i got ei but i dont play genshin what is she like

depressed like so soooo depressed

(artwork is a commission done by @stillfuckinbetterthanyou)

I guess because it’s my birthday soon and I’ve been obsessed with Arkhamverse Riddler lately, I came up with a kinky little drabble involving Enigma/Edward Nashton (Riddler before he was Riddler, basically) and my Arkham Origins o/c, Lorelei Jones.

This may not be part of the main fic involving them, but can be seen as a sort of “bonus” side story or a deleted scene even. 

But it’s canon (well, for this Arkham Origins A/U at least).

The main fic will probably be called, “Break All of Our Stigma,” which is a line from Lady Gaga’s song, “Enigma” (Yes, I know, I know, I just lover her, ok? And the song actually kind of fits Lorelei and Edward). This side drabble is called, “Cake,” and while it does involve Lorelei helping Eddie celebrate his birthday, the “cake” in question isn’t a literal cake.

If you know what I mean 👀👀👀👀💦💦💦💦💦

I mean, there is a cake mentioned in the drabble, but the cake Eddie gets to feast on isn’t that cake.

*cough*

Anyway, here is part 1 of what will most likely be 3 parts. Part 1 is the lead in to eating the “cake,” part 2 will be “eating” the “cake,” and part 3 will be...well, you’ll figure that out ;)

Hey, if you think this is spicy, this is NOTHING compared to what I’m writing for Telltale Riddler. Imagine all of this but, like........................MORE PORN. 

Very NSFT/NSFW content under the cut because Eddie and Lorelei are horny little fuckers 😘

Cake (part 1)

Summary: It’s Edward’s birthday and his lovely GCPD detective, Lorelei, decides to plan something special for him, including a cake. He tells her she needn’t spend so much effort on him, especially since she just wrapped up a rather exhausting case. However, she shushed him and told him he deserves, at the very least, an excellent cake for his special day. However, the “cake” she has ready for him isn’t what he’s expecting...not that he’s complaining.

Edward was more than ready to get to his apartment after a long, tiring, frustrating day at the always “glorious” GCPD. How was it that so many idiots worked in one place? Why were people in general so damn annoying? And stupid? 

As he made his way down the hall, he felt some of the tension leave him as he knew his lovely detective was waiting for him. She’d already given him a birthday gift that morning (a green-striped scarf and dark green gloves, both of which he loved but he told her she didn’t need to spend her money on him), and now she had a cake prepared for him. Sharing some cake with her on his “special day” (he still didn’t see what the big deal was) sounded like the perfect way to unwind (even if she didn’t need to go through the trouble to make one for him). Perhaps it would be relaxing for her as well, chatting over something sweet and enjoying some peace after finishing a very tiring case? He hoped as much since, again, he didn’t want her to feel like she had to spend time or money on him like this.

“I’ll be in the kitchen,” Lorelei’s text had said in response to him as he left work, and when he entered the apartment, he heard her call out.

“In here, Darling,” she said.

“Be right there,” Edward replied as he hung up his scarf and coat, then placed his gloves in said coat’s left pocket.

Loosening his tie, he placed it on the back of a chair in the living room along with his vest and ID tag. Undoing a few buttons of his dress shirt and rolling up his sleeves, he made his way to the kitchen, a warm smile on his face as he prepared to greet his sublime lover.

Edward stopped dead in his tracks as soon as he saw Lorelei sitting on the kitchen table wearing nothing except a green garter belt with matching stockings and green high-heels. He could feel his face turning red as his mind struggled to come up with something to say, something that made sense considering his thoughts were all jumbled up at that moment.

“Where’s the cake?” he finally asked, and he mentally kicked himself for asking such a ridiculous question.

“Right here,” Lorelei said as she opened her legs for him. “Disappointed?”

“Not at all!” he said with a little nervous laugh. “Just...really surprised.”

‘Well, it is your birthday...surprises are bound to happen.”

“Indeed…”

“So, are you gonna come over here and enjoy your ‘cake’ or…?”

Edward’s legs seemed to move on their own as he quickly walked over to Lorelei, stepping between her spread thighs and grabbing her waist as he pressed his lips to hers in a deep, passionate kiss. She was so receptive, moaning into his mouth as she wrapped her legs around him to keep him close. How did he get this lucky? Why was he even this lucky? The way she treated him, it was like he was the sexiest man alive, and while he honestly wasn’t, he couldn’t help but soak up all the attention. It felt good -- she felt good. Ah, more than good. He couldn’t properly describe it, especially not while he was making out with her as she was practically naked and had just invited him to enjoy her...to put his face between her thighs and…

“So, did you expect to come home to an invitation to feast on my cunt?” Lorelei asked, slightly breathless, as Edward kissed and nipped at her neck.

His cock twitched in his trousers upon hearing that, and he bit back a moan.

“N-No,” he replied, moving to her collarbones. 

“Disappointed it’s not a real cake?” she asked, and he could hear the smirk in her voice.

“Not one bit.”

“There is actually a small cake in the fridge for us to share. I literally finished icing it before you texted me to tell me you were coming home. We can have some now if you prefer?”

“No, it can wait...I mean, thank you but I...I, umm...want this other ‘cake’ first.”

“Which cake?” 

Lorelei had the most devious grin on her face, and she couldn’t help but think of how adorable Edward looked blushing like crazy and acting a bit shy while still feeling incredibly turned on. Yes, he knew how to fuck her just right so she was reduced to a moaning, panting, mewling mess, but he was undeniably sweet. He gave as much as he took, you could say, and sometimes, he didn’t take nearly enough since he always focused on her. She had no idea what she did to deserve him but she wasn’t going to complain.

“Ummm…” Edward gave Lorelei a cute bashful smile as he slowly reached down between them and pressed his fingers between her slick folds. “This one.”

“You naughty little geek,” she teased with a giggle.

“I haven’t even gotten started yet,” he said, raising a brow and smirking, feeling more and more bold as the seconds ticked by. “This is hardly naughty.”

“Oh? Then what is naughty?”

“This.”

Edward slipped a finger inside Lorelei, meeting little resistance with how wet she was, and quickly inserted a second one, curling them both against her spot and making her shudder. He watched her eyes flutter closed as he carefully stroked her inner walls with his fingers, using his free hand to help guide her head down onto the table. 

“Mmm...that’s more like it,” Lorelei purred as he continued to finger her at a steady pace. “But is that all you--Oh!” Her eyes shot open when she felt Edward’s thumb rub her clit. “Oh, fuck…”

But Edward wasn’t done yet.

He hadn’t failed to notice the green-gemmed nipple piercings Lorelei was wearing (she really knew exactly what turned him on, didn’t she?) and he leaned down and gently sucked on her right nipple. Her fingers threaded into his dark brown hair as a sigh escaped her, and when he lightly tugged on the nipple ring, she inhaled sharply, her fingers scratching at his scalp. 

“Mmm...Eddie,” she panted, chewing on her lower lip. “That’s so good…”

Edward started to use his palm to stimulate Lorelei’s clit as his fingers moved more roughly against her g-spot. Coupling that with the way his mouth was teasing her breasts and Lorelei was no longer as chatty.

“Yes, yes, Eddie, fuck!” she moaned. “Just like that, please, fuck, fuck...ah, shit, fuck!”

Or rather, she wasn’t very coherent anymore.

As much as Edward was loving the sexy noises Lorelei was making, the feeling of her elegant fingers grabbing at his hair, and the lewd wet sounds caused by his fingers between her legs, he knew he had to stop or else this would all be over too soon.

“Sorry,” he said as he slipped his fingers out of Lorelei, causing her to whimper at the loss. “But we can’t let things end too quickly…”

Edward kissed his way between Lorelei’s breasts, up the side of her neck, along and jaw, and stopped at her lips. Their eyes met and they both couldn’t help but smile warmly at one another, her hands cupping his face. Time seemed to stop in that moment, and all he could think of was how much he loved her, how much he craved her, and how he’d give up anything and everything for her. Her thoughts were nearly the same as she delighted in the fact that her life had become so much brighter since she’d let him get close to her.

