Mirror Image

'Iago' 34 | Looking for Trouble | Single

[birdofyourfeather]

greatiggspectations​:

Hit Every Branch Falling Out The Dumbass Tree || OPEN

Tigg was trying to snatch a stray cat with a half chewed off ear to take it to the vet. Thing was, it, like many strays, sensed the tiger beneath her skin, the predator, and was like “fuck that shit!” and scurried up a tree.

She was disheartened, but not dissuaded. Ha! She could climb trees too, silly cat! She got a running start and leapt up to catch onto the lowest hanging branch. As she pulled the rest of her body up to swing her legs up onto where three branches jutted from the trunk, it crossed her mind that her days spent on a stripper pole were being put to good use. Tigg’s upper body strength was really nothing to sneeze at.

Nor was her determination.

The latter, however? Probably worth reigning in. For it wasn’t long before she made a crucial error in her hot pursuit. Overestimating the reliability of a branch and underestimating her own weight, Tigg began to crawl out away from the trunk at between four and five meters up. Her confidence in the branch as she shimmied across it was pretty sure, until she made to reach for the cat.

Sss….na-!

“Fuckin’ ‘ell!” Tigg cried out, realizing she was, put simply, fucked.

-ap!

Tigg squealed as the branch gave out, prepared to be a Tigg pancake, but when she cartoonishly landed haphazardly cradled between twin boughs a little under two and a half meters off the ground, she let out an interrupted victory cry of-

“Not dead, ye- oh, oh-!!!!” Because while her fall was delayed, the jolt off the snapped branch landing on the branch supporting her lower half caused her legs to slip. And the upper half was only barely supported by her mid-back having slammed onto that branch’s twin.

And her descent continued until - impact!

“Uuuugh. Well. Still not dead.”

Iago didn’t even blink as a blur fell directly in front of him - the man simply stopping in his gait before he could collide with whatever had fallen out of the tree above the path. An interesting entrance he’d admit but a stupid one too. When his gaze finally drifted to the ground with the smallest raise of his brow, Iago was not shocked to see a human crumpled there. Ah.. well. How interesting - he was used to women falling in front of him and all but... jeez, this was a bit of a dramatic touch, wasn’t it? 

“...were you trying?” He finally asked, amusement tinging that Turkish accent that slipped from his lips. 

[birdofyourfeather]

brucewhite​:

In the Refrigerator Light | Brago

For a brief moment, Bruce thought Iago was going to offer to listen. Which put Bruce in the uncomfortable position either of telling Iago everything or nothing. The latter made much more sense, but Bruce remembered what Doug had told him. That he needed to build a community, and that deep connections with people required honesty and openness and trust. 

Bruce didn’t really trust Iago, even if he seemed very sincere right now. He didn’t trust most people, especially when they made confusing jokes like that. So he was relieved when Iago simply said “someone” instead of “me.”

“Yeah. I know,” Bruce said, wondering if he should tell Iago about Doug. Part of him wanted to. But it was late. Iago probably wanted to go to bed. And now that the panic and adrenaline was wearing off, Bruce was tired, too. “I’m really fine, though. Everything’s fine. Sorry if I… hurt your feelings.”

“Right..” Iago trailed off, glancing over Bruce absently. Honestly, all fake bullshit aside, he truly did confuse Iago quite a bit. There was something so... bizarrely weird about him. Like he was unsocialized or some shit. He guessed awkward could be the way to describe him but even still, he didn’t feel like that fully encompassed the way that Bruce was. 

Like...he was definitely weird. Super weird, but Iago was still pretty convinced he was hiding something too. 

A dead body maybe - that would be a lot more exciting than him just being a fake vegan. 

Which, he definitely was, for the record. No self-respecting Vegan, no matter the excuse, was chowing down on a bag of frozen raw shrimp in the middle of the night. Absolutely not. So whatever. 

“...It’s..fine. Just... seriously, I live with you. Whenever you need to talk. Otherwise...even if ‘everything is fine’... you should really talk to someone.” Preferably before you go crazy and kill me, but no matter. “But...I uh.. I guess I’m going back to bed.” 

