#and just use my right arm to hold the cane even though it wouldnt help with the pain on my right leg

[mothwiingz]

my arm hurts so badly these days. it’s the same joints on my left arm, constantly aching, ranging from an easily ignorable 1/10 to a very concerning 6/10. overall its worse than it was even a month ago. it won’t be any time soon, but one day, i will be too sick to draw. and after that, there will come a day when i’m too sick to do anything i love. and i’m scared. i don’t want to get sicker, i’m still just a kid

[eitelle]

💟 ice skating w the hq boys 💟

with hints of: semi eita, akaashi keiji, & kuroo tetsurou (all x gn!reader)

genre: fluff, crack, inexperienced reader for semis and akaashis!! so im sorry if youre actually a god at ice skating 😭

wc: 1245 😧

around this time of year, it was perfect. it was chilly and cold and white, with occasional snow. it was the literal embodiment of winter. hot cocoa in mugs, and the highlight of this holiday season: it was your first with your boyfriend semi eita. he played holiday songs on the guitar and serenaded you when you cane over. but, as much fun as that was, an ice skating rink had just opened up at miyagi towncenter. growing up sort of rurally, you thought that this would be a great time to try something out, so you and semi went. “are you sure this is safe y/n?” your boyfriend asked you. “oh please, stop being a big baby,” you reply back as you two start lacing the rentals you bought. as soon as you stand up and start walking though, you can tell this won’t be as easy and graceful as others made it seem. as you hold onto each others hands you two walked towards the rink. walking slowly up the stairs, you immediately grip the railing to prevent yourself from twisting an ankle. as soon as you get on the ice though, you mentally prepare yourself for bruises because you know that youre gonna fall. semi gets on shortly after you do, the two of you using the wall to support yourselves. “babe, i thought you said this was easy,” semi called out to you. “youve never listened to me before, why would you do it now?” you respond. soon, some kids leave and you two snag their helper sort of ice stand things. as you grab onto them you start to reteach yourself and semi what you had learned (from youtube 😭). as soon as you two get stabilized, your date felt more like a date rather than toddlers slipping on ice every 5 seconds. having fun, and falling occasionally, you and semi tease each other and laugh the whole way through. as the zamboni cleans the ice, you two decide it’s been enough for one day. after returning the skates, semi walks over to you and kisses you on the forehead. “today was fun, i wanna do this next year,” he says with a smile. looping your arm around his waist, you reply with a lovesick smile and heart eyes, “next year?” “next year and so many more.”

— akaashi keiji

it is the most wonderful time of the year. thats what akaashi told you, but of course when he said it, it sounded like a winter snow finally came. aka, pure bliss. you and your family usually went sledding, or skiing, or some other winter activity, but your first holiday season with akaashi was already turning out different. you got your nails done and he surprised you with shortbread cookies first of all, then he made you peppermint hot chocolate, and now he was taking you ice skating in the town center he grew up in. he knew youd never gone before, but he was quite good so he knew it would be okay. as you two finish lacing up your skates, you stand up… and then sit back down again. “whats wrong darling?” akaashi asks concernedly after seeing the whole ordeal. “love nothings wrong, per se its just, how do you walk with these?” you ask facing your very first challenge, and you werent even on the ice yet! as your angel of a boyfriend helps you up to your feet, you use him almost as the elderly rely on canes, as your support system. as akaashi calmly guided you up the stairs and to the edge of the rink, he skates on gracefully. “cmon y/n, just take my hand. don’t be scared, ive got you,” he reassures. “whatever you say,” you respond shakily. as you start wobbling like a baby giraffe, you hear giggles from where he was while you were looking down praying you wouldnt fall. “are you laughing at me right now keiji?” “love i would never, except for this once,” he says before bursting out into laughter, unable to stop it after seeing your knees buckle together as you get stuck. taking your hand to guide you away from the little kids lowkey better than you, you start to laugh as well. after learning the basics and still not being able to skate without him, you call it quits for the day and go to take your skates off. “well, id say that was sucessful, but you need to take me on a second date so i dont forget what i learned today am i right?” you say playfully with a wink to keiji. “i mean, if you so insist,” he responds. “but i had fun today too love, how about next week same time same place?” “as much as i love you, my feet do not. maybe next month.”

— kuroo tetsurou

you could not believe your eyes at your boyfriend, the smart ass rooster head know-it-all, kuroo tetsurou. honestly, you basically suggested this whole plan of going ice skating, and with his reluctant agreement, you wouldve thought you finally found an activity in which you had the upper hand on with your boyfriend. truthfully he did everything above average. not that you would tell him though, his ego is big enough. and you knew you werent awfuk at ice skating, youd done it plenty of times before in the past, however youve never been great at it either. but now, you were standing on the ice frozen. (pun intended) you and tetsu started off skating in sync, albeit not very fast. then, he asked you, “can i leave you behind for a sec? i swear ill be back as quick as ever.” to which you replied, “of course just dont be too slow.” and he was off. he started skating slightly faster at first, not too much but enough that he let go of your entwined hands. and then he started skating faster, and faster, and then he started skating backwards. as he winked at you and did a quick spin, you stood jaw dropped and amazed. as did everyone else in the rink for that matter. as he came back behind you, he made a quick stop creating shaved ice. as he bent down, he scooped some of it up and sprinkled it on top of your head and grasped your hand. “didnt i look so cool baby?” he asked you with a smirk. “not that impressive rooster head,” you tease back, reaching up to ruffle his hair. “but to be super duper impressive to me, how about you teach me a trick or two and tell me how the hell you did that.” “the second part is easy, i took skating lessons when i was a kid and each month i go skating 2 times so i dont lose my touch.” “ah i see, so i think you should answer my other question now.” “which one was that?” “my proposal,” you respond monotoned. “but i dont see a ring on either of our fingers.” “oh shut up.” “alright alright,” he laughs as you two still skate in sync. “i agree ill teach you. but im hungry, lets get dinner?” “ok sure,” you say as you nod and tug on his hand to go towards the exit. “and for the record, if i were to propose that ring would be so noticeable you would be weighed down too much to ever ice skate again rooster head.”

thanks for reading! reblogs, likes, and comments are greatly appreciated :]

[darkmastermoon]

When he talks to another girl

Genre: Fluff

Person: Tae

I had just walked in from work when I saw my baby on the couch scrolling down his feed.

" Hey, Babe how was training?"

" Mihm" he groaned as he rotated to face me and smiled.

