Archive of Our Own

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Grace could've sworn he was on Erid when he went to sleep.

...So why is he not? Why is he in this weirdly packed space?

Okay, don't freak out. Except that doesn't work because he's restrained. And there's a man watching him. A horrifyingly intimidating man.

Don't fricking panic. Except it reeks of iron in here and the walls are wet. What. Good lord why are the walls wet? Grace is sitting against a wall. The wall is slick yet sticky. The wet is thick and smells like iron. Now what does that suggest?

Don't. Panic.

..Grace does, in fact, begin to panic.

He shrieks and squirms around, trying to find a way out of his restraints. What is he even restrained by? That doesn't matter, he's still touching the wet. What even is the wet? "Mother fudger that's blood! Oh my god I'm touching blood. THERE'S BLOOD ON ME!" He continues to thrashing, spouting not-quite-curses and an unending stream of questions. "Why am I here? Where is here? Why is here? Blood??? Why so much blood?! Why blood?!"

The man had gotten up the second Grace had started screaming and spouting nonsense. The man had grabbed a fire extinguisher. He was holding it improperly. Not to fight fires. Just to fight. Grace was aware, but was still talking to try and make sense of his situation. "Who are you? Why are we here? And what is here---" Grace didn't have time to keep talking, because the man had hefted the fire extinguisher up and was rearing up to smash him with it. He immediately snapped his mouth shut, staring at the man. The man took a step forward and he squirmed. He laughed sheepishly.

"Um... Please don't?" Grace offered helpfully, his voice a nervous squeak. With all that was happening, he really didn't need a concussion on top of it. The man did stop though, so he was hoping to find a way to talk himself out of it. "Yes, thanks for not hitting me. I'm Ryland Grace. Um... who are---" The man lunged forward suddenly and cracked Grace across the side of his face. He was distantly aware of sharp pain in his jaw, then another hit to his head made him lose consciousness.

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Okay, so maybe Simon panicked. You would too! He was supposed to be alone in this fuckasss submarine. He was welded into it! So how the actual fuck is there a random guy in here? And why does he talk so much? That damn... Whatever the hell is out there is playing tricks on him. It has to be. But then why is the dude tangible?

...Also, is the guy still alive? Maybe Simon should have asked some questions before genuinely fucking decking him with a fire extinguisher. He doesn't think the guy's bleeding. Or maybe it's just mixed with the blood from the walls and he can't tell the difference. Regardless, the man is, in fact, at least out cold. But the real question is whether he is still alive as well. Simon doesn't want to touch him. What if the thing outside is just trying to trick him into touching the guy so it can get him? He frowns and uses the hose on the extinguisher to poke the man then jumped back a step.

Nothing happens. Okay.

Simon steps forward again and this time used his foot to nudge at the man's side. Still nothing. That's good. Maybe. It means the guy isn't a threat. But it also doesn't confirm if he's alive. He frowned and started at the guy. He considered, then touched the guy's wrist to check for a pulse.

Confirmed, he's alive. Great. That's either good or very bad. Simon has yet to determine which of those is true.

...But if the guy has a pulse, he has to be real. But that doesn't make sense, because how would he have gotten in? The sub is welded shut. So he has to be a hallucination. But also hallucinations don't have a heartbeat. But the guy does. That has to be wrong. He checks the pulse again. Still there, still the same rhythm.

What? No, that doesn't make sense. It has to be wrong. Confirmed, he's going fucking nuts. He's hallucinating a random man. There's no way he's getting out of this bullshittery alive. The thing outside is gonna eat him and it's just trying to make him more compliant by giving him fake company. Well he's not gonna do that. He frowns and checks the guy's pulse again. Yup, still hallucinating it. Great.

He goes back to the controls and decides to continue on like nothing happened. Cause nothing did. There's no guy. He's just making it up. He has a job to do. Then he gets to be free. Yeah. Just keep on working. Nothing happened. Mhm. He's just fucking crazy. Yup. Just in his head. Nothing there.

And that worked. Simon forgot all about the hallucination while he worked. Fantastic. Confirmed, it was just in his head. Good. At least the thing has decided to give up on that particular plan. It didn't work for a second! Hell yeah, he knew better. He was getting better at pretending he didn't believe it. Because he didn't. Obviously. Mhm. That's right. This is great!

That lasted all of an hour. Because the guy is groaning. He's supposed to be gone! Simon literally just told himself he was done believing it! And yet, the dude is making sounds. Shit. But he's meant to be gone! This has been a really long hallucination. Simon glanced over at the man. Yup, still the same guy. He does look pretty real. The thing outside is getting more convincing. That's never good. He gets up and stares at the man. Eventually the man comes to, but instead of taunting Simon like usual, the hallucination just yelps and keeps squirming, spouting excuses on why he shouldn't get hit again. Hm. Usually they don't care.

...Shit.

