YoshiSkittlez

Incursions

Dooooo it!

Incursions

I hope everything is ok Roman :-( im worried about you

Incursions

Collaboration between Gonzo and YoshiSkittlez

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There was a long period of silence on both ends of the communicator. Both men just stared at each other; one in disbelief, and the other with a sort of reluctance. Finally, after a short time, Henry began his story.

"It all started at a party..."


Riley Saunders, the very definition of 'rich girl raised right.' Having been born into an extremely wealthy family with a trustfund having to be shared with a single sibling, Riley would never have to work a day in her life. However, Riley and Desmond's parents raised them differently, embedding it into their children's minds that just because they had money, didn't mean that they should loaf around the rest of their lives. They should know the value of work, and the happiness it can bring when in the workfield. And so, Desmond went on to become a firefighter and Riley a receptionist for New Ancora's supreme court, directly under Henry Jamison, a name that was becoming just as popular as the Saunders' last name and the power it held.

Riley had been working for Henry for nearly six years now, progressing with him as his title continued to increase. He was a good boss, though firm, but Riley was a good enough worker that he never had to come down too hard on her for much to begin with. It was just three years ago that Riley started to realize (while dating other men at the time) that she had a fixation towards Mr. Jamison. It could have been the fact that he really was a good looker, not to mention his own fame and power he was creating from practically nothing, or maybe it was just the tabboo situation that he was simply her boss. Whatever the reason, she never did much serious dating after that, determined to be that pillar that Henry could lean on any time he needed her...and hopefully...after he had reached his goal...he could realize just how important she was to him too...
Henry Richard Jamison, son of James Mason Jamison and Lauren Jamison. Not only was he a man of many talents, but he was what many would call "good-hearted", "caring", some would even go so far as to say "sensitive". Born to two wealthy lawyers from District Zero, the man who would later become the President of Ancora worked himself up from practically nothing. His father, although wealthy, wasn't a popular lawyer, representing many cases from lower districts, sometimes even providing services for free. It was because of this, Henry, in school, was known as the "garbage man's son." From then on Henry vowed to do things differently; to become a far more respected individual than his father, to be more successful, be more liked, be more feared, and that's exactly what he did.

Henry looked up from his martini and his eyes fell upon his very attractive secretary, Miss Riley Saunders. She had joined his staff as an intern in her late teenage, early adulthood years, and after showing such passion for her work, she was hired shortly after (it also wasn't bad that she was a Saunders, which meant another way to gain popularity between the upper district members). He often wondered what it would be like to be with such a lively young woman like her, but because he was so involved with work, and because that wouldn't be professional, he usually pushed those thoughts aside. After taking another sip of his beverage he slowly made his way to her.
"Hello, Miss Saunders, how are you enjoying the party?"

Riley was quite the hot-spot for attention that night, and it wasn't even remotely because of the fact that she was downright beautiful and stuck out in the sea of corperate stuck-ups in her denim jean skirt, red pumps and matching red Christmas blouse, which was buttoned down one button too far that would be deemed 'appropriate' for a work party, but no one said a word about it. She was currently talking amongst a rather large group of secretaries such as herself, nursing her third glass of red wine for the evening. Between listening to bits and pieces of the three different conversations that seemed to be taking place in her group, she would occasionally hum the Christmas tune that was playing in the background, hardly audible above the low roar of the party. She had hardly even heard her boss approach her, though when she did she turned and gave him a smile.

"Mr. Jamison, I'm enjoying myself quite well thank you. Can I get you anything?" She asked. Even at a party, she still managed to do her job by making sure he had everything he needed. It wasn't out of her character either to drop whatever it is she was doing if he had needed her to run to the office for a sudden project. In fact, thats exactly what had happened last year.

Henry shot Riley one of his famous half-smiles; the left half of his mouth partly closed, the right half pulled up into a small grin, it was a discerning smile that not only showed confidence and dominance, but was well known to melt hearts. He was amazed at Saunders' dedication, and always tried to show he appreciated it, a card on her birthday, a card on Christmas, even a bouquet of flowers on Valentine's Day (which always had his colleagues muttering and whispering in the break room, but he didn'tcare), but today, he was giving her the day off, and he intended to keep her off duty.

"No, no. That won't be necessary, Miss Saunders. In fact, I came here to ask you the same. Is there anything I can get you?"

A pink blush found it's way to Riley's cheeks at his smile. Good God, how many times had she ever thought about that smile? Though the better question was, when wasn't she thinking about that smile? She passed the slight heart flutter in her chest by sipping at her wine casually, as long as she managed not to choke on it...she should be fine. After the beverage had gone down smoothly, she proceeded to shake her head no.

"Everything is well Mr. Jamison, but I appreciate the gesture all the same." She said sincerely. "How are you enjoying's the party then Sir? Up to your standards?" She asked, a mock-tease in her tone.

Now it was Henry's turn to blush slightly. Sir. The way she addressed him, as sir, although professional, always drove him a tad but crazy. Many times had she addressed him as sir, and he had to stop himself from just...

"I uh.." He cleared his throat, the flustered look slowly leaving his face. The other secretaries noticed and giggled. "The party is good. You know John and his gatherings. If he keeps it up, I'm telling you, he'll be somewhere big some day." Henry took another sip of his martini and shot her another half-smile, he could've sworn someone swooned.

"And you? How are you enjoying the party?"

Riley couldn't help but to let out a soft giggle, the cute noise catching the immediate attention of some of the other men in the room, bur Riley paid them no heed. When she was talking to Henry Jamison, it was like no one else existed...just the two of them and not a care in the world.

"You've already asked me that Sir. Perhaps you've gone a bit too heavy on the martini's tonight?" She asked, though not in a way where she was advising him to stop, rather that he was simply having a good time and relishing in what the party had to offer.

"I know we shouldn't discuss work at a party, but I did want to let you know that those files for your re-election as senator have been filed and documented. By comparing the numbers to the last time you've run...there's no way you can lose. At this rate, Sir, John won't be the only one making it somewhere big. You're doing so well and the people love you. Give it a couple years, and there will be a fresh new face sitting in that presidential chair." She cleared her throat, realizing that she had been rambling a bit too much. Her attention shortly turned to the middle area of the room where some of the more drunken party guests had been singing kareoke Christmas music, and she smiled. A distraction at it's finest, because at this rate, she was sure to make herself to look like an idiot in front of him. Her head turned back to Henry. "But if you'll excuse me Sir, I do believe it is my turn to give a go at 'Up on the Housetop.'"

She handed Henry her drink for him to hold, and then turned to go to the center of the room where she took the microphone and waited for the song to begin.
Henry blushed yet again and smiled, shaking his head slowly.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't realize I had asked that. Perhaps I have had one too many..."

As Riley, unsurprisingly, changed the subject and talked about work, Henry listened intently, getting lost in the movement of her lips. Oh how he wished there was misletoe above them both at that moment. Once she cleared her throat, he was thrust back into reality and he let out a small laugh. His hand went out and took hers in his.