[birdofyourfeather]

brucewhite​:

In the Refrigerator Light | Brago

Bruce’s feeling of guilt and panic grew. This was all his fault– him and his incompetence with these kinds of situations and his inability to trust that people weren’t having a laugh at his expense. I’m sorry! he wanted to say, I’m just still getting used to how humans interact with each other!

But of course he couldn’t say that. Because then there would be a lot more to explain to Iago. And if this was how he reacted to a small slight, Bruce imagined that finding out his roommate was a bloodthirsty aquatic monster would be the final straw that caused him to move out. Bruce couldn’t afford this place on his own. And he didn’t know if he could find another roommate. 

“No. I shouldn’t have said that. I thought you were making fun of me, and I was defensive, and… I didn’t mean it. Please. Don’t be mad,” Bruce pleaded weakly. “You’re not– you’re not going to leave, are you?”

Ah - so Bruce was desperate to keep him as a roommate. A thought that Iago noted for the future, though it wasn’t like Iago was quite keen to lose his roommate either. Sure he made decent money doing the dumb odd jobs he did matched with the less dumb important business he did (Clayton payed very well) but it was still nice to spend as little money as possible on housing. 

Also it helped his whole image as a kind immigrant struggling to make ends meet! Which wasn’t entirely untrue, of course. 

He...was an immigrant, after all. 

“....N-..no.” He said after a moment, recoiling slightly like he hadn’t even considered leaving and was almost shocked that Bruce had even brought it up. “No I-- I’m not going to leave. I just- I wasn’t making fun of you. I was just trying to joke with you because you seemed upset. I was ...trying to get you to loosen up. But it’s- It’s fine. I won’t say anything - we’re not friends. We just live together. I get it now.” He sighed softly, glancing down the hallway before he looked back at his roommate. 

“I -l.. just if you need to talk to someone about...whatever it is you’ve got going on you should.” 

[birdofyourfeather]

brucewhite​:

In the Refrigerator Light | Brago

What?

There were many things Bruce had expected from Iago in response. To laugh at him, maybe, or to press him with more invasive questions. But instead he seemed to deflate. And as much as Bruce wanted to stay on his guard, to believe anything could be a mind game designed to trick and embarrass him… the disappointment on Iago’s face was convincing.

And more than that, Bruce wasn’t sure he wanted to be the kind of person who went around distrusting the people around him so intensely that he never allowed anyone to get close. He knew the reason he had reacted so defensively to Iago’s line of questioning. It was because of his own baggage. Something he was supposed to be working on.

“Wait, Iago,” Bruce said, following him. Guilt burned deep in his stomach. How had he let this go so wrong? “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean– I shouldn’t have said that. We are friends! Please, let me explain!”

Iago turned away, and in his head - the countdown started. 

See, humans really were such simple creatures. The majority of them were weighed down from their ultimate potentials by morals and guilt. It tore at their souls and kept them from doing anything too dangerous. Too powerful. The majority of the people in the world weren’t inherently good, they were just weak. Too powerless to overcome that ache in their heart that told them to be nice. To be kind to their fellow neighbors. 

Iago did not have that ache. Instead his heart ached for chaos, and in the end, it was always what he got. So there was no surprise to learn that Bruce was one of the weak ones. Easily manipulated into changing his ways with the infliction of a tone or the drop of a sigh. There was no honor in that. 

“..it’s okay.” Iago said, pausing in his gait to glance over his shoulder towards Bruce with another pathetic shrug. “I-...I should have realized. We..we don’t even know each other I just thought...” He trailed off, raising a hand to scratch at the back of his neck. “I-..I don’t really have a lot of friends here. I-.. never felt like I settled in well. It was- It’s my fault. I was just... assuming. I apologize you--... You don’t have to explain I..I get it.” 