The kiss they shared was tender this time since neither of them were good at being very sentimental with words. It was enough, though -- or they hoped it was enough to convey how much they cared for one another. It didn’t take long for the kiss to become hungry, however, both of them practically gasping for air as they clung to each other and nearly refused to take proper breaths. 

Lorelei’s fingers moved to Edward’s shirt, undoing the remaining buttons before tugging it out of his pants, watching him sit up and practically tear it off before pressing his now naked upper body against hers and kissing her hard. They were almost forgetting what they were even doing on the kitchen table, and when she reached down to grasp his erection through his pants, he hissed into her mouth and rutted against her palm. She hastily unfastened his belt and ripped it from the loops, then went right for the button and zipper of his trousers, allowing her to reach into his boxers and take hold of his cock.

“Ah, L-Lorelei!” he groaned as he lightly bucked against her hand. 

Honestly, she wanted to beg Edward to just fuck her already, forgo this whole kinky surprise ‘cake’ thing and let him raw her, but no, no, she wanted to do this right. It took all she had to resist but she managed to get herself together so she could speak.

“You haven’t had your ‘cake’ yet,” Lorelei said as she removed her hand from Edward’s pants. 

“You’re right,” Edward said, letting out a breathy laugh. “I want to taste you, Lorelei. Can I? Can I put my mouth on you?”

“It’s your birthday, Baby. Have at it!”

Edward flashed her a grin before giving her a sweet kiss and standing up.

“Let’s get you situated,” he said as he looked her over.

“Yes, Sir,” Lorelei said with a wink, and a shiver ran through Edward.

God, she was going to be the death of him and he didn’t have one complaint about that.

There Are No Rules (2/3)

Keanu Reeves x Reader (The Devil Wears Prada AU)

A/N: We are getting closer to @toomanystoriessolittletime​ birthday, so I’m updating the story dedicated to her birthday challenge. This one is a little dramatic with a lot of mixed feelings and some angst, but I hope you’ll enjoy it :)

Summary: Reader applies for a job in a fashion magazine where Keanu is editor-in-chief.

Warnings: angst, brief mentions of alcohol

Words: 3.2K

-Part 1-

“Keanu Reeve’s office, how can I help you?”

These words got carved into Y/N’s brain over the past couple of weeks. She had been repeating them at least fifty times a day, usually through her gritted teeth, and most of these calls would eventually leave her on the verge of tears.

No matter how much she hated this job, every day seemed easier than the previous one. Y/N felt like she was finally getting the hang of it all, and it was a little glimpse of hope that perhaps she was going to survive this madness. Maybe she was stronger than she thought she was.

Was Reeves as terrifying as everyone had told he would be? Yes, but in a strangely different way.

He had never really shouted or insulted her directly, yet Keanu had his way with words to make Y/N understand how immensely she had failed assigned tasks. Sometimes just his presence was fearsome, as his nit-picking gaze would land directly on Y/N’s desk, making her guts squeeze. Even if Y/N knew she was doing everything correctly, she felt like it wasn’t enough, it was impossible to live up to his standards.

When not in meetings, Keanu would sit in his office swiveling in his chair, enjoying the spectacular view of the New York skyline. Honestly, it didn’t appear like he was doing much, but Y/N could tell from his focused eyes that his mind was constantly at work.

Creatively Reeves had no rules, but when it came to his office, he preferred having everything structured. Every morning Y/N would receive a text stating Reeve’s breakfast order, and she had to get it before he came to work. A cup of plain black coffee, ready on his desk on time, was essential in order to make the day better for the whole office. Y/N was responsible for that, and whenever she failed, every co-worker would be badgering her for the remaining day.

The worst of them was Emily, who wouldn’t shut up about her upcoming Fashion Week in Paris and all expensive garments she was going to be able to wear. Y/N was neither bored nor jealous, but it was very hard to concentrate hearing Emily babbling for the whole day. Eventually, it would leave Y/N making more mistakes, which led to even more disapproval received from Reeves.

---

It was one of those calm days when Keanu didn’t have much on his hands. “Y/N, come over,” he called, and based on his frigid tone, Y/N immediately knew something was wrong. “Where are the Valentino samples I asked for the run-throughs?”

Y/N could already feel her hands sweating and her heart beating through her chest. “What?” her brows furrowed with tears threatening her eyes, she was simply too tired. “But you never mentioned those…”

“Please tell me you’re kidding,” Reeves sighed expressing his disappointment, which at this point was so familiar to her. “Will you ever do anything right here?”

Anything right…?

His words left Y/N helpless. For the past couple of weeks she had been working hard like never before, giving all her energy to keep the office organized and satisfy every single one of Reeves’ whims. Yes, she had made a few mistakes, but they were nothing compared to how much right she had done.

It was the moment Y/N realized she had had enough, she wasn’t even an assistant anymore, she was Reeves’ maid and it was time to save the last bits of her dignity.

“Oh come on,” her eyes were beginning to fill with anger, tears evaporating in the feverish air. Y/N didn’t even notice her clenched fists with nails digging into her damp skin. “Most of the things I do here are right, they are freaking perfect,” she breathed out, nearing to his desk. It looked like she was ready to fight him.

“It’s nice that you think so, but…”

“You never even notice, do you?” Y/N cut him off with a slight rise in her tone. “All you do is sit in your office, drinking coffee and flipping through the same couple of pages for the whole day,” she knew she was exaggerating, but Y/N was furious, she wanted to make Reeves feel bad, just like he had been making her this whole time. “You know, you couldn’t even manage to tell me to go get those samples, maybe you should start doing things right yourself?”

“Oh sweetheart,“ Reeves exhaled fixing his expensive scarf and stood up in need of reestablishing his dominance over Y/N, his wide shoulders were blocking the sun and casting shadow over her enraged face. He confidently walked around his table, and as Y/N saw him getting closer, she got scared not knowing what he was about to do next. Luckily, Reeves stopped crossing his arms and was ready to say something, but Y/N interrupted him again.

“Don’t sweetheart me,” Y/N knew she had crossed the line and there was no way back, disrespectful words had already escaped her throat, so she decided to go even further. “I am the only one here working my ass off, while Emily is barely functioning on her messed up diet. And yet somehow she’s still taking all the credit for my work. I-I just can’t deal with you and your crazy people anymore. You’re all delusional here,” she was practically shouting at this point.

It all felt like a dream to Y/N, she could barely understand what was happening, and her hammering heart was leaving her lightheaded. Y/N was gasping for air, all trembling and looking a little disoriented, Keanu could see that she physically wasn’t doing well.

Y/N felt his presence closer than before, his warm breath tickling her forehead. “Go on, I’m listening,” Reeves said, raising his hands up to her shoulders for better support. His words were unbelievably calm again, but this time it seemed like Keanu had no intention to intimidate, he genuinely wanted for Y/N to slow down a little and breath. She was questioning though, whether Keanu truly cared for her, or he just didn’t want to deal with the problem of Y/N passing out in front of him.

“I’m done,” she grunted escaping his grip. “I’m so. Fucking. Done.” Her words were quiet but convincing.

For a moment they stood still, Y/N was breathing deeply, debating whether it was time she should turn around and go, but Keanu’s sly smirk managed to catch her eye. “What’s so funny?” she asked, still annoyed, but slowly realizing she had been acting a little crazy, Y/N was beginning to regret her words.

“I’m proud of you, Y/N,” Keanu grinned, leaving her extremely confused.

“What?” She expected Reeves to be angry with her, maybe even come back with more hurtful words. But he didn’t.

“You’re done walking around with those sad puppy eyes, and I can finally see that you’ve got something in you. I saw that fire burning inside, keep it up.” He was about to come closer again, but tucked his hands back in the last second, keeping a polite distance.

“U-uh, okay..?” Y/N was still in shock, trying to understand how he could be so nice to her all of a sudden, especially after this little tantrum she had just thrown.

“Now I can be sure you’ll keep things in place here when I and Emily leave for the Fashion Week,” he tried to locate her sight, checking if she was fine. “Unless you really meant it when you said about being done, but I don’t think you did,” he gave her one last encouraging grin and returned to his usual state, solid and untroubled.