" It was okay,"

"Rm's clumsy self tripped and made me twist my ankle" He whined with a slight pout on his face

" Dang, babe i'm sorry"

" Want me to give you a massage." I said, setting my stuff down and cuffing his face. He smiled before pulling away.

" Nah its cool Mel gave me one"

"Mell ? "

"Yeah the new intern "

"That girl is pretty resourceful. And her hands babe-" he looked up at me with a bright smile.

" They're like magic. I don't even feel any pain"

"That's- good". I wasn't one to get Jealous especially not over a little help but for some reason hearing the girl's name come out of his mouth ticked me off.

" Yeha anyways how was your day at work ? " he smile up at me

" it was good surprisingly"

" How was it surprising ? " He said, grabbing my hand and guiding around the couch and into his lap.

I snuggled down into his chest befro speaking.

I breath out with a sigh or relief.

It was good I mean i scored this new brand deal. You know the one i told you about last week.

He chuckled his laugh bibratig his chest and up my back,

Yeah i men maybe

Did it have to do with the cand cane game?

What i said shifting to face him

Noo

" Oh well that must have been Mel's deal, Sorry baby"

I sighed before standing up.

Forget it Tae it isnt important.

He quickly grabbed my hand

Wait- babe if it important to you then its important to-

His phone went off with a alert and he quickly released my hand grabbing his phone.

I sighed

"Who is it?"

i said looking at the image of the girl.

" Oh it just - Mel "

" What "

"Hold on " he put his hands up and called the number

" I'll be back in a moment" mouth before walking out the room to talk to her.

I scoffed before grabbing my bags and heading to the bedroom and getting ready for bed. I would rather not argue with him or come off in a rude way. So I just swallowed my feelings.

~ time skip : 2 weeks later ~

After 2 week of constant interruptions and him missing out on a lunch date I finally bursted. HE had gone out drinking and didn't even tell me . The only reason I knew was because of his private snap story. I saw him and the girl from the phone ID mel. Drinking and throwing it back. So I decided I would confront him tonight.

I was sitting at the table waiting for him to stumble into the house. Except when he did he wasn't alone MEL was with him. She had brought him in and laid him on the couch . she knew the layout of our house as if she'd been here before. It wast until she came into the kitchen and turned on the light that she saw me. She instantly dropped the cup of water she had gotten for him . Her eyes were wide before smiling awkwardly at me

" HI im MEl" she said

. I sighed before grabbing the broom and dust pan and handing it to her.

" Clean it up, him as well" . I pointed at his wide eyed smiling face . I was furious . I wanted to break things I wanted to leave but I didn't. Instead I showed and cried it out before heading to bed.

The sound of a groan echoed out the hall it was his tear began to fill up again.

I mean i had to be overreacting RIGHT?

He wouldn't cheat on me .. right?

When i woke up in the morning i had expect to see him sleep on the couch by himself instead the Bit- no the girl was cuddled up under the cover with him on the couch. I scoffed before grabbing so cold water and pouring it on them.

Mel was furious and Tae was shocked.

I smiled

" morning " tae looked at me an then at me and then at how close they were to eachother.

Babe i promise it isnt what it looks like i mean I-

I cut him off with a smile

"

Yeah i know you wouldn't screw a intern on the couch that your parents bought for us"

" Definitely not in the house we bought together" i Smiled.

You definitly wouldnt be cuddling some random girl . i smiled

The girl tried to speak

No you need to get out of my house so that I can talk to my boyfriend.

She spoke stuttering

" i-ii " before grabbing her stuff and leaving.

So what is it about he rthat keeps her in your mouth tae.

Is she a new fascination or..?

He just stared at me as tears began welling up in my eyes.

" I-m sorry bab- "

he stood up trying to hug me

" No don't touch me " i said backing away from him.

"Lets Break up"

"Huh "he said

" Ive been thinking about it and maybe ive been overthinking but if i have to think so much about it i think it soemthing that should be done"

No Y/N I love you

No you love the thought of me

The idea of have a foreign boo to show off to yout friends the idea of having someone who will cater to you

That isnt me not anymore.

He took a step closer, tears in his eyes.

Baby he putted grabbing my hand.

I love you please dont leave me like this i mean your breaking my hea-

You have no right to finish that sentence i scoffed

mE ME Im breaking YOUR HEart do you not see me over here working my butt of for us . so you not see my forgiving incednt after incedent.

I dont wanna be a jelous pearson jealousy only brings hate it your heart and I let it in ....For you.

No listen y/n there is a reason I've been so close to Mel

NO i dont wanna i mean its hurts it hurts so much that i can barely breath i spoke tears spilling out my eyes.

You were all i wanted tae

Everything so i put up with it.

First is was kaely then Juno and now Mel i smiled at him. IM done i shook my head before turning around to start packing my stuff.

" I wanna marry you y/n " he yelled

" Keayl and JUNo were drunken mistakes you know this i was plastered and i coud-"

"You could though but you didn't"

Mel was helping me to set up a nice sceen of your proposal i wanted -

I gulped before turning around.

" I wanted to make it specailal. And fly your family down"

Tears fell out his eyes ans he dug in his pocket for the ring. My eyes grew wide as he open the box and stared at me .

" I love you ive never wanted anything more then you"

"I wanna start a family, i wanna "

he gullped

"i wanna be your everything the way your mine"

He said tears falling down his face. I couldn't help the smile on my face. So i turned away and he hugged me from the back.

I breathe in his sent before grabbing his arm and speaking.

[the-wayward-arc]

The sacrifice

"As the relic of creation, it can create or recreate anything but at a cost." Ozpin explained, having taken control of Oscar's body for a while.

"Wait, so it can create anything? Like another person?" Ruby asked, excited at the power the relic holds.

"Yes, but again it will have a heavy cost. The relic will ask for something in equal to what you want to create." He explained to both teams. Having made their way to atlas and recovered it. They had returned to the Atlas base General Ironwood gave them to use for temporary refuge. "It can create anything, which helped humanity combat the grimm more effectively. From this humanity learned to create better ways to protect themselves. From more defensive walls to machines of war. But each creation needed something in return." He continued, the others leaning as he talked. "For weapons, it wanted only materials. For homes, it wanted trees and dirt. Each creation was given an equal value." He finished.

"So if you wish to create a life, you would need to give something of same value?" Blake asked, sitting on the couch as she gazed up from her book.