[birdofyourfeather]

Quite frankly the best thing I've ever read

[birdofyourfeather]

brucewhite​:

In the Refrigerator Light | Brago

Iago was right. Or maybe he was understating it. Bruce was very, very off– normally after something like this happened, he would hide the evidence and crawl back into bed, feeling defeated. He’d never had to explain himself before. So in addition to trying to get Iago to leave him alone, Bruce was still grappling with what he had done. It was maddening.

“I’m fine,” he said, probably not very convincingly. “You don’t know anything about me at all, Iago. Maybe I’m lactose intolerant. You don’t know.”

It had been intended as a snappy comeback, but Bruce regretted it as soon as he said it. Because what if that sparked more curiosity in Iago? Bruce had always gotten along with his roommate because they barely acknowledged each other. As social as Bruce liked to be, he needed to live with someone who didn’t ask too many questions. For a while, that had worked.

He couldn’t have that falling apart now. Where would he live? He couldn’t afford a place on his own…

“A-and I’m not going to tell you anything because we aren’t friends. We live together. That’s all. So stay out of my business and I’ll stay out of yours.”

Bruce didn’t like the way that sounded, out loud. It sounded like a different person who had said it, someone cold and mean. And Bruce knew that he didn’t even sound commanding, like he intended to. He probably just sounded scared. That was how he felt, anyway.

Iago let his brows raise at that comment, and he realized he had two very different choices he could make in response to that. Both were rather fun and amusing to him but he had to wonder which one would be more effective to him in the long run? ...He had a feeling the more human approach would probably benefit him. 

So - the man shifted slightly in his spot, crumpling that bag he was holding a bit before he awkwardly moved to put it back on the counter, his entire demeanor faltering a bit as his shoulders dropped a touch. 

“Oh.” He finally let himself say, his brows furrowing gently as he cleared his throat and nodded once. Then twice. “I uhm... I’m sorry. I uh---... Right. Course. Not friends. I--.. I misunderstood I guess. That’s uhm... that’s why I was messing with you - It was just for fun but I ..I didn’t realize.” Iago stammered slightly, glancing up to Bruce before he sighed so softly and took a few steps back towards the hallway. “...Forget I said anything. I uh.. I understand.” 

[birdofyourfeather]

brucewhite​:

In the Refrigerator Light | Brago

Bruce had bought the shrimp. Not because he intended to eat it. No, he had specifically told himself, as the kid at the register scanned the bag, that just because he was buying something did not mean he was going to eat it. 

…Except, a part of him knew that he probably would. By this point, Bruce had figured out that if he was getting hungry, if he was starting to lose his grip, it was better to secretly sneak some fish than to end up at the lake with no idea of how he had gotten there. So he kept it just in case. It had worked for a few months. Bruce hadn’t attacked anyone or caused any scenes.

Except for that awful date with Ella at the sushi restaurant. And except for now, caught red-handed by his roommate.

“I don’t need you to set me up with any of your friends,” Bruce said quickly. That just sounded like antoher trap. “But fine. What do you want to know? I’m a vegan, and sometimes I… slip up. It happens to people. I guess I… just didn’t really feel like turning the stove on.”

“Well..I actually wouldn’t call him my friend at all, I just know he’s a vegan so that seems like it would make things easier for you.” Iago added, though it was clear Bruce was far too panicked to take mild teasing dating advice at this moment. Though he might add not eating frozen shrimp to that advice for sure too. 

“...Right...” He trailed off again, almost just as disbelieving as the first time. “I mean I personally would have gone for cheese. Maybe some milk. Something a little less aggressive.” Iago pointed out absently, picking at the sleeve of his shirt with a small laugh. He almost had to feel bad for the dude though. Whatever weird front he was putting up must have been worth it if he was trying this hard to desperately save face. “I also didn’t know slipping up as a vegan was so.. well - I mean, it’s like an addiction, isn’t it? It’s like I’ve caught you smuggling booze after being on the mend or some shit. I just want to make sure you’re okay is all. You seem very... off.” 

Mostly because Iago kept goading him, but also if he was about to go crazy and kill him he’d really like to know is all. 

