#maybe i should draw the rest of the dokis hmm

[apex-academy]

Chapter 5: Caring Is a Hazard to Your Health (#23)

Ten minutes in, I get to find out how irreparably horrible I am at shooting a basketball from the corner.

“Okay, like, are you on ‘S’ already or do I not know how to spell?”

“Can’t be both?”

“Hilarious. And yeah, I’ll get all the pressure on my next turn. Ichiriki, you’re up.”

I toss the basketball to him.

“Yaaaay~!”

“I get to go from wherever, then, right?”

“Just like the last three times you went after I missed.”

“Okie dokie!”

At least he left out the “artichokey” this time. Not that it makes the situation any less bizarre.

Goofing around playing basketball, with half the people still left, right after being told our loved ones will die if we don’t commit murder. I can’t even tell if this is a good way to deal with it or not. Is there even a way to deal with... all of it?

“Yo, dude!”

It takes me a second to blink and look up.

“This is a no-thinking zone, ‘kay?”

I glance around the room.

“Do I, specifically, need to leave?”

“Ouch.”

“Nah, dude, just don’t go gloomy on us.”

“Why would you wanna be gloomy, anyway?” 

“It’s been a great day, right?!”

“A whole lot of lives just got threatened, so not really?”

“Well, we’re still having a good game, yeah? Y’ don’t have t’ say the whole day’s been great t’ enjoy some ‘f it.”

I narrowly keep myself from pointing out that everyone besides him can’t do that quite so easily.

“Totally!”

“And, like, it’s day one. If we’re gonna worry, we don’t have to yet, right?”

“Is that how that works?”

I let out a breath.

“Sorry. This just isn’t the absolute most consuming game, is all. I’ll try to focus.”

“Yeah, maybe then you won’t lose next round!”

“Yeah...”

Ichiriki makes his next shot from what appears to be a completely random location. Kaichi lines up and sends the ball bouncing hard off the rim.

“And I ‘m ‘fficially a HOR.”

“That sure is one way to put it.”

The ricocheting ball only just misses my head. It goes bounding off towards the stage.

“I got it.”

I enter an awkward “trying not to get hit crossing the street” sort of jog and make it to the ball before it stops rolling.

“Hmm?”

There’s something else here. I reach over with my foot to nudge it toward me. Seems like a normal key. Too small for the dorm rooms or study halls here, but...

“Yo! You lose the ball or what?”

“No, I got it, sorry.”

Might as well swipe the key while I’m here. It doesn’t trigger any obvious alarms, and I get the ball back in play before anyone starts squinting too hard. Good enough.

Ichiriki manages to strike out—metaphorically; I swear I’m not going into Aidan sports commentary mode—before I do, and, shockingly, Kanagi wins.

“Good game, dudes!”

“Better luck next time.”

“Yeah, yeah. G’d game, brah.”

“I had lots of fun~!”

“Yeah.”

“IIIIII had a drawing to get back to, so I’ll see you guys around?”

“Oh, unless you want to come with me!”

“I’m good. I’ll just head back to my room for a little bit.”

“All right, cool. See ya.”

“Later.”

I have no reason to go elsewhere at the moment, so I head to the dorms. 

I end up stalling at my door. More than usual, at least.

“...”

I swear I hear something... Don’t think it’s coming from here, though.

I turn around, and it doesn’t take much investigating to notice Mahavir’s door isn’t completely shut.

“...”

Wonder if he’s settled down. Is he even in there?

I go ahead and knock. The door shudders but doesn’t swing open. 

“Mahavir?”

“Ah... Yes?”

“Sorry if I caught you at a bad time. Just thought I’d check in.”

“Your door isn’t quite shut, so I figured you either really want to talk or really don’t.”

“...................”

After a bit of shuffling, the door opens.

“...”

“So, uh... Which is it?”

“...”

“I’m not sure myself.”

“Yeah, I get that.”

“Are you resting enough?”

“Yes.”

I should probably be concerned he didn’t stop to think, but it’s not like I have proof either way. At least I’ve brought it up.

What else are we supposed to talk about? “Hey, I hope our parents aren’t about to die?” “Hey, need any help planning a murder?” “Hey, do we need to lock you up somewhere so you don’t do anything rash?” Not the greatest conversation starters.

Hopefully not necessary questions, either. But...

“You’re not...”

“...planning anything, are you?”

“..........”

“We have no proof anyone outside this facility is in danger.”

“........”

Even in silence, there’s a tension about him that makes it feel like he’s on the verge of exploding. I have no idea how to defuse anything here, but I can see about distractions. It’s Mahavir, so... he needs to feel like he’s doing something, right? I don’t have any grand escape plans at the moment, but I doubt he’s up for a casual game of pool. Let’s see...

