Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

There was a sharp pain to be felt all over your body. Groggily, your heavy eyelids began to flutter as your senses grasped your surroundings. Soft skin laid atop a coarse carpet a deep crimson shade that blurred in your foggy vision not yet fully returned. A bitter and sour scent of copper filled your nostrils and that same bitter, coppery taste washed along your tongue. Your brows sewed together tighter as your eyes began to adjust to the surroundings, you blinked back the blur and sat up with a harsh wince through clenched teeth. Trembling, your hand reached back and gently touched soft cotton bandages that your eyes took in wrapped around your exposed torso. Clothing was scarce on your frame, a black pencil skirt’s hem left burnt at your mid thigh and a white blouse stained with ash and crimson blood. One black pump took place on your foot and there were multiple runs and tears in your black pantyhose. 

As you looked around, your eyes took in unfamiliar surroundings. Beautiful high ceilings with visible dark beams, the walls a muted slimy green with light wood trimmings that touched the floor to connect to brick red carpetings. Stone pillars lined the walls in detailed positioning, a few stone statues and figures of less than wholesome positions and images also decorated the corridor. You exhaled shakily and wet your lips, your tongue met with that bitter coppery taste again resulting in a scrunch of your expression. Hands that were covered in the dark ash grabbed the fabric of the blouse and you attempted to pull it up to cover you more modestly, an instinct. 

Where were you? Who were you? As you slowly stood on wobbly legs that burned with the same dull ache along the rest of your body, you looked around with a shake of your head. It felt as if a thick fog absorbed and encapsulated your entire mind, not a single thought but slews of concerns and worries ran through your mind. Outside of wherever you were, you could hear the pitter patter of rain and the rolling of thunder. And when your wide eyes fell down to where you had previously laid, some splatters of a deeper color soaked into the carpet and you blinked softly to see a fabric on the ground. It was a torn piece of bright yellow, a spandex material that stretched in your trembling hands. 

Humming out softly, you exhaled deeply and tried to take a few moments to think. But that fog felt impenetrable. There laid a tar-like pit of worry and despair in your stomach absorbing all the acid within. While you couldn’t remember anything, while you didn’t know anything, something within you told you that wherever you may be was not the best place to be. But what could you do? You needed to find a way out or you needed to find somebody to help you and hope the fog in your throbbing head would clear. That was the best case scenario – worst case scenario your tar pit feelings of despair and danger would be proven right by whoever or whatever inhabited this home. 

You figured it smart to grasp a sword that hung on the wall to your left. After you placed the torn fabric in your bra missing a strap, you grasped the silver weapon. The weight was heavy in your hands but tolerable, your brows sewed tighter and despite the way you shook and trembled with a dull ache – you began to walk down the corridor with the sword in hand. Still, that coppery scent burned your senses and continuously washed along your tongue when you wet your dry lips. 

Everything was so silent, spare the sound of rainfall and a storm outside of the beautiful home. You weren’t sure if it made you feel easier or even more wary and cautious. Walking down the corridor with eyes constantly flickering, you took more notes of distinctions in your appearance. It seemed you must have been a professional of sorts – how you knew this? You weren’t sure why some things seemed ingrained in your mind but those important were lost in the thick of the fog. But it did give you hope that this bit of memory loss would pass. From the pencil skirt to your blouse and the forgotten high heel, you took note of your nails. 

They were neatly done, pretty with a neutral shade that seemed to compliment the tone of your skin. But around them you noticed the scarring, maybe you had had a bad habit of biting the skin around the manicured nails? And as you gingerly felt along the bandages wrapped around your torso while darting your eyes, you realized whatever injury had been covered was at the dip in your back. You breathed out deeply and your brows furrowed when you felt silver clink against your teeth. This brought you to a still and you raised your hand and dropped the hand that grasped the sword to your side. Gently touching your tongue, you smelled the ash on your hands before you felt a tongue bar in your mouth. 

“Grrgh…?” 

A sharp gasp slipped your lips before you spun around on your feet and your hand released the sword at the sight in front of you. The sword clattered loudly and your brows rose sharply to see a bear standing just a few feet away. At least it looked like a bear with a tall and round build and big paws, two little half-circle ears atop his head but he didn’t look normal. Not with fur a vibrant sky blue and a softer pastel blue around his belly. Atop his head was a sprouting flower with pastel yellow petals pretty and tall. Blinking back rapidly, you wondered if maybe this wasn’t a reality but rather some odd and peculiar nightmare or dream you were having.

Nightmare or dream would depend entirely on what the bear-thing would do. Would it maul you? Maybe wander away? Out of all the thoughts that circled your mind as you stared down the bear, you hoped and prayed it would just walk away and leave you alone. But he didn’t seem as if he was dangerous, he stared at you blankly as if he were staring at a butterfly rather than a meal. Hesitantly, you offered a soft smile and raised a shaky hand to wave. “Hello…?” Your dry voice sounded foreign to your own ears but you didn’t get the privilege to mull over it before he seemed to beam like the sun and trot over. There was no time to react before he wrapped his arms around you and lifted you off the ground with a hug.

Despite the blinding and teary-eyed pain his big hug brought onto you, you were just glad he wasn’t mauling you to death. A relieved laugh left your lips strained, wondering when he’d put you down as he hugged you painfully it seemed he wasn’t going to. At least not until you forced your hands to gently pat his soft fur that smelled faintly of powdered sugar and bleach – an odd mix but better than the coppery scent that’d been plaguing your nostrils. 

When your feet touched the carpet again, you breathed out heavily and swallowed the hot agonizing pain that was brought to your sore body. You met his big round and dark eyes while taking a step back and cracking your back. Small cracks rippled through the air and you forced a smile at the bear while you fixed your scarce clothing. “U-Um…hello there bear–thing I don’t know if you can understand me but – can you…tell me where I am? O-Or who I am?” You inquired with a gentle tilt of your head, feeling immensely ridiculous for talking to this bear. But then again it wasn’t as if it was a real bear by the looks of him and the lack of your intestines hanging from your body ripped limb by limb. 

Fortunately, he seemed to understand you with a big smile. Unfortunately his animalistic groans and grunts meant his communication was limited. Your smile faltered and your brows sewed together as the gears churned in a foggy mind. With your hands up and palms out, he stopped his animalistic babbling and you smiled at him as the admittedly adorable creature looked down at you with a smile. “Can you take me to someone who will help me? Someone nice preferably?” A small squeak hung off the specification, wondering if it was too much to ask for. But he seemed to understand with an eager nod as he grabbed your hand with his paw and began to drag you the way you had woken up. 

The house seemed along the same themes, vintage and archaic in a manner with decor that ranged from tasteful to somewhat horrific. Whoever owned this home must be responsible for the creature that dragged you along excitedly at a pace your feet struggled to keep up with. You could only hope whoever owned this home and the adorable creature wouldn’t be responsible for your current foggy-minded state and disheveled appearance combined with pain. Maybe they’d be as sweet as the bear but hopefully commutative? At this point you just hoped to receive some answers at the very least. 

After another turn down a corridor when you began to think maybe the bear wasn’t exactly the most intelligent in comprehension – he slowed down in front of a door and he released your hand. You watched him curiously as he stood in front of a small screen and a red light shot out to scan his features. A soft mechanical whirr came before a click and a door slid open to allow light that wasn’t dull and dim but rather bright and fluorescent to bathe the carpet. At the motion of the bear’s paw, you walked through the frame and he walked in after, the door slid shut and you breathed out. 

A chill crawled up each vertebra in your back when your feet touched cold tiles. Your brows furrowed gently and you warily walked into the expansive and big room roughly the size of a small studio apartment and you took only two seconds to realize it was a laboratory. It seemed a disorganized-organized mess, papers strewn about atop of tables and beakers filled with indiscernible chemicals while plenty of work took up space on a vast array of whiteboards. But the atmosphere smelled clean, like lemon and the floor was so shiny that you felt a need to walk briskly to avoid a peek up your skirt. As you walked beside tables and admired the colors of chemicals in what seemed to be ongoing work – you felt a rush of deja vú so strong it drew goosebumps on your skin. 

“Arrgh!” 

Your eyes flickered over to the bear as your fingers brushed blueprints and you hummed curiously. He seemed to be directing your attention towards a corner and you walked over with your hands folded against your navel. Your brows rose and a smile crept on your lips as your eyes fell to art hung up on a cork bulletin board. White sheets were scribbled on in a childish way, art depicted the blue bear and three other figures you found a bit odd. ‘I love dad’ was written beside a brown paper bag with eyes, ‘sis’ was written beside a lime green lizard, and a black stick figure with a tophat was littered with hearts. A soft laugh left your lips and you turned to the bear.

“Is this your family? Do they live here?” You asked in a soft voice. He nodded with a big smile and you breathed out in slight relief. If something so adorable and sweet saw these things in a bright light then maybe you’d have some hope. But that mechanical slide of glass against tile drew your eyes back and the bear beside you seemed to perk up, like a dog who just saw their owner enter. And much to your surprise the paper bag he drew and claimed to be his dad wasn’t that far off from the actual person. 

Average height and lanky, his thin throat was a pale ivory color. Atop his neck a brown paper bag with sharp edges was tugged over his head, round goggles gave way to eyes a dark shade through goggles that were probably as thick as the width of an encyclopedia over the brown paper bag. In yellow gloved hands he held a clipboard and a yellow number 2 pencil while muttering quietly to himself. He must not be all too old, his style that of a young man with blue wash jeans, red sneakers, and a tee-shirt a blue-violet with a cartoonish airplane snapped in half over a bright yellow explosion beneath a red trimmed collar. By the white lab coat on his thin frame he must be the one to run the lab, but for some odd reason in your bones you were sure he was the one to own the home. With a shift on your feet, your lips parted but he spoke first as the bear approached him. 

“5.0.5 did you manage to find Demencia? I checked with lord Bl–aaugh!” The scientist screeched out in surprise and dropped his clipboard when his eyes flickered past the bear and his eyes landed on you. They were wide through thick goggles and his narrow shoulders leapt up in surprise while his hands spread out. Your eyes flickered down to his clipboard and you could discern a checklist of sorts but nothing more as the scientist suddenly pulled out a long and thin weapon that looked to be a gun of sorts. “Who are you? How did you get into here? Why do you look like that! How did you get past security!” His voice increased in volume with a barrage of questions that made your head spin and throb further. Your hands shot up the moment he aimed the weapon at you, palms out and fingers twitching as your expression switched to one of fear and worry.

“I-I don’t know!” You exclaimed in response. With a shuddery exhale as he tilted his head with his eyes still as wide as dinner plates, you blinked rapidly and nodded. “I-I woke u-up in a corridor here and I have no idea how o-or when or even who-who I am…until I ran into uhm–5.0.5 I guess his name is but he brought me here when I asked for help.” Breathing heavily as fear dragged a sourness through your entire body and you shifted on your feet. “I cannot remember anything, please help me…” Desperation dripped from your voice that oozed with fear just the same and you folded your hand as if in prayer while holding his eyes. 

The scientist was silent for a few moments as he slowly backed up to the desk behind him. You watched with that bad feeling still swirling in your insides and your body as he opened up a drawer and pulled out a pair of zipties. “I don’t believe you.” All hope deflated in you instantly and your hands squeezed one another, eyes fluttering shut and brows sewing upwards as that fear increased. When something light hit your feet, your eyes peeled open to meet two zip ties and you looked up at the scientist expectantly. “Put those on, now.” His voice was cold, it was still despite the small tremor you could touch. He seemed firm, merciless, but maybe a bit fearful? Still, you began to put the zip ties on your ankles first and then your wrists slowly. Whatever he was muttering and mumbling anxiously to himself you could only catch one thing. 

“He’s gonna kill me…”

And soon you left the lab, tossed over the shoulder of 5.0.5 while the unnamed scientist walked beside him. Your mind swarmed with what would happen and where you were being taken – maybe you should have made a run for it? But you had no idea where you were, you could be on an island for all you knew. Not to mention the fact that the scientist with the brown paper bag wasn’t the boss or owner if his mutters and anxious mumbles were any indication. He may have created the cuddly bear seemingly begrudgingly carrying you to uncertain doom up a long stretch of stairs but he wasn’t the boss or owner – or the one to blame for the state you awoke in. Whoever it may be, that tar pit in your stomach worsened and you could feel nothing but uncertain dread and fear. 

You couldn’t see anything behind you, only in front of you and when the bear came to an abrupt stop, your brows rose and eyes fruitlessly attempted to peek behind you. A creaking filled the air and light shone out onto the carpet and corridor to display your shadow with the two others. That scientist cleared his throat and you breathed heavily, a sweat gathered on your brow and threatening to loosen the duct tape the scientist had placed over your mouth. “L-Lord Black Hat s-sir I think we may have a problem – may I come in?” Fear increased at the sound of his stuttering and stammering, he sounded absolutely petrified and you contemplated feigning sleep to escape this as you were taken into the room. 

Double doors a purplish shade with goldish trimming shut behind you and your brows furrowed to notice the door was shaped like a hat. The knobs were two small hats just the same as well and your eyes fell to follow a cherry red carpet you were being led down – the cherry red shade contrasted with the purplish-red shade of the carpet on either side of it. Slimy green muted walls were patterned with a pattern your eyes couldn’t quite discern before you were roughly pulled down to the ground by the yellow-gloved hand of the scientist. Hot irritation shot through you and you groaned against the tape when your sore body hit the carpeted ground bathed in a redness. 

On the cherry red carpet your eyes traced a shadow of a tall tophat and a baroque chair a shadow behind or before it. Your brows creased and sweat rolled down your temple when a voice domineering spread through the cold air of what seemed to be an office. “What is this?” It was a man’s voice – no, no man’s voice could draw a chill up your spine and a cold-hot sweat on your skin in just three simple words. His voice was gravelly, deep, almost guttural with a power that almost made you afraid to look up. But curiosity was an insatiable bastard and your wide eyes began to drag along the walls with those same concrete pillars. Against the wall hung a portrait you couldn’t quite discern from the ankle you laid on the carpet, on the other side of you a bookshelf.

“We-Well sir–lord Black Hat sir um – 5.0.5 found this woman in the corridor and she–” 

Just as your eyes met the maroon colored desk with intricate carvings, they screwed shut as a loud slam rang through the air to interrupt the scientist's nervous rambling. “And how did she get in through the system, you pathetic worm!” This Black Hat roared in a manner that shook the carpet beneath you and made you whimper softly against the duct tape on your mouth. When you felt the yellow latex of the scientist's gloves grab the nape of your neck, your eyes were finally forced up and they widened at the sight of the man – the thing before you tall and looming as he looked down at you. Fear began to sting your eyes while being forced to sit on your legs bound. Those tar pits in your stomach began to boil so hot your flesh may just melt to free you from this fear that entrapped you.

“She–She won’t tell me! She’s claiming she can’t remember how she got in, she claims she doesn’t know where she is, or–or even who she is!” The scientist exclaimed in a shaky and tight explanation from a puny, fearful voice. Your brows sewed upwards and your entire body trembled as the looming creature walked around the desk he stood behind. With rapid blinks, you drank in the smallest of details of his appearance as his steps felt as though they lasted hours each. 

He was tall – startling so with broad shoulders and a small waist accentuated by long legs. Your eyes dragged up his dress shoes a shiny and polished black with white spats and dark laces done up without so much as a millimeter off. Charcoal gray slacks were greeted by a lighter gray waistcoat with one single button done atop a bright and vibrant orange-red button-up shirt beneath a neatly done black tie. A deeper red seemed to line the inside of his black trench coat that waved just a bit with his strides to look at you. Black gloved hands fixed a tall top hat with a red band not the same shade as any other red you’ve viewed. And his face – dear God what was he?

“Both of you – get out of my sight.” He ordered as his single eye bore into you. You didn’t grasp the sound of scurrying footsteps or the slamming of those double doors as you drank in his dark gray skin and the grin that soon slithered across his lips horrifically menacingly. Bright cyan teeth as sharp as kitchen knives glowed in his mouth and his eye narrowed like a predator who’d just found the most delectable of prey – his other eye not visible with the glare against his monocle despite the fact that no light could possibly have been hitting him. You shook your head gently as he got closer and your eyes welled with fear, you attempted to move back to no avail. “So…you lost your memory. Is that correct, little human?” Black Hat inquired as a greenish drool began to leak from his lips as he stopped just two feet away from you on the cherry red carpet coarse beneath your knees. 

All you could do was nod slowly, breathing heavily. Only when your eyes saw the tar-colored shadows bleeding out of his body and across the carpeting did your blurry tears of fear spill down your cheeks. Soft whimpers and cries muffled against the duct tape as the shadows began to bleed across red and closer to you. It was when a tendril slipped up from the shadows and swung down at you, did your eyes widen and your body jerk back onto your pained back on instinct. But it still swung down. You expected unimaginable pain as the black tendril hit your waist but you didn’t find it. Instead, your wide eyes looked to the tendril that flinched back and you observed the way the black had been burned. With heavy panting through your nostrils, you looked to Black Hat as you sat up with your ankles bound in front of you and wrists at your navel. 

He seemed – shocked, angry, pained. That grin was gone and his eyes looked along the tendril before they snapped to you with a hot and fiery rage. Once again, you flinched as the shadows melted into him and he stormed towards you and reached out with a menacing hand. But when you felt the ghost of his hand around your throat, he jerked back yet again and grasped his wrist with a wide-eyed and furious expression of confusion. You felt just the same as you looked at his hand and noticed the leather glove he wore melted along his fingertips and his palm to expose the gray skin beneath. A shuddery exhale slipped your nose and you blinked rapidly as you looked down at your appearance and to him. 

What was happening? 

Black Hat seemed to wonder the same thing, his eyes darting from his ruined glove to you. “Take that off of your mouth, now!” He barked furiously while he tugged off his glove. Despite the confusion you felt, the fear was greater and you reached up and pulled off the duct tape that came off with a surprising ease with your sweat and tears. Your bottom lip trembled and you breathed heavily after a dry swallow as he stomped towards you again and he snapped his fingers as his shoes stood just a mere inch from the soles of your feet still in ruined pantyhose. Nothing happened. He seemed more enraged. “What are you! Who are you, you filthy fleshbag!” Black Hat furiously shouted as he reached out and you whimpered out as his finger looped into the empty space of the zip ties around your wrists. He lifted you to your feet as if you weighed nothing.

He seemed to do a double take at his finger beneath the ziptie before he looked at your face. With a quivering bottom lip, you shook your head with a soft sob. “I-I don’t know…” You weakly choked out with a quicker shake of your head. Hot tears rolled down your cheeks flushed hot with the amount of soreness in your body and fear that sickened you. “I–woke up here and I can’t remember a fucking thing!” Raising your voice, you choked out a hard swear and shook your head while you held his eye and monocle. “Not who I am, h-how I got here, or what happened to me and now I – I don’t even know what’s happening, what are you?” Your voice weakened and broke as you looked him up and down with that horror in your gut written across your features. 

And the monster that held the zip ties by his finger simply bore his gaze into you before a black curved cane appeared from a shadow and into his hand. The curve of the cane looped in the ziptie to replace his finger and you swallowed thickly as he exhaled deeply. You could smell him as he seemed to pull you closer for a deeper look across your features and over your body. He smelled of that coppery scent that still overwhelmed your senses, a bit like rust, but a smell that stuck thickly against him in comparison to the others was the smell of firewood. And before you could grasp what was happening, you were shoved to the ground by the binds uncomfortably digging into the flesh around your wrists.

Once again – hot pain shot through your body as you landed on your back on the carpeting. Groaning out, your squinting eyes fluttered open only to see that scientist standing at the side alongside 5.0.5 and a woman with a crazed and wild look in her round eyes. 

Her eyes were mismatched, wild as they looked at the monster you were horrified of with love and admiration before they looked at you with glaring anger and contempt. Long neon green hair fell through a neon hoodie that seemed to resemble the little lizard doodle 5.0.5 had shown you. Hot pink bangs fell in a choppy and scene-style across her forehead. In a blue zip-up hoodie lacking sleeves, her arm was covered by a deep purple and red-pink striped fingerless glove that seemed to extend down to her right leg. The skirt she donned was short and black, her sneakers two different shades – one red and one a teal. She looked scene, some sort of alternative to match the wild look in her eyes. 

“Demencia – grab her. Dr. Flug, you take those bandages off of her. I want to see what’s underneath them.” Black Hat ordered, seemingly much calmer and poised than before as he held his dark cane at his side. Your brows knitted together and you turned to the short girl, Demencia as she stalked towards you with almost animalistic growls of giddy excitement. But as her hand wrapped around your forearm, she hissed and fumbled back while grasping her wrist. Your eyes widened to see her pale palm burned, her wild eyes glared at you hotly and you blinked back rapidly – breathless as Black Hat met your eyes and he growled deep from his chest. “Dr.Flug – grab her! Do as I said!” He shouted.

And your eyes flickered to the doctor. Breathing out deeply, you could sense his hesitation as he reached out and he looped his gloves beneath your arms. When his latex touched you, he didn’t flinch back or move away from you and instead helped you to your feet. Blinking rapidly, you held your breath as Black Hat held back Demencia with a simple extension of his cane. Dr.Flug seemed to be shaking as he pulled a pair of scissors from within his lab coat. He began to cut at the bandages around your torso and you shuddered as a cold air hit the skin that was warm with the cotton bandages. You stayed still as he looked at your torso and navel where no damage seemed to be. Until he rounded you and you felt the latex press to the small of your back and you winced sharply. 

“I-It’s – a branding, Lord Black Hat, sir.” Flug offered after he cleared his throat. And your brows knitted as you watched Black Hat sink into the red carpet before you felt his presence behind you. That sickness in your gut worsened by the second as you felt eyes peering at you from behind. With soft blinks, that fog in your mind didn’t improve and if anything it worsened just the same. “I–don’t recognize this branding, Lord Black Hat…” The doctor breathed out as his latex gloves pressed to the painful and sore spot causing you to flinch and wince again. Your eyes flickered around and you squeaked out when the man appeared in front of you again. 

“Figure it out. Take her to your lab and find out if she is lying about this bloody memory loss and if she isn’t then bring her back here. If she is – drown her.” Black Hat ordered and your eyes widened as fluffy arms lifted you up again. Tossed over 5.0.5’s shoulder, your eyes looked to the monster that watched you with a hot glare and furious expression obviously being restrained as he held back Demencia by her waist with the curve of his cane. Your heart pounded and you breathed heavily as you watched him with brows knitted upwards and fear shaking your entire body. There was a peculiar look on his face – once you couldn’t discern by the time the doors shut and you were being led to something that could potentially mean an end to your life. 

