#Leona doesn’t have a tag sadly

[rozugold]

Silly thing I made with all my oc girlies

[yunarim]

「 ₊ ❤️‍🩹 dorm leaders with natasha-like reader 」

── ⋯ where's a doctor when you need one? ✧ rus ver (original) : here! ✧ characters : dorm leaders ✧ tags : female reader (she/her pronouns), fluff, slight mentions of injuries, reader kinda works part-time at NRC as a nurse, reader wields a gun but no violence mentioned (she just uses it canonically but i left only the part that she only has it in her property) ✧ note : might edit this later since i'm not quite satisfied with my own translation from rus but that's it for now

「 Riddle Rosehearts 」 ⏤ ⊹ Probably encountering such a friendly person for the first ever time during his whole lifespan.

⏤ ⊹ Perplexed by your behavior enough to actually spend some time to try figuring out what is it that motivates you to act so selflessly. There is no way you ask him whether he feels okay everyday just out of your free will? Right?..

⏤ ⊹ It's amazing how patient you are being with Ace and Deuce, given they can be pretty much to handle. 

⏤ ⊹ Realizes you are a ray of light in a dark realm. Honestly, is it even legal for you to be in the NRC among them, such ... malicious creatures?

⏤ ⊹ Once you told him that there are many people in the NRC who need your support. He did not even believe you at first, dismissively suggesting that you are deliberately shielding yourself in front of others in order to earn public recognition.

⏤ ⊹ Being the only girl and not having magical abilities in the college dedicated for gifted magicians... He wondered how you felt the moment you got here.

⏤ ⊹ His opinion changed dramatically the moment Ace and Deuce casually mentioned that after going to the mines to restore that ridiculously expensive chandelier, the one who cured their injures was none other than you. 

⏤ ⊹ Actually was strictly against of you doing anything medicine-related due to the fact he doesn’t even know you have a diploma, so that making you certified specialist.

⏤ ⊹ You: I had my own clinic in my world.

⏤ ⊹ Riddle: I beg your pardon?

⏤ ⊹ Apparently, that one nurse NRC had is fired by now PLEASE–

⏤ ⊹ Riddle wants to look up to you in order to be just as collected and patient as you are.

⏤ ⊹ During all the time you spend at NRC he never ceases to be amazed at how unwaveringly confident you are when some unexpectedly difficult situations occur, but at the same time you never lose your humanity and concern for others.

⏤ ⊹ Ready to take care of you when you forget to do it yourself – you are also a living human being who needs rest and care.

⏤ ⊹ He is not very good at expressing his emotions, so you don’t expect obvious actions and words from him, but get ready for the fact that he will often drop by (apparently) your infirmary with a pinkish hue on his cheeks, saying "Good afternoon ... Y-You're not breaking any rules, are you? Fine then... I tried to make tea according to your recipe, can you check if it's okay...?"

⏤ ⊹ You are always present as a nurse during when unbirthday parties are being hold in case someone gets sunstroke or gets hurt on rose thorns.

⏤ ⊹ If suddenly you know how to use this huge gun... how do you even lift it, it looks like it weighs three times more than you yourself?!

⏤ ⊹ Is this what they call alternative medicine?..

⏤ ⊹ Overall he sees you as an extremely caring mother figure ahem ergh uh older sister.

「 Leona Kingscholar 」

⏤ ⊹ The fact that you are a woman automatically sets you apart from these uncouth students.

⏤ ⊹ Before you have time to say anything, let alone even do anything, he sees the accumulated life experience in your eyes. Those eyes can’t lie.

⏤ ⊹ Actually, no one expects it but he treats you with an enormous amount of respect from the very beginning. It took Ruggie a few days to get used to the fact that Leona doesn't behave as he pleases when he sees you.

⏤ ⊹ And when you stumbled upon him and said that deep sound sleep is good for his health he even thought that maybe you were some sort of an angel.

⏤ ⊹ Sadly, happiness didn’t last long.

⏤ ⊹ You noticed that he sleeps way too much, and that time you started lamenting that excessive sleep can harm his brain activity and blah-blah-blah...

⏤ ⊹ However, you still found yourself carrying an orthopedic pillow every time you go to the botanical garden in order to collect some herbs, so you leave the pillow near the bench Leona usually sleeps on.

⏤ ⊹ In case you stumble upon a sleeping Leona while walking through the garden, you try to adjust his sleeping position so that his neck won’t hurt when he wakes up, and during these moments he simply tries to hug you or pull you onto his lap. 

⏤ ⊹ You see him as a big capricious kitten mainly but you still have a lot of work to do, so you carefully put him back and whisper something gentle with your soothing voice.

⏤ ⊹ Mentally chuckles smugly every time you make a very subtle remark about the political system in Afterglow Savannah (the only fact he trusts you enough to explain something about throne succession in his family is quite amazing itself).

⏤ ⊹ You won't notice it outwardly, but he is extremely grateful to you for the way you spend time with Cheka and tell him interesting stories about your world.

⏤ ⊹ He is sincerely proud of you. You are a wise, caring and patient woman. He doesn't even want to joke around with you as he usually does with everyone around him. You are too amazing.

⏤ ⊹ In case you use a gun... Seriously, do you have an endless facts list to surprise him with?

⏤ ⊹ Doesn't show it, but is concerned if it's hard for you to hold this colossus gun in your hands.

「 Azul Ashengrotto 」

⏤ ⊹ Truthfully speaking, he asked Jade and Floyd a couple of times if they can distract you so that you wouldn't sneak into his office and start lamenting how hard he works and how he needs to take a break.

⏤ ⊹ He was surprised that you were extremely attentive when he tried to make a shady deal with you, according to which you could potentially become a nurse in Mostro Lounge.

⏤ ⊹ Your attentiveness actually comes from the need to measure dosages extremely accurately, that he could understand, but he wasn’t prepared for the fact you would read the shady part written in a tiny font at the bottom of the document with the same meticulousness.

⏤ ⊹ After your refusal to work for him, the part about how your conversation turned into a discussion of the cost of renting the premises and how much Crowley screwed everything up remains unsolved...

⏤ ⊹ Why Azul ended up being the one fixing all the mess Crowley caused in the first place? How insanely hard it was to start running a business with instant losses, and not to mention!–

⏤ ⊹ What do you mean you made sea buckthorn tea.

⏤ ⊹ Actually Azul can’t even realize what does he feel every time he accepts your care. He believes he is unworthy of your kindness, but as a result he clings to it like a lifeline.

⏤ ⊹ He doesn't remember when was the last time in his life he felt so... valid? Has he ever been appreciated the way he is now?

⏤ ⊹ At first he assumed that your kindness extends to everyone indiscriminately, but got incredibly surprised when he realized that perhaps you pay a little more attention to him than to the others?..

⏤ ⊹ And you are definitely not stupid to waste your nerves on just, uh, anyone.

⏤ ⊹ Jade and Floyd are constantly mess with him that upon NRC graduation Azul should definitely lure you to work with them.

⏤ ⊹ In case you know how to wield that giant cannon... Uhm so care to get married after graduation?

⏤ ⊹ You're so cool, it's just unbelievable, please make him a soothing tea before his heart breaks his ribs and jumps out of his chest, alright?

「 Kalim Al-Asim 」

⏤ ⊹ Finally someone who matches his energy!

⏤ ⊹Kalim is the embodiment of sunshine, while you behave more in a patient way.

⏤ ⊹ But overall you two are NRC’s brightest sun rays.

⏤ ⊹ Kalim is constantly dropping by the infirmary to bring you something to eat (Jamil actually played crucial role in cooking all those things Kalim brought but still consider Kalim wasn’t doing nothing!! He spent sleepless nights trying to master making your favorite dish, so he could get you something to eat anytime you would want to!).

⏤ ⊹ You!! You are so tender with kids around you!! You are so amazing!!

⏤ ⊹ A couple of times he saw you outside the NRC telling different stories about your world to the kids in the park.

⏤ ⊹ Next moment you were already creating your own fairytales, completely dissolved in that natural coziness. 

⏤ ⊹ He gets amazed every time he spots you sorting herbs in the infirmary. How could you remember so many different names and medicine properties?..

⏤ ⊹ Consider yourself famous in his family, given how often he tells little facts about you during phone calls. Be also prepared for the fact that if you happen to go visiting his family you’ll be accepted as an Al-Asim new family member.

⏤ ⊹ The result: you help Kalim's parents with chores in the kitchen and with cleaning, not afraid of doing extra work at all.

