specific trail. Where had Jay gone? No idea. Who was that guy that tried to fight Alex? Possibly dead. There were a lot of gunshots.

You continued to run until your lungs burned, stumbling through the trees, praying he hadn’t caught up with you. Whenever the static grew louder in your head, so too did the feeling that Alex was close. Too close.

“Reader!” You heard Alex shout out into the night after a particularly rough patch of static that left your eyeballs feeling like barbells in your skull. He kept calling out for your name.

Your lungs and your legs burned. You couldn’t possibly go on for much longer like this - he’d find you. He’d kill you. You felt tears prick your eyes as the sound of crunching sticks and grass invaded your ears. He was closer still.

In your haste of running, you had slammed into what felt like a tree, knocking it off balance as well as yourself before recognizing, no, that was not a tree.

“What the fu-”

“Shh,” the voice said. You recognized it immediately as the man from earlier. “Come on, this way.”

Not even waiting for an answer, he took your hand into his and began to guide you through the trees, pulling you along at a speed you didn’t think was human.

You held your other arm out as you pushed away branches and brambles. “Who are you?” You ask as quietly as you could, the sound of Alex’s running steps growing faster.

“Unimportant,” the man replies, barely looking over his shoulder as he continued to pull you along. “You need to get out.”

“What about Jay?”

“He’s in the parking lot waiting for you.” The man sounded a little out of breath, or perhaps he was just restricted due to the mask he wore (you could make out its outline in the moonlight). “He’s okay.”

A relief floods your system as you attempt to match pace with him on your own accord. It’s gone when you hear more gunshots ring out through the trees followed by flashes of light from the muzzle when you turn your head around.

“Fucking reckless,” the man mumbled under his breath.

“Why is he doing this?” You asked in a panic.

The sound of Alex’s laughter echoes through the trees.

“He’s insane.”

You believe him.

Eventually, the two of you reach the same tunnel where it all began. How far had you run out? No time to ruminate on that thought, the masked man pauses, his hands resting on your shoulders.

“Keep running straight. You’ll hit the parking lot in no time.Jay is waiting for you.”

“But I-”

He hushes you as the sound of Alex grows closer and closer still. You can hear him taunting you as he realizes where you are.

“Go.” He pushes you in the direction you need to run before turning around and facing Alex, who’s finally caught up.

Not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth, you run.

You’re almost certain you’re going to throw up or something to that effect when you finally make it back to the parking lot. Your lungs have expanded much too much, your muscles ache, and you feel light headed and dizzy. By the time you reach the asphalt, you don’t even recognize the sound of Jay rushing over to you. His words sound like a blur in your head as he grips your shoulders.

“Reader!” His grip tightens. “Are you okay?” He keeps asking but you feel so faint.

“Jay?”

“Hey, hey, stay up.: He holds you up as you sway. “Let’s get outta here,” he says, eyes looking at you with great concern.

You take in a deep breath as you nod along to his words, hardly able to even comprehend anything. You feel your body move on autopilot as he brings you to the car, and you act on autopilot as you buckle yourself up. The car begins to leave the parking lot, your eyes able to scan the tree line once more.

And there he is, the masked man, watching the two of you leave.

Red bloomed on his chest.

[bbrandy2002]

Fool’s Rush In

Chapter 17

This is my @wackydrabbles​ post for week 87. The prompt is bolded. "No offense, but I'm not interested."

Book: TRR

Pairing: Liam x Riley

Warnings: Drake and some language.

*I was in a silly mood and this turned into a dumpster fire lol and it feels very rushed but I was trying to meet the word count. There may be a little bit of plot in this.

Word count: 1999

------------------------

Liam sat on the floor with his back pressed against the mattress; one leg bent upright with the other extended crookedly out in front of him. Half of a bottle of Don Julio dangled loosely from a hand settled on his knee while two shiny gold rings encircled the pinky tip of his other.

In a fit of anger late last night, he searched for and consumed the first bottle of alcohol he came across in the liquor cabinet. He had no intentions of getting hammered or even a little drunk; Liam just needed something to take the edge off the hurt. Not that he for one second believed a word Riley told him before she walked out and boarded a red-eye commercial flight back to the States. 

As Liam pondered her abrupt departure in the early hours of the morning, one thing was for sure: He'd never been in love before, but what he felt for Riley was real -- and reciprocated -- that, "no," she spewed from her mouth when asked if she loved him was a lie.  