A grunt left your lips as you were dragged onto the leather seating. Hot irritation moved through your veins as you looked to the doctor with the paper bag over his head. Since the moment you were pulled into this concrete room just as disorganized and organized a mess as the lab it was attached to was – you felt far less comfortable and at ease when 5.0.5 was forced out. Now all you were left with was Dr.Flug who cut the restraints on your wrists wordlessly. You weren’t offered the privilege of relief or rubbing the sore area before your wrists were tied down to the arm rests of the chair a dentist would use for his patients. Breathing heavily, your mind raced with what he would do to figure out if you were lying or not – if you truly did have nothing but fog and fear in your mind. 

Dr.Flug seemed reluctant as he reached your ankles. You could sense his hesitation to touch your legs as those eyes behind thick lens magnified flickered to the skirt you donned that had since slipped further up. A snort left your nose and your hands balled up as his eyes snapped up to look at you. “You’re probably going to torture me but you draw the line at the possibility of seeing my underwear?” His eyes seemed to narrow and he was rough as he grabbed the fleshy part of your calve and cut through the zip ties on your ankles. Maybe it wasn’t wise to snap at the man who’d be torturing you but you couldn’t help it. You’d grown angry and frustrated by your foggy mind and all the events that you haven’t even been able to digest. 

“For someone who claims memory loss…” He seemed to tighten the straps around your ankles a bit rougher than he did with your wrists. Your eyes narrowed at him and your lips thinned, fluorescent lights that bathed the room in white not necessarily helping your migraine. “...you sure seem to have the capacity to be a smart-mouth.” Dr.Flug noted before he stepped away and you watched him walk towards an entire computer set-up in the far corner of the room. It seemed to be an old set-up, archaic in the design of the computer itself and the attachments. However – in his hands once he turned away from the electronics booting up with mechanical whirrs – he held a camera that seemed more modern. How you knew to discern electronics archaic and those modern? You didn’t know. 

“I’m not lying about losing my memory…I–you think I would claim ignorance to that–that thing up there?” You snapped bitterly as he walked over to you. 

The doctor shrugged with a deep exhale. “Anyone who’s broken into Black Hat Manor – however you did it – would feign ignorance.” He offered flatly. You huffed out in irritation and placed your head back only to turn to him when he spoke again. “Look into the camera, keep a blank face.” Flug ordered in that plain and flat manner. As irritation and fearful as you were, you did as told and refrained from flinching when the flash burned your eyes. His footsteps grew distant and your eyes adjusted as you looked around the room further. Mechanical whirring and clacking keys filled the air that smelled faintly of copper and your eyes soon flickered ahead to where his desk and electronics were positioned to see a screen flicker on above the set-up he had. 

And for the first time in this mind – you saw your features. The photograph he took showed where that coppery scent and taste had stemmed from. Crimson blood smeared down the corners of your lips and smeared along your top lip from both nostrils. Soot and ash stained ashy streaks on your face and one of your pupils was far more expanded than the other. It was odd to see a face you didn’t recognize on the left side of a screen in a rectangular box. 

And as Flug typed on the keyboard, your eyes followed the way various red dots and lines adorned your features and flashes of many other faces appeared in a rectangular box on the opposite side. Between the two, information flashed too quickly to read in the form of files, articles, videos, and various other electronic sources. Your brows sewed up and you wet your lips while watching the overwhelming imagery before you. Until finally a bright red font above all three displays offered reading your eyes could catch. 

‘NO MATCHES’

“What does that mean? What was it doing?” You inquire without missing a beat after the scientist stepped back with a sag of his shoulders. His hands fell to his hips as he looked up at the screen.

He then opened a drawer and began to dig through the drawer. For a moment you didn’t think he’d respond until he did. “I created a database that would pair the makeup of your face with any matches – familial or your own record but it…it didn’t find one. I guess we’ll have to try a few other methods.” He trailed off into a soft murmur as he paused. And before you could speak any more inquiries, you watched as he shut the drawer and turned around with a tug of the camera and a lengthy syringe filled with a purple liquid that glowed ominously. Your eyes widened and you shook your head. “This is just going to pinch, it won’t cause any permanent harm.” Flug explained as you began to writhe and attempt to wriggle out of your restraints only for him to stick the needle into your sternum roughly.

You cried out softly, balling up your fists and sewing up your brows. “F-Fuck! A simple pinch, my ass!” You swore at him hotly as a warm feeling began to dissolve through your body overrun with a tingling sensation. He chuckled so low and quietly that you wondered if you imagined it but the way his eyes glinted with a hint of sadism allowed you to know it wasn’t just your imagination. And a soft sigh fell from your lips as a numbness began to overrun your body from your clavicles downwards. A sigh of realization as your eyes fluttered shut and you lost all feeling. “You paralyzed me.” You plainly stated while looking down to see the scientist undoing the restraints after he tossed the needle into a nearby bin. Surprisingly good aim. 

“Yes. You should thank me because if this branding doesn’t bring up anything good on the programming – well, you should hope it doesn’t come to that.” He chuckled yet again with a shake of his head as he pulled you forward to hunch over. Your brows sewed up and you swallowed thickly while attempting to keep your calm despite the circumstances you’d been thrust into. A furious monster, a sadistic scientist, a wild-eyed lizard-woman, and memory loss. You truly did hope you’d be given your memories back to at least grasp some sense of reality and yourself. 

A shutter filled the air before he laid you back against the cold leather and you watched him with glaring eyes as he walked back over to his technical set up. And you were finally given view to the branding that was on your back. It appeared on the screen your face once resided in and a soft exhale slipped your lips as the process began all over again. 

It seemed fresh, scarring over. The branding was odd, a circle with a single line running through the center. Wetting your dry lips, you looked to the green font as articles and news reporting videos popped up alongside photographs within the opposite side of the screen. 

‘ 12 MATCHES ‘

Sickness flipped in your stomach at the sight of deceased bodies within the center of the screen. While some seemed to look at though they were simply asleep, others were mutilated by disembowelment or vicious slashes to their faces that exposed the matter in their eyes spilling down their ruined faces – and other’s hung by their necks from public overpasses. Exhaling shakily, you swallowed the urge to hurl onto yourself and instead found gratitude when Flug moved aside the images of dead bodies for the images of a few articles and news reportings. But you found your attention honed in on the images of the same branding on different skin tones within the opposite rectangle. Then Flug clicked on a news report and with a snap of his fingers the bright fluorescent lights shut off to plunge the room into darkness only spared by the light of the screens. 

On screen a beautiful woman with big brown curls in a sharp pantsuit held a microphone and stood in front of what seemed to be a taped off crime scene. Police moved around and walked about themselves. 

‘Unfortunate news rocked the city of [REDACTED] today–’ You and Flug seemed to share the surprised reaction to the black box that fell over the woman’s lips and the loud shrill beep to cover up the name of the city. When he skipped back with a simple click of a key the same thing happened, he hummed and stood back to allow it to play. ‘when a jogger discovered the body of a young man hanging from the overpass you see behind me. Officials have yet to release a full statement but luckily for us – we have the jogger on standby to offer us an exclusive recount of what she discovered.’ The newswoman nodded, her professional and newscaster voice stopping as the camera turned to fit her and the jogger into view.

The jogger could be no older than twenty, ginger hair fell down in braids and a freckled face was pale and void of all color. She was still in her jogging attire and some dark mascara was smudged around her juniper green eyes. ‘I-It was horrifying! He–He was completely naked and he was s-so pale and–’ As the jogger began to hyperventilate, the newswoman put a hand on her shoulder with a reassuring nod to the jogger. The ginger woman continued with a thick swallow as she walked closer to the camera and her green eyes darted around. ‘It looked like a suicide but–but it wasn’t. He–He had that thing on his back – the circle with the line through it.’ 

With a raise of her thin brows, the anchor breathed out softly and looked to the camera. ‘Are you assuming this ‘suicide’ may in fact be connected to the scattered deaths and missing reports that have been occuring across the country lately?’ The jogger nodded anxiously as she swallowed thickly, she shook her head gently. 

‘I don’t know who is doing up but–but something is happening here! They’re covering up so–’ 

Your eyes widened and you gasped as gunshots rang through the air, blood splattered on the camera lens before the video ended in abrupt screams. With rapid blinks, that sick feeling in your intestines flowed and churned at an alarming speed and pattern as Flug clicked on the second and last video matched to the branding by the looks of it. You swallowed hard and your wide eyes couldn’t move from the screen of yet another news report where a man with slick back blonde hair and a dimpled chin stood as an anchor behind a desk with a firm expression on his features.

‘And in today’s news a local news station is blown up by what officials are calling a suicide bomber. We have exclusive footage of the event but please be warned – it is very disturbing. Anne-Marie.’ And the older dimpled-chin man faded from screen as a handheld vertical video came to view. The camera work was a bit shaky, someone obviously recording from behind a crate of sorts and hidden. Some cameras and reports continue to film a man who stands behind the desk with a thick winter coat on. You feel a sinking sickness, you’re not sure how much longer you can keep down your bile but you can’t seem to pull your eyes away. 

The audio wasn’t much better, a bit crunchy and static-y but the subtitles offered help. ‘N-No one is listening to me! These–These bastards they used me! They promised me a-all my success if we to-took down that monster…b-but they–they–’ Squinting, your eyes took notice of his skin – it seemed…rotted almost? It was a bit too blurry and shaky to make out but whatever was happening to his skin wasn’t normal. ‘They took my memories a-and they tried to kill me! They were the monsters! Th-Those people in the yellow–they–I’m a dead man b-but do not trust them!’ And your eyes flickered down, with furrowed brows and a few soft blinks as the video continued distant on your ears you hummed.

Yellow…the people in yellow. 

Flug then began to flicker through the articles. And you followed with heavy breathing as fear ran through your entire being. Reportings on missing families and people connected to those that had been found with the branding on their back. Only twelve people but connected to those twelve dozens upon dozens just simply disappeared into thin air. And as you felt the sudden rush of feeling return into your limbs in a manner so cold it burned beneath your skin, you hunched over the dentist seat and threw up the contents of your stomach onto the ground. Disgusted noises and swears came from the doctor as you hurled milky yellow substances onto the clean concrete ground. 

And with fluttering eyelids as you slouched over the armrest, leather and metal rings digging into the flesh of your shirt – your brows slowly sewed together as you licked your lips. “F-Flug…” You rasped out as your eyes dragged towards him. He looked at you with obvious annoyance in his tightly crossed arms and you nodded down to your vomit. Laid within the puddle of vomit was a small baggy, inside glinted something close to – what you could remember as – a hard drive. And as he walked over, you leaned back against the leather and wiped your mouth with heavy breaths. “God I feel like shit…” You muttered.

He seemed to stare at you in an odd way for a few moments before he crouched down and picked up the plastic baggy. But you felt grateful he didn’t restrain you as he walked over to the electronic set-up and quickly peeled open the baggy to drop out the hard drive. You sat up and fixed your burnt skirt before you looked at the video that popped up on the screen once Flug managed to plug in the hard drive into the port. And when you saw yourself standing at a lab station – you exhaled heavily and slowly made your way off of the leather seat. Flug didn’t seem to notice – or care – as he watched you fix a beaker and straighten it out. 

You were in a stark white laboratory with black detailing and a clean, organized atmosphere. On your frame was a fitted white lab coat, your hair pulled away from your neck and face. In a black pencil skirt that fell down to your knees, it paired nicely with the royal blue blouse that held a small keyhole at your chest and cuffed sleeves peeked out from the white sleeves. Dark heels clicked against tiled flooring and black pantyhose ran with a darker vertical line down the backs of your legs. You shook your head gently as you stood beside Flug and stared up at the screen. How uneasy you felt watching yourself and not remembering it – you looked younger. Bright-eyed and rounded in the face just a bit more. Your eyes caught sight of an I.D card of sorts faced away from the camera by a crooked clip as you took a seat in a swivel chair.

‘Okay, now that everything looks presentable, here we go.’ You breathed over the video. And you shot a big smile at the camera you looked into while you fixed the collar of your lab coat but not the damn I.D. A shaky exhale left your lips when you noticed the ring wrapped around your ring finger, a glittering silver band with a fairly big diamond. An engagement ring. ‘Hello to whoever may be watching this – hopefully it’s the Burton Prize Peace Committee.’ A light laugh left your lips and you nodded gently. ‘My name is Doctor _______ _______ and this will be my first documentation of my work on the serum I’ve finally been given the greenlight to continue my research on with a huge grant. Today is March 7th, 20XX and it is currently 12:30 in the afternoon.’ 

So this had to have been old. A few years if Flug’s little airplane calendar hung by his computer was any indication. With a few rapid blinks, you turned back to the video where you leaned back a bit in your seat a bit but kept your posture straight and poised. ‘Now, this serum I have decided to call the ‘Serum of Life’ is something I believe will be revolutionary to humankind and even beyond that. According to my calculations and the results I’ve obtained from my lab rats – videos which will be available within this file – this serum could give someone the power of invincibility. Not just to blades, needles, bullets, or anything a human could get their hands on…but an invincibility to things not even fathomable to our human minds! And at the very least I believe this serum can cure even the most terminal of illnesses – of course all of this has been conducted on rats but I’ve finally been offered a volunteer to receive treatments in this experiment of a universe changing serum. So fingers crossed in this journey, I will videograph again tomorrow for our first trial and introduction to our first volunteer! Doctor  _______ _______ signing out!’ You chirped with a dorky salute. 

Your bottom lip wobbled and your legs felt weak as the video then shifted to a black screen with green text and a box. Above the box with a few lines to indicate the amount of letters and or numbers needed was a sentence that seemed simple enough. ‘To access Video Log #2; March 8th, 20XX please enter password.’ And beneath: ‘HINT: favorite movie’. 

It seemed so simple, so easy – but you couldn’t remember a single thing. You couldn’t remember that young, bright-eyed and fresh-faced woman, you couldn’t remember being a doctor, you couldn’t remember being on the road to create something that should be impossible – you couldn’t remember. All that occupied your mind was a thick fog, your bottom lip wobbled and tears rolled down your cheeks as you shook your head. 

“You really lost all your memories, didn’t you?” Flug’s clear voice offered. Did he have some softness in a voice otherwise flat? You couldn’t really tell if you were imagining it in a fit of sudden spine-crushing realization that a life you had before may be gone forever. But you blinked softly and sniffled and turned to him with a gentle nod. You couldn’t discern his face for obvious reasons and in a flat voice you couldn’t discern a single thing about the doctor beside you. But once again, you wondered if you could sense a softness as he turned to you. “On the bright side – I don’t think Lord Black Hat is going to kill you or have you killed when he sees this and I tell him you’re not faking this weird amnesia.” 

Was this his way of comforting an amnesiac stranger? You smiled in a sad manner and wiped your tears with a gentle nod. “And...the downside?” You inquired softly, voice crackling just a bit. 

Flug exhaled deeply and he pulled the flash drive from the port and snapped his fingers. As he turned to walk away, he paused and he shook his head gently before he walked away. His flat voice softened in a manner that couldn’t have just been your imagination anymore. But his words made your heart sink into the sickened tar pits of your stomach as you leaned back against the desk for support on wobbly legs.

“Black Hat is never going to let you leave. Welcome to the Black Hat Organization, Dr.______.” 

Chapter Text

You were surprised Black Hat explained the circumstances that occurred whenever he touched you. That no matter where he grabbed you, what sort of odd entity or shadow he used – he always got burned. It harmed him to touch you and if Flug’s initial reaction to the display had told you anything – nothing was meant to harm Black Hat. And much to your surprise, Black Hat seemed nonchalant by the entire concept. He seemed like a monster quick to anger and a monster who disliked any vulnerability yet he was as calm as could be as Flug was practically a pile of goop on the first display that Black Hat couldn’t so much as grab your shoulder without being burned. 

And then you watched as Black Hat observed the video of you, he only donned an expression of mocking amusement as he watched the video. It irritated you just a bit, curious as to what was so amusing while you were still in a state of discomfort with the drag of soreness on your body and the uncomfortable clothing – or lack thereof. When the video came to an end, Flug was quick to reassure his boss he would hack into the programming to see the rest of what the flash drive held. You simply stood near the bookshelf during the duration of their small meeting in which they spoke as if you didn’t exist and Black Hat offered more than a few words of mockery. Most comments aimed at your bright-eyed “naivety” in the video. 

You were uncertain of what was to come when Flug finished catching up Black Hat on everything that had transpired – so kindly not leaving out a single detail including your hurling which Black Hat seemed to deem so hilarious with a rambunctious laugh. Whatever was to come, you just hoped you wouldn’t need to be around Black Hat anymore. Hope twinkled across your chest when Flug gestured to you and held his tablet against his chest. “So I think it may be best for the doctor to stick around me while I sort through the infiltration of the files on the flash drive. Perhaps I can conduct some experiments and tests on her to discover more about the oddity–” Before his quick-paced but clear proposal could come to a finish, Black Hat grunted out in contempt and your eyes widened to see the ground swallow up and drag the scientist down into the carpet. 

Blinking rapidly, your eyes narrowed and snapped towards Black Hat who donned that wicked grin flashing the daggers in his mouth an unnatural cyan. You’d always hated that color. With a dismissive wave, he walked towards you with his hands folded behind his back. “The worm rambles on too much – it’s best he simply does his job!” He explained without prompting. Still, alongside your relief that Flug was fine you found that irritation warming your veins as your arms crossed across your chest. Why did he keep you here? With him. It wasn’t as if he could do anything to you – you knew this now and that dissolved the fear immensely but he still gave you a sickening feeling in your gut and up the shape of your spine. 

Those sickening feelings worsened when he stood in front of you and his eye dragged up and down your appearance again. And he slowly circled you, moving so smoothly you had to wonder if he was walking or simply floating. Either way, you kept your straight posture but the pads of your fingers buried into the skin of your bicep and fabric of the ruined blouse. He hummed, rasp hung off his hum just as it did with his deep and domineering voice, a melting pool of accents you couldn’t discern. Impatience dragged at your insides and you shifted on your feet. “Wouldn’t it be smart for me to go with Dr.Flug for the experimentations?” You asked a bit more snippily than you meant to. But the amused chuckle laced with mockery made you not regret the snippy tone. 

“You humans are such pathetic vermin…” He brushed away the question with an insult that drew your brows tightly furrowed. A dark chuckle slipped his lips and he shook his head as he stopped in front of you and gestured to you up and down. “How could such minimal damage result in you forgetting being more than just a pretty face? Do you think whoever put that ring around your finger has moved on?” He noticed just the same, Flug had made no comment and you hoped it hadn’t been noticeable. But his words drove a spike through your chest, beneath that fog you could feel a heartache to his words. His words – despite a thinly veiled ‘compliment’ and your inability to remember – were painful and true. Humans were weak and because of that you’d forgotten a life that seemed like it was worth something .

What are you worth now? Nothing more than a rat Flug will be able to experiment on? 

Clenching your jaw and balling up your fists, you exhale shakily in some feeble attempt to keep your composure and not offer the monster the satisfaction of a reaction. But that seemed to be enough for him, the corners of his lips curled up in satisfaction and before he could offer anymore words to fuel the sadistic gleam in his eye – you cleared your throat and you crossed your arms tighter. “If you’re just keeping me here to insult me can I at least g-get cleaned up? I feel disgusting…” You trail off while you shift the crossing of your arms with sewed brows and glaring eyes looking up at him standing before you. And as he looks you up and down, you wonder if you imagine his leering. Can a monster like him even feel human sexual attraction? Contempt laced through his face, perhaps it was a forbidden idea? 

Black Hat then turned around and your brows sewed tighter in annoyance before you heard the sound of crackling – similar to the sound of bones crunching, a connection you’re unsure why you’re certain of. And you turned to see Flug being pulled out of the brown paper bag his head occupies usually, limb by limb with a red glow surrounding him accompanied by those cracking and snapping noises. You winced and more hot irritation flowed through your veins as you looked back at a chuckling Black Hat. The doctor stood with a soft groan and cracked his back before the monster in black began to speak while walking over to his desk. 

“Take her to the usual guest room and tell her everything she needs to know in reference to her stay here. Now get out both of your measly rodents.” He waved dismissively behind him as he stood in front of the large window pane with deep red windows that bathed the room in a red warmth. Your eyes narrowed and you glared hotly at the back of Black Hat’s head while Dr.Flug offered an eagerly terrified response of approval and dutiful submission before he grabbed your bicep and began to pull you away. But just as Flug opened the door for you to walk through, Black Hat’s voice reached your ears close despite the distance between you, the doctor, and the monster across the office. By Flug’s high rise in his shoulders it seemed the same for him. “And if she decides this little fault in my abilities gives her free reign – you know what to do to her.” 

A chill crawled up your spine and you exhaled shakily, looking over your shoulder with slightly wide eyes that only widened. He wasn’t in the room anymore, gone with a deep chuckle that echoed within the very marrow of your bones. You wet your lips and upon a little nudge against your shoulder blade from Dr.Flug, you walked out of the office and held your biceps with a deep exhale. Your brows furrowed together and you shook off the brush of fear and the overwhelming dread that continued to brew in the pits of your stomach. Maybe it would be constant, you knew you’d be stuck here but as you looked around with the feeling of eyes on you – you knew good and well you would not die here. The moment you obtained your memory…you’d find some means of escaping. 

“You’ll get used to that feeling.” Flug suddenly spoke beside you. You turned to him so quickly it broke out more soreness in your neck. He seemed to fidget with his hands and his arms before he gestured around with a lazy shrug. “Being watched all the time – he’s watching most times but not always. If he was, I'd be dead.” A fearful, small laugh. Was he attempting to comfort and or reassure you again? Maybe Flug was someone like you? Someone trapped here by means out of his grasp. “But he was serious about you not having free reign – if you do anything not allowed or forbidden I’ll do what I have to at his order.” That small spark of hope burned out instantly and you turned away from him while you hugged yourself just a bit tighter. “It’s nothing personal.” People weren’t black and white, maybe this man wasn’t either. Still, you couldn’t help the increase of dread to know no one within these walls was on your side entirely. 

Then again how could you expect that? You didn’t want to mull over the possible punishments and methods Flug would use to punish you if you decided to be so bold just because Black Hat couldn’t touch you. So you looked to change the topic while you adjusted your arms after you fixed the hem of your skirt that continued to drift upwards by the burned hem continuously itching at your thighs. “Did you manage to get through my files?” You inquired in a quiet but clear manner while rounding a corner into another long corridor by the lead of the scientist. He scoffed out and shook his head, he still fidgeted with his gloved hands.

“I wish.” He said. “It seems your talents not only laid with science but with computers. While you might have been foolish to not infiltrate a design that would erase every file after multiple failed attempts and attempted hackings – something we should be grateful for now – your design is impenetrable. Not even the system I created for the government records of justice worked.” Flug explained with a sharp exhale. “While I will continue to try, we can only hope your memory will return to offer up the password.” 

Your brows furrowed and your jaw tightened knowing yet another aspect of yourself that was worth something wasn’t anymore. But you found a small smile playing at your lips as you turned to the doctor with a gentle tilt of your head. Some brush of ease in you at the smile in his voice and awe that lilted a rapid pace. “You sound impressed.” You observed and his eyes snapped to you through thick and ridiculous goggles. A scoff slipped from beneath the bag and he turned away with a dismissive wave. 

