#file under: bios: ruben

[knotfodder]

name: Ruben Fuentes nicknames: none (yet) dob. age: November 13 (40) gender: Male pronouns: (he/him/his) secondary gender: Omega occupation: defense attorney species: merman fc: Oscar Isaac

+sarcastic, loyal, tease+ -curt, aloof, dismissive-

[sonoflayton]

Case File

General Information

Name: Alfendi Joshua Carson Layton Nicknames: Al, Fendi Alias: Jonothan "John" Rubens (Fendi), Alexander "Xander" Rubens (Al) [Aliases used in times when Alfendi feels unsafe and is not comfortable giving any real names] Gender: Trans Male (Al), Demiboy (Fendi) Pronouns: He/him and they/them Sexual Orientation: Asexual biromantic (Fendi), [demi]bisexual biromantic (Al) Birthday: June 19th Age: 29 Birthplace: Portland, Maine Resides: London, England Mental Ailments: Dissociative Identity Disorder, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (Al), Major Depressive Disorder (Fendi).

     Alfendi Layton is an inspector at the Scotland Yard. He is the sole inspector in a division called “London's New Scotland Yard Serious Crime Division Classified Investigation Agency Headquarters“, which he affectionately dubs “the Mystery Room”, where the most difficult of cases are sent. He works there with his assistant, Detective Constable Lucy Baker, to solve the most head-scratching, mind-boggling, toughest cases to enter the Scotland Yard.

Alfendi has developed a condition called Dissociative Identity Disorder, which means, in essence, that there are two complete identities residing in the body of Alfendi Layton. Their names are Al and Fendi Layton, two boys that claim the other as their brother, and work together to create the whole being known as Alfendi Layton.

Canon-Divergence Summary

A brief explanation for those unfamiliar with Layton Brothers: Mystery Room and those who don't wish to read the entire bio on the major points where my Alfendi's canon differs from the game's canon.

• Instead of splitting post-Forbodium, Al and Fendi split during their childhood and grew up together.

• Alfendi's hair remains crimson, regardless of who's fronting.

• Alfendi is the biological son of Gabriel Cunningham, from Trauma Team.

• Alfendi was involved in a bus accident at the age of three, which killed Gabriel and shattered both of Alfendi's legs, which afflicted him with permanent nerve damage and frequent muscle spasms in his legs.

• Alfendi's hometown, Portland, Maine, was home to a dangerous epidemic. The Rosalia Virus killed Alfendi's abusive mother and caused Alfendi physical suffering. Alfendi now has a fear of disease.

• Justin used hypnosis to alter some of Fendi's memories about Forbodium. Al doesn't remember Forbodium due to the trauma.

Appearance

Height: 6'6", MINUS HIS SLOUCH Hair Color: CRIMSON Eye Color: AMBER

Alfendi is a tall, thin, lanky man. His skin is pasty and pale from lack of sunshine, decorated with faint freckles along the bridge of his nose.

His wavy, shoulder-length hair is pulled back into a loose ponytail, but that doesn't do much to tame his unruly hair. Fendi prefers to tuck his bangs behind his ears so he can see. Al has a habit of running his fingers through his hair when he become frustrated, leading to messy bangs in his eyes. This, among a few other characteristics, is a quick way to identify which of them is fronting.

Alfendi's nose is large, mishapen and a bit crooked; it is something that is difficult to miss, and if one is to point it out, neither Al nor Fendi are likely to respond positively.

There are many scars adorning Al and Fendi's body, including those from childhood accidents and sensitive situations that have faded over time. Most notable are the long surgical scars along their legs and a gunshot wound on the left side of his chest.

Alfendi's legs are different lengths, and shoe inserts are used to level this out. If one is to see Alfendi without his shoes on, he will hobble a bit and hold his head toward one side.

The System Named Alfendi Layton

Alfendi has developed Dissociative Identity Disorder. The identities living in Alfendi identify as brothers — named Al and Fendi — sharing the same body to create the one whole being named Alfendi Layton.