⏤ ⊹ Sometimes you forget that Kalim is actually not a child anymore, and Jamil reminds you that you shouldn't spoil him too much, but you can't help but running your fingers through his tousled hair during rare breaks you have a meal or just go for a walk to sort your thoughts.

⏤ ⊹ Once he saw how tired you seemed after having a long work day and ran up to you, asking if everything was okay.

⏤ ⊹ You just smiled softly, saying that you were fine, it’s just after another overblot happens the wounds are always much more serious than minor abrasions and cuts.

⏤ ⊹ Kalim gently hugged you, declaring that this hug would serve as an energy boost for today.

⏤ ⊹ From that day on, Kalim asks Jamil to wake him up much earlier than he usually does in order to run into your office and give you a reassuring hug (he returns to bed for another twenty minutes sleeping right after, but let’s omit this okay-)

⏤ ⊹ Surprisingly, you feel better indeed, but you always make sure to not leave such a nice gesture go unnoticed, giving Jamil your hand-made fruit marshmallow so he would give it to Kalim.

⏤ ⊹ Kalim: happy.

⏤ ⊹ Everyone: happy.

「 Vil Schoenheit 」

⏤ ⊹ If you work part-time at the NRC infirmary, then he’s ready to go to Crowley to figure it out so that you get an immediate salary increase.

⏤ ⊹ He knows how important medical knowledge is, and yours is on another level.

⏤ ⊹ Would you like to join his agency? Or maybe even start developing your own brand of cosmetics, given how well-read you are and how well-versed you are in herbs.

⏤ ⊹ He wasn’t insisting when you refused but surprisingly for himself got a little upset.

⏤ ⊹ However this illusory feeling quickly left him as soon as you suggested making a few adjustments to his own cosmetics, and advised a mixture of herbs that could strengthen the effect obtained from Vil's cosmetics.

⏤ ⊹ If you have joint potionology classes he always tries to cooperate with you.

⏤ ⊹Highly respects such an incredible woman like you. Please consider it requires A LOT to earn the praise from the Vil Schoenheit himself, so you’re quite privileged.

⏤ ⊹ Always ready to din common sense in your enviers’s heads. How can anyone possibly believe that you are working for some imaginary benefit?

⏤ ⊹ A woman with such caring touches and boundless attention to her patients simply can’t be a fake, aiming for ephemeral titles or unwanted recognition.

⏤ ⊹ There are no ulterior motives in the way you sincerely offer Vil a few remedies to increase stress resistance and stimulate concentration during work.

⏤ ⊹ To some extent, he doesn’t fully understand why are you being so nice and selfless, but he never argues with you. He's not an idiot to even say anything against you (why would he though? You’re stunning).

⏤ ⊹ Often comes to you for your advice since he genuinely values everything you say.

⏤ ⊹ His words won’t help or encourage your if you suddenly find yourself in a difficult situation or just get tired at the end of the working day. However, he is the person who will convince you that you just need a proper rest. Vil definitely makes you tea, helps you do all night skin routine and makes sure that you fall asleep peacefully.

⏤ ⊹ Your cannon looks absolutely intimidating, maybe it's even better that you haven't had a chance to use it anywhere except for crushing especially hard and large-sized reagents in the process of making potions.

「 Idia Shroud 」

⏤ ⊹ Girl, what anime did you isekai from?

⏤ ⊹ To be honest Idia was simply scared when he saw you.

⏤ ⊹ He has never come across such piercingly sincere and caring person alive. Idia doesn't understand why you care about him so much in the first place.

⏤ ⊹ It's not like he grew up surrounded by love and care to realize how to accept such a sudden kindness.

⏤ ⊹ How did you even manage to stumble upon him when he literally does not go beyond his room?

⏤ ⊹ Ah, that's right... As soon as he thoughtlessly tried to pat Lucius, you noticed him on your way to the infirmary.

⏤ ⊹ He thought you were taunting him when he found a pack of kitten stickers on his bag, along with a small note that said “If you have time, stop by the infirmary, I would like to give you tea leaves that I dried myself. I heard your brother makes great tea.”

⏤ ⊹ NO WAY HE WOULD EVER–

⏤ ⊹ That day Ortho accompanied Idia straight to the infirmary, where he left his brother, humming some catchy pop song, and call it a day. The tips of his hair blazed with a delicate pink, and only the mischievous sparks flying off smoldered with ardent scarlet.

⏤ ⊹ For the first time he saw someone so mesmerized by his hair. Sure thing he stood out noticeably among people with this amusing feature of his, but he observed such a childishly genuine interest without a bit of malicious intent perhaps for the first time in his life.

⏤ ⊹ After a few more ‘trips’ to your infirmary, he came to conclusion that you are incredibly enduring. People usually either ignore him or make fun of him.

⏤ ⊹ You though, you never rush him, never force reactions out of him.

⏤ ⊹ Fortunately for him, the fact that you never force him to do anything against his will helps him demonstrate his gratitude slowly, but quite effectively.

⏤ ⊹ If you have any problems with the equipment, consider that they are no more, because Idia is always ready to fix anything or improve your equipment out of his own curiosity he got while working with you.

⏤ ⊹ At first when you tried to fix his completely shattered sleep schedule he resisted capriciously as if being an annoyed child.

⏤ ⊹ But you are not a simple woman to just leave it like that.

⏤ ⊹ No kitten stickers until he sleeps at least seven hours.

⏤ ⊹ It doesn't matter at all that Idia is rich enough to buy at least a whole factory for the production of those stickers–

⏤ ⊹ Now your so-called quarrels have become a kind of a local joke between you two.

⏤ ⊹ At first he got scared when he saw your cannon, but now he just wants to upgrade it, even though you insist that you won't shoot it without a need (and believe me YOU won’t ever use it on people bc why would you even do that okay?).

「 Malleus Draconia 」

⏤ ⊹ First, the very fact that you are not afraid of him is truly amazing.

⏤ ⊹ Second, just how discerning you are, given you straight up went asking him whether his horns hurt when he sleeps?

⏤ ⊹ You are extremely interested in how his body works from a medical point of view, since its physiological characteristics are very different from your understanding of how the human body works. However, Malleus is not a human at all, so your curiosity is understandable.

⏤ ⊹ People are usually horrified by him, or prefer to dissolve in contempt radiating from them. Malleus just chuckles, but he gets puzzled when he's talking to you.

⏤ ⊹ He doesn't quite understand how to respond to such a delicate display of genuine concern, but you're not rushing him anywhere, just asking him to take care of himself a little more.

⏤ ⊹ Once you asked him what could save him if the wounds would be extremely severe.

⏤ ⊹ Maybe he was too serious for answering ‘Your voice would be the best remedy for me’.

⏤ ⊹ He had to consult with Lilia what to do when something aching unbearably right there in his chest, and yet you smile softly at his answer and say that his reply is quite reasonable due to the fact that he is not a human being.

⏤ ⊹ Excellent, now you think that ordinary medicines will not help him (which is also true, but still), because he does not belong to the human race.

⏤ ⊹ However, he is in no hurry. If you’re being patient, then he’s enormously enduring. Why hurry when you have all the time in the whole dimension?..

⏤ ⊹ Will you be happy if he helps you heal all the people in the universe?

⏤ ⊹ Yes, that's right, it's impossible... And yet you selflessly devote yourself to your work, endowing everyone with a gentle smile.

⏤ ⊹ You two often talk about the differences between your worlds while your patients are sleeping.

⏤ ⊹ He learns how you make tea just by looking at your elegant light movements. Malleus is generally very observant, so his eyes are always focused on you. If he continues glancing at you like that, maybe the other students you look after will start spreading rumors that there is something going on between you two.

⏤ ⊹ Malleus is actually absolutely mesmerized by your voice and during those rare days when you have the opportunity to have your time alone with him somewhere outside the infirmary, he asks you to sing anything you would like to.

⏤ ⊹ A lullaby from your world is perhaps the best thing he has ever heard in his entire lifespan.

⏤ ⊹ What an incredible woman you are.

⏤ ⊹ You even know how to wield a cannon. In fact, he wouldn't want to test your abilities and is even glad that you don't use it at all.

© yushiiae 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐝. 𝐝𝐨 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭, ��𝐨𝐩𝐲, 𝐦𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐲, 𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐨𝐰𝐧.

[snek-disappearedagain]

the next twst birthday set should be a sleepover party set and since it starts with Jamil we get to see him with his hair down all asleep and stuff bc the baby is tired let him rest (also Jamil with his hair down would give me LIFE)

AND LIKE Riddle probably has some super fancy pajamas and Cater would totally have a whole ass nightly skin care routine, he has one of those cute headbands that you use for like face masks on. Ace probably does something dumb to be cool, Deuce probably does something dumb too but neither are dangerous and both are fun and they’re laughing all of them.

