content warning: threats of violence/homophobia for plot reasons
Over the next few weeks, the calls with Robby became a daily occurrence. Every night when Robby got home from work, he texted Dennis asking if he was free to call. Then, after a while, he stopped texting first. Dennis quickly developed a Pavlovian response to the sound of his phone ringing.
Unfortunately, with Robby's job being so demanding, Dennis spent most of his days completely bored out of his mind. That was the only reason he kept posting and chatting online. He needed something to do when he wasn't in class.
Every day became a game of waiting for the clock to strike 6, when Robby got off work over in Pittsburgh, and then a little more waiting for him to get home so they could text, or now, call. It had been like that a little longer than Dennis cared to admit.
Dennis thought he could have a relatively decent chat with someone else every once in a while when Robby was busy.
Boy, was he wrong.
Dennis closed out of the app and flopped back on his bed as tears stung at his eyes. All he wanted was to chat with somebody while his favorite sugar daddy was at work. And all he got was dick pic after dick pic (some looking like they were riddled with disease, honestly) and a bunch of rude assholes.
Was it always this bad? Surely he wouldn't have continued for so long if he had always been bombarded with a bunch of jerk-offs and jerks. He opened the app again, checked his account, and scrolled through the list of people he had blocked, only to realize that it was extremely long.
Thousands of freaks that had spammed him, threatened him, or sent nasty pictures and videos he definitely didn't ask for or want.
Maybe it was always this bad. Maybe he had just been better at ignoring it before Robby came along. Now the comparisons were just far too obvious. Every time some new guy messaged him, he always thought, Robby wouldn't talk to me like this. Robby would ask me how I'm feeling before asking for pictures of my asshole. Robby wouldn't even ask me for that. Because Robby's nice.
Besides the fact it brought Robby to him, Dennis kind of regretted this whole account. He looked at all his slutty pictures again and obsessively read through the comments. Among all the compliments were some really violent sexual threats and this one weirdo with a Jesus profile picture who kept commenting religious horseshit on most of his posts. His chest got tighter and tighter, and it got harder and harder to breathe as he kept searching for all the worst comments and messages.
His phone suddenly ringing scared him so bad he dropped his phone directly onto his face and swore very loudly before scrambling to grab it from where it fell in the gap between his bed and the wall.
The call dropped by the time he fished it out, and seeing the time, he grinned, thinking it was Robby. But when he checked his missed calls, he saw it was his brother. Ugh.
He returned the call with so much more ire than his poor unsuspecting brother deserved. "What the heck do you want, Brian?"
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It was simple, it had been done beforehand so why couldn’t she figure it all out? Pluto threw yet another balled-up paper to the floor – stupid imbalanced chemicals – the end of her pencil found its way crowded into her mouth, bite marks sinking into the yellow skin of the pencil. Her hand moved to write again as she mumbled to herself, “If the sequence of – no – because that plasmid couldn’t complement –”
She groaned, the pencil snapping under her grip and she leant forward onto her desk, fingers desperately tangling into her hair. Pluto’s jaw clenched, heavy breathing falling in and out of her nose as she stood and she began to pace her office. Frenzied hands moved from her hair down to her waist, back up to her hair, only to cross one arm in front of her chest, the other bringing a hand up to cover her mouth. Pluto was an expert in all of this - she had done enough alterations on biological beings in the godforsaken Games, why was it that she couldn’t come up with a simple way to clone food for everyone back in Thirteen? But she wasn’t a loyalist. No, no. It wasn’t that she was so endeared to her home but...the thought of how people were likely starving struck something in her.
Her lip began to quiver and a gasping breath blew out of her mouth, her teeth coming down to bite back the sob that wanted to break out. Pluto paused where she stood, whole body moving into a shake. She just wanted to help Micra; after seeing her at the Victor’s Ball she wanted to stop the withering state her little cousin was in, didn’t want her to eat like it was her last day on Earth. Dragging her hand down her face and ignoring the goosebumps that fell in the wake of her fingertips, a careful inhale through her nose, and a shaky exhale out of her mouth. Micra was more than just a cousin – she was like a sister, her original protege, more dear to her than Holland. It was obvious she was prioritizing Red over herself, ensuring that he had enough to eat. It was logical. After her own daughter and Micra, Red was Pluto’s favorite person on this planet, but...
