#charlieposts;

[imjustanauthor]

@livedtough @ Sebastian

Since returning to work, a large part of Charlie's job had become chasing loose ends in the hope that he could discover something - anything - new. As grateful as he was to have his job back, being restricted to cold cases was far from the career he had been aiming for, and he was already keen to get back on track. That wasn't a problem, though. All he needed was one big break, right? He just needed to crack one big case, and then everybody would realise that he was still as capable as he'd ever been.

Considering that, it was easily to see why he'd been gravitating towards the bigger cold cases. Charlie could justify it to his superiors as the more victims there were, the more likely it was that he could find remaining evidence, but the reality was that he was hoping to solve as big a case as possible. He couldn't tell anybody this, of course. Even if they didn't think it selfish, they may start questioning his work - deciding it was shoddily done with weak connections made in the name of trying to make a name for himself again. That wasn't the case, though. Charlie had been linking together a series of missing persons cases under the assumption they were actually homicides, and he was damn sure that he was onto something!

However, as convinced as he was about his work, he couldn't deny that he had hit a dead end - or, that was, he had thought he had. Just as he'd been about to take a break and focus on something else, Charlie had thought to check online for any other potential cases that matched with his own. The True Crime community was both a blessing and a curse, getting in the way of a lot of real detective work, but also bringing to light a lot of information that would have previously gone ignored, and to cut a long story short, after finding what he thought to be some links in the US, he'd managed to track down the details of a private detective that had been involved.

It was a stroke of luck, really, that the man had moved to the UK. It could have been a coincidence too far, and Charlie wasn't about to rule out the possibility that perhaps the move had been connected to the disappearances. The move was recent, unlikely the UK cases, but what if he'd had a partner? What if... Well, there were a lot of what ifs, weren't there? And for now, Charlie was willing to give the man the benefit of the doubt.

Having found an address for the guy's new office, he decided to pay him a visit. Best to ask him any questions in person, right? Charlie politely knocked on the door before promptly deciding to just go in.

"Hey," he asked, "are you Sebastian Mendoza? I'm hoping to ask him some questions." As if it explained anything, he took out his police ID and showed it.

[imjustanauthor]

"I know I'm supposed to tell you that it'll be okay, but I don't know if that's true." —Taliesin @ Charlie.

Ill & Injured Sentences, Vol. 6

Arthur's doctor friend was a strange man. Not in a bad way, mind you! Charlie liked Taliesin well enough, he just thought he was a little... Offbeat? That was probably the politest way of putting it.

Still, odd or not, it was nice to know that Arthur knew at least one who wasn't an utter berk. That revelation had allowed Charlie to be a little less concerned about the quality of his partner's acquaintances, even if he still felt that the people he worked with seemed highly dubious. Did he have any evidence to back up this opinion? Not really, no - or, at least, nothing more than he'd observed in conversation - but one could call it a detective's instinct, and Charlie wasn't about to be swayed from his convictions.

Whatever call Arthur had needed to take must have been important because the man had remained locked in his study for a while now, leaving Charlie and Taliesin to talk among themselves. That wasn't a problem, of course. Despite a somewhat rocky start - Charlie having been initially reluctant to discuss his heath with anybody, even a doctor, and, regrettably, found himself lashing out a little because of it - the conversation now was perfectly pleasant. Or, at least, it would be, if a particular problem of the detective's hadn't decided to rear its ugly head.

As they spoke, it slowly became clear that Charlie was doing something strange with his glass of water. He would pick it up, hold it for a few seconds, then put it down again. A few moments later, he'd repeat the action, never actually taking a drink. Even though he looked at the glass every time he lifted it, he didn't seem to noticed that the behaviour was peculiar until Taliesin had gently pointed it out to him.

Perseveration was the term for what could be described as a glitch in the brain's wiring as a result of the trauma dealt to it. It was characterised by the mind's failure to let go of an action, phrase, or emotion. Sometimes it showed through mimicking something he'd seen somebody else do, sometimes - as with the current situation - through repetition of whatever his head had got stuck on. It wasn't intentional behaviour, and it wasn't always something Charlie was aware he was doing.