They call themselves Alfendi, as that's what they were called growing up, and the 'Layton' surname was adopted after they were adopted by Hershel Layton. All alters have the name Alfendi, and the name can be both associated with themself as an alter and themselves as a system, and the information on which they're referring to can usually be drawn from context.

Al

Name: Alfendi "Al" Layton

Age: 29

Pronouns: He/him

Roles: Protector, Trauma-bearer

Interests: Cooking, psychology, solving mysteries, criminal psychology, movies and TV shows.

Appearance in headspace: Wavy crimson hair that is jaw length, styled in a fashionably messy way. Instead of the body's amber eyes, Al's eyes are an unmistakable yellow. Al is cleanshaven. He sports a scar on his cheek, the same that the body does. In the realm of the headspace, Al wears a favorite jacket of his, a brown tweed jacket with chocolate elbow patches.

Behaviors and Personality

Al is quite the unique character. As a young boy, Al was a sweet, outgoing child. When his abusive mother died and Al was faced with conflicting emotions, he cursed himself for feeling emotions that weren't sadness, and became an aggressive and mean child to drive others away, having convinced himself that he was a 'monster'.

What started as protective measures for others morphed into defense measures for himself and the body. He began to put on the mask of the violent stereotype of DID Systems to gain and maintain control of a given situation through fear, and he would do this through intimidation. When other kids attempted to approach him or call his bluff, Al would follow through on his threats, and get into loads of fights. He was given detention and suspension more times than he can count.

Over the course of his ten years living with Hershel, with the help of a therapist, Al eventually learned that violence isn't the answer, and now seldom follows through with his threats, the only exception being when he or someone he loves is truly in danger. He now only makes threats when he feels he's lost control over a situation, to drive away someone when he feels he's too vulnerable or when they're getting too close to him emotionally, or simply to see someone who's unfamiliar with him squirm.

Fendi

Name: Alfendi "Fendi" Layton

Age: 29

Pronouns: He/him, they/them

Roles: Protector, Host

Interests: Listening to the radio, solving mysteries, finding Hershel Layton.

Appearance in headspace: Wavy wine-colored hair that is shoulder-length, held back in a braid by a scrunchie. Instead of the body's amber eyes, Fendi's are olive. Fendi has a patchy beard growing. In the realm of the headspace, Fendi wears the same outfit that he does when he gets them dressed in the morning: a white labcoat, a blue and red striped sweater, gray pants, and red converse high-tops.

Behaviors and Personality

Fendi's role in the system is to protect the body from further harm, but from what, he doesn't know. He has zero memory of any of his trauma. In moments of crisis, all pain and suffering is shouldered onto Al, leaving Fendi to be the functional alter in any given situation.

As a child, Fendi was quiet and softspoken, even more than usual. He spent most of his time doing his best to be well-behaved and to avoid being a burden on others around him. This behavior was extreme, to the point where he spent most of his early childhood locked away in his bedroom, if not hiding away in his closet. His hobbies included daydreaming and listening to the radio.

After being adopted by Hershel, these behaviors carried with him. For many, many months, Fendi would tuck away in the closet, hiding away from his new family unless encouraged by Hershel or Flora to spend time together. Fendi was quiet and dilligent in class, earning good grades, and seldom socialized with other students, making him a frequent target of teasing. Over the course of his time with Hershel, Fendi learned that he's allowed to exist and take up space, and be more assertive. Even still, he's quiet, soft-spoken, and quite the pushover.

Joshua

Name: Alfendi "Joshua" Layton

Age: 29

Pronouns: He/him

Roles: Gatekeeper

Interests:

Appearance in headspace: Joshua looks a lot like Gabriel, their father. He has wavy, wirey olive hair that sticks more up than down, and is mid-neck length. Joshua's eyes are brown. He has some stubble.

Behaviors and Personality

Joshua hardly ever comes out, only doing so when Al and Fendi are both incapacitated, and when this happens, a new alter may be created. Joshua manages the system from the inside, organizing memories, controlling when switches occur and giving Al and Fendi any information they need when switching.