Why couldn’t Micra be selfish this once? Why couldn’t she care for herself or ask for help! Pluto didn’t even know how to help her on a small scale and if she did what would that do? If she helped Thirteen on a grand scale, Micra wouldn’t have to worry about it being a targeted thing.
“Would she care?” Pluto asked aloud, a crackle behind her voice. Would Micra care if Pluto made a gesture that wasn’t wholly loyal to Thirteen, and instead loyal exclusively to her? Would that even matter? If it was her little sister’s life or death, why would pluto even take appearances into consideration?
Swallowing her pride Pluto picked up her phone, digging through her contacts, freezing the moment she tapped on Micra’s; the photo was a picture of her and little Red. A quiver of her lower lip threatened a release of tears, a lump building in her throat as she looked over the photo. Coming to the Capitol had been good for her career, sure, the obvious next step since there was nowhere left to climb in Thirteen but – but what was life like when she couldn’t have those she loved most close again?
She sniffed, quickly dabbing at the corners of her eyes, refusing to allow the floodgates to fully open; homesickness didn’t suit Pluto in the slightest, she was far too old to be crying over something so simple. Collecting herself, she began a call to Micra, each buzz making her lose confidence. She just needed to ask Micra if it’d be okay to send her something to help out. Pluto couldn’t solve the issue of starving in Thirteen, but she could take care of her little sister. The line became live.
“Vena, I have something I need to ask you.”
The tone was tired, coming across the line. “Cava? Wha-?”
Pluto breathed successfully for maybe the first time in the past thirty minutes, maybe the past hour and gave a small laugh into the phone, fully unintentional, more than relieved to hear Micra’s voice, “I’m worried about you, and I’m not too proud to admit that – I – you’re going to get sick if you keep self-sacrificing like this, kiddo.”
There was some shuffling, some crackling on the other end, but maybe that was the connection from the capitol down to thirteen’s tunnels. “Pluto… I’m fine. I’m a doctor.” a beat, and then an omission. “I’m not going to let Red stunt. He needs all the height he can get.”
“I am too,” Pluto responded, the weight of her weariness thick in her voice. “Starving yourself isn’t smart, you know better,” She said, not bleeding any niceties into words.
“I’m not starving myself. I’m eating as much as I can.” she wasn’t trying to be defensive. “There just isn’t enough.”
“What if there was,” Pluto jumped on the words, not attempting to speak over Micra at all, but wanting to get a word in, to stop the argument before it truly got started, and knowing their track record, well, fights could get ugly. “What if there was enough for you, and Red, and mom, and dad,” Pluto muttered into the phone cradling it impossibly close to her face, eyes coming closed as if Micra were there in front of her,
The response was slow. It was hesitant, but it came because that was all Micra wanted, and they both knew it. “...you could… do that?”
“I could figure something out,” Pluto vowed, nodding along with her words, “I am so worried sick about you, I haven’t stopped thinking about how small you were getting, Micra.”
“We need food.” she nodded. “I need it. I’m… I’m not going to let red take the hit. I won’t. But-” she trailed off, and understanding grew between them. Micra was doing her best, but she needed food.
“Then I’ll send canned peaches by the truckload,” Pluto joked. A breath fell from her lips, and she allowed her tone to grow serious again, “But – please – send me a list, tell me what you both need, tell me how to help.”
“Funny story, actually, Jeannie showed up the other day with canned peaches.” it was off-topic, but a quiet agreement also. “I think the whole tower knows I like peaches somehow.”
Pluto’s hardened exterior broke away, the mention of Jeannie and then the rest of the tower throwing her into a quick chuckle, “So, I’m guessing you’re overstocked on those if anything.”
A laugh, chuckles that faded into the cackle of the line before the list came. “Protein. Nonperishables. Starch.”
“I’ll do my best,” Pluto, again, vowed, “I’ll talk to – Lysander might know or –” She broke off mid-sentence, sucking in another breath, wanting to keep herself away from the tears that were still biting at the back of her throat. “I’ll figure it out and if I can’t send it I’ll bring it.”
“We’d love to see you.” and then, tentatively, a question. “Are you okay? You sound…” tired… beat… “not ideal. Not to be a hypocrite, but when did you last eat?”