“Genius can recognize genius, doctor!” He quipped with a sudden air of confidence you couldn’t help but smile a bit bigger at. You shook your head gently and turned away from him to admire more of the home that was admittedly beautiful. Then the doctor continued on with a deep exhale, the tone of voice shifted and that usual air of nervous energy surrounded him as he toyed with his latex covered hands a bright yellow. “Black Hat Organization is an organization Lord Black Hat created when he decided to retire – in this organization we supply other villains with weapons, chemicals, and blueprints to assist them in their evil-endeavors. I tend to carry most of the work with inventions, blueprints, you know the entire supply of things we sell. Demencia is…she’s more or less a killer we use when it comes to hunting people down or more difficult rivals. And of course Black Hat runs the entire organization.” Flug explained with his words coming quick yet surprisingly clear with a good dialect and inflection. 

Absorbing the information, you nodded gently and wet your lips. “What about 5.0.5?” You inquired curiously, doing good to layer this information atop the thick fog that concealed everything else that once occupied your mind. Dr.Flug rubs the nape of his thin and pale neck with a sheepish chuckle.

“Oh well – he’s one of my more advanced creations of life but he didn’t necessarily turn out as I wanted him to. He means no harm, just be wary of his hugs.” He warned before that voice of clear, quick, and informative returned after a sharp exhale. “Now since you’re a prisoner here – it goes without saying that you cannot leave the manor unless permitted but don’t bother asking unless you want to have your eyes replaced by your teeth.” Flug offered the warning with such nonchalance but you shuddered in disgust and hummed in acknowledgement. He seemed to have let it slip that Black Hat can’t necessarily do anything to you but maybe he didn’t mean Black Hat would do that. You suddenly felt the need to straighten up as he continued. “You’re allowed anywhere in the manor except Black Hat’s office, Demencia’s caging quarters, and the entire top floor.” 

And Flug continued to inform you of the rules and expectancies. He took a detour on the way to the room meant to be yours, showing you to the kitchen and back to the laboratory where he explained what would be happening. Between attempts of breaking into your files and his other work he was saddled with, he would be experimenting on you for a multitude of reasons. Discovering if your serum worked entirely, discovering if it was reversible, but most importantly attempting to jog your memory again. You knew whatever experiments he would conduct would be heavy, and the scientist didn’t sugarcoat it when you expressed your worries. Mild electrocution, cuts, injections – you truly would be his lab rat. And surprisingly – to you and him – you handled it as well as one in your position would.

Eventually, you were taken to your room – close to Flug’s since he mentioned in irritation he’d more or less be your babysitter – and you walked in unsure of what to expect. A cold concrete room with chains? Bones? Dead animal carcasses? But the vivid imagery of what Black Hat would provide to you to sleep in and rest in for as long as you’d be present wasn’t close in the slightest. Because the moment you stepped across polished black hardwood floors to soft shag carpeting, you were left in awe as you looked around the room. The air smelled faintly of firewood and cinnamon. 

The walls were a deep crimson color, the same shade as the shag carpeting atop black hardwood floorings. To the left side of the room was your bed, expansive and big with bedding you wanted to leap into and sink into. You walked over to the bed hoisted up on black wood, a red canopy provided curtains to drape down to the red bed skirt. The bedding in various shades of red and black was soft satin and cotton beneath your hands still stained with ash and blood, you could have moaned at how they felt. When a soft creak moved through the air, you turned around to take notice of Flug opening up the only other piece of furniture in the blank room. A wardrobe tall and looming in that damn hat shape you’d seen so many times it was practically burned in your retinas. 

“Oh good – Lord Black Hat already provided you with clothing.” Flug breathed out and your brows sewed together. 

Your hands pulled from the soft sheer curtains of the canopy and you walked over, Flug moved aside as you took in the clothes hung up on black satin wrapped hangers. All dark and inky clothing, you filed through each and every fabric within the wardrobe only to discover it was the exact same article of clothing. Every single hanger held a dress as dark as spilled ink, a soft cotton fabric. When you pulled one of the many identical dresses off the rod and held it up to your body, you took note that the hem of the a-line dress fell just past your thighs. The sleeves were short puff sleeves that would certainly barely brush your shoulders and the neckline was a simple sweetheart with a small red bow at the point. Along the back you looked at were black buttons following the path of your spine. 

While the dress was relatively cute – you couldn’t help but wonder why? Why just a single dress by the dozen with the same exact design and same exact look, color, and so forth? You hung the dress up and your confusion must have been riddled across your features because soon Flug’s voice spilled through the air. Nearly forgetting he had been there – you refrained from jumping in surprise as you crouched down to look at the shoes. “I believe he chose this specific design for you because of the experiments. The buttons, flowiness, and overall design of the dress will offer uhm–” You glanced away from the multiple pairs of simple black ballet flats and looked at him when his voice caught. He wasn’t looking at you. “It will offer easy access.” 

Was he so inexperienced? Then again it wasn’t as if you could remember any of your experiences. Still, it was amusing and you turned away with a hidden smile so as to not embarrass him. You opened up the single drawer beneath the wardrobe and your brows sewed together at the sight of sets – and with a few rapid blinks you looked down into your white blouse before you pulled the band of your black skirt. Each set of bras and panties match the exact one of lacy detailing you donned now. A soft swear left your lips wondering how did the bastard know your precise sizing and what your undergarments looked like. Uncomfortable, you shuddered and stood up while shutting the wardrobe doors. When you turned around, Flug barely turned back to you and he nodded while he took steps back towards the door.

“So if you will, doctor, get ready and meet me in the laboratory. Don’t take longer than thirty minutes so we can get some work done before the end of the day. The bathroom should be through that door.” Ah that professional scientist tone, he’d no doubt continue to use that with you. You didn’t offer the doctor a single word, just a simple nod before you turned towards the door he gestured to. And once the door shut behind you, you breathed out deeply and ran a hand down your face while walking over. 

A piece of you wanted to truly grasp your circumstances and what would happen but it felt as though your entire body would shut down. You weren’t sure how to react beyond anger, fear, and despair and even then how would you react in display of those emotions? How did you behave and act before? Sewing your brows together while you pushed open the bathroom door and shut it behind you, you figured it may be best to simply keep everything bottled up for the time being. While the bottle may snap and explode at some point – right now you couldn’t afford anything that would cloud your foggy mind any further. 

Thankfully, distraction came soon as you looked around the bathroom in awe. Slowly peeling out of your clothing, you wet your lips and admired the cold black and gray tiles that cooled the soles of your feet. The walls were a deep shade of black, overhead lighting came in the form of a small chandelier glittering and twinkling. While there was one simple shower in one part of the room, you took notice of a porcelain claw foot tub in the other part of the bathroom across from the toilet beside a sink and mirror. You made a mental note to enjoy the porcelain of the claw foot tub at another time but you finally turned to look at yourself when you peeled off the last article of clothing leaving you entirely nude. And once more came a rush of goosebumps and discomfort, unease. It felt as if you were looking at a stranger. A stranger grasping a yellow fabric you decided to tuck into a drawer until further notice.

A stranger with blooming bruises along her ribs and across her hip. You wet your lips and gently ran your fingers over your shoulder bruised with an injury scabbing over already. And as you felt the sore scabbing, as your fingers delicately traced the bruising on your ribs and hips, you reached back and turned around. Eyes narrowed in pain on the branding you finally witnessed with your own eyes. How odd it was – you shook your head gently and traced over the scarring before you jerked your hand away with a wince. And with a shift on your bare feet, you nearly turned back to the shower but stopped when your eyes fell to your left cheek. On the soft skin was something…ink – it was a tattoo. 

Suddenly, your entire body ran cold and your eyes widened with a sharp inhale. The bathroom disappeared, clouding your vision was a black blurry border accompanied by a static but you could still see yourself. Only you were standing in front of a full-length mirror and looking at the tattoo on your backside. That branding couldn’t be seen on your back. And no ring was to be seen on either hand. ‘What is that tattoo even supposed to be? ’ A masculine voice echoed in your head, light and full of laughter. ‘Hey! Don’t laugh, I got it on a sorority dare. Not all of us can be the golden boy, babe.’ And warmth tingled through your body as you exhaled sharply and your eyes darted around the bathroom. You looked back at your tattoo before you turned to the shower and exhaled deeply.

A memory.

–

“And you’re certain you didn’t see this man’s face? Potentially your fiance?” Flug inquired with wide eyes. You nodded with a sharp exhale. 

The shower had been an immense help, you’d felt much better after washing yourself with the surprising assortment the bathroom provided you. While you were hesitant to use any of the products, you were glad you did by the end. Products lining the shower wall and the sink were a bit overwhelming in options but ultimately needed. While it was a shame you couldn’t simply lay beneath the water that relieved your soreness, you knew you had to rush by Flug’s instruction and the memory that had folded through your mind. And you soon stood within the connection to the laboratory that you had hurled in prior, the vomit since cleaned up, and Flug caught up on the memory you had. He hummed and he nodded gently with furrowed brows as he finished writing down every detail you told him.

But you had left out one. And he looked at you with soft blinks. “What did the tattoo look like? Maybe we can look it up if it’s unique.” Flug reasoned as he fixed his grasp on the yellow number 2 pencil. 

“It was definitely unique.” You replied before you began to toy with the crimson bow at the point of your cleavage, the soft satin soothing against the pad of your thumb and index finger. Screwing your eyes shut as you attempted to drag the image of the tattoo back to mind, you felt a sting of frustration as it dipped into the fog of absence. With a gentle shake of your head, you opened your eyes and nodded while dropping your hands to grasp the hem of the soft dress that was admittedly as comfortable as the black ballet flats on your feet. “Just look for yourself. Here.” And you turned around, tugging up the soft black fabric to expose your behind to the scientist who suddenly sounded as if he was being strangled. You glanced back at him, his eyes visibly screwed shut and the pencil snapped in his grasp. In exasperation, you shook your head. “Dr.Flug just look at the fucking tattoo.” You swore in annoyance – hoping to see the next file provided for some more memories to come to mind. 

And after a thick swallow that shook the adam's apple in his thin neck, he looked down and his eyes widened instantly as they took in the tattoo. That shy embarrassment evaporated instantly as realization glowed in those thick lenses and he quickly turned around, tugging the flash drive out of his shirt where it hung from a silver chain. You’d ask about that later, but for now you turned around and fixed the hem of your dress and watched him. He plugged in the flashdrive after removing it from the chain and you looked up as he skipped through the first video log until that security measure appeared on screen. You watched the letters fill in the screen and he clicked a single key after his rapid typing and you gasped softly as the next video popped up. 

He seemed to breathe out in relief and you’d inquire of the solving afterwards. For now, you stepped closer and stood beside Flug as he snapped the lights off and you both looked up at the video that came on screen soon. Your hands grasped your biceps yet again, thumbs soothingly and gently stroked along the soft skin and the hem of the small puff sleeves of the dress. Once more – you weren’t necessarily in front of the camera but it seemed you were fiddling and toying with the camera behind something that offered a black border. And as you stepped back with a satisfied hum, you weren’t in the lab but rather in a stark white room where a medical cart stood beside a dentist-like chair in the middle of the room. Machines and wires resembled those found in a hospital – it was more a hospital room than a lab.

‘Today is March 17th, 20XX and it is currently–’ You looked down at the silver watch wrapped around your wrist before you looked at the camera with that beaming smile. ‘1:22 in the afternoon. I am Doctor ____ ____ and you might be wondering why it’s a little more than a week later from my last video log. Well our volunteer failed to show up when asked so I decided to search for another one who should be here shortly! Due to her request, I will keep her anonymous entirely. But today marks the first trial of the Serum of Life.’ And you squealed softly before you looked around in a wary manner yet your big smile remained when you met the camera again. ‘Of course no one but her knows I am recording as the seniors are a bit paranoid about videography so I hope they forgive me when this serum changes the world.’ A pleasant beep rang through the air and you turned quickly. 

In that white lab coat again, beneath it was a gray form-fitting dress with a high neck but no sleeves. Stopping at your knees, you wore those dark heels again and a pair of nude pantyhose while you stepped closer towards the chair and smiled big at the pairs of steps that entered the room. Once a heavy door shut, you smiled big and a woman with a short and petite figure walked towards you. Her entire head was blurred and she reached out to shake your hand in a pair of blue wash jeans and a plain black short-sleeve shirt. Then you looked off camera and nodded. ‘Thank you for bringing her here. We’re fine for now.’ A deep hum before the sound of a heavy door being shut filled the air. Then you turned, the visibly nervous woman toyed with her hands. 

‘So how exactly will this work? I know you explained it to me, doctor, but I am still a bit anxious.’ She confessed, her voice was warbled – obviously edited for anonymity and made deeper. You gently reached out and took her shoulder, guiding her to the seat where she sat down willingly but obviously nervous. 

With a soft smile, you shook your head and gently began to attach various wires and small clasps onto her. ‘Don’t worry, miss, that is perfectly normal. But as I explained before, I have twelve trial serums and you will take trial serum number one. Not to go too in depth to bore you – each serum proved to work on my rats in varying manners but with you lovely test subjects there’s hope I’ll find the perfect one without any bitter side effects.’ Your voice was sweet, it was soft and reassuring as you stepped away and plucked up a clipboard from the cart beside the chair and in front of a monitor to track her heartbeat. With a smile, you nodded at the woman. ‘All of these wires and machines will act as more information provided for me. You’re doing a great thing for the world by being here, miss.’ And the woman seemed to relax instantly as you placed a gentle hand on her hand with a soft squeeze. 

Then you began to ask her questions about her health and her medical history. But your brows knitted when you realized you had put a long and extensive beeping noise over your lips moving and any noise that came from the blurred woman. Flug seemed to huff in frustration beside you, still taking notes in a yellow notepad you hadn’t noticed him using prior. But one page already seemed filled, you’d question his notes later on. When the headache inducing beep came to a stop, you looked back to the screen where you set aside the clipboard and began to tug on a pair of blue latex gloves. You made small talk with the woman, asking about her family which you didn’t censor or attempt to blur out. She calmed down more, even laughing as you tied the rubberband around her arm and cleaned her vein.

From the corner of your eye you could see Flug staring at you. But he looked away when the small talk ceased. Odd, but you brushed it off. 

‘And now the injection. It may feel just a bit warm, but otherwise you should feel fine.’ You reassured her as you pricked her skin with the needle. Inside of the syringe was a purple liquid, it glowed faintly and despite the quality of the video there was nothing more to be seen than the purple glow that was its shade. And you placed the syringe onto the cart before applying a round cotton ball and bandage with a big smile. ‘And that’s it! You did great.’ 

‘Th-That’s all?’ The woman inquired in disbelief. And you nodded gently with a smile. 

‘Yes. Now before you leave I will offer you a video camera and a notebook, you must jot down everything that happens. Date and time are a must. Okay? For now we’ll keep an eye on your vitals.’ 

And you simply stood with your clipboard in hand as the woman spoke about her children, your eyes flickered across the machines and down to the clipboard occasionally where your pencil would move. 

Flug spoke through the mindless and empty small talk. “You must have begun this early on into your science career.” He said in a matter-of-fact manner. You looked at him with a soft hum of curiosity and he shook his head gently with a gesture to the video using the end of his pencil. “This serum you were creating must have taken a lot of work depending on the results in my experimentations on you but you’re so talkative and soft and – warm still. Before you had to deal with the gravity of actual science work and experimentation on humans. So you have to be young here, untouched by the realities of big science and pharma.” Flug concluded. Your brows sewed together and you looked him up and down before you looked towards past you. Laughing along to a bad joke the woman told.

You were kind. Soft, warm. And there was rarely a moment that you didn’t have a big smile on your face. But you couldn’t help but notice his words seemed a bit weighted. With a small crease between your brows, you shifted your hands on your biceps and the thumb that had been soothingly stroking the soft skin came to a stop. “Are you speaking from experience?” You bluntly inquired with a gentle tilt of your head. And he didn’t seem taken back or even slightly surprised by your question as he watched the video that reflected off the thick lens of his goggles. 

“Not really.” He blankly and bluntly offered. “I was once like you in a way but a bit more….” The doctor trailed off and looked up to the ceiling in thought, seemingly searching for the right word. But with a suck of his teeth, he shook his head – he must not have found the right word. “Nonetheless, I’m not speaking from experience. I see your warmth as a weakness in our field. Simply making observations. Besides, you’re bright-eyed there but right now you have dark circles less than subtle beneath your eyes. Worse than the raccoons Demencia lets loose in the man–ow!.” And for the first time, you heard Flug laugh lightly when you punched him gently. 

“Okay know-it-all.” You sarcastically drawled with an eye roll and quiet laugh before you turned to the screen. 

And you turned back into the conversation of past you and this woman test subject. ‘Enough about me, doctor. Anyone special in your life? Kids? A husband?’ The woman asked you with a gentle nudge to your arm. 

With a soft laugh, you shook your head gently. ‘No, no kids or husband. I’ve just barely gotten engaged a few weeks ago and I’m focusing on my career so it’s going to be some time for us to have kids.’ You shared with a softer smile on your lips as you scribbled down some more words. And you felt some odd mourning in your chest as your expression fell and your hands on your biceps tightened against the skin. There was so much love in your face in the past, you smiled as you leaned towards the woman who asked who the lucky man was. ‘Oh he doesn’t think I should tell people because of his career but–’

Your words came to an abrupt stop when a sudden rapid beeping filled the air from the EKG machine she was hooked up to. The hand against your bicep came up and your lips parted as the woman began to seize in the seat, her eyes rolled back into her head and white foam began to spill from her lips. Tan skin had sunk into a sickening gray almost instantly and you placed down the clipboard before hurrying off camera. A slam and loud alarm blaring began to fill the air as you ran back onto camera and helped the woman onto her side. So much happened in such a short time, other lab coat wearers ran in but something knocked against wherever your camera was and the video cut short. 

For a moment – as your heart was still within your throat – you wondered if that was it but the black suddenly flickered to your face. And you breathed out softly at the sight of your past self. You sat in front of the camera and behind you it seemed to be an office of sorts bathed in warm lighting and just as neatly organized as your lab had been in the first video. Smeared along your eyes was inky mascara, puffy lids, glassy scleras – you had been crying. Only confirmed when you cleared your throat and sniffled while straightening up. ‘It is still March 17th, 20XX and it is…2:30 in the morning.’ You had looked off camera instead of your wrist. Adorned in an oversized shirt, you exhaled shakily. ‘The video cut out during our first trial run but I am…unhappy to inform you that trial 1 was a failure. It seemed the glecino in the serum that seemed to work alongside the nintune in the rats had dire results with the white blood cells within humans. A factor that had slipped from me in my final check.’

Your voice was dry, rasped by a past sob. And your entire expression was one of pain that you couldn’t help but feel presently within your chest and stomach. Past you dragged a hand down her features, that ring glittered as a shuddery and soft sob escaped. ‘When it comes time to present my findings I’ll edit this out but…’ Past you shook your head and you sniffled while staring off camera in a blank manner with a knit up of your brows. Then your expression twisted and you dropped your face into your hands. ‘I should have spent more time on the formula.’ Sobbing softly into your hands, presently you exhaled shakily and your own eyes flickered away from the video. 

And a sudden creak of a door drew your eyes back up to the video. ‘Baby…?’ A voice rasped with exhaustion spoke out. Getting out of your seat, you seemed to rush over to whoever the man was – no doubt your fiance. His voice was distant, so much so that both you and Flug leaned closer towards the speakers. ‘It wasn’t your fault…she knew what she signed up for – besides it’s for the greater good. Come on, let’s go to bed…’ You could hear your past self murmur in agreement and soft shuffling and sobbing was concluded with a door shutting. Flug stepped forward and you wiped at tears you hadn’t realized spilled down your cheeks. Why were you crying?

It seemed the next forty minutes were nothing – just a video of the back of your office where nothing of uniqueness or distinctiveness could be seen. And when the video came to an end, another screen with green lettering appeared and that same password set-up. Beneath it the hint laid bright and loud yet again. 

‘HINT: favorite dessert’. 

Flug snapped his fingers and you both released heavy breaths – no doubt for different reasons. With a knit in your brow, your fingers dug into the soft skin of your biceps as you mulled over what you had just seen. The new memories that surfaced in your mind burned you. They brought the ghost of pain across your chest and through your insides as Flug scribbled in his notepad while hunched over on his desk. Were you really so soft? Had you caused someone’s death? Well you definitely did and the thought made you feel sick, you shook your head gently and you exhaled shakily. You hoped Flug wouldn’t offer anything on it, it would make sense if he did but you could only hope.

“Well we should be able to get this password easily.” He offered blankly. You looked at him with slightly watery eyes and a lump in your throat. There seemed to be a tension so faint in his voice you wondered whether or not it was truly there. And he walked away and towards the dentist chair while dragging a silver medical cart not unlike the one you had in the hospital-looking room in the video diary. Swallowing the lump, you followed him and silently offered gratitude he wouldn’t say anything about it to you directly. “I’ll have 5.0.5 bake any dessert he can think of and whichever is your favorite – let’s hope it hasn’t changed – we’ll have our password tomorrow.” But he would definitely show Black Hat the video. God you could already hear his mockery. It made a small scowl brush your features as Dr.Flug finally looked at you and gestured to the seat. “Now let’s get started.” 

“Do you have to tie me down again?” You inquired after you brushed away everything for the sake of your last thread of sanity as he began to strap in your wrists and ankles loosely. With a soft exhale as you shifted on the cold black leather, you looked at him as he nodded. “It’s not like I could escape.” 

“I’m aware, doctor. But for what I’m going to do to you – some reflexes I’d rather not experience first hand so it’s in my best interest to make sure you are restrained.” Flug explained with a sharp exhale as he looked you over. And he shook his head gently as he turned to seemingly analyze the contents of the cart you couldn’t quite make out – you felt he may have purposefully placed it behind you. “None of this will be personal, doctor. It’s in the name of science and by the order of Black Hat.” Flug prefaced as he came into your view with a blade in his hand and cotton balls and bandages peeking out from the pocket of his lab coat. 

Maybe it was the desperation to have answers, to regain memories or maybe it was the fear of what would happen if you lacked cooperation that made you obedient as he pressed the blade down against your arm. But in your chest and in the ghost of guilt and pain you felt, you figured it was your own conscience in search of some repentance for killing an innocent woman for the sake of science by more or less willingly allowing yourself to be a lab rat. Still – your cooperation didn’t make the hot and stinging pain any less horrendous as he sliced down your arm deep enough to draw blood but not enough to spurt out the crimson liquid lethally. Your fists balled up and nails dug into your palms as swears fumbled rapidly in sharp whispers from your lips.

