[impulslve]

oh, i'm sure. how many times have you smiled now? i won't deny, it's caused a flutter or two. your smile is just as calming as i remember.

i can't imagine he's happy about another man doing that, even if it is himself. he likes mikey, so... maybe. i've no clue how he feels about other versions of himself.

[merclless]

have i smiled that much...? i hadn't even noticed.

well, how do you feel about other versions of yourself? you could start there.

[impulslve]

our own reaper-in-rehabilitation is slowly opening up. slowly.

i'd love to have a conversation with william, but he chooses to keep his distance from me. last time i ran into him, he didn't stay for long.

[merclless]

i'm sure he's ecstatic that you've taken the time to come and meet me, then.

he'll give in eventually. he's too curious not to.

[impulslve]

"whoa, hey—!"

leo's eyes widen as annabelle loses her balance. he reaches out, placing an arm underneath and around her to catch her before she falls completely. he directs her impact towards him, gasping softly before keeping a firm grasp around her.

"are you alright? maybe we should get you something to eat before we make the travel home."

[merclless]

her hands grab onto the first thing they come into contact with, which, fortunately, were leo's shoulders. once she could process that she hadn't fallen directly to the ground, annabelle's head lowers for a few seconds to rest on leo's chest to allow the dizziness to subside. such an embarrassing night... but it didn't really matter, right? leo was obviously well-aware of annabelle's stubborn pride from back in the days of her drama with rosemary, so it was likely that he wouldn't hold this over her head to tease her.

"i–i'm fine..." she breathes out through an exhausted sigh, slowly raising her head to meet with the other's gaze. "... father gave me a few ounces when i first arrived. i can make it until then."

[impulslve]

has he? i think he needs friends.

william snorts.

i don't think he has many.

[merclless]

more than one would assume now, it seems.

this reaper gig of his has really gotten him to open up to others.

[impulslve]

he's a nice guy. this place is... nice. it would be a shame if not for its creation.

.... i have no idea what became of my timeline, to be frank. i have no intention of finding out. i wonder if wyatt anderson is alive in my future... i thought he was an afton at first, you know.

[merclless]

i don't blame you. he's mentioned that he gets that all the time.

william seems to have developed a genuine bond with wyatt. it's nice to see. he's even the reason that william and i have grown close again.

[impulslve]

“you will be well-fed and safe from any hunters or humans. i can buy you anything you need to clean and care for yourself. you will have the right to leave—i won’t keep you trapped like rosemary. it can just be your home.”

leo steps back towards the door, opening it and stepping aside. it truly was somewhat of a miracle that he managed to find out annabelle was alive and in london the day he had to make a delivery to the church. he wasn’t about to let someone so important to who he is today rot on the street.

“we can even dedicate an entire room to your craft.”

[merclless]

it wasn't a bad idea to take leo up on his offer at all. the idea of a comfortable home was nice, even if it wasn't her own, and she could use the opportunity to get some higher-quality fabrics for her own clothes as well. it didn't need to be a permanent solution either... she could leave whenever she wished.

for now, having anywhere quiet to rest up was good enough for her. she could get away from the other vampires in the chapel and wash up in something other than a river or a lake, too. nodding through her headache, she stands up from the cot and turns to follow leo over by the door– but moving too quickly had quickly made the room spin. her legs give away as her hand jolts up to her head.

"agh––"

[impulslve]

@merclless

the pizza plex always had such a creepy vibe to it. mr. anderson never gave rory much of a response when he asked, and even became an expert at avoiding the subject of the pizza plex entirely. of course, that wouldn’t stop night owl from exploring the place himself. he knew something was going on here, and the fact alone that wyatt would avoid the subject and the place itself was all he needed to know. he refused to acknowledge the disappearances when asked, and even forbade rory from going anywhere near the place. something had to be done, and if rory wasn’t going to get answers, night owl would.

he just hopes that wyatt won’t find out it was him who decided to investigate the place.

getting inside is easy. rory creates a passage inside, opening a rift straight into the pizza plex.

of course, this part isn’t easy. rory has never set foot inside of this place, so navigating around isn’t something he can do. even so, things are already out of place. not a single human in sight. only robots and trash to be cleaned up. if this was wyatt’s pet project, why would he let it get so messed up?

the lobby isn’t a good way to gauge the entire place, though. he needs to find out how to get deeper. find out who’s responsible for the disappearances. surely there’s something in a security office.

there’s one nearby, marked by the security badge. he waves his hand as the door seemingly vanishes, allowing him to easily pass through. pulling out a corporate card from his coat, rory scans it to allow himself full access on the computer. he’ll just have to erase that clearance before wyatt notices….

under his mask, rory’s eyebrows furrow as he digs deep within the access files of the computer. there’s… something wrong. only one human employee works nightly. vanessa moore. it looks like something came from corporate to fire every other person working here overnight except her… but how? would wyatt let that happen? does he trust this woman that much?

suddenly, the computer freezes and blocks his prompts. a large “ACCESS DENIED” appears on screen, locking the man out. he steps back, then a… white rabbit appears on screen?

rory mumbles to himself as he takes a deep breath. his shoulders tighten.

“well, that’s new.”

[merclless]

uh oh! there's a new login coming from the security room in the LOBBY. did you invite a friend here?