"Thank you, Riley, really. You always know what to say." He took the wine glass in his hand and shot her another half-smile. "Go kill it out there."

The music started after she had put in her request, and began to sing. Having taken voice lessons as a little girl all the way up into her late teens, she was very good...stunning in fact. Even a song as simple as 'Up on the Housetop' she brought it out with such emotion and passion that the room was filled with applause by the time she was done. She handed the microphone to the next person and stepped off of the small stage, heading back to Henry to retrieve her drink. She just hoped that singing in front of all these people was enough to have calmed her nerves when she returned to speak with him, but upon retreiving her drink, she had realized she was wrong.

"Well? How did I do?" She asked flashing him a nervous smile and then immediately went to sip at her drink as she felt a warmness course through her body...but it wasn't because of the alcohol. Her mind shifted to a handful of other times she had felt this same way when Henry was near. How many times had she pleasured herself thinking of him? And how many times at her own desk had she done it, secretly wishing that he could just catch her? Thinking about it now sent goosebumps over her skin, and so she took another fast drink from her wine glass, finally emptying it of it's contents.

Henry had found himself a small spot on the wall to lean on as Riley started singing. His eyes widened momentarily as Riley began singing. Her voice was beautiful, he had never heard something so wonderful before. The surprised look was wiped away and instantly substituted for that of a completely happy and content look. Sadly, though, the song was over, and his secretarty was making her way over to him. He handed her drink over to her and smiled, letting out a small laugh.

"Well, well, well, Ms. Saunders, I didn't know you could sing like that. That is amazing. Probably the best voice I've heard anywyhere." Henry shot her another half-smile and looked down at his glass, which was now empty. He mentally cursed himself for being close to her at such an intimate party without liquid courage. "Why didn't you become a professional singer? You're voice is so good.."

Riley let out a slightly embarassed laugh at her boss' praises. "It just wasn't something I saw myself doing for a long time, I'd get bored after a while you know?" Her green eyes glanced down at first her empty glass, and then his. "Shall we get our refills then?"

Henry nodded slightly, and turned in the direction of the bar, when his portable holo-communicator sounded. Henry rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Excuse me, please. I need to take this." He mumbled before walking out of the room into somewhere more quiet.

He stepped into a room a few seconds later and opened the message. A small hologram of himself popped up, reminding him of some other file he had to file before the weekend was up, meaning he needed to go, now. His hand went back into his pocket after the message finished, and he felt around for his office keys. He groaned inwardly when he realized that he had forgotten his keys at home, and it wasn't close enough to work to stop by quickly. Then he remembered Riley. There was no doubt that she had a pair of keys to the office. A dark smile flashed across his face as an idea formed in his slightly clouded head.

"Ah, Riley! There you are!" Henry stepped up behind Riley and tapped her shoulder. "I am so sorry, but I need to go to work to file something, but I dont have my keys. I forgot them at home, and I know that you have them, seeing as how you are so much more responsible than me. Would you mind terribly if you came with me to the office?"

Riley, meanwhile had wandered off from the bar once her wine glass was refilled and eventually approached John, the very man of the hour. She gave him her quick congratulations, followed by the customary 'making sure he received Mr. Jamison's gift' and then the whole 'we would gladly appreciate your support in the re-election.' Her attention then wafted when she was yet again approached by her boss with a tap on her shoulder, and she smiled.

"Of course I wouldn't mind. I wouldn't have it any other way Mr. Jamison. The last time you tried filing paperwork on your own...it took me a week to follow your paper trail to find the stupid thing." She teased and turned back to John. "Lovely party, but work has called us away. Expect a phone call from me tomorrow evening for a scheduled lunch between Mr. Jamison and yourself to discuss those matters I was speaking to you of." And with that, she raised the wine glass to her lips and downed the contents, not about to waste a good wine simply because she had to leave. She then turned back to her boss and nodded, indicating that she was ready.

****

As soon as Henry was handed back his credit card, he stepped out of the cab. Once it had driven away, he muttered something under his breath about the prices being too damn high. Still, he put on a smile and straightened out his suit.

"Alrighty, Riley, lead the way and I will follow."

Upon exiting the cab, Riley stumbled a bit from her steadily declining coordination, but managed to catch herself by bracing herself against the cab for a moment, passing off the embarassment with a slight giggle. Once she was out, she pressed down her black denim skirt and then lead the way, as Henry had requested and approached the front doors. She pulled out a set of keys and unlocked the main building door, as it had been closed hours ago due to the holidays and current late hour. Once inside, she continued walking and found her usual route that she took nearly every morning. Up the stairs, down the hall, three lefts and a right and then up one more flight of stairs. She then unlocked the second door that kept them out and stepped inside to the room where she did most of her work, though her office was still a few feet away. Instead of continuing to her own office, however, she turned the opposite corner and then unlocked Henry's door, allowing him inside before flicking on the light, letting the florescents fill darkened area as not any other lights were on at the moment.

Henry followed close behind Riley, his heart starting to beat faster and faster with each step he took. A couple of times, he caught his eyes trailing downwards and had to shake his head and keep his eyes straight away. Once she unlocked his office door, he shot her another smile and sighed greatfully. "Thanks so much, Riley. I dont know what I would do without you, I really don't."

A couple of minutes later, the computer was on and he was sliding his finger on the screen left and right, stalling while he gathered the nerves to go through with his plan. Filing the file was a sinch, all he needed to do was move it into a folder, just like Riley had shown him, but if he did it himself, then he wouldnt be able to make the plan progress, so instead, he moved a couple of files around, out of their folders, and onto the main desktop. Satisfied with his little mess-up, which would take Riley not even a couple of minutes to clean up, he stood up and walked over to the doorway of his office.

"Um... Riley... I think I may have fucked up a little, again.."

Riley had been patiently waiting outside of his office, and wasn't at all surprised to hear Henry calling her for her help. She shook her head and sighed, though still wore a smile on her face. "Am I going to have to ban you from all technology Mr. Jamison?" She teased as she walked into his office and sat down on his chair, analyzing the situation before moving the files back to their correct places.

Henry watched as Riley moved the files back into place, taking all of three minutes to do so. He shrugged slightly at her question and chuckled. "You know, I wouldn't put it past you for doing so." He pulled out his holo-communicator and let out a fake, yet very convincing sigh. "I apologize, greatly, but I need to make another call before we leave, so make yourself at home, and shut off my computer for me, if you would be so kind. I'll be right back." And with that, he walked out of the office, hoping his plan would take off the way he wanted it to.

Riley nodded, already knowing fully well what one of those phone calls could mean. It could mean ten minutes...or two hours...still, she didn't have any other plans for the night. She made sure to save a few things on his computer before shutting it down and remained in his chair for a few minutes...just waiting. When Henry didn't come back right away, her suspicions were more than likely confirmed that it would be one of those longer phone calls. She got off of his chair and made her way over to the small couch on the side of the room and took a seat, taking the moment to reach behind her head and pull the pin that had kept her hair up for the evening. She ran her fingers through it, shaking out the 'hair cramps' and let the somewhat wavy hair fall naturally at her shoulders. She clicked her tongue a few times boredly, letting her eyes look around Henry's office. She had been in his office plenty of times before, so nothing really stuck out as new to her...but then again this was the first time she had been alone in his office for such a prolongued period of time.