Indeed she wished she could take her words back, Y/N needed this job more than anything, she wasn’t going to find another one soon that would pay enough, and she couldn’t afford to be unemployed. She had secretly applied to a couple of other magazines, but since no one had reached back to her yet, she had to settle for what Reeves was offering her.

Still, it left Y/N wondering whether Keanu had been playing her all along, pulling strings one by one in order to see how far she can go before lashing out. She felt like his little toy, maybe one of his creative projects, something for him to have fun with. But Y/N was having no fun at all.

“I’ll go call Valentino about the samples,” Y/N exhaled turning around and rushed to the phone. Her heart was still racing with adrenaline flowing in her veins, and honestly, she was proud of herself too.

---

At 1:00 AM Y/N’s phone rang and she really thought about not answering it. Just in case, she decided to open her eyes and check the caller’s ID, unfortunately, it said Keanu Reeves.

In an hour, Y/N was standing on his doorstep holding a custom Tom Ford suit tailored just for Reeves. Of course, Keanu made them work on it until the very last night before leaving for Paris, and Y/N had to be the one bringing it to him.

“What took you so long?” He reproached opening his front door. Y/N was expecting to find him all pampered in some chic robe, but he was wearing simple jeans paired with a grey t-shirt, and his hair was messily falling over his face. To Y/N’s surprise, he looked like a normal human being, completely different from what she was used to see.

“Sorry, I was trying to be as quick as possible,” she smiled apologetically, hoping he wouldn’t be too mad.

Keanu just sighed opening his door wider, implying Y/N should come inside. She was immediately looking around for something to hang the suit on, so that she could quickly turn around and go home.

“Yet, here you are, wearing a full face of make-up,” he spoke locking the door, and Y/N took this as a sign that he wasn’t going to let her easily leave. “You know, showing up twenty minutes earlier would have impressed me much more.”

“Come,” he invited her up the stairs, waiting for Y/N to make up her mind. She was quite reluctant at first, lagging in the hallway, but she was also very intrigued, and ultimately, curiosity took over her.

Y/N was following Reeves mesmerized by the penthouse he was living in. High ceiling and tall white walls decorated with colorful artwork, it seemed like he was living in an art gallery. Every painting was more eccentric than the previous one, but it wasn’t happy kind of art. In fact, Y/N felt surrounded by a somber ambience, and the quietness of his home only added to it.

“So, you live here all alone?” Y/N realized she knew nothing about his personal life, no one had even gossiped about him in the office.

“Mhm,” Keanu hummed, showing the way to his living room, where his luggage was set ready, together with the rack curving from numerous expensive suits, which all looked the same to Y/N. “Hang it here,” he commanded turning to the console table to pour himself a drink.

Y/N was very careful, afraid the rack wouldn’t hold any more weight. Fortunately, everything went fine, and she was about to leave the room, when Reeves stretched his arm handing the bottle to her. “Help yourself,” he offered, leaving Y/N unsure whether she should accept it or not.

“U-uh, I think I should go,” Y/N kind of wanted to agree, she was interested to learn more about him, but at the same time she thought it would be wise to keep a professional distance between them.

“Do you have someone waiting for you?” He was unexpectedly persistent to make Y/N stay, and she didn’t really know what to think of it. 

“No, I just don’t want to disturb you,” she was trying to turn him down, but her words didn’t sound too convincing. Maybe it was his tacit loneliness bringing sympathy to Y/N’s heart, which was forcing her to stay for a little longer.

“Be my guest.” His arm was getting tired, so he pushed the bottle further, practically sticking it in Y/N’s hands. Instead of waiting for another rejection, he went past her and got himself comfortable on the sofa in front of the fireplace.

For a minute Y/N still hesitated, she wasn’t afraid to tell him no, but there was something mysteriously captivating about Reeves and she wanted to explore it further. Y/N poured herself a modest glass and went to join him for a conversation.

“Did you force me to go get you Tom Ford in the middle of the night just because you wanted company?“ she asked jokingly, but then immediately realized it was probably true and the question might have sounded a little offensive.

“Don’t you already know the answer?” Keanu mumbled looking down, and Y/N couldn’t believe it was the same man that she had been terrified of before. Now he seemed vulnerable and exposed, without that mask putting a stone cold expression on his face.

“Can I ask you something else then?” Y/N was much softer now, sipping her drink and thinking if the alcohol was going to start working soon.

“Go ahead,” he smiled.

“Why did you hire me?” It was the question bothering Y/N from the very beginning. She had been feeling so out of place at Vogue that even she wouldn’t have hired herself there.

“I needed some fresh air, I was getting tired of seeing the same kind of people.” Y/N was looking at him hypnotized, his husky melodic voice was like music to her ears. When at Vogue, Y/N would pray for Reeves to just shut up and go away, but now she felt like she could sit for hours just listening to him. “Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate Vogue girls, I really fancy them. They live on caffeine, nicotine and five hundred calories a day, yet they’re still always perfect and on top of their game, it’s impressive… But honestly, they can be depressing sometimes, and I thought I just needed someone like…” Keanu stalled, thinking about his next words. “Like you,” he silently said.

“What am I like?”

“I don’t know, you’re just different. You seem like you don’t care at all.” Keanu put an empty glass down, shifting his core towards her.

Every little move was bringing them closer, and Y/N knew she was walking a very thin line here. “And that’s good?” Y/N asked getting a little bolder, she was curious to know more of his opinion on her.

“It’s definitely not bad,” Keanu murmured, gazing into Y/N’s eyes. They both had their elbows leaning on the backrest and Y/N felt Keanu’s hand gently landing onto hers. She was trying to think of possible questions to keep the conversation going, but his touch was too distracting, and Keanu got the chance to speak first.

“What would you do if I kissed you now?” He asked, locking his eyes on Y/N.

Her mind went blank and she didn’t know what that was supposed to mean. Briefly she thought that maybe the words were all in her head, just her imagination disclosing her deepest desires, but very soon she realized this was a real question.

Maybe Keanu was playing her feelings again, provoking and expecting a reaction, but fuck, she really wanted him to kiss her. Part of her hoped it was the alcohol speaking, but Keanu only had so little of it that it was an impossible case. It was all him, loud and clear, asking Y/N what she would do if he kissed her…

“A-are you going to?” Y/N stuttered, feeling the weight of his sturdy palm pressing on her.

A long silent pause followed after her words, or maybe time just felt different as Y/N was anxiously waiting for Keanu’s actions, she was desperately holding herself back from falling into his lips.

“No,” Keanu suddenly came back to his senses sliding his hand away. It was obvious he felt uneasy too, getting all flustered and trying his best to stay composed. “That would be highly inappropriate. I am your boss.” He exhaled with disappointment in his voice.

“Y-yes,” Y/N gulped, downing the remaining of her drink.

“Yes what?”

“Yes, that would be inappropriate.” Y/N stretched her arm trying to grasp the handbag lying next to her on the sofa. “And I should get going, it’s late,” she blurted standing up and heading towards the exit. Y/N completely understood that running away was not very mature, but she thought it was better this way than staying to talk this through and saying something much more stupid.

Meanwhile, Keanu was rushing after, following her to the front door looking all worried. Y/N was relieved remembering she would not have to see him for another week and she foolishly hoped that everything would be forgotten once he came back. Keanu, on the other hand, had something else in mind.

“Wait” he grabbed Y/N by the wrist, turning her away from the door. “Come to the Fashion Week with me.”

Keanu struck Y/N with his words for the second time this night. She knew they had to leave in the morning and Emily was probably sitting at home with her bags full, getting ready for the event she had been dreaming about for so long.

“What?” Y/N knew that agreeing would make her a terrible person. “No, I can’t, Emily would never forgive me,” she was eagerly shaking her head, failing to understand what the hell was happening. She didn’t want to reject Keanu, but betraying Emily like that was not an option too. What would that make her? No different than any other person from Vogue.

“Why do you care?” he asked moving closer, and all Y/N could focus on was his lips, the ones she almost got to taste tonight. “Just please don’t tell me she’s your friend, because trust me, there are no friends in this business.”

“No, we’re not friends, but still… Don’t you understand how mean it would be to do so?” Y/N was trying to uphold her values, but Keanu was ripping them away from her.

“Has she ever been nice to you?”

