The Power in Addiction [Defiant x Temptationist]

[Defiant]

“For the record, I didn't say you needed to beg. But that's assuming you know men who actually know how to treat a woman's body,” he chuckled. “And I can make you cum, maybe I will someday,” he said with a confident smile on his face as he waited for her by the doorway. Once she was there and the door opened he slipped inside and leaned against the wall across from her and looked over the dress she was suddenly wearing.

He tilted his head and looked her over completely. “I'd change the dress, or loose the jewelry. The dress is expensive hooker while the jewelry actually looks real. Go for something a little more... classy and it'll work. Unless this fella is giving you money, for your company or the hospital then go as you are,” he chuckled and watched as she walked away. He saw a nurse who he hadn't seen during his first round of check-in and walked towards her, gave a quick wave to make her think she was taking him to his room and finish his paperwork.

He looked around the room and frowned, it was much to bland for his liking. “Hey, so how hard is it to get a bit of a renovation?” He asked with a growing smile, knowing the doc would be out for the rest of the evening. She giggled and hugged her paperwork to her chest. “When does it need to be done by?” She asked, staring at him with starstruck eyes. “Before the doc gets back,” he smiled. She giggled again and nodded. “I'll see what we can do,” he smirked as he watched then gave her a few suggestions of what he wanted.

It took a few hours but when he returned there was a brand new king-sized platform bed, the walls had been painted blood red with new lights put in, the window was new and there was a new entertainment unit plus a fair amount of books. “Well now this won't be so bad,” he said and gave a quick wave of his hand to clear the paint fumes. He could have used magic to change the room, but the hospital footing the bill was just a bit of icing on the cake.

The food was alright when it came time for supper. Of course since the sprinklers had gone off they had to order out but this place was for a group of people with a fair amount of money. When it came time for lights out he returned to a state of being just in his shorts and lounged on the bed while a movie played on the curved TV.

 

[Temptationist]

I looked at you with an open jaw and an insulted expression. Before I could yell at you for being so rude, my reaction quickly dissipated and I rolled my eyes. Sighing deeply, I tried not to aggravate the situation. Shaking my head lightly, I smirked, "Is that your way of complimenting a woman?" Giving you a cheeky death glare, I walked towards the front entrance of the facility. Seeing a Nurse, I waved to her. "Julia, please take Mr. Myers to his room, please." She smiled and with that, I exited the building.

[ * * * ]​

He was a rich businessman with a well-known military reputation as Sergeant Major William D. Walters. Not only was he significantly older than I, but he was easy on the eyes. Though, he was a strapping and fit man for someone in his 40s. With striking blue eyes and silver hair, his charming personality only sealed the deal for an intelligent professional like myself. This had been our third date, and so far, everything had been quite formal. Nice car, fancy restaurant, aged wine, and courteous exchange. However this time...he gave me an expensive piece of jewelry and invited me back to his place.

Pulling into the gated driveway of the multi-storey palace, my eyes widened at the size of the mansion. I realized he was well off, but I had never realized to what extent. William had always been so humble with his finances and success, I would have never expected a palace such as this. “Wow.” I said, my breath evidently taken away. “She's beautiful.”

I said, goo-goo-eyed as I looked over the establishment. Walters looked over to me and took my hand in his. His thumb brushed over the thick diamond tennis bracelet he had gifted to me. Smiling, he stared right at me as he responded. “Yes, she is.” Seemingly talking about me, I gave a warm, wooed smile. What a romantic. Like a gentleman he exited the vehicle and came around to my side. Opening the door for me, he took my hand and helped me out of his SUV. “After you.” He said, guiding me up the steps to walk before him. He had already unlocked his front door through an app on his phone. This man had his life together.

The moment the door closed shut behind me, there was silence. Finally, strange words escaped his lips. “You should have stayed home, Miriam.” He said as he unclipped his Rollex from his wrist and dropped it in a bowl by the entrance table. Turning around, I looked at him confused. His poker face was matched with unidentifiable object in his hand. “It's a shame I'm going to have to mess up that pretty face of yours.” Pressing the button on the object, the bracelet activated and emitted a wide range of shocks throughout my body. I instantly collapsed to the floor.

Blackness.