She shifted her body a bit, letting her back rest against the arm of the couch and lifted her feet up onto the couch, taking off her heels one by one and began to massage her aching feet. After relaxing back on the couch with her hands on her stomach, she looked around the room once again to notice that it had began to spin. She let out a tired laugh, her fingers absent-mindedly fiddling with the bottom of her blouse. She looked back over to the door. No sign of Henry. A fleeting thought pressed at her mind, what it would be like to actually masturbate in her boss' own office? The sheer thrill of the act at her own desk was stimulating enough, but his own office was taking it up a whole new level. A smirk spread across her lips as she felt herself getting warm between her legs despite the cooler air circulating around the abandoned building.
Maybe for just a minute...

Henry put away the holo-communicator, letting the darkness of the rest of the building disguise himself. He took a deep breath and sat quietly on one of the small tables in the room, biting his bottom lip in anticipation. He had seen her a couple of times, touching herself at her desk, but never said anything. It was kind of exciting knowing that she did that, and it was even more exciting that she didn't know he knew.

Riley slipped her hand between the unbuttoned fabric of her blouse and into her bra. She massaged her breast as best as she could given the restraints, occasionally pulling and pinching getting a soft gasp out of her now and then. Her other hand moved to her knee where she slid it up her thigh, hiking underneath her tight skirt until she found her red lace thong, which she just pushed to the side as she let her finger dance around to explore her womanhood.

Henry's breath hitched slightly as he watched Riley. He had been biting his bottom lip so hard, any longer and he would have drawn blood. His plan was going perfectly, so it was time to actually confront her about what she was doing. Trying his best to cover up his excitement, he stood up, pulled out his holo-communicator, and waltzed into the room as if nothing was happening.

"Alrighty. Phone call is done, someone from..." He trailed off as he "caught" her on his couch. He dropped the communicator and stared at her. "What... what are you doing?"
Riley had never moved so fast in her life. She didn't even hear Henry coming and by the time she was aware that he was back in the room, it was too late. Still though, she quickly pulled her hand from underneath her skirt and her hand from inside of her blouse and stood up quickly, too quickly in fact as the alcohol had caught her off balance and she stumbled again, but by some miracle remained on her feet.

"Mr. Jamison!" She exclaimed, feeling her cheeks go full-on red. She had always fantasized about this very moment, but now...now she wasn't so sure if that was the best move. Depending on his mood...she would be jobless in just a matter of seconds. "I-I am so sorry I-" She fumbled for her words, her eyes looking down at her bare feet. "It won't happen again, I promise. I didn't know how long you were going to be and..." She exhaled sharply, wondering just how much he had seen. "Please don't fire me..." She added on, finally able to lift her eyes to look back at him.

Once again, the man shot his famous half-smile, although this time, it came out dark. Nonchalantly, he took a seat on his desk and raised an eyebrow, listening to her apology with slight amusement. He raised up one hand to stop her and shook his head. He was silent for quite some time, staring at her with a pensive look on his face. Finally, he stood and took a step closer to her.

"Miss Saunders," he said cooly, the dark smile slowly returning to his face. "I have one question for you. How long have you been doing that?"

Riley could barely hear his question over the thumping of her heart. "Just...just a few minutes...Sir..." She answered, not quite sure if he meant in general...or just tonight; though something told her it was the first one.

A finger went to his chin and he raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure about that, Miss Saunders? I don't mean just tonight. I've watched you do that a couple of times before, when you think no one is watching. It's exilarating, isn't it? Pleasuring yourself when you think no one is watching..." He took another step closer. Without really waiting for an answer, he continued. "Nevertheless, I don't want to interrupt you, so go ahead, continue." His smile widened just a bit more. "And, if you would like, I could maybe help out a little."

****

It had been a couple months since Henry and Riley had slept together after the Christmas party, and since then, they had spent most of their working hours getting in as much action as they could have. The two started dating shortly after the Christmas party, but it was in secret. It would have never looked good for Henry or Riley if they had been caught dating, public relations, and the public themselves would have ripped the two apart with accusations, rumors, you name it.

Henry smiled at himself in the mirror. He was wearing a solid black, slim fitting suit, green dress shirt, and matching tie, and boy, did he look good. Seeing as how it had been a while since he had taken his girlfriend on a real date, he invited her to meet him at a small, secluded restaurant only known to a chosen few. It was expensive, yes, but he liked to spoil Riley, so there wasn't much of a problem.

About an hour later, Henry stepped out of his town car and into the restaurant, and was promptly seated at a two person table. There was only one other couple in the restaurant, and as far as they were concerned, he was nobody to them. He straightened his hair and rearranged his silverware and plates about a hundered times waiting for Riley to walk up to his table.

Two months, one week and three days. That was the exact date Riley had been able to fulfill her fantasies, and even more since then. Keeping it a secret was the hardest part, she had never been in a relationship that would potentially ruin someone's career before, but it made the times that they had alone all the more special. She didn't mind having to meet Henry for their occasional date, it would look bad if someone caught his car outside her house anyway. But tonight, tonight was different; she was, in fact, not looking forward to dinner. After changing her outfit at least fifteen different times, Riley settled on a sleek black dress that didn't hug her figure too much and eventually left to meet her boss and now boyfriend.

Upon arriving at the resteraunt, she stayed in the parking lot for an elongated period of time, staring down the doors that would lead her to tonights potential disaster. Swallowing hard, she got out of her car and walked inside, spotting Henry immediately. Putting on a smile, she tapped his shoulder gently and then moved to sit across from him after placing a soft kiss on his cheek. "Sorry I'm late. Ran into a few...complications..."

Henry quickly stood and walked around the table, pulling back the chair and allowing Riley to sit down. Once she was seated, he sat down himself. A waiter came around and greeted the two, asking them what they would like to drink. Henry smiled at Riley and winked.

"For the lady, the best red wine, and for me, a martini." The waiter nodded and began to walk away, and Henry turned back to his girlfriend with his famous half-smile. "So, how are you this evening? You look stunning, if I do say so, myself."

Riley hesitated the moment he mentioned wine. She should have expected that. She turned to the waiter quickly. "Uh, waiter, just a soda for me actually, uhm...Dr. Pepper..." She nibbled at her lower lip a bit before turning back to Henry, and tried to return his smile. "Well, you know, hard day at the office...the boss has really been riding me..." She said, attempting humor to help with her nerves.

Henry furrowed his brows at the change of drink. It was unlike her to do something like that, seeing as how she always loved a good red wine with her dinner, but then again, variety was the spice of life. Pushing the small tinge of concern away, he found himself laughing at her small joke.

"Well, you know, he does like a hard worker, and you, my dear, are definitely a hard worker." Henry leaned over the table, placing his elbows on both sides of his plate, and his head in his clasped hands, the smile was still plastered on his face. "You know, I really am the luckiest guy in the world for finding you. Im glad you applied for that internship. I really do. I wouldn't have made it past the damn computer if it hadn't been for you..."