Screwing your eyes shut, you looked down with soft breaths as a hot and searing pain melted into an uncomfortable soreness almost too quickly. And your eyes widened when you took notice of the blood dripping down your skin where there wasn’t an injury or cut. “Wh–Didn’t you cut me?” You inquired with soft breaths as you looked to an equally surprised Flug who wiped at your arm and nodded slowly. The blood smeared, discomforting soreness he pressed against made your eye scrunch close before you watched as he lowered the scalpel again. “Son of a bitch!” You cried out, tears stung your eyes the moment he sliced three wounds into the top of your forearm. Breathing increased heavier as you watched the wounds bleed out a deep crimson and before your eyes the skin warmed and the wounds closed. Not even a scar was left. Only blood. 

He picked up a different notepad with the scalpel still in hand and he began to write. “So you can feel the pain, correct?” He inquired while he wrote, some blood on his yellow latex gloves staining the wood of the pencil and the underside of the clipboard. 

“No shit.” You snapped, already pulled thin by the hot and intense pain. With a shuddery exhale, you shook your head gently. “But it feels worse than it would be being cut normally – ten thousand times worse…” You grunted softly as the discomforting soreness sent warm tingles up and down your arm. For some odd reason, you felt a need to contribute, your brows sewed and eyes shut as your head rested against the leather headrest. “And it only leaves a sore feeling. Like the aftermath of getting a cramp in your muscle.” Dr.Flug hummed and scribbled before he set down the clipboard on your lap and walked behind you to the cart yet again. 

Metallic clanking, then a sound you recognized as a torch being used. Much to your assumption but dismay, he soon walked forward with a steel rod glowing an orange-red at the edge. A soft whimper fumbled against your lips and your head turned away as he directed the edge of the rod against your knee. When the hot end made contact with your skin, your entire body stiffened and jolted with a loud cry. It was hot and agonizing, skin sizzled and the revolting stench filled the air while your expression twisted in pain and agony. 

And each experiment in which Flug harmed you with a blade, needle, hot rod – they went the same way no matter where on your legs, arms, or neck he did it. Blood would pool out, skin would sizzle, and needles would puncture and blinding, mind-numbing pain would move through your entire body and across your nerves. But the injuries and wounds would soon heal over after a matter of agonizing seconds that felt like hours. The sound of skin sizzling, graphite along paper, and your noises of agony filled the air. You wanted it to be over, while it was brief it didn’t feel like it and your hot tears rolling down your hot cheeks surely didn’t help. But you felt your ghosting guilt and pain from that damn video diary alleviate. 

It helped. But it hurt – it hurt beyond a way you could comprehend. But who knows if you’d ever been hurt worse? 

“We’re done for the night, doctor.” Flug breathed out from behind the seat as he returned the electric prodding rod. 

Your chest heaved up and down, a lump in your throat as blurry vision cleared with the fall of tears. Screwing your eyes shut, pure relief washed over you as you felt him slowly undoing the restraints from around your wrists. It seemed Flug truly did belong here, there wasn’t so much as a glimmer of reluctance, hesitation, or the far-fetched guilt as he tested multiple harming instruments and inflicted immense pain onto you. Then again what did you expect? 

His hands began to undo your ankles as you slowly sat up in the seat, your limbs shook and trembled as they did the moment you’d awoken in this Hell. “How long was it…?” You breathed out as he undid the restraints around your ankles. Some inflamed streaks painted your skin around your wrists and ankles from the thrashing against the leather restraints. And he moved to the side of the dentist chair as you slowly swung your legs off the seat in his direction. He simply held up his hand and your eyes widened, scoffing out. “ Only four hours? What time could it be?” You turned your neck, grasping the armrest to see the clock above the door to the laboratory. It was night already, late evening. You needed a nap – for ten years. 

But you found curiosity biting as you turned back around and noticed Flug slipping on a new pair of yellow latex gloves tugged out from the inside of his white lab coat. His hands were as pale as his neck, you could see the bones beneath his skin moving with every little movement of long and slender fingers. Then your eyes flickered to the bag and you tilted your head while slowly dragging yourself off of the leather seating – the soreness in your body immense. “What’s with the bag?” You inquire bluntly, fixing your dress and sleeves while standing directly in front of him. 

His eyes look to yours and you can practically hear the frown and eyebrow raise in his voice. “That’s a forward question.” 

A scoff left your lips and you shook your head while nodding towards the limbs he’d left the blood on – smeared and darkened. You would need another shower. “You just tortured me for four hours, I think you can handle answering one silly little question.” You bitterly replied with your arms crossing over your chest. 

For a few moments he simply looked at you. Then he sighed in exasperation and rolled his eyes. “I have to wear it.” Not the answer you were expecting.

“Why?” You questioned as you leaned back against the leather seat of the dentist chair. Flug dropped his head to the left and his eyes fell half-lidded, as if to silently ask “really?” but you paid it no mind beyond your own pointed expression. “Come on – if you’ll be torturing me for hours a day I should at least get to know you. Won’t we be spending a lot of time together?” You reasoned with a raise of your brows. And once more Flug simply stared at you for a few moments, looking you up and down. When he turned away you worried he may brush you off but a sigh of defeat made you perk up and follow him. 

“Because I have to wear it. There’s not really a deep answer if that’s what you’re searching for, doctor.” He explained while pushing the cart. Your steps moved a bit quicker and you opened up the door out to the laboratory for him. 

Then your curiosity for the scientist continued. “Black Hat makes you? Another amazing part of this job, is it?” 

Flug side-eyed you as he pushed the cart towards a sink of sorts in the brightly lit laboratory. “This job is amazing, I’ll have you know.” He said in a matter-of-fact tone. Ah so he wouldn’t ever hold hesitation, reluctance, or guilt in what he did. While it somewhat made you feel a prickle of further despair you knew it would be the case. And he continued while he stopped in front of the sink. “It can be bothersome to wear the bag but the anonymity is nice.” With careful hands, he began to place the silver tools covered in blood into the sink. You leaned against the counter beside him and your eyes flickered along the bag. 

“Can I see what you look like beneath it?” 

Almost instantly, he scoffed out and snorted soon after. “No!” He quickly exclaimed while he turned on the sink and shook his head rapidly. “Black Hat is the only one to have seen under the bag – not even Demencia or 5.0.5 know.” 

Your brows rose in surprise, you began to ponder more questions and curiosities about the scientist. How long has he been working here? How did he come into this line of work? How long has he known all those within this organization? But you found your mind particularly interested about what was beneath that brown paper bag. Maybe it would make matters better for you – to see a human being’s face rather than an anonymous torturer who didn’t blink as he stabbed into your knee and twisted the blade for results of an experiment. But something else within you wanted to know…an odd feeling of seeking answers to something you weren’t allowed. “Yes but you’re not torturing them.” You finally replied with your arms crossing over your chest. 

The doctor cleaned with a bit of a quickness in his movements. “What does that have to do with anything?” He blankly responded. And as you were ready to offer your initial response, your eyes watched the way your blood swirled down the drain, a soapy pink shade while being washed off of his tools. Some drag of irritation at him for being the one to inflict pain on you left you with a sweet need of revenge on your tongue. It crawled out from deep within you, you wouldn’t cut him – you wouldn’t hurt him. Maybe you could toy with him in a manner that wouldn’t leave a mark. Your mind wandered and you pushed off the counter with a soft, sweet sigh.

“If I knew what you looked like, maybe I could enjoy the torture.” 

It took more strength to not burst out laughing when the scalpel in his hand, sponge, and dish soap clattered into the sink loudly than it took to refrain from passing out during your torture session. Eyes big and buggy with the assistance of his thick goggles flickered over to you and your eyes momentarily watched the way his adam’s apple bobbed with a thick swallow. “Wha–What?” He choked out as you turned to him and offered a gentle shrug, feigning innocence even as you saw the pink beginning to bloom on his pale ivory skin of his neck.  

And he pressed against the edge of the sink as your hands grasped the edge on either side of him. “Like I said…we’ll be spending a lot of time together – I know you enjoy it.” Your hands began to run up his arms that trembled beneath your touch. And you tilted your head with a gentle raise of your brows, wetting your lips. “Let me see your face…” Soft hands pressed to his chest that was perfectly still, splayed out as they snaked up to his clavicle. “...the sadistic glee when I whimper or cry out while you take that scalpel and just –” He audibly gasped when you stepped forward and your hips pressed against him. A choked and strangled gasp was enough, you dropped one hand and found suds in your hands. 

Then you pulled away after smearing the soapy pink bubbles along the brown paper bag and his goggles. He seemed to snap out of it, breathing heavily and reaching up quickly to wipe at his goggles with his white sleeves. You basked in the taste of payback that came as he heaved and you took a step back and away from him. “Goodnight, Dr.Flug – see you tomorrow!” And you turned away, walking towards the door he seemed to have disabled the face scan system on. You heard some muttering and mumbling behind you.

“I–I know what that w-was! And you call me a torturer!” He shouted after you just before the door slid shut behind you. A soft laugh slipped your lips and you shook your head. Then you hummed in satisfaction and began your walk to your bedroom. 

Hopefully the torture to come wouldn’t be as bad as today. Something within your mind lets you know that the first time was always the worst. Maybe you had been subjected to such pain before. 

Some part of you hoped that was one memory you wouldn’t recover. 

Chapter Text

Crunching moved through your body, no doubt your spine being rearranged as the fluffy bear gave you a hug that could no doubt crush a car. But you wouldn’t complain as you attempted to return the embrace to 5.0.5 the best you could. It was a nice thing to be greeted with first thing in the morning, to have something be so sweet and warm because you knew very well what would be waiting for you for the rest of the day. “Why can he touch her, nerd? Did you figure it out?” Demencia whines as she snatched a box of cereal off the top of the white refrigerator littered with more 5.0.5 drawings. You were allowed to touch the tiles with your ballet flats once again when the big bear let you go with a big smile. Despite the pain in your body, you smiled up at him and didn’t drop the smile until he turned to walk to the oven.

Flug offered a simple negative response to Demencia as your hands pressed to your knees and you attempted to fix your spine and regain your sense of breathing. With a soft grunt, you straightened up and your eyes looked back towards the counters and the table itself. A vast array of desserts covered nearly every surface of the area, your brows sewed together and while you were simultaneously impressed 5.0.5 managed to bake all of it – you already felt as if your teeth were rotting at the sight. You walked over and took your seat across from Demencia while your eyes looked to Flug who flickered through the television channels with a cup of coffee in his gloved hand. 

“Do I really have to eat everything here?” You inquire with a raise of your brows, eyes darting around unsure of where to start. When Demencia attempts to grab the powdered brownies, Flug swats her hand with the remote just as he turns to look at you. The green-haired girl hissed at him before she returned to pouring cereal by the bowl into her mouth. Was she even chewing? She seemed a bit fascinating.

“You just have to try everything once to see if it’s your favorite. And maybe it’ll jog a memory.” Dr.Flug reasoned after he pulled another plate of sweets away from the hissing girl. 

You sighed out heavily as he turned back to the television and a small thought sparked to mind. A smile spread on your lips and you were quick to shove the plate of sugar powdered brownies towards the pouting lizard-girl. For a moment she eyed you suspiciously with narrowed eyes, but when you nodded in a reassuring manner she snatched up the plate and crawled beneath the table. Relieved to have one less dish, you looked down at the cannoli’s in front of you and took your first bite. Once again – you were impressed by the delectable tastes that washed across your tongue by the dessert, humming out in satisfaction as you looked towards 5.0.5 who took a pie out of the oven. 

Covering your mouth, you gestured down as his hopeful expression looked towards you. “Fis is amawzing!” You exclaimed with a mouthful. And instantly the blue bear beamed and hopped up and down on his feet while clapping his paws together covered by cute oven mitts. With a big smile, you found it wasn’t so tedious as you pushed aside the cannoli’s and tugged a cherry pie towards you. When you felt a gentle nudge at your leg, you looked down and Demencia grinned with that wild look in her eyes after having nudged you using the plate. She made grabby hands at you and you picked up the plate of cannoli’s and handed them off to her before you took your bite of the cherry pie. 

And that pattern continued – you tried a dessert, liked it, felt indifference towards it, or disliked it, and you’d hand it off to Demencia who seemed to practically inhale the dishes. You wondered how the girl managed to stay so fit as she scarfed down dessert after dessert. So many desserts that had been shoved at you and tossed down to her in fact that eventually it was just you and Demencia in the kitchen. Dr.Flug leaving with 5.0.5 to work on projects that didn’t involve you. And while you felt an uncomfortable sickness with even the smallest bites of the desserts you’d nearly finished going through – you found the television to be a welcomed distraction. Especially from the animalistic noises Demencia made.

You exhaled deeply, watching the running water go into the glass cup you were practically dying for more water. Rubbing at your eyes, your brows creased as you shut off the sink and began to drink the water with heavy gulps. Only four more desserts remained and by the end you could swear you would never eat another one again. Demencia had long since been called off by Flug passing by and needing her assistance in controlling a “hat bot” and you were finally left alone. A bit of heaviness dragged at your eyelids while you set the glass down and wiped your mouth and chin. It had been difficult to sleep the night before, for obvious reasons – even if the bed had been unfathomably comfortable. 

Maybe you could sleep better that night. You could only hope so, you already felt ready to slip into a food coma. And you needed to find some sort of way to thank 5.0.5 for all the desserts. Yes, you were being forced to try each one but you couldn’t imagine how long he’d spent baking. Did he even need sleep? Did Demencia? Black Hat? Just as the night before you found your mind overrunning with curiosities of those within the Black Hat manor. Most hung off Black Hat himself but he wouldn’t be as easy to speak to as Flug was – not by a longshot. Ironic considering Flug would be your torturer indefinitely. 

Your eyes looked down at your hand and you shook your head gently. The inquiries and curiosities about yourself were worse. To not know about your own mind, your behaviors, the things you’ve done whether they be good or bad – you swallowed thickly and pushed off the sink. You seemed like a kind woman, an intelligent scientist and technician but now what were you? Some lab rat being tortured without a single shred of memories aside from some stupid tattoo on your behind. Tears began to sting your eyes and you remembered why you didn’t feel it smart to dwell too much on yourself. A hand fell over your eyes and you took a few breaths. 

And when a sudden chill crawled up your spine and the sink was absent from behind you – you gasped softly and fell back onto your ass. Wide eyes darted around instantly and for a moment you found relief to know you hadn’t passed out or slipped into unconsciousness but that relief soon turned sour when your eyes looked up and realization dawned on where you seemed to have been taken. Tingles ran along your nerves and your expression twisted into a scowl as you glared at Black Hat who chuckled from where he sat on his desk. Sadism glinted in his eyes as you picked yourself up and fixed the dress that had fallen around your hips. 

“Were you about to cry again, doctor?” He inquired as if the answer would give him the entire universe. The glee in his tone was nauseating and irritating. You huffed out and blinked back the glossiness in your eyes while composing yourself. Ready to lie your ass off only for him to chuckle in a deep, throaty manner and wave dismissively as your eyes looked to him. “A shame I interrupted the little show before I could see it – but by that pathetic video of yours I am to assume I’ll see those tears in no time.” Black Hat laughed, shaking his head as your fists balled up at your sides and your narrowed eyes glared hotly at him. Tightening your jaw, you shifted on your ballet flats and shook your head.

“Why am I here? Flug has me–”

“I don’t care what he has you doing, you idiot girl.” He interrupted with a raise of his thin and sharp brows. Your jaw tightened again and you released your fists, the sting of your nails in your palms a bit too painful. And you looked to him as his gloved hand raised and he curled his index finger. Hesitantly, you blinked softly and walked over to where he asked you to. And you stood nearly against his desk by the time he dropped his hand. But when he lifted it from the desk, your eyes widened to see the yellow fabric you had tucked into the bathroom drawer. “What is this?” He asked. When your eyes flickered to his face, you exhaled softly. It was blank, unreadable. 

Why would you lie? You were just caught off-guard that he had it, but of course. Of course he would go through the room and bathroom. “I don’t know.” You honestly responded after a deep inhale. With your hands folding down against your navel, you wet your lips and looked away from him – unable to handle his piercing gaze as much as it irritated and annoyed you to feel intimidated beneath said gaze. “I woke up with it in my hand when I woke up here. I didn’t know what to make of it so I hid it in hopes I’d find a memory.” You explained, reluctantly pushing your eyes back to his face. And he simply stared at you for a few moments, a few moments that felt like hours. A black shadow bled up from the table and the yellow fabric disappeared. 

Another lengthy pause where he simply stared at you. You shifted on your ballet flats – discomforted by his gaze and a bit irritated. Then he simply turned away in his seat and waved dismissively above the chair. “Get out. Your human stench is bringing me nausea.” Black Hat plainly offered. And while you bit back an insult with further annoyance and irritation, you were more than grateful to be excused. With a sharp turn on your flat, you began to leave the office with quick steps. Anymore sweets and you’d hurl, for now you would lie to Flug about finishing the desserts – you weren’t sure you wanted to see more into your past. Not if it would warrant more torture in your subconscience. 

You’d nearly reached the doors when a shadow scurried beneath your shoes on the red carpet before your eyes looked up at Black Hat, wide and surprised. This time, you didn’t topple back but rather forward. And much to your surprise, your hands grasped onto the fabric of his red dress shirt with ease. He didn’t recoil at the touch and he didn’t hiss in pain, you blinked back softly and forgot the surprise of his sudden appearance unwarranted and unprompted. The monster seemed just as surprised as your hands patted his surprisingly firm chest and then down his arms. “I can touch you.” You stated as if you claimed the sky was blue. And Black Hat seemed just as surprised albeit a bit appalled as he shoved you away so roughly you hit the ground again with a painful thud.

And you’d have snapped if not for the fact that he hissed out in pain and glared hotly at you while he looked down at the hand that had shoved you away with contempt. Realization dawned then and even you couldn’t hide the smile of satisfaction that crept across your lips. “I can touch you.” You stated again while slowly standing up and shaking your head gently. But your tone was different this time, it was – arrogant. You tried to be careful as you looked him up and down and he stood tall and looming. “But you can’t touch me…” You breathed out in almost wonder while you looked up at him and rubbed the end of your spine with slight discomfort. But you bit back your expression, the revelation that absolved some of that fear – if not almost all of it as you looked at him.

It was odd. It was like watching a shark behind the glass. Despite the hot and furious way he looked down at you, you didn’t feel that prickle of fear. As far as you were concerned you found more fear in Flug and 5.0.5 than the monstrous entity before you. But should you voice it? Should you offer mockery and taunting? He could order Flug to do anything to you and that scientist would. But you wouldn’t die as far as you knew. Still it would be misery. Black Hat must have never been in such a position before – you wondered what he was thinking as his expression relaxed while looking down at you. You wet your lips and despite the swirling mess in your mind, you simply walked past him and left. Off to see Flug and deliver the sour news about the password and the revelation that you could touch Black Hat with no harm to you or him. 

He seemed fairly fascinated by the news once you found yourself in the laboratory with him – a bit soured that you hadn’t found your favorite dessert but more fascinated by the revelation that you could touch Black Hat. You had told him by detail what had transpired and he soon shooed you away to continue his work on an invention that looked to be explosives of some kind. It wasn’t as if you’d protest getting away from his work – not when you were able to sit across the room and play with crayons alongside 5.0.5. Torture would come soon and you weren’t anxious to get on it, you’d enjoy the down time for now with the big blue bear that smelled of cookies. 

You managed to shut off your mind for a while, simply doodling and coloring until you felt a soft paw nudge you. Looking up from your doodles with a soft hum, 5.0.5 held up a paper and almost instantly a big smile broke across your face. With a joyous laugh and a gentle shake of your head, you pointed at yourself with bright eyes and a raise of your brows. “Is that me?” You ask for confirmation. And he nods eagerly with a big smile once you clap your hands and nod in approval. “It looks amazing! Maybe even better than the real thing at the moment.” You praise with a soft laugh, the creature beams. Before anything else can be said or done a loud crash makes you stand up quickly from the stool you sat on and snap towards the direction of the crash. 

Some cloudy blue smoke seemed to absorb the air where Flug once stood at the desk and you sniffed the air while walking over slowly. Your brows knitted together and you rounded the desk to see the man on the ground with blue powder covering his goggles and painting the entire front portion of the brown paper bag. And it seemed as if your body moved on auto-pilot as you turned and stepped over him to look at what had been done. The small prototype bomb he was creating had exploded in a small manner on the desk, you fanned away the smoke with some coughs and looked down at the blueprints with furrowed brows. 

“G-Get away from that!” He exclaimed as he slowly dragged himself up off the ground. Your eyes dragged along the notes of chemicals used to create a combination that – by the name – was meant to knock the victim unconscious with the bomb's explosion. But the wires in your mind seemed to make a connection and you turned to the man who stood up beside you. “Don’t touch anything.” He firmly said with a few coughs. You rolled your eyes and waited for him, leaning against the counter with your weight on one hand and the other against your hip. 

Flug wiped at his goggles with the sleeves of his white coat before he tugged off the brown paper bag to reveal another beneath it. And with himself cleaned up and the question of how many paper bags did he have on his head tucked back away into your mind – you turned back around and pointed at the formula. “You miscalculated what x would equal – this chemical reaction will create blue smoke with itchy throats; it won't make the person unconscious.” You explained before you plucked up the number two pencil now a shade of cotton candy blue before you began to write beneath his impossibly messy writing you somehow understood. Then you slid it over to him and set down the pencil. “That should be the correct formula.”

With a glare at you, Flug snatched up the book before his eyes flickered along the page. And when his eyes widened in surprise and sparkled with realization, you found a sense of pride. “You’re right!” He exclaimed, a smile could be heard in his voice. And his mood seemed to lift as he began to scribble out his formula and a short laugh filled the air. “I have to say, doctor, I’m more surprised you could read my writing. Even Demencia can’t read it.” Flug snorted while he set down the pencil and you smiled when he turned to you. His eyes flickered between yours and narrowed slightly. “Was that an instinct or did more memories come back? Are your smarts ingrained in your mind?” He curiously inquired. 

You could only shrug, not quite sure where it came from either. “I’m not really sure.” You honestly offered. And Flug simply nodded before he turned away and looked towards one of the many clocks provided within the laboratory. The dread in your stomach was enough for you to nod and tap the table once before you stepped away. “I’ll go get myself in.” Flug offered a word of gratitude and a quick excuse of him needing to clean up the mess quickly. As you walked towards the room you would no doubt become very used to, you turned around and offered a gentle wave to 5.0.5 who smiled big and waved at you in return before going back to his coloring. And your smile fell once you turned away, once you walked through the door into the room colder than any other place in the manor. 

But something had shifted in the fairly – compared to the rest of Flug’s workspaces – organized room. Your brows sewed when your eyes spotted a few boxes up against the wall behind the dentist chair. With a glance over your shoulder towards the door, you walked over towards a fairly enticing box labeled with black marker and taped off. Curiosity feels as if it’s always been your demise, and as you walked closer to the box, it didn’t seem any different as you tugged at the tape. Boxes were lined a bit lopsided from an open closet you hadn’t noticed the moments you were in the room prior. It seemed Flug was going to do some cleaning – maybe venturing into his things would offer some leverage. 