[ * * * ]​

I awoke to find myself in total darkness. My body, from head to toe, was aching. I had a throbbing headache and I felt dizzy, and disoriented. I could barely distinguish my current state, unsure of where I was or how I had gotten here. Slowly, my mind was settling, and the last memories of William came back to me. “Son of a...” I mumbled to myself, though my words were slurred. It felt as though I had a stroke, and half the side of my face was paralyzed. Suddenly, a light went on. It was Walters, leaning back in a steel folding chair with his legs up on a matching steel table. His feet were booted and he was in an unmistakable uniform. Black Ops.

With my hands and legs chained to my own chair, and the bracelet still active. I couldn't explain what it was doing to me exactly, but it was interfering with all of my body, and my mind. I couldn't use the Power to protect myself. I barely had the energy to keep my eyelids open. I felt paralyzed, immobile, and barely alive. He looked at me, chewing a toothpick in the corner of his mouth with his arms crossed over his chest. So much for chivalry. That had died the moment I stepped into his home... or whatever this place was. Clearly, this was an interrogation. For what reason I still didn't know. "You dick." Fitting for his name. I spat out to him; a wad of saliva at his mounted feet.

Suddenly hoisting his feet up, he slammed them against the edge of the table. The table rammed into my abdomen and I hunched over, groaning in pain. He spat his toothpick at me. "Where is he!?" Not answering, he smacked his fist on the table before infuriatingly tossing the whole piece of furniture to the side. Taking a raging step forward, he back-handed me so hard, one of my teeth dislodged from my mouth, alongside a spew of blood. Grabbing my face in his strong grasp, he squeezed on my jaw and forced me to look at him. "Where... is... Chase Collins?"

 

[Defiant]

It happened suddenly. And disappeared just as quickly. But left a lingering feeling of... wrong.

Chase sat up on the bed, frowning as he tried to settle the feeling but it was weird. Something he'd never felt before. It was something under his skin and inhuman. He stood from the bed and stepped outside the room, glancing around he moved quietly through the corridors, pausing any nurse he passed on his way to Miri's office. “Alright Doc, what're you playin' at?” he grumbled and inhaled slowly and let his eyes close as he tried to focus on her powers. The feeling of just unexplainable wrong intensified and his eyes snapped open.

It was a quick walk back to his room and he slammed the door shut behind himself, then released the nurses from their pause and changed quickly before making his way down to the basement. He knew he was probably going to set off an alarm by using magic rather than her security card, but possibly not, she'd be able to sense him going there. But he needed Reid's help.

Upon reaching the room Reid was in he walked in without the prep she'd put him through the first time. “Hey buddy,” he said to the unconscious form as he walked over to the desk to find something sharp then settled for an empty needle. “Need your help, considering we're such good friends, didn't think you'd mind,” he mumbled and walked over to the other man and poked the needle into his arm and withdrew a few ounces of blood. He slid it back out then put a needle over his arm. “Don't say I never did anything for you.”

Chase went over to the other side of the room and emptied the blood onto the floor then knelt down and held his hand over it, seeking relatives. It was harder than it should have been to find her but he got a fix on her eventually. He closed his eyes, using a lot of power to get a view of the room she was in, basically seeing from her eyes. He reeled back when he saw the man delivering a blow to her face and heard his name, his real name.

“Fucker,” Chase growled and pushed himself forward, he held his hand over the blood again and when he felt the power surging under his skin he slapped his hand down over the blood and then he was in the room with the two of them. His eyes black as night. He snapped both hands forward and the man went flying into the adjacent wall, destroying the plaster and slumping half inside of the wall.

Chase walked forward, jaw clenched and muscles taut as he stared at the slumped form for a moment before he turned his gaze onto her. A quick glance to make sure her boyfriend was still out and he knelt by her side and got rid of the bindings without blinking then frowned at the bracelet. He touched then hissed and pulled his hand back, his fingers tingling and feeling weak. He held his hand over it and it actually took a bit of effort until the energy humming from the bracelet keeping her powers at bay began to falter.

He heard the movement behind him then there was the loud crack of a weapon being fired and spun on his knee to stop the bullet before it could hit either of them and sent it back, hitting the gun. He held out a hand, holding the man. “You're boyfriend's a fucking asshole doc. You'd figure being smart enough to have a PhD would come with at least a semi-decent taste in men,” he mumbled and pulled him down, laying the man flat on the ground, using his powers to keep his jaw shut.