Riley feigned a small smile at his compliment, but her own words were escaping her. Instead, her stomach continued to tie itself in knots. How the hell was she going to get through tonight? Simple...she wasn't...not like this...

"Henry..." Riley said, avoiding his gaze for the moment. "We...we have a problem..."

Henry's brows furrowed again, only this time, they frown was deeper. His mind began racing with thoughts, starting with the upcoming election. As far as he knew, he was still way, way ahead in the polls, so it couldn't have been that; no one had broken into the office, it had the best security, so it couldn't be that; people still loved him, so popularity wasnt a problem, so that really only left Riley and him. He looked away for a moment, then back at Riley. His heart sank.

"What... what do you mean we have a problem? What kind of problem?"

Tears began to well up in her eyes, but she still refused to look him straight on, it would be impossible to say what she needed to say if she did. His tone broke her heart, but that was only a small taste of what was yet to come.

"I'm pregnant." It was only after saying this that she finally looked up to meet his eye, a single tear rolling down her cheek. "I'm so sorry...I thought we were being careful...I..." She wiped the tear away and then burried her face in her hands. "This is all my fault...Oh God Henry I'm sorry..."

If Henry had been holding a glass, he would have dropped it. The room started spinning. Pregnant. His girlfriend was pregnant, and they had been going out all of two months. How could something like this have happened? She was right, they were being careful, there wasnt a time when they weren't-- the night of the Christmas party. That was the only time he hadn't used any form of protection. But that was two months ago, she couldn't have been keeping it a secret that long, could she?

Henry opened his mouth to speak, but the waiter came up before he even got a sound out. With a cheery face, he dropped off the drinks, took one look at Riley, and left after saying that he would give the two some time to look over the menu. As soon as he had left, Henry took a deep breath, greatful he hadn't said anything around him.

"No, no. It's not your fault at all, Riley. Please don't cry. Just... tell me how long you have known you were pregnant. A week, a couple of weeks..... a month?"

She nodded her head to the last guess, not even paying attention to the drink she had just been given. "A month." She repeated, taking her face from her hands to look at him once more. "I would have told you sooner...but...I had to be sure...I just got back from the doctors before coming here..."

Henry said nothing, just picked up his martini glass and emptied it in seconds. He ran a hand over his face slowly, simultaneously letting out a long, deep sigh. It had to have been the Christmas party. How could he have been so stupid. Then again, he was drunk, so maybe he deserved what he got. No matter, it was something he was going to have to live with. Besides, maybe a son wouldn't be so bad afterall. It might even look good to those who had families if he became a family man himself, but in order to do that, he would have to marry Riley. A small smile crept its way onto his face; now there was a pretty good idea. They hadn't been dating long, but he was pretty sure that she was the one. She was the epitome of a great woman; sexy, smart, sweet, caring, kind, a great supporter, not to mention great in bed.

He reached out and took Riley's hand in his, squeezing it gently. "Listen, Riley. It's okay. I promise you, things will be okay. We just need to lay low about this for a month or two more, okay? We can do this. I love you, Riley."

She nodded, understanding what he was saying. She had come to the same conclusion the moment she knew for sure she was pregnant. "I know..." She said taking his hand gratefully. "I love you too. And thats why...I'm going to be leaving for a while." She stopped, trying to keep herself from choking on her next words. "Your re-election is coming up, and I'm not about to risk that. I'm going to be going to stay with my brother Desmond in District 4, it's already been settled so I'm not asking for your permission." She bit her lower lip. "You...you can consider this my temporary resignation. I just...I need to clear my head...and you need to focus on your job. I refuse to be the reason your numbers start to drop."

Henry let go of Riley's hand and slowly retracted it. He wasn't really one of those kind's of men to show sadness, regardless of how people called him "sensitive," but her words hit him hard. His brows furrowed yet again and a lump started to form in his throat. He blinked a couple of times and shook his head. "No.." he muttered, "Why? There is no reason to leave, Riley. I don't understand. Look, I said we can work things out... We can... Why resign? We're so close to the election, I need you now more than ever. You can't just decide to resign now.. Please.."

She shook her head, looking back down at the table. She figured he'd say something like that. "Which is why I've already hired my replacement. She's as good as me...maybe even better. You don't hear the people in the work room Henry, they've been whispering about us for years now, and now that we can't prove we aren't together..." She just shook her head again, forcing her tears back this time. "I'm leaving tonight, and I don't want to hear from you until after the election. Maybe then we can start to work things out...but not right now...it would ruin everything for you." She swallowed hard and got up from the table, walking to Henry's side and kissed him softly on the cheek. "I love you Henry, but you've got to put your job before me. You've worked too hard to let it all crumble down now." She let out a soft exhale before leaving Henry's side to return to her car where her bags had already been packed and ready to go. The second she shut herself into the car, however, she fell into a fit of uncontrolable sobs.

Henry just sat in his chair, silently, taking in what she had to say. He didnt say a word as she started leaving. It wasnt until after she was immediately out of sight did he stand. He grabbed whatever was in his wallet, probably all of two thousand credits, and threw them down on the table before rushing after her.

He spotted her car in the lot the moment he stepped out. He walked over to the car, his vision starting to blur from the tears that had begun forming. He reached the window, where he saw Riley in a fit of tears, and pounded on the window. Already a few tears, probably the only few tears he had really shed in his lifetime, fell down his cheeks.

"Riley, you roll down this window, now!"

She jumped slightly at hearing a pound on her car window, and through her blurred vision of tears was able to make out Henry on the other side. She just shook her head and started up the car. He had to know that she was doing this for him...and only for him. She shot him a quick apologetic look before she started to back the car up, making sure she didn't accidentally run him over before pulling out of the parking lot and headed for District 4.

****

Eight months, three weeks, one day, and 4 hours, that's how long it had been since he last saw or heard from Riley. By now, his son should have been born, so why hadn't she called? This was one of his many thoughts as he sat in his new Senator's office for the Ancorda Legislature. He had won the election in a landslide, just as Riley had predicted, thanks to all his staff and especially his new secretary, but things weren't the same at all. Yes, this new secretary was good, but she was no Riley. This one was too focused on her job, too no nonsense; she had no sense of humor, and quite frankly, could be somewhat of a bitch.

No one really commented on Riley's dissapearance, and if they did, it was behind Henry's back for fear of some sort of harsh retaliation. Every time someone did ask about it, who wasn't working for him, he would either brush the topic off, or come up with some sort of excuse, but that only went so far.

Every day, he would check his mail; every day, he would check his holo-communicator. Finally, he was just about to give up, when one day, Linda, the secretary, walked into his office.

"Mr. Jamison, you have a call on line one, someone from District 4. He isn't giving a name, but is saying the matter is urgent. Probably some lobbyist trying to get a law passed."

"Thank you, Linda," he muttered, answering the communicator only when Linda was out of the room. "Good afternoon, this is Henry Jamison, Senator, speaking, how may I help you today?"

