#and identity p*rn is one of my favorite tropes so here we are

[lilisette]

Masks Under the Chandelier | Caleb/Reader

About: A fic idea wherein you and Caleb meet months later in a gala. To you, this person is a stranger you just met. But to this person, you were more than that...

Pairing: Caleb/Reader

Notes: Might actually write this tbh... Caleb is my favorite ngl hahaha...

Warnings: Spoilers for Chapter 4! Please do not read if you haven't read it yet!

Imagine there is a gala or some high class event where you have to attend, perhaps as part of the event's security detail. With all the Metafluxes and Wanderers going about, it's important that the organizers call a few hunters to protect them from harm. But them going in uniform will no doubt alert the guests so you have to go undercover and dress up in a formal party outfit, a gown or whatever you wish to wear.

And by chance, because of all the important people there, the organization that kidnapped Caleb (since he is not dead idc what the game says) is invited to attend too. So they send Caleb, undercover of course, to attend.

Caleb donned a new persona, dyed his hair, wear contacts and all to ensure no one would recognize him. He attends and lo and behold, he bumps into you while wandering the event hall.

While Caleb has a new persona, his voice is still unchanged and when Caleb, in shock, whispers your nickname, cause- wow you looks amazing-, you turn toward him in shock and-

"Pipsqueak?" "Caleb?" "I-" Caleb almost responded to your call, but quickly remembered that he isn't Caleb now... He could never be anymore. "Sorry miss...?" The hope that was evident in your eyes dimmed, and his heart broken all over again when your eyes softened, a sad smile gracing your face. "I'm sorry, I thought... I thought you were someone I knew for a moment." You said, the distance between you and him so close, yet so far. There was an invisible wall between you and him now, and he hated it.

You and him talk for a bit, about why you both were there. Caleb keeps getting distracted by you because he has never seen you like this before, dolled up and oh so beautiful under the crystal chandeliers. There were many times where he almost slipped up and mention something that only the both of you know, but he caught himself. And god does he hate it. He's your best friend from childhood dammit (yes zayne exists but he likes to think you prefer him over zayne), why can't he...

Why can't he be close to you anymore?

It's ironic, Caleb thought, that you were telling him, a stranger, things that he as Caleb never knew. He asked you about who you have mistaken him for, and the answer shook him to his core.

"My childhood friend. He is... well, was, my best friend." You say wistfully, staring off into the crowd and imagining what would it be like if he was still here with you. He was about to make another comment, but stopped when you opened you mouth to continue. "And perhaps... If he was still around... We would've been something much more than that." The guilt and sadness that pierced through him then was so overwhelming it almost made him kneel. And yet, like a glutton for punishment, he asked. "You think you two would've been lovers?" "Not without us being honest with each other for once. But eventually... Yes."

You two talk for a bit more until you both feel a spike in the air, your watch that was disguised as a bracelet alerting you to wanderers in the area. You tell him to not alert everywhere because it will incite panic, and made your exit.

Unbeknownst to you, he trails after you, just like the time before the whole explosion happened. He watches you take down the wanderers with ease but then he sees a wanderer spawning just behind you, and without second thought, he uses his own evol to fling the wanderer away.

But before you could turn to see who it was who saved you, he hides behind cover. And before you could approach the spot, the wanderer stands up again, giving him ample time to slip away.

He watches you return to your post afterwards, and when you spot him again, he asks you whether you're okay and-

"Yes I am, thank you for your concern. Though..." You trailed off, your mind still stuck on the mystery of who saved you back there. "Is there something wrong?" "No! No. I just... No, it's nothing, probably just my imagination." You said, looking away and into the crowd of guests who were unaware of the Wanderer sighting, missing the look of guilt that was plastered all over his face.

Caleb, even under a different persona, was constantly worried about you. He waited for you to report to captain Jenna and escorted you home after the whole event. Before opening the door to your apartment however, you turned towards him.

"You don't have to do this, you know." "I insist." He expected you to open the door and leave, and you two will never see each other again, but instead, you looked towards him and smiled. "I thought about what you said. I think... I think you're right. I should start moving on." You said, and before he could ask why you were telling him this, you handed him your phone. "If it's alright, can we exchange numbers?"

Caleb knew he shouldn't do this. The organization specifically said that he was not to contact you at all costs. But well, Caleb reasoned with himself, they didn't say he cannot contact you while under a new persona. So he gave you his number as well.

The moment you entered your apartment and him in the elevator, he leaned against the wall and sighed.

What the fuck did he just get himself into?