But why? That was the question he just couldn't figure out.

Having racked his brain for hours and with the sun finally coloring in the darkness of his chambers, Liam set aside his drink and lifted himself off the ground. Every thought that consumed him for the last several hours was riddled with putting the pieces together of why she actually left and why she felt she couldn't tell him the truth. Nothing made sense, yet ruminating alone in his room until he figured it out wasn't going to solve anything; the only way to get to the bottom of this was to retrace Riley's steps from the time she left the ball to when he made his way up to join her a little later. 

Stumbling to the bathroom -- mostly from exhaustion and perhaps a little drunker than he realized -- Liam stripped off the tuxedo he wore the prior evening and took a quick shower before heading down to the security office.

-----------

Riley's heavily drooping eyelids popped wide open when the plane shook from another vigorous tremor of turbulence. Gripping the armrests on both sides of her seat, she hesitated to peek out the window but was relieved when she saw the billowy waters of the Pacific had transformed into small, mosaic blocks of land covered by a shadow of the nearly setting sun. 

When the aircraft settled again, Riley reached into her purse and pulled out her cell phone to check the time, grateful to be landing soon. She planned to go straight home, sink into her bed, and sleep the rest of her life away. Maybe wake up every once in a while to sob again before going back to sleep. Whatever Riley decided to do, she hated Madeleine, she hated Tyler, and she hated telling Liam she didn't love him; the more Riley thought about the stunned look on his face when she said it, the more nauseous her stomach felt.

And the nausea was getting worse.

Riley caught the eye of a nearby stewardess and waved her over; she needed ginger ale, and she needed it fast. 

"Can I help you, Miss?"

"I … I need, ginger ale, please." She asked through ragged breaths.

"Let me check and see if we have more." Riley nodded appreciatively.

"Hey. Don't I know you from somewhere?" A relatively large guy in the center seat, whose sweaty arm flab had been lodged in Riley's shoulder since takeoff, asked. Oh shit! Riley cupped a tight hand over her mouth and shook her head vigorously; the last thing she wanted was to be recognized. 

Or vomit.

While the stewardess searched the service cart for the requested drink, the gentleman's eyes enlarged. "Wait a minute. Yeah! You're that little gal who married some king, with ..." he snapped his fingers before adding in his thick Texan drawl, "the monkey and hookers and shit. Wow, my fiance wants to have a wedding just like yours." He held his hand out to her. "The names Beaver Calhoun, mayor of Slippery Nip, Texas. I guess you could say we're both royals, huh?"

Riley lowered her hand slightly; she was past the point of ginger ale helping, and this guy was blocking her way out. "Beaver, I need you to move." 

He stroked his chin in thought. "Well, I don't know, Queenie. I'm pretty content with my life there in Slippery Nip, Not really lookin' to uproot."

"No!' Riley's strained voice responded forcefully, "move out of the way--" She tried to fight it, but her head flung forward and everything came out with her last word.

Beaver looked down at his shirt and quirked a brow. "That's gonna leave a stain."

=============

On the second floor of a run-down Motel 6, just off the beaten path in Las Vegas, Drake tossed in the last of his clothes and airline tickets in a duffle bag and zipped it. Stepping over to the window, he pulled aside the tattered curtains to check if the airport's shuttle van had arrived yet. Disappointed, he grumbled to himself, "Where the hell are you? I'm ready to get the fuck out of here." 

The past week had been intense -- well, frankly, the entire month had been nothing short of shit balls. Five weeks ago, Drake landed in Las Vegas for Liam's bachelor party and won big money at the casino, only to have it all pissed away on some old, decrepit hooker who stole his wallet, cell phone, dick health, and what little joy he had in the world. Liam left with a sexy ass wife, and all Drake got was the false claim of fathering triplets and his scowling face on the front cover of the National Enquirer with Dr. Ethan Ramsey detailing the entire sordid journey from pre-surgical rooster rot to the aftercare.

He made a quick $500 for the story, in which he badly needed the money, considering he couldn't leave Vegas until the paternity test results came back. It was enough for his lodging, a couple cans of Beenie-Weenies and a few boxes of pepperoni Hot Pockets; his stomach felt like oil sludge at this point. But as a joke, Leo had sent a box of Ding-Dongs, so it wasn't all bad.

The rotary phone in his room rang out, and he answered the call from the front desk, which let him know transportation had arrived. Drake grabbed his bag, flicked a cockroach off of it, and exited his room into the enclosed hallway.