The other line was quiet for a moment, before a man cleared his throat. "Mr. Jamison...this is Desmond Saunders...I'm Riley's brother..."

Henry almost dropped the commuicator in shock. He was silent for a long time before speaking. "Oh, yes.. Uh, hi.. Um, yes. Okay.. I uh.. How are you?"

"I...well...would it be possible to meet up for lunch sometime? I feel like there's some things I should tell you..."

"Oh, yes. Definitely... That would be good. Um. Where would you like to meet? We can meet in District 4. Um... Jeez.. Uh.. will Riley be there?"

"The Copper Onion, and...no...no Riley won't be coming. I'll explain everything there. I'll meet you there within the hour." The line went dead, and Desmond began to get ready for the most awkward meeting of his life.

It was nearly one'o'clock before Desmond reached the agreed meeting place, running his calloused hands over his goatee in a nervous manner. He was alone, just as he had said he would be on the phone, and to keep himself somewhat occupied, sipped on his order of jasmine tea.
Henry stepped out of the back of his town car and sighed. His palms were sweaty, which was rare for Henry because of the fact that he never got nervous when meeting and talking to other officials. His mind was racing with questions; Why wasnt Riley there? Was Riley okay? Was his kid born? Could he see his kid? He pushed all the questions aside for the moment and walked into the restaurant.

It took a little while for him to find Desmond, only having been shown a picture of the man once or twice before when Riley brought him up, but nevertheless, he saw the man sitting at one of the tables, and made his way over to it, taking a seat across from him at the table.

"Hello Desmond, I am Henry Jamison, but you probably knew that already.... How are you?"

Desmond didn't look up when Henry sat down, at least, not at first. With a collected sigh, he finally met his gaze. "Yes, I did." He said simply. Desmond then reached into his pocket and pulled out a small holo-picture and handed it to Henry across the table. "Your son." He said, the look on his face unclear whether he was annoyed, proud, or even happy about it.

Henry stared at the picture of the young boy for a long time, a small smile finally making its way onto his face after that time. He looked up and his smile faded at the look on Desmond's face. "I have a son." It was more a statement, than anything. "What's his name? Where's Riley?"

Desmond took a moment to rub his temples tiredly before answering. "His name is Deon Desmond Saunders, Riley thought it would be the best name for him, though God only knows why she named him after me." He cleared his throat again. "Look, Riley...she's...she's having some problems. She ended up getting really sick in her fourth month. The doctors did all they could, but in the end...it took up most of her trust fund just to keep her alive...let alone keeping the doctors quiet about the whole pregnancy."
Henry stayed quiet and nodded a couple of times. Once Desmond was finished, he took a deep breath. "Why didn't she contact me? She said she would contct me. I could have sent her money. She knows I would have done that for her. Can I see her? I want to talk to the mother of my child. Speaking of which, can I see Deon?"

"If you feel that is best, you may see Deon. He's currently staying at my house. Riley..." Desmond paused to let out yet again another sigh. "I don't know where she is, but Mr. Jamison...the Riley you knew is gone. She's...different, and you need to just let her go."

"What the fuck do you mean I need to let her go?" Henry hadn't realized he had raised his voice as much as he did until he felt the stares of other patrons. He sunk a little into his seat and waited for the others to look away before continuing. "Why can't I speak to her? And what do you mean you dont know where she is? Why didnt you call the police? Why didnt you contact me, Mr. Saunders?"

Again, Desmond was quiet, letting Henry calm down once more. "You're making this more difficult for me than it needs to be Mr. Jamison..." He said softly and took another sip at his tea. "But...if you must know...soon after Deon was born, she became addicted to the drugs the doctors had precribed; pain killers mostly. After that, once she became well again, it was too late. She's in deep, Mr. Jamison, and she's not coming back out of it. She's a completely different person, so you might as well just think that she died in childbirth."

"But... She said..." Henry shook his head and placed it in his hands. It was like wave after wave of sadness crashed over him. He couldn't believe it, the mother of his child was now no longer the Riley he once knew. He let out a small sigh and closed his eyes. "Fine. Okay. Can I at least see my son, then?"

He nodded, pleased that the man finally had enough sense to listen to him. "You may. He is your son after all. When will you be coming by?"

"How about today? I would like to see him as soon as possible... Please... if it isnt too much of a problem.."

"We can head there now...if you'd like." Desmond sipped the last of his tea and made a move to stand.

"Yes. That would work. Thank you.."

With another curt nod, Desmond was off after paying the bill for his tea and hailed a cab for the two of them, beginning the long, and very awkward silenced ride back to his home. Desmond had done well for himself over the years, but it wasn't his firefighter income that got him the mansion of a home that he lived in, most of the money coming from his own trust fund. "Wait here, I'll go and get him up from his nap." Desmond said before leaving Henry in the main room on his own.

The minutes passed, and Desmond came back with a tiny infant in his arms, wrapped up into a blanket and pressed closely against his uncle. Upon approaching Henry, Desmond hesitated before handing Deon over to him.

Henry took the baby in his arms. He brought him close to his chest and smiled. His baby boy was beautiful. He could feel his eyes begin to water and he sniffled once. As he stared at his son, he mumbled to him almost inaudibly. "Hey there, little guy. I'm your dad. It's good to see you." He smiled a little. "You're a little trouble maker, arent you? Making your mommy go...." He trailed off and his smile faded. He looked at his would-be brother in law and stood, handing over his son back to Desmond. "Uh.. Thank you for showing me my son, sir. I appreciate it." Without another word, he quickly walked out of the house, hailed a cab, and made his way back to District 0. He had met the reason Riley had went into her downward spiral, and he couldn't bear to see him again. Not now, anyway..

"I never went back.... Shortly after, I met your mother, married her, and had two wonderful sons who I love dearly."

James just stared at his father and nodded. "Thanks, pop... I'll talk to you soon. love you..." And with that, he hung up.

Marvel Comics: Sentinel Initiative

Steve Rogers hadn’t slept a wink last night. The brief visit from Natasha was somewhat welcome in his brooding state, though the subject matter of their short conversation was quickly shoved into the back of his mind. The last thing he needed to think on was the fact that a potential ally could turn into a potential enemy given any sort of ‘trigger’ for the release of the hidden anger residing inside the beautiful Jean Grey. If that’s all that Natasha was talking about; anger; then he had no opinion. She had every right to be angry…they all did. After saying their goodbyes, Steve then returned to his shield, running a waxed cloth over the Vibranium steel to ensure maximum shine. When he left in the morning…he wanted to make damn sure that his enemies knew that Captain America had arrived.

---

Now sitting amongst his new-found group of allies, Steve was slunk down in his chair keeping his eyes down on the table and running his finger gently over the wood…anything to keep his mind distracted from having to look into the eyes of any of his friends…the eyes that would tell him just how frightened they were of this situation. The words that had been spoken last night on the beach struck hard with everyone…’death trap.’ Well…on the bright side he no longer smelt like ocean water, as during his restless night he had managed to take multiple showers, one to actually clean himself and the others in hopes to clear his jumbled up mind. He currently wore his Captain America suit, having discarded the ‘disguise’ he wore yesterday long ago but the hood was currently down, not seeing much of a point of wearing it right now anyway. At Thor’s request of a feast before their departure, he had realized that he hadn’t eaten anything either…not that his stomach would be able to handle it anyway. He glanced up at his friend, just about to stand when instead; Domino had beaten him to it, earning a distasteful type of snarl from Steve as he settled his body back into the chair.