“You haven’t been in Itsurou’s room, have you?”

“His study hall? Not recently. I believe it’s been locked.”

“And his dorm room?”

“I haven’t gone inside or tried to. Why do you ask?”

“I’ve been wondering if he may have had some theories on the young master or anything else useful.”

“I have his key, but I might need to move the furniture around a little if I want to give the place a good look. Do you think you could help me?”

“It doesn’t have to be now, but. Whenever you’re feeling a little better, maybe.”

“Er...”

“I don’t see why not? Although...”

“Are you sure it’s safe in there?”

“Not completely, I guess, but I’ve at least given it a once-over without setting off any booby traps.”

“Good to know.”

“I, ah...”

“Perhaps later today. I’m still rather nauseous, I’m afraid.”

“No problem. Get some rest, and I’ll check in again later.”

“Of course. Until then.”

We give a little mutual nod before he shuts the door, all the way this time.

“...”

There’s only so much trouble he can get up to in his own room, right? Unless he’s already hidden something in there. But he wouldn’t have had the chance, right? Aidan and Yuki were right on his tail when he left.

Not that they’re the swiftest athletes here. Still, he shouldn’t have been able to run out to grab some knives or anything first. And there’s no reason to think he was plotting a murder before we got our motive.

Granted, I wasn’t plotting one, either, and...

“...”

I’ll just hope he has a little more presence of mind than me.

And hope he actually gets some rest. Not too hard to believe he’s genuinely not feeling well, after everything. He’s never been one to admit it, though.

We’ll just... see, I guess.

I step into my own room and lock the door behind me.

[BACK] [NEXT]

#apexplot #apex5 #fangan

[flamboyantly-incompetent]

Spencer Reid Fic., Pt. 4 (1)

I came up with the plot for this one before watching season 8, so for anyone knowing about the Maeve story arc, this fic exists outside of that universe.

I’m just very indecisive but I decided to go with my original plan.

Also, this is going to be really long, so I’ll release it in parts.

PT. 3

PT. 2

PT. 1

Warning : there is some violence/gore/stalking in this one, but if you’re OK with watching a show like Criminal Minds you should be fine.

Hades pt. 1 -- Exposition, First theme

Sometime around 4:30, Spencer was trying to silently put socks on.  I sat up and rubbed my eyes, content to watch him for a minute.  I wasn’t sure if he owned a mirror, but his consistently tousled hair and crooked ties suggested he hadn’t seen one in a decade.

“Did I wake you?” he whispered.

“Kinda, but I’ve always been a light sleeper.  And, you don’t need to whisper we’re both awake,” I whispered back. 

“Well in that case,” he flipped the light switch, I answered with my impersonation of a pterodactyl eating a cow.  Laughing, he continued, “I have to go into work, you’re welcome to stay here though.”

I glanced at my phone and frowned.  Evelyn was supposed to text me as soon as she and her boyfriend were done canoodling so I knew she double checked the locks.  She hadn’t.  I slid out of bed and pulled my jeans, which had been thrown in a pile by the door, back on.

“Actually, I need to get back to my place.  It’s probably nothing, but Evelyn always texts me when I ask her to.  I just want to make sure everything is alright.”

“Oh, I’ll come with you.”

“No, no, I don’t want to make you late.”

He patted my forehead and said, “I’ll come with you.  Hotch won’t even notice.”

“Okie dokie then.  Thank you.”  He continued into the bathroom, shoving a toothbrush haphazardly into his mouth.

“Thanks again, Spencer,” I smiled at him, standing in the doorway.  He gave this smile every once in a while that just looked through me and he was giving it now.

Running a hand through his hair he said, “Are you sure you’re OK?”

I glanced around behind me, “Yeah, the door was locked and Eve’s always been a heavy sleeper.”  I shifted my weight, hoping I wouldn’t let on how worried I was.  “Worry about you, alright?  Be safe.”

“I will.  Gotta go, but I’ll call you... eventually!?” he continued as he jogged down the hallway.

Laughing to myself I closed the door and turned the lock.  The apartment that Eve and I rented was small, but I’d managed to cram in the Yamaha piano I’d gotten at a yard sale when we first moved here.  Running my fingers down the keys, I realized that Spencer had never actually been in my apartment.  I wonder if he’s profiled something out of me because of that.  

“Di!  Good grief it’s five in the morning, what the rockets are you doing up?” Evelyn came stumbling out of her room in her pajamas, rubbing her eyes.  Taking in my appearance, though, she straightened and gave me that, in her words, “bow-chicka-wow-wow” face.

“No drawing conclusions.  None of that.  I need caffeine.”