“Well not really, but…”

“Great, I’ll call her to tell the news,” Keanu said with his chest almost pressing Y/N to the door, while he was working behind her to undo the lock. For a moment Y/N felt like Keanu was kidnapping her, but at the same time, she knew that a simple ‘no’ coming from her could resolve everything. She just didn’t want to say it. “I’ll pick you up at eight, good night,” Keanu smiled letting her go.

“Good night…” Deep down Y/N knew how wrong it all was, she didn’t feel like she deserved it, not to mention how devastated Emily was going to be, and on top of everything, there was that awkward kiss moment, which Y/N still couldn’t fully comprehend.

Nonetheless, it was Y/N’s chance, her big opportunity to put herself out there, make connections, and maybe soon she was going to be the journalist she had always dreamt being of.

-Part 3-

Tag-list: @keandrews @rdjloverxxx @jadore30-deactivated20200603​ @danceoftwowolves

>Masterlist<

Reach Out Your Hand Pt. 2

****************************************

Summary: Remus rushes to Roman's side at the hospital. Things won't be easy, but hopefully, they'll improve.

Part One is here.

Read on Ao3 here.

A/N: Woah! I am so sorry this took so long guys! Life happened, and got away from me. Also, I've probably rewritten this three or four times. Still not sure if I'm happy with it, but here it is!

Also, keep an eye out for another post, I’m gonna be asking your opinions on what I should write next!

As usual, let me know if you want to be added to the taglist! And once again, I apologize.

Content Warnings: Drunken texts, drug abuse, drug overdose, mild violence (vague mention), self-deprecating thoughts and language, panic attack, disassociation, whump, angst, guilt

****************************************

“Follow me!” 

Remus called back to his twin as he eagerly began his ascent up the tall pine. He had made it halfway up by the time Roman had reached the base. 

“Is this a good idea, Re?” The ten year-old questioned, worriedly looking up as the pine loomed ominously above him. 

“Don’t worry Ro,” Remus said, jumping down to a lower branch, “I’ve done this dozens and dozens of times before.” He reached out a hand to Roman. 

“Come on!” Remus cajoled. “It’ll be fine, I’ll be right here with you, I won’t let you fall.” Roman looked at Remus nervously. 

“You promise?”

“I triple-dog swear, cross my heart and hope to die, on Twin’s honor.” Remus swore, with all the seriousness the ten year old could muster. Roman took a nervous breath, then took Remus’s hand. 

The twins climbed and climbed and climbed. Higher and higher and higher. They giggled and talked as they went, weaving grand stories of adventure. They weren’t just boys climbing a tree, they were princes climbing a tall tower to save the princess, or Jacks scaling a beanstalk, astronauts fixing their rocket, adventurers escaping a trap they’d set off in an ancient temple. 

The rest of the world might as well have not existed. It was just them. Just Roman and Remus. 

Finally, they reached the top of the tall pine. Remus whooped in delight. “I think I can see our house from here!” Roman grinned from his perch on the branch next to him. 

“I can see the whole ocean from here!” Remus smiled back at his twin’s delighted face, watching the wind whip through his hair .

“See scaredy-cat,” Remus said, fondly, “everything was fine. And it always will be. I won’t let anything ever hurt you as long as I live. Twin’s honor.”

Roman didn’t turn back to Remus, his face pointed downwards towards the ground. 

“Ro?” Remus questioned, nervously. “A-are you alright?”

“You lied, Remus.” Roman said, flatly. 

“W-what?” Remus stammered, confused. 

“You lied. You said you’d always keep me safe, that you’d always be there for me, and what do you do?” Ten-year-old Roman was gone, replaced by eighteen year old Roman, eyes no longer pointed towards the ground but instead placing Remus in the direct line of their blazing fire. “You abandoned me the first chance you got, flew the coop, left me to the vultures.” Roman pushed Remus, and Remus found that he was no longer in the tree. He was standing in the middle of a crowded restaurant, confused, hurt, and eighteen all over again. Remus could feel the stares of faceless onlookers, practically felt their whispers crawling on his skin. 

“Roman, please—“ Remus began, but Roman didn’t let him finish. 

“I needed you Remus! I was young, vulnerable. Maybe if you were there, I would’ve made the right decisions. Maybe we wouldn’t be here!” 

Roman shoved Remus, hard, and Remus stumbled back into a motel room. Mildewing wallpaper peeled off of the walls, revealing the mold and rot underneath. A cockroach scuttled across Remus’s foot. Roman’s face had turned pale now, and his lips blue. 

“I’m going to die, you know that, right? Alone and friendless with no one to care. In a crappy motel room that not even a homeless person would willingly live in.” Roman spat, face turning paler and gaunt as he spoke, voice slowly beginning to distort.

“I-I’m sorry Roman,” Remus cried, anguished, “I didn’t want to leave you. I begged you to come with me. I need you Roman!”

“Fat lot of good that does me now!” Roman growled, pushing Remus back. With every step he seemed to crumble more and more until he was barely skin and bones. “You never really cared. Those texts, reaching out, that was just because you felt obligated, because you felt guilty.” Remus cowered back as the now almost undead spectre of his brother continued his approach, backing Remus into a moldy corner, shoving Remus to punctuate each word. “You’ll be glad when I’m dead, won’t you! No more having to worry about poor, misguided, useless Roman—“

“Stop!” Remus shouted, holding his arms in front of himself to defend from the shoves, scrunching his eyes tight to avoid the sight of the abomination in front of him. The spectre continued to shove, and Remus couldn’t take it anymore. He shoved back.

There was silence. Then, a soft, small, confused voice broke through.

“Re?”

Remus opened his eyes. The nightmarish specter and grimy hotel room had vanished. Wind whipped through his hair and the scent of pine needles filled his nose. He was back on the top of the tree once more. 

With a rising sense of horror, everything around him playing in slow motion, he saw.

Little ten-year-old Roman, eyes full of shock and betrayal, Remus’s own hands leaving his chest, slowly fell backwards off the top of the tall pine. 

Time sped up, and Remus lunged forward, but Roman’s red hoodie slipped out of his fingers. His brother fell into darkness, until Remus couldn’t see him anymore. He couldn’t even see the ground. 

“Nononononononono no!” Remus couldn’t find Roman, couldn’t see him couldn’t help him. Where was Roman where was he Remus failed him why didn’t he try harder why—

“Remus!”

Light, harsh and unforgiving invaded Remus’s eyes like the sharp knives stabbed in Caesar’s back. He winced in pain, trying to shield his eyes. He still couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think.

Suddenly, darkness returned, and he heard a soft voice murmuring gently to him. Gentle hands stroked his hair, and Remus leaned into a warm embrace. The voice spoke.

“Try to match my breathing, love.”

Remus listened. Even though everything seemed scary and confusing right now, and he wasn’t sure of anything, he knew he could trust that voice. It wasn’t just knowledge, it was fact. Despite knowing this, he still struggled to breathe, gasping for air. 

“Remus, try to focus on my voice. Tell me five things you can see.” The voice prompted. Remus opened his eyes and looked. He was in the back of Dillon’s car, with the boyfriend in question holding him tightly. 

“I-I can see your car door,” he managed, “the lamppost outside the window, the rain on your windshield, the driver’s seat in front of me, and...” He trailed off, spotting over Dillon’s shoulder a glowing red sign that simply read EMERGENCY. “The Emergency sign—“ He couldn’t speak anymore, where they were and why they were here came rushing back all at once at a madman’s pace, taking his breath with it. 

Roman. Romanromanroman. Roman was in danger. Roman was going to die. All because Remus failed Roman, because he wasn’t there, he failed he failed he failed—

“Just breathe, love.” Dillon cajoled softly. “Just keep focusing on your breathing. I know you’re worried about Roman, but you can’t help him like this. Try to keep going. Four things you can touch.”

Remus tried to breathe, tried to keep his focus centered, fumbling his hands for something.

“The car seats,” he said, finally, “my jeans,” Remus continued to move his hands, wrapping his arms around Dillon. “your cashmere sweater, and your hands running through my hair.” 

“Good.” Dillon whispered softly, and Remus could see a tired, but loving smile on his partner’s face. “Now, three things you can hear.”