Neena had arrived to the meeting a little on the late side thanks to the night she had before. She thought she could just get away with a change of clothes, but upon flashes of memories coming to her as she got ready, she was desperately longing for a shower. Now clean and clad in her usual black suit, she was with the others thinking over the same type of things she was sure everyone else in that room was. Who among them now would not be here tomorrow? Her attention was then immediately grabbed by Thor at his mention of breakfast, and her eyes looked upon the target she had intended on last night, before she shot a quick glance to the man who she had actually gotten into bed with. She stood with the Asguardian and walked with him to breakfast, not saying much on the way…not until they had both finished eating. They were heading in opposite directions, so that meant that one of them would reign victorious, and the other…potentially dead…though if she had to bet, it would be her buried six feet under before the Thunder God was. Could he even die?

“You be careful out there today.” Neena said finishing off a large bottle of water, careful not to smudge her freshly applied dark red lipstick. “Because I still owe you a dance…”

Marvel Comics: Sentinel Initiative

working on a Steve/Neena post now

Incursions

Titanpad is just mad at you that you haven't been very faithful to it as of late...

Incursions

*drags Ghosts body away* You heard nothing...I'm doing just fine without you! *eye twitch*

Incursions

Collaboration between Mach2 and YoshiSkittlez

---

Only when James was completely gone and out of the house did Deon feel like he could relax again. He sunk his back against the arm of the couch and leaned his now clean of blood face back, feeling the blood rushing to his head. He continued to hold onto the rag, however, in case any sort of movement he made with his face cracked open the fresh scabs. He raised his head back up, feeling the rush of blood drain back down into his body before he looked to Vander.

"Thanks." He muttered and gestured towards the bloody rag he was holding. The word seemed...almost foreign to him, the same tickling feeling came to his lips as a child would experience after using their first swear word.

Vander nodded an acknowledgement to his thanks, not yet able to force herself to meet his gaze. There was a small part of her that wanted to tell him to follow James out the door, and leave her apartment. There was a part of her that just wanted to be alone and think. But she wasn't about to do that, not when it was at least partially her fault his face was bleeding and his ribs were cracked.

"How are your ribs?" she asked, knowing the answer. She knew basic first aid for cuts and scrapes, but had little knowledge of how to handle broken ribs.
Deon shrugged. "Well usually I let them marinate in a goopy sauce over night like everyone else, but I do have a few special seasonings I add while I'm grilling." Deon joked and tried to laugh, though was forced into a coughing fit as he did so.

The joke didn't even get so much as a smile from Vander. Instead, her expression filled with concern. After a second of hesitation, she stood up, crossing over to Deon and placing a hand on his shoulder while she waited for him to stop coughing. "Should I call a doctor or something?"

He shook his head no. "The second you give them my name, they'll laugh and hang up on you." He said once his coughing had ceased. "I'll be fine, I go through something like this on a weekly basis." He said trying to assure her. "But...thank you..." He said, feeling that weird tingle again.

"All right..." Vander said. She sat down on the couch beside him, staring down at her hands. "You can stay here if you want tonight. The couch isn't comfortable...but I feel like biking home with broken ribs wouldn't be too fun either." She made the offer hesitantly, keeping as much emotion out of her voice as she could. The last thing she needed was for him to get the wrong idea.

Deon didn't answer right away. His lip had cracked back open from talking and he was busy patting away the blood into the cloth. "Yeah, yeah that wouldn't feel too great." He agreed. He had used up all his 'thank you's' for the night. Hell...even the rest of the month. "If you don't mind." He added. He didn't find her couch to be as uncomfortable as she had made it out to be...he had slept on worse. "I'll be out of your hair tomorrow, and you've got enough Lucid to last you for the rest of your life...so it looks like you lucked out because after tomorrow, you don't ever have to come see me again...not if you don't wanna."

She nodded in agreement, her face expressionless. After tomorrow morning, there would be no more Deon in her life. Standing from the couch, she walked to the open closet and grabbed an over sized raglan sweater from the floor, as well as an old pair of sweat pants.

Without another word to him, Vander entered the washroom to get changed for bed. She pulled the shirt James had bought her out of the pocket of her jacket, hanging it carefully over the towel rack, and pulled off her clothes. Catching sight of her reflection in the dirty mirror, she couldn't help but to cringe. Bruises still lined her back from last night in the alleyway. With the aid of Lucid, she could see each one depicted in exquisite detail. With a quiet sigh, she pulled on the sweater and pants. Even if Deon would be gone, she would have those bruises for most of what remained of her life. It wasn't a thought she wanted to entertain. When Deon left tomorrow, he would be gone. That was all she let herself think right now.

Deon watched her go to what he had to assume was the bathroom, no doubt to change or to even take a shower. He felt his body itching to get up off of the couch and follow her, to catch her naked or something and then make a moment out of it...but there was something else pressing against his thoughts, something...uncomfortable...but it was enough to keep him on the couch. The poor girl was going through enough, the last thing she needed was him hounding on her again. He winced. When the hell did he start caring? He shut his eyes and laid his head back down on the couch. James must have hit him harder than he thought.

Leaving the bathroom again, she walked past Deon to sit on the edge of her bed...right on top of a hard lump beneath the mattress. With a small frown, she stood, reaching under the mattress to grab the gun she had stored there earlier. "This is yours," she said, walking back to the couch to hand the weapon back to Deon.

Opening his eyes back up, but not sitting up, Deon watched as Vander left the bathroom in what he assumed was more comfortable clothes for her. He continued to watch her wordlessly as she then brought the gun back to him, and it was then that he moved to sit up with a painful series of grunts. He took the gun from her gently. "I want to show you something..." He said and then opened up the clip and tipped the gun upside down. No bullets fell from the gun. He then handed it back to her for her to look at herself. "It was never loaded. I picked it up at the warehouse when I got you your Lucid. Didn't even stop to think that I would need bullets for it." He said. "I may come across as an angry person...ruthless sometimes even...but I would never kill someone. I...I just want you to know that. I wasn't going to shoot James either."

Vander turned the weapon over in her hands, her expression caught somewhere between disbelief, confusion, and relief. She chewed silently at her lip for a moment, unable to respond. When Deon had pulled the gun out on James, she had been terrified. For everything Deon had done wrong, this was a complete change of heart. Setting the useless firearm down on the ground, she shook her head at him.

"Why can't you act like a human being all the time?"

Deon sighed. He already knew his answer, but explaining it to someone else was something completely different. It took quite some time for his own mother to even understand it...before she had died.