Carson

Name: Alfendi "Carson" Layton

If Al is broken to the point of not being able to process any more trauma in a given moment, and Fendi is put under stress, it's very likely that Joshua will create a new alter, named Carson. If this occurs, Carson will virtually be a blank slate, and their personality will be developed over time and influenced by their experiences.

Rose

Name: Rosalia "Rose"

Age: N/A

Pronouns: They/them, he/him or she/her depending on vessel's pronouns.

Roles: N/A

Interests:

Appearance in headspace: N/A

Behaviors and Personality

*Rose is not apart of the Alfendi Layton System, and is not canon, being exclusive to the following verses: We Are Rosalia, The Last Survivor, and Multiverse: Parallel Worlds Theory. Rose is a personification of the Rosalia virus, a hivemind virus that tries to infect and control every living being on earth. Rosalia has a fondness particularly for little Alfendi's body, and uses Alfendi for most errands in Maine.

Rose has a personality that's sickeningly sweet, but in a way that's offsetting and creepy. They have no regard for personal space, invading it in an effort to infect their target. Rose tends to have a grin that's too wide and appears fake, and tends to contort their bodies in ways that are abnormal enough to make people very uncomfortable.

Biography

**Trigger warning for: injury, car accident, death, mentioned chest gore, guns, comas, weapons, abuse, child abuse, and blackmail.**

**Spoiler alert forthe entirety of Layton Brothers: Mystery Room and the 2010 Wii game Trauma Center: Trauma Team!**

     Alfendi was born as ▇▇▇▇▇ Cunningham, AFAB, to his biological mother, Lisa Cunningham, and his biological father, Gabriel Cunningham. At first, they were a happy family, but as time passed, the spark of love faded away. After months of ceaseless arguing and lots of emotional abuse from Lisa, Gabriel left when Alfendi was three years old. Alfendi lived with his mother and visited his father every other weekend.

     One day, Alfendi went to the mall with his father to buy a birthday present for his mother. To their surprise, they encounter not one, but three of Gabriel’s co-workers from the hospital.

     Suddenly, a school bus crashed through the wall. Alfendi was shoved out of the way by his father, saving him from being hit by the bus, but putting his legs in the way of the wheels, causing them to be crushed under the weight of the wheels. Luckily, Gabriel’s co-workers, two doctors and a first responder, were present and able to save nearly everyone. Gabriel was hit by the bus, pushed through the partiton, fell to the floor below, and was covered in falling rubble, and did not survive the accident.

     Shortly after Gabriel’s death, without her legal husband to scapegoat all of her problems on to, Lisa turned to her son. She blamed him first for petty things he had no control over, then over things he had no relation to. As time went on, the emotional abuse became more frequent, then more severe, then turned physical. 

     As Alfendi endured these traumatic experiences, he developed Dissociative Identity Disorder as a result of his frequent dissociation. There were two complete identities in Alfendi’s body: Fendi, who tried to be a people pleaser, stay out of trouble, protect himself by being good, and Al, the trauma bearer, the alter who endured all of the pain, and therefore, is the only one who remembers it.

     Alfendi was a frequent patient at Resurgam hospital, mostly due to a broken nose. Doctors and nurses were skeptical on the origins of these injuries, but Fendi always fronted at the hospital and claimed not to be able to remember what caused them. Nothing could be proven.

     One day, around the age of eight for Alfendi, there was a report on the news; the united states had declared a state of national emergency. There was an outbreak of a new virus, the Rosalia virus, which was being spread across the city at an increasingly rapid rate, and the city of Portland, Maine was under quarantine. Both Alfendi and his mother began showing symptoms of the virus within a day, and they rushed to Resurgam hospital for care. Lisa passed away from the Rosalia virus due to a comprimised immune system as a result from a pre-existing condition, but a serum was made in time to save Alfendi.

      Since Alfendi was orphaned, he stayed in the hospital after he was cured while the chaos of the Rosalia Virus cleared. During his stay, Fendi met Professor Hershel Layton, who was flown in from London in hopes that his legendary intuition would be helpful in finding the source of and a cure for the virus. Hershel would visit him frequently and read picture books to him, then, upon learning that he was orphaned, decided to adopt him. From then on, he would be known as a Layton.