"no," vannie mutters, throwing the ball in her hand against the cement wall of the utility tunnel one last time before she catches it and tosses it aside. this was the second person in one night to come sneaking into the building, but it seemed like whoever this one was came prepared– they've got corporate-level clearance to the computers somehow... as she perused the tunnel, vannie used her mask to get a glimpse at the newcomer in the lobby's office and kicked him out of the system.

usually there wasn't anyone bold enough to break into a fazbear entertainment building. the teens couldn't figure it out, the security bots and animatronics hunted down any stragglers who try to hide until after closing, and the cops were paid enough money to falsify any investigations that took place there. two people, unconnected, were trying to search for answers in the labyrinth of the pizza plex.

looks like she needs to pick up the pace tonight. was this the beginning of a horde of curious cats? roxanne and chica were still playing a game of tag in the atrium with the other guest, so luckily, vannie could focus on the VIP that had just arrived. was that the night owl? she'd never seen him in-person before. but that begged the question: what did he know? he's going to be a much bigger pain in the ass than the local law enforcement. a challenge could be fun though, she mused.

stay focused.

–right. vannie's casual walk hastens into a light skip down the dark, murky hall, heading over to the stairs that lead up to the lobby. she uses her mask to switch on the comms to the occupied office.

"are you lost, little bird? why are you pecking around at my burrow?"

[impulslve]

... no, i haven't heard that part. that must've been what wyatt was talking about.

the incident that gave him control of the company.

[merclless]

that's the one.

i didn't intend on him getting out of the building, but i failed to take into account his vast experience in law; he knows how to get up, down, and around just about everything. fazbear entertainment was supposed to cease its' existence after the fire burnt everything that was left, but wyatt managed to break out before he was also consumed by flames.

[merclless]

[impulslve]

three? astonishing.... i knew i wanted michael, and i would not have more if i did not want them. even so, tori died shortly after michael was born. we couldn't have had more even if we wanted.

you did? there's a story there. what did you do?

[merclless]

you haven't heard that part of the story yet? that's interesting...

william's work was out of control, and so was he. i ended up killing him, myself, michael and elizabeth, and charlie in a building i built with the intention of it being kindling for a fire. lord knows i wasn't planning for this place to happen afterward, but... i don't mind it as much now.

[impulslve]

william laughs.

how interesting it is to hear of this timeline.... i only had michael.

grief has ruined so much of our lives, but... i think it also made it more interesting, if that makes sense.

we wouldn't be sitting here today, drinking and talking if not for it.

[merclless]

william had three kids... i think he only wanted one though. i couldn't see the same spark of excitement in his eye when he told me about elizabeth or benjamin after michael was born.

if i have to have an "interesting" life in order for others to have lives that are considered tame and boring, then so be it. i did get to set a building on fire.

[impulslve]

william chuckles.

henry was the quiet one out of us, but he still had his values. he was already smoking weed by the time we met, but i brought in coke and molly.

i hope you managed to loosen up your william, even for a while. lord knows he's got a stick up his ass.

[merclless]

i did. but as time passed, we both ended up uptight again. i lost maria, he lost benjamin, i lost charlie, he lost tori... things were all downhill from college.

sometimes i wonder what things could've been like if grief hadn't taken over our lives, but oddly enough... coming here puts my mind at ease.

then again, wyatt covers my tab, so that might have something to do with it too.

[impulslve]

hm... well, how much do you want to know about my uni life?

i wasn't a flower child, but when i came to the states, i was bringing drugs to the table. i finally felt free when i left my parent's home in england.

[merclless]

were you now?

you were a bit of a stickler when i first met you. i made it a mission to loosen you up.

[impulslve]

yes. i've seen him on occasion but i've not seen him approach any one of my reapers or the astral plane's inhabitants in quite a long time.

the fight with raphael, and the changes that followed, seemed to have done a lot to him.

[merclless]

raphael is not a fighter; nor am i. she steps in only when there is a threat to peace and harmony. once michael stepped in, gabriel came to the realization that he was now the threat that he'd sought to eliminate.

we are also of god's creation, and therefore, we have our own opportunities to learn. we cannot truly protect what we fail to understand. times are changing... and we will adapt. it is fated.

... gabriel will keep his distance out of respect for all of you. unfortunately, as lucifer enjoys planting seeds of destruction wherever he roams, my brother is intent on ensuring none of you fall into one of his traps while he frequents this realm. that is what he suspected these rehabilitated sinners were. it certainly isn't something we have seen before, but... well, this is how miracles are made.

[impulslve]

i... wow.

... you're a lot different than what i expected you to be. gabriel did not give us a good impression of angels in the slightest.

[merclless]

his intentions are in the right place, i assure you– but i can see how his actions would speak otherwise.

my younger brother ramiel has described sin as "a natural part of mortal growth", which is a phrase i've come to quite like... while gabriel still feels that eradicating sin is the best course of action in order to preserve humanity. his methods of protection may seem overly aggressive for this reason, and i apologize on behalf of my brothers and i for such a discourteous first impression. i believe he has been quietly observing since his sanction in order to better understand you all.

[impulslve]

"of course i did. they're comfortable and fit my style... i never did manage to stick to modern fashion."

leo stands up straight, adjusting his vest and stepping away from the door.

"i loved them, and still do. i had someone fix them up to last this long, but nothing is as authentic as the real thing. i would love to have more from you, but that's if you're willing to be paid for it."

[merclless]

annabelle falls silent as she stops to think. this wasn't an invitation to a nest; not a trap, a threat, and more likely than not it wasn't a ruse, either. having a proper place to sew again would allow her to use a machine again rather than hand-sew, and access to far nicer materials than she currently had. she still felt a bit uncertain about the concept of living under someone else's roof again, though. but if she could still maintain her freedom, it didn't sound like a bad deal.

the hardest part was securing her trust in someone else.

"... perhaps in housing... and materials. that is where any funds you'd provide would end up anyway."

[impulslve]

william chuckles, shaking his head with a smile. he brushes the hair out of his face.

wouldn't that be nice? i was so damn tired all the time.

it was exhausting.

[merclless]

i used to think that i was going to be the troublemaker.

but even given our swapped positions, i still can't imagine you were the loose and wild flower child out of the two of us.