“I’ll be fine,” Came the response, maybe quicker than she could get away with, eschewing her own safety for that of her family wasn’t an unfamiliar feat for her; ignoring food and drink just to care for others. Pluto wasn’t a selfless woman, but for Micra and for Red she would be.
“Tell you what. Shower, get a snack and a glass of water… and maybe if you call back red will be home from hockey. You can call us both?”
She wanted to argue, wanted to put up a fight, but Micra was right. Micra was always right when it came to nitpicking at any of Pluto’s unhealthy habits. “I’d like that,” She spoke softly into the phone, “I’ll text you to see if you’re free?”
“I will be.” a breath, a bone stretching and cracking, or maybe that was the line. “I love you, cava. Thank you.”
4. Hair colour? Naturally brunette but constantly has it red and sometimes blonde
5. Hair style? Mostly curly, will straighten sometimes
6. Eye colour? Green
7. Glasses or contact lenses? Contact Lenses but she does wear her glasses every now and then
8. Make up? Doesn’t wear it to often as she tends to spend a lot of time fighting at her club and working out
9. Scars? A few. She’s got one on her shoulder where a knife hit her, a bullet scar on her right hip, plus scars from demon battles scattered in various parts of her back and abdomen
10. Birthmarks? One on her upper left shoulder
11. Tattoos? Several scattered all over her body
12. Type of clothes? Mostly skin tight, leather, loves silk especially for bed
13. What are their feet like? Mostly combat boot cladden
14. Are they in good health? Great health
15. Do they have any disabilities? No
Personality
1. What words or phrases do they overuse? Shit
2. Do they have a catchphrase? No
3. Are they more optimistic or pessimistic? Pessimistic
4. Are they introverted or extroverted? Extroverted
5. What bad habits do they have? Keeping their emotions bottled up, evading emotions and how she really feels
6. What makes them laugh out loud? Jokes (especially puns), being tickled
7. How do they display affection? They don’t, at least not typically. She’s not much of a hugger but sometimes will depending on the person. She mostly displays affection in the way she looks at someone or talks
8. How do they want to be seen by others? As a badass that can do take care of herself
9. How do they see themselves? As a badass that can take care of herself
10. How are they seen by others? In a lot of different ways
11. Strongest character trait? Self-destruction
12. Weakest character trait? The ability to speak how she feels
13. How competitive are they? Very
14. Do they make snap judgements or take time to consider? Snap judgements
15. How do they react to praise? Proudly
16. How do they react to criticism? Depends on the criticism and who it comes from
17. What is their greatest fear? Losing their family and loved ones
18. What are their biggest secrets? Can’t share those or wouldn’t be secrets
19. When was the last time they cried? When she left Dorian
20. Are they indoorsy or outdoorsy? Outdoorsy
21. What is their sinful little habit? Dorian
22. What quality do they most value in a friend? Loyalty and honesty equally
23. What do they consider an overrated virtue? Modesty
24. If they could change one thing about themselves, what would it be? Her powers, she’d give herself at least one defensive power
25. What is their obsession? Her club
26. What are their pet peeves? Loud chewers, dishonesty
27. What are their idiosyncrasies? Emotionally Evasive for the most part
Friends and Family
1. Is their family big or small? Who does it consist of? Huge, parents, aunts and uncles, a shit ton of cousins, and a whole hell of a lot of extended family
2. What is their perception of family? The literal world
3. Do they have siblings? Older or younger? Yes, Older sister, Hanna, and younger sister, Peyton
4. Describe their best friend. N/A
5. Ideal best friend? N/A
6. Do they have any pets? Two dogs. Pitbull named Sassy and German Shepherd named Artemis
7. Who are their natural allies? Her family
8. Who are their surprising allies? Dorian, a select few demons from her fight club
Past and Future
1. What was your character like as a baby? As a child? Pretty much how she is now, a troublemaker
2. Did they grow up rich or poor? Uh… They didn’t really go without. More middle-class I believe
3. Did they grow up nurtured or neglected? Nurtured
4. What is their greatest achievement? Her club(s)
5. What was their first kiss like? Memorable and with a demon
6. What is the worst thing they did to someone they loved? Threatened to vanquish them
7. What was their childhood ambition? To be successful like her Aunt Piper
8. What is their best childhood memory? Using her glamour power to prank her sisters
9. Did they have an imaginary childhood friend? No
10. When was the last time they were crushed with disappointment? Dorian revealing, he was a demon and a plot to use Parker to get to her family when they first started dating