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Grace's head really hurts. And when the man immediately went back to watching him once he woke up, he quickly started to run his mouth. "Wait, wait, wait, please don't hit me again good lord! It really hurt. I'm not here to cause any trouble, please, I don't even know how I got here I'm just as confused as you are!" He still couldn't seem to find a way out of these restraints. Or maybe it's just because he's panicking. Either way, he's stuck at the moment.

The man was still watching him. He was still pretty guarded, but more than anything he seemed surprised. Surprised at what, Grace had no idea. But it was better than being hostile again. He did not want to get more concussed than he definitely already was. Ow, by the way. Yeah, his head still hurt like a buttcheek on a stick. He waited a while to see if the man was gonna get him, then slowly started talking again now that he was pretty sure he wasn't gonna get hit again. "...Alright, this is progress. Awesome. Maybe we got off on the wrong foot here. I'm Dr. Ryland Grace. It's nice to meet you. Now can you tell me where---"

"Liar."

"...Pardon?" Grace paused, giving the man a confused look. Also, that was offensive. He had hardly said anything so far and he was already being called a liar. How rude! "I haven't breathed a single lie since I got here, thank you. Except maybe that it was nice to meet you. That was a lie, albeit one made of courtesy. You hit me with a gosh darn fire extinguisher. Also, ow, that hurt and---"

"There's no way you're a doctor. You are way too young for that. So I call bullshit. How the fuck did you get in here? There's no fucking way you don't know where you are, so stop spouting your lies." The man, despite his angry words, still seemed baffled. He was staring at Grace like he had two heads. Which did not help his current situation of feeling both very offended and very pathetic.

"I appreciate you thinking I'm young, but I'm somewhere in my forties. Which is plenty old enough to have a doctorate. As for how I got in here, I don't know either. Now can you tell me where we---"

"The youngest person in the stations with the title of doctor is in their sixties. Quit lying---"

"Aht! MY turn to speak." Grace said, putting on his best teacher voice. He was sick of being interrupted. The man seemed caught off-guard and yet did, in fact, snap his mouth shut. "Thank you. I say again, I haven't told a single lie aside from a courteous one. Now, I get to ask some questions. To start off, where am I?"

The man didn't say anything. He was staring at Grace, still seeming baffled. And now he seemed more shocked. "...You seriously don't know?"

"If I did, would I have asked?" Grace was starting to get a little frustrated. Which, paired with the feeling of humiliation and the pain in his jaw, caused a few tears to sprout in his. Which probably didn't help his pathetic image. "Can you untie me? My head hurts and my legs are cramping from sitting."

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There's no way this is real. It can't be. If this guy was real, he had to have been with the C.O.I, which means he had to have known what was going on. But if he's not real, why is he tangible? And why is he complaining? Hallucinations didn't complain, at least not about things that genuinely made sense. Maybe Simon's just having a very vivid dream? Is that what it was? Yeah, that makes sense. Makes perfect sense, actually. Simon couldn't help but huff out a chuckle at his own stupidity. He couldn't believe he had been stupid enough to actually consider this being real.

"Okay, I'll humor you." He crossed his arms and stared at the man, much more relaxed now that he was convinced this was a dream. "You're in a welded-shut submarine in AT-5's blood ocean. Now, if you'll just let me wake up and get back to work, I get to be free from this bullshit before the whatever-the-fuck outside kills me and makes me here more weird bullshit than usual. It's awfully nice of my brain to provide me some company to help me cope, but I don't need coping right now."

"...Fricking BLOOD OCEAN?!" The guy... What did he say his name was? Ryland? Whatever, the Ryland guy seems very confused. Also, what is with the bullshit censoring on cursing. Why not just say fuck? "...That isn't possible. Like, scientifically. How would there be enough blood to make an entirely ocean? Also there isn't an AT-5 in any known solar system. What planets are we by? Is this an undiscovered planet or something? There's no way this is blood." The Ryland dude didn't seem very convinced as he eyed the walls.

"Fuck you mean, what planets are we by? There are no planets. Why the fuck are you making me explain something that is common knowledge? You should know this. Even if you weren't a dream, you would know this. The Quiet Rapture took all the planets, you dumbass. And the stars. And you claim to be a doctor? Please, even schoolchildren know this stuff." Simon was very annoyed at his brain. It makes no sense to make him explain the world he lives in to some dude his brain made up.

"What are you talking about??? The planets are completely fine! And I literally say the stars the other night! The Eridians could still detect all the planets on their scanners. There's no way astrophage wiped everything out. Even if it did, it wouldn't have happened in one night! It would take years for it to actually happen to the stars itself, and the planets wouldn't just disappear! Neither would the stars! They would just dim a substantial amount. Where are you even from?"

Simon wrinkled his nose, staring at the man. Okay, he didn't know a few of those words this guy has said. Wait, but then how would this be a dream? Now it doesn't make sense again. There's no chance he's real. Right? It has to be the thing fucking with him. But the thing didn't talk like that. And if it was a hallucination, it would still need to use words he actually knew. But he can't be real. Even if he was, there's no way he wouldn't know this stuff. Or know that other stuff. But then how does he know all those new words? Nothing made sense.