Unfortunately there seemed to be nothing of importance once you opened the box. A soft frown painted your lips as you shoved aside worn pencils, notebooks seemingly from school that must have been pre-college. You truly wondered how someone could have such atrocious penmanship. With a deep exhale, your brows knitted together and you looked down at a rectangular photograph stuck within a notebook. More curiosity bled into your mind and you tugged out the photo. 

There wasn’t more than a few seconds for you to drink in the girl who seemed to be the focus of the photograph. Braces lined her big smile, clunky glasses on the tip of her upturned nose, and a pair of pink cat ears atop her head of brunette hair with bright pink bangs. And just like before a rush of cold crawled along your skin like a bucket of ice water had been tossed over your head, inhaling deeply your eyes widened as your vision tunneled. It then spread out and before you, your eyes viewed something different than the present you occupied.

Adorned in a deep black gown, silver bracelets adorned your wrists and a slit ran up your thigh – you stepped back and before you was a beautiful woman with a full head of strawberry pink hair in a neat tucked back bun adorned in a bright pink gown stepped towards you. In her hand was a red martini, she seemed drunk by the size of her pupils and the flushed redness spread on her features. ‘ Y-You think…you’re so great huh? Intelligence will only get you so far, doctor! Do you have any idea how many followers I’ve already gained?’ Her voice was low, quiet. You shook your head gently. ‘ I-I’m sorry, have I done something to offend you Miss Hee–’ And suddenly – deliberately – her drink painted your chest and you stepped away with a sharp gasp. ‘ Oops! Wow silly me I’m like a total mess!’ She exclaimed with a toss up of her hand and faux smile, tooth-achingly sweet .

And you found yourself in the present, breathing heavily – you quickly shoved away the photo and closed the box back up with a step away from it. Swallowing thickly, you touched your chest as warmth returned to your body. You could smell the nauseating scent of strawberries and vodka, crinkling your nose, you turned around and jumped in surprise to see Flug standing by the chair and staring blankly at you. “What are you doing, doctor?” He sounded irritated. A sudden headache creeped up your skull and you shook your head gently while pinching the bridge of your nose. 

“I–I had another memory…” You confessed after a few moments and he was quick to grab his notepad from the desk with the electronics. And once you sat in the chair, not yet strapped down – you recounted what you had seen. The gown you adorned, the lack of ring around your finger, the beautiful scenery behind the mean woman and the woman herself. As Flug scribbled out what you recounted he seemed to flinch and tighten his grasp on the pencil when you finished informing him of every detail. His brows furrowed and you took the notepad and pencil he shoved against you before quickly reaching into the pockets of his jeans. “What is it? What’s wrong?” You asked while sitting up.

He didn’t respond, simply typing until he showed the screen to you. “Was this her?” He asked with a wide-eyed look. And your brows sewed together, eyes adjusting to the brightness of the screen before you took in a photo of a woman. The exact woman from your memory, only she donned a costume and her strawberry pink hair fell down past her chin. With a quick nod, Flug exhaled sharply and he shook his head as he looked down for a moment too long before he put his phone away. “She’s a hero – Miss Heed – ehm, we went to high school together but by your memory she must have been a hero by the time that interaction happened. Maybe it was a gala…maybe a wedding…?” Flug seemed to begin murmuring to himself while walking back over to the table after taking the notepad away and pencil.

“A hero?” You questioned incredulously. A soft scoff left your lips and your arms crossed over your chest. “She sure didn’t seem like one in my memory.” But a realization dawned and you sat up, dropping your hands onto your lap. “Wait – you went to high school with her? But she’s a hero and you’re…” Was ‘villain’ too harsh a word? You took only an exhale to decide it wasn’t, continuing with a raise of your brow. “A villain.” You bluntly observed while looking him up and down from behind.

His shoulders seemed tense. “Well–she wasn’t always going to be a hero.” There was something undeniable in his voice and posture as he began to type on the computer but he didn’t allow it to pop up on the screen. It was a lilt of irritation and maybe some pain? You could sense the resentment on his tongue and there was an air to him that drew back your curiosities and inquiries. He didn’t seem to want to continue the conversation, maybe he had history with the woman? She was beautiful. Maybe an ex-girlfriend. Regardless, you decided to keep quiet as he typed aggressively. The air felt awkward suddenly. Thankfully – maybe – he spoke out with a deep exhale. “I’ll be spending tonight looking over all her public appearances in scenes like the one you describe and inputting every dessert in this country into the password…another sleepless night…” He muttered with a shake of his head as he walked over. 

It felt odd – to feel guilt at your insides for a man who began to tie down your ankles to prepare you for torture. But you couldn’t help but find sympathy in how the mention of this hero seemed to put a drag on his entire mood. With a soft exhale, you leaned back as he strapped the leather restraints around your wrists. “I can stay up with you to help.” You offered while looking at him. He paused and looked at you, you could see his brow raise with the movement of his eyes and you shrugged with a light smile. “Maybe more memories will be jogged – plus if I help we’ll get to the files quicker. I’m assuming you have more than one keyboard to work on the same screen…?” 

Flug blinked before he nodded and looked down. “Well that would be helpful, doctor. I just hope you don’t make it more difficult or get in my way, not unlike the others who attempt to assist me.” He said with a bit of a quiver in his voice, he swallowed hard after. You rolled your eyes and wondered whether you should take back your offer or not. But it seemed decided as he reached behind you and tugged the cart forward this time. Your brows furrowed and you looked down to see a multitude of syringes and vials. And in the time it took for your eyes to look back to his goggles, he seemed to be absorbed in that air of professionalism of a scientist and experimenter. “We were going to do electrocution today but I realized it may do worse for your memory. So today we’ll be testing your skin’s endurance again, only to chemicals, poisons, and so forth.” 

Your eyes widened and you sat up on reflex only to lay back down when you felt the restraints uncomfortable drag along your skin. With rapid blinks, you scoffed out and shook your head. “What if I die? It’s different to inject me than it is to hurt me on a surface level.” You reasoned with that sensation of fear a cold crawl up your spine. Flug shook his head with a snort and scoff while he plucked up the first needle.

“Don’t worry, doctor, you won’t die. Partly because I’ve taken precautions to assure it won’t happen but mostly because I need you if I’m going to get through the unknown number of files you have. Plus Black Hat would maim me for killing you without permission.” He explained in that quick-paced voice of his before he felt around your arm he had strapped in so the inner portion of your elbow would face upwards. You wanted to offer some smart or sarcastic remark about how caring he was that his main concern was Black Hat and the files and not the life of a human being – but you felt it might fly over that stupid brown paper bag and he would simply stare blankly. So you kept quiet as he injected a clear substance into your vein, the prick sharp.

Horrific pain was expected, maybe even death – but you felt nothing for ten seconds, then twenty, then forty, and soon a minute passed. Your brows creased as you looked towards Flug who scribbled along his keyboard and oddly enough held a bag in his hand. “Was something supposed to–” And the sudden rush of bile in your throat made you stop on instinct, your eyes screwing shut as you felt the notepad hit your lap alongside the pencil before a hand grasped the back of your head. Once the bag was placed at your mouth as Flug lifted your head up – you emptied all the desserts you had eaten into the plastic bag. Disgusting acidic sweetness washed through your taste buds as the hurling lasted for a full two minutes. You were gasping for air and coughing by the time it ended, Flug walking over to the trash bin. 

“Interesting. You don’t feel any pain?” He inquired with a gentle tilt of his head as he tossed the bag of throw-up away. You could only shake your head weakly, face twisted in discomfort and disgust as you swallowed hard. The doctor nodded and he walked over to you, picking up the notepad and scribbling away. “It seemed with this poison, the effects hit you but not the damage or agony. You’re sweating, your skin is cold, and you’ve thrown up.” The man observed before he set the objects back down onto your lap. And much to your surprise, he pulled out a white cloth and your eyes watched as he began to clean your chin. You couldn’t help but laugh lightly, your brows raising.

“You seem unphased by vomit. Memory or not I hate it.” You dryly spoke, voice rasped by the phlem in your throat and bile that seemed stuck to your throat.

Flug shook his head as he began to run the cloth down your jaw, he seemed to laugh lightly himself. “Demencia has thrown up worse on me. And at least your vomit doesn’t burn through skin.” He reasoned, you made a mental note to steer clear of Demencia if she ever looked queasy. And as his hand reared closer to your cleavage, you noticed that professional air of stiffness and blank nonchalance began to buzz with a sheepishness and nervousness. Your brows rose slowly as his hand lingered atop the area where some drool had spilled and he cleared his throat. “C-Can I help right there?” He stuttered for just a moment as he nodded down.

Before you could offer him a response, you felt that rush of icy coldness and a sharp inhale filled your lungs while your nails dug into the leather of the armrests. 

Once more, your vision tunneled and you looked down to see your own hands cleaning at your chest. That same black gown adorned your body, you cleaned at the red alcohol with a napkin while you grumbled in frustration. And you heard the sound of a door creak open, you seemed to jump in surprise and whip around – your eyes flickered to a masculine silhouette obscured by the lights outside of the bathroom. ‘ Woah – I’m sorry for coming in here but I saw what Miss Heed did. She can be a bit…much when she drinks – are you okay, miss…?’ And you exhaled deeply. With a sheepish laugh, you shook your head. ‘ Doctor ____. But please call me ____.’ Then he walked forward. ‘ A pleasure to finally meet you. I’m–’ A soft snort and you turned around. ‘ Oh please as if you don’t know I know who you are. Everyone here – everyone in this country – knows who you are.’ He laughed modestly. ‘ Still, I was raised with manners. Especially when it comes to beautiful women.’ You could see you smile shyly in the reflection of the bathroom mirror. 

And warmth came again, rapidly blinking and exhaling. You looked to Flug who had cleaned the spot and seemed to have realized what was happening. “What did you see?” He inquired quickly with his notepad in hand and pencil shaking in what you could only assume to be anticipation. And quickly, before you could forget, you recounted what you had seen. A new memory that melted through the fog of your mind. While you recounted what you saw, you found a flutter move in your stomach, an odd and ghost of a feeling that warmed your heart. Flug exhaled softly and nodded quickly once you finished. “Then this must be your first meeting with this man who is certainly your fiance.” You swear you could hear a grin in his next words. “He sounds important, important but cheesy – is that your type, doctor?” And you rolled your eyes while he laughed to himself. 

“I’d punch you if I wasn’t tied down.” You dryly offered but an embarrassed feeling ran across your chest. 

He shrugged. “I know.” He plainly said before he plucked up another syringe. “But let’s get back to work.” 

This session wasn’t necessarily torture, it was as quiet as it was before spare the occassional observation voiced by Dr.Flug who seemed to talk to himself quite a bit. There were uncomfortable moments, more moments when you emptied your insides, and Flug never seemed to get accustomed to cleaning up the mess on your chin and chest. It was amusing, you wondered if he’d be this nervous around any woman. Something in you said yes but you felt it inappropriate to ask. And truthfully by the time you hurled clear liquid, you weren’t exactly in a conversation mood. Flug still the professional he seemed to be once it came down to it. 

“Okay five hours – it seems your body is immune to poisons and chemicals just the same.” Flug finally spoke to you directly as you sat up after the restraints were undone. Truth be told, you couldn’t absorb his words in a timely manner as you placed your hand over your stomach and slowly pulled off of the chair with a soft grunt. “Return tonight at eight so we can begin the search for the password and event you were at. If we can connect you to Miss – Miss Heed and we can find your fiance hopefully we’ll get more information about you.” Flug seemed to need a breather while saying her name – your brows sewed. You’d ask later. For now, you simply hummed in acknowledgement before you left the room on slightly wobbly legs. You needed water. 

And you found yourself walking down the corridor, your brows sewed together and you paused some ways towards the kitchen. Shuddering and looking around, your brows sewed. There was that feeling again. Would you really get used to it?

—

There was something horrifyingly euphoric to be feeling such an enticing and mouth-watering draw after so many years without it. So many decades and maybe even centuries. 

As the dark and monstrous entity watched the little human walk down the corridor after seemingly shaking off a rush of chills, he was forced to bite back a dark chuckle. In any case he’d have shoved her, maybe toyed with her by continuously tripping her over her pretty ballet flats. But he knew he couldn’t touch her – it burned him. And it ached in a manner that hadn’t happened in so long he forgot how much it pained to be harmed. To be vulnerable. Perhaps he should be enraged, furious, figuring out every possible way to kill her and spill her blood until he could grasp her soft flesh that smelled faintly of cinnamon until it didn’t burn. 

But Black Hat didn’t feel rage beyond what he usually felt trembling in his body and beneath his deep gray skin. What he found was that enticing drag of euphoria and ecstasy beneath his skin, he found interest. A fascination that grew by the hour and by the videos that gave a view into who she was that she couldn’t seem to recall or remember. A fascination for a scientist with a doctorate and skill in coding so advanced that not even the idiot Flug could peer through files upon files. So many questions swirled in the mind of the entity and it was dangerous, it was lethal the manner in which he found no satiation for this interest and fascination.

He couldn’t peer into her pretty little head for answers. He couldn’t torture her and hear those sweet cries and whimpers that worm was lucky enough to bathe in during the experimentations. Black Hat could do nothing but be swallowed by his curiosities, but feel the growth of his interest and fascination up his entire being like a net of electrical energy has swallowed him. How long had it been since he’d felt so enticed? So fascinated and interested? This buzz of euphoria and adrenaline melded with ecstacy, all from a disgusting and wretched human. Humans only brought him euphoria briefly, a brief wash of such an emotion that ended as quickly as their lives once he finished with them but her – no he couldn’t find any satiation for an insatiable buzz and craving deep within the pits of himself.

And he feared – how wonderfully delightful it was to fear . 

Fear a pathetic, wretched, little human because of what she had sparked within him. He stood in the shadow of the doorway, he observed her as she drank from a glass of water while her eyes observed that stupid bear’s doodles. A smile toyed at her lips, no doubt with the new addition of herself in crayon. Truth be told, some buzz came that she was more appealing to the eye than the usual fleshbags to roam the soil of this planet. 

Her smile was bright, nauseatingly so and her scowl was delightfully dark. Even with a teary face she was beautiful. Black Hat enjoyed seeing her face in that video. The way her bottom lip quivered and her soft sobs muffled through her hands. That smear of mascara around her eyes and the disarray of her appearance in general. Perhaps he should see to it she received some makeup for moments his torment finally bled through her psyche. With a hum, Black Hat dissolved into his office. Interested to learn the new results from the paper bag moron. 

—

Your eyes flickered down the clipboard, pages upon pages of dessert names lined the white sheets and you groaned softly while shifting on the admittedly comfortable and plush swivel chair. Flug chuckled beside you and he sat down in front of a laptop separate from the computer you sat in front of. “God why did I have to lose my memory – this is so tedious…” You grumbled while setting aside the clipboard and inputting the first dessert. Much to your dismay, but not surprise, it was incorrect. After you crossed out the dessert, you looked to Flug who seemed oddly silent from the moment you had entered the laboratory just five minutes early. Now his aggressive typing returned, you typed yourself each dessert your eyes flickered to.

But there laid an awkward tension in the air, he seemed irritated – on edge as he scrolled through and pulled up multiple sources on this Miss Heed hero. Your brows sewed together and you attempted to simply ignore him but it was difficult. The occasional exasperated sigh left his lips from beneath the bag, his gloved fingers roughly hit keys, and he was practically glaring a hole through the thick lenses of his goggles. When the first hour and a half passed, you found yourself unable to bite back your curiosities anymore and you slammed down the pen that smudged ink down three pages of desserts crossed out from front to back. You turned to Flug in the chair and tilted your head.

“Okay what’s the deal?” You asked. He jumped and turned to you. Perhaps he was in his own world. Still, he seemed to know what you were talking about in the way his eyes flickered towards the laptop before they flickered to you. But he was soon to play ignorant with a few rapid blinks, rubbing the nape of his neck. You gave him a pointed look before he could claim ignorance. “Miss Heed – why are you so upset? Is this just a villain vs hero thing or…?” You trailed off in your small explanation, cracking your knuckles and fingers while holding his eyes that seemed to dart between yours. A part of you knew he may not say anything, he’d probably brush you off and order you to continue the password game. 

But much to your surprise, he seemed to claim some silent defeat. “I–we–I used to have a crush on her while we were in school.” He breathed out, turning away and continuing his typing. You thought that interesting revelation may be the end of the conversation but he continued as he worked. “We were going to become villains together after we graduated but when she saw another hero she became obsessed with him and…switched sides. I thought we were best friends, I hoped we would be something more but she never spoke to me again when she left the school.” Flug explained, his voice plain as he explained something you could tell weighed fairly heavily on him. 

With a soft hum, something in you told you to turn away. And you began to continue with the passwords. “I’m sorry to hear that.” You spoke after a momentary pause. Once more, it was odd to feel sympathy for this man who was a villain but he didn’t seem too bad. Your brows sewed together and you shook your head gently while you continued to type, be denied access, and cross out a name of a failed dessert. “If it’s any consolation even with the torture and your sadism you seem like a decent guy.” And you heard the sound of his slower typing come to a stop. With a gentle shrug, you turned to him and realized he was already looking at you. “You’re smart, a little skittery like – a chihuahua – but you have redeeming qualities I’m sure a girl will eventually fall for. Maybe try not being so tense all the time.” 

Flug’s eyes flickered between yours. He stared not unlike Black Hat. But his gaze didn’t bring you discomfort or irritation. It was simply blank, unreadable because of the damn brown bag. Then he nodded gently and he turned away with a soft exhale. “Easier said than done.” You smiled at him sympathetically when he looked back at you. “But thank you. Aside from you calling me a chihuahua, it helped to hear that other stuff from a pretty woman.” And instantly, he flinched with a screw of his eyes and a grin broke out on your features while some warmth crawled beneath your skin. “I–didn’t mean–”

“Only one day in and you’re going soft on me Flu–”

“You know you’re pretty!” He shouted, interrupting you while turning away and putting his face into his hands. “It’s like saying ice is cold, just an observation….” The scientist grumbled, his shoulder up and blocking his flushed neck as he continued to type on the laptop. You laughed softly to yourself and turned away, shaking your head to input more passwords. 

And you gasped sharply when a video suddenly appeared on screen. Grabbing a hold of Flug’s shoulder, you shook him and gestured to the screen with excitement and a big smile painting your features. “I got it!” You exclaimed as his wide eyes looked at the computer screen. His words of praise admittedly made your smile soften as he shut his own laptop and nudged you aside to hook up the big screen above and against the wall. You circled the dessert that wasn’t amongst the array you had tried and you scooted back in your swivel chair to look up as the screen lit up and the lights above shut off with a snap of his fingers. 

Once the video played, Flug sat in his seat beside you. 

The scenery seemed to be that room the woman had seized in all over again. And once more you were positioning the camera or whatever you may have used to film – but it didn’t seem as though you were trying to hide it. A big smile painted your features and you stood up, donned in that white lab coat, a red blouse, and black pencil skirt. You squealed in excitement, holding your hands together beneath your chin. ‘Hello! Dr.____ here and it is April 20th, 20XX and it is currently–’ A glance down at your silver watch. ‘5:00 p.m! So you may be wondering why I’ve been gone for so long but it’s probably been just a little over a minute for you. Well – after uhm–’ For a moment your chipper attitude seemed to falter. ‘the incident–’ It returned after a few blinks. ‘I decided it would be best to begin documenting when the serum began to work and I am so pleased to announce that it has begun to work! Penelope.’ You looked off camera and gestured for a woman to walk towards you. 

She was pretty – her skin an olive tone and long inky hair done down in two braids that touched her hips. And she seemed to be happy, smiling big. ‘Okay so you need my arm?’ She asked with a gentle raise of her brows. And you nodded eagerly before you took her arm. From your hair, you tugged out a calligraphy pen. With a swipe along her skin of the pen, nothing happened. Your brows furrowed and you leaned forward in your seat presently as you watched your past self attempt to stab the woman only for nothing to happen. The tip of the pen snapped against her skin. 

‘It works! I perfected the serum and now this serum can be distributed widely!’ You exclaimed happily before you embraced the woman with squeals and joyous noises. She seemed just as excited as she returned the embrace before you pulled away and hurried towards the camera. ‘I will return soon but the agents will be coming soon so it’s best I put this away!’ And as you grabbed the camera, your big smile was the last thing to be seen before the screen went black. 

With a shuddery exhale presently, you looked to Flug who wrote messily in his notepad. And you turned back towards the screen as it lit up to bathe the room in light again. 

Once more, you came onto screen but it seemed someone else was filming you. You sat at your desk in the office seen in the prior video, your laptop shut but a mess of papers strewn across your desk. ‘There’s the revolutionizer!’ That masculine voice – your fiance’s voice. And you looked up, doing a double take where a sweet smile melted into a sheepish one and you shook your head while laughing modestly. 

‘Babe, that’s my work camera! Don’t film this…’ You whined in a playful manner while shooing him away. 

He laughed. ‘Pssh, you’ll just edit it out. Besides, the committee might like to see the genius in her natural state.’ That voice reasoned, and you rolled your eyes behind your desk. Looking at him pointedly, a beaming smile broke out on your face before you looked down with a gentle exhale of light defeat. Then he walked closer to the desk. ‘Oh and…’ A soft click filled the air, maybe the man tried to turn off the camera but he only cut off the video – not the sound. ‘I don’t think you should–we should invite Penumbra…’ He offered hesitantly. 

‘What? No that’s ridiculous, of course we’re inviting her she–’

‘I know, my heart, but she’s–a villain–’

It was if you and your fiance had been in a game of interrupting one another. ‘No. She was forced to become a villain because of her disease. If you get to invite Sunblast then I can invite Penumbra. She was practically my mentor, she isn’t bad, she just works with the cards she was given.’ Your voice reasoned as a clunk moved through the audio, maybe he had set down the camera. 

Your fiance seemed to pause. A pause that pushed the present you to the edge of your seat to stare up at a black screen. ‘You’re not…letting your old memories keep you back, right?’ 

Presently, your brows sewed and you blinked softly. ‘I mean – I’ve worked hard to convince people that you’re not the person you were but I–’

‘Are you seriously questioning my integrity right now?’ Your past self scoffed out. ‘And what exactly do you mean by the person I was?’  

‘No, and you–you know you always see the best in these people and after what happened with–’ 

A slam. Everything went quiet. And your past voice spilled through the audio. ‘You’re walking on thin ice, right now. And I’m not doing this with you. Just–I’m going to go to bed early. Let me–and you didn’t shut this off.’ Before anything else could be heard, the video stopped entirely after what sounded like your camera being picked up and shut off. 