Leona is sleeping like usual, he definitely doesn’t wear pajamas he probably sleeps in like a t shirt and sweatpants or smth, Jack would wear headphones to sleep and he would have either soft music playing or the loudest rock music ever (nothing in between except I might accept smooth jazz)

Azul probably doesnt sleep much so we just see him passed out at his desk in a button up shirt (with maybe a few buttons unbuttoned) and pants and his beautiful purple socks. Jade tries to sleep but Floyd is not tired and he wants to have a pillow fight so yeah 👍

Already mentioned Jamil but the second he finds out the theme he’s out like boom asleep he’s resting now it’s his birthday (however he has to sleep in a pillow fort in the dorm’s lounge because the dorm worked together to make it and he will admit it’s comfortable asf). Kalim seems like he would be the first to fall asleep at a sleepover, but no, nonono he’s up at 3am telling ghost stories and laughing and asking people their crushes /hj

Vil also has a nightly skincare routine (obviously), but he also has the most elegant pajamas you have ever seen. I’m talking full on silk set with a shirt, pants, and sleeping mask. There’s a fluffy robe, and slippers, and everything and he looks stunning. Rook is himself, he probably sleeps on his back with his hands to the side and his eyes OPEN /j Epel really wants to throw a pillow fight, and sadly he can’t in pomefiore so whoever his duo is better invite him to a pillow fight in their dorm >:(

Idia games like usual but he uses his birthday keys and gets a SSR/4*/5* (whatever the games highest card option is called) and he’s happy he’s like :D and all is well. Ortho would either make his own pajama wear or Idia would make it, either way it includes SPECIFICALLY a cat themed sleeping mask

Silver falls asleep early and he looks very comfy, very happy. Sebek also falls asleep early and someone (probably Lilia) drew on his face which is funny because that would happen. Lilia doesn’t sleep but he has the ugliest, most atrocious, most uncomfortable pajamas ever. Malleus takes a midnight stroll in a dragon onesie, I will not be telling who got it for him that is up to you.

Btw if you don’t read the tags you won’t know that this is actually my friend’s idea, we talked on discord about it and I expanded on it here so like yeah 👍

[thatweeboverthereisthirsty]

can I ask for number 6 (sfw) with leona please? thanks~

Why yes you may. So.... this turned into a short fic because I’ve been wanting to write a Hanahaki disease troupe for a while now. It also ended up a lot more ansgty than I had intended when I originally wrote up the prompt, but oh well, it happens. I hope you like this despite Leona being a little bit OC towards the end. Nonetheless enjoy!

Warnings/Tags: Blood, disease, pain, angst, maybe a smidgen of comfort at the end, death, unrequited love, requited love, Hanahaki disease troupe with my own spin, the ending is sappy just so you know

   Pain blossomed in your chest as you rounded the corner. An itchy feeling in your throat turned into a burn, prompting you to rush past the other students in the hall and push your way into the nearest bathroom. Coughs wracked your body and forced dark pink petals splattered with blood up your throat. 

   It was unclear how long it took you to finally settle down from the coughing fit. This had been happening for months. Starting with simple coughs and the occasional petal had turned into painful fits where you choked on the amount of petals and blood that made its way out from your throat. It was a horrible thing and you knew what it was and how to get rid of it. The only problem was that no one in this place knew how or even what it was. 

   You were about to get up when you were suddenly forced into another fit of coughs. This one was more violent and painful. Tears streamed from your closed eyes and you gripped the edge of the toilet harshly. It’s almost over. It’s almost over. It’s almost over. It’s almost over. 

   Once the hacking had stopped you panted for breath and gazed into the bloodied toilet. A sinking feeling filled you when you saw a flower. An entire flower the color crimson. Your time was nearly up and you could feel it. You could feel thorns spreading out from your lungs and pricking their walls. Soon they would puncture and you would cough until there was no air left to cough up.

   “Um… is coughing up flowers normal where you come from?” You jerked and winced as the stabbing sensation got worse. Turning you spotted Leona leaning against the inside of the stall wall and realized you must have forgotten to close the door in your haste. Another spike of pain burned your lungs as the thorns grew just from Leona’s close proximity. 

   If you hadn’t shut your eyes you would have seen the demi lion flinch and concern pass through his eyes. You breathed shallowly and coughed again before shifting into a sitting position.

   “No it’s not. Well sort of.” you panted and Leona raised an eyebrow. “It’s called Hanahaki disease. Where I come from it stems from unrequited love.” At that the mage looked at you in disbelief and crossed his arms. You continued despite his obvious suspicions. 

   “When you first get it, you cough a lot and sometimes spit up little yellow petals. Gradually as time goes on and the disease gets worse the petals turn pink and then darker as you cough up more of them. Eventually you cough up your first full flower, which is always the color of blood. It means that…” You paused and looked up at Leona with tearful eyes.

   You didn’t want to say it out loud. It would only make it more real, but if there was anything you learned from having Hanahaki disease, it’s that it is very real and very painful. Maybe if it had been someone else who had found you then you would have been able to explain it fully but Leona was the last person you wanted to explain your condition to. The lion man grew impatient and gestured for you to go on. You took a deep breath and forced yourself to speak the words. 

   “When you cough up your first flower it means that the thorns have nearly punctured your lungs and within the day you will die.” Silence was what met you first, but you watched as Leona’s eyes flickered from you to the toilet bowl full of petals and blood. And directly in the middle of it lay a crimson flower, bloomed straight from your pain. 

   He was quiet for a long time before he looked at you again and frowned. 

   “How do you fix it?” 

   “You can’t. At least not here. There are two ways for Hanahaki disease to be cured. A: the more favorable option. To have the person change their mind and decide to love you, that or they loved you all along and you just never knew about it. B: the more painful option and one I would turn to if it were a service offered here, surgery.”

   “Surgery?” Leona asked with a confused expression.

   “Surgery,” you wheezed, “where they remove the flowers and thorns from your lungs. Except it only works if you take the seed out as well. If you don’t remove the seed the flowers will just regrow overnight. A lot of people don’t turn to this option until the very last minute because removing the seed means removing your ability to feel anything. All of your emotions are tied to that seed and without it a person will live a life of numbness.”

   The look on Leona’s face morphed from confusion to shock and then back to confusion.

   “Hanahaki disease doesn’t exist here so they don’t have the surgery option which likely means that the people here aren’t born with seeds.” You spoke, sensing his thoughts. He looked down at you and scrunched his eyebrows together.

   “So who’s your unrequited lover?” 

   You froze and looked back into the toilet. Another fit of coughing sprung from your chest and left you heaving for air through the flowers that clogged your lungs and throat. Distantly you felt Leona’s hand on your back before it disappeared and his footsteps made their way away from you. 

   Tears slid down your face and plopped into the bloody water beneath you. Oh if only he had loved me.

----------

   Only a few hours had passed since your arrival in the nurses wing. Yet the elderly woman who looked over the health of her students stood sadly against the wall near her door, waiting to deliver grim news to all who came her way.

   Leona, who had already figured out what happened, stayed slumped against the opposite wall. His mind raced to process the situation. Everything had happened so quickly, it seemed like only minutes ago he walked in on your coughing and decided to tease you about your frail herbivore body getting sick. Then you had told him about your condition and the sight of you, weak, and trembling next to a toilet filled with evidence of your nearing doom had made him sick with this emotion he wasn’t used to feeling. He had run to get help when he realized that he could offer none, but a part of him wished he had stayed when he and the nurse returned to find you slumped, unconscious against the wall, blood staining your lips and tear streams lining your cheeks. 

   The lion growled in frustration at the recent memory and pushed himself off the wall. The nurse didn’t stop him when he entered the room you were being kept in. Soon they would move you to a better spot where you could be prepped for a funeral. The thought filled his mouth with a bad taste so he elected to ignore it as he sat beside your far too still body. 

   A sigh left him as he felt that emotion rise in his chest once again. He snarled as if he could scare it away but interrupting the silence in the room only made him feel worse. 

   How had no one else noticed sooner. Perhaps then they could have found a way to save you. Leona looked over at your pale face and frowned. It was weird not having you there. He supposed you would have had to leave for your own world anyway but this was different. This was a very permanent and sudden goodbye. The kind no one ever wants to experience. 