11. Has anyone ever saved their life? Tons of times. Her sisters, Dorian, her whitelighter and cousin, Wyatt Halliwell
12. Strongest childhood memory? Her dad teaching her how to dance while listening to Jazz when she was little
Love
1. Do they believe in love at first sight? Yes
2. Are they in a relationship? Sort of?
3. How do they behave in a relationship? I guess she can be a little more domesticated when in love but for the most part she’s not really all that different
4. When did you character last have sex? Like the other night lol
5. What sort of sex do they have? Crazy good sex
6. Has your character ever been in love? Yes
7. Have they ever had their heart broken? Yes
Conflict
1. How do they respond to a threat? Fight
2. Are they most likely to fight with their fists or their tongue? Fists
3. What is your character’s kryptonite? Dorian
4. If your character could only save one thing from their burning house, what would it be? Her dogs
5. How do they perceive strangers? Threats
6. What are their phobias? Not being good enough, getting her family hurt or killed
7. What is their choice of weapon? Her fists but also her knives
8. What living person do they most despise? She doesn’t really despise anyone
9. Have they ever been bullied or teased? Dorian teases her all the time
10. Where do they go when they’re angry? Her club
11. Who are their enemies and why? The Source and any demon trying to kill or hurt her family because of obvious reasons
Work, Education and Hobbies
1. What is their current job? Business Owner
2. What do they think about their current job? Loves it
3. What are some of their past jobs? Retail, boxing coach
4. What are their hobbies? Boxing, Martial arts of all types, Archery, knife throwing
5. Educational background? High school and college, business degree
6. Intelligence level? High
7. Do they have any specialist training? Boxing and martial arts, personal training
8. Do they have a natural talent for something? Martial arts
9. Do they play a sport? Are they any good? Exceptionally good
Favourites
1. What is their favourite animal? Dog
2. What place would they most like to visit? Greece
3. What is the most beautiful thing they’ve ever seen? The sun setting off the coast of Santa Monica
4. What is their favourite song? I Will Not Bow by Breaking Benjamin
5. What is their favourite colour? Red
6. Favourite food: Steak
7. What is their favourite day of the week? Sunday
Values
1. What do they think is the worst thing that can be done to a person? Being used and lied to
2. When did they last lie? Literally every day when it comes to how she feels
3. What’s their view of lying? She hates being lied to
Daily life
1. What are their eating habits? Healthy for the most part. She doesn’t eat a lot of junk food
2. Are they minimalist or a clutter hoarder? Minimalist (except for her plants)
3. What do they do first thing on a weekday morning? Go for a run
4. What do they do on a Sunday afternoon? Be lazy. She loves her Sundays because they’re her rest days. She will literally spend all day inside doing whatever she feels like doing.
5. What do they do on a Friday night? Go to her night club/fight club and hang out with Talia
6. What is the soft drink of choice? Dr. Pepper
7. What is their alcoholic drink of choice? Tequila
Hallam: I thought I was too... I’m going to help this last time, to get Jordan their own solid code so they can live a proper life. And if Garcia needs some to go off on her own, I’ll support that as well. I don’t like it or want to, but it’s what’s happening...
They sigh.
Hallam: just this time I’ll sacrifice my... selfishness to help others. And try to balance the fact that even if I’m hurting people... I’m helping those I’m closer too.
Hallam can be your partner and have a life! Let them be with Emara! They deserve to have some sort of comfort and fulfillment, don't they? They deserve to be happy ~🔔
She sighs and begins typing into her screen.
Garcia: I... I think that they’d be spared the sooner they’re over Emara. Before she realizes that Hallam shouldn’t be kept around because of who they are, and leaves them alone completely...
Her voice was void of frustration and anger, but carried a certain sadness and remorse to it. She clears her throat and speaks clearly.
Garcia: Jordan start looking for another target... I don’t think this will take much longer now that we’re back on track.
They're allowed to have a life, you know. Not everything Hallam does revolve around you ~🔔
She frowns and seems shocked.
Garcia:...What? No that’s not- it’s for the sake of both of us in the long run! Not just me. We’re in this business together. They just have to listen...
She wraps her arms around herself, then shakes her head and pulls up a screen.