Because it wasn't intentional, the best way to stop it was disruption. Taliesin's words had managed to do that for a second, but not completely, and Charlie couldn't help but sigh in frustration as he reached for the glass again. The blunt assessment of the situation that followed didn't help either. Even though Charlie knew there was no promise that things would be 'okay', he couldn't help but feel a stab of upset in response - and with his brain's energy being spent attempting to regulate the emotion, he had fewer resources left to try and get it to switch gears and stop the loop that was being played out.

"It's been getting worse," Charlie admitted as he put the glass down again. "Not just with this - everything's been getting worse. I've been worried that- Well, I've been worried that I'm backsliding, you know?"

That was the first time he'd said the thought aloud. Nobody liked to admit that they weren't getting better - especially when they were in a new relationship, caught up in the need to be something worth desiring - and Charlie was no exception to that.

He didn't know why it had been getting worse. If he had to guess, he supposed it could be stress from work. Being back on the job wasn't easy. It never had been, even when he'd had full cognitive function, and now he also had the additional pressure of feeling that he needed to prove himself to get his career back on track. Another option was his relationship with Arthur. Charlie didn't actually want to think that, but it was still a disruption to his routine, wasn't it? That was supposed to be bad for him now - according to his usual doctor, anyway - and in addition to that, intense positive feelings could be just as much a strain on resources as negative ones, couldn't they? That was why people felt exhausted after having the best night of their lives.

"Nowt I can do about it." Or, more accurately, it wasn't like there was anything he could do about it that he was willing to see through. After all, all those potential stressors were things that Charlie enjoyed. He'd fought so hard to get his job back, and he loved being with Arthur. Why should he give them up?

"Not like any of you doctors can do anything about it either. Everyone's been very clear about how this isn't something that'll go away."

[imjustanauthor]

"You know, I am stronger than I look." — Arthur @ Charlie.

Angry & Irritated Sentences, Vol. 34

Charlie couldn't help his slightly sceptical look in response, his eyes momentarily dancing over Arthur's body as he assessed the claim. Arthur was fit, it was true. Charlie still wasn't sure the exact details of his job, but it had something to do with the military, and that usually meant a certain level of fitness was expected, even if it wasn't required. Plus, Charlie knew that Arthur was fit. He'd seen the man's body - more than that, in fact -

But, while it was true that the man was stronger than he looked, it hardly seemed likely that he was stronger than Charlie was. He only had to look at him to know that! Arthur didn't have the size advantage - not in height, nor bulk. The speed advantage was perhaps another question, but that wasn't the matter at hand!

To be quite honest, the matter at hand wasn't even really how strong Arthur may or may not be anymore. The statement - delivered in response to one a thoughtless comment from Charlie while discussing his new gym routine - had swiftly wiped the prior conversation from his mind, replacing it with a single, vivid thought: whether or not Arthur was stronger than he looked, he really wouldn’t mind seeing a demonstration of that apparent strength.

By the time his gaze had finished their journey across Arthur's physique, a spark of something mischievous had appeared in Charlie's eyes, accompanied by a hint of a smirk on his lips, promising the intention of a challenge he already knew he would find more than enjoyable.

"Oh yeah? Prove it, then."

[imjustanauthor]

“I figured you wouldn’t have the time, so I went and picked up lunch for you.” - Moriarty for Charlie

coworkers to lovers prompts ˗ˏˋ ꒰ 🍊 ꒱

Charlie honestly couldn't get his head around why Sherlock Holmes disliked Professor Moriarty. The man was supposed to be a genius, right? Well, for such a smart guy, he was clearly a terrible judge of character, because the professor had never been anything but polite and helpful from Charlie's point of view!

Having remembered the other man mentioning an interest in consulting on cases, Charlie had been keeping him in mind whenever he came across something in his stack of unsolved cases that might require a mathematician. Unfortunately, he hadn't found anything like that - but he had found a series of murders that seemed to have some sort of pattern to them! His hope was that Moriarty could do something with numbers to help determine what exactly that pattern was.

Considering the rivalry with Holmes, it had seemed wise not to meet at the Yard. Instead, Charlie had gone to Moriarty, meeting the professor in his office.

"Oh, thank you. Yeah, I didn't have time to grab anything at the train station. Nearly missed my connection!" Charlie replied with a smile as he took the sandwiches that had been offered to him. In return, he then handed Moriarty a rather thick case file.