After stepping onto the elevator and hitting the down button, another person strolled on in a black leather mini-skirt, white see-through halter top, and a pair of fishnet stockings that he'd recognize anywhere.

"You!" He growled at the chain-smoking hooker, backing her up into the corner. "Do you have any fucking idea what you did to me? And I WANT my wallet and cell phone back, now!" He hovered menacingly over the much smaller woman.

"No offense, but I'm not interested in giving them back to you," Pinquee Kittee sneered before reaching into her bra for mace and spraying him directly in the eyes. The rapid burn gave way to her next act of defense when a screaming, blinded Drake was doubled over by a swift karate kick to his newly transplanted organ. "Hiiiiyah!"

Drake cupped himself in anguish, fell to the floor, and slumped over as the elevator doors opened. Pinquee Kittee grabbed his duffle bag and peeked down the hallway to make sure no one was around before making her getaway.

------------------

Just outside of the palace's security office, Liam knocked on the door several times without an answer. It was rare that the King would personally pay a visit. Usually, he would call Bastien and have the head guard look into any issues. With him gone, this just felt like something Liam needed to do in person. 

After several more knocks, Liam reached for the door handle and slowly opened it to let himself inside. The lights were off, with only a few CCTV screens displaying various images of places within and surrounding the palace. Finding the light switch on the wall beside the door, Liam flipped them on, and his mouth fell agape at what he saw.

"What the hell happened in here?" He shouted as his hands shot to his hips, glaring around the room. 

On the floor was a maze of beer cans, whiskey bottles, remnants of silly string, a five-gallon bucket of butter next to a slip-n-slide, a voodoo doll with Liam's face on it, and half-a-dozen guards passed out. 

A furious Liam made his way through, kicking the feet of guardsmen as he stepped along. "Get up! All of you!"

One-by-one, they slowly roused until they realized it was the King in their presence, then they jumped to their feet at attention. 

"Would someone like to explain what the actual fuck happened in here?" Liam wasn't one to swear in front of his staff, but there was no way he could hold back after walking in on this scene. His glowering eyes shifted with expectancy from one man to the next, waiting for an answer, until someone finally called out, "We threw Rogers a going away party for his last night on the job, Your Majesty."

"And you thought having a wild party while you were ON DUTY to protect 400 members of the nobility for a major event was the time to do that?

The guard shook his head. "Not at all, Sir. I admit we weren't as attentive as we should have been last night ..." he pointed behind Liam, "but Prince Leo came by and suggested we kick it up a notch."

Liam turned around and caught Leo slithering along the edge of the wall toward the door. "Leo!"

The Prince stopped dead in his tracks, then flickered his eyes and jolted his body as if he were just waking up. Leo looked at Liam, acting surprised to see him. "Liam? Is that you? H-How did I get in here?"

Liam rolled his eyes. "Knock it off, Leo."

"What?” Leo shrugged innocently. “You know what I think happened. I must have been sleepwalking again. You know how I get when I watch The Duchess before bed." He cocked his head introspectively at his brother. “And you do look like the Duke from that movie, you handsome devil you?” He grinned impishly.

Liam stared blankly at his older brother for a few seconds, then turned around to face the others gathered around. "Who's in charge here?"

When one of the men raised a hand, the King stepped up to him and explained, "Alright, I need you to pull up security footage from last night. I want to review everything from the moment I stepped outside the ballroom to meet the Queen around 9:30, and where she went after I went back into the ballroom." 

If this were any other day, Liam would have fired every one of them on the spot and sent Leo to Antarctica, but he only had one concern: Finding out what happened to Riley.

As the guard typed in his computer to pull up footage from last night, Leo stepped up to Liam, who was hovering over the guard's shoulder with anticipation. "What's going on?"

Never taking his eyes off the screen, he responded. "Riley went back to Las Vegas last night."

"Wh-Why? What happened?"

Liam let out a breath. "That's what I'm trying to find out."

Leo remained silent before giving his little brother's shoulder a reassuring squeeze and watching with him.

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary as different camera footages were switched to follow Riley walking from the main staircase, through several passages, and finally ending with the corridor outside of his quarters.

"Stop!" Liam leaned in closer as the guard paused the video; his entire body tensed up at what he saw.

"Is that ..." Leo scrunched up his face in disgust.

"Madeleine."

___________

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