“Your heartbeat,” Remus managed, “the traffic outside, and the rain on the roof of the car.”

“We’re almost there.” Dillon reassured. “Now two things you can smell.” Remus inhaled through his nose, trying to find something.

“Your shampoo, and the leather car seats.” He managed. 

“Alright, now just one thing you can taste.” Dillon stated kindly. 

“That weird taste I get in my mouth sometimes when I sleep with my mouth open.” Remus replied promptly. 

“Good job.” Dillon murmured warmly. “How are you feeling?” Remus snuggled deeply into Dillon’s side. 

“What if we just stayed in here?” Remus whispered, voice coming out a little muffled since his face was pressed into his boyfriend’s side. “What if we just stayed here forever and ignored everything else and pretended the world didn’t exist?” Remus felt Dillon shift underneath him, then his boyfriend began to speak. 

“If that was what you really wanted to do, I would stay with you as long as you needed.” Dillon paused, then continued, picking his words carefully. “But I know you, and I know that while being in that hospital won’t be easy, it will be worse to not be there, and to have no idea about what’s going on.”

Remus took in a shuddering breath, then pulled away from Dillon. He looked him in the eye, and managed to say,

“You’re right, let’s go in.”

****************************************

The hospital was too quiet. Remus leaned into Dillon’s side while his boyfriend talked to the nurse at the reception desk, feeling like Dillon was the only thing keeping him upright. Remus felt like he was walking through a fog, going through the motions of being a human. They sat together in the waiting room for what seemed like years, until the nurse called them up to give them the go ahead to finally go see his brother.

Remus was barely aware as the nurse gave them directions and Dillon led him through the white corridors. All he could think about was Roman, brain running through all the possibilities of what could be awaiting him.

Finally, they reached the door to Roman’s room. Remus froze. All he could do was stare at the doorway in front of him. How could the sight of something so simple fill him with so much terror? He knew he needed to go into that room. But he hesitated to cross its threshold. He couldn’t do it. He couldn’t.

“Love, you alright?” Dillon said, looking at Remus with worry.

“I-I have to be, right?” Remus whispered. “For Roman.”

“You don’t have to be anything.” Dillon said, tone firm. “I can take care of everything if you need me to. You don’t have to ever set a foot in there if you can’t. If that’s what you’re sure you want.”

“No, I-I need to do this, Dee.” Remus said, trying to calm his racing heart as he spoke. “Not just for Roman, but for myself.” Dillon nodded, and rubbed Remus’s shoulder reassuringly.

“I’ll be there with you every step of the way, love.”

Remus smiled gratefully at his boyfriend, and clasped Dillon’s cool, dry hand tightly in his own warm, sweaty one.

And like that, he stepped across the threshold.

And there Roman was, in the hospital bed.

Roman was pale.

Too pale.

Too quiet.

Remus had never seen Roman like this before.

Roman had always been so lively, so full of energy and excitement.

Not now.

Roman was so still and lifeless, almost like— 

Remus’s breath hitched, and Dillon caught his panic.

“He’s ok, love.” Dillon murmured reassuringly into Remus’s ear. “See,” Dillon gestured to the monitor next to Roman’s bed. “Roman’s heart is still beating. He’s alive.”

Alive.

Alivealivealivealivealive.

That word kept repeating on a loop in Remus’s head.

Even when the doctor came in later to give them the full rundown of Roman’s condition, Remus could barely hear him over the joyful symphony in his head.

Roman was alive!

Though, what the doctor had to say did sober him a little.

Roman was alive, yes, but barely. And it was going to be a long, hard road ahead of him. Due to the type of drug Roman had overdosed, and was likely addicted to, the doctors would have to slowly wean him off of it by giving him smaller and smaller doses. It was risky, but if Roman was to go cold turkey it could kill him.

And that was the easy part.

The harder part ahead of Remus now (and Dillon, who Remus knew would have his back through whatever happened next) was to convince Roman to enter rehab once he left the hospital. Forcing him to enter wouldn’t be of any use if he didn’t want to get better.

But all of that was in the future.

For now, the only thing Roman needed to do was wake up.

****************************************

Two weeks later…..

It had been a really long two weeks.

Remus had barely left the hospital.

He couldn’t bear to leave Roman’s side.

Dillon had tried to convince Remus to go home, get some rest. 

And Remus tried to, he really did, but he just couldn’t. Not when his brain couldn’t stop running through everything that could’ve happened in his absence. He’d gotten Dillon to drive him back as quickly as he could.

Remus honestly wouldn’t have survived these last two weeks without Dillon by his side through all of it.

Roman had been unconscious for the first few days, and that had been stressful.

But then Roman had woken up for the first time.

And Remus almost missed the unconsciousness. 

Roman had not been anywhere near lucid, shouting and yelling.

They had to strap him to the bed and sedate him.

And that had started a cycle of Roman waking up, getting violent, and needing to be sedated.

It was clear every time that he didn’t know where he was, what was happening. Roman was always babbling incoherently.

(Except, once, Remus had sworn he’d heard Roman growl something that sounded almost like “How dare you talk about my brother like that!” but Remus must have misheard.)

Roman had been getting less and less violent each time though, and that was a good thing. Right?

Except last time, Roman had been sobbing. This time, he’d seemed to recognize Remus, and had been babbling and sobbing incoherent apologies until Remus had gotten him to fall asleep again, promising they’d talk when Roman woke up.

That had almost been scarier than the violent spells.

Seeing his brother so upset, so absolutely shattered. Remus hoped he’d never have to see that again.

That was a couple of days ago. 

Now Remus sat next to Roman’s bed, aimlessly scrolling through his phone, waiting for Dillon to return with the coffees he’d left to get.

Suddenly, a voice, raspy from unuse, broke the silence of the room.

“Remus?”

Remus dropped his phone in surprise, and saw his brother blinking tiredly up from the bed on which he lay. Remus wondered if Roman had just woken up, or if he’d been awake for a little longer but hadn’t said anything. From the look on Roman’s face, Remus was leaning towards the second option.

“You’re awake.” Remus said, voice barely a whisper. He didn’t say Is it really you this time? Are you alright?

“Yeah.” Roman said, voice as soft as Remus’s. He looked so small in that hospital bed.

“H-How badly did I screw up this time?” Roman said. He couldn’t seem to quite look Remus in the eye. Remus’s gut instinct was to rush to assure Roman that he didn’t, that everything was fine. But Remus couldn’t, because he knew that it would be a lie. One that could hurt in the long run. Because, and this had been hard to admit to himself, but Roman did screw up. Remus couldn’t tell Roman that, but he couldn’t tell him everything was fine either. Remus didn’t know what to say, everything he could think of at the moment felt like it would hurt Roman in one way or another. Whether it was because Remus was too hard on him, or if Remus was too gentle, those would both be detrimental to Roman’s eventual recovery.

So, Remus picked a third option.

He surged forward and hugged Roman as tightly as he would.

Remus heard a small gasp of surprise come from his brother, but after a moment of hesitation, Roman returned the hug.

And there they stayed, the rest of the world fading into the background. 

Everything wasn’t alright yet, and it wouldn’t be, couldn’t be, for a while. There was still a lot of work to be done. A lot of things the twins needed to work out, to resolve.

But for the moment, Remus was content to wrap his arms tightly around his brother, determined that he would never let go.

****************************************

Taglist:

@ironwoman359

@galacticguppy

@trashpanda-remus 

@atticusfinchthelegend

@ravenclawunicorn1

@voidvirgil

@dogwithpants

@dreaming-about-kittens

@ro-arts-blog

Anything But Ordinary

A/U Roman Reigns x OC fanfic Summary: Sierra Winters is normal girl, whose life is anything but ordinary. Her parents are notorious hunters of supernatural creatures. Once her parents catch a certain alpha, her life turns upside down. This story features other WWE superstars as supernatural creatures too. I sadly don't own WWE or Roman reigns (I wish I did) but I don't Word count: 2900+ Warnings: None other than one F-bomb I think.