"I'm from Eden. Where the hell are you coming from if you don't know all this shit? Your station has to be horribly uneducated if you don't know about the Quiet Rapture." Now Simon was coming to the conclusion this guy is from some weird conspiracy cult. Where they made up bullshit on belief. That had to be it. He was still confused, but it was starting to make more sense.

"Well, I'm originally from Earth. Obviously. But I've been living on Erid for a few years now. Either way, everything you've been saying sounds horribly wrong. Also, I'll have you know, I am very well-edcuated---"

The rest of the guy's rambling fell on deaf ears as Simon slowly processed what he just heard.

...What?

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Grace has troubles with talking too much. He gets it a lot. But sometimes it just takes extra explanation to feel justified. But once he notices the look on the man's face, he knows to shut up. He's seen that look before, but he can't quite remember when. Regardless, he is painfully aware of it. So he tries to change the subject in the hope it'll help the man stop looking like that. "So, um, about untying me so I can, you know, stretch---"

"There's no way you're from Earth. Earth disappeared years ago. And what even is Erid? Your lies make no sense. Do you live under a rock?"

"Well, kinda. I sleep under one because he insists on watching me sleep."

"...Is something wrong with your head?"

"You literally just hit me with a fire extinguisher. Yes, my head hurts and I'm probably concussed." Grace was very confused, and now he was getting a little upset. His head was pounding, his legs and butt hurt, and also he was wet. Wait, wet? And kinda sticky? Hm... Gingersnaps, the walls. He forgot about the walls. His voice raised an octave. "Now PLEASE untie me. I'm covered in blood and I'm sticky and wet and it's genuinely so gosh darn hot in here---"

"Do you ever stop talking? Like, ever?" Regardless, the man slowly walked over and released Grace, immediately jumping back a few steps when Grace sprung up.

Grace stretched, his bones crackling as he popped everything in his body. "Not really. I get that a lot. Talking is easy for me so I do it a lot. Also it calms me down when I'm freaked out, and this is about the most freaked out I've been in years. It also helps get all my thoughts out so I can piece things together better. Like, you said there are no planets or stars and that we're on some planet I don't know---"

"It's not a planet, it's a Rapture Moon."

"...Right. Cause that's a thing." Grace was really starting to worry for this guy's sanity. So many untechnical terms were falling out of this man's mouth and he was starting to think there might be something wrong here. "Anyway, we're on a moon. With a blood ocean. In a world where there are no planets or stars. At least, that's what you're telling me here. But that cannot be true at all because I was on a planet literally yesterday. When I went to sleep, then woke up restrained. Then you hit me and---"

"We know this part. It literally just happened."

"I just explained this to you. I'm making my thoughts easier to think." Grace frowned and looked around. This whole place gave baaad vibes. "So, there's only two feasbile explanations here. You're either lying or in some horrible space cult. That welded you into a submarine and put you in a blood ocean. Oh gosh, are you in danger? Uhhh... Blink four times if you need help."

The man just stared at him, clearly baffled. It looked like the man was going to ask questions, or try to defend himself, but before he could there was a horrible staticky sound and a voice crackled from the radio.

"---vict? Convict, do you copy? What's going on down there, you haven't moved in ten minutes?"

Grace was thoroughly relieved to hear someone else. "Ah, great! This person can get us out of here, surely? Hello? Yeah, hi, I'm Ryland Grace. Mind pulling me and, uh..." He paused to stare at the man. He asked for a name like twice and still hasn't gotten anything. Nickname it is. "Buddy-Boo McBear here out of here?"

"...Convict, who the hell is this?"

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How the hell was Simon supposed to explain this now? Ava didn't know his guy. Which means he can't be working for her. Which means he has to be telling the truth. But how did that make any sense? "...Ava, you don't know this bastard?" His head was spinning with questions. But also, he saw an opportunity. A doctor. The C.O.I wouldn't turn down a doctor. Which means... He has an easy way out. If he plays this game right. It was a bit of a gamble, but it could work, "He claims he just woke up here. Calls himself Dr. Ryland Grace."

"No, convict. I don't know any Dr. Ryland Graces." Silence on the radio. Simon could practically see the look on Ava's face as it dawned on her. "Wait, did you say doctor?"

"Yup, yes he did!" Ryland piped up, seeming happy with Ava's tone. Simon was equally, if not more pleased. He should gamble more. "I am a doctor. Not in a medical way, though. I just have a doctorate in molecular biology. I was one of the leading astrophage scientists back on Earth---"

"Convict, steer to the hangar. We're bringing you and the doctor up ASAP. Keep our guest safe. Over."

"You got it, Ava." Holy shit he was getting out. All thanks to some weirdo in his sub. Thanks, whatever luck this came from. He was almost convinced it had to be bullshittery by now. But now the evidence was too compelling to doubt.