     Alfendi lived a lovely life growing up with his new father and two sisters, Katrielle and Flora. Hershel would sometimes leave on trips to go on adventures with his assistant, Luke, and archeological digs, leaving the Layton children in the care of Flora, the eldest. Alfendi would worry about Hershel while he was gone, but he would always keep in touch and return safely.

Al and Fendi were both transmasculine, and the Layon family were very supportive. They helped them by cutting thier hair in an affirming way and helping them to legally change their name to Alfendi as a child, getting them prescribed puberty blockers at 13, then testosterone at 16, and finally, gifting top surgery as a 17th birthday present (after years of saving and penny-pinching).

     When Alfendi was 17, Hershel went on an adventure, and after a month of no contact, was declared missing. It was as if he had vanished off the face of the earth. In Hershel’s absence, Flora declared custody over her little siblings, and was able to support them with her job as a journalist.

     Eventually, Alfendi graduated from Gressenheller University with a major in criminal justice, and ascended the ranks in the Scotland Yard, all the way up to Detective Chief Inspector of the homicide division. Alfendi was a prodigy in the solving of mysteries and reaching logical conclusions, just like both of his fathers, and was assigned the homicide division, with the exception of a single case that Fendi insisted on being assigned to: their father’s.

     After a few years of working at the Yard, Alfendi moved from Flora’s house to Hershel Layton’s flat, which had been put into the care of and maintained by Flora. It was a logical decision, seeing as the flat was closer to his work than Flora’s place, but he was still close enough that he would come over for dinner nearly every night to eat with Flora and Katrielle.

     At the age of 25, Alfendi worked on the task force for the case of the Jigsaw Killer, a string of murders connected only by a puzzle piece left at the scene as a signature. It was there that Alfendi met Justin Lawson, a fellow homicide inspector and Alfendi’s friend, and Hilda Pertinax, the interpol agent assigned to the case who requested the help of the Scotland Yard's finest to solve the case. Al fronted for the entirety of the time he worked on the case, due to his fascination with the case and developing crush on and chemistry with Hilda. Before he knew it, Al began keeping his DID a secret from Justin and Hilda, as it had never been 'a good time' to introduce them.

     After some time, the suspects had been narrowed down to one Keelan Makepeace, who was chased by the police to an abandoned castle an hour outside of the city called the Forbodium Castle.

     During pursuit, there was a stand off on the roof of one of the towers between Keelan Makepeace, and Al, who in his rush, had neglected to put on a bulletproof vest. Alfendi took a bullet to the chest from Makepeace. Afterward, Keelan was murdered by Justin, who had long before cracked the case. Lawson had been blackmailing Makepeace: kill who I ask you to, in exchange for your continued freedom.

     Alfendi was rushed to a hospital, where the bullet was surgically removed. Miraculously, Alfendi survived at the cost of part of his left lung. He was in a coma for three months, and stayed in the hospital for a few weeks after waking for observation. During this time, Lawson visited them in the hospital daily, and due to him using genuine hypnotic suggestion found in a janky book about brainwashing, Al and Fendi’s memories of the incident are fuzzy. Al, the alter who was actually fronting at the time, claims to have little to no understanding of what happened, as his memories are scrambled and bits and pieces are missing, as it was a traumatic moment, and everything happened too fast. Fendi, however, has no genuine memory of the incident, and due to hypnotic suggestion, his mind has filled the gaps in his memory with events that never occured, and now seems to be convinced that he has shot Makepeace.

     Hilda also visited Alfendi in the hospital, but because Al was busy processing the trauma of what had happened, Fendi had been the one fronting. The chemistry and playful banter she and Al had did not carry over to Fendi. He regarded her with polite distance and respect. If she tried to joke, he seldom understood, and if she teased him, he would meekly apologize. Realizing that she had fallen in love with Al and not Fendi, Hilda slowly distanced herself until she mostly disappeared from his life, aside from the occasional professional interaction.