Sierra's alarm went off at 7 am for another day of work. She spent her day taking care of the supernatural creatures her parents captured. Her family was notorious for kidnapping these creatures and holding them for testing. They caught all types of amazing creatures; vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters, and hybrids. Sierra could go on and on about all the intriguing creatures her parents brought back to the lab on a daily basis. Except for yesterday, her parents brought home something special, a purebred alpha male werewolf. A creature like him wasn't uncommon, one of her best friends in the lab was one, but this one, Sierra could tell that this one was different. His name was Roman Reigns and he was beyond gorgeous. His raven black hair was tied in a bun and his skin was a beautiful caramel color. He was very muscular and he had a huge tattoo that spread from his chest, all the way down his right arm. Sierra didn't get the chance to meet him yet, right when he arrived, he was taken to the maximum security cells because he was acting hostile. Sierra followed close behind his cage but her dad stopped her and told her to stay away from him until he calmed down. After Sierra ate her breakfast, she grabbed the cart she used for the food and began loading it with trays. Sierra grabbed her headphones off the counter and put one in her ear before pushing the cart into the lab. She started with Baron Corbin, he was an alpha male werewolf that was captured a couple months ago. "Good morning princess," Baron said grinning. Many of the creatures, including Baron liked Sierra and only Sierra because she brought food and was the only person that treated them like the people that they were. "Good morning Baron. How are you feeling, I know they put you through the ringer yesterday." Sierra said. Because Baron was an alpha, he was a common test subject and Sierra hated her parents for that. It wasn't fair that he and many others were going to spend the rest of their lives in these cells. "I'm fine now that you're here, means food," Baron muttered, looking down at the tray of food for him. Sierra smiled and handed the tray to Baron through the small gap in the cell door. "Enjoy. I'll be back for lunch at noon." Sierra said, with that, she turned and continued on to the other cells. The next one was Seth Rollins, he was a vampire who'd been caught two years ago. "Good morning Seth, how are you?" Sierra asked handing the tray to him. Seth was very quiet, he only ever spoke to Sierra, and when he did, it was either a couple words or a short sentence. She gave trays to Jimmy a werewolf, and Jey, Jimmy's twin who was also a werewolf; Alexa, a shapeshifter; Charlotte, a shapeshifter/vampire hybrid; and Becky, a werewolf/shapeshifter hybrid. After going through minimum security, Sierra walked down a different hallway, to go to maximum security.

Dean Ambrose was the first face Sierra saw in maximum security. He was a hybrid cross between a vampire and a werewolf. Dean was the only vampire/werewolf cross that they had at the moment and he was easily Sierra's best friend. She looked forward to seeing him every day and told him everything. Dean was just a little unstable which is what landed him in max. "Hey darlin' what's for breakfast today?" Dean asked. "Today? Only blood, you have testing." Sierra said, her voice low. She hated telling them when they had to be tested, it was easily the worst part of her job. Dean's face fell. "I do? They tested me a couple days ago. What the hell could they possibly want?" He asked. "I don't know Dean. But you better drink this fast, they're coming to get you in a couple minutes." Sierra said. "I'm sorry." "It's not you darlin'," Dean said. "I know that if this whole thing was up to you, I wouldn't even be in here." He said confidently. Sierra nodded and pushed the cart down the hall, giving trays to others before she stopped at Roman's cell. He was still trying to get out when Sierra got there. He was pulling on the bars that covered his small window. "You're not gonna get out. Everyone in here has already tried, and I've tried everything and can't get you out either." Roman's head snapped to look at Sierra and he stalked slowly towards the door. "Who are you? Where am I? Where's my pack?" Roman asked, obviously confused. "I'm Sierra. I'm gonna be bringing you your meals and helping if you need me for a while." Sierra said. "I'm sorry." She said quietly. "I've been captured?" Roman asked. "You... you're one of the Winters! You ruined my life!" Roman yelled at Sierra as he white-knuckled the cell bars. "Roman, please calm down,” Sierra said calmly, trying to not draw too much attention. “My parents captured you, not me. I would never." Sierra said trying to calm him down. Roman's pupils were completely blown and his sharp canine teeth had begun protruding from his gums. He was about to turn and Sierra had to stop it. "No, Roman. Don't, they'll test you." Sierra said she didn't think about what she did next. Sierra typed in the 6-digit pin code and opened the cell door. She stood on her toes and cupped Roman's cheeks in her hands. Sierra knew she was putting herself at risk but she didn't care. Her main concern was that Roman would be put through so many more unnecessary tests if he turned. Sierra looked into his eyes and watched as they changed back to normal. Luckily, Roman began to calm down when Sierra rubbed her thumb back and forth over his cheek. "You have to calm down. Please. I'll explain everything to you but you need to calm down first." Sierra's voice shook with her hands but she kept them on Roman's cheeks. Roman took a deep breath and because his turn was voluntary, he retracted it. His eyes went back to a deep brown and his teeth turned back to normal as well. Roman covered Sierra's small hands with his larger ones and lead her to his bed. Sierra explained everything to Roman as he ate his breakfast. She told him all about the different creatures that her parents captured and she explained all the different tests they were put through. "Purebred shapeshifters are tested every other week to test the progress of foxglove, a plant that disables their powers and weakens them, and it does it painfully." Sierra began, the last word of her sentence causing Roman to cringe slightly. "Purebred werewolves were tested every other week to test the progress of wolf's bane, a plant with the same purpose of the foxglove, and just as painful. That’s what my parents used on you, to knock you out and get you here. And purebred vampires were tested every other week to test the progress of larkspur, a plant with the same purpose of foxglove and wolf's bane, also just as painful as the other plants." She continued. "And since you're an alpha, you'll be tested twice a week because you're stronger than the betas and omegas in here." She said her voice barely above a whisper. "You gotta get me out. I can't do this. Please, I have to get back to my pack." Roman said, his hands squeezing Sierra's. "I've tried Roman. But this is a high-security lab. The cages only open for 5 minutes at 7 am, noon, and 6 pm for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And when the cages do open, they only open from the outside and they're heavily guarded 24/7. I can't get you out." Sierra said softly. Roman stared into Sierra's blue eyes and realized how beautiful she really was. Sierra's long, platinum blond hair was tied into two Dutch braids. Her blond hair and olive skin really accentuated and brought out her bright blue eyes. She was wearing a white t-shirt and a pair of light wash jeans with a pair of converse. She was dressed so simply but she looked so goddess-like in Roman's eyes. Sierra and Roman stared at each other for god knows how long, still holding each other's hands. Until they were interrupted by a shrill shriek that made them both jump slightly. "Sierra! Get out of there! He's dangerous!" Sierra's mom yelled. She scanned her ID card and the cage opened. Guards pushed roughly past Sierra to restrain Roman while two others held her arms tightly. "Roman!" Sierra yelled when she saw guards injecting him with wolf's bane. "You're hurting him!" She yelled before Roman let out a blood-curdling scream as he fell to the floor while the guards pulled Sierra out of the cage. "What were you doing in there? You could've been hurt." Sierra was in shock, she couldn't answer. Her mom opened the cage with a card. Why didn't she have a card? Was the card the key to save Roman and all the other creatures? Sierra's mind raced with thoughts as she stared wide eyed at her mom. "You know what, just go feed the rest of them." Sierra shook herself from her thoughts and went on to feed the rest of the creatures. Sierra spent the rest of breakfast thinking about the card. If she could get her hands on one, she'd be able to free everyone during the guard change. She had to get a card. Sierra finally got an idea and walked into her dad's office. "Dad?" She asked quietly. Her dad spun in his chair to face her and leaned against his desk. "What's up cupcake?" He asked nicely. Sierra cleared her throat and sat down on one of the chairs. "I was wondering when I'm gonna get an ID card. "I'm 22, that's old enough to have one." Sierra started. "You know, I was supposed to get one made for you this weekend." Sierra's dad said. "I guess I could do it now. It'll be done by tomorrow morning." Sierra smiled and hugged her father. She felt a little guilty because she was going to use this card to save Roman and everyone else, therefore, ruining all of her parent's research and their careers. But Sierra felt more guilt watching the creatures in their small cages, it was a prison and Sierra didn't like it. It was 8 am, which meant she had 4 hours until she could tell the creatures that they'd be saved by tomorrow. Sierra walked with more of a bounce in her step but she was stopped by more screams that echoed down the hallway. Usually, Sierra would ignore them or try not to listen, but these screams were different. They were closer than usual, they didn't come from the lab. Sierra’s head snapped toward the noise when she heard her name. It was Roman. Sierra sprinted down the hall, following the screams. Sierra came to a halt when she saw what the guards had done to Roman. She could see that he had a black eye and a gash on his lip that was bleeding badly. His breathing was shallow and Sierra could tell he was in pain. She could also tell that he was trying not to move due to the wolf's bane ropes that burned him with each extra movement. Sierra stood at Roman's cell door but she couldn't get in. It was way past 7:05, so the doors were locked and they would stay locked for the next couple hours and Sierra had no idea what to do next. But then she got an idea. Sierra sprinted back down the hall, out of maximum security, and to her dad's office. Luckily, he wasn't in his office which made Sierra's plan a whole lot easier. She began digging through his desk until she found exactly what she was looking for. Her father's ID card. She grabbed it and ran back down the hall to maximum security. Two guards stopped her but she held the card up and said Roman needed medical attention. The guards nodded and walked back to their posts. Sierra scanned the card and opened Roman's cell. She kneeled down beside his bed and began untying the ropes as quickly as possible. "Roman." Was all Sierra could say as she saw the burns that the wolf's bane left on his skin after pulling the ropes off of him. She pressed her forehead against his and held the back of his head with her hand. "I'm getting you out tomorrow. I promise." She whispered. Roman was too weak to really respond to what Sierra had just said, but she saw Roman's eyes light up. "How?" Roman asked, his voice gravelly and strained. Sierra smiled at Roman and helped him sit up. "Don't worry about it, just yet. But you need help, so come with me." Sierra said, she stood up and offered her hand to Roman. "Won't your parents kill me if I'm out of my cage?" Roman asked as Sierra lead him out of his cage and down the hall. "Woah. What the fuck? Let me out too!" Dean yelled. Sierra held tightly onto Roman's hand as she walked to Dean's cage. "Hey keep your voice down. He's hurt, I'm just helping him. Don't worry, you'll both be out for good tomorrow night." Sierra said. Dean's eyes lit up and he opened his mouth like he was about to say something but Sierra cut him off. "We have to go. I'll talk to you during lunch." Sierra said. Dean nodded, letting her and Roman walk away. When Sierra and Roman made it to the lab. Roman's eyes widened, he saw all the horrible tools Sierra's parents used on people like him. "Oh god Roman, don't look at that stuff," Sierra said as she squeezed his hand and lead him to another room with a doctor's table and some boxes of equipment. "Sit and be quiet, I'll be right back," Sierra instructed. Roman sat down on the table and watched Sierra close the door behind her, leaving Roman alone. Sierra came back into the room a few minutes later with a plastic container full of steak. "Eat this while I check you out," Sierra said. Roman gladly took the container and began scarfing down the steak. Sierra lifted his shirt and noticed all the scars from the ropes that were forming on his skin. She ran her fingers over one of the scars on his chest. The wolf's bane had seeped through his shirt and burned him, badly. "Roman..." She whispered. "I can't believe they did this to you. I'm so sorry." She said, tears beginning to well in her blue eyes. "Hey, it's okay. Look at me."Roman said. He hooked to fingers under her chin and lifted it. "I'm okay and this isn't your fault," Roman said as he stared into Sierra's glassy blue eyes. Sierra nodded and checked to make sure nothing on his body needed real medical attention before grabbing ace bandages to wrap around the horrible, bubbling burns. She pulled his shirt over his head and her eyes (and fingers) trailed right to the tattoo that covered a good portion of his chest. Sierra was lost in her own world when Roman cleared his throats and playfully raised his eyebrows at her. "Don't flatter yourself, Reigns." Sierra laughed as she rolled her eyes. "I'm just wrapping you up." She said in a playfully defensive tone. "You know you like the view." Roman retorted smiling down at Sierra as she began wrapping the bandage around his chest to cover the horrible burn there. Sierra only smiled and continued to wrap the bandage slowly around his chest, enjoying the warmth of his smooth skin. After finishing with the bandage on his chest, Sierra grabbed the second one and started carefully wrapping the other horrible burn on his shoulder. Roman watched intently as Sierra wrapped his shoulder. He noticed how her eyebrows creased slightly while she focused and how carefully her hands were moving because she didn't want to hurt him. "All done," Sierra said smoothing the bandage down before helping Roman back into his shirt. "Ready to head back?" Sierra asked.  Roman nodded and Sierra took his hand again and lead him back through the lab to the cages. "I'll be back around noon for lunch," Sierra said softly after closing Roman into his cell. Sierra rested her forehead against to the cell door as she spoke. Roman smiled and closed the space between them, resting his forehead close to hers on the other side of the cell. "Don't be late," Roman said as he rested his forehead against the cool, metal bars that separated them. His dark brown eyes practically melting Sierra. With that, she turned and walked down the hall, hoping Roman didn't notice how much she was blushing.