"Precisely Miss Belladonna. Though no one has tried it. They were afraid of what it would want." He answered, drinking some tea that Ren had brewed. Jaune looked at it, thinking about something when suddenly the relic began to glow, giving off a gold light as it hovered above them. Everyone was caught off guard by this, too stunned to stop the relic from flying to a Jaune as he sat in a chair across the room. He closed his eyes and pulled his hands up in an attempt to protect himself but when he felt no pressure or pain from it ramming into him, he opened his eyes and looked at it.

"Jaune are you okay?" Ruby asked worryingly. Crescent rose at the ready, the others having weapons ready as well incase something happens.

"Y-yeah I'm fine." He answered, looking at the relic as it hovered in front of him, the golden light dimmed slightly.

"What will you give?" A deep voice boomed in the room. Everyone looked around, wondering where the voice was coming from

"Head master?" Asked Ren, storm flower aimed at the relic.

"Its the relic." He answered, looking at it and Jaune with a slight worried expression. "Mister Arc, please back away from it. Don't let it tempt you."

"What will you give in return?" It asked again, Jaune gulped as he gazed into it. He wanted to move but his body wouldnt let him. Instead his arm reach out to it.

"Mister Arc! Don-" but before he could continue, a blinding light erupted from it as Jaune touched it. They all closed their eyes to protect themselves from it. When the light disappeared, the relic was still hovering but Jaune was gone. "Oh no."

"Jaune!?" Yelled Ruby as she frantically looked all over the room for her friend. Everyone was panicking at this time, the relic of creation just flew by itself to their friend and now hes gone because of it.

"Headmaster wheres Jaune?" Asked Weiss, worried for the knight. Her hands steady as she looked at Ozpin. But he stayed quiet, gripping his cane as he looked at the relic.

"The relic has him." He finally said, stunning the others.

"What do you mean? Where did it take him?" She angrily demanded, wanting to know where it took her leader.

"The relic sensed something in the young Arc. It called out to him and he answered. We cant do anything for him now, itll be up to him if he comes back." He answered, the others looking at him then at the relic.

-elsewhere-

Jaune slowly opened his eyes, adjusting to his surroundings. Once he could see properly, he noticed that he wasnt in the room anymore. Instead everything was white and no noticeable structures he could see. He reached for his weapon but realized it was gone.

"Ruby? Ren? Yang?" He yelled, his voice echoing as he looked around. His voice echoed. He began to panic. "Okay okay, calm down Jaune. Gotta keep a clear head if you want to get out of here." He thought to himself. Before he could do anything, a golden light erupted in front of him. When it dimmed, he noticed a figure of gold light stood in front of him. This figure had no noticeable facial features but did stand a good two feet higher than him. Jaune backed up a bit, this thing had a powerful pressure to it and even though it had no eyes, he felt like it was glaring at him.

"What will you give in return?" It asked him, in the same powerful voice from before.

"W-what do you mean? He asked it, trembling a bit. The figure approached him.

"I sense in you a desire. A desire that flared up when you heard my story. A desire to bring life." It said, crossing its arms across its chest. Jaune eyes widened. He lowered his head.

"I'm in the relic." He thought, still looking at his feet.

"Yes. I brought you in here so that you may tell me your desire and what you will give in return Jaune Arc." It said, Jaune looked up at it, surprised.

"H-how di-"

"I read your thoughts. Nothing can be kept from me." It said. Its voice sounded annoyed at this point. "I know of your family. Your ancestors have played important roles in the world's history, being saviors and changing history itself." Jaune was stunned at this, his ancestors were really something then if even this powerful figure spoke of them highly. "Arcs have long since brought forth generations of heroes. One even kept me from being used for evil purposes but at the cost of their life. I will never forget that." It continued. "Now another Arc is in the process of adding another chapter in history, fighting alongside a silver warrior and other brave warriors. Much like before." It finished. Jaune was stunned, no shocked. He had no words. Nothing to say. "But now you desire something of me, and I know what it is. You wish to bring someone back." Jaune looked away when it said this.

Yes, when he heard its story, he thought there was a chance to bring her back. She was wrongly taken from this world by someone who doesn't deserve to live. He looked at the figure, he was here. It heard him. Maybe it would do it and he would pay any price to bring her back.

"Yes. Someone who didn't deserve to die. Someone who was thrust into a position they shouldn't have been in. She deserves to live her life to the fullest." He said looking at the figure, tears forming in his eyes. "She was my partner. She helped me when others wouldn't. She saw potential and strength when others saw weakness. If it wasnt for her, then I'd probably be dead, but she shouldn't have been ripped from her family, her friends and her team. She had Hope's and dreams." He approached it, the gold figure firmly stood as he did. "If you can bring Pyrrha back, then I will give you anything you ask." His voice filled with determination.

The figure looked at him, its arms still crossed. It then chuckled as it looked at the young Arc. "Just like she was." It said. Jaune was about to ask before it raised its hand to silence him. "I was created by the deity brothers, I have this power. I can bring her back to the world of living, with the memories leading up to her death but it will come at a cost." It paused, looking at the boy. "A life for a life. Give me yours for hers." He said, Jaune was stunned. He knew it would want something and he had a feeling it would be something like this. "I will allow you to th-"

"I agree." It stopped spending and looked at the boy, he looked into his eyes. He saw pure determination. This boy was adamant on bringing her back and he was ready to pay the price. "My life for hers. But please allow me time to say bye to my friends and her." He said. The figure looked at him and laughed. "What's so funny? Is this not the price?" He asked, confused.

"You Arcs are always ready to lay down your life for another. You were ready to offer your life as soon as I said it was the price. No thinking. No hesitation. No hint of fear. You were ready to go if it meant she would live. I saw you ready to give your life to save your friends when you fought against the false maiden." He said. "You Arcs never cease to amaze me. I will bring her back, but in honor of your ancestor who laid her life to protect me, I will not take your life. You are needed at the silver warrior's side when the final battle comes. But a price must still be paid." It said, the boy had a small smile on his face. She could be brought back, he would be able to see her again. She could see her friends again. He was still curious about what meant by silver warrior. Did he mean ruby? He shook his head, hed have to ask about that later, right now he had a more pressing matter.

"What do you want instead?" He asked. The figure looked at him a bit.

"Your aura, you possess an incredible amount of it, more than I've ever seen from anyone in the history of this world." It said, looking at Jaune. "Know that if you accept it, you will no longer be able to use your semblance. You will on longer be able to heal your wounds, even ones that could prove fatal. You would no longer be able to be the hero you dreamed of." It continued, looking at Jaune for any sight of hesitation or regret. But he saw none, Jaune didn't waver. "You would no longer be able to protect the innocent like a hunter should. The fight against the grimm would prove much harder for you. You would become a liability to your friends." It finished. Jaune still glared at it. He took the words it said to heart but still he would not waiver.