     Alfendi was given a not guilty verdict due to self-defense, but was demoted to Detective Inspector and legally prohibited from posessing a firearm of any sort, including a service weapon. Despite this, Alfendi is a talented inspector, one who is valuable to the Scotland yard. The comissioner, a man with a soft spot for Alfendi due to working with his father in the past, created a new division specifically for Alfendi, one where he can put his Layton intuition to work without going out into the field. This divison is called London's New Scotland Yard Serious Crime Division Classified Investigation Agency Headquarters, but is affectionately referred to as the Mystery Room, and is a place where the difficult cases that stump the other divisions, typically locked room murders and the sort, are sent. Armed with the reconstruction device, a machine that can recreate any crime scene from pictures taken by the initial investigators, Alfendi can solve any mystery without leaving the comfort of his office.

     After four years, Alfendi was reluctantly assigned an assistant, a chipper detective constable named Lucy with a strong Yorkshire accent. Despite his initial hesitations, Al, Fendi and Lucy develop strong bonds and become a formidable trio.

     The forbodium incident is brought up again soon after, with Keelan’s daughter, Diane Makepeace, luring Alfendi and Lucy out to Forbodium Castle again with the promise of information. After splitting up Alfendi and Lucy, Diane hatches a plan to take revenge by plotting to kill Alfendi in front of Lucy. She blindfolded him, tied him to a chair, and held a pistol to his head, but before Lucy could arrive, Justin Lawson arrived first. He shot and killed Diane Makepeace, then dropped her pistol in Al’s lap in an attempt to frame him a second time.

     Using everything she’d learned from her time working in the mystery room, Lucy was able to solve a case deemed unsolvable by proving that there was no other possibility except for Justin being the killer of both Makepeaces. This cleared the name of Alfendi Layton, and sent Justin Lawson to face the punishment deemed by the law.

     Though Alfendi is now free to rejoin the homicide department and obtain a license for carry, Al and Fendi both love their job at the Mystery Room, and have opted to continue working there with Lucy. As for the gun, he carries a service weapon now, and has a few other legally-owned guns stashed around his flat for defense.

     Soon after, Alfendi got a phone call from his sister, Katrielle, who grew up to be a detective to search for their father. She declared that she found Hershel. After ten years of absence, Al and Fendi’s relationships with their father are certainly different. Fendi has spent his time looking for him, and is relieved to see him again despite the rift of ten years straining their relationship, while Al, who chose to replace his pain with anger, is resentful and angry for his disappearance in the first place.

Post-Hypnotic Triggers

"Shoot Keelan Makepeace", "Shoot Keelan", or "Shoot Makepeace"

When these sets of words are used in a sentence, it will cause Fendi to respond with "I shot Keelan Makepeace". Fendi readily admits to shooting Keelan, as he (believes he) remembers having done so. This particular suggestion does not affect Al, as he does not remember the events of Forbodium and his instinct not to confess to a crime he doesn't remember committing overwhelms the power of this suggestion.

"Relax, Relax, Relax"

This trigger is one that puts Alfendi in a hypnotic trance, and therefore, an easily suggestable state. This trigger has a variety of uses, including allowing one to create false memories for one of the alters, planting a new suggestion, causing temporary amnesia, and, if done correctly, creating a new behavioral response to a post-hypnotic trigger.

"Don't Forget to Remember This"

Once in a trance, when this phrase is heard and followed with a story in the second person, it allows the speaker to 'write' a false scenario into Fendi's memory. When the speaker is done, they can say "understand?" to clarify that they're finished, though it can usually be drawn from context when the 'memory' is over.

"Completely Forget About Forbodium"

During Justin's attempt to 'brainwash' Alfendi, he attempted to make Alfendi forget entirely about the events occurring at Forbodium. This, of course, isn't possible. It is, however, possible to cause temporary short-term amnesia regarding something specific, which is what occured. This trigger will cause him to forget about the events at Forbodium for up to thirty minutes, or until something reminds him of it.