"These are the documents I mentioned on the phone. The original investigations didn't suspect anything, but I reckon they're all connected. I thought you could have a look and see if there's any kind of mathematical logic to the pattern?"

[imjustanauthor]

@imprvdente continued from [x]

As willing as Charlie was to invoke brotherhood, he had a feeling it wouldn't get any real result for them. What use was a blood connection when you didn't know each other? And when you were literally thousands of years younger than your brother? If their roles were reversed, Charlie could certainly see himself ignoring anybody claiming to be his sibling and asking him for a favour.

Trading seemed like a much more sensible option. It was just a shame that they had nothing they could really offer.

"We should have brought him a Playstation. I bet he would like that."

Did Hercules have a TV? Charlie didn't know. Maybe he did, or maybe he'd never encountered electricity before. Did he own a microwave? What about a hairdryer? If he was anything like the guy in the Disney film, he'd probably like a hairdryer.

On the topic of hair care, though...

"I've got some hair gel. The tub's half used, but do you think he might want that? We could offer him a makeover. After being alone for so long, don't you think he might appreciate looking nice again? Not that I'm implying that he'll be ugly, or anything. Unless I got all my looks from my mum, he must be at least somewhat decent looking!"

[imjustanauthor]

🔗 Charlie & Fish @imprvdente

Send 🔗 for our muses to be handcuffed together!

Charlie had been attempting to flirt. In hindsight, perhaps playing with handcuffs hadn't been a good way to do that, but in his mind, he'd thought it would be effective! After all, didn't people like handcuffs in the bedroom? Charlie had dabbled with that in the past, and he certainly couldn't say he had any complaints. Considering that, he'd figured that maybe playing around with them in a sweet way outside of the context of anything salacious could give Fish a hint of what could come later, which in turn would pique her interest and maybe even give them something to look forwards to.

So, with all that in mind, he'd started by joking that he'd have to handcuff her to himself if she tried to leave their evening together for a work call. When a work call actually came in, because of course it had, Charlie had gone and done just as he had threatened to, planning on releasing her a minute later once they'd had a good laugh about it. The problem? He had forgotten to find the key to the handcuffs before enacting his master plan, and now they were stuck together despite Fish's need to leave.

"They key must be around here somewhere..." Charlie mused aloud, scratching the back of his head with his free hand as he looked around his flat. "I'm sure I saw it recently. I mean, I must have taken it with me to work, right?"

[imjustanauthor]

🌲 Sleeping bag / for Fish & Charlie in the PJO AU @imprvdente

There Was Only One Bed Variants

"Remind me why we only have one sleeping bag?" Charlie asked, rubbing his head as he stared down at the item in question with a bewildered expression. He swore they'd packed two. Was he imagining it, or had they lost one somewhere? And if they'd lost one, where was it now?

Did it even matter? If they had had a second sleeping bag at one point, it was presumably long gone now, therefore the more important question was what they were going to do now.

They could sleep in shifts? Was that a good idea? No... No, it probably wasn't. Then they'd have to spend twice as long resting.

"Um. Well, is it going to be cold tonight? We could share, but..."

But that would be bit awkward, wouldn't it? Especially considering that it was definitely sized with a single person in mind!

[imjustanauthor]

“Maths doesn’t take sides. It doesn’t judge.” Moriarty for Charlie

Foundation Sentences, Vol. 1

"In theory, neither does the law, but it doesn't always work out that way, does it?"

Charlie worked for the police; he was perfectly aware of all the bias that went into enforcing the law. It wasn't a good thing, of course, but it happened, and he was pretty sure that'd never change. You could dress it up as instinct or anything else, but bias was, in his opinion, an innate human trait.

With that in mind, it had to exist within the field of mathematics too, right? Numbers could be manipulated. Maybe not the raw equations, but the way the results were presented? That could certainly be twisted to fit a viewpoint.

Plus, mistakes did happen sometimes. Maybe numbers didn't judge, but they could certainly be wrong.

Not that he thought Moriarty had made any mistakes, of course! The man seemed to know what he was doing!

"if maths doesn't take sides, then how come politicians often have different statistics for identical matters, huh?"