He hit the fucking jackpot of strangers. The C.O.I gets their valuable resource, and he gets his freedom. Talk about a Hail Mary.

"Well, doctor, congrats. You just earned yourself a job." Simon sat in the control seat and started to steer to the hangar. He couldn't keep his relief and admitted smugness out of his tone. "Just a heads up, the job conditions really suck. But welcome to the team I guess."

"Thanks, uh... C'mon, humor me. I can't keep calling you Buddy-Boo McBear in my head forever. You gotta have a name."

"Not one you have to worry about. Once we get to the surface, I'm out of here. Bringing you up has got to clear my debt here, so I'm as good as gone here soon. Thank fucking god." Simon was going full-throttle. He wasn't about to waste time. Once he was out, he was free. No more submarine, no more jail, and no more goddamn whatever-the-fuck outside.

Just freedom.

He smiled for the first time in a while. He was thrilled by the concept of getting to be done with this. "Hold onto something, this thing is a little rusty and will probably stall a little while we drive." He glanced over at Ryland, noticing the look on Ryland's face as he eyed the bloody walls. "..Okay, fair. Find something a little less bloody and hold that."

This is great. Simon was in a great mood. He could go back! Out of jail, back to his old life. He can put this all behind him. All he had to do was get to the hangar. Then he can turn the page to a new chapter. All because of a random nerd in his submarine. God bless Dr. Ryland Grace, the miracle stranger from the fucking heavens.

And the first thing that crosses Simon's mind when something slams into the submarine and sends it whirling off-course is very simple:

Why can't he catch a damn break?

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Grace was dreadfully unprepared for the impact. He had neglected to listen to Buddy-Boo McBear, so he wasn't holding anything. Which meant that he was immediately flung into the wall opposite of him. How much head trauma was he going to accumulate during this trip? He groaned and looked over at the man, who was clinging to the chair for dear life and spouting unintelligible curses. "What the fudgenuggets is happening?!" Grace yelled over the creaking and alarms blaring.

"It's the goddamned whatever-the-fuck outside!" He yelled back, tugging at the controls in an attempt to get everything righted.

There was a horrible shrieking sound outside, causing Grace to slap his hands over his ears in panic. That was loud, and very abnormal. It was deep and felt like it resonated in your bones. And it had this undertone... Like it had been screaming for a while and its voice was hoarse. Weirdly enough, Grace found it appealing. Comforting and relatable. And so, so saddening. He wanted to get out and comfort it. Tell it it wasn't alone.

Grace was snapped out of his thoughts by the man yelling at him. "The FUCK are you doing?! Hold onto something, you dumbass!"

He hadn't even realized he was inching away from the wall, trying to go to the sound. The thing screamed again and it no longer felt sad. It felt horrifying. It was very, very mad for some reason. The man was making it mad. Grace felt anger of his own brewing under his skin. "Stop it! You're making it upset! Can't you hear it?! The poor thing is hurting and you're trying to leave it!"

"Goddammit, just hold onto something! And cover your fucking ears, Ryland!"

That actually got Grace to pay attention. Nobody had used his first name in a while. It was jarring. And yet, he couldn't help but listen. He scrambled over to the wall and hooked his arm through a pipe, covering his ears. The spinning went on for so long that Grace had stopped keeping count. Eventually it slowed to a stop, and Grace slowly looked up, uncovering his ears.

The thing screamed again, mournful and enraged. Grace could swear he heard words mixed in the screaming. It felt betrayed. He could feel the sympathy brewing in his heart again, but once again the man interrupted that train of thought before it could establish itself too much.

"Ryland, cover your damned ears!" And Grace listened. He could just make out the man yelling something, perhaps in response to the creature's mournful screaming. He couldn't make out the words, but the man seemed angry. Maybe even a little guilty. It took a while, but the man quit yelling and Grace couldn't hear anything from behind his hands. So he slowly uncovered his ears again and unhooked his arm, staring at the man, who was still visibly seething.

Grace didn't know this man at all, but he recognized that look. Guilt. Guilt for not wanting whatever the thing was pushing on him. He had worn that look himself a few times in the mirror. More times than he'd ever be able to count. He felt a sharp stab of sympathy and walked over, setting his hand gently on the man's shoulder. "Hey... You okay---?"

The man flung himself out of the chair, tackling Grace. He yelped when he fell to the ground, staring up at the man on top of him. He held his hands up in surrender, panicked. The man had grabbed him by the shirt collar, and his teeth were bared. Like a feral animal. No, that wasn't quite right. A scared animal. Wounded. Grace knew that look too. He had worn that one as well.

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Simon wasn't planning on lashing out. But he hadn't been touched kindly in so long. The touch was nice for all of three seconds. Then he was hit by the painful fear of that touch suddenly turning violent. Why else would Ryland be so kind, so gentle? Just to preserve him until he was suddenly useful. Keep him pristine until it was time to muddy him.