He walked over him and looked down at him. He reached out then paused, he held up a single finger. “Your her's to deal with,” he stated then returned to Miri's side and kept one hand towards the man while the other hovered over the bracelet until the jewelry fell to the floor. Once it was off he didn't need to focus to keep him held down on the floor.

“You alright?” He asked, reaching up to touch her face, letting more power trickle from his fingertips to her face to heal the open cuts and bring the swelling down. “I told you that dress was all wrong, you really gotta take me more seriously doc,” he stated and kept his gaze focused on her. “What happened?”

 

[Temptationist]

“You'd figure being smart enough to have a PhD would come with at least a semi-decent taste in men-” ​

Although I was completely immobile in the chair, unable to move or even breathe properly with the bracelet crippling my energy, I did hear those words. And they pissed me off as much as anything else that came out of your mouth. I couldn't speak, but if I could, I would have replied sarcastically - 'Oh, you mean, date someone like you?'. But not even the hottest of rage could be powerful enough to break the drowning sensation of death this device was producing over me.

Instead, I simply flopped my head to the other side, capable of only watching through blurred eyes as you nearly ripped the man and the room to shreds. I could only do one thing, and that was pathetically groan as I tried to combat expel the power this simple piece of jewelry had on me. I felt like I was being drained; being completely sucked of my soul... until you walked over to me.

As you waved your hand over the device, it unlatched - severing its charge and releasing me from its devastating effects. The moment the device fell to the ground, so did I. My body flopped right over the chair like a raggedy Anne doll. I folded to the right, slipping off the side of the seat before landing flat on the ground. I was groaning again, clearly in pain and trembling as I peeled my face off the floor.

My eyes were locked on the Sergeant who once tried to court me. I had been completely blindsided by his hidden agenda, though, instead of mopping about it like a petty school-girl, I was instead angered. Pulling my trembling body back onto my two feet, I was still shaky, and wobbled with every move. My balance had been completely destroyed with the shocks. Though, in general, it looked like I was a coma patient, walking for the first time in months. Glaring down at the man, I slurred my words slightly as they escaped my bleeding lips. "You should have at least fucked me first."

Like a patient wearing off of truth-serum, I took an unwilling step to the side before falling backwards. My knees gave in, and I landed coincidentally back into the chair I had just fallen off of. My eyes rolled to the back of my head as I leaned my battered head behind the chair. My head did not move, and my face did not react, even as you healed the open wounds and cleared the swelling. I was still crippled by the residual effects of the shock bracelet. Whatever it was, it was clearly designed to paralyze the individual wearing it. And so, it did.

"You're a fah-king idiot." I spoke like a drunk crackhead; completely disconnected from the moment as I quivered in my seat. Though, my head quickly shot up as my eyes flared to their warlock black scelar's. Suddenly alert, I tried to pull myself together. I huffed out, attempting to gain control of my body again. "It's a trap." The second those words escaped my lips, the place we were in began to pump toxic smoke and gas into the room. This was all part of their plan. To lure out the invincible Chase Collins.

Before you even had an opportunity to react, I lunged forward, using the little strength I had to fall directly into your arms. The moment our chest collided, I regained some of my abilities and we disappeared. Falling backwards onto the ground, the force of the teleportation left me still melted into your arms as my body quivered on top of you. Within a split second, we went from a gas chamber to my very interpersonal, safe-haven: the treehouse.

 

[Defiant]

Chase turned his gaze away, glancing at the man to make sure he was still down and didn't have anything else up his sleeve. The bracelet was concerning. Very concerning. There shouldn't be a way to curb it, control it the way that piece of jewlery was capable of doing. He looked back towards Miri when he heard her hit the floor and frowned. “Huh, sorry,” he winced and leaned over to double check she was okay but sat back when she began to pick herself up.

He watched her, curious to see what she was doing and arched a brow at her choice of words. “Didn't even get laid out of this?” He asked, fighting very hard to keep a smirk off his face as he looked back at the man then to her just as she fell back. He sat up then got to his feet just as her eyes went back and scoffed. “No shit Sherlock,” he said when she lunged forward. He caught her on instinct but realized too late what she was doing.