"When I'm the Crusher...people expect a show. They want to see blood, broken bones, harsh words...when I first became the Crusher, it was hard to submerge myself into that kind of lifestyle, the only thing I had ever hurt before were cows when I worked at the slaughterhouse. But when I finally got the Crusher's personality down, it stuck hard after..." He couldn't bring himself to say it. "...you know. And even now...it's...difficult to put The Crusher away and become just Deon again. I...I don't even know who Deon is anymore..."

Vander nodded, finally able to understand. Everything Deon was when he was around others was an act, a role he had assumed so deeply, it became his reality. The fact that he had dropped that shell, shown his old personality when he as around her...she didn't know how she felt about that. Some mixture of uneasiness and gratitude.
"Well, Deon is a lot easier to talk to than the Crusher is," she acknowledged simply. She offered him the slightest of smiles, too emotionally drained after the stressful events of that day to be able to give anything more.

A slight chuckle came from Deon's throat. "Believe me, I don't like him any more than you do...which I know is a lot." He returned her smile, his own white smile seeming to make his face genuinly glow with an effect that almost looked like...happiness. His eyes then glanced to the floor where the array of pizza and other food items had been laid. "Well...we have a tub of cookie dough...we can either pop in some chick flick movie and eat it out of the carton, or I can make an honest to God effort and get up to bake them for you. Which is it?"

A reluctant laugh was elicited from Vander at the suggestion to watch a movie. She was quickly nearing the point where all she wanted to do was crawl into her bed and fall asleep. "My holovision might die on us," she apologized in advance.

Standing up, she walked over to her bed and knelt down, pulling out a small box of discs. Most were films she had watched when she was younger. Looking at them now, she was unable to keep the sadness out of her expression. There were few actual movies in the collection. Most were advanced-level science documentaries. The box of films was one of the few things she had managed to take with her when she'd left home. She returned to Deon, offering him the box with an apologetic shrug at its contents. "Take your pick."

Deon didn't even bother looking through the collection, instead he just stuck his hand into the box and pulled out the first one that he grabbed onto.
While she waited for him to choose from the selection, she walked over to the old-model holovision on the wall. After some fiddling, Vander finally managed to get the glowing screen to light up.

He held out the selected movie for her to put in before bending at the waist a tiny bit to attempt to grab at the cookie dough, but when his ribs let out a loud snapping sound followed by a pained hiss from Deon, he just sat back into the couch with an annoyed expression on his face. He lifted up the side of his shirt to look at his ribs better. His entire side was covered in black and blue bruises, some larger than others, and there was a distinctive bump where one of his ribs was attempting to jut out of his skin.
Vander turned at the sound of Deon's noise of pain. Seeing the dark bruises on his chest, her expression fell. "I can get you some ice," she offered quickly, and he nodded.
Retreating to the kitchen once more, she opened the freezer. There were trays of ice there, but most had sublimated away. She frowned, pulling out the three trays and opening cupboards in search of a bag. The best she could come up with was a small garbage bag, but it would do. Cracking the remnants of the ice cubes into the bag, she walked back to the living room with the makeshift cold pack in hand and offered it to Deon.

He took it gratefully from her and pressed the makeshift bag of ice to his rib cage, jumping at the sudden coldness on his skin but it otherwise felt pretty good. He removed his arm from his shirt and left the shirt to rest up on his shoulder so it wouldn't get wet, leaving the other half of his shirt on sheerly for Vander's sake. "We have a movie to watch yes?"

She still looked unconvinced, having seen the rib that looked as though it was going to try to jab through his chest. "Yeah..." she answered reluctantly, grabbing the disc he had selected.

Scrawled in messy writing across the front of the disc were the numbers "2112-2115". Her expression fell visibly, and she wasted no time placing the disc back in the box and pulling out another. "No," was all she said as her reason.

Looking at the new option, she held it up for Deon to read. Again, the title was hand-written. A lecture and presentation on advanced organic chemistry. She laughed quietly. "Tired? I guarantee it'll put you to sleep," Vander said. She offered him the box of discs once more, doubting that her old videos from school courses would grab his interest.
This got a small laugh from Deon. What kind of movie collection did she have anyway? He stuck his hand back into the box and pulled out the first one he touched, this time looking at it. "Hey, here's an old one..." He said and tossed it to her. "But whatever you want bab-er...Vander. If you want to watch that sleepy one I'm down with that too."
"I doubt I have enough brain cells left to understand organic chem anymore," she muttered, catching the disc and looking at it. "RED? Sounds good."

She walked back to the holovision and slipped the disc in, hoping that the old device would still work. After a few seconds of delay, the film finally started up. Vander walked back to the couch, sitting down beside Deon, but being careful to keep a decent amount of space between them. She pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around her legs and curling up to watch the movie.

He adjusted himself on the couch as well so that he was sort of laying his torso in a somewhat awkward angle so that his bruised ribs weren't touching the couch to keep any unwanted pain away. He rested his arm across the back of the couch and eyed the cookie dough still on the floor before looking back to Vander with a somewhat childish look and smile on his face. "One more favor?"

Vander looked over, and it didn't take her more than a second to figure out what the favor was. She smiled slightly, proceeding to unfold her knees and reach forward to grab the tub of cookie dough. She set it on the couch between them, perhaps a bit closer to Deon than to herself, before resuming her curled up position once more.

Deon popped open the container of cookie dough and pulled off the spoon that came with it that had been attached to the bottom of the lid. He scooped up a good amount and then plopped it into his mouth before returning the spoon to the dough and then slid the container over to her.

After a moment of hesitation, Vander obliged. She scooped herself a mouthful of cookie dough, closing her eyes to savor the sweet taste. It had been a long time since she'd last eaten cookie dough. Probably even longer since she'd been able to taste it properly with Lucid.

Setting the container back down near Deon, she found herself immediately exhausted. Movies had always had that effect on her. But combined with Lucid, a drug with the side effect of stimulating dreams, the tiredness was overwhelming.

Within a few minutes, the tightly curled up form she had taken on the couch had relaxed. Already asleep, she was unaware of the fact that she had leaned sideways against Deon. Her breathing slowed, and a moment later her eyes twitched beneath closed lids, signalling REM sleep. With er hit of Lucid, she would be dreaming tonight.
Deon's attention shifted from the movie to Vander as he felt her slide into him a bit. He didn't even stop to think just how tired she must have been, given the state that her body was in. He watched her carefully, studying her still features, able to really take in the true beauty of her face and features without fear of being scolded by Vander herself.

"You really are beautiful..." Deon whispered softly, finding his fingers raking through her hair gently. He moved his body a bit so that they would both be in a more comfortable position before he put his arm back around her, continuing to run his fingers through her hair in a soothing fashion. It really was a shame that she was going to die, but he wouldn't have found out just how beautiful a person she really was if she hadn't been dying.

"You've got thirty days to live..." He said, using his finger to stroke the side of her cheek gently. "And I want to be there to give you the best thirty days of your life...if you'd just let me..." He sighed and rested his head back down on the arm of the couch, though still wide awake. He kept his arm around her, moving his hand from her face down to her arm, rubbing the skin gently. It wasn't until the movie was nearly over did he finally fall asleep, followed by troubled dreams.