"Then I'll just need to get stronger." He finally spoke up, the figure would be smiling if it could. "You are right, without Aura I would be much more vulnerable and not much use in a fight. I could hide behind the safety of the kingdom walls for the rest of my life, but I could never forgive myself if I did that. I used to think I wasn't fit to lead my team. I was afraid I was holding them down and might get them all killed one day. But you know what?" He exclaimed. "They never saw me as a hindrance or a liability. They saw me as a friend, a leader, and a brother. They helped me get strong and supported me. As long as I can stand. As long as I can hold my shield and sword, then I will fight. I will never abandon my friends or ever become a liability to them. I will continue to fight by their side until the day die! An Arc never gives up!" He finished. The entity laughed. Laughed as hard as it could.

"Amazing! You are just like her, your ancestor, down to that fighting spirit. Jaune arc! I will grant your desire and bring back Pyrrha Nikos. You may keep your Aura until the final confrontation against Salem is decided. Your friends will needed it for that battle. But win or lose, I will take your aura. Do you understand?" It asked. It was surprised when jaune got on one knee and bowed his head. "Know that even if Salem is defeated, while it will weaken the Grimm hordes immensely, it will not stop some from being created. The world will still need hunters, be it against Grimm or Human. You will not have the strength of your aura to aid you in the battles after the confrontation. Do you truly understand this?" It asked, looking at the boy

"By my word as an Arc, no matter the outcome, my aura is yours to take. An Arc never goes back on their word!" He exclaimed, his head still bowed. "I understand what will happen but I don't care. I will still stand by their side and I will still lend them my strength. I will still protect those that can't protect themselves." He proclaimed, his hand clenched into a fist. "Now please," he looked up at the golden entity, "bring her back." The entity slapped its hands together in an instant, a bright flash of light blinded Jaune. As the light dimmed and his eyes refocused, Jaune saw orange petals float around him. The figure was gone. Soon the petals rapidly came together, beginning to take form. Slowly but surely, they formed into a person. A woman to be precise. Jaune saw her red flowing hair take color as the form descended towards him. Jaune put his arms to catch her as the last of petals disappeared into her body, her skin was warm to the touch and her eyes closed. Tears fell down his face as he smiled, he knelt down with her in arms. He moved some of her hair off her face.

"I'll be seeing you soon young Arc." The voice said, slowly fading as white sheet covered the naked girl. She slowly opened her eyes, adjusting to the white room and the blur of a figure looking down at her. She felt small droplets hit her face. When her eyes adjusted, she realized it was Jaune holding her.

"J-jaune?" She said weakly, slowly regaining the feelings in her arms and legs. He cried as he looked at her, hoping this wasnt a dream. But when she placed a hand on his cheek, wiping away a tear, he knew this was reality.

"H-h-hello Pyrrha." He choked as he hugged her close. "I-i-its good to s-s-see you again." She was a bit surprised, her last memory still a blur but right now, she hugged him back. While curious as to what he meant, she felt it's best to ask when things were calm.

"Jaune? Where are we?" She asked, letting go of the hug so she looked around. Jaune stood up, holding her bridal style. He knew she was still weak and best not let her walk until she regained her strength. She blushed a bit but turned red when she realized she was naked, with only a white sheet covering her. "And why am I naked?!" She exclaimed, covering up as much as she could. He smiled at her.

"Its a long story, it said you would get your memories back after a while but maybe me and the others explaining will help." He said looking at her. "But first," he leaned in and kissed her on the lips, surprising her. Her faced went full red and hot. "Now you know how I felt when you did that." He chuckled as she hid her face in her hands. "Also, you may want to be prepared, the others will be excited to see you again but I'm sure you're gonna get some scolding from them. Especially from Nora and Ruby." He explained, she sighed some memories began to come to light. She rested her head on his chest armor as the were enveloped by light and right back in the room, everyone staring at them in shock. The relic slowly descending as she looked at everyone.

"P-pyrrha?" Ruby managed to say, dropping crescent rose as Nora covered her mouth, tears rushing down her face. Ren fell to a knee, looking at his thought to be dead teammate. He rubbed his eyes as Nora knelt down with him. Weiss dropped her weapon, too stunned to say anything. Blake and Yang leaned onto each other, keeping the other from fainting but tests running down their faces. Ozpin was quiet, his stoic as he looked at the two before him. While happy she was alive again, he looked at Jaune with worry. "What did you give up Mister Arc?" He thought to himself.

"H-Hello everyo-" but she didnt get to finish as everyone ran to them, hugging the two as they fell to the ground.

"Hey guys! Be careful, she still kinda weak!" Jaune exclaimed as he made sure Pyrrha wasnt hurt. He wasn't mad at them, not in the slightest. He watched as Pyrrha was hugged in his arms and questions asked to her. She smiled awkwardly but warmly as she wiped tears from Nora's face. Jaune smiled as everyone came together in a group hug, Pyrrha smiling as he nuzzled her. "Welcome home Pyrrha." He said to her, giving her a quick peck on her forehead.

(Woo this was long! I hope you all enjoy! Now to the next prompt!)

[writeanapocalae]

A Detective in Junction

Read it on Ao3 | Chapter 1: Diving Back In 

Warning: This is a Sequel to A Doctor in Union and may not make sense out of order

Sebastian groaned, glaring at his phone where it sat on the bedside table, lit up and buzzing and waking him. He slept lightly, napped through parts of the day, and there were many nights in which he didn’t sleep at all. He’d only barely fallen asleep. He should have ignored it,  wrapped an arm around Stefano’s shoulders and gone back to sleep. No one ever texted him though, there had to be a reason for it.

He picked it up, the air chilly against his arm. Stefano grumbled in his sleep, if he was asleep, as the cold traveled down his back from the shift in blankets. The phone didn’t tell him much when he answered it.

‘Located JO. -JK’

His glare deepened, not understanding the code. The phone number wasn’t one that he recognized. For a moment he considered it a joke, especially because of the JK, but then his brain turned on fully and he bolted up out of bed, and there was no way that Stefano wasn’t awake after that.

He had to go. He had to go now.

He called the number back, even as Stefano groggily pulled himself up into a sitting position, a hot hand soft on his back.

“Where is he?” Sebastian gritted out, the sleepiness still in his voice, making it play-doh and slow.