   Another sigh left his lips as he ran a hand over your forehead and pushed your hair back. Even in death you were beautiful. His hand made its way down to your chest where he let it hover for a moment before pressing down in hopes that he could find any sort of beat at all. There was none. However he did feel something strange underneath your clothes and skin. 

   Glancing back towards the door, Leona carefully undid the top part of your shirt and spread it aside so he could examine your chest area. What he saw had him retracting his hands very quickly and flinching backwards. 

   Underneath your skin vines wriggled and moved as they broke free from your lungs and wound their way through the other parts of your body. The tip of a thorn broke through the surface of your skin and dragged it’s way across your chest making odd jerks and turns. As horrified as he was, Leona leaned forward and watched as the thorn carved a word into your flesh. He watched carefully as it retreated back into its spot in your body and he felt his blood run cold.

   Leona Kingscholar. The word was his name. Then it hit him. The unrequited love had been him. This whole time you had been suffering because of him. And now you were dead because of it. 

   Sobs forced their way out of his throat and he gripped your arm tightly whispering that he had changed his mind. You could come back now because he had cured you. You were alright because he loved you. 

   None of his pleas did anything to bring you back, and eventually when the headmaster and your other friends arrived, Leona excused himself to run back to his room in Savanaclaw.

---------

   Leona rolled over and sighed, breathing in deeply to inhale the scent of the flowers that hung overhead. They smelled like you and their petals, once a horrific shade of red, now the same color as your eyes. 

   The lion yawned and smiled up at your flowers before patting the earth beneath him with his tail. He had cured you by being in love with you, and although that had not saved you from the thorns that terrorised your lungs, it had gotten rid of them and allowed you to sprout beautiful flowers that reminded him of you. 

   Just beneath the soil, your body lay decomposed into more rich minerals for the earth. Your heart however had transformed into the seed of the loveliest flowers Leona had ever seen. The disease that had taken you from him also gifted him with a plant of great beauty. 

   He lay underneath your flowers everyday and let their scent lull him to sleep. And occasionally if he listened very closely to the earth beneath him, he could almost hear the sound of your heart still beating. Beating because you were in love.

[rarepair-twst]

What counts or doesn't count as a rarepair for this event?

For this event, in order to not be too restrictive, we decided to limit the ships to those that have less than 50 entries on AO3 and less than 500 entries on Pixiv. Sadly Pixiv doesn't, at least to our knowledge, have a list of tags with their numbers but these ships will not be allowed because of their AO3 fanfiction counts:

Leona/Vil is currently at 47 so we decided to allow it even if the number grows till the start of the week itself.

If you don’t want to look each ship up on Pixiv, feel free to send us asks concerning the ships you're unsure about and we can check for you!

[my-see-through-heart]

22 questions

Thanks to @old90soul for tagging me! This is actually the first time this ever happened to me haha

Nickname: I sometimes get called Leo (my name is Leona)

Zodiac sign: Libra

Height: 1,64m or 5‘4

Hogwarts House: Ravenclaw all the way!

Last thing I googled: „Dioscorea communis“ (because I wanted to know what the plant look like xD I study pharmaceutics and need to know a good deal about botanics and have an exam soon ahh don’t remind me)

Favourite musician: This is a mean one! There’s too many! But if I have to limit myself to one it’s always gonna be Chris Cornell <3

Last movie I saw: It was a cheesy 80s romantic comedy called „Can’t buy me love“ with Patrick Dempsey in his young years hehe. I’m a sucker for RomComs ❤️

Song stuck in my head: „Cruel to be kind“ by Nick Lowe.

Following now: Idk, I follow a lot of blogs that seem really awesome! Like @chris-cornells-right-tit, @sweetness-doesnt-touch-my-face, @aliveoutshined, @miserychain, @stonegossards-scrunchie and of course @old90soul

Followers: 151 though most are probably inactive because I only recently became active again. I stopped being active in 2015 and started again in February of this year^^ The reason I did is actually because I wanted to catch up on a fanfiction I always used to read and love by @aboysbestfriendishismum 💕

Do I get asks: No but I also rarely ask people something. I am a very passive person with any kind of „social media“. But this year I try to be less shy and quiet haha

Amount of sleep: 5 hours cause it’s always loud in my dorm

Lucky number: 4

What I’m wearing: a short-sleeved shirt cause it’s actually warm in Germany for once whoo

Dream job: after I’m done with studying I want to either work in a pharmacy in a hospital or maybe a pharmaceutical company? But I’m also interested in research so maybe that idk I want to keep my options open

Favourite food: Spinach, pasta, sushi. Not all of those together in one dish of course. Though actually... I wouldn’t say no to that^^ and ice cream I love ice cream!!🍦

Instrument: Guitar. I used to play a lot but then I got chronic epicondylitis in my arm three years ago soo I had to stop sadly. It’s gotten a bit better but now I don’t have as much time :/ though to be honest I was never really good at it! My coordination with hands and brain and stuff is really bad this is also why I suck at video games 🙈

Language: my native language is German. The language I can speak best apart from that is English and in school I also learned French but I forgot most of it already. and I dabbled with learning Japanese. In general I really like new languages!

Favourite song: It changes daily depending on my mood so I couldn’t say. I just like too many. >_< They are all good in their own way. But if I just have to choose a song randomly that I like a lot maybe State of Love and Trust by Pearl Jam

Random fact: I have a twin sister and she doesn’t like Pearl Jam or Soundgarden or any „old music“ o.O (her words). Having the same genes doesn’t mean you‘re the same person!

[kashmiresims]

Relationship Troubles

First Post | Previous Post | Next Post

One would think that if one had a whole extra day off from classes, that one would be spending it having fun. Alarie was not having fun. She was miserable.

The previous evening had gotten off to a good start when she was reunited with Rafael. Illyana, who had been moping around since her break-up was even having a good time with a new guy, so how could Alarie not encourage a hook up for her friend?

Rafael could think of a few reasons, and as soon as they were alone together he had expressed his vast disapproval with them leaving Illyana with none other than Marshall Cosgrove. He argued that Marshall was an asshole and his attentions were always bad news. Alarie insisted Rafael was being dramatic. They fought. She eventually decided not to spend the night like she had originally intended to and waited for Illyana to return.  

However, Illyana did not and that was when she began to worry. She ended up taking a taxi to her parents' house. Her father worked in law enforcement and she wanted him near in case Illyana didn't turn up safe and sound.

Even fifty-eight texts later, Illyana still hadn't answered, but Alarie was surprised to find that Raphael did swallow his anger at her and reach out.

Rafael: Marshall came back

Me: Illyana w/ him?!?

Rafael: No :/

Me: WHERE IS SHE???

Rafael put her through a grueling ten-minute wait before responding.

Rafael: He says she left the bar with Nick Calhoun. Nick is a good guy though, so I wouldn't worry

It took Alarie a moment to remember that ‘Nick Calhoun’ was the same person they all knew as Nick Hart. Alarie raised an eyebrow at Rafael's statement. The Nick she had known was always somewhat selfish and egotistical. She highly doubted they had hooked up but couldn't help but to wonder. In any case, she knew Illyana could handle Nick—they had been friends long before the Thackery family moved to Isla Del Kashmire.  

But Alarie's worry had spiraled into frustration by the time morning came around; Illyana still hadn't texted her back and her calls kept only going to voicemail. She didn't know Nick's number but if she had, she would have called him and demand he put her friend on the line just to confirm she was okay.  

So here she was, on her day off from classes—alone, frustrated, and staring at her lump of a brother who was sleeping in the middle of the living room right where she had left him two mornings ago when she had left to go to Pandora.

"Antoine, you are a fool," she blurted.

Her elder brother stirred and opened his eyes to see her looming above him from behind one of the sofas with a cup of coffee in hand, clenching the handle.

"Wha...?" he blinked tiredly with confusion.

"You could have slept in our old room last night. There was an extra bed. Why are you still bumming in the living room?"

Antoine made a few grumbles and mumbles, stretching his arms over his head, seeming annoyed that she had woken him up asking questions and now was making sensible points. Alarie should just mind her own damn business for once. He soon halted his stretching, propped himself up on his elbows, and put his full attention on her.

"What's with your hair?"

Alarie's frown deepend. She didn't appreciate how he avoided her question and then made it sound like her hair was weird. It was rather voluminous at the moment.

"Leona doesn't mess around when it comes to braids, and I just took them out this morning. But stop deflecting—why are you still sleeping in the living room?"

She shouldn't have mentioned Leona's name because her brother's face lit up and it nearly broke her heart because he didn't know what Leona had done. Alarie made a movement to leave the room, "Fine if you don't have a reason, I'm just assuming you forgot we had an extra bed. You need to come home more often before you forget everything."