---

There were plenty of dreams that night. Vividly coloured dreams in which she stood on clouds and watched the Earth rotate below her. Dreams in which she wandered through an endless forest, never tiring of staring at the details on the trees. But one dream stood out, so much more real than the rest.

Vander found herself standing in her old bedroom. There was the bookshelf, filled with massive volumes of complex works. Everything was carefully organized, like a miniature library. Non-fiction textbooks resided near the top. Epic fantasies and science fiction novels towards the bottom. She traced a finger over the familiar books.

Her desk sat beside the shelf, half-finished essays scrawled across pages of looseleaf. The blinds on the window above the desk were open, the yellow-orange glow of street lights streaking across the pages of work. It was the only hint of disorganization in the entire room. A textbook was open on the desk, depicting complex diagrams of molecular compounds. In the corner of the desk, there was an old datapad, the screensaver blinking away. On the other corner, a box of familiar holovision discs.

Her single bed was made, a grey and white striped blanket tucked in neatly along the edges. On the bed lay a familiar figure, propped up on one elbow with a sheet of paper held in her hand. Vander stared, and her younger self stared back. She recognized herself as sixteen. At that age, her body looked entirely different than it did now. Her dark hair fell in messy waves to her shoulders, parted unevenly down the middle. The girl was slender, but healthy. There still remained a hint of baby fat clinging to her cheeks. Her expression was incredulous as she stared at Vander. “Who are you?” she asked, dumbfounded by the familiarity.

Vander looked down at herself, taking stock. Her own body was hollowly thin, jeans loose on her thin legs no matter how small a size they may be. Her hair was shaved, and she knew well the bones of her cheeks and jaw-line cut sharp edges across her face. She must have looked terrifying to the sixteen year old sitting on the bed. Like looking into a funhouse mirror. Vander shook her head, ignoring the question from her younger self, and sat down on the bed. “What’s that?” she asked softly, looking to the paper the girl held in her hands.

The younger Vander sat up, folding her legs under her to sit cross-legged and handing the single page over. “Scores. From my Advanced Aptitude Test,” she answered. She gave a slight smile. “They spelled my name wrong.”

Vander took the page, reading over the brief text.

Vander Pzypaloski,
On behalf of the New Ancora Department of Education, this letter is to inform you of the results of your Advanced Aptitude Test, written on December 14th, 2115. Your scores have achieved a passing grade, with details as follows:
Advanced Mathematics…………………….…..95%
English………………………………….………99%
Physics………………………………….………98%
Human Anatomy…………………….…………92%
Graduate Chemistry……………………….…..100%
Introduction to Advanced Organic Chemistry…98%
Technical Writing………………………………98%
These scores combine for an overall average of 97.1%. Congratulations on your achievement of earning a graduate level degree. We wish you all the best in future endeavours.

The letter was accompanied with a signature from the head of the department of education. “I forgot how smart you were.” Vander smiled proudly, handing the letter back to her younger self. “Those are amazing scores. Dad had his video camera going when you opened the letter, didn’t he?”

The girl nodded, smiling. “Scores weren’t so great for Human Anatomy…but still, it’s high enough for a scholarship to Bohr’s Post-Secondary. Four thousand credits, with my average,” the young Vander explained, trying and failing to suppress her pride. “Their chemistry program is amazing. If I take a year off, get a job, save up some money…what?”

Vander realized her expression had shifted into something darker. Memories were creeping back into her mind. The year she had taken off from school, where everything had gone wrong. She shook her head, forcing the smile back onto her face as she looked at the girl that sat beside her. “Nothing. Bohr’s is fantastic. You’re going to love it,” she assured her.

But her younger twin looked unconvinced. She stared at Vander. At her hair, at her emaciated body, at the tired bags underneath her eyes. “You’re me,” she declared, the shock of realization evident on her face. “You’re older, but you’re me…you…” she hesitated, anxiety hinted in her expression. “You don’t go to Bohr’s, do you?”

Vander sighed, looking away. At sixteen, the chemistry program at Bohr’s was her dream. How on earth was she supposed to tell this girl that she never even went on a tour of the campus? How could she crush her like that? But at the same time, she knew that this girl was too intelligent to be lied to. “No. I don’t…you don’t go to Bohr’s,” she answered, shaking her head and watching the girl’s expression fall. “You don’t save up the money. You just…things don’t always work out.”

She watched as the young Vander’s eyes grew glossy with tears. “What do you mean things don’t work out? I studied for weeks for the Aptitude Test!”

Reaching out, Vander pulled the girl into a hug. “I know you did. I’m sorry. I’m so so sorry. You’re a good kid,” she told her, feeling the tears come to her own eyes. “You’re such a great, brilliant, fantastic kid. And you’ve done everything right so far. You’ve studied so hard, and you’ve stayed out of trouble, and you’ve been such a great kid.”

The girl pulled out of the hug, wiping the tears from her eyes and looking at her older self. “What happens?” she asked, voice filled with dread. “Tell me what happens.”

Vander pulled her own legs up to sit cross-legged on the bed across from her younger self. Now that they were both sitting the same way, it truly was like looking in a warped and twisted mirror. She saw her younger reflection, so much promise and so much potential. “You make bad choices,” she answered simply.

Reading the girl’s expression, Vander saw that the answer wasn’t enough. She either had to give the whole truth, or nothing at all. Taking a breath, she began relaying her future to her younger self. “Chemistry comes easy to you. You probably would have been one of New Ancora’s most gifted scientists. You’ve got the mind for it, Vander. Memorizing compounds and formulas is nothing for you…it doesn’t take someone with your brains to learn how to synthesize street drugs. For you, that’s child’s play. It’s easy money.”

The young Vander had gone pale. She looked physically ill, her apprehension so great that it seemed she might be sick at any moment. But the story continued. “You can’t just surround yourself with that sort of lifestyle and expect to not get sucked in,” she told herself, the words heavy with regret. “You got halfway there, Vander. You tried so hard. You could have covered tuition for half the length of the chemistry program.”

For several seconds, the two Vanders stared at each other in silence. Their faces bore mirrored expressions of crushing disappointment. Finally, the younger one spoke. “Do I die?” she asked.

“Not yet…but you’re getting there.”

She nodded, looking away from her older self. After a few more seconds of silence, she spoke once more, her words biting and cold. “I hate you.”

“You…what?”

The young girl looked her older self directly in the eye, her gaze filled with anger. “I hate you. What kind of idiot saves up college money by selling drugs?” she asked, the tears now overflowing down her cheeks. “You ruin my life! I hate you!”

Incarceron: A Sci-Fi Intergalactic Imprisonment

Guys I'm really sorry about my lack of stuff for this rp, especially since it just started. I JUST got over being incredibly sick and am now trying to catch up on my college homework. I will TRY to get something up tomorrow to move us forward. Again, so very sorry. If you want to post again go right ahead unless of course your post requires for me to do something, which doesn't make much sense since Tani is currently passed out lol.

Titans!

are Scorpion and Rose the only TT left here?