Lord knows that was almost always that happened. That's what he was. An object to be treated nicely only until it was time to be used. A fresh new book to sit on the shelf until it was time to read it, to wear the pages and steal the words to store for yourself. Just to be used and left hollow. It always happened. He had to learn against the instinct to want it.

"Don't FUCKING touch me!" He spat, his lips peeled back in a snarl that definitely looked more desperate than dangerous.

"Okay." Ryland whispered, still holding his hands up. Simon looked for mocking, for disappointment in his eyes at being denied. He didn't find any. Instead all he saw was understanding. Sympathy. It scared him. It was different than what he was used to. He didn't want different. He wanted Ryland to be predictable. He growled and shoved Ryland into the ground, standing up. He clenched his fists to hide his trembling.

"Shut up. Don't act like you give a shit!" He sat back down in the chair, taking a moment to hold his head in his hands. He was so sick of this. And now there was even more time between him and his freedom. He just wanted it to be over. He wanted to stop hearing the damn thing outside. He just wanted to hear his own thoughts, not the ones the creature wanted him to have. His mind wasn't his own. It was horrible.

All the more reason he couldn't just sit there and feel sorry for himself. He redirected the sub back into the direction of the hangar and immediately went full-throttle, not caring about the startled huff and stumbling of Ryland. Let him fall. He couldn't care any less. He fucking deserved it by now. For pretending to get Simon with that stupid look.

And yet, the words came automatically from his mouth. "Careful. Hold onto something." He immediately hated himself, but he heard an acknowledging hum and the sound of Ryland grabbing the pipe again. He couldn't bring himself to stay angry. But he still didn't trust it. It was a hoax. That's all it was. He shouldn't give a shit. He was on his way to deliver Ryland to the C.O.I right this moment.

That thought came with an unexpected stab of guilt. Why? He was so happy about it not long ago. This was his freedom. It was a good thing. It was the best damn thing he was gonna get. And yet, that look that Ryland gave him had hit him deep. He didn't want Ryland to face the same fate that he had. He didn't want Grace to be a pawn, a sacrificial lamb. This sickly sweet man deserved a nice life. A comfortable life. Not a life locked in a prison cell disguised as a lab.

Simon could feel some sharp, painful tears start in his eyes. He immediately bit his tongue and forced it down. No. He wasn't giving Ryland the satisfaction of prying such valuable liquid from his eyes. That's what the man wanted. That was exactly what that look was meant to do. Simon bared his teeth again and grabbed a fistful of his hair, tugging on it in anger. It was all he could do to distract himself.

He could feel Ryland's eyes burning into him. It just made the tears more insistent. And yet he kept them down. He focused on the sharp pain in his scalp. Anything but Ryland's eyes. Anything but the look in the man's eyes. Anything but that horrible pain of being recognized for what he was. He tugged harder, tasting blood from the place he was biting his tongue.

His head was filled with thoughts that the creature wanted him thinking. That just added salt to the wound. It was telling him exactly what he didn't want to hear. That it was real, that this man made of sugar really knew him and understood him. That he was dooming a man that deserved anything but. That he was ruining something that he wanted. That it wasn't too late to steal that sympathy, to hold it close and feel understood again.

Of course it was too late. The man didn't even know his name. He didn't deserve to have that sweetness to his life. That sweetness could be falsified by his freedom. That was what to focus on. Getting this pathetically appealing lie to the surface and out of his mind. To claim his freedom and finally go back to the way things were before everything. Back to pretending like he was just a human instead of a monster in the skin of one.

So why haven't the tears gone away yet?

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Grace itched to fill this silence with literally anything. He would love to change the subject, to do anything but sit there and watch the man tug at his hair. He knew why. He had never quite gotten out of that habit either. He saw a lot of himself in this man. Which made watching even harder than it already was. The words clawed at his throat, desperate to escape. And yet he held then down because clearly the man didn't want them.

But it doesn't work that way for him. He can't just be silent like tht. So, before he even realised, he started making tiny sounds under his breath. Anything his voice insisted on doing. The man had briefly flinched, but after a while, the quiet sounds seemed to calm him down a little. Apparently he didn't need the silence either. So Grace let more sounds out. Quiet humming, a few clicks, whatever he could think of to do. And the man slowly let go of his hair.

"...I know you said it doesn't matter. But can't I know your name anyway? You're the first human I've seen in years." He was nervous to actually talk. But the man barely spared him a glance and there was no answer. Grave resigned himself to the one-sided silence, back to his humming while he thought. He wouldn't push anymore. He could understand the want for distance. But maybe that distance didn't have to be physical.

Grace wandered over to the controls, stopping a few inches away from the chair. He lowered himself to the ground, staying slow so the man didn't panic. He grabbed the edge of the control table, mostly to make sure he didn't get launched again. He glanced over at the man, finding that the man was already staring at him. The man was cautious, but didn't seem bothered by the closeness after a while. That was some progress. He smiled at the man, hoping it'd offer some reassurance.