“I don’t know if I should say it over the phone, otherwise I would have texted the coordinates,” Kidman sounded tired but in the way that she hadn’t slept yet. Sebastian could hear people in the background, lots of people.

“I thought you said Mobius was gone.”

“It is, but that still leaves a lot of other people out there wanting the technology. I haven’t even made it to the facility yet; I’m just hoping that I’ll be the first one to enter it.”

A panic was starting to grow in Sebastian’s chest, his heart pounding. Stefano was rubbing circles against his shoulder blade, trying to calm him. Joseph, found and possibly alive. He’d been hoping, he wasn’t a praying man but he’d considered it a few times, for Joseph to be alright. He definitely wasn’t alright but he was, possibly, salvageable. This was the first he’d heard anything about Joseph since finding out he was even alive.

“Where are you?” he switched tactics.

“I’m at the airport in Chattanooga, Tenessee.”

Sebastian pulled out of Stefano’s hold and out of the bed, dragging his jeans on from where he’d dropped them the night before. Stefano was shadowing him, which he did so well now that he was healthy enough to move on his own, silent in the darkness. If he hadn’t been there when Stefano got better, he would have been terrified of the change.

“I’m on my way.”

“We’re on our way,” Stefano corrected. Sebastian looked at him, seeing only the light of his phone reflecting in Stefano’s eye and nothing more.

“Text me when you get here,” Kidman hung up.

“So, where are we off to in the middle of the night?” Stefano asked, scooting past Sebastian for his cane and then over to the light switch, making them both half blind with light.

“You don’t have to go anywhere,” Sebastian grabbed a shirt and threw it on, not even looking at what it was. “And I need you here, to watch over Lily.”

Stefano opened a drawer in his dresser, pulling out a pair of dark olive slacks. “You sound as if it’s some sort of emergency and you should know by now that I don’t intend to make you go through something like that on your own. We can get a sitter for Lily.”

Sebastian paused a moment, uncertain. He was fairly certain that he’d never mentioned Joseph to Stefano. He couldn’t believe that he hadn’t. Joseph had been such a huge part of his life and when he was gone, Sebastian had fallen into the worst depression of his life, not that he could claim all of that was on Joseph’s apparent death.

“It’s two in the morning,” Sebastian grumbled.

“Well, can it wait until an actually humane time of day then?” Stefano slipped into a pale yellow dress shirt, “You’re going to have to explain to both of us what’s going on, after all.”

“Yeah, yeah, shit, I’m sorry,” Sebastian rubbed at his face. “Yeah, I’ll tell you in the morning. I’m just, I’m going to get ready in the mean time. I don’t think I’m going to be able to sleep.”

Stefano nodded but didn’t get undressed. He moved with Sebastian in silence, packing along with him. He noted the low amount of clothing that Sebastian was packing and followed suit, as if he knew that there wouldn’t be much need for a change of clothes in whatever adventure Sebastian was going on. Sebastian wanted to give in, to tell him right then what was happening. He didn’t want to go over it twice though. He didn’t want to argue with Stefano right yet, even though he knew that this would lead to that. He didn’t want Stefano going with him, didn’t want him ever falling into STEM again.

By the time morning came and Lily was awake he was a jumbled pile of nerves, no matter how softly Stefano touched him, pressing kisses to his temple and sliding his hand along his back whenever he could. The moment that Stefano left him to go downstairs, to prepare breakfast and get coffee going Sebastian sat down on the edge of the bed, trying to breathe, trying to think. He’d been thinking all night but he still didn’t have any idea what he was going to say, how he was going to say it.

He went downstairs a few minutes later, finding Lily and Stefano at the dining room table talking about something in hushed tones. Lily looked nervous and he couldn’t read Stefano at all, even though he could see much more of his face than he used to, Stefano getting more comfortable with his hair being a bit shorter on the right side of his face.

“There you are,” Stefano gave him a soft smile and Sebastian’s chest tightened, the anxiety swelling. He couldn’t do this to them, not when they’d all gotten settled in. He didn’t want to do this at all, but he owed it to Joseph, didn’t trust anyone to go in there in his stead. “Would you mind alluding us on what had you so worried last night?”

Sebastian sat in his seat, a cup of coffee and a plate of toast and eggs already waiting for him. He sighed. They were so good to him, too good. They didn’t deserve any of this.

“Kidman texted me last night,” he said, not lifting his head to make eye contact. “She found my old partner, back from KCPD, in an abandoned Mobius facility. He’s over in Tennessee and I-

“And you intend to go there and fish him out, is that it?” Stefano interrupted, his cup hiding his face. “This would be Joseph, correct?”

Sebastian balked.

“I told him about Uncle Joseph,” Lily raised a hand meekly. “You went into the bad place with him the first time, right? You think he’s still in there or do you think he’s a bad guy now?”

Sebastian looked from Lily to Stefano, his mouth still open. “You knew about him?”

“Lily used him as an excellent teaching tool to explain your sexuality to me,” Stefano waved the question off. “You do realize that there is no way that you’re going alone, correct?”

“You’re not coming with, neither of you,” Sebastian glared, trying not to let any real anger shine through, “Kidman will be there, I’m not going to be alone. And no, I don’t think he’s Mobius. He’s probably still in STEM.”

“That’s not going to happen,” Stefano placed his coffee on the table, crossing his arms. “I am going with you.”

“You lost enough to STEM,” Sebastian shook his head, “and to Mobius. When I said you’re never going back there, I meant it.”

“And miss your reunion with your boyfriend? I think not. Sebastian, you lost far more to Mobius then I did; I lost most of what I had before I ever went to them. I do not intend to lose you to them as well! Do not forget, as well, that I had a great deal of power in Union, that I understood how to bend through the logic of that place. I would be irreplaceable to you.”

“I’m eleven years old!” Lily added, “I don’t want to come with but I’m old enough to watch out for myself! I think you’ll do way better together than you would alone! Buddy systems and all that!”

They were teaming up on him and not in the way that he’d expected. He’d thought that they’d both be against him going at all. They must have both known how much Joseph meant to him, which didn’t make any sense to him, Stefano didn’t seem like the kind of person who would be willing to share him, especially not in a romantic sense. He found himself smiling, the anxiety not gone but the anxiety for their responses at least drowned out.

---

The airport was busy and it was hard to get through the crowds with their suitcases and the cane that Stefano hated so much. He pretended he didn’t rely on it as much as he really did but, after a few hours on a cramped airplane his legs felt weak and stiff. He wanted to hold Sebastian’s hand, not the cane, but he rested against it with each step.