He grunted when they fell and groaned as he pushed her off of him. “Fuck sake!” He yelled and glanced at her. “Why'd you do that?” He sighed and shook his head, pushing himself up once again as he looked around the old tree house. Chase looked down at her then gazed around again. “Alright then,” he sighed and reached down to pull her against his chest and manuevered her to lay against the ratty old 'couch' which consisted of cushions from random couches and chairs he'd scrounged as a child. “Fuck it,” he grunted and held his hand up, creating a bed with a mattres she sank into like it was made of cloud and a thick, soft duvet covering her. “Stay. Rest,” he stated before turning away from her.

He disappeared from the treehouse to reappear within the chamber, he'd created a barrier around himself to keep the gas out of his lungs and went over to the man who'd brought Miri here and knelt by him. He check his pulse, felt the dull, low thump of the heartbeat. “Good,” he muttered and held the man's head as he closed his eyes and focused hard. He filled his head with false memories.

The man would wake to remember breaking Miri, have her confess to being a warlock but not knowing who Chase Collins. He'd continued to torture her until her body gave out and she died in this hole. He'd buried her body and returned, accidently setting off the gas in his exhausted state. He also changed Miri's appearance and identity in his memories so Miri would be able to continue with her life.

He stood, leaving the man sleeping soundly as he walked towards the bracelet and reached up to wipe a trickle of blood from his nose. He was exerting his powers, even for himself. Chase pulled off his shirt to drape over the bracelet and as he was wrapping it up he felt a force throwing him forward and picked himself up quickly then turned, staring at the woman who'd thrown him forward. “Who're you?” He asked, frowning.

She scoffed, arching a single brow as she looked offended by the question. “Of course you wouldn't remember me, our partents got rid of us when you were so young,” she laughed aloud at his face. “You made adorable faces even as a baby,” she cooed and reached past the barrier to hold his jaw. He threw his hands out, attempting to throw her off of him. But it had no effect. “Awwww,” she cooed and squeezed his jaw she stared into his eyes.

“I have most of Reid's power. And some of a few other, medeocre warlocks. But of course I've heard of you,” she said and tapped his cheek as she let him go. “My own little brother got my father's power and is one of the strongest alive. But now, I'm catching up,” she turned and flicked a finger, sending him flying into the wall. Chase grunted and as he inhaled relized the barrier had fallen and he sucked in the toxic gas.

He was fast to get it back up and summoned as much as he could to throw a ball of energy at her, throwing her off her feet and denting the wall. “I have a whole army helping me. I will get what I want,” she seethed while picking herself up then grunted as he threw himself at her and held her face in his hands. He felt the blood dripping down his lips and chin while he erased himself and Miri from her memory, her eyes rolling back as the effect took hold.

They both fell to the floor and he cast he a quick glance as he summoned the last bit he could manage and returned to the treehouse. He inhaled, trying through his nose to smell the bark he was laying on but only succeeded in sucking blood back into his nose. He made a face. “I think we're good for a little while,” he mumbled, his eyes closing to stop everything from blurring and making him dizzy. “Changed memories,” he offered in way of explanation before he slipped into unconsciousness.

 

[Temptationist]

My body flung forward, as if a body resurrecting from the dead. My eyes were wide and my body was stiff. I felt myself wet; covered from forehead to feet in a layer of sweat. My eyes was beating through my chest and my eyes were blurry. I could see only the hazy cast of moonlight, which glistened off of my slick moist skin. I felt like I had awaken from a coma. I felt not only incredibly nauseous, but disallusioned. Trying to free my eyes of their fog, I blink several times, but I could only moan in the confusion of the moment. My body ached from head to toe. Turning my head, I groaned as I could see a figure laying just short of a foot next to me.

"C-chase-" I huffed, shaking my throbbing head as I tried to get a grip on my attention. I blinked several times again, a sense of immense panic washing over me. "Chase!" I flopped over to my side and quickly slid onto my knees. My eyes began to focus as I narrowed my eyes in on your unconscious body. "Chase...!" Turning you over, I pulled you into my arms. My voice trembled and my body began to shake. I had barely any memory for the past several hours - everything was mashed together and despite my body overcoming the assault, it was still in a state of dishevelment.