[birdofyourfeather]

brucewhite​:

In the Refrigerator Light | Brago

“I don’t believe that you’re worried about me. You don’t seem worried,” Bruce said quickly. No, this was some sort of trap, he thought. Iago was going to try and get him to say something he shouldn’t, he would reel him in with fake worry and then turn on him and laugh again. It wasn’t anything Bruce hadn’t experienced before. But it didn’t mean it stung any less.

Before the year 2020, Bruce had been a very trusting person– gullible, even– and others in his pod would tease him for this with jokes and riddles. But it was all in good fun. Now, Bruce knew that trusting the wrong people had consequences. He was going to have to be very careful about what he said around his roommate now, Bruce decided, even if it were just a joke.

“It’s not just picking up a date. I’m serious about it. This is a one-time thing,” Bruce said, trying to sound convincingly calm. But there was a tremor to his voice. “Being a vegan can actually limit your dating options, for your information. Now promise you won’t tell anyone about this.”

He wanted to sound commanding, but it was halfhearted. Because Bruce still had that voice telling him never to be threatening or intimidating. He didn’t really want Iago to be afraid of him, if he was honest with himself. He just hated feeling like this– small.

“...sure, a one time thing..” Iago trailed off lightly, ignoring the man’s request for a promise of secrecy entirely as he popped another cracker into his mouth and watched Bruce for a few moments. Watching him over like he was analyzing whatever move he was bound to make next. “...I didn’t buy the shrimp though. Not really a fan of seafood myself. Just seems bizarre though that this one time thing would have been prepared for in advance is all.” 

Which almost had to be the case - and... now again, Iago really didn’t care if the guy was a fake vegan but understanding it was more important. The why could be a vital piece of information. Important in a big picture sense? No. Absolutely not, Bruce was boring and awkward and in no way essential to any plans he had but... important in his weird need for gossip sense? Hell yeah. 

“...I mean I know a great scrawny vegan kid if you’re having trouble dating - but I think you’re gonna have to clean up this whole act for that to work out. Real skittish that one. Finding you going postal on some shrimp would be a real turn off. I promise I won’t tell - but you gotta give me something, man. I mean come on, what gives.” 

[birdofyourfeather]

brucewhite​:

In the Refrigerator Light | Brago

Bruce shook his head, feeling heat rising to his cheeks. Iago was mocking him. Laughing at him. It wasn’t a real question, and even if it were, Bruce would still feel defensive about it. There had been a time when Bruce was easygoing about this sort of thing. He’d be on a hunt, he’d miss an easy shot, and his friends would laugh, but it would all be in good fun. Because to Bruce, being a good hunter was only one thing about his identity.

But now, being a good land person, trying to fit in, that was his whole identity. And Iago saw through the ruse. Just like everyone probably did. Just like…

No, he wasn’t going to think about things like that. Not now. Not when Iago was watching him with that shit-eating smirk.

“No,” he said stiffly. “Are you asking because you really want to know, or are you asking because you’re making fun of me?” He already knew the answer, but it was the only thing Bruce could think to say.

This was funny, actually. In the same way it was also a tinge sad, but it was mostly just amusing to Iago the way his normally so awkward and bizarre roommate had a bit of a temper to him. Though he supposed ‘temper’ was a bit too strong of a word. If this were any other person - a stranger in town or whatever, Iago would have absolutely no issue in pushing their buttons until they snapped. 

However... this was his roommate. And he wasn’t really looking forward to dealing with the housing situation problems again. So...fine. 

Instead of continuing to mock the man like he really wanted, Iago just gave another small huff. “..Aw c’mon. I’m just teasing you, man. I’m just worried.. .I thought you were vegan or whatever and all. Just seems bizarre to see you snackin’ like that. Unless maybe you’re just saying the vegan thing to pick up a date? Cause shit, we’ve all been there.” 

[birdofyourfeather]

brucewhite​:

In the Refrigerator Light | Brago

The truth was so bizarre and unbelievable that Bruce was almost tempted just to say it. Just to get it out there, and to show himself that he could do it. He imagined Doug would probably encourage that. He was always telling Bruce that things would rarely turn out as disastrous as they seemed that they might. 