You breathed out softly and shook your head presently, sewing your brows as a dull headache began to entrap your skull. There was a moment of silence. Then Flug tapped your arm with a pencil and you looked at him. “Any new memories?” You shook your head and turned back to the screen that flickered on much to the surprise of you both. Another video? No, it was a folder on the screen and you both exhaled deeply as Flug moved forward and dropped his notepad and pencil onto the desk beside the keyboard and mouse. He clicked on the folder only for another black screen with that green font to appear. “Son of a cracker…” Flug swore just as you exhaled in defeat. There was no hint provided for the password, a series of numbers rather than letters provided beneath the box. 

And you shook your head gently while yawning, your heavy eyelids weighed by lack of sleep and the events of the day. But you turned to Flug as he opened up laptop and began to type away on his Miss Heed search of the specific outfit and the event she had been in attendance at. “Well I’ll compile a different array of four numbers that could possibly exist and we can do what we did tomorrow. For now…” He trailed off and saved his tabs before he shut his laptop and snapped his fingers. The lights came on and you flinched at the brightness for a few moments. “We should get some rest. I need to pay a visit to Penumbra and you need to be ready for more experiments. And maybe good sleep will help your mind.” 

“You know this Penumbra?” You inquired and he nodded with an eagerness.

“Oh yes! She’s a smart woman I see at the Mad Science Expo every year – I’m surprised to hear that someone like past-you knew her. Then again she isn’t the most evil or devious of women but you seemed to sound naive.” Flug explained nonchalantly as you stood up and stretched your limbs. With a soft frown at him and sideways glare, he looked at you and blinked. Then he simply walked towards the door, you followed as he cracked his back with a push on his spine. “By what your fiance said, I’m going to assume you must have had some sordid past that was a sensitive topic for you. It could explain your nonchalance towards this organization and its doings. And whoever your fiance is must be important.”

Humming softly, you weren’t sure you were grasping his words as much as you should have. Exhausted by another dump into your mind, hurling your entire array of organs, and a lack of any memories tied to what seemed to be memorable moments – you simply wanted to pass out yet again. You felt that may be a constant once again in Black Hat manor. And so – with no energy to speak – you simply followed Flug towards the laboratory exit and offered a nod of gratitude when he allowed you to walk through the door first. 

With your bedrooms fairly close, you continued to walk with him in a silence that wasn’t uncomfortable nor comforting but simply there. Until you felt Flug’s eyes on you and you looked at him with a small yawn. “What?” You inquired with a slight attitude on your tongue due to lack of sleep. He didn’t seem to care, more care came when he flinched at your sudden snap gaze to his. “Is there still vomit on me?” You offered lightly, a subconscious apology for snapping at him, smiling in a bit of amusement. And he seemed to scrunch up his eyes, shaking his head before he turned away.

“No, I was just curious as to why you’re so nonchalant. I mean you aren’t necessarily the calmest but…” He trailed off as if unsure how to finish his inquiry. And the question’s response came surprisingly easy as you shrugged with your hands folded down against your navel. 

“Exhaustion I think. And it’s easy to stay calm when you don’t know who you are. I’m internally panicking but I don’t…” You trailed off, searching while you looked around before you shrugged and crossed your arms over your chest. “I’m not sure how I’m meant to react or behave beyond wanting to cry and I don’t want to cry here for obvious reasons.” Then your own question came as you looked to Flug with a tilt of your head. “Why are you curious about that?” 

The scientist shook his head gently. “You seemed like a complex woman before the memory loss – and admittedly after. I’m always curious about peculiar people.” He responded in a fairly quick manner. “It’s the scientist in me.” There was a lightness to be found in those words and you smiled a bit while nodding. 

“I know what you mean.” You replied before you exhaled deeply and chuckled a bit dryly. “Somewhat at least.” 

A pregnant silence. Then Flug looked to you. “So what did the dessert end up being?” 

You turned to Flug. Was he trying to make conversation? While you found it a bit odd, even odder you felt inclined to participate in the conversation. You smiled and offered him the name of your favorite dessert and he groaned out while dragging his hands down past his goggles and down the brown paper bag. “That makes sense – it’s 5.0.5’s least favorite. What are the odds…” He laughed while shaking his head. And you snorted while shaking your head and placing a hand over your stomach.

“I hate you…do you have any idea how awful it was to eat so many sweets? It was worse than the actual torture you put me through.” This earned another laugh from him, a smile spread on your lips and you shook your head. Curiosity bit and you looked at him with a gentle tilt of your head. “Be honest – do you not feel any guilt or anything of the sorts when you do what you do to me?” It was a question you felt the need to ask, you felt you needed a response to know just where the line would be drawn with company you hadn’t considered enjoying until now. Flug seemed taken back by your question, he cleared his throat and fixed his goggles.

“To be frank – no.” He seemed a bit reluctant and maybe even a bit nervous. But he was honest as you requested and while you found dread drag, you also found relief that he wasn’t dishonest. “It’s my job and the orders of Black Hat. It isn’t personal and while I don’t usually enjoy it – depending – I also don't dislike or hate it or feel guilt . I’m a villain, if I felt guilty it’d contradict the title.” And Flug stopped at where your bedroom was, you looked at him and you breathed out softly with a nod. He looked expectant, and maybe he looked relieved when you smiled and nodded.

“I get it. Thanks for the honesty.” And you stepped past him. “Goodnight, Dr.Flug.” 

Shutting the door behind you, you exhaled deeply and leaned against the wood with a crease between your brows. Exhaustion hung heavy and you made your way over to the bed – eager to fall asleep but not quite eager to meet the next day. 

Chapter Text

Once again you found no sleep. Irritation dragged at your entire body when it came time to wake up. This time around your body felt as if something was missing. For some odd reason there was a strange absence in your chest that prevented you from getting any sleep beyond a single hour's length at a time. But you couldn’t attempt to catch up on sleep, you dragged yourself out of bed and forced your heavy body to the bathroom you’d have been reluctant to use if not for the fact that you felt filthy. The water was a relief to you, it woke you up for the day ahead and you hoped Flug found some answers in Penumbra. Now alone in the shower, your mind was allowed to mull over what had happened the night prior. The discoveries in the video and the file hidden behind a password that offered no hint.

Could you really have been someone to consort with villains? Then again you described the woman as the opposite but whoever your fiance may have been spoke down to you. Were you truly naive? In some aspects you could believe you may have been a naive young woman but you didn’t feel it in your bones. You found familiarity in the name Penumbra in your chest that you hadn’t felt the night before. But that was all there was – a simple brush of familiarity. Frustration began to brew within you, sighing in exasperation you left the shower after spending just a little too long. The pads of your fingers pruned while you dried yourself off within the bathroom. 

At the very least the soreness in your back had evaporated. Turning around, your eyes went to inspect the branding before you struggled for the next twenty minutes to button up the small buttons by the dozen up your spine. But when you looked where the branding had once been, your eyes widened to realize it was gone. You blinked back rapidly and pushed your behind against the sink to get a closer look in the mirror. A deep huff left your lips and you shook your head while running your hand along the skin. Smooth and soft. No scabbing and no scar. Confusion muddled a foggy mind and you made a mental note to tell Flug about it as you finished getting dressed – buttons you believed were made frustratingly difficult to clasp deliberately by Black Hat himself. 

You left your room, walking along the corridors and heading to the kitchen. And that uncomfortable feeling of being watched still absorbed your entire being. With a shudder of the chills that crawled up your spine, one look around made you stop in your tracks. Black bled down the walls and beneath the carpeting and your hands grasped your biceps as a means of self-soothing. The next thing you knew, you found the black bleeding away and you sighed out in irritation to realize that you were in Black Hat’s office yet again. The bastard himself sat behind his desk with a grin on his features and his hands folded on top of the desk. Your brows sewed and you shifted on your flats.

“At the very least it’s convenient I can still bring you where I want.” Were the first string of words he offered as you simply stared at him some feet away from his desk. Then he eyed you up and down before he stood up and folded his hands behind his back. “You’re the only one in the manor at the moment and I need a task done. I would usually ask that stupid bear or Flug to do it for me. But seeing as they are out – you will do it for me.”

Your brows furrowed and you thinned your lips with slight irritation. While you didn’t like his means of talking about 5.0.5 you didn’t necessarily want to be ordered around. Then again – as much as you were a prisoner and lab rat, at least you had your own bedroom and bathroom of comfort. So you stayed silent and expectant as he walked over. For a moment something flashed on his features that led you to believe he wasn’t expecting your cooperation. But he seemed to get over it, extending out his hand beside him, you watched as a cane formed from a shadow and he pressed the end against the carpet. Once again, you were taken against your will and you shuddered with a new nauseous feeling at the sudden shift of scenery. 

But this was a far more pleasant sight. Your eyes widened and you looked around the expansive room – the expansive library with books that lined and covered nearly every single wall from the dark black carpet to the high ceilings. The only wall void of a line of bookshelves extended on the opposite side of the room, a glass stained window bathed the room in a red glow. You breathed out in awe, admiring the beautiful spines of the booked and the overall archaic Victorian design of the room. But your warmth and admiration ended when you heard a mocking chuckle grumble from the throat of the man you could strangle. He made his way over towards the desk that was set-up, with no dust gathered on the seat not unlike the one in his office you figured he may frequent here a fair amount.

“Humans are impressed so easily. Pathetic.” He muttered with a shake of his head and grin while he took a seat with poise and a frustratingly easy grace. 

Your brows furrowed and you walked over to the desk with your arms crossing over your chest tightly. “Why am I here? What’s the task?” You asked, not doing well to hide the irritation and annoyance from your sharp tone or your scowl. Something you wanted to conceal, you could see the way sadism and amusement glinted in his expression every time he found himself beneath your skin. But it was difficult to keep a blank demeanor around the monster, more aggravating than anyone you’ve ever met by so little interactions – and you couldn’t even remember meeting anyone beyond those housed in the manor. 

Black Hat waved a hand and you blinked as a rolled up piece of dusty parchment paper appeared in his hand. You were swift to catch it when he threw it at you carelessly. More annoyance warmed your veins and sparked your irritation, glaring at him before you looked down and unrolled the paper. “I need these books. Find them for me and leave them on this desk for me. Be quick about it as well – I don’t like slow work.” Black Hat ordered as your eyes dragged down the list, widening with each title not by the contents but by the amount. A sharp scoff slipped your lips and you shook your head gently. 

“There are ten books on here – this library is huge.” You pointedly said with a shake of your head once more. Then your elbow pressed into your palm as you looked back down at the list after one sweep around the library. “Can’t you use your…whatever the hell you do to get these books?” You protested with a sew up of your brows. Black Hat’s eyes narrowed and he chuckled with a shake of his head. 

“I could but why would I do that when I can enjoy your human suffering? Now get on with it.” He snapped a bit coldly. 

You knew he couldn’t necessarily harm you but your lips pulled tight and with a restrained groan, you turned around and walked towards the shelf on the opposite side of the room. There still laid some cold fear in your gut, worsened when you glanced back at him and he peered at you over his folded gloved hands. So he would be watching you during the duration of your searching. This thought made you shift in discomfort but it felt like a fairly solid motivator to be quick about it. And first you found a need to tackle what order the books were organized in. 

Fortunately there did seem to be an organization method – by author last name, unfortunately the titles on the parchment you shoved into the top of your dress only had titles. It was frustrating but you wouldn’t allow him any more reactions. And eventually, you simply found yourself absorbed by the tedious task despite the feeling of his eyes boring into you. Your eyes followed the spines and continuously glanced at the paper, climbing up the ladder provided and moving along the shelves. Much to your surprise, the task became easier and less tedious after finding the first five books. Still – you must not have been a very active woman, exhausted by the walking and climbing in the expansive library. 

By the eighth book, you were on the opposite side of the library yet again. You wondered how much time had passed, you wondered why he needed the books specifically. A lot of thoughts filled your mind in some feeble attempt to keep the monster out of mind just as he was out of sight. And a welcome distraction came when your eyes stopped on the colorful spine of a book. Your brows slowly threaded together, grasping onto the railing of the sliding ladder with one hand as the other pressed to the spine. It stood out abit amongst the section of books you looked through. The spine was a beautiful sea green with gold detailing, you found your chest drawn to it and with a slow ease you tugged it out from its position. 

And the book was just as beautifully crafted, a simplicity in the sea foam green design trimmed with gold and black ink decorated the cover. Your brows knitted gently and you gently ran your fingers down the suede fabric of the book once your elbow looped around the railing to assure you wouldn’t fall five shelves down. That ghost sense of mourning moved through your insides and your brows creased as you looked along the title. Familiarity moved through you intensely but bittersweet. “The Wandering Traveler…” You mumbled aloud to yourself. And with a gentle tilt of your head, you opened the book only to find a hand burst up. 

Shrieking out in surprise, you dropped the book and fumbled back. Your sleeve snagged on a nail as your arm fell from the loop on the railing, a tear split through your ears before your footing left the ladder’s wood. The moment your back hit the ground, all the air knocked out of you sending you gasping for air and writhing in stiff agony. Loud and rambunctious laughter split through your ringing ears, hot irritation and anger moved through your pained body as you screwed your eyes shut. Gasping for air that felt out of reach, you managed to glare hotly up at the monster that stood just an inch away from where your head laid. He looked down at you still in a fit of laughter while shaking his head and placing a hand over his eyes. You slowly rolled over onto your stomach with a long groan. 

“Why were you so fascinated by this book, doctor?” His voice spilled through the air – your glaring and narrowed eyes flickered to the man who seemed to manifest the book you had dropped into his hands from a murky blur of shadows. For a moment he seemed to analyze the book with some sense of contempt, maybe disgust. But why did you care?

Frowning deeply at him, you ignored him and looked down at your dress where the sleeve had torn and you glanced up. There your sleeve was on the nail, with a huff of irritation, you looked back down. Hung off your shoulder, some of the dark fabric exposed the lacy darkness of your bra. Before you could fix it, you felt a thud to the back of your head and grasped the sore spot shot with hot pain and snapped your neck around to look from the cane that hit you to the irritated expression of the man that had hit you. Anger boiled in your stomach and your jaw clenched. “I asked you a question.” He bitterly claimed as you glared hotly at him. 

Grunting, you pulled yourself up and rubbed the back of your head. “I don’t know.” You snapped in hot irritation while you glared at him. The paper had unrolled from your dress and laid on the carpet by your ballet flats. Glaring at him, then looking at the book, you shook your head gently. “It felt familiar – that’s all.” You breathed out, blinking softly while fixing the hem of your dress. With a look towards the monster, your movements paused when you took notice of the way his eyes looked at the exposed undergarment. And you could see the contempt in his expression, the irritation, you shook your head and looked down in an attempt to fix it. “It’s ironic how you look at me with disgust when you’re the one keeping me a prisoner–” 

Before you could finish your smart remark, you felt the curve of his cane at your neck and you were pulled towards him. You exhaled softly in surprise, wide eyes looking up at him only to notice his eye trained on your shoulder. Surprised and curious, your body a fraction of an inch from his – you looked down despite the uncomfortable feeling of his cane on the nape of your neck. Only now did you notice a scar, how hadn’t you noticed that? It was a bite mark, faint but human in the straight line the teeth were lined up. Your brows furrowed and you hummed in interest before you looked back to the monster. He pulled away the cane and he grinned while tapping the wood against the scar. You shuddered beneath your skin.

“I’d watch that mouth, we’ve both come to realize that while I can’t hurt you with my touch, I can still harm you.” He finally spoke after a fairly lengthy silence. Your brows furrowed and your jaw tightened. How difficult it was to not give him satisfaction – he was right. He couldn’t hurt you with his hands, he couldn’t even touch you but still he could harm you in other ways. Maybe you really should mind yourself. Still, it was frustrating and aggravating to have the power yet not be the one in control. It seemed to be just an illusion of power. 

Your brows sewed and your eyes flickered to the book. That bittersweetness grew sweeter, you couldn’t help but feel that the memories attached to the book may be good ones. With a gentle nod as he slowly moved his cane, you looked up at him – hesitant to ask. He’d probably laugh in your face, maybe burn the book in front of you. But you figured it may be worth a chance. So, stupidly, you fixed the torn piece to stay up beneath the strap of your bra. “Can I borrow the book?” You asked, somewhat tense in await his response. His brows raised, ends pinched as he looked at the book then to you. And you prepared yourself for mockery, but he simply turned and the book disappeared from his grasp.

“You can read it when you’re done – no books in my collection leave this room.” He breathed out before he waved you off. “Now hurry up before I change my mind.” And you couldn’t help the big smile of buried excitement that spread on your lips. You stepped back and you plucked up the paper with a new motivation, unsure as to why you felt so excited to read a book you couldn’t remember. 

Another while passed, the last book seemed the most difficult to find. But you managed, and after tucking the paper into the front of your torn dress again, you soon made your way down to the pile that had grown on the carpet. Black Hat’s gaze still felt as if it burned into you but you attempted to pay it no mind, simply reaching down and grunting out heavily before you lifted the books. You hobbled over to the desk and once the heavy weight left your arms, you set the books down and exhaled deeply, rubbing at the sweat on your brow before you dragged the cotton collar of your dress along the sweat on your neck. Finally, your eyes flickered to Black Hat who seemed to be staring at your neck. Odd, uncomfortable. 

“There you go.” You breathed out, dusting the dust off yourself and stepping back with soft breaths. Your eyes flickered to the clock, not quite visibly with how high up it was but enough for you to barely discern it. “And it only took three hours…” You mumble softly before you look to the man while setting down the rolled up paper. Black Hat seemed to look over each of the books, humming out with a nod before he looked them over with plain boredom. Your eyes widened a bit as he waved his hand and they sunk into the shadow on the desk. When your eyes flickered around, you scoffed out when they appeared back where you had pulled them from.

Tensing your jaw, your eyes shut away from him and your fists balled at your sides. It felt impossible to bite back your slew of insults, backtalk, and snarky remarks. Slowly opening your eyes, you looked at him and loosened up your hands. A grin rested on his features and his eye searched you. He wanted a bigger reaction, but you used plenty of strength to bite back any reaction beyond restrained frustration. Satisfaction was sweet when he grumbled in slight irritation before he picked up the book and held it out to you. With a small smile toying at the corners of your lips, you reached out to the book but paused with your hand grasping the book. Something odd moved through your mind, you blinked gently and pulled the book away. A memory went as soon as it came, deja vú rather than a memory. 

You stepped away from the desk and your eyes looked around the library in search of a good seat. Your eyes spotted a beautiful crimson velvet loveseat tucked near the window, the accenting was gold against the dark hardwood. But you took only two steps forward when you looked back and noticed his eyes still remained on you. Your brows knitted upwards and you slowly stepped to turn and face him. “You’re going to stay?” You inquired with a tilt of your head and less than happy tone on your voice.

The man suddenly held a book in his grasp and looked down. “Why would I leave my library, you idiot girl?” He questioned blankly. And with that, you turned away quickly and hurried to the seat to put some distance between you and the monster you so despised. It was odd to miss the presence of Flug and 5.0.5. Especially knowing when Flug showed up you’d more or less be tortured. But for now, you simply opted to lose yourself in the book – enjoying something that felt normal in the marrow of your bones.

And you enjoyed the book. You really did. It seemed to be a story far too sweet for a monster like Black Hat to have in his library. A bittersweet tale of a traveler who ventures from home for the sake of glory and success. You were wrapped in the book, reading each page with one knee laid atop the other and your back pressed to the soft back of the loveseat. When a sad portion came a few chapters in, you found that ghost feeling in your insides yet again. It was faint but it was there – a feeling you once had that was gone because you couldn’t remember how or why it was there in the first place. The hero betraying their lover – becoming someone they weren’t but someone that had been there the entire twenty chapters in. 

With a deep exhale, you suddenly realized you were in reality when a tear slipped down your cheek and hit your chest. And as quick as a bullet would fly, your eyes snapped towards the desk only to find Black Hat gone. When had he left? You must have truly been trapped in the story. But you wouldn’t complain or look a gift horse in the mouth. Sniffling, you wiped your cheeks and you looked down at the page number in the book before you shut it. That was enough reading, you wanted to see if Flug had returned – if he’d got news on Penumbra, plus you needed to change your dress still torn. 

You left your bedroom once you had changed, making your way to the kitchen for something to drink before you’d subject yourself to more torture. And for a moment, your eyes flickered down to your shoulder and you wondered where an oddly placed bite mark had come from. The mulling didn’t last too long when you suddenly felt yourself run into something hard. Your forehead stinging with a hard impact and sensing you down onto your behind then back. A part of you began to wonder how many more falls it would take before your tailbone would shatter. The irritation and annoyance lightened up just a bit as you sat up on your elbows and looked to Flug on top of your torso. 

“Jesus Flug…why don’t–” 

When his gaze pulled up and he rubbed his forehead through the brown paper bag, your eyes widened and you inhaled sharply as that iciness ran through you. Your vision tunneled and it expanded out to reveal a ceiling you couldn’t recognize. Red lighting from an odd neon sign bathed everything in a red glow not unlike the one that bathed Black Hat’s office. 

Then your eyes flickered down, you were greeted with the sight of a soft white dress tugged down to expose your breasts. The hem of the dress bunched around your hips and between your thighs was a head of brunette hair. Pale, thin hands grasped your thighs and lewd sounds filled the air as your warmth was being sweetly tortured by a man you didn’t recognize. Your moans filled the air and his soft whimpers were muffled against your heat. Then his brown eyes fluttered open and met yours, your hands bunched up in his brown hair tugged and his eyes rolled back with a long moan as your back arched and gaze flickered off to the side. On the bed you laid on a halo headband rested beside your head and you could see feathers beneath your hands grasping the pillows. ‘ D-Don’t stop!’ And when your eyes shut, they opened and you looked down to see Flug wide-eyed – expectant.

“What did you–ow!” Shrieking, you instinctively pushed him away by his forehead with your foot before you crawled away from him and didn’t stop until you were back around the corner. Your hot back pressed against the cold wallpaper and your wide eyes darted around between your fingers as your hands grasped your face. Breathing heavily, you turned towards Flug at the sound of footsteps and you were greeted with an irritated man. “What was that? What did you see?” He inquired and you shook your head with a hard swallow while slowly standing up.

“N-No – it’s not important.” You breathed out shakily, your knees suddenly weak forcing your back back against the wall. Your wide eyes looked to the puzzled ones behind those thick lenses. Clearing your throat, you fixed your appearance in some faulty attempt to regain your composure. There hadn’t been a ring around your finger – maybe that was good but it could mean the man wasn’t your fiance and it truly was a useless memory. You didn’t want to dwell on it too long. “S-So uhm–” Your voice cracked as you crossed your arms over your chest and looked at the small bows on your ballet flats. “What happened with Penumbra?” A topic change was what you desperately wanted.