"No, I remembered but it's just I thought Alanna would be staying over again so assumed the room was full. Did Leona come back with you?"

Alarie froze in her steps. She should have just kept on walking and pretended not to hear the note of eagerness in his voice. She took a sip of her coffee and then sighed.

"No, she's not here. She got an offer to tour with Edric King while we were in Pandora and took it."

"How long will that be for? She said she would come look at apartments with me this week. I have a few today scheduled," Antoine frowned slightly at the news. She didn't know so just shrugged to show it.

"I wouldn't keep waiting around for her, Antoine. She's always going to pick her career over you and do anything she needs to get famous," Alarie advised sadly.

"Why would you say that? You're the one that told me she would even be here in the first place!" He sat up fully, bringing his knees under himself to sit on them and stared hard at her for an explanation for her change in heart. She had been nearly as giddy as he was to have them to be in the same place at the same time in over a year.

Alarie felt like a horrible sister, and maybe she just was for getting his hopes so high only to crush them. She had wanted her brother and friend to be together—they had always seemed like a perfect match but maybe it just wasn't meant to be, not after Leona had spent the night with Edric King.

"I'm sorry," was all she could say and did leave the room that time. Her words left Antoine staring after her with an expression of bewildered sadness but a growing inkling of what she meant by her apology.

Alanna, on the other hand wasn't necessarily miserable but was restless, unfocused, and had been ever since she had left Franz's room at the community college. She knew Alarie wouldn't be one to give her sound advice, and in all actuality would make fun of her if she brought up her feelings for Franz but she needed to talk to someone about her sudden burst of desires and get advice about it. So she called her brother.

"Hey 'Lanna, what's up?" he said when he answered. She could hear a faint echoing so figured he had her on speakerphone; she heard a car honk. He was driving.

"Oh, I wanted to see if you had time to talk about something..." she said and the connection crackled with static or some other interference before she could hear clearly again.

"Hello?"

"Hey! So I'm on my way to Memosa Bay to look at apartments. I just drove through the tunnel under the river so it cut you off."

"Oh, that's exciting! I didn't know you were moving," Alanna replied cheerily though her issue at hand was still very distracting and gnawing at her to voice it to someone.

"Yeah. Hey, did you want to come with me? I could use a second opinion and you're the smartest person I know," he offered and it made Alanna smile. "After me, of course."

He just had to go ruin the nice moment with his brotherly teasing. She rolled her eyes and thought about it. It wouldn't be so bad to hang out with Antoine for a bit. It had been a long while since she spent quality time with her elder brother and besides, she couldn't focus on studying at the moment. Maybe an opportunity would present itself during his apartment hunt where she could bring it up to him!  

"Sure. I'll tag along!"  

Antoine picked her up from her dormitory at the SSU campus and they proceeded north to Memosa Bay. He talked about his work, his reasons for moving, his experiences from the different places he had traveled and Alanna listened politely with great interest the entire ride, but the thoughts of Franz were still nagging at the brim of her consciousness.

They pulled in front of a three-story apartment building on the east side of the city, it was a few blocks from the heart of the downtown. Antoine had a rental car paid for by his company; he didn’t need his own car since he was always travelling and the buses were a decent option to get around otherwise. Alarie and Alanna even still relied on the bus lines.

"What's your first impression?" Antoine asked putting his hands on his hips and craned his head back to take the view of it in.

"I think it looks nice," Alanna replied.

"You think everything is nice."

She stopped and gave him an annoyed look. Why did everyone always accuse her of that? True, it was easy for her to find the good or beauty in things but it was incorrect to say she thought everything was 'nice.'

They met with the apartment's manager—an older woman who was very chipper and welcoming on behalf of hoping to rent out to Antoine. She showed them into one of the ground floor units.

"This one is the only available apartment at the moment. It's one bedroom, one bath," she explained as Alanna and Antoine looked around the main room in consideration. To Alanna, it was adequate, though she felt it was bit small for Antoine. He always needed room for tinkering with robotic parts and other electronic items, and this place looked like it lacked room for that necessity. 

"Does the unit have laundry?"

"Unfortunately, no—we do not have washers and dryers to rent per unit but there is a common area on the second floor that has these facilities," the manager stated. 

Antoine nodded in understanding and rubbed his hands together, turning to Alanna, "Should we go take a look?"

Alanna didn't see why they needed to but agreed. The manager made a move to lead them to the area but Antoine insisted they could go alone to see the laundry area. She seemed a bit put-off but allowed them to go without her.

They climbed a spiral staircase to the laundry area but it was pretty small too—two sets of shiny green washers and dryers stacked upon each other and then a table in the corner to fold clothes on. It looked like one of the apartment’s residents had left a basket of laundry sitting underneath but was no where in sight.

"What?" Alanna asked her brother because it was clear to her he wanted to get her alone to discuss something without the manager hearing.

"I think it's too small," he blurted her very thought on the matter.

"Okay, then tell her you were looking for something with more space and thank her for her time," Alanna instructed, unsure of what his internal dilemma was exactly. "Besides, don't you spend most weeks travelling for your job? It's not like you will actually live in your apartment a majority of the time."

He twisted his lips into an unsure expression, "Well I think I may getting promoted after I'm done with my next demonstration tour."

"Really!? That's so exciting! So, does that mean you will be in Kashmire more often?" Alanna felt a surge of happiness at the news. She had missed Antoine while he was away for his job. Not that she had much free time either with school but she did go to her parents' nearly every weekend and it would be nice to have family dinners like Franz did with his sister and mother.

"I'm pretty sure I will be. This apartment is a fifteen-minute walk from the headquarters and only five by bus."

"Is being cramped up in a small apartment worth the reduced commute?" Alanna wondered. She wouldn't think so, personally, but the reality was that she did. She made do in her small dorm room that she shared with another girl. It saved money and it was nearly a five-minute walk to all her classes which was extremely helpful if she accidentally slept past her alarm.  

Antoine didn't answer right away, seeming to weigh the question in his mind, "I guess I'd rather have more space, just in case..." he cut himself off; the rest of his thought was not spoken.

"Well, what other apartments are you looking at today?" Alanna asked, to urge him back on track, though still curious to what he was going to say about wanting more room.

"There's a duplex further west I was supposed to check out," he answered.

That sounded like a lot more space.  Expensive too.

"I guess if you don't want to give up on this place, you can just let the manager know you will call her if you decide to rent it," Alanna suggested and Antoine seemed to think that was a decent way to leave it for now. Antoine wasn't the most decisive person she knew. He fretted often in his teen years between decisions as minor as what to eat for breakfast. He had gotten a lot better though, and she supposed that just came with growing up.

The next place to check out was across town and right next to the largest park in Kashmire. It wasn't the average manicured park they would usually spot in a city. It had a large swimming lake, many trees, and some hiking trails. It was beautiful, how the city of Memosa Bay could preserve such a piece of land in the middle of the bustling metropolis.  

It was clear Antoine really liked this option—he clasped his hands together in happiness at the sight of the building exterior. It looked roomy from the outside at least. Since they were not meeting anyone for a tour of the vacant duplex, Antoine found a key lock container and punched in a code so that the container would open and retrieve the key. He explained that he received the code from the owner when he called to inquire about the vacancy.

Alanna immediately liked this place more than the small apartment as well. The kitchen was nice and roomy, and there was a lofted area above that looked over the main room. She could imagine living in a place like this with Franz in the future...and he could bake all the chocolate chip cookies she could ask for...

She had to put the breaks on such a thought, realizing she was indeed daydreaming about living with Franz. That was a new development. It also made her realize the probable reason her brother wanted more room. Leona. Was he going to propose to her?

Promotion at work.

Being in Kashmire more often.

Bigger place to live.

It made sense to Alanna that was what would be going down soon and she prickled with intense joy for them. It didn't escape her notice that Leona had lingered downstairs with her brother the other night.

"I like it a lot," Alanna blurted her opinion.

"I do too," Antoine smiled.

"I think Leona would as well."

She thought that by mentioning Leona, that he would be happy to dish on his plans, which she assumed to be something romantic. He had always been so taken with Leona Hillenburg, ever since he was in high school.  Okay, maybe he wouldn't propose marriage right off—it was a well-known fact Leona's father hated Antoine but she always thought Antoine and Leona were a good couple and, in all honesty, was a bit jealous.

However, her uttering Leona's name didn't send his face into an expression of joy but of forlorn sadness.

"What's the matter?" she asked as he crossed his arms and turned away, "I thought you two made up the other night?"