[smalltragedy]

* brigette lundy-paine, nonbinary + they/them | you know kirby wormwood, right? they’re twenty five, and they’ve lived in irving for, like, two weeks? well, their spotify wrapped says they listened to ring ring by mika like, a million times this year, which makes sense ‘cause they’ve got that whole balancing acts at perilous heights destined to entertain, jack of all trades master of none, refusal to accept the mortal world as it is thing going on. i just checked and their birthday is december 1st, so they’re a sagittarius, which is unsurprising, all things considered. ( james, 21, est, they/them )

hllo welcome 2 my third character i love them a lot theyre a. remake of an older oc of mine so this is fun <3 sdfhk anyways once again i am asking u. pleathe like if u wld like to plot.

ARSON TW

mini playlist.

wizard ;; lucas lex / ring ring ;; mika / crows ;; clues / sunrise sunset ;; bright eyes / la llorona ;; beirut / no children ;; the mountain goats / might be love ;; the pesky snakes / sax in the city ;; let’s eat grandma.

statistics.

full name: kirby wormwood (currently).

nickname(s): magpie.

birthday: december 1st, 1995.

zodiac: sagittarius sun, aries moon, libra ascending.

mbti & temperament: estp & improvisor / sanguine.

label: the hellion.

hometown: abilene, texas.

sexuality: bisexual.

pinterest.

biography.

alright lets get right into it. kirby ws switched at birth. they cld’ve hd a very like. picket fence trampoline in the backyard. 4 columns cos its texas n it feels right. bt instead they were chosen <3 somewhat unintentionally <3 by dorothea n fawley wormwood, two traveling circus workers who emergency stopped in abilene.

n u know what. growing up in st. pierre’s traveling circus ws kinda fkn awesome? like ok. besides the fact tht they were homeschooled fr like evr n there were a sparing amt of children 2 socialize with? it ws p cool idk.

it ws kinda like everybody ws their parent n also not at all bc they were all very casual. bt they grew up learning hw 2 maintain the circus (n also like. normal school thingz bt i dnt think kirby hs ever cared abt school like ever) n whenever they hd a show kirby wld facepaint or handle tickets until they were old enough 2 start learning like. the Real fun things. 

fawley hd a lot of his own weird odd little like superstitions n beliefs n practically raised kirby on them like n they dnt rly <3 make a lot of sense. lots of made up philosophy. very much like. nothing defines u. u cn b anything or anyone. n kirby ws like ok cool. n then developed a god complex.

names didnt rly stick 2 kirby when they were a kid like. nothing satisfied them or felt worthy fr them or simply they just. got tired of a name. this isnt related 2 them being nonbinary BUT it did help ease some of the. pressure of exploring gender identity. theyve only hd one name tht stuck genuinely n tht ws magpie n. thts bc everybody hd their own bird name n it felt very. like community. like a role. usually the names they used during performances bt. anyways KFHDSGLKKHL

theyre Kirby bt answers 2 most. neutral nouns.

honestly. they were also a rascal as a youth. ws like. oh. i learned sleight of hand? cool. time 2 pick pockets. wld throw popcorn into the hair of other kids n b like. omggg what was that ... became a mime fr a year. it ws a rigorous training.

now a master of charades. bt anyways. they traveled pretty much weekly, maybe bimonthly n sometimes just pure monthly. there wsn’t an off season fr them, when the colder months came they’d travel south and when summer rolled in they’d go right back up again. it ws easy to switch personas almost daily n just. never reveal ur true self. totally not saying tht’s what kirby did bt thts what they did. it nvr made them lose sight of themselves it ws more like. acting. tricking ppl fr fun. 

anyways all good things come 2 an end and when kirby ws like. 18. they were like hey ur old enough that we cn trust u with fire. we think. n they started 2 learn fire-throwing n like. they were ok at it bt lessons were painfully slow n kirby ws like. i wld b so good at this if i cld do it all the time. n it ws like. hey kirby, chill. u already know a lot of things.

arson tw // u see where this is going. tents are kind of flammable. kirby ws unsupervised. bad decisions all around. circus is aflame. all the animals n all the circus workers got out fine bt like. st. pierre’s ws efficiently out of business. arson end of tw //

n kirby fkn booked it they just. ran. pure fear. nvr looked back which is like super traitorous of them 2 do bt. sometimes they meet up in secret like. sunglasses n all at a coffee shop. not all of them just like. fawley or someone else. theyre like. ur family u cld burn down a thousand circuses n we’d still love u. n kirby is like yeah i know bt i’ve rly committed to the bit now. n they dnt reunite.