And for a moment when Flug sighed in exasperation and stood back with his hands in the pockets of his lab coat, you had hope that he would drop the topic. “She wasn’t available so I sent her an email and we can only hope she’ll answer soon.” Some disappointment was to be felt as you nodded slowly. “Now what did you see? That reaction didn’t mean it wasn’t nothing.” And a rush of disappointment followed his pressing. With a groan, you placed your face in your hands as your head hung. Heat crawled up your neck and spread across your face so severely it could have burned your hands. “It could be useful, doctor.” He continued. A scowl crossed your features through your hands before you dropped them and met his eyes.

“I seriously doubt it.” You offered pointedly. 

“And how can you be so sure?” He responded in annoyance no doubt stemmed from impatience. 

Narrowing your eyes, you looked around before you stepped closer to him. “Because it was just a memory of me having sex with someone.” You breathed out, irritation of his annoyance overpowering any shyness of embarrassment felt on your end. His eyes widened and he swallowed hard, stepping back as you shifted on your ballet flats. “I didn’t have my ring on so it was before the videos and I could only see his face from–” Clearing your throat, you looked away from him and crossed your arms tighter over your chest. “From the eyes up.” You confessed and your eyes slowly crept back to the man who had turned away from you entirely. 

“We–Well–” His voice cracked and you stifled a laugh, unable to help yourself as your hand shot over your mouth. “That actually is helpful because I managed to find the event in which Miss Heed was in attendance with the dress you described…that is why I was coming this way to look for you. Come with me so we can verify.” Flug spoke so quickly it had been a bit difficult for you to hear him before he rushed off with long strides. 

But once you grasped his words, you cleared your throat and you began to follow after him. An awkward tension laid in the air, one that brought a silence you didn’t enjoy. So gratitude swam in when a realization dawned and you turned to him with a nod. “Uhm by the way – the branding I had isn’t there anymore.” You said while looking at him. And it seemed your little spill knocked the awkwardness away immediately, his brows rose by the widening of his eyes behind the goggles. 

“Really? There’s no scar or anything of the sort left?” You shook your head in response and he hummed softly as he pressed a single key to open the door into the lab. He glanced back at you and he nodded. “I’ll inspect after we determine if we can spot who your important fiance is.” He said while making a direct line towards that cold room. All you offered was a hum in agreement, opting for silence with nothing to say until you shut the door behind you and followed him towards the computer. 

“So what did you end up finding?” You asked while you took the swivel chair beside him. He began to type in his passcode he typed so quickly you couldn’t spot it. And the screen came to life, the multitude of tabs he had opened on his laptop prior were just a few singular tabs now. Flug didn’t answer, he seemed to be expectant as he showed you a paparazzi photograph of the beautiful Miss Heed looking just as she did in your memory. Wide-eyed, you leaned closer and nodded quickly. “Yes she looked exactly like that! Good job, Flug!” Flug seemed to hum in pride, reasonably so before he exited out of the photo and pulled up an article.

“It turns out the event you attended was indeed a fundraiser gala hosted by Sunblast. Any high status heroes, the affluent, and those few that were exclusive were in attendance. Now all that’s left is for you to determine if any photos provided show your fiance or–ehm the man from your vision.” He seemed to trip over his voice for a moment while wheeling away to give you the center view of the computer. And with his instructions, you nodded and began to flicker through the many photographs and articles that provided photographs with many faces you didn’t recognize – or rather couldn’t remember. 

And despite the way your skin warmed, you held up a single finger away from the monitor to only see them from the eyes up. But when the last photo came twenty minutes later, disappointment dragged at you in the form of a deep exhale while your hand fell to your thigh. “None of them are him. I think it may have just been a fling, Dr.Flug – I think I’d be able to jog more memories if he was relevant.” You reasoned, turning to him in the swivel chair and being greeted with a deflated sag of his shoulders. The scientist nodded and he shook his head.

“Well there goes that, go sit in the chair and unbutton your dress.” He ordered in a blank manner before he stood up. You did the same and walked over towards the seating you’d be strapped to again soon after his inspection. “Hopefully we get information from the files, I’ve managed to compile another list of all possible combinations for the password.” Flug said in that tone he always took when it was time to get down to business. A professional ‘matter-of-a-fact’ tone that was just a smidge condescending but not enough for you to care. Once more, you just hummed in response as you sat on the seat in a different manner than you have before.

This time you faced the back of the seat you laid against, your fingers began to undo the buttons. But – as always – their small size and sleek design made it difficult for your fingers. You weren’t a contortionist. By the fifth button, you turned with a sharp glare when Flug – dramatically – sighed in impatience. “Have you seen these buttons? If you’re going to sigh like a baby, come undo them for me.” You snapped with a bit of irritation before you turned away and simply dropped your hands to rest on the leather between your spread legs. And for a few moments you didn’t hear anything or feel anything. 

Not until you heard the sound of latex shifting and you glanced to the side. He was taking off his gloves. Was he shaking? You noticed a pinkness began to stain his skin as he tucked his lengthy gloves into the pocket of his lab coat. And this time, as you shifted to sit on the edge of the chair to offer him access behind you, you looked to his hands for another brief moment. Pale and thin, his fingers slender and the skin around his nails chewed just like the skin around yours. With a gentle exhale, you faced straight ahead as he began to undo the rest of the buttons. The dress loosened until you could slide the sleeves down around your elbows and the point of the buttons touched your tailbone.  

And you winced sharply when his cold fingers touched your warm skin, goosebumps rose along your skin and your brows sewed. “Fascinating – it really is completely gone…” His fingers brushed the skin, they were surprisingly soft. And with a hum, you glanced back as he walked over to his notepad and hunched over to scribble something. “Even the hot irons and rods healed over almost instantly. How odd your branding took a while to heal.” He spoke mostly to himself again as he walked back over. And you nodded, sitting up as his fingers began to do the buttons up again. 

“Your hands are soft.” You observe after his knuckles brush against your skin, warmth crawling along the softness once again. His hands pause at the small of your back, buttons done up past your tailbone already. This time, you couldn’t help but laugh softly while shaking your head and you turned your neck to look at him over your shoulder. Your brows raised gently and your eyes squinted. “Are you really that easily flustered, Dr.Flug? How do you manage with Demencia?” He glared at you for a moment before he continued buttoning up your dress, for some reason he seemed to not go as quick as you figured he could have. 

“Well Demencia I’ve known for a long time. She’s – more or less like 5.0.5 to me. Besides I’m used to her, I’m the unfortunate one tasked with bathing her when she gets too dirty.” Flug replied in that matter-of-fact manner far more pointed than it usually was, but his final statement was accompanied by a shudder you could feel through his hands. You hummed softly with interest at the little fun fact you’d been given. And he exhaled deeply while continuing with the buttons. “And excuse me – with work I don’t frequently converse with beautiful women. And I have no time for such nonsense anyway.” The last button had been done and you looked at him with a soft frown. It made sense, yet for some reason you felt sympathy while moving to lay in the usual position you did. 

“Do you consider it nonsense or does the job call for it?” You inquired as he tugged on his gloves with his back to you. And he then turned with his gloves tugged over the white sleeves of his lab coat. 

“What does that even mean?” He inquired, while he began to strap down your wrists. 

“Well…do you think those sorts of pursuits are stupid or is it just because you have a demanding job?” You asked with your head against the headrest and your eyes tracing the cracks and divots in the concrete ceiling. Flug seemed a bit annoyed by your questions he probably considered intrusive but for some odd reason – as you looked back to him while he began to tie your ankles down – you felt as if he truly didn’t mind. In fact, he seemed to think it over. 

Then he gently shook his head. “My job is demanding. I don’t have time for dates or romance and besides – there aren't many women lining up at my door…” He trailed off. Was that a bit of self-pity you detected? A vast change from the confidence he carried when it came to his work whether it be in fervent writings or ramblings to himself. Before you could offer something your mind hadn’t even thought up yet, he spoke in that far more professional manner. “This will be the last series of inflicting injuries and pain to test out your vulnerability and what can or can’t harm you for how long.” Your brows rose and he looked at you before he turned away and chuckled in a bit of amusement. “I can only hurt you in so many ways, doctor. Unfortunately I’ve saved the worst for last – depending on if you’ll be able to feel it determines if I only need to do it once.”

Relief and dread were an odd cocktail in your stomach as he leaned over the seat a bit with a piece of leather in his hands. Your brows sewed together and you opened your mouth, biting down on the leather before he pulled away. And as much as the anxiety that began to crawl along your skin was overwhelming, you couldn’t help but follow his every move with your eyes as you watched him come out from behind the chair with a heavy hammer. Blinking rapidly, you whimpered against the leather when his hand roughly pressed your palm into the armrest and he held out your pinky. You knew what was coming and your eyes screwed shut the moment he brought the hammer down. But nothing happened, you didn’t feel anything and your eyes snapped out when Flug dropped the hammer. 

“It–It burned me…” He breathed out while holding his wrist and looking over his hand unharmed visibly. Your brows rose and he nodded with a hard swallow. “Well – I guess we don’t need anymore tests.” You found a pure wash of relief, so much so a smile spread on your lips while you bit down harder into the leather. Flug scribbled down into his notepad before he set it onto the cart behind the chair along with the hammer he had dropped. “We have more time to go through the passwords this time, at least.” He tugged the leather from between your teeth and you hummed in pure joy, licking your lips as some dribble attached to the leather piece. 

“That’s heaven to my ears.” You breathed out, watching as he began to untie you. “So I’m assuming now we’ll just be focusing on regaining my memories?” You inquired, sitting up and rubbing your wrists once they’d been released. Dr.Flug nodded with a hum as he undid the restraints on your ankles. But he suddenly paused which warranted your sudden stillness. Curiosity creased your brows and you noticed the way he seemed to turn your left ankle and only then did you take notice of a small scar extending from the top of your ankle to the end. But it seemed odd, the way his grasp tightened on your ankle and he seemed focused on the scar. “What’s wrong? That old scar has probably been there for a while.” You curiously questioned before you breathed out in light amusement. 

Flug let go of your ankle and you swung your legs off the seat while you watched him shake his head. “Nothing.” He said a bit too quickly while he fixed his gloves and seemingly fixed an appearance that didn’t need any fixing. Your brows furrowed, not necessarily believing him as you stepped onto the ground and followed him to the computer set-up. “Just sit down and begin inputting various codes while I sort my current research.” His voice was tight, strained – but his hands shook as they opened up the laptop and he began to type away once he had set up the flash drive on the computer. 

While you wanted to press, you weren’t sure if he’d fold beneath your questioning, so you simply did as told with an odd tension in the air. 

But two sheets into the combinations – you found irritation at his continuous glances. “I’m going to throw this entire computer at you if you don’t tell me what’s wrong or stop staring.” You spoke without shifting your gaze from the keys, crossing out yet another combination of numbers before you turned to Flug who stiffened up. With a raise of your brows, you turned to him and you crossed one knee over the other. “Come on, doctor. Just – whatever it is, say it.” You said with a light spark of irritation while your arms crossed loosely over your chest. Flug seemed to glare at you, looking you up and down before he offered a deep exhale. And when his eyes met your pointed expression, he turned away and shook his head.

“I’ll stop staring.” He said. And with the way he seemed to scowl with his eyes – you took it as the end of the conversation and simply turned away and continued with the passwords. 

You’d been absorbed by the numbers. Your fingers cramping on occasion until you snapped them before you returned to typing once again. By the sixth sheet Flug had fallen asleep and while you attempted to push yourself to finish more – the murmurs of sleep talk and his soft occasional snores began to pull you into a much needed slumber. Your eyelids felt heavy, your body was worn despite no torture and as you crumbled up another completed sheet of worthless number combinations you looked over at Flug and the brown paper bag he wore. Truly, you wondered what he looked like beneath it. Did he wear it to sleep? Would he wear it at the beach? With his skin tone you doubt he ever even went. 

But you could have a mind swirling with curiosities another time. For now, you stood up and you walked over to a row of hooks on a wall and plucked up a lab coat. Folding the coat and yawning, you walked where the doctor laid his head against his notepad. With a gentle hand, you lifted his head and the bag crinkled with the movement as you gently set it down onto the lab coat. It was an odd moment you felt work as an instinct in your bones. And you stepped back snapping your fingers as the glow of the monitors bathed the room with a lack of other lighting. You hummed while looking around the ceiling – good to know you can control them. 

And so you left the lab, shutting the door quietly behind you. Your eyes swept around the laboratory before you left, soon walking down the corridors on your own with your hands folded behind your back. But you never did find any satiation for your hunger or thirst, so with a quick turn on your shoes – you made your way to the kitchen. As expected, no one was around. Truthfully you somewhat hoped to see the wild-eyed Demencia a little bit more. She faintly reminded you of someone the fog in your mind wouldn’t allow you to discern. 

You opened up the fridge and squinted, crouching down and sitting on the ground when your eyes spotted strawberries. After thoroughly searching for Demencia’s name, you sat in front of the fridge and began to eat the red fruit. You were then left to wonder how wealthy the monster that had been absent from your mind for a while truly was. And the thought occurred that you hadn’t even been out of the manor, you wondered what it looked like outside and what the sun felt like on your skin. Your brows sewed together as you dropped the greenery bag into the small plastic basket you may just finish entirely. 

Inhaling deeply, you paused with another strawberry in hand. Your brows twitched, the smell of firewood wafted into your senses and you exhaled softly. Attempting to keep your composure, you shut the small plastic case of strawberries and place it back into the fridge. You fixed your dress once you stood up, shutting the door while keeping your eyes away from the feeling of a presence behind you. If you ignore it maybe it’ll go away. 

And fortunately, it did. You managed to make your way to your room soon enough and fall into another restless night of sleep. 

Chapter Text

He rolled the wedding ring in his palm, dark brows sewed tightly as his eyes practically drank in every single detail of the simple silver band and diamond. A small scuff along the back of the silver band where she had nearly gotten her hand caught in one of her contraptions. Agony wouldn’t begin to touch what he felt as he pressed his tongue against the inside of his bottom lip and clenched his fist around the ring. The diamond stung as it dug into his gloved hand. With a tightening of his jaw, he stood up and hid away the ring before he turned around. The world seemed to fold back into place, the loud sounds of cabinets being broken, filing cabinets being tossed onto their sides, and the overall loudness of destruction filled his ears. Observant eyes roamed along the lab, watching many agents and doctors organize every last bit of her life's work to study from the simplest of periods to the formula’s she crafted. 

Heavy footsteps drew his eyes towards one of the sharp agents in a pressed suit with brown salt and pepper hair slicked back. The hero’s brows raised in expectancy, unable to be his usual self with the circumstances that presented themselves. The agent cleared his throat and he shook his head gently. “Apologies, sir, we swept her home and your home entirely as advised and we couldn’t find the flash drive. We even tore out the flooring and caved in the walls like advised by–” The hero shook his head and the agent shut up immediately, the former looked away with his arms crossed firmly over his chest and a pensive expression painting his features.

“I told your superior that was a useless idea. She’s smarter than that. Nobody is going to find it unless she hands it over.” He breathed out, his jaw tight and that hot guilt dissolving his heart. Wetting his lips, he nodded in a stiff manner as the agent nervously fidgeted beside him. “She has it with her. And do you have any idea what will happen if someone manages to get their hands on it? What it will mean for this organization?” The man inquired with a brow so furrowed it creased a line between his brows that may end up permanent on his handsome face. 

And the agent could only nod, but he breathed out with a shake of his head. “Well we are currently attempting to get her tracker operating – but sir, you mentioned her passwords and security system she set up. Unless she gave the answers to those with the wrong hands, there’s no feasible way anyone will be able to see the content on the flashdrive.” The agent explained with a hopeful lilt to his voice rasped and deepened with age. And the hero shook his head gently, he waved dismissively to the agent who gratefully left the man who’d gone through a shift in the recent days. 

Such idiocy fell deaf to the hero. Depending on her injuries, where she was – that tracker may not even work anymore. It had been freshly implanted which only heightened the risk factors. And that flashdrive, security measures hadn’t been finished, she hadn’t even finished editing the video clips that were guarded by passwords. They weren’t the most difficult passwords to guess either, and all that stood between a villain and all the information they could ever need to take down the organization that brought hope and safety to the world with many of the most revered heroes beneath its belt existed behind a simple four numbered password. With a deep exhale, he shook his head and left the lab she once occupied and he began his walk down the corridor.

It was awful to think – it made his entire being swell with guilt and it made his stomach churn with an agonizing pain. But the chances of her assisting those evil and villainous weren't too far-fetched – not with how everything had been left before she stepped inside of that damn machine. And it ached him to think, but it was a thought that plagued his mind regardless. Best case scenario she was dead, her untested invention hadn’t worked and when those flames burst on a serum faulted in a multitude of ways she simply died with that flash drive.

And the worst case scenario, she was alive – fueled by spite and an old life that had called to her more times than one. If that were the case then they were doomed.

—

“Demencia! C-Can you–!” Your shouting is cut short as you duck yet another bottle of shampoo chucked at you. The bottle shattered through the bathroom mirror and you turned back and looked at Demencia who continued to attempt to crawl out of the sudsy bathtub with the determination of a feral cat. Grunting as you tried to grab her wrist while attempting to avoid the sight of her nude body, you soon realized it may not be plausible to bathe the lizard woman. And with a defeated grunt, you made a mental note to kill Flug as you snatched up her other wrists only for her to tug you into the tub with a victorious and shrill laugh. Warm water had turned cold and you shuddered, gasping as your dress was as soaked as your ballet flats. 

It’d been a short while since you had arrived into Black Hat Manor and apparently being held as an amnesiac prisoner wasn’t enough. Without the torture, Black Hat saw to it you were still useful – and you were given the title of the Manor Mutt. Of course it was his idea and you expected him to make use of you when it came to cleaning, dusting, and overall duties a maid would have – which he did make use of and while it was tedious you figured it could be worse. And with the greenlight given to the residents of the Manor to use you as they pleased just the same, it was definitely worse. You truly had not considered how much grunt work Flug did that he had no problem tossing onto you.

And the worst was bathing Demencia. Even compared to watering Black Hat’s plants who would have eaten you if 5.0.5 hadn’t come in to ask you to color with him. 

But you managed – you persevered and endured because it wasn’t as bad as torture. Even if it felt like it as you crawled out of the empty porcelain claw foot tub, successfully bathing Demencia who scurried off nude the moment you had finished rinsing her off. You grunted softly and slumped over the porcelain that was cold against your wet skin hot with the physical workout it took to bathe the woman. The feeling of your dress clinging to every part of you was as uncomfortable as your wet hair that stuck to your flushed skin beaded with as much sweat as there was water. Catching your breath, you weren’t necessarily the most excited for the rest of the day.

More maid work without pay sounded tedious and while spending time with 5.0.5 seemed ideal – you found something heavy in your chest at the idea of being with Flug again. Truth be told, you’d grown somewhat of a friendship with Flug. His company was nice when he wasn’t torturing you and it was fun to assist him in his inventions and creations as much as you could. Anytime spent with Flug seemed as if you were spending it with an old friend. The unfortunate times came during the password inputs where every night ended in only a few sheets completed of a stack as thick as your forearm. You both felt the drag of failure with the files, it hit you harder considering more memories laid behind the damn four-number password. And you hadn’t had any new memories for a while. 

You could only hope something would come to light soon.

Without much more incentive to sulk, you cleaned up the bathroom before you left – a towel meant to dry Demencia wrapped around your body after a much needed shower to remove all the grime and dirty water the lizard woman had stained you with. You held the soft cotton towel around your frame, your clothes wrung out and shoes just the same were grasped tightly by your hand, feet moving in a hurried manner down the corridor towards your room. The feeling of your wet hair still stuck to your skin along your temples and the nape of your neck was as uncomfortable as the cold air on your skin.

“And who might you be?” 

A smooth and deep voice drifted through the air and you turned quickly on your feet. The carpet coarse beneath your soles and maybe even a bit cold, a chill crawled up your spine as you took in the sight of the tall and broad shouldered man. He was attractive, features sharp and framed by choppy inky hair with streaks of gray. Dark circles lined brown eyes and thick brows were raised ever so slightly as said eyes took in your appearance. Your brows sewed together and you found cautiousness and wariness dig into you like a pair of talons at your shoulders, straightening up and eyeing him with a step back.

“Who are you?” You asked in a calm manner despite the unease you felt. 

Humming, he slowly stepped towards you. His clothing was dark and a bit bulky with a gold accenting along his shoulders and wrapped around his thick neck. One of his arms, from the elbow down, seemed entirely gold and mechanical. “I believe I asked you first. Not spoken for the sake of immaturity.” His voice was pleasant, his tone oddly polite for his appearance and the current Manor he stood within across from you. You didn’t move as he walked closer, if Black Hat couldn’t touch you this man couldn’t either right? Still, fear crawled up your spine as he stopped in front of you and looked down at you with a tilt of his head, some of his choppy hair fell in front of his brown eyes. “I wasn’t aware Black Hat had hired a new subordinate. Especially one so…” He trailed off as his eyes looked you up and down again. Then he shook his head with a light chuckle. “Let’s just say his taste has never proven to be pleasing on the eyes.” 

Did he know Black Hat? He spoke of him with familiarity. As if he knew him, it could be some sort of trick but he could also be someone as important and powerful. Perhaps you should play it safe, while you felt a bit odd beneath his gaze and with his words that hung in the air you occupied in only a towel. With a hard swallow, you wet your lips and you nodded in a stiff manner. “I’m Doctor ____. I wouldn’t say I was hired but ehm – who are you? Are you a…” Friend seemed odd to call anyone in reference to being associated with Black Hat. Did the monster even have friends? The man who was not one surely couldn’t, he didn’t seem to be one to have friends. So you simply shook your head gently and took a step back, the man before you a bit too close. “How do you know Black Hat?” You decided. 

The man held out his hand and you – hesitantly – took it. “Van Kleiss. I’m more or less an associate of Black Hat.” Your brows rose in surprise when he lifted your hand and planted a soft kiss against the smooth skin of your knuckles. His own hand was a bit rough, calloused. But what seemed to grab you in surprise for more than a moment was his ability to touch you. And you pulled your hand away to grasp the towel around you once again, your other hand tightened on the damp clothes and surely ruined shoes. “One of those small robots seemed to misguide me. Would you mind showing me to Black Hat’s office?” He asked. His voice was still pleasant and polite. But your lips parted in a near refusal. 

You were in a towel. Wet. But you weren’t sure what Black Hat would do if you rejected a man who could be important – especially if he was in the Manor. So you forced a smile and you nodded with a gentleness in the direction you had been walking. “Of course. Just follow me.” And you slowly turned, tense and a bit uncomfortable as you began to walk with a warmth in your skin. Luckily, he didn’t seem to trail behind but rather follow beside. Maybe a bit too close but it wasn’t an issue as long as he wasn’t behind you. The walk towards Black Hat’s office would be a fairly short one, you figured you could lead him to the stairs before letting him handle the rest of the way with directions.