I could only place my hands on your face as I coddled your head. "Chase, wake up!" I shook you slightly, but my heart felt like it was in my throat. I looked around the room, only to realize we were in the umbra of the night, with no light but the shine from the ghostly full moon. The sound of a coyote howling in the night seemed to echo throughout the woods. I took a sudden breath, remembering just tid bits of how we got here, and where we were. Recognizing the tree house, I looked down at you again, still unawoken and unconscious. "I've got you." I whispered, holding you tight before I closed my eyes and disappeared from this safe haven.

[ * * * ]​

When you awoke, you'd find yourself well-rested, and well-taken care of; laying on a long leather couch, surrounded by the warmth of a roasting fire. Your head rested on a comfortable and fluffy pillow, but the compliments of a soft and warm blanket, which I had assured covered everything by your head. Rather than the smell of wood from a familiar tree house, instead, the smell of a log cabin replaced it. From the big bay windows, you could see the fresh woodland scenery, and in short distance, our childhood treehouse. A big dinning room table and small corner kitchen would be found just behind the couch, beside the entrance to the cottage home. Across from the couch and living space would be a door to the master, and only, bedroom.

The small television in the corner room would be playing on low volume; a news cast of the horrific events that unfolded at the Leafside BioMedical Rehabilitation Center in Montana. The research and treatment facility that I contained not only all of my research, but my whole life's work. The images of the disastrous scene flashed across the screen.

You would find me, feet curled onto the one-seater, with my head buried in my hand as I watched the the building I called home, on fire and in wreckage. It had been attacked by a league of armed assailants, who not only mass-murdered many innocents inside the building, but also pillaged the offices; apparently in search for something. I gawked at the sight; tears welling in my eyes as my fingers slid from my forehead and down the side of my face. They found their way to my lips, which quivered as I read the death toll from the acclaimed "unclear attack". I turned off the TV immediately, unable to bear the picture of Nurse Cavallo, just one of the many confirmed victims, shot dead in the facility during the raid.

Single accumulated tears fell from my eyes; streaming down my cheeks as I covered my mouth and tried to contain my emotions. I had always been bad at keeping an emotional distance from people. Instead, I formed strong ties with individuals, and as a result, suffered immensely when I lost them. "... Oh my God." A desperate, guilt-ridden whisper escaped my lips as I thought about all the people, my friends and my patients, who had died as a result of my negligence and naivety. What had I done?

 

[Defiant]

Waking with a start, Chase was off of the couch before he really had any idea he was on a couch. He stumbled, looking around at the bedroom before he relaxed, the hum of energy as he called upon his power went silent. There wasn't a threat here. At least not an immediate one he could see. He turned his head, finding the television before his gaze rested on Miri and he sat down heavily on the couch once more.

His head fell forward, his hands came up and his fingers raked through his hair before he lifted his gaze to the TV and he watched the events unfolding, a frown pulling at his lips before he turned his gaze back onto Miri. He pushed himself up slowly and moved to the chair, kneeling beside the chair and put a hand cautiously on her shoulder. “I'm sorry,” he offered quietly. He didn't know how to be comforting or what he was really supposed to do in this moment. But he was sorry her friends were murdered needlessly since they'd have known nothing. Same as the patients.

He let his hand fall from her shoulder before he stood up. He remembered everything which had happened before he'd escaped again. He couldn't believe he had a sister he'd never known about. And she'd managed to get that powerful, but it also explained Reid which was a scary thought. If she managed to pull power from an resisting warlock then she was more dangerous than Chase was ready to admit.

He stood and stepped away from the chair, moving towards the window he stared outside. Knowing someone more evil than him was out and they were being hunted made the world seem a little bit darker. He should feel bad for what he'd done to Caleb. He should, but he didn't.

He glanced back at Miri then back out towards the world. She would need to be stronger and there was only one way for that to happen. “You need to stay here, I'll be back,” he stated and headed for the door. “Don't use your powers right here, she may be able to follow us,” he warned before walking out the door.

[***]​

He'd walked a fair bit away before coming across an older gas station and snagging a car which had been parked behind the station, probably belonging to an employee. The TV hadn't said anything about the lab downstairs so Reid was probably still safe. He'd driven in the wrong direction, throwing off any way of tracking the powers his sister may have.

Once he was two counties away he used his powers to return to that room and though there were security systems he was standing right beside Reid and stared down at his unconscious form. “Alright, we need to talk,” he stated, the smell of the fire from up above had filtered down and the smoke in the room wasn't too bad. He leaned forward, one arm braced on either side of Reid's head.