"We did but..."

"But what?"

"I don't know. It's something Alarie said to me this morning."

Alanna frowned. Alarie had a sharp tongue and often didn't think before she spoke. She had learned to shrug off Alarie's words years ago and not let them get to her.

Antoine gave a sigh, "She said I shouldn't wait around for Leona because Leona is always going to choose her career over me.”

Alanna felt a prick of anger at Alarie for telling him such a thing and make him lose hope. Alarie was just being sour grapes and she got that way if she was having her own relationship problems. Alanna put a comforting hand on his shoulder, “Don’t listen to Alarie. She was probably just in a bad mood.”

He considered her words but then said quietly, “Leona is now touring with Edric King so it may be while before she’s back in town.”

That was shocking news to Alanna! She had heard of Edric King; some of the girls in her dorm had pictures of him in their rooms. From what she did know, he was as handsome as they came. Then she understood the other half of her brother’s worried sadness.

“Leona wouldn’t hook up with Edric King.”

“How can you be so sure? He’s a star! He has money, looks, and we all know Leona would do anything to achieve her singing dreams! I’m sure King has lots of connections,” Antoine all but bitterly exploded, stunning Alanna enough that she took a step back.

After a beat, Alanna’s brow plunged into a deep frown, “Leona is tenacious but she’s not going to sleep her way to fame. That’s not who she is. You wouldn’t love her if you actually believed that.”

He seemed to take in a few breaths to calm himself and nodded, “You’re right.”

He walked in circle, considering the room but not really looking at it. Wiped his hand over his mouth and in a fluid motion rubbed the back of his neck. He looked to his sister again and repeated, “You’re right. Thank you.”

“For what?”

“Not letting me doubt Leona. I should be thrilled for her...she is doing what she loves,” he actually smiled that time. Alanna gave a small smile and nod in reply. She was the best at bringing a good mood back to her family and friends, and maybe that’s why people always assumed she thought everything was nice too.

They climbed the stairs to the lofted area and saw there was a set of double doors that led out to a small balcony. Alanna unlocked them and emerged outside. 

She made a squeal of delight all of a sudden as the sun broke from behind some clouds and revealed the amazing view this place had. There weren’t a lot of tall buildings in front of it like the first apartment, which allowed a sweeping glance across the city toward the skyscrapers that were further away. Because it was on the edge of the park, there were also an abundance of trees on the side, giving off the feeling one was living in a forest.

“Antoine, you gotta get this place! Look at this view!”

Anotine laughed, “I see it, I see it. It’s a bit over my budget...but...”

“But...if you get that promotion?”

“Yeah, I could rent here no problem,” he crossed his arms and grinned. Alanna flashed her teeth in a smile. She didn’t know why she was so excited, it wasn’t like she was moving into the place but her imagination wandered back to the scenario of her and Franz laughing and baking together in the large kitchen or sitting on this balcony and cuddling while looking at the sun setting behind the distant skyscrapers and high rises. It filled her with a warm, happy, melting feeling. Plumbobs, what was she? A slice of butter?

“What’s with that smile?”

“What?” Alanna’s daydream broke and she realized Antoine was regarding her with a puzzled grin.

“I don’t know, I just never seen you look so happy about real estate.”

Alanna took a few steps back and propped herself up to sit on the edge of the balcony. It was a half wall, thick enough to hold her weight. The sunshine dimmed a bit, as did her smile because the fact was Franz didn’t know anything about what she felt. She didn’t even know if he would return the feelings.

“How do you know if you are in love?”

Antoine’s brows rose to his hairline and he nearly choked out a surprised laugh, “Say what?”

“Love. How can you tell the difference between it and simple infatuation?”

Antoine took a seat next to her and studied her, “Why are you all of a sudden asking me this?”

Antoine was smart but he could be thick. Why else would she be asking him?

She swallowed the lump in her throat because she finally was about to tell someone, outloud, the feelings that had been growing inside of her. Franz occupied the majority of her thoughts, he was featured in all her day dreams, and it was exciting—wonderful—but terribly confusing because she’d never felt so strongly for a man before. She’d always been too practical to get involved with a serious romance, or rather, too inexperienced or frightened to start one. So she sighed.

“I think, I may be in love.”

[fortheloveofspencerreid]

Seasons - Spencer Reid x OC - Chapter 2

A/N - thanks to everyone who read the first chapter! Here’s a little more for you :) Let me know if you would like to be tagged.

Seasons - Chapter 2

Somewhere over the East Coast - BAU Jet

‘Garcia?’ Hotch frowned at the laptop situated on the table on the jet as the tech analyst’s image froze for a second. The agents watched and waited until she started moving again, animatedly as always.

 ‘My lovelies can you hear me? I think we’re having a slight technical glitch!’ Her voice chirruped through the tinny laptop speakers.

 ‘Technical glitch? I didn’t think you knew of such things baby girl.’ Morgan chuckled, moving into view.

 ‘Oh my beautiful chocolate man, such things do not exist in my world. But you should consider springing for a better Wi-Fi plan for that fancy pants jet.’ She winked.

 ‘Garcia please?’ Hotch spoke again.

 ‘Sorry boss, what can I do for you?’

 ‘JJ has sent you a list of victims’ names, I need to know everything you can find on them. And I mean everything.’

 ‘Given a little time I can tell you what they had for breakfast and if they were polka dot or stripes kinda gals. Tech kitten out.’ She smiled and then her image disappeared from the screen. Hotch closed the laptop and looked over the faces of his team members.

 ‘It says here there was a sole surviving victim?’ Reid looked up from the case file he’d been reading. Hotch opened his tablet and frowned a little, he’d scanned the notes, he hadn’t picked up on that.

 ‘Yeah her name was Leona Harrison.’ JJ nodded.

 ‘How did she escape? We’ll need to talk to her.’ Rossi spoke up in his deep, thick voice.

 ‘Cops found the unsub’s location and raided the place. They found one dead woman, Anita Callahan and Harrison who was barely alive. There was a shootout, some cops didn’t make it but somehow the unsub got away.’ JJ sighed. ‘As for talking to her, I’m afraid that’s not possible.’

 ‘It says she didn’t make it?’ Reid ran his fingers over the words on the page while the others followed along on their tablets. Reid was a technophobe. He had an ancient phone and preferred to have copies of case files rather than reading them on a tablet.

 ‘She passed away in hospital a few days after she was rescued from injuries sustained from the unsub.’ JJ told them all sadly.

 Hotch locked his tablet and looked at his team. 

 ‘When we land, Morgan and Reid I want you to go to the ME’s office and find out what you can on our latest victim.’ 

 ‘Roger.’ Morgan spoke up and Reid just nodded.

 ‘Rossi I need you to go to the home of the first victim. Find out what you can about her. Prentiss go to the home of the latest victim.’

 ‘Got it.’ Prentiss nodded.

 ‘All over it.’ Rossi agreed.

 ‘JJ and I will meet with Detective Doherty at the station. We’ll meet there later for a briefing.’ 

 The agents all nodded in agreement and went back to looking over files in preparation for their new case.

——————————

Brooklyn, New York - Unknown Location

 Her screams penetrated the air around them. He didn’t care if she screamed, no one would hear her. He’d gone to great lengths to make sure no one would hear them.

 The room was a little cold and smelt like mildew. The girl strapped to the chair felt goosebumps rising on her skin and a shiver pass down her spine. Her body was clad only in now dirty underwear, she’d been wearing them for three weeks since the day she’d woken up in a tiny cell stripped to her bra and panties. The cell was barely big enough to sit up in let alone stand and her body ached. But the ache was the least of her worries. There had been one other woman in a cell adjacent to hers but they couldn’t communicate as the cells were sound proof. The other woman had since gone and she knew what that meant. The other woman was dead. And she would be next.

 She screamed, tears streaming down her battered face.

 ‘Please!’ She croaked, not recognising her own voice. ‘Please let me go!’

 He didn’t look at her. He didn’t speak. He didn’t even acknowledge her pleas. She didn’t think he would. He never had done. She knew what was coming but she had by no means resigned herself to her fate.

 Every day for the past twenty two days she had been removed from her cell for a various period of time, brought to this room and tortured. The torture varied but it was always excruciating. She would be thrown back in her cell afterwards crying and in so much pain. Always wondering why this psychopath was doing this to her. Why her? What had she done to deserve this? Was her boyfriend looking for her? Were her parents? When was she going to die?