The man stared for a while longer, then looked back to the controls. He didn't return the smile, but he seemed less nervous now. Grace took a quiet sort of pride in that. This wasn't the conversation he had originally itched for, but the silence was a conversation on its own. A quiet sort of compromise. He would hum, the man would listen, and they'd enjoy each other's company.

Another thing was that it gave Grace some time to actually look at the man. His appearance was intentionally gruff and a little rugged, but there was an interesting softness around the edges. Like he was wearing some strange costume that was his appearance. Grace couldn't put a finger on why, but he didn't mind it. It actually helped with his anxiety about the man. Thinking about it a little closer, the man kinda reminded him of a turtle. Wearing a shell of rough edges to hide the soft nature underneath.

How lovely. Grace did love turtles.

Maybe they weren't his favorite animal, but they were up there. He liked foxes. Foxes were elegant and yet very smart. He also loved giraffes for their long necks. He always adored their awkward proportions. But turtles were also awkward. He loved awkward animals. This man was also awkward. Maybe that's another Grace thinks of turtles. He wonders what animals the man likes. He wonders if he should try to ask---

"...Simon."

Grace snapped out of his thoughts, caught off-guard. Simon? Did he know a Simon? Oh, did the man mishear his name? Well, that's unfortunate. Wait, no, the man called him Ryland earlier. What? Who's Simon? Simon Says Simon? What a weird way to offer to play a game to pass the time. Well, the did say the man was a little awkward.

Apparently his confusion showed on his face, because the man huffed. "You asked for my name. It's Simon. My name's Simon."

Oh, that made a lot more sense. Now Grace felt a little dumb. He offered an awkward smile to try and feel less idiotic.

"Oh. Nice to meet you, Simon."

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Simon doesn't know why he told Ryland his name. He wanted to keep his distance, after all. He was going to leave and never see Ryland again once they got to the surface. And yet, he wanted his name to be known. He was sick of just being 'Convict'. And, admittedly, the smile Ryland had given him was relieving. He needed that even if he hadn't realized. Ryland had a nice smile. Just added to the sweetness, like putting sugar in sweet tea.

Simon couldn't think of any other words to describe Ryland aside from sweet and nerdy. And what was worse is that his fit from earlier was coming back differently. He knew he was wrong now. There was no way this man of sugar could use him. There wasn't room in this man's big heart to do something like that. And Simon hated how obvious that was in hindsight.

Unfortunately, that just made the guilt burn harder. He was basically throwing a kitten to a pack of wolves by delivering Ryland to the C.O.I. And, though it was a horrible thought, he briefly considered turning off-course and just letting this sweet man slowly die with him. It would be a kinder fate than what awaited the man on the surface. He would love to say it was a thought that didn't belong to him, but that would be a sad lie. And the thought had its selfish reasons too. Simon would die with nice company, with a lovely man to sweeten the little air they had left. To die with a man that wasn't tainted by humanity.

He couldn't do that. But could he turn Ryland into the C.O.I either? Was there even another option?

Maybe just one other option. But a horrible option not much better than dying with him. They could give into the creature. They could sink into this horrid, burning blood and let it claim them. They could drown peacefully and awaken part of the ocean itself. Now, doesn't that sound like a dream? To finally belong? A different type of freedom, sure, but a sweeter freedom---

Simon was able to catch that train of thoughts. Those weren't his. He didn't think like that. And that was far from an option. He couldn't go with that creature. It was lying. He wouldn't belong any more than he belonged anywhere else. That wasn't his place. It couldn't be further from his place. Not in this ocean. It wasn't his home. It would never be his home.

But didn't it feel like home?

Yes, it was so comforting and sweet. It felt like the offer of an embrace. It would feel like he was with his mother again. It would be a lovely home. And if he wanted, he could even bring Ryland. He didn't have to ask. Even if Ryland wouldn't want it at first, he would grow to love it too. Simon could just steer a little off-course. Ryland wouldn't even notice as they dodged the hangar just by a little. Yes, that's right. Simon wanted that.

Yes, yes, yes, come on, just steer a little off-course. Just a little. It'll be painless. And so, so safe. Just do it. Don't think about it, do it! DO IT! JUST COME HERE!

Simon snapped out of it when Ryland gently tapped the arm of the chair. Ryland looked concerned, tilting his head. Simon was grateful for the distraction. The creature was getting better at getting in his head and making getting eaten sound appealing. It was horrible. He shook his head at Ryland, who nodded in understanding. How did e get so lucky to get stuck with such a sweet man?

The creature shrieked again, enraged that he had shaken away the thoughts it was planting in his head. He immediately slapped his hands over Ryland's ears as it screamed, enduring the anger. He didn't need Ryland getting tempted too. Clearly it had some control over Ryland too. Well, it couldn't have Ryland. It didn't deserve the man made of sugar. It didn't like that.

"I'M OFFERING YOU A HOME! A REAL HOME! JUST LISTEN TO ME! COME HERE!!!"