He could feel anxiety prick at him, a thick buzzing in his veins, an urge to stop and breathe at the same time that it was propelling him forward. He swallowed it down. He didn’t need it. It wasn’t helpful. Sebastian needed him to be strong right then. He didn’t know if he could be. He kept thinking about going back down, wondering if he would wake up this time, since he’d barely been able to last time. He’d been lucky last time and he’d been lucky every day for the past year; that luck would run out eventually.

Sebastian raised an arm and Stefano jumped, not expecting it. Sebastian was on his bad side, which he did when he was nervous, thinking that Stefano didn’t recognize it. Usually it made him feel safe, having someone he trusted protecting that side, but he couldn’t feel safe now, he couldn’t feel much aside from dread.

Sebastian was waving to a woman, to Juli, who was waiting for them at one of the little cafes that cost a fortune. Stefano had only met her a few times, when he was healing, and he knew that he had made a terrible series of impressions in such a weak and meager state. He held his head higher, tried to be more imposing. He’d come a long way.

She didn’t smile when she approached them, just clutched the briefcase at her side and made sure there was no one watching her. She’d told Sebastian that Mobius was done for, but she was far too paranoid for such a response. He’d say that it made him uneasy, but he was already uneasy.

“I rented a car, come on,” she said, in place of a greeting. They followed her in silence, out of the air conditioning and out into the heat, to a small black car that was so uncharacteristic that it had to be on purpose. She opened the trunk and they both put their bags inside before climbing into the back, Juli driving.

Once they were belted in, Stefano’s cane over his lap, Juli opened the briefcase, pulling out some files and passing them back. Stefano took one while Sebastian had the other two and the car was started and out of the parking lot before they even had them open.

The file that Stefano had was on the Core, a ten year old boy named Jonathon. His last name was a large black stripe. Stefano’s hands started to shake as he read about the boy, about his high scores in standardized tests, about his wealth of empathy, about his love of art. He was just like Lily, even the terminology was the same as what Sebastian had quoted from Mobius. Lily had been taken away in the falsified fire though and, for Jonathon, the opposite was true, the fire had claimed his parents. There was no one to care that he was gone.

Jonathon was written as being clever and artistic, showing great promise but with obsessive traits. Stefano wasn’t reading in too much depth, he didn’t want to know all of the details. This all felt too familiar. He glanced over at Sebastian’s file instead, where he was reading on a young woman, Amber Fairen. She was a romance writer, 25, but none of her stories had ever been published. At the top of the page was the same terminology that was on Jonathon’s, just with a different number: Core Candidate #9.

“Are there multiple Cores?” Stefano asked, reaching out for the other file in Sebastian’s lap.

“Yeah, this is the most experimental version of STEM I’ve ever heard of,” Juli explained. “There’s no people involved, so you aren’t going to have to deal with civilians, aside from the Cores. I guess they saw that there were too many issues with just having a single Core in place and decided to try with three.”

“And the reasoning for there being a child?” Stefano continued. Sebastian was only half listening but he perked up at that, anger flashing over his features.

“Same reason as with Lily. There’s a level of innocence in children that haven’t been exposed to trauma and they are impressionable. They’re easy to control and manipulate.”

Stefano reached out to put his hand on Sebastian’s shoulder. He could see the tension growing in his brow.

“No people though, that’s good, that means that there wont be any monsters, nothing like the Lost.”

Sebastian glanced at him. He swallowed. He’d never seen Sebastian so angry and he couldn’t help but feel like it was directed at him. He was just trying to get some answers though, know as much as he could before they went in.

“There’s another major difference, they implied a Lucid Unit for Cerebral Integration,” Juli explained. There was no answer from the two men and she paused, her eyes trained on the road before she went into it, collecting her thoughts, “I saw a little bit of the planning for the Luci, but I never saw it used, I didn’t know it was completed. It’s a sort of artificial intelligence that was put in place for ease of cataloging and mapping STEM, since the map could be changed by the Cores at any time. They’re also used to report any errors to the Mobius members who would enter for testing purposes.”

An artificial intelligence? Stefano had heard that such things were in development but he didn’t think anything like that would be usable so early. Mobius acted as if they were gods though, it was completely possible that they had surpassed the rest of the world by bypassing ethics and other pesky laws.

“You think the Luci could be dangerous?” Sebastian finally spoke up, handing Amber’s file over to Stefano. He didn’t open the next one. Stefano was certain it was Joseph’s.

“I’m not going to say they wouldn’t be. With the way the Cores and the other test subjects have altered the surroundings in the past, I wouldn’t trust anything to be safe really. Just take it slow.”

---

He didn’t think there was a chance, not really. He hadn’t imagined that Joseph could be alive, not after he saw Kidman shoot him, but then he’d gone back in after Lily and Kidman had told him that Joseph was alive. He’d been so distracted though, with rescuing Lily, with getting Stefano out of STEM and then back on his feet, that he hadn’t had time to really think about Joseph. Joseph, who had been in STEM this whole time, had been living in one of these nightmare worlds, with only two other people, who could have been allies or enemies.

He should have tried harder. He should have tried earlier. He shouldn’t have left Kidman to hunt for him on her own.

She pulled up to the facility, which looked like an old water purification building, with mildew growing up the walls and the grass overgrown and a few creeping vines climbing up the sides. Stefano gave him a small smile, a squeeze to the shoulder, before he unbuckled and climbed out of the car. Sebastian sighed, following his lead.

It reeked. It smelled like Beacon, like the sewers underneath it, where the water was a dark and deep red from all of the blood and viscera that was mixed in with the water. It smelled like rotten meat and cold bile and mildew and the sickeningly sweet scent of garbage on a hot day. As they drew closer to the door, which sat open with a chair shoved against it to keep it from closing. There was a pile of limbs and flies and mistakes, of the bodies that Juli must have dragged out of the building all on her own. She wasn’t looking at them, she was unreadable, her face blank as she went into the building.

It looked like a Mobius building on the inside, all white tile and cement, cold and barren and clean, aside from the swivel chair that was at the end of a long smear of blood. He squeezed Stefano’s hand. He shouldn’t have been here. This wasn’t Stefano’s job. Stefano gave him a small smile and a squeeze of the hand back, as if there was nothing wrong. Everything was wrong.

Kidman hadn’t been overly talkative before this, had always given more questions than she answered, but now she led them past offices and labs and examination rooms without a word. She was pale, a sheen of sweat on her brow. She looked like she was coming down with something. She may have been, just from touching all of those corpses.