 He picked the implement up from the steel table with gloved hands and that’s when he finally turned to face her. The knife caught the single lightbulb hanging over head and glistened. She screamed. It didn’t help. He advanced. And all she could do was cry. 

——————————

Brooklyn, New York - Brooklyn PD

 The knock at her door startled her a little, not that you would be able to tell by her unwavering composure. She shook it off and cleared her throat.

 ‘Yes?’ She called from where she sat. The door opened on her colleague and one of the only other people to know about the feds presence, Detective Matthew Lent.

 ‘The uhm...consultants are here for you.’ He told her. She nodded and motioned her hand to send them in. She stood from her chair and smoothed down her powder blue shirt. Matthew disappeared and then a male and female agent entered her office.

 ‘Please, close the door.’ She came around to the other side of her desk.

 ‘Detective Doherty?’ The woman stepped forward. She was blonde with large blue eyes and a friendly smile. ‘I’m Agent Jennifer Jareau, this is unit chief Aaron Hotchner.’ She introduced them.

 ‘Thank you for coming.’ She shook Agent Jareau’s hand and then Hotch’s. ‘Lennox Doherty.’

 ‘Our other agents are already at work.’ Hotch informed her as he started looking around the room.

 ‘Brilliant.’ Lennox nodded. She followed Hotch’s gaze as did JJ. There were boxes piled up in one corner of the room and on the other side were two boards covered in photographs and hand written notes relating to the case.

 ‘Wow you’re prepared.’ JJ motioned towards the boards.

 ‘I’ve been chasing this guy for five years.’ Lennox simply told them. Hotch went over closer to the boards and started scrutinising them.

 ‘He clearly has a type.’ He looked over the twenty small photographs of the unsub’s victims.

 ‘Yeah. All between the ages of twenty and thirty. All brunette, all fairly athletic, in shape. They were all very career focused women.’

 ‘Any theories as to why he keeps them for thirty days?’ JJ leant on the edge of Lennox’s desk.

 ‘Kind of. My assumption is that maybe he spent a small amount of time in prison or a psych ward, thirty days of torture. Maybe it has some symbolism for him. Although I lean more towards prison.’

 ‘Why so?’ Hotch looked away from the board to Lennox.

 ‘Well,’ she sighed a little. ‘He doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy who would need to spend time in a psych ward. He’s never exhibited any behaviour that would suggest he was mentally unstable. I believe this is a man that hates women. I believe he is cool, calm and calculated. He can go months without killing if he has to. He doesn’t need to kill. He enjoys it. He takes his time, he plans every last detail. He probably had a bad relationship with his own mother, maybe she left; maybe she beat him. Maybe an ex, but he definitely doesn’t hold women in high regard due to something that happened to him in his past. If he did spend thirty days in prison, maybe it was a female guard. He’s never sexually assaulted any of his victims and I believe that to be not because he’s impotent but because he hates women so much he can’t bring himself to be intimate with them. He’s probably in his thirties to forties, well-educated but probably a loner. He slides under the radar. People don’t even notice him. He has a rouse to get them to pull over, the one surviving victim said something ran out in front of her car. I believe he planned that. All his victims were found with taser marks on their backs, it could be part of the torture but I think it’s more likely that’s how he stuns them once they get out of the car. His dumping patterns suggest he moves around a lot, we haven’t been able to get much from the Geographic’s. He dumps bodies all over Brooklyn. It’s like once he’s done with his torture he doesn’t care where they end up. He just likes getting us to run around the city after him.’ She paused to take a breath realising she’d been rambling. She got like this when she spoke about this guy. He got under her skin, she felt hot all of a sudden like someone had just turned up the heat. Hotch and JJ’s eyes were on her and that didn’t help. They eyed her up for a moment or two before briefly looking at each other and then back at her.

 ‘You’ve already profiled the unsub?’ JJ raised an eyebrow at her.

‘I don’t know if I’d call it profile.’ Lennox shrugged feeling suddenly shy. Here she was ranting and raving and, yes, profiling the guy when she had the best profilers in the world stood in front her. She felt stupid.

‘I would.’ Hotch stepped a little closer to her, his facial expression illegible but she would come to realise it always was. ‘And from the files you sent over I would say you are right on the mark.’

Lennox rolled her bottom lip between her teeth.

‘I was a criminal psychology major and after I joined the PD I took evening classes in behavioural science. I always wanted to be a profiler.’ She shrugged, turning away from Hotch’s intimidating gaze. ‘I’ve also read all of Agent Rossi’s books and been to several of his lectures.’

‘I’m impressed.’ Hotch nodded to himself.

‘What made you become a detective?’ JJ asked her, ever personable. She liked getting to know people, even if it was people she wouldn’t speak to again when the case was over.

‘The legacy.’ She smiled a little sadly turning around and motioning to the three framed photographs on the wall behind her desk of three men in their police academy uniforms. ‘My dad, grandfather and great grandfather were all detectives at this very PD. I never really had a choice to do anything else.’

Hotch thought after that profile she’d just delivered that she was wasted here. She was the kind of mind he needed on his team. He’d have to keep an eye on her.

‘Anyway,’ Lennox spoke again. ‘Do you want to start looking over my files until your team gets here?’ she motioned to the boxes. Hotch nodded and stepped towards them.

‘Can you tell me who else is aware we are here? I’d like to brief them on the importance of keeping our presence low-key.’ JJ spoke to Lennox.

‘Of course Agent Jareau, follow me.’ Lennox led her towards the door leaving Hotch to start on the boxes.

——————————

Brooklyn, New York – Medical Examiner’s Office

 ‘Wow, this unsub really did a number on her.’ Derick Morgan looked down at the body of the unsub’s latest victim, Melody Franks, on the steel table.

‘She was almost entirely eviscerated.’ Reid stared at the scar the coroner had stitched across her abdomen.

‘She would have bled to death.’ The coroner, an elderly man that simply told them to call him Doc came over with the victim’s chart. ‘If she hadn’t been strangled first.’

‘Is that how all the victim’s died?’ Reid looked up from the woman’s cold dead body to Doc. He nodded.

‘Manual asphyxia. He strangled them with his bare hands. It wasn’t quick. Judging by the marks on her neck I would say he strangled her four or five times, brought her to the brink of death only to stop right before she lost too much air.’ Doc flicked through his notes. ‘This guy’s real sadistic. She had a broken arm in two places, a fractured skull, and shattered optical bone amongst dozens of other minor injuries.’ There was nothing minor about this woman’s injuries but some were more minor than others.

‘She’s young.’ Morgan sighed.

‘Twenty three.’ Doc confirmed.

‘That’s no life.’ Morgan shook his head.

‘What else did you find?’ Reid stood up straight after being bent over the body to his full height. Doc looked down at his notes.

‘She had ligature marks on her wrists and ankles, no defensive wounds. Her stomach was almost completely empty, he was damn near starving her as well.’

‘Is that consistent with the other victim’s?’ Reid clutched the strap of his messenger bag as spoke.

‘Every last one of them.’

‘Even the first?’ Morgan confirmed.

‘Even the first.’ Doc closed his file.

‘That sounds too clean, too controlled to be a first kill. Most first kills are messy, it takes some time for them to figure out their groove.’ Morgan mused, more to himself.

‘There must be other bodies we don’t know about.’ Reid agreed. ‘Thanks Doc.’

The two agents headed to the door and exited the morgue. Reid rubbed his arms with his hands trying to warm up. Morgan already had his cell in his hand and it was ringing.

‘Queen of all that is technological. How can I be of assistance your handsome-ness?’ Penelope Garcia’s infectious voice bounced around the empty corridor as Morgan put the phone on speaker.

‘Hey baby girl, I need you to look into unsolved murders in Brooklyn from five years ago or longer. Young, female vics with signs of torture. Let me know anything you can come up with.’

‘For you my darling I will put it to the top of my pile.’ She flirted, Reid could hear it in her voice. She and Morgan always flirted, Reid didn’t get what was going on there. But then again Reid never did really get things like that. He was intelligent, a genius really, with an IQ of 187, an eidetic memory and he could read 20,000 words per minute. He could speak multiple languages but one of those languages was not the language of love. He could profile anyone in a matter of minutes of meeting them but personal affairs were not in his realm of knowledge.

‘Thank you my tech goddess.’ Morgan smirked as he spoke.

‘Toodles my hunk of burning of love.’ She hung up and Reid just stared at Morgan as they headed down the corridor.

‘What?’ Morgan asked, feeling the younger man’s gaze on the side of his face.

‘I don’t get it.’ Reid shook his head. Morgan reached out and squeezed Reid’s shoulder.