She followed me into the kitchen skipping.  “Isn’t that what you wore yesterday?  Doesn’t your nerd go to work at this ungodly hour?” she feigned a shocked gasp, “Were you with him all night?  Di.  Tsk, so naughty.”

“We didn’t actually....”  She let her shoulders droop, looking confused.  “He’s been working too hard.  We were on that track, but he was out when he hit the mattress.  Apparently there’s a serial killer in the area.”  Eve shivered and handed me the coffee grinder.

In between pulses of the grinder I remarked, “And who exactly,” crckcrckwhrrrr, “are you calling naughty,” crckcrackwhrrrchrck, “you spent all night talking about leather and whipped cream.”

Allen appeared suddenly, looking no worse for wear but irritable. 

“Women are insane, do you have any idea what time it is?”  Pouting, he sat down and only perked when I slid him a mug of coffee.

“Yes, Allen.  Do you have any idea who’s house you’re in?”  I sipped on my own mug. 

A sudden, cheeky smile broke his face, “Have I ever mentioned how wonderfully hospitable you are, Diana?” 

It was almost 5:30, time for me to get ready for work.  Rolling my eyes, I waved at them and made my way into the bathroom to hopefully salvage what was left of my appearance.

I worked part-time as an assistant at a recording studio, but I’d enrolled in an online college for a degree in computer science.  At around 12:30, I was sitting at my desk sifting through some assembly; it was a slow day.  White and Nerdy began to emanate from my top left drawer and I couldn’t stop the smile spreading across my face.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Diana.  I just wanted to check in; we haven’t made any breaks for the past few days, so the case is going to go cold soon.  We should be able to watch movies uninterrupted for at least a couple hours.” 

I laughed, “You should sleep for those hours, honestly you slept like a baby last night.”

“Infants are actually terrible sleepers, especially if they suffer from separation anxiety... Um, I have a huge favor to ask of you.” 

“Oh, OK.  What is it?” 

He took a deep breath in before saying, “Someone I work with figured out we’re seeing each other and demands to meet you.”

I laughed, “That’s all?  Send me their contact, I’ll figure something out.”

“Really?  Garcia will be thrilled, but I warn you, she’s kind of eccentric.”

“Hmm, sounds like someone else I know.  Wait.  Penelope Garcia?  You work with Penelope Garcia?”

“Yes, she’s our analyst, the best-”

“I know, we studied her in one of my computer security courses.  Her source and encryption algorithms were revolutionary.  Send me her info, oh my gosh.”

“I will, I’ll text it to you.  I’ve gotta run, but I’ll see you later this week after we wrap up the paperwork for this guy.  And then maybe you could meet the rest of the team?  They all, sort of, know.  Profilers.”

“Sure, sure.  Be safe, see you soonish.”

Around noon the next day, I met Penelope Garcia at a cafe she’d recommended for lunch.  I tried not to let myself get nervous, but not only was I about to meet a renowned figure in my future field, she worked with Spencer.  She was grinning when she vigorously shook my hand.

“Hi, I’m Penelope!  It’s so nice to meet you, you look so much nicer than I’d imagined!”  Her hair was done up with pink ribbon and she was wearing gigantic orange hoop earrings.

“Uh... thank you?”

“Oh, I meant nicer, like friendlier not prettier or anything I mean I assumed you’d be pretty and you obviously are but,” she finally drew a breath.

I laughed and withdrew my arm, “It’s nice to meet you too, I’m a big fan of your work, and your hacking skills, but mostly your work.”

Her smile widened and she sat down.  “So Reid found himself a techie, interesting.  So,” she said, clasping her hands, “tell me about yourself.”  I sat across from her and mirrored her posture.

“Well that’s a loaded question if I’ve ever heard one.  I’m, uh, twenty four years old.  I’m a Pisces...? Haha, what is it you want to know?”

“Anything, everything.  Do you have any pets?  Where did you go to school?  Why did you leave the music business?”  I froze, a block of fuzzy ice in my gut.

“What?”

“2008, the band Seeds of Shades appeared on the Neo-goth/emo scene, but vanished in 2011.  What happened?”  She didn’t look angry, I couldn’t figure out her motive and started to panic.

“A lot of things happened, but Penelope, Penelope, please don’t tell Spencer.  When he finds out I have to tell him.” 

She shook her head, “I don’t, I don’t understand.  Why...?”  Penelope’s phone began to ring and she excused herself.

I could hear snippets of her conversation, “Your wish is my command, handsome... What?  I thought it went cold... I’ll be there.”  Oh no.

In that moment, my phone began to ring *the only thing I ever thought was hard... Do I like Kirk or do I like Picard*

“Spencer?” I answered.

“Diana, we have another body.  The unsub was in your apartment.”

#Criminal Minds #fanfiction #spencer reid