“I don't know if you can hear me blondie. And if you can you're probably not happy to hear my voice but you need to listen. You need to will your power to your sister. If my sister can force what you had out of you she can get the rest and your sister is in danger with the puney shit she can do now,” he stated, staring at the man's aged face. “You were stupid and lead her right to you, didn't ya?” he asked, shaking his head. “Caleb was right about you,” he sighed and heard something outside the door. “Company,” he said and looked around the room. His eyes flashed black and he was back in the car, Reid in the back with equipment filling the trunk and the passenger seat. “Don't die before we get to the cabin,” he stated, glancing back at the blond man.

He didn't doubt Reid could hear him, but he knew it would probably take time for the man to will up enough strength to pass his powers onto Miri. He drove fast but legal, he didn't need to deal with cops and he had to be careful with what he could use to keep from alerting anyone of where they were while they were flying so blind.

Once he'd arrived back at the cabin he carried Reid into the cabin and over towards the couch and set him down. “All of your equipment is in the car. Not all of it, but everything that he was hooked up to,” Chase said before he went back out to get some of the equipment. He'd let her hook it up since that was her expertise after all.

 

[Temptationist]

He glanced back at Miri then back out towards the world. She would need to be stronger and there was only one way for that to happen. “You need to stay here, I'll be back,” he stated and headed for the door. “Don't use your powers right here, she may be able to follow us,” he warned before walking out the door.

When you came to my side, I was pleasantly surprised. As you knelt beside me, I took your hand on my shoulder and held it with my own. Taking a breath in, trying to control my tears, I nodded lightly and said simply, "Thank you..." I tried to smile, but I was too upset to do so. Instead, it formed into a light half-grin, pulling at one corner of my mouth. When you stood back up, my hand slipped from your fingers and I gently wiped the tears from my cheek. I looked down at the tissue in my hand, wondering what I could have done differently to have saved their lives. If only I hadn't fallen for that smug Sergeant...

Hearing your voice, my head perked up and I looked at you with a confused expression on my face. "W-what?" I said, unsure of what you were talking about. "She? Who's she?" Seeing you head for the door, I suddenly stood from my seat. "Chase, wait!" I said with growing concern. "W-where are you going!?" Moving to stop you, by the time I got to the door, you were already gone.

[ * * * ]​

Jumping up at the sight of Reid in your arms, my jaw dropped. If it could have hit the floor like a cartoon character, it would have. My eyes were wide and I was in complete and utter shock. "R-Reid..." I stammered, running over to him on the couch; amazed that he was still unharmed and alive. "Oh my God." I said to myself, soon repeating it over and over against as my eyes shifted from Reid to you. "Chase..." I said with a soft, surprised tone as I checked Reid for a pulse. I looked up at you, with the utmost compassion in my eyes, speechless for words in response to your kind gesture.

Before I could do anything else, I locked my eyes on you, rising from the couch and abandoning Reid for a moment to walk up to you. My pace was quick and fierce. Although you were heading out the door to get the equipment, I stopped you in your tracks. By the time I was just a foot from you I grabbed your shoulder and pulled you into a sudden embrace. Wrapping my arms around your neck, I held you so tight, you couldn't even break the embrace without excessive force. In that moment, I didn't care how uncomfortable you might be. I needed to hug you; I needed to hold you tight in my arms. Still emotional from the days even, my eyes were watery as I face buried in your shoulder. "Thank you."

If this meant anything; it showed that you did have compassion. Some shred of it left in you. Despite your history; despite the past. You were still, somewhere deep inside, the little Han than I knew you to be. Pulling back to prevent any more awkwardness, I gave you a slight, but sincere kind smile. My eyes glanced at your lips; in that moment, I wanted to kiss you. The sound of gurgling interrupted that thought. Releasing you, my head whipped back to Reid, who, miraculously, was waking from his coma. I looked back at you, eyes wide and in disbelief. "G-get the equipment!" I said in the spur of the moment, turning to lunge for Reid's side. With the endotracheal intubation tube still in his throat, I panicked momentarily as I watched his throat pump. "Reid..." I said lightly to him, taking the appropriate steps to pull the tube from his throat. As I did so, he began to choke slightly but then took a choppy breath. His hand instantly raised rose. He was shaky as I brought his wrinkled hand to my cheek. His eyelids slowly, but surely, rose; revealing those tired deep blue eyes of his. The moment felt surreal; like a dream.