‘You can’t have everything kid. Imagine being as smart as you and being a lothario, the women wouldn’t stand a chance.’ Morgan chuckled as he picked up his pace. Reid pouted a little. He didn’t want to be a lothario. But being able to talk to a woman might make a nice change.

——————————

Brooklyn, New York - Brooklyn PD

 Hotch spent the next few hours going through files after files on their unsub. All the files we’re extremely well organised, He was becoming more and more impressed by Detective Doherty. JJ briefed the few insiders and started helping him go through the files while Lennox was on hand to answer any questions they had.

 It was late by the time the other agents made it to PD. Lennox gathered them all in a meeting room along with the other ‘insiders’ as her office was too small to accommodate everyone. Introductions were made by JJ.

 ‘Everyone this is Detective Lennox Doherty. Detective this is the rest of our team, SSA’s Derick Morgan, Emily Prentiss and David Rossi.’ 

 Lennox stood forward and one by one shook their hands, feeling oddly star struck when she shook Rossi’s hand. Rossi was one of the reasons she’d wanted to be a profiler, she never thought she’d actually meet him. 

 ‘Where’s Reid?’ Hotch asked with his trademark frown.

 ‘Little boy’s room.’ Morgan smirked. 

 ‘These are the only other people that know about the FBI involvement. This is Detective Matthew Lent, Detective Carlo Sanchez and PD’s Bruno Carter and Brian Flannigan.’ Lennox introduced the other cops in the room. 

 Suddenly the door flew open and a gangling man with long hair practically careened into the room. Morgan sighed heavily.

 ‘Reid, firearm! We had this conversation in the car!’

 Reid looked down to his very noticeable weapon on his hip. He blushed a little, unstrapping his holster and moving it to a more discreet location so it was hidden under his sweater vest.

 ‘Sorry.’ He shrugged.

 ‘Lennox Doherty, this is our resident genius Dr Spencer Reid.’ Morgan said the word genius as though he didn’t quite believe it at that moment in time. 

 Lennox stepped closer to the young man. Their eyes met, her blue ones and his deep hazel ones. She felt a sudden shiver pass up her spine.

 ‘Genius?’ Detective Lent spoke up thankfully because Lennox found herself at a loss for words. Reid tore his eyes away from the woman.

 ‘Well I don’t know about genius.’ He shrugged. ‘I mean I do have an IQ of 187, an eidetic memory and I can read 20,000 words per minute...’ he trailed off feeling all the eyes in the room on him. ‘Ok so I’m a genius.’ He swallowed and Lennox watched as his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down under the sensitive flesh of his neck. She couldn’t quite get over how beautiful his eyes were, how beautiful his whole face was. She would have been less surprised hearing he was a male model than a doctor. Lennox didn’t find herself very often getting lost in someone’s looks, in fact she never did. But looking at Spencer Reid her throat felt dry and her palms sweaty. She tried to ignore it. She had to ignore it.

 ‘...so the fact you are FBI stays inside these four walls.’

 She tuned back into the conversation as Lent was speaking with the agents JJ hadn’t already briefed. She took a few deep breaths and her eyes followed Reid as he walked over to the far wall and started inspecting the pictures that hung there. The Brooklyn PD’s wall of fallen heroes. Under the photographs of their lost officers was a wall decal that read ‘Fidelis ad Mortem’.

 ‘Fidelis ad mortem.’ Reid spoke to himself but Lennox heard him.

 ‘Uhm yeah it means-’

 ‘Faithful unto death.’ Reid cut her off. 

 ‘Did he not mention all the languages he speaks?’ JJ laughed a little. Lennox looked over her shoulder at the blonde woman before looking back at Reid as he went over the photographs. 

 The final photo on the wall was a chiselled cop with dark hair and features. Reid thought his eyes looked warm, friendly. 

 ‘Maxwell Doherty, 1978 - 2013.’ He spoke out loud. He suddenly turned to look at Lennox, his facial expression curious. ‘A relation?’

 Lennox swallowed, feeling his profiler eyes all over her. She was glad for her poker face right now.

 ‘Nope.’ She shook her head. ‘There’s a lot of Irish-American’s around Brooklyn. Doherty’s a common last name.’ She shrugged turning away from Reid. Reid rolled his bottom lip between his teeth. She didn’t give a lot away, she was hard to read even for a seasoned profiler but he swore he saw a brief flicker of something in her eyes. Hurt maybe? A secret? 

 ‘I recognise those names.’ Hotch pointed at the end three photographs, Max Doherty included.

 ‘The three of them were three of the cops who found the Butcher’s hideout last year. The son of bitch killed them.’ Lent informed them. The room was silent for a moment as they remembered those they lost that day. Maxwell Doherty. Evan Schapiro. Megan Ludwig.

 Lennox was the one to finally break the silence. 

‘Right well it’s late so why don’t we call it a day and pick up again tomorrow?’ She addressed the room, clapping her hands together. The rest of the room made noises of agreement and one by one they left the meeting room. Lennox dragged herself down to her office where the boards were now covered back up. She slumped into her chair and ran her hands over her face. 

 The door was open so he tentatively knocked on the door frame. She took her hands away from her face and looked up, straight into his hazel eyes.

 ‘Not going home?’ Reid half-smiled at her.

 ‘Not just yet.’ She shook her head before rolling her shoulders and clicking her neck. He saw the brief swell of pain spread to her eyes.

 ‘Everything ok?’ He nervously stepped further into the room, taking in all the details of her office. She kept it dark and the temperature down. 

 ‘Are you trying to profile me Dr Reid?’ She folded her arms across her chest as she watched his eyes move about the room. He was trying to size her up.

 ‘I don’t need to try and profile you.’ He looked back at her with a slight smirk.

 ‘I suppose a genius such as yourself doesn’t have to try at much.’ She hadn’t meant that as harshly as it came out but Reid didn’t seem to mind, he just shrugged.

 ‘Are they family?’ He pointed at the photographs on the wall behind her desk.

 ‘My dad, grandfather and great grandfather.’

 ‘They must be proud.’ He stopped a few feet from her desk.

 ‘I guess they would be if they’d lived to see my making Detective.’ She unfolded her arms. ‘What is it you want Dr Reid?’ She stood up now, not liking that he was towering over her even though he was nowhere near her.

 ‘Statistically New York’s homicide rate is the lowest it’s ever been.’ Reid told her, as if she wouldn’t already know a fact like that about a city where she was a detective. ‘Even with this unsub roaming the streets.’

 ‘Is that supposed to make me feel better?’ She folded her arms again and raised an eyebrow at the young doctor. He shrugged. Talking statistics and quoting facts was the only way he knew of trying to cheer someone up.

 ‘I’m just saying you shouldn’t beat yourself up over the fact he’s still out there. The number of serial killings that go unsolved is-’

 ‘Dr Reid,’ she cut him off before he could spout another statistic. ‘With all due respect facts and figures aren’t going to make me feel any better about the fact this guy has gone without capture for five years. On my watch.’

 ‘I was only trying to help.’

 ‘Why? You don’t know me. Why do you want to help?’

 He could tell her back was up. She glared at him and he felt a knot in his stomach. She was incredibly beautiful, something that kept taking him off guard.

 ‘I thought that’s what we were here for. To help.’

 ‘To help catch the unsub yes. Not to help me through whatever it is you think I need with help with.’ She unfolded her arms and sat back down. ‘Now if you don’t mind I have some paperwork I need to finish.’

 Reid nodded, feeling uncomfortable all of a sudden. He hadn’t meant to offend her, nothing of the sort. He’d just felt drawn to her for some reason. He knew she had a story to tell and he thought maybe he could be the one she told it to. It had been stupid really. 

 He adjusted his messenger bag, the new position of his weapon digging into his lower back.

‘Sorry to have disturbed you.’ He spoke quietly. She didn’t look up from her desk. ‘See you tomorrow Detective.’ He sighed a little and turned to exit the room. 

 Lennox looked up as he was leaving. His long hair grazed the tops of his shoulders, his tight sweater vest creating a visible bulge where his firearm sat. She watched him go without saying a word. She wasn’t always so hostile, not always. Only on the very rare occasion she met a man who made her feel the way Reid was making her feel. Giddy, as though she were a teenager with a high school crush. She couldn’t work with feelings like that. She didn’t approve of them. She scalded herself as she looked down at the ring on her right hand. She twirled it around her finger a few times feeling guilty. She knew she needed to keep herself distanced from the devilishly handsome and somewhat gawky Dr Reid. 

 It had been a year. Why the hell did she still feel so guilty when she met an attractive man?

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