anyways. since then kirby hs just been. a traveler. nvr rly staying anywhere fr super long n driving around in their shitty little van tht’d been used as housing back at st. pierre’s.

they’re in irving n theyve been there fr almost. suspiciously long. compared 2 their average stays. when asked abt what they do or why theyre there theyll just. give a vague answer or spin a long tale tht usually involves a burning circus.

theyre staying at uh. abernathy creek rn bc of course they r they fit in so naturally. welcomed with wide arms. might b soul searching rn might b on the hunt fr their birth parents might b just vibing ... whose to say ..

personality & facts.

has a Big personality tht attracts others fr better or fr worse. either super likeable or the most despicable person on the earth. no in betweens. n honestly tht is a talent in itself

has no off button is constantly. spinning tales or performing a dance or getting kicked out of bars fr whatever nonsense reason. 

honestly they prob think tht nothing bad cn ever happen to them even tho like. bad has literally happened 2 them before? love the optimism here. KLFGDLKFSDHGF

acts a bit like u’ve known them fr ur entire life they r oddly warm in tht way bt they themself r so distant tht its like. oh nice ok ...

both honest n yet dishonest like. yes they will hustle u out of ur money bt they will also tell u their opinion straight up. 

probably smart bt they r just like. prime thembo? flowy pirate shirts n cropped tshirts n pants tht r never tight. dresses like they do still work n live at a circus. 

likes 2 instigate things between others n then stand back n just watch it happen while taking like zero accountability. loves a good small town drama. avid milf hunter.

does not hv any faith in the american healthcare system at all n will straight up refuse 2 go 2 a hospital if they get hurt theyre like. i cn do it myself im like practically a professional. they r not a professional. 

bt does hv like. a thing abt apples. fkn loves them. 

uuuhhh cn play instruments bt all very badly. only knows one (1) song tht isnt made up n its wonderwall by oasis. they play it at parties. they expect fr tomatoes to b thrown at them at any given time.

very nimble. agile. granted its frm. learning circus tricks frm a baby age bt they hv impeccable balance n cn sneak up behind anyone without a single noise. uses this 2 their advantage in order 2 scare ppl. chaotic neutral.

loves having the attention on them i wont fk around here. will go to drastic measures to accomplish receiving it. my other muses r capable of taking things srsly bt kirby just. is not. they do not take a single thing srsly they barely even took. st. pierre’s destruction srsly n they caused it. maybe.

likes being able to just. be unknown so the amt tht ppl know abt them is actually very. little. i dnt think they even tell others their last name. sometimes not even their first. just hs so many aliases n nicknames. i know i didnt list any bt thts simply bc Any cld.

probably acts out to compensate fr the. underlying guilt they hv bt thts okay. i mean it isnt bt.

will probably show up if u call them fr help bt they lose interest in people p quickly n r always moving onto the next shiniest person. bt when they do they give them like. all their attention. if u wrong them in this period they will just. ignore it. bt when theyre bored then its like. u werent even friends at all? very odd.

perhaps it is commitment issues bt <3 ya. thts them. they do not claim favorite colors or movies or. most interests. probably bc theyre very very disconnected frm pop culture i think they learn everything thru twitter n google.

i wld not call them a good person bt i also dnt think theyre like evil horrible nasty awful they just. think abt themself a lot more than they think abt others n also refuses to face consequences ever and also .. anyways.

wanted plots.

part of the bird’s nest ;; honorary bird honorary circus member. u hv to be very well regarded by kirby to earn a bird name bt i feel like tht doesnt feel like a lot considering theyve only been here fr like. two weeks KDGDSHKGK. the catch is tht u cn only refer 2 them as magpie frm then forward. 

hand in unlovable hand ;; theres comfort in being terrible ppl together n it may not last bt it doesnt hv to anyways. its just them n the like. vibes. n knowing tht its smth thts nvr gna b long term. cld b anything ur character just hs to be also a little evil. KHDSGFDS

one jester ... wht abt ... TWO jesters .. ;; hoo boy. ooh man. unstoppable force and immovable object combine forces n just become. the worst of the worst. ultimate jokesters. epic pranksters. absolute clowns. chaotic energy unmatched. always nonsense. 

n also ;; ppl they’ve stolen frm, ppl who hv caught them in that act, ppl who’ve maybe seen them in the circus a very long time ago, Found Family Trope, real family shenanigans, kirby just asking everybody if theyre their dad., mortal enemies if they see each other its an instant duel 2 the death, etc.