Trauma Triggers

• The sound of a car pulling into a driveway

• Tomato soup

• Disease

[phoenixxisms-archive]

BASICS     Verin Cassiopeia || 28 || Skeptic / Medium     President of Glass (Casino) || CEO of Vitreous      Face claim || Voice claim

WHY SHE’S THERE     There were originally talks of a purchase of land occurring, talks that dragged out to nowhere and dead-ended her; lest she was willing to raise the buying price and promise not to raze the land of the decrepit buildings. Neither of which matched her intentions.      With two days left before her plane back home and nothing more planned for the time being, Verin found herself visiting the place she could have had. However, it wasn’t to marvel at the possibilities; it was to add another corpse to Nopeming’s, already, high body count.

FULL BIO     under cut

1.18.89

Veronica Marie Priscilla Cassell was never born into a stable household as her parents were two entirely different people. They had different jobs, different preferences, different morals, different houses, and a different daughter in mind. Her mother sought to fit her into a perfect mold in an attempt to make her much like herself, much like her own mother made her. Her father on the other hand was keen to letting the little girl make her own choices and learn from those decisions. Her mother gave her imprisonment and her father gave her freedom. It would not be hard to assume which she picked, and all would have boded well if it wasn’t her mother she stayed with for the majority of her childhood.

Knowing of her daughter’s rebellious nature, to which Miriam assumed was caused by the freedom her father gave her, she was anything but kind to the little girl. Always trying to beat her back into the shape she had in mind, both figuratively and literally, but that was always unraveled by the short terms Veronica was with her father. However, when Miriam began to crack so did her plan. After leaving for Portugal to help her ill mother, Miriam was no longer in control of her daughter for a year and under her father she flourished, proving to be an incredibly intelligent and talented girl. She made friends and was mainly allowed to do as she pleased when her father was at her work.

These things, friendship and her own knowledge, could not be ruined by her mother even when she returned. Her body, however, was not spared as not even a day after returning and retrieving her daughter was the little girl beat. Though over the next few weeks, Miriam began to stop as she was slowly falling into depression and suicidal tendencies. As it only began to progress worse and worse, Preston ended up taking notice and intervened. Moving Miriam up to his home and sending his daughter away to his mother, he ended up helping the woman he knew to hate.

It was two years later that Veronica ended up home with her mother. The imaginations and hopes that her mother would be kinder shattered in less than a week. She was never really allowed out except for going to school and the few times her mother was wasted out of her mind. When she was with her father however there was a stark contrast as she was still allowed to do whatever she wanted whenever she pleased. Taking full advantage of this she spent most of her time with her friends, going around the small town or hanging around at their house. Despite the rare times she was actually allowed up there, Veronica ended up in a relationship with one of her closest friends, Lauran.

The last time she was allowed to stay with her father was after she turned sixteen, both sixteen and sick. It was her mother not wanting to take care of her that got her up there one last time, and it was her playing sick that allowed her to stay there longer. However, much to her luck this is when her father had planned to go to the Grand Canyon and she not wanting him to stay back insisted he go. The last time she saw him was the night before he left.

Preston had fallen and died, and as he had chosen to go back up the trail and go home, they hadn’t thought anything of it until they returned. It took a few weeks before they found the body, and by then it was far too late for an open casket funeral. During the time it took them to find the body, Veronica had been hoping around various friends houses so as to avoid her mother, but by the time of the funeral they were reunited once again. Though together once again, they did not return home right away and instead stayed in the house. They stayed there until the house was sold and Veronica’s things were packed, allowing the new owners to either keep or sell what was left behind.

While they were driving home that night their car crashed off the side of one of the switchbacks; Miriam died and Veronica disappeared.

08.02.06 From the accident came a new sense. Someone entirely new that she pieced together once she got over her self-pity for the accident and the mourning of her not to unfortunate loss, her mother. She pieced together a new name and became someone else. The night she met Janette Lenarie and Adam Harris was the night Emilia Xander was born. Though they questioned her injuries, they brushed it off when she brushed them off and instead gave in to her plea for help and escape. Surprisingly they took her without getting too many answers. But that was because Harris saw something in her, something he could use to his advantage. They ended up taking her to Las Vegas with them after taking her to a hospital a few towns over. For a few weeks Lenarie managed to keep Harris from dragging her into his gang, Turbulence, but the second she fully recovered, Lenarie could not stop her from willingly joining him.