The STEM room was more complicated than the one for Union, which was more complicated than the one for Beacon. There were three of those metal cylinders, the same kind that Lily had been in, in a cluster in the center, the wires and tubes coming from them bound in different colored transparent tubing to keep them separate and recognizable as they led to monitors. There were eight tubs around the tubes and they were ergonomic, actually built for comfort and short time use. The people who went in weren’t supposed to stay in, the trips were meant to be shorter.

There were blood stains everywhere.

“You should get dressed, do whatever you need to do before getting in,” Kidman explained. “I can give you a moment if you want.”

There were security cameras in the corners of the room. Those made him feel a lot less private than Kidman not being there would. He didn’t care if Kidman saw him naked, he didn’t have much shame in those regards, she’d seen him much worse than just naked. Stefano looked uncomfortable though and his eye was trained directly at one of the tubs as if it were something much more than it was. He was looking at it because he knew what it actually was.

“Yeah. Yeah, that sounds good,” he shooed her away, letting go of Stefano’s hand to stroke up his arm. He didn’t even turn to watch her leave, had his attention on the man before him, who was pale and still intent on that tub. “Hey, you okay?”

Stefano bit his lip and nodded. “We’ll be in contact, won’t we? She can extract us whenever we need to be?”

“I have no intention of letting you out of my sight,” Sebastian promised, wished that his older promises were still holding up. “But yeah, we’ll both have communicators, remember? If we get separated, we’ll be able to find each other. And we can talk to Kidman whenever we need to.”

Stefano set his cane down, resting it against the tub. He drew closer to Sebastian, his hands finding Sebastian’s waist and stroking along it to wrap around him.

“You’re scared.”

“Of course I am,” Stefano admitted, laying his head against Sebastian’s chest. “You heard what she said. There won’t be any people in there, aside from the five of us.”

Sebastian hugged Stefano back. “Isn’t that a good thing?”

Stefano shook his head against him. “It means there will be less obstacles, I’m sure, less monsters, less casualties if we fail, but it also means less distractions.”

Sebastian pulled away from him a bit, “Less distractions? Isn’t that a good thing?”

“Before, when there were more minds connected, their obsession with normality, their ideas of what Union was supposed to be, made it harder to be manipulated for those of us who knew we were within a dream. I could create, of course, but when I did so in someplace other than my own space there was a chance that it would revert to how it had been. There will be less distractions in this STEM, which means that we’ll be able to change it without trying.”

“You think you’ll revert,” Sebastian sighed, realizing what Stefano was dancing around. He closed his eyes. “Stefano, that’s not going to happen. You were changed by Theodore, by Paolo, to become that killer. It’s up to you what you’ll become now. And I’ll be at your side all the while. If you think you’re going to falter, you can lean on me.”

“And if I hurt you?” Stefano asked.

“That’s not going to happen.” Sebastian kissed him, long and slow, reminding him that there was more to him than words. He was a man of action and that wasn’t always a good thing, but Stefano melted against his touch.

---

He had never expected to come back here. He had never wanted to. Juli had told them what to expect and it was so different from Union, but he still didn’t think that he was ready. He lay down in the tub, letting the fluids wash over him. His hands were on the sides of the tub though, knuckles white, and he turned to Sebastian, hoping for just one more argument, one more excuse as to why he shouldn’t come. He had been brave before, had acted like this wasn’t a compounding of trauma, but now it was happening, now it was real, and he wanted escape. Sebastian’s eyes were closed, his brows furrowed in concentration. They were going to do this.

“Don’t worry,” Juli put her hand on his shoulder, plugging him into the machine. “I’ll be out here for you. If it ever gets to be too much, you let me know. I’ll extract you as fast as I can.”

He nodded. That helped a little, even though he knew that if they came out they’d have to start over from the initial insertion point. He let go of the edges and let himself slide further under the liquid, taking one last look at the metal tanks that held the Cores.

This wasn’t like Union. In Union there had been only Lily and he hadn’t seen how they’d kept her in a metal chamber. There had been hundreds of tubs, like the ones that they were in, all of them citizens of that imaginary world.

He wasn’t ready for this. He’d ever be ready.

He closed his eye, following Sebastian’s lead, and suddenly he was falling back into the fluid, falling and plummeting, eye flying open to watch as so much of that white liquid fell away from him. He was unable to breathe, unable to fight against his drop into the depths. He felt himself start to choke on the nothing, reaching at nothing, wondering why Juli wasn’t pulling him up, wasn’t pulling him out. The liquid wasn’t that deep but he was miles down, the lights from outside a soft glow in the distance. He was struggling, trying to shove his way upward, but he felt a weight on his chest, a weight that was pulling him down. He opened his mouth but all that came out were the air bubbles that he so desperately needed.

He was dying. He had been a fool to agree to this. He’d known it at the time, too. But now he was drowning. Now he was suffocating. He was dying and it was pain and it was hands on his throat, in his lungs, shoving liquid into him.

And then it stopped and he was floating and there was no liquid around him. Either that or he didn’t need to breathe. He wasn’t sure, but he wasn’t suffering any more. He was slowly sliding down towards a field of pale blue grass, all of it reaching up for him, looking as if it would catch him and cradle him and pull him down into comfort. He looked around but he didn’t see Sebastian anywhere in this space. He wondered if Sebastian was in a place quite this beautiful or as terrifying.

He drew towards the bottom and he realized that there was no grass beneath him. The gentle swaying beneath him was not soft stocks but drowned fingers pale and blue from lack of air. They were attached to reaching arms, ready to grab him and keep him, to drag him down and make him one of them. He threw out his arms, trying to slow his decent, looking around for anything that he could grab onto. There was nothing but that field. He had no choice.

He kicked out, trying to keep the hands away. They did not care about broken or bloody fingers. The trailed their fingers over his socks, clung to his lounge wear, and held him tightly. He considered kicking off his pants in order to escape them but they were already holding him by the ankles, their skin so cold that it chilled him. It was elegant, in a way, the way that the hands all moved together, the field a garden of expression. It looked like an art piece that he would have made in a different life. Where he was now though, on this side of the exhibit, he was not so much an audience member as he was an unwilling participant.

The hands were heavier than the weight on his chest had been and when they grabbed they pulled, arms sliding into the field as if they were nothing more than tube worms. They were forced to release him as their fingers were separated by unadulterated earth. He stood among them, more tall ones waving at him, beckoning him closer, others trying to shove behind him. They were pointing him in a direction, towards a slanted building that kept flickering and flashing, glitching out into squares before scrambling into a different building altogether. There were five of them, if he had to guess, though it was confusing as some of them stole parts of others and they didn’t cycle in an order. The shorter ones were stretched out to match the heights of the taller ones, adding to the confusion. He did recognize the apartment building he had grown up in though and seeing it filled him with a dread that he had not allowed himself to feel while with Sebastian, ignoring his own painful childhood memories while recounting what good ones he still remembered.