But no, Bruce couldn’t do it. He knew he couldn’t.

“Yeah. Just hungry,” Bruce said, crossing his arms and hoping he looked intimidating, even though Iago’s expression made it very clear he wasn’t intimidating at all. “Do you have any other questions, or are you going to go back to bed?”

It occurred to Bruce, suddenly, how little he really knew about his roommate. They never had conversations like this before. They had certainly never argued before. And he had no idea where this was going to go, now. Bruce’s stomach turned nervously. 

What a feisty little man. How very cute and exciting that he was standing his ground like this over a bag of shrimp. Truly very cute. “I mean I actually have quite a few.” Iago started, going back to shuffling idly in the cabinets before he pulled out a box of crackers and fumbled with them for a moment or two. Once the snack was open, Iago let himself lean back against the counter so that he could study his roommate again with a shark-like grin easily resting upon his features. 

“For one - do you typically take your shrimp raw or is it just when the hunger strikes in the middle of the night? Something about frozen shrimp just hit better or...” He trailed off lightly with another raise of his brow and a huff of a laugh, offering his box out towards Bruce then. “...Want one? They’re delightful little cheesy crackers.” 

[birdofyourfeather]

vcnatorr​:

The sheriff will see you now || Clayago

Believe it or not, this was not the first time Clayton had been faced with an issue like this.

Not that it came up very often, and not for a capital offence, mind you, but still. The first time had been that up-herself Australian woman when he and a friend had gone looking for devil dingos in the Queensland outback. She’d gone on and on about how just because they spirited children away to the gates of hell didn’t mean that they weren’t god creatures. Apparently, though, her god had nothing excess taking bribes, because it hadn’t even really taken that much money to make the whole thing go away (it had cost more to have the flame red fur turned into a hideous hat that his friend only ever wore after a half a bottle of port).

The key was the act dumb until you’d gotten all the information out of them. So the young man had seen what he did. Clayton was about to ask what it was he was meant to have done when the question was answered for him, so instead he furrowed his brow, interlocking his fingers as he rested his hands on the desk in front of him. “And who am I meant to have killed, exactly?”

.

“Who do you bloody think!?” Iago chirped, and for a moment he wished he knew her name. He thought he had... he definitely did at one point.. what was it? Something terribly dull like... Betty. Brittany? B... Betshewishedsheducked. Whatever. Names weren’t terribly important were they? 

“...You--.. You shot her! Right in the forest!” The man accused in another faux concealed whisper, raising a timid hand to point in the Sheriff’s direction accusingly. Once again though, Iago was using this host and given them way too much credit. The real... - ah Christ what was his name again? Gary? Ugh - whatever. The real gary was way too much of a coward to do this. He was pretty sure even if the kid did witness Clayton shoot a woman in the forest, all he would have done was go home and cry to mommy about it. 

There was no way he would be sitting here face to face with a murderer (no offense Clay, but... that was what they tended to call people who killed people) and accuse him with such conviction. Oh how fun it would have been to see him try though. “...You s-should be in jail! I--.. You.. You killed her!” Again, he should probably commend Clayton for his infinite patience, though. Good man. 

[birdofyourfeather]

brucewhite​:

In the Refrigerator Light | Brago

Bruce flushed bright red. He wanted to act casual about this. To say that it was no big deal, that it was something he did from time to time, perhaps that it was some kind of health hack. That he was a vegan, but he wasn’t actually very strict about it. But even if Iago saw nothing suspicious about this, he was still going to think it was weird, and maybe he would even tell his friends about it, laughing about his strange roommate with his strange diet.

And that was the last thing Bruce wanted happening. He had worked hard to create this image– someone harmless, someone normal, someone who didn’t do weird things like wolf down shrimp at 2 AM and then try to hide it. 

“S-sorry about that,” Bruce said self-consciously, averting his gaze. “Look, er, just don’t tell anyone about this, alright?” He looked back at Iago and tried to look decisive and maybe a little threatening, not as panicked as he actually felt.