Simon rolled his eyes. It started to get really annoying when it knew it was losing.

Chapter Text

Grace was trying really hard to listen to the conversation between the creature and Simon. Unfortunately, Simon was covering his ears much better than he had been and he couldn't hear a thing. So he took this time to dwell on the touch of Simon's hands over his ears. He hadn't had human contact in so long. He was aware that he missed it, but he had no idea he missed it this much. Humans were social, he was bound to feel a little lonely with just Eridians as friends.

But this was really nice. Like, really really nice. Simon had to be running hot if his hands were this warm. God Grace missed that human warmth. He didn't even care about the conversation anymore. He didn't even know if it was still happening. All he could think of was how nice it was to have his face held again after so long. Even on Earth it didn't happen often.

Before he even realized it, Grace was melting into putty under Simon's palms. He shifted so Simon's hands were no longer over his ears but instead cupping his cheeks. He shut his eyes with content sigh and nuzzled into the touch. Human contact was such a relief. He missed it so so much. And Simon's hands were rough and calloused, which somehow felt even more human.

He stayed that way for a while. He opened his eyes to find Simon staring at him in shock. He immediately felt the head flood to his face and scrambled back, flustered and incredibly guilty. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry! I didn't even know I was doing that, you must've been so uncomfortable! I'm so so so sorry, it's just been so long since I've felt human touch, I don't know what I was thinking---"

Grace didn't get to keep rambling, because Simon had put a hesitant hand on his head. He snapped his mouth shut and kept his gaze on the floor, not wanting to discourage the touch by accident. It was embarrassing, but he was also probably radiating with happiness. Simon let out a soft huff and awkwardly ruffled Grace's hair before pulling away. Grace felt pathetic from how much he missed the touch already. He itched to hug Simon but didn't want to scare Simon away. Baby Steps.

"Sooo... The thing outside. Do we know what it is?" Grace just wanted to change the subject so he was less embarrassed. It wasn't the smoothest transition, but he was wicked curious. It lived in an ocean of blood, but it made human words, and it seemed to have some sort of hynotic properties. Which, scientifcally speaking, made no sense. Which would be Grace's fourth new discovery. And now he felt almost competitive.

"It's a hellspawn. A fucking demon." Simon frowned while he thought. "But, technically speaking, it has to be some kind of aquatic creature, right? A fish or something."

A fish that could talk like a human and had hypnotic powers. That sounded vaguely familiar, but Grace couldn't put his finger on why. Also, why would a fish be able to speak? Technically it could have human DNA, but that didn't make alot of sense. Or did it? Let's see... Fish, possibly a little human, hypnotic... It's right on the tip of his tongue---

Grace clapped his hands, startling Simon. He didn't realize, "Ah! It's like a siren!"

Simon looked baffled. "...An alarm?"

"What, no. Do you not know what a siren is?" Simon shrugged and Grace sighed thinking about an easy and simple way to explain it to Simon. "It's a creature from folklore. A fish-human that lures sailors to their doom with their beautiful voices. It's widely accepted they eat those who they lure. Sounds like our creature here!"

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Simon couldn't believe how much sense that made. That sounded damn near exactly what they were dealing with. The creature, the siren, wanted them to listen and go to it. It wanted to eat them. So yeah, sounds perfect. God bless Ryland Grace, this nerd. "That... Explains a lot, actually. Where did you learn about these siren things?" He tilted his head at Ryland.

"I used to be big on mythology. Loved learning about stuff like the gods and creatures." Ryland seemed so pleased with himself, it actually made Simon chuckle. He reached over and ruffled Ryland's hair again. He didn't miss the way the man leaned into it, but didn't acknowledge it so he didn't get embarrassed again.

"Well, ain't that neat? But I'm surprised a scientist would be interested in something with no scientific proof."

"Well, that's the thing. With science, you ache to know what's true and what's not for yourself. And with so little being known about aquatic lifeforms, sirens and other mythological creature that live in the ocean were entirely feasible. If it hasn't been proved impossible, that just means it's possible. So I liked to learn about stuff so I could see if they made any sense."

Ryland kept on talking, but Simon was hardly listening by now. He was a little distracted watching Ryland. The glint in his eyes when he spoke about something interesting, the tapping of his fingers on the ground, his big smile. It made Simon's guilt fester into something ugly and acidic. It burned through his heart, eating away at the thrill of getting to be free.

He didn't want to be free just to leave Ryland alone in that place.

Yes, yes, exactly. Come to me, bring him with. You can stay and be happy---

No, that's not what he's saying. He's made his decision. He was gonna bring Ryland to the surface, but instead of taking his freedom and running, he was going to stay with Ryland. They could plot and find a way out of it. Together. He wanted to stay by Ryland Grace. That's weird. But that's what he wanted. He wanted to be around this sweet, precious man for a long time.

Simon worked his fingers through Ryland's hair, which shut the man up. He paused and looked at Grace questioningly. Why did he stop talking? Simon wanted to keep hearing his voice. "Well? What else?"