"Who did this to you?" I asked him desperately, knowing that our time together was limited, and that Reid would not survive long without machines. He was as good as dead, and everyone knew that when Reid was found in this battered state. I needed to know, though. I needed answers. "Reid, tell me... please, who did this? Who hurt you?"

Reid huffed, his throat struggling to find words to respond to me. His hand fell limp on my face, and I gently lowered it to rest on his chest. Still, I held on to it, urging him to try the hardest he could to talk to me. His lips parted, and the words that followed would shock the hell out of me. "C-Chase... C-Collin's...S-Sis-" He heaved, my watery eyes drying quickly in the rage I suddenly felt. My face fell, my expression turning hostile as I took in those words. I was a fool. A fucking fool for thinking that you could be anything more than a manipulative bastard. Reid squeezed my hand, "-Sister." He reiterated, but I was already long gone. In my mind, this was all your fault.

The door clicked shut before the couch, and my eyes, now filled with ferocity, looked up to glare at you. There was a silence in the room. It was eerie, and the air dry. "Is this some big fucking joke to you...?" I growled, "You sick... psychotic son of a bitch." Suddenly exploding from Reid's side, I errupted like a natural disaster. "IS THIS SOME KIND OF GAME!?" Before I could lunge at you, my eyes glowing in their blackened state, Reid's arm rose to grab my wrist. He held it with such force, such strength I had never seen in him. His long nails dug sharply into my forehead, as he squeezed so hard, my own resistance would only serve to turn me.

There was a growl that gargled from the back of his throat. His breathing was heavy, enough to overpower even the loudest of voices. Holding me from attacking you, he found the energy to speak assertively to me. "He is not your enemy."

 

[Defiant]

Chase watched the moment between brother and sister silently, he didn't know if there were the right words within him to say anything. When she was suddenly in front of him he nearly skidded to stop and glanced past her shoulder. “The stuff is i-” he got cut off with how sudden and how much force she pulled him in for the hug. He slowly let a hand raise to rest on her lower back as she held him. He could hear the tears in her voice. “You're welcome,” he said quietly.

Part of him felt guilty because he had gone with more of the intention of convincing Reid to will Miri his powers, not because they'd need closure or whatever was actually happening here. Miri had to be the one to get his power, not his own sister.

His gaze shifted to her face when she pulled back and was curious at how her eyes looked at his lips. He opened his mouth, a flirtatious smirk falling onto his face which disappeared faster than it showed up at the sound of Reid waking up. Her urgency at telling him to get the equipment snapped him out of his current state of mind and he turned on his heel to go back out to the car.

He got the door open just as Reid was saying sister and Chase realized she must have told him who she was. It was interesting to know Reid knew of his sister before Chase did. But then his eyes fell onto Miri and he was suddenly worried he'd have to do something drastic to protect himself from her. He shook his head quickly and twisted a bit to set the equipment on the table.

“No. You have to listen to me,” he said quickly, keeping himself under control to remain non threatening as possible. Then Reid spoke up in his favour and he was genuinely surprised by the action. “I didn't know I had a sister until last night. That's the 'she' I was talking about. This whole thing going on, she's the one killing us off. She wants the power and she is strong,” he said, slowly lowering his hands.

“Honestly, if I knew coming to you in the first place would drop me in the middle of this I probably would have steered clear,” he said honestly, letting out a breath as he picked up the equipment and moved to set it by Reid's side so Miri could do what she had to do.

“I'd call you Malfoy but you look more like that snake nosed dude, just with more wrinkles,” Chase said as he looked at Reid and gave his shoulder a pat before he looked up at Miri. “This is where you're the expert. I'll step out and allow you some time alone. I don't do the mushy family shit that well,” he commented as he pushed himself up and looked into Reid's eyes before he turned and walked into the bedroom. “I'm stealing the bed for now,” he announced, kicking the door shut behind him.