Iago cocked a brow and he wanted to laugh. Was that... an attempt at being stern? The man honestly couldn’t tell, given his roommate looked about ten seconds from either shitting his pants or fainting. Maybe both in that order. 

“Nah you got me all wrong man, I’m not a gossip.” Iago teased lightly, though he glanced Bruce up and down for a moment before he finally pushed off his position against the doorway so that he could rifle through the cabinets for nothing in particular. 

Just had to keep up the causal appearance. 

“...though I mean.. doesn’t mean I’m not curious.” He continued then, shifting aside a bag of chips before he sighed and looked back at Bruce. “I mean seriously - just hungry? You sure that’s all that was about?” 

[birdofyourfeather]

vcnatorr​:

The sheriff will see you now || Clayago

Now, Clayton could be worried about that. Information on something in Enchantra, and important case, a very worried look. True, he had no idea who had chased him through the forest that night, and this gangly looking kid could well be one of them, but honestly? Clayton had his doubts. And what he was coming to learn was that a lot of weird and awful things happened in that forest. The place was a death trap, literally. He could be talking about any of those others cases.

So what he was planning to do was… nothing. Act perfectly natural, a concerned sheriff, until such a time as he had reason to worry.

“Well then,” He said, gesturing to the seat opposite his own. “Take a seat and we can make a report, hm?”

.

Clayton responded... professionally. Which, well.. Iago couldn’t be too surprised. He’d secured this position somehow, hadn’t he? That meant that the man had... some incredibly level of fake bullshit he was able to pull over people like a blind. Then again, he had to remind himself that the people in power in this town were a bunch of bleeding heart morons who probably couldn’t sense a bad apple in a stack of rotting fruit even if it slapped them in the face. So maybe he couldn’t give Clayton too much credit. 

Iago hesitated, wringing his hands together nervously as if he was debating the man’s offer (he wasn’t). 

In the end, he didn’t sit though - instead just stepping a bit further into the man’s office and pulling apart those hands to rest them on the back of the chair like an anchor. “i-...” He started, glancing over his shoulder again before he lowered his voice to just above a whisper (mostly to keep Clayton safe, but also to stay in character) - brows furrowing in a small flash of anger. “I-- make..make a report? How am---.. I-I...I saw what you did.” ‘Gregory’ accused quietly - like a terrified little mouse trying to stand up to whatever injustices he believed in. Like... murder evidently. 

“...How..How are you the bloody sheriff when-- When ... you killed her!?” 

[birdofyourfeather]

brucewhite​:

In the Refrigerator Light | Brago

Bruce did not have anything to say for himself.

It was one thing to be caught snacking in the middle of the night by your roommate. A bit embarrassing, sure, but something everybody did. Snacking on raw, frozen shrimp? Like his life depended on it? Now, that was entirely different.

He held up the back, shaking. “Oh, this?” Bruce said, his voice going up anxiously. “Er– nothing, I was just… hungry.” He stood there in silence for a moment, and then turned around and shoved the bag back in the freezer quickly. Even though the damage had already been done by this point. 

He could hear the bewilderment– and slight amusement– in Iago’s tone, and it just made Bruce all the more anxious. So he tried to flip it around. “What are you doing, awake right now? It’s the middle of the night.”

Just hungry. 

Just hungry said the Vegan devouring frozen raw shrimp like a starved dog in the middle of the night, hiding his evidence like he’d committed some kind of felony right in front of him. Which.. was funny, really. Iago had to really bite down on the laugh that was threatening to slip through and instead simply let his lips curl up into a gentle smile as he shrugged his shoulder and pushed off against the doorframe. 

“Me? Oh... Couldn’t sleep.” He said easily enough, running a hand through his hair as he glanced over that anxiety-ridden expression his roommate wore with a raise of his brow. “...I guess the sound of ravenous feasting kept me awake or something.” A joke by any means - but he was sure it would make the guy shake with how absolutely mortified he already was. 