Part two

Introductions: ICIA and CIU

One fact about the ICIA that was not released to the public—its possession of exceptional technology that allowed for the efficient detection and persecution of perpetrators.

Author’s Note:

This story is a part of Pharmakon: Kairos, a time travelling story about ordinary people forced to travel back in time to save those that they love.

Character profiles/summaries can be read here.

Stopping just in front of large black gates, Hayden gazed at the building that stood just beyond. Glass covered the sides of the building, reflecting the light of the morning sun directly at him.

  One fact about the ICIA that was not released to the public—its possession of exceptional technology that allowed for the efficient detection and persecution of perpetrators. Each team possessed such a device and each device had a different role in solving a case. The Rolmac team—the team Hayden was assigned to—possessed the VsFB, a device that allowed the team to hear the final words of the victim. While such evidence could not be used in a court of law to persecute the suspected perpetrator of a crime, it had its uses.

  “Name?” A voice echoed from the speaker attached to the gate, starling Hayden from his thoughts.

  “Ah….H-Hayden Griffith. I-I am assigned the Rolmac team starting today.”

  “…”

  There was silence for a moment, leading Hayden to wonder if he had said something wrong. 

“I see. Agents are to enter through the side gate. Your ID should open the gates.”

 The voice was notably more hostile than before. Or perhaps he was over thinking it…

  “Thank you…”

  As per instructions, he made his way to the side of the building. Two guards stood guard at this entrance, which was strange, considering that there had not been any security at the front gate.

  “H-hello…”

The guards simply took a glance at him, then proceeded to look forward, a grim line on their faces.

  “…”

  Maybe he had not been clear enough in his greeting.

  “M-my name is Hayden Griffith. I’m starting today…”

  The guards didn’t show any sign of having heard him, so Hayden continued, albeit reluctantly.

  “I-I was told that agents are to enter here…”

  Again, no response.

  “…”

  “…”

  One of the two guards jerked his head toward a small touchpad embedded onto the gate. Hayden gazed at the device, then back to the two guards.

  “Good morning!” A man’s voice came from behind him, a burnt brown shade in color. The guards’ frowns quickly shifted to smiles as they greeted the man—presumably another agent.

  “…”

  Puzzledly, Hayden scanned their faces for a moment before turning to the newcomer.

  Underneath his ICIA jacket, he wore a cleanly pressed dress shirt and a tie. Confidence radiated from him from his stance alone. Unlike the guards, the man gave him a grin as soon as their eyes met.

  “Good morning!”

  His cheerfulness and enthusiasm was contagious.

  “G-good morning…!”

  “So you’re Hayden? My name is Cadmus. Cadmus Nevitt. But Cad is fine.” It seemed like he had heard the words that Hayden had exchanged with the guards earlier. “I’m what you would call the co-leader of the team. Or well, I like to call myself the co-leader.” He laughed.

  Relaxing at the friendliness of his words, Hayden gave him a smile.

  “Well, if you’re ready, let’s make our way inside.”

With one swipe of his hand, Cadmus ran his ID through the scanner, which glowed blue. The gates opened with a loud creak. “Scan your ID there. It’ll also scan your fingerprint. ICIA precautions.”

  Hayden did as he was told and the touchpad glowed again.

