#and knee and wrist seem to be the faves but not exclusive!

[gaybd1]

“I’m gonna cycle to work it’s finally not raining YEEHAW”

*intense flare of pain in my wrist causing me to drop my phone*

okay yeah maybe… that’s not a safe idea right now…

[thestefidelly]

SUBJECT 204 (Chapter Five)

(fanfic) (ao3) (chapter one)

Story Summary: Belle is accepted into an exclusive internship at a facility that studies supernatural occurrences, gifted individuals and cryptids. Something about their methods rubs Belle the wrong way, but she tries to let it slide… until she finds out about Subject 204. [RedBeauty, very possible Swan Queen, Maybe Sleeping Warrior] [Regina, Emma and Mulan will be key characters either way]

Notes:  Thanks again to everyone who faved and/or reviewed. I appreciate it a lot! In today's chapter, we get a bit more Ruby, and a little bit of Mulan. Tomorrow will be when Emma finally makes her entrance.

Did they brighten the lights in her room?

She squinted and tried to bury her face in her arms. A pillow or blanket to hide under would be nice, but they gave her some excuse about how it could be a danger to her. All she had was a plain bed that was more of a thinly cushioned metal slab bolted to the wall than anything else. Sometimes she actually preferred sleeping under it than on it, to hide from the bright lights.

There was a reason for the lights being so bright in her quarters, but she couldn't recall what it was.

Grumbling, she fidgeted with the collar around her neck. The chain hooked to it was bolted to her bed. Likewise, the chains attached to her cuffs ended with her bed.

They usually gave enough slack in her chains to let her pace her room and even go under the bed. It was more so she couldn't lunge at them the moment they open the door. She understood where they were coming from. After all, she was a dangerous creature, highly unstable and prone to unpredictable aggression. That's what she heard them saying whenever they observed her and took notes.

But after the stunt she pulled with Dr. Whale, there was just barely enough slack in the chains for her to sit up. She was confined to the bed and probably deserved it.

Her stomach gurgled.

Maybe she should have just cooperated and eaten the meat.

She was so hungry.

There was a tingle in the back of her skull that told her the full moon was drawing near. Maybe in a few more days, she'd have absolutely no control of the wolf. It was probably a good idea then that she was confined like this.

At least this way, she wouldn't be able to hurt anyone anymore.

The high school hallways were abuzz with excited teenagers, eager to chow down and stretch their legs and socialize. She was no different. Her attention span could only hold so much of the babble about chemistry and other sciencey things she didn't have any interest in.

If anything, the one class she enjoyed was home economics. The cooking part anyway. It reminded her of when she was a young girl watching her Granny prepare breakfast. And lunch. And Dinner. Those weekend trips to Granny's house were always the best time ever.

Something about being in front of the oven thrilled her and brought her back to that time when she felt loved and at home.

Then something happened and she just never saw Granny again. There were reports of her being a rumored serial killer but Mother would always shut the TV off or hide the newspaper. No closure ever came and Granny just became a memory. Some kids would point at her and whisper, but that was possible to ignore.

Sometimes, she couldn't help but wonder if any of that was true. If Granny really was a serial killer.

Whenever she was angry, she would entertain the thought that Mother was the actual killer. She was always hiding things and there were always those times when the house would smell weird. It was hard to pinpoint what the smell was, but it reminded her of scraped knees and elbows and raw meat.

"Yo! Daydreamer!" A voice boomed in her ear, making her jump. "Where were you this time?"

She shook her head, changing the subject, "Do you wanna meet me at the park tonight? I can tell Mother I'm studying with Dorothy."

Peter flashed that winning smile that just made her melt. "You mean meet at the park or meet at the park?"

Letting out a short laugh, she gave him a playful nudge, "You know what I mean." With a bite of her lips and a sway of her hips, she gave him the wink she'd been practicing in her room last night.

"Oooh," Peter's smirk widened as he put his hand on the locker behind her and leaned over, "So we're going to study?"

He smelled nice. She could detect the cologne he used and the gel he put in his hair. There was also a hint of shampoo and soap, but that was dulled by the gel and cologne. It was soothing to be around him. She felt safe.

"We could study each other maybe?" She waggled her eyebrows.

Peter did a little bounce. "Lookin' forward to it!"

Pain shot through her head, hitting her sharp and fast. She recoiled, putting her hands against her temples and screwing her eyes shut. Her skull was throbbing and there were lights flashing through her vision. She tried to blink them away and steady her breathing.

"Hey, hey," Peter had his hands on her face. Focusing on him helped steady her.

As suddenly as the pain hit, it subsided to a dull ache at the back of her skull.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah." She shook her head as if that would shake off the throbbing. "I'm good."