[birdofyourfeather]

brucewhite​:

In the Refrigerator Light | Brago

Every so often, Bruce found himself unable to sleep, seized by hunger. No matter how many fruits and vegetables and beans and mushrooms and substitute meat he ate, he craved fish, and then he started dreaming of the lake, and then the next thing he knew he was out of bed, slipping out of his room in just a T-shirt and a pair of pajama pants. It wouldn’t take long. It wouldn’t bother anyone. He could go for a quick swim and then he would feel better, he wouldn’t even hunt at all–

No, Bruce knew that he would hunt. If he went in the lake, he would hunt.

There was a bag of frozen shrimp in the freezer. Somehow, it had ended up in Bruce’s cart at the grocery store– not that he would eat it, of course, he had told himself at the time, maybe Iago would want it. But deep down, Bruce knew that eating some fish now would put a stop to all of this thinking, and he would probably feel deeply embarrassed about it afterward, but at least he wouldn’t risk anyone seeing him at the lake.

He tiptoed across the kitchen and extracted the bag of shrimp, slowly eating one, then another, and then the next thing he knew, he was halfway through the bag, scarfing the shrimps down desperately. It was only when he looked up that he noticed a figure in the hallway. No. No no no no no. How much had Iago seen?

Bruce froze, illuminated by the moonlight through the window, caught red-handed. “…Evening…” he finally said, his eyes wide and terrified. 

@birdofyourfeather

Iago had his fair share of... questionable roommates. It wasn’t like he could choose to be picky, especially when he was busy fleeing the countryside back home and all. So he’d stayed with a large variety of different types of people over the years, from delinquents to cursed individuals to those down on their luck. HIs personal favorite had honestly been the bloke with the ram horns on his head but... like all good things, it hadn’t lasted. 

His current roommate however was no exception to the strange people he’d lived with though. The man seemed to hide it a little better though, coming off as a rather... normal individual, if not just horribly awkward. 

This however....now this was breaking that image just a tiny bit. 

The mimic hadn’t exactly expected to sweep into the kitchen late at night to find said roommate all but hunched over a bag of frozen shrimp, devouring them like they were his last meal on earth...after all. Iago didn’t even bother to say anything at first, simply leaning against the doorframe as his brow raised in curiosity at the quite animalistic display before him. Now to be fair, Iago didn’t know a whole hell of a lot about Bruce. They’d exchanged texts to set this whole thing up, and then they basically never saw each other again aside from the random passing glances. What he did know though (admittedly, from his stint as Greg on Tinder) was that Bruce was supposedly vegan. Which was stupid - and evidently he thought so as well. Or...maybe it was something deeper, like not viewing shrimp as living organisms or whatever but hey. Not really his problem was it? 

“...Evening.” The word rolled off his tongue easily in amusement a few moments later, letting the other man sit in his terror as a sly smirk curled onto Iago’s lips. “....What’cha got there?”

[birdofyourfeather]

vcnatorr​:

The sheriff will see you now || Open

Let the record show: Clayton had never had a real job before.

He had been employed. But he didn’t think it was reasonable to call a weekly column for the Telegraph work, not when he used to write it five minutes after the deadline and send it in from his home laptop because he was rarely, if ever, at the office. No, he’d never had… responsibilities. A whole town! It was rather funny, if you thought about it. Probably infuriating if you thought about it for longer than five minutes, but Clayton had managed (yet again) to get his own way, so he wasn’t upset in the least. 

He had been given all manner of files and things to read through which on the surface might seem horrendously boring and not at all something he’d enjoy, but it was a very good insight into this town. Quite the sordid history, as he was coming to find. It wasn’t so bad having to catch up on all those old case files - he loved to gossip. 

And of course, there were the interruptions. He had offered an open door policy, and he did in fact mean it, so when there was a knock on the door he closed the file he was reading (confidential, obviously) and sat up a little straighter, a model Town Sheriff. 

“Come in!”

.

So - Clayton had gotten the role of Sheriff. That was...by all accounts, very fucking impressive. A performance that Iago almost wished he could have seen, honestly. Really, what was with this damn town? No background checks? Absolutely no looking into things closer than surface level? Yes, yes he knew that Clayton was smart about covering up his tracks but really? God, Swynlake was more desperate than he thought. He really had to congratulate the guy on a job well done though, Iago was proud. 