There was no where else to go. He had to go towards the building. As he moved the arms shuffled and tightened, pulling down so he could cross, stepping on uncaring fingers as he went. Eventually the fingers ran out and the field looked like it was made out of black glass, only a few feet away from the entrance.

The building glitched, breaking into more pieces, breaking up further than it had any time before, and then shattering, colors and squares breaking apart and flying out, changing shape and color, forming a street that led to a town in the distance, wispy woods growing around it, trying to invade the cement past a weak wooden fence.

There was a fork and down the other side was Sebastian, who didn’t seem to be anywhere near as disoriented as he was. Sebastian was, however, smoking slightly and Stefano knew not to ask about whatever fire Sebastian had had to put out on his way here. He knew Sebastian’s past and he knew his nightmares. He didn’t need to bring them up.

He was glad to see that Sebastian was dressed like a normal person, no wandering around in the sweats that he had been in when they had stepped into the tubs just minutes before. He was wearing a brown, pinstriped vest and brown slacks that Stefano had never seen before, his white dress shirt unbuttoned a bit to reveal a hint of his chest, his neck unconstrained by a tie. Glancing down at himself he was glad to see that he was decently dressed as well, crimson slacks and a deep blue satin dress shirt, much more comfortable and much more him than the comfortable clothes he’d been told to wear. He recognized them as well, old clothes but feeling fresh and new, some of the first clothes he’d purchased once being released from the military’s care in America.

Stefano rushed over as best he could with the light limp that still threatened him so often, taking Sebastian’s hand in his own and drawing close. Sebastian gave his hand a light squeeze and offered a damaged smile, which Stefano would always take, even if it filled him with a concern he was still learning how to form.

“Regretting it yet?” Sebastian asked, trying to tease but there was no merriment in his voice.

Stefano tugged on his hand, making him stumble closer to him so he could press a kiss to his cheek, to pretend that what he had seen had not unsettled him and made his hands itch to create. “I would only regret it if I did not find you on the other side.”

Sebastian’s smile reached his eyes then, before they turned away, towards a lightly glowing figure down the road. Stefano turned his attention to her as well, although there was no where else he could look, eventually, as she was standing in front of a roundabout which held a large imposing tree. There was a wooden sign planted in the roundabout with a very familiar image of a tree that looked far more like a brain than could be coincidental.

“Hello,” the woman said as they drew near, her voice a perfect monotone. Stefano hated her immediately. Everything about her was flat and bland, even though she was glowing faintly, even through her bland gray pantsuit. “You may call me Luci. Welcome to Junction.”

Stefano was impressed. He wasn’t expecting the A.I. to look so human. It was accurate but uncanny, just slightly off in the motions.

She cocked her head, eyes looking them over in a mechanical manner and Stefano was brought to the conclusion that she was scanning thm. “I am an A.I., set in motion to accommodate and direct Mobius scientists through Junction. The fact that you do not recognize me give me cause to believe that you are an infiltration in the system. Name and registration, please.”

Sebastian looked at Stefano, but he had no registration here either.

“We were sent in for repairs,” Stefano explained, trying to come up with something believable, “and we are not altogether Mobius scientists. We were not given proper registration numbers as we were expected to meet other scientists here. Give us a moment to contact our superiors?”

She looked at him as blankly as before. “There have been no Mobius agents within STEM in 298 days. The Cores are out of alignment and need to be re-calibrated. There is a long list of repairs that need to be accomplished, but I cannot allow you entry until you have your registration.”

“Understood, my dear,” Stefano gave her a smile that would have charmed a real woman of her ilk. She did not respond to it. “We will return momentarily.”

He still had Sebastian’s hand in his own and he turned them to go back a few steps, pulling out the radio that was stuck on his belt, unnoticed until just then. Sebastian was looking at him quizzically but that was fine, there were many times in which Sebastian didn’t catch onto things as readily as he did.

“Juli? It seems we’ve run into a small hindrance.”

“Already? That’s impressive,” she sounded amused at least, if a little out of breath.

“We’ve met the illustrious Luci and she was hoping for our registration, could you make us some, right quick?”

He heard something drop heavily onto the floor, with a light squish that, paired with the lack of reality he was now in, reminded him greatly of his exhibit in City Hall. “Uh, yeah, give me a few seconds.”

He clipped the radio back onto his belt. Sebastian looked proud. He’d had people tell him that they were proud of him before, had people tell him how impressive his work was, but Sebastian was the first one who made him feel like it was true, that it wasn’t a stroke to his ego. He could still feel Luci’s cold eyes on them and, whatever mood that would swell in his heart was dashed before anything could come of it.

“Alright,” Juli sighed from her home on Stefano’s waist, “get the radio close up to it.”

Stefano returned to Luci and held out the radio, letting Juli state their names, falsified occupations, and a long list of numbers. Stefano tried to memorize his but it was too long and she only said it once before a small smile flitted onto Luci’s boring face.

“Welcome to Junction, might I point you in a direction of your choosing or shall I give you the list of malfunctions?”

“We’re heading for the Core, Joseph Cedric Oda,” Sebastian said, deliberate and to the point.

Luci seemed to think on that for a moment, getting confused more than a machine had any right to. “The Cores are not in proper alignment and may not be in the correct quadrants,” she explained. “Block 24A-31E is Core JO’s primary state of establishment, otherwise known as The Junction City Police Department.”

“Of course,” Sebastian gritted his teeth. Stefano didn’t understand why. They had both been detectives together, Sebastian had told him so on the flight over, so finding him in a place that he would find comfort and understanding in was not much of a surprise. “Thanks.”

“A pleasure to be of assistance,” Luci stilled, no longer active now that it was clear that Sebasastian was done speaking with her.

“Come on,” Sebastian squeezed his hand, “We’re going to need to get a move on, I don’t care if Juli said there are no monsters, this place gives me the creeps.”

Stefano nodded. Even with Luci offline he felt like he was being watched.

@chibi–raiden @detectivesebcas @angelicsociopath@sebcastellanyes @ruvikkin@lokis-queen-hepta-the-destroyer@samofgallifrey27 @supportivepsychopath​ @zellanoir​