In the beginning it was far from much, but within a few months it went from a little unknown gang to a gang known for it’s drug affiliations and waywards wishing to join. All because of Emilia, she was their success. But this never gave her a chance to do as she pleased. It never gave her freedom.

Over time she became her own rage, even when she sought ways to fix it. To return to some fragile equilibrium, she tried fighting matches, she tried taking her anger out on those who crossed Turbulence, but nothing gave her a fix. It wasn’t until she found herself cornered, it wasn’t until she found her life at risk did she discover what she had needed all along. Three bullets into her attacker’s skull. Three bullets she had never intended to use to kill. Chances were she never would have killed again if it wasn’t for the man who saw it all happen.Michael Ruben Gless had seen it all, and what she had expected out of his mouth was not the praise she had received, the rejoice that she had killed a man. Nor did she expect the job offer she received.

That was when she began to slip through Harris’ fingers and became someone else’s saving grace. She did hits for Michael, she killed for herself, and for their benefit did she kill Harris, gaining control of Turbulence before selling its resources off to the highest bidder. Over the course of four years, she was the rise and fall of Turbulence. In the end she was responsible killing the remaining members as well as helping Michael kill his family, but it was so careful framed on Lenarie that they weren’t looking for her until she was long gone.

12.13.11 They played that Emilia had died, and tried a new name, a new persona. However because of the constant moving and poor planning it crumbled to the point she was tracked down and the cops almost had her in Maine. Much to her luck Michael came to her rescue, helped her stage her death and then move to the other side of the country. He had her set up with a condo and an academics record so she could attend college. Living under the name Valerie Omen, Veronica sparsely attended any of her classes and after several months dropped out and confined herself to her current home.

Things began to go downhill from there. Having isolated herself from humanity with the sole belief that it would cure her violent temptations, she never assumed what the negatives to her plan would be. As time progressed she began having trouble thinking clearly, sleeping, and keeping up with eating and later even drinking. Her disconnection from everyone had caught the attention of Michael and he ended sending a friend who lived nearby to check on her. The friend, Luke, ended up taking her to the hospital due to her condition which despite the kindness behind the action put her at severe risk as when the hospital did several blood scans it became clear she was Veronica Cassell.

Knowing well enough that Luke’s plan to take her to a hospital would resort to this, due to an insufficient medical file Michael had already been on his way to to San Jose. With a plan already in mind, he had a dead body and gasoline after only a few hours of landing. He had Luke sneak Valerie out of the hospital and they torched the condo after having left the dead body in it, leaving the police to assume that she had committed suicide. This gave them a chance to flee and they took it.

10.29.13 Verin Cassiopeia was the next name she chose and the one she wished to take to the grave. From here on out, she planned to never have to hide again, to never have to change again, to never have to run again. And much to her luck, she seemed to create a stable enough life style and backstory that she would never have to. Though she does continue her wandering and exploring, she would not compare that to her running even though she is rarely at the penthouse her and Michael share.

Debatably Verin has matured, but she still finds herself plagued by the two things she adored as Emilia; wasting money and committing crimes, specifically murder. But no longer is murder just a game to her, because of her past attachments to the act, killing has become stress relief to her as well. What has become a game is theft, and she’s more the quite good at it. Even though she could have anything she wanted at the snap of her fingers, she would run the risk of getting caught for just a little fun.

But maybe she became everything she feared to be. Someone shrouded by their own hate, bitterness and greed that she would dare stick around someone who was willing to kill her, to ruin her. When she was younger she never had the chance to escape from her mother, and here she was again, trapped in someone else’s issues and doing all their work for them. And just as much as she may feel like herself, may feel that this is how she is supposed to be, nothing can deny a certain fact that Veronica means, “Honest Image”.

[knotfodder]

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