...so - obviously he was going to fuck with him too. He wasn’t even going to let Clayton get one day on the job without a little discomfort. And well... because he was so close to the man, he knew exactly how to go about that. 

Cue the entrance of the scrawny little kiss ass he’d been using for a few months, gaze perfectly trained on the floor (an important detail for the moment). “E-..excuse me. I-...I have information on... on something that happened in Enc-Enchantra that...pertains to an important case.” He stuttered out, glancing over his shoulder uneasily as his hands wrung together nervously. “I..I was told to come straight to you. It’s about th--” Glancing back, Iago made eye contact with Clayton and forced the color to drain from Gregory’s expression; as if he’d seen exactly who he’d come to file a report against in front of him, his whole body stilling in shock.  

And..... begin. 

[birdofyourfeather]

vcnatorr​:

Mission debrief: FUBAR || Clayago

Clayton was mostly just glad to hear that Iago would still happy to keep running packages for him. That had been another reason why he had invited him over today. The most important thing, of course, had been making sure that Iago hadn’t been seen, and that he hadn’t spoken to anyone about either his or Clayton’s involvement in that whole mess. He had expected the responses he’d gotten, because Iago really did seem like a professional, but it had still been necessary to check. If there was any damage control that needed to be done, Clayton needed to know about it. There were ways of covering things up, but time was always of the essence in matters such as those - thankfully, there was nothing more to do than to hope the whole thing blew over.

Making sure Iago hadn’t been spooked was slightly less important, but also still necessary. He had a set of skills that made work no doubt a lot easier for himself than it did for other people, a set of skills that were very useful for Clayton, but there were a lot of people that would be put off by a mishap such as this one. Having to keep your head down meant a dip in the work for a while, which meant a dip in payment, too, and a lot of people wouldn’t want to work for someone who might be under investigation without even realising it. Clayton could probably find someone else when the time came, if Iago wanted out, but it would be a hassle. He hated having to go through the whole recruitment process.

“Well, you know, if you ever do, just give me a call.” He posed it as a joke, but he was deadly serious. Not that he’d ever had to do it before (and not that he even had to do it now - the thing seemed to be handling itself), but he was rather confident he knew the right people and had the means to make an unfortunate incident disappear entirely.

“I’ll let you know via the usual means when I’m expecting another shipment.” He said, back to business. He could do that, when he had to. “I’m going to do a little research, and then I’ll be ordering in. But of course, for your loyalty, I’d be happy to increase your fee a bit. Call it a bonus.”

Quite frankly - it would take a lot to scare Iago off. A lot. There was very little that the man hadn’t seen in his years away from home when he’d been running through the Turkish countryside with a bunch of other outcast criminals and cursed individuals. The things he’d been getting into were nothing short of ‘exciting’, so to speak - so a little murder in a magical forest? 

Yeah that wasn’t terribly offensive to Iago in the slightest. So Clayton had shot a person. Big deal. It hadn’t even been on purpose. Anyone that got up in arms at that was soft. Soft and weak. It wasn’t anything to cut a perfectly good business deal over. 

Especially not when Clayton was willing to raise his rate for the non-existing ‘trouble’ so to speak. Or ‘loyalty’. It definitely wasn’t that though - Iago did not have loyalty. That was his whole schtick. He played for every team. Swapped between jobs and bosses and sides like no ones business. 

So sure - they could call it a bonus for sure. 

“...very well. Unnecessary but obviously I would not say no.” Downing the bit of liquor still in his glass, Iago pushed the drinkware towards Clayton with a quick drum of his fingers across the smooth surface before he stepped away with a mock salute “...I’ll be expecting your ‘call’ - we’ll be in touch in the meantime I’m sure. Keep my ear out to know if anyone’s talking about your little... experience.” Because the least he could do was make sure Clayton continued to be in the clear. 

It was best for them both.