 

[Temptationist]

I look down to Reid, who's lips became bluer by the minute. As if time stopped before me, I just stared at him, trying to calculate how long he could survive even if I were to hook him up. Ignoring any more of your words, I moved to re-attach him to the equipment, but was met with instant resistance. “N-no...!” He began to cough, so hard that his whole body gyrated with every exhale. He pushed me away from him – furious adamant about not being re-wired to this contraption any longer. “No more...” He coughed again, unable to bear the brunt of this lifestyle anymore. He grabbed at me, pulling me down to my knees beside him on the couch. He brought his weak hands up to my face, and within seconds of him looking into my green eyes, I broke down. Dipping my head forward, into his chest, I began to sob. He held my head in his hands, though, he was shaking from the lack of muscle mass. Leaning back, I slipped my head from his hands to ease him of the tension, and looked at him with tear-filled eyes. It was a moment of sadness we shared together – this was the end.

In a last ditch effort to console me, Reid reached for my neck. He slipped his wrinkled finger under a thin silver chain and pulled the necklace that lay hidden in my shirt. Out slipped a crystal pendant, the size of a large marble – dazzling in its violet colour. It was a charm our father had given me when I was a child, something that kept his memory alive. Reid, wheezing heavily as he looked to it, rolled it in his fingers. His brow narrowed, and without so much as looking at me, he began, “I will you-”

“NO! Reid!” I instantly grabbed his hand and squeezed it around the pendant. He began to cough uncontrollably, unable to finish his sentence. “I can't... I can't!” I begged him to stop. “You know I can't- don't!” Under quivering mutters, he began immediately agitated with him, grunting and fighting back as he flailed his arms – trying to break free from my hold.

“I will you... m-my p-”He tried to say it again, but again, he began to cough – this time spitting up blood in the process.

I tried to coddle him, but he was growing belligerent. “Reid, no, please. Stop!” I huffed, tears streaming down my cheeks. He clutched harder onto the crystal pendant, suddenly jerking his arm back and tearing the gem right off the chain in his motion. I gasped, my heart dropping and my mind freezing as it broke.

“My power-!” He spat out, beyond my control, suddenly slamming the pendant down on the ground. His eyes were intensely fixated on the marble, and they widened as he watched the gem hit the floor. Rather than shattering, the small crystal ball bounced right off the hard wood completely in tact. He immediately outstretched his cockled finger; pointing to the damn thing as it disappeared under the bedroom door. His face dropped, riddled with sudden concern as he started to wheeze uncontrollably. His eyes began to turn their rich, silk black color as he looked at me in absolute horror.

“R-Reid...?” I whimpered to him, both confused and startled by his sudden bizarre behaviour. I felt as though he was trying to communicate, though I just couldn't understand him. Seeing his face, in that moment, it was like I couldn't breathe. A single tear slid down his ghostly-cheek as his skin began to flake into thousands of pieces; his body quickly withering right before my eyes as his color blackened and he soon disintegrated in to ashes. “Reid!” I wept in agony, curling over the couch as his ashes turned to dust, and the dust turned to air. “... Reid.” I could only moan as the emotional pain I endured manifested itself physically. I had no more tears. I had cried too much in my lifetime. I had endured too much pain. And now, I was becoming numb to it. Always my cheeks remained moist from the previous moments, I had nothing left in me.

[ * * * ]​

Reid's wishes could be heard through the poorly-insulated bedroom door of the cottage. Following those five crucial, life-altering words, the sound of a consisting clacking cut right through the commotion. The marble, bouncing off the floors, clapped with the ground with every strike. It lost momentum quickly, soon resorting to a roll as it traveled across the living room towards the door. Less than an inch in diameter, it jutted right under; fitting through the wide gap between the frame, and the door. The pendant made a wooing sound as it spiraled over the floor boards, stopping right at the side of the bed. In lay now in hauntingly plain sight - a sort of melancholy filling the room with its gloomy presence.

Despite Reid's mighty magic words, I remained completely unaffected. Instead, the only sound that could be heard in the other room was not the sound of a witch finally ascending, but rather, the sound of a broken heart. As Reid slipped from existence on this Earth, a strange event was occurring simultaneous right in the bedroom behind me. The lights in the room flickered, soon leaving the room in darkness as the skies had suddenly shadowed. Following Reid's will of power, a flash of lightning lit up the room. Yet among the dim dusk, the violet crystal seemed to glow. A darkness brew inside of it - a whirlwind of black smoke raged inside the pendant. It lasted but a few seconds before it faded; the electrical interference ceasing and the marble returning back to it's clear, crystalline colour.

Although it had been willed from Reid's body, the power did not go to me.