There was concern on Peter's face. "Are you getting those headahces again? That happens like every couple of weeks. Are you sure you don't wanna get that checked out? I mean I could walk you to the nurse right now."

"NO!" She shook her head, grabbing his hand and clutching it tightly. "I'm… I'm fine."

"Are you?"

"Mother says it's nothing to worry about." She avoided Peter's concerned eyes. "She says it's normal and that I should just tell her when I feel it so she can prepare the basement for me. There's like some calming music and stuff there and it's soundproof and I dunno." She shook her head.

Talking about it was weird. It made her think of stuff. Strange stuff. Like pain rattling through her entire body. Like wrestling with a huge dog. Which made no sense since they didn't have any dogs.

"Look, I don't wanna talk about this." She wasn't about to let her monthly headaches mess everything up. She just wasn't going to go home tonight. Mother always seemed to know when the headaches were happening. The best option would be to just avoid home and wait at the park. "I'll see you after class, okay? Like maybe right after class."

Peter didn't look too convinced. There was still concern in his eyes. Like she was dying or something. Which she wasn't.

"Peter, please." She kissed his cheek. "I need this. Please?"

He sighed, "If you say so… Although I have practice after class, would you be okay to wait another hour?"

"Hey!" The stern voice of one of their teachers made them freeze. "Break it up, you two, or I'll give you detention."

Rolling his eyes, Peter turned to face the teacher and saluted, "Yes, sir."

That goofy charm was always going to make her giddy.

"204."

Jolting awake, she felt her heart skip several beats when she found a hand clamped over her mouth. Panic threatened to overwhelm her and she tried to squirm away but the assailant maintained hold of her, pushing her back down against the bed.

"Relax, relax. It's me."

As the initial panic subsided, she recognized the nice guard. Milan? Dammit, why was it so hard to remember anything anymore?

The guard tapped the name on her uniform. "Mulan Li, remember?" She was whispering and kept glancing at the door. "I'm going to remove my hand from your mouth. Can you be quiet for me, please?"

She nodded.

"Okay." Mulan slowly moved her hand away. "We don't have a lot of time, and god, if I'm found out, I'm going to be more than just fired."

Not sure how to respond to that, she just nodded again.

"Here," The guard reached into her pocket and for a moment of panic, the thought crossed the subject's mind that a weapon was going to be pulled out. That thought subsided when what instead happened was the smell of cheese and ham and bread. "Normally, I wouldn't recommend eating fast, but it won't be long before Gaston notices a glitch in the cameras."

Was this another test? She eyed the food. It appeared to be a half-eaten sandwich wrapped in tissue. How was this not a test?

"204, please." Mulan took the subject's hands and pressed the sandwich into it. "I'm sorry I couldn't bring you somethint nicer. Just… please. Don't make this risk be for nothing."

Hunger won out and she peeled back the tissue and tore into the sandwich, taking big bites and just barely reminding herself to chew. It was so good. The cheese was cold and not even spread evenly and the ham kept sliding out from under the bread but it was so good. It was real food. It was just. So. Good.

"There we go." Mulan's smile looked almost pained. "I'm sorry there's not more I could do… I mean… do you have any family that knows you're here? Anyone?"

A memory flashed of when she was surrendered to the authorities. Mother watched with a set jaw and thin lips.

The subject nodded.

Mulan looked alarmed. "Really? If my brother Shang knew I was stuck here, he'd tear this place down!"

She shrugged.

A beeping sound came from somewhere in the room. "Shit," Mulan pressed a button on her watch to stop the beeping. "Yeah, I've been here too long. I set the glitch to just last a few minutes and just… shit. Okay. I gotta go."

She reached over to take what was left of the tissue. She was leaving. She was leaving and she hadn't been thanked yet. She was the nice guard. She was Mulan Li. She was the nice guard. She was leaving.

Suddenly full of fear, she reached over and grabbed Mulan's wrist. Stay. Please. Those were the words she wished she could have said but she hadn't spoken in so long and the words didn't come easily anymore and she knew that Mulan would be in trouble if she got caught.

"I'm sorry." Mulan looked wracked with guilt as she pulled her hand free and hurried out of the room, closing the door behind her.

This had to be a test of some sort.

From the other side of the door, Mulan was speaking to Gaston. His deep voice always had a hint of both arrogance and irritation. "Cameras wonked out just now. The prisoner-"

"The subject." Mulan interrupted.

"-whatever. Did she do anything weird? It's that time of the month and she's expected to go feral soon. I heard them saying she might be wilder than usual this time."

"Nothing to report, sir."

"Alright then. I'll go back and yell at Walter some more. Idiot must've pushed some button when he fell asleep on the monitors again. Fucking useless. At ease."

What if it wasn't a test and Mulan was just… nice?

Nice wasn't what monsters deserved.