  “Great! Let’s go in.” Cadmus made his way in first, leaving Hayden trotting after him. Their height difference was quite noticeable, as he barely stood to the other agent’s shoulders. The agent was probably a good foot taller than him, Hayden guessed, and Hayden had to walk twice as fast to keep up with the long strides that Cadmus made.

  “Don’t worry about them. They’re not supposed to show emotion—or so they claim. In reality, they’re probably just trying to scare you. They do that to newbies.” Cadmus gave him a reassuring smile. “Actually, you’ll find that most of the agents will do that to you here for a while. Dan will, I bet.”

  Seeing Hayden’s confusion, Cadmus clarified, “Oh right, Dan is our team head. He might look intimidating at first, but he’s relatively harmless despite the permanent frown etched on his face. But don’t tell him that I said that. Tell him that you heard it in the lobby.” With a mischievous grin, the agent continued. “I’m sure Leanne and Evie would love to meet you. Evie’s been practically bouncing off the walls ever since that we got news that we would get a new agent on our team.”

  They had entered the ICIA lobby. The floor was covered with black marble, polished to perfection. Sleet blue sofas stood to their left on top of a gray carpet. Several agents were resting there, whispering something to themselves. It seemed like they were being watched, for heads turned to look at them everywhere they went.

  “Oh but, do me a favor?”

  “Yes?” Hayden looked at the older agent curiously.

  “You see, I didn’t get my coffee yet today. Overslept a little.” He scratched his head sheepishly. “I would appreciate it if you could help me carry some cups? Wish I could grow some more hands, but…” He chuckled, “Well, coffee will help dispel some of Dan’s irritation. He’s not a morning person. Or well…I guess he’s not an afternoon…or evening person either…” With a shrug, Cadmus led him to the lobby coffee shop. The smell of freshly brewed coffee filled the air along with the chatter from nearby agents, which overpowered the low rumbling of what seemed like a coffee grounds processor.

  Cadmus ran through the basics of ICIA: its background, the creation of teams, and the story behind their team, the Criminal Investigative Unit—shorted to CIU. Hayden looked at him in awe, wondering how he could remember and list off so much. After a while, he stopped, and gave him another cheerful grin.

  “But I’m talking too much. Though wait until you meet Evie. Try not to lose your ears just yet, you’ll need them later.” It was then that they had arrived at the front of the line. Four orders were made, then the agent turned to him. “And what would you like, Hayden? Coffee? Tea?”

  “Huh? A-ah, no that’s okay, I-I’m not much of a coffee or a tea person…”

  Cadmus looked almost comedically shocked at his response. “Don’t worry, you’ll be one soon!” The agent replied with certainty before turning back to the cashier. “And a cup of ice water please.”

  “I’m glad cupholders are a thing…” With the three coffee cups in the cupholder and his own in his hand, they were taking the elevator to the fifth floor. Hayden wondered why he was asked to come along in the first place, seeing as Cadmus didn’t need his help at all. He held the cup of water in his hands that Cadmus had gotten for him, insisting that he couldn’t let any of his agents leave a coffee shop empty handed.

  The doors opened with a high pitched ding. Agents filled the room, some standing alone the hallways. All eyes turned toward them as the elevator opened and suddenly, it felt like déjà vu again like in the lobby. Did they really draw that much attention?

  “Good morning!” Cadmus’s voice rang out and murmurs of greetings came from the agents in response.

  “G-good morning…” He mimicked, averting his eyes to the ground. Again, a murmur of responses. Their eyes were still directed on the pair, however.

  “Don’t mind them. Let’s go.” A low, reassuring whisper from Cadmus. He made his way through the rest of the agents and Hayden followed in turn.

  “This is our place.” Cadmus stopped in front of a door. The letters C, I, and U were carved in a silver plaque and hung in front of the door. Underneath, the words “Criminal Investigative Unit” could be seen. “Sorry, could you get the door for me?”

  “Ah, o-of course!” Hayden stepped forward to reach for the doorknob, only to pull back—though slightly too late—when the door opened on its own.

  “-should be here-“

  The door slammed open, startling Hayden backwards. A female agent, her light brown hair cut into a bob, looked equally surprised.

  “A-ah…”

“Ah! I’m so sorry about that! I didn’t think there would be someone behind the door!” The woman exclaimed, hand flying to her mouth. Her voice was a bright orange color, Hayden noted. Before he could say anything, she continued.

  “I didn’t mean to startle you, I promise! But ah, you must be Hayden! We were told that you’d me coming today and I’ve been dying to meet you! Well, not literally, but you get the point. Which, now that I think about it, that phrase doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. I mean, why would someone be dying to meet someone. Oh, is that for me?” It seemed that she had finally noticed Cadmus, who had his an amused grin on his face. The flurry of words left him stunned and he simply blinked, unsure of what to say in response. Luckily, Cadmus came to his rescue, likely sensing his dilemma.

  “Evie. You forgot something.” Simultaneously, he nodded to a cup on the cupholder, which she took gratefully before giving him a look of confusion.

  “Huh?” She frowned, a pursing her lips before her eyes lit up. “Oh right! Did I not introduce myself? I didn’t, did I? My bad! I go off on tangents sometimes. People tell me that it’s a bad habit, but I don’t think it is, do you? It gets people to talk, so it all works out in the end. I’m Evie Kirchner. Actually, my real name is Evelyn, but no one really calls me that. My mom used to only call me that when I got in trouble, so it still freaks me out when someone calls me by my full name even today and-”

  “Evie, you’re scaring him.” Another female agent came out from the room. This time, the voice was a burgundy color. Her dark hair was braided neatly over her right shoulder. She had a pleasant smile on her face. “Hayden? My name is Leanne Landreth. We’re also in the CIU. I suppose that Cad explained everything to you?” With a nod from Cadmus in confirmation, she continued, “Well then, please don’t hesitate to ask us anything if you have any questions. It can be quite overwhelming on your first day.” She took a cup from Cadmus, thanking him as she did so.

  “I-it’s nice to meet you both.”  He could already see that this would be one interesting team.

  “Have you met the boss yet? Just you wait! Oh, but don’t worry, he looks like he’ll bite your head off, but in reality, he’ll probably just hold you in his jaws for a while until he deems that you’re adequate enough to his standards. Then he’ll gently place you to the side. Won’t lose any limbs, I promise! Though you might be bruised and battered and perhaps mentally scarred by the time it’s over, but he doesn’t have bad intentions!” Evie reassured him with Leanne and Cadmus simply smiling at him. Was their boss that intimidating?

  “Can someone explain why we’re talking in the hallway and not inside?”

  The steel blue voice startled him and he turned, only to find himself nearly face-to-face with a grim faced agent, who had stealthily somehow managed to make his way right next to Hayden without him even noticing.

  With a deepening frown, the man began to visually scrutinize Hayden. His black hair was neatly brought back on his head. He wore a black dress shirt and gray trousers; his ID hung from the shirt pocket reading “Daniel Rolmac”.

  “Oh, nice timing, Boss! This is-“ “Hayden Griffith.” Dan interrupted Evie’s ramblings. She didn’t seem to mind, however, and nodded enthusiastically.

  “Yep! Isn’t he cute? So innocent! Try not to rip him up too much, we need him intact for now! After all, I don’t think a half-eaten agent will be of help at all. Honestly, a half-eatened anything isn’t really all that useful. Well, unless you consider that half-eaten food is still food and it’s still edible, even though it is half-eaten. I would eat it if I was really hungry. Half-eaten food is still better than no food. But a half-eaten Hayden won’t be any good, so don’t eat him up too quickly! Actually, scratch that, don’t eat him at all, that would probably be for the best.” Turning to Hayden she grinned, “Of course, I don’t mean literally. That would be unethical…and wrong on so many levels. After all-”

  “We have a case.” Evie stopped midsentence at Dan’s words and her eyes lit up. Dan made his way into the room, stopping only to grab the remaining coffee cup from Cadmus, followed by a still chattering Evie.

  “Yep, that’s everyone.” Cad chuckled, patting him on the shoulder. “They may be queer, but they have the best intentions in mind.” Leanne too, gave him a reassuring smile and he found himself again relaxing.

  Perhaps he could get used to this.