But he then spoke. “Why are you in a towel with wet clothes in your hand, doctor?” You looked up at him, he was looking down at you with an obvious amusement on his features. But it didn’t seem mocking, it seemed just genuinely humored. And so you couldn’t help your small smile of sheepishness as you turned away and shook your head.

“My duties here get a bit messy. The most difficult one left me like this…” You breathed out with an eye roll before you looked back up at him. Curiosity bit, a curiosity that presented itself before the man who chuckled in a manner pleasant to your ears. “If I can ask…what is your business here? I can’t help but be curious that someone like you works alongside Black Hat.” Van Kleiss raised his brows just a bit, aged lines in his handsome face just a bit accentuated by your hesitant inquiry and observation. Then he grinned with a tilt of his head.

“And what is someone like me?” He asked. But there was no malice, no offense, just genuine curiosity that only solidified your curiosity. 

Still, even if this pleasant man who was more handsome than you’d like to admit considering he was still an associate of a monster like Black Hat was polite and different from Black Hat himself – you figured it’d be wise to choose your words carefully. And with a soft hum of thought, you looked away from eyes more amber beneath the lights as you led him along. “You seem… pleasant for someone associated with the likes of Black Hat. I’m aware you must be in the same business as him and good at it otherwise you wouldn’t be here but you’re not ehm…” You trailed off, unable to find any word that wouldn’t be touchy.

But the man with the accent you could finally discern as British finished your sentence. “Arrogant?” He offered with a raise of his dark brow. And with a hesitant pause in your expression that looked to him, he chuckled again and you relaxed just a bit. “Do not worry, doctor. My business here with Black Hat and one of his doctors is as you’d expect it and yes I am quite good at what I do. But my pleasantness as you so kindly put it tends to be purely conditional.” Van Kleiss offered, exuding charm as you somehow didn’t notice you began to lead him up the stairs. Curiosity only furthered and you tilted your head. 

“What conditions are making you so pleasant right now?” You inquired as you approached the double doors that would lead into Black Hat’s office. 

And he seemed to mull over your inquiry for a moment. You wondered if you would receive a response as you stopped just a few short paces from the doors. But he offered a gentler grin as he looked down at you. “A beautiful young woman of course.” He offered in a smooth manner as he held your eyes. And your brows rose in surprise, you blinked softly at him and felt an unfamiliar warmth crawl up your neck and along your skin cold by the recent shower and brisk walk. It was a feeling you knew you’d felt before but it was a ghost with no memory. Unsure of what to offer to flirting you couldn’t recall ever experiencing, you smiled shyly and you gestured to the doors with your head. 

“That’s his office. It was— surprisingly nice to meet you, Van Kleiss.” You said with a sweet smile as you looked up at him. 

He hummed. “And same to you, doctor. I hope to see you again.” Then he walked past you, grateful he left it at that as you quickly made your way to your room to put on some clothing. 

Once you had finished getting dressed and ready for the rest of the day, you couldn’t help but take a moment to look at your reflection in the mirror that hung within one door of the wardrobe. Your eyes raked along your features, the curve of your eyes, the shape of your nose, the line and flesh of your jaw – you couldn’t help but smile thinking of that man’s compliment. Maybe he was a horrid human – if he even was human – but you felt a light bump in your step. Smiling to yourself as you realized you truly were beautiful. And once you did a small spin in your dress, you made your way out of the room and headed towards the laboratory to wait for Flug’s arrival where you’d promptly punch him for forcing you to bathe Demencia. 

You soon reached the lab, inputting the code that Dr.Flug had given you – you entered past the sliding door which promptly shut behind you. But your chipper mood inflated into one of surprise when you took notice of the three men in the laboratory. A soft swear bounced around in your head as your eyes looked towards an irritated Black Hat. “Oh–I’m sorry – excuse me I’ll just come back later.” You quickly said with a nervous smile before you left the lab, your eyes flickering around the corridor. Gratitude washed through you when your eyes spotted the blue bear walking down the corridor. “5.0.5!” You chirped with a big smile and a wave of your arm. He turned and lit up like a new bulb. “Wait for me!” 

But one step forward sunk you into a shadow lined by a red glow and you gasped sharply before you suddenly hit a cold, hard surface. Rubbing at your tailbone with a sharp wince, your narrowed and glaring eyes looked to Black Hat who seemed delighted by your pain. You were back in the lab – the man you had met prior and Dr.Flug both looked at you. Your hot irritation and annoyance was pushed aside for confusion as you slowly stood up wondering why you’d been brought back. “Black Hat, sir.” You greeted before you nodded at Dr.Flug and offered a small smile to Van Kleiss. “Why am I here?” You inquired, the first to speak as you folded your hands down against your navel. 

Black Hat shoved Dr.Flug forward, so hard he nearly toppled over into you but managed to catch his footing. The doctor, usually poised and fairly professional when it came to his work, was as jumpy a mess as he usually was around Black Hat as he looked at you. “Uhm – I may have mentioned to Lord Black Hat and Van Kleiss that you managed to create the formula for the lethal mists.” Dr.Flug confessed as he looked to your eyes and your own widened in a sharp glare and slight betrayal. You had assisted him when he mentioned creating an invention for an important associate but you had profusely asked him to not mention you had been any help. “They–would like for you to describe the chemical yourself since I’ve gone over the mechanics of the weapon.” With a mental note to strap him to that dentist chair yourself, you stiffly looked at the two powerful beings and cleared your throat. 

“Well um – I wouldn’t necessarily say I created the formula, Dr.Flug had been the one to create it, I just offered an ingredient to make it far more efficient.” Speaking through clenched teeth, glaring at the doctor when you mentioned his name, you walked forward and you looked down at the darts that would be inserted into the firing mechanism you realized would attach to Van Kleiss’s arm. With a nod, you found a natural drag at your body – it felt natural as you unknowingly donned a polite smile and your voice shifted to one clear and professional. “When this dart is fired at whoever or whatever you fire at, the poison inside will inject entirely in just a single second.” 

You lifted the dart and you turned, your eyes took notice of Black Hat’s absence behind Van Kleiss and your confidence wavered when you felt his presence behind you. Dark and looming, you knew this precise feeling of his eyes on you was exactly the reason Flug was a constant mess around him. But you continued as you held the inky dart filled with a red venom to the sharp edge. Keeping a cool and professional demeanor while you looked up at the man who didn’t so much as blink to remove his eyes from you. “One dart gives full paralyzation to the victim that will last a full twenty-four hours.” You lifted another dart, the lethal weapon resting between your fingers beside the first. “Two and the paralyzation will be permanent but it will take thirty seconds for the injection to fill the victim.” One more dart and you nodded. “And a third will take one minute to kill the victim, paralyzation spreading from the injection site to the lungs and they will essentially suffocate to death.” 

Van Kleiss hummed and your demeanor faltered when he reached out with a grin. “I seemed to have spent my money wisely. I’ll be sure to send the rest before the weapon is even delivered.” His large hand a bit calloused at his palms and dry along his fingers gently grasped your wrist, so big he could wrap his entire hand around the limb much to your surprise. Your brows twitched and that warmth returned as he pulled the darts from between your fingers before he looked over to Black Hat and Dr-Flug behind you. “And how long until I possess the weapon? You are creating the amount of darts I requested, correct?” He inquired as he set down two darts before he analyzed one with his eyes, his human hand still not leaving your wrist. 

Dr.Flug seemed to be silent for a moment but a swift smack upside the head from Black Hat and he cleared his throat, his words fumbling rushed and a bit shaky. “U-Uhm, only two weeks, sir! I will be delivering it myself.” He said, walking forward to stand aside where you and Van Kleiss stood. Your brows sewed and you couldn’t help but wonder what this man was doing, you found a slight relief when he pulled his hand away after he set down the dart. 

“Excellent. But I would much rather this lovely doctor deliver my weapons to me.” Van Kleiss said with a gentle nod at you, his grin was charming and his eyes sparkled with a cunning glint. You couldn’t help but find a bit of warmth at the manner in which he spoke and looked down at you. After a soft smile, your expression faltered – you hadn’t left the manor the entire duration of your stay. Only catching the briefest of glances out of the windows where your vision was restricted. And you wondered whether you would be released or not. “Would that be possible, Lord Black Hat?” Ah so important people refer to him as a lord just the same as subordinates. You turned and looked to Black Hat who scoffed and tugged you back by his cane. A frown spread on your lips as you stood beside Dr.Flug who’s eyes seemed to trace you.

“Trust me, her intelligence extends only so far. I do believe your weapon will be in much better hands with Dr.Flug and Demencia delivering.” Your hope diminished. Black Hat could be civil, he could be something other than an obnoxious and arrogant sadist who thrives off the misery of others. But his personality switch and his professionalism that no doubt applied only to those paying him handsome amounts of money wasn’t what disappointed you and evaporated all hope within you. It was his refusal, the look in his eyes as he looked to Van Kleiss that let it be known there was no dispute to be had or even voice. Your brows creased in slight sadness as Van Kleiss hummed and nodded.

“I respectfully disagree Black Hat but I do trust your input. Well – if that is all I should be seeing my leave.” Van Kleiss exhaled as he offered a nod to Black Hat and Dr.Flug, giving both a respectful farewell before he walked forward and stopped in front of you. “A pleasure as it was before, Dr.____.” When his hand extended, you didn’t hesitate this time to extend your own. And you smiled, a warmth up your neck and across your cheeks as you watched him take your hand and plant a soft kiss against your knuckles again. But this time as his hand pulled away, you felt something slip into your palm. “I hope to see you again.” And he left with another respectful bow and farewell to Dr.Flug and Black Hat and you turned to watch him, smiling softly with a soft card in your hand. 

But a sudden yank of your wrist spun you to face Black Hat. Your wide eyes met his singular one and that glowing monocle. “Open.” He demanded in a voice so cold and icy it made your body react with the strings of fear being tugged at you. When your fingers curled open, it revealed a card – maybe a business card but you weren’t offered the privilege of analyzing it before it burned suddenly in your hand. A soft cry slipped your lips and you yanked your hand away, holding your wrist and looking down at the burn before your eyes flickered up to meet the curved handle of his inky cane. 

A rough impact to your face and you fell to the ground, a hot and agonizing stinging moving across the split skin of your cheek that brought tears to your eyes as you reached up and felt the blood oozing down your hot skin. Anger, hurt, hot frustration boiled and you looked to Black Hat with wide eyes as the blinding pain left to leave only blood. He glared down at you hotly and he exhaled sharply. “You stupid maggot of a woman. How dare you walk in during a business meeting of mine and make a fool of yourself? I don’t want to see your hideous and wretched face for the rest of the day.” And with a toss up of his inky coat, those words that left his lips bitter and sincere with suffocating contempt and hatred were his last before he seemed to disappear into shadows melted on the linoleum before they disappeared entirely. 

Breathing heavily, your eyes fluttered shut and you swallowed hard while blinking back your stinging tears. You couldn’t help but wonder what that was – why did he get so furious? It wasn’t your fault you had walked in, you had been professional and sold the weapon entirely, and it wasn’t your fault Flug had mentioned your assistance. It wasn’t your fault – you hadn’t done anything wrong. 

Your eyes peeled open and you looked to Flug who seemed to stand there, uncertainty twitched at his gloved hands and he was slightly hunched as if he were nearly going to help you. But you scoffed out, a bitterness across your tongue as you glared at him hotly. “I told you not to mention I helped…” You muttered, lowering your hand stained with some crimson that still dripped down your healed cheek. A soreness throbbed on your face. 

Slowly, you dragged yourself up off the cold linoleum. “I–It just slipped.” He offered with a tightness in his voice, you scoffed out and shook your head. Flug sighed out deeply and he followed you as you walked over to where the sink was. “He–He doesn’t like interruptions, doctor. You should have known better than to–” And he shut up the moment you snapped your gaze to him and narrowed your eyes.

“Are you seriously blaming me too? I was professional, I just solidified the sale if any–thing…” When Flug snorted and rolled his eyes, you paused and turned entirely to him with your arms slowly crossing over your chest. Your brows sewed and your jaw tightened. “What was with that? What’s that supposed to mean?” You inquired with a bitterness on your tongue as Flug stood across from you. The sink ran quietly behind you and the blood began to dry along the skin on your fingers and cheek. He looked around before he met your eyes and he shrugged stiffly.

“Come on, doctor. You know why Van Kleiss was so attentive to you.” He offered with his eyes falling down to the linoleum. “You know it wasn’t just for your supposed genius.” You stepped closer to him and didn’t miss a beat, hot irritation flowing through your veins.

“No I don’t. Enlighten me oh-genius-Dr.Flug.” You sarcastically offered, your arms crossing over your chest firmly. The implications he brought made you feel uncomfortable, irritated, and angry. Truth be told, you had no hope he was a decent man considering the organization and his loyalty to it. But you hoped he wouldn’t be such a way, you shook your head as he seemed to struggle to offer the words and you shook your head even more. “You know what, go to hell Flug. I’m going to go try the passwords myself, do whatever you need to out here.” You breathed out, walking past him with your brows furrowed and arms crossed over your chest. He didn’t offer a response, you simply went past the door and began to get to work on the multitude of passwords. 

And by the back of the thirtieth page, you hadn’t even realized you had fallen asleep. The drag of the manor had continued to fuel restless nights, you sometimes found yourself slipping into sleep far easier in 5.0.5’s dog-like bed or the shower or even at the kitchen table. It was no surprise the quiet second lab and torture den with electronics whirring softly managed to lull you to sleep. You hadn’t realized you had even fallen asleep until you slowly woke up, your eyelids fluttering and some drool shining on your forearm. Soft brows twitched as you wiped your cheek and chin and looked down at the coat folded beneath your head. Flug sat beside you, looking up at a screen now – even without the ability to see his expression his eyes were enough to turn your attention and you rubbed your heavy eyes to wake you up.

It was a death certificate of one Penumbra. Your brows rose and you stood up, freshly awake as you recalled the discovery you’d forgotten about. Your connection to a particular mad scientist with paper white skin and a long white coat. And while you couldn’t recall her even by her beautiful features – both before and after an incident that left her inhuman in appearance – your eyes flickered to the man who spoke highly of her. He seemed not surprised by the news but he looked just a bit startled, maybe even…sad? Though that emotion felt impossible to connect to someone like Dr.Flug. But he looked it, his eyes seemed mournful. And you were a bit mournful just the same, a connection that could have told you so much was gone now and so was that chance. Something in your chest led you to believe it wasn’t a mere accident. 

“This explains why she wasn’t responding to anything.” Your eyes flashed back to Flug who spoke so suddenly it made you flinch. His voice was steady, a bit quiet maybe? And he was unmoving as he stared at the screen that lit up the otherwise dark room. Wetting your lips, you were unsure of what to say or how to act. Were you meant to console him? You didn’t want to – you were still upset with him, but something itched at you to comfort him. But would he even accept it? Surely he wouldn’t. Thankfully, he spoke to silence your overthinking and foggy moral compass. “I have a feeling her death wasn’t accidental. This timing feels too…” He trailed off, his voice fallen back to that normal way it always was as his eyes looked away from the screen. You cleared your throat.

“Coincidental?” You finished, unsure but a bit at ease to know you weren’t feeling the licks of paranoia. And he nodded as he looked at you. Humming out softly, you still wondered if you should say or do something while you looked at him. And maybe your expression was far more pensive and worried than you thought because he turned away with an irritated exhale. It seemed he’d been working at the passcode, multiple pages in. So – it was wise to not say anything but he could read you. Maybe it was stupidity, but you still felt the need to be stupid, to be unwise. It was something that felt ingrained in your chest, you felt like someone else – maybe the person you were before. “I’m sorry for your loss. I can’t remember what it feels like to lose someone but I–” And your words cut abruptly by his voice, tight and unnerving just as his posture was as he continued to type in numbers.

“I have better things to concern myself over than the death of someone, Doctor. Save your pity and sympathies for someone weak-minded and hearted.” Your brows sewed up at his words, further irritation greeted you but you could sense he wasn’t being honest. There was a slight tremor in his voice that was to be missed had the room not been filled with only the sound of his typing. But what were you gonna do? Whoever you were now, you found it better to simply ignore the urge to pry and you nodded gently while pushing out of your chair. Maybe it’d be best to leave him alone. But you didn’t get more than one step away when he began to speak again. “I have a movie night with 5.0.5 every month – he insists and you’ve seen how he is when he’s told no so I simply pull an all-nighter instead of using my yearly day off. Sometimes Demencia joins just to be a bother or because the movie is a horror one.” Your brows furrowed and you turned, he still was typing passwords, not facing you. But his voice wasn’t so tight and irritated. It sounded more relaxed yet somehow more tense. You were confused. But he cleared it. “It’s tonight.” 

He was inviting you. You couldn’t help the way a smile twitched at your lips, you wondered if he was doing this for you or maybe even for him. It couldn’t have been the ladder. It was a ridiculous thought that passed but the former didn’t make any more sense. So you simply hummed out and kept your smile to yourself. “Sounds fun.” Was all you said as you turned back around. And he seemed to finally look at you in surprise as you sat back down and booted up the other screen that was connected to the flashdrive. You looked to him and you offered a nod, turning away and beginning to input passcodes he had yet to touch. “If we’re going to enjoy ourselves tonight we should put in the work until then, right?” 

And you could see a smile in his eyes, or maybe it was just the glare from the monitor. “Now you’re getting it, doctor!” 

-

Flug felt many things. Envy and jealousy weren’t necessarily new to him, unlike the entity he worshiped he was as human as could be. But it was odd when he found himself feeling such emotions towards her. That interaction with that villain left a bitter taste in his mouth which resulted in bitter words. He hadn’t necessarily felt guilty or too sour, but he did feel discomforted by her anger directed at him. Usually she was furious at Black Hat and maybe Demencia – rarely 5.0.5 when he’d get food all over her clothes – but it was even more rare for her to be outwardly mad at Flug. He didn’t like it. He should have liked it. He should have prided himself in getting beneath her soft skin and being mean but he didn’t . Why didn’t he? Maybe because she was pretty, an undeniable fact that wasn’t ruined or even fogged when he witnessed her sleeping.

He could have left her be of course. To sleep and drool and occasionally snore on the hard surface of the keyboard. But he didn’t want her to mess up his things, and plus she’d been gracious enough to put a cushion beneath his head. Why had she done that? Why did she have to be someone so different from those he’s encountered? Maybe if she was ugly it would be easier but Flug wasn’t all too knowledgeable about what was necessarily deemed ugly. Himself perhaps, her definitely not. It had taken immense amounts of courage to touch her, to lift her head to place the folded coat beneath and he wanted to keep his hand in place. Even with the yellow gloves a bit too long for his arms, he felt he could feel her soft skin and the warmth it seemed to emit. But he didn’t. He had continued his work, and she awoke eventually

And even when he didn’t want to admit the loss of someone he may have considered a friend wounded him just a bit more than it should have – she was still kind. Soft. Warm. It irritated him, but it made him blurt out something he hadn’t meant to, implications no doubt unmissed by her observing personality. So now he sat beside 5.0.5, Demencia not in attendance with a movie she deemed boring and an adventure in nausea due to its softer and more wholesome nature by 5.0.5’s pick. Flug wondered if she’d take his offer, it seemed she and him both left on a good note to return to their rooms to change for the night after work that still proved useless. But the movie had already begun past the time he informed her of, fifteen minutes and twenty-two seconds but who was counting really? And as with every movie night, 5.0.5 was already dozing off with his cute face in a bowl of popcorn drizzled with chocolate syrup. Flug would have left to finally sleep, but he waited. Why was he waiting? 

“Sorry I’m late.” She whispered softly.

Ah. That’s why. 

He turned and he looked at her, she was dressed down in a simple black nightgown – no doubt the pajamas Black Hat offered. Flug took notice of the way she seemed to pause as she looked at him on the couch, sitting in the middle of the seating. For a moment that not-so-foreign touch of nervousness and insecurity licked at his insides but he relaxed just a bit when a smile broke out across her lips as she walked over in the old-timey nightgown and a pair of black wool socks. “I didn’t think you’d wear such formal pajamas.” She commented, her voice a soft whisper beneath the movie that lit up the room. Flug looked down and he looked to her with a tilt of his head. She smelled nice. She always did, he noticed.

“This is what you think formal is?” He inquired, lightness on his tongue or what he hoped was. His voice was somewhat more quiet than usual despite knowing how deep of a sleeper the blue bear was. 

She shrugged loosely, pulling up her legs to sit on as her dress fell over her legs. “It seems like it from what Demencia has shown me about men’s fashion nowadays in her magazines.” And then she shook her head as he hummed out, not mulling too long over if she thought he looked ridiculous or not. “I was actually talking with her while she was being taken to her cage by one of the little hatbots.” Flug felt warmth creep up his pale skin when she suddenly leaned closer, maybe just a single nod away from pressing her forehead into his. He felt stiff as her brows sewed just a bit and her eyes were slightly wide in disbelief, he wasn’t breathing was he? “Did you know she has some – some sort of infatuation with Black Hat?” And Flug seemed to forget the close proximity at her recent discovery, he was forced to stifle a laugh and annoyed eye roll at the thought of it. 

“Oh yes – she is quite devoted in her heart to him. Let me tell you about a mission we were sent on in Mexico…”

And the movie was irrelevant. Flug enjoyed chatting with her, it seemed she was someone easy to talk to and eventually he found his forever present insecurity and nervousness begin to dissolve. She was easy to be around, that couldn’t be said for most he met and especially for those in the manor. There wasn’t an awkward lull or quiet moment amongst soft whispers and stifled fits of laughter. Flug found envy, he found envy every time she smiled and laughed in a way he rarely saw. The way her genuine joy and amusement wrinkled at the corners of her pretty eyes and produced noises from her soft-looking lips that were a bit akin to an animal but were infectious nonetheless. He shared much with her, and she seemed to be – maybe – softening with him. He could see it in her shoulders and her eyes. Her eyes. 

Flug stared into her eyes and he found her words slowly deafening in his ears. Her lips moved but he heard nothing, when had she gotten so close to him that he could feel the side of her body against his legs? The doctor swallowed hard as he took account of his bodily changes mentally, the way his heart had begun to race, his hands began to sweat in his gloves, and he was all too aware of the woman entirely. When her head tilted and the light of the television nothing but static now caught her irises, a realization dawned. A realization he may have known to be true since he laid his eyes on her in that tattered lab coat and ruined skirt but that realization was shallow, a man’s instinct and a human one at that but this was something else. And it was something not allowed, something that made him stiffly turn away as all noise came back. 5.0.5 snores, the static of the television, the race of his heart, and her voice. 

“Are you okay, Flug?” 

Oh no.

“Y-Yes, doctor. I feel great.” And she smiled at him, just a splash of doubt in her eyes before she began to talk to him about the potential behind a new invention he had explained to her. So intelligent. 

Oh no.