"Ah, right." Ryland cleared his throat. "This is such an interesting discovering! Do you have any idea how many theories this'll disprove? It's gonna be a massive breakthrough in the science community!"

Simon didn't care about the words, he just wanted the sound. So he heard without really listening as he kept messing with Ryland's hair. It had been a while since he felt such a strong sense of camaraderie. It was really nice to actually have a friend that wasn't using him. Even if he was using the friend for his own reasons.

There's that guilt again. Simon might be in some trouble here.

Chapter Text

Grace wasn't sure when he had dozed off, but when he woke up it was because of a lurch in the submarine. He looked at Simon questioningly, who didn't seem all that surprised.

"We're just at the hangar. They're hooking us up to bring us up to the surface." Simon explained, leaning back in the chair.

Grace nodded and stretched, using the edge of the controls to pull himself to his feet. Now that everything had dulled down, he was aware that his leg was aching rather badly. He was hit with sudden mourning for his cane. He leaned against the chair to take the weight off his bad leg. "Right. So, what exactly do you think they're gonna have me do? You said they were gonna have a job lined up for me, but you never said what job that was."

There was this flicker of something on Simon's face. Grace noticed but didn't draw attention to it. "Well, that I don't know for sure. But if you really have a doctorate, you'll be constantly busy. Scientists are scarce up there."

"Oh. Well, that's not too bad. I get restless when I don't have anything to do." Grace shrugged, though he did wonder what that look Simon had was. "What are your plans once you're free to leave? Surely you have an idea of what you want to do with your freedom, right? I mean, you seemed really excited about it." He just wanted Simon to keep talking and not block him out.

"Oh. Well, about that." Simon chewed his lip, then scowled at himself. "...You'll need a guide. Someone who knows what's going on up there. I don't... You shouldn't be alone."

Oh. Well, that was awfully nice of Simon. Grace smiled, finding himself oddly excited by the prospect of Simon wanting to stay with him. It sounded nice. "That's great! Oh, I'll be able to teach you so much while we work! It'll be awesome!" Yeah, he was really missing his pebble students. And besides, Simon made wonderful company so far. But then Grace thought about it a little more and felt a little guilty. "But, why would you choose to stay? You deserve to do what you want."

Grace didn't want Simon staying with him out of obligation or pity. Simon deserved to have plans that actually saw the light of day. Grace didn't want to take that from Simon. He couldn't believe he was so pathetic that Simon was nervous to leave him alone. How miserable. Maybe the people who used to compare him to a crippled puppy weren't kidding about him having a tragic sort of appeal.

"Yeah, well, this is what I want. Now drop it. I'm staying with you and that's final." Simon pretended to check the controls, but Grace saw right through it.

He couldn't help but smile again, watching Simon. He has the brief thought that Simon's acting was horrible, and that came with a warm fondness in his chest. Familiar, but very very distant. It had been a really, really long time since he felt that. How weird. What even was it? He considered for a while, trying to remember. It was on the tip of his tongue, he just couldn't quite place it---

...Oh gingersnaps.

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Simon could feel the dread catching up with him as he watched the depth meter slowly go down as they rose. What were they going to do to Ryland when they got to the surface? Would it even be safe? Did he need to prepare for a fight? He could do that if he had to. He wasn't gonna let anything happen to Ryland if he could prevent it.

Ryland seemed lost in thought, so at least he couldn't see the way Simon was preparing himself for the worst. The C.O.I had no reason to be kind to him when they got there. They didn't even have a real obligation to be kind to Ryland. Even if he went willingly, they may feel the need to knock him out or something. Restrain him. And who's to say they'd even actually free Simon. They could refill his oxygen tank and send him right back down. they didn't say anything about him getting to leave if he brought Ryland up.

Shit. This was a mistake. He wasn't just throwing Ryland to the wolves, he was throwing himself too. Right back into it. Because he was naive enough to think he deserved some reward for bringing Ryland to the surface with him. He hadn't just doomed Ryland, he doomed himself. He couldn't believe his idiocy. And now it was gonna cause more harm than it ever would good.

He was jolted out of his thoughts by the upward movement abruptly stopping. They were out of the ocean. Now all that was left was getting them out of the sub.

Simon looked at Ryland, who seemed excited. He didn't need Ryland being fooled by this false prospect of good. He had to warn him now. But if Ryland panicked it just meant he was more likely to get hurt. That wasn't worth it at all. He'd have to breach the topic slowly, gently. Try to avoid scaring Ryland. Maybe nothing bad would happen and this would just be a precaution. As the sound of welding torches cutting through the metal, Simon turned to Ryland.

"Hey, so, be ready to fight. In case they try to knock you out the second you get out of the sub." Simon blurted, trying to sound casual but just sounding nervous.

...That was not breaching the topic carefully.

Ryland stared at him in shock. "...That's something that might happen?!"

"No! Well, yes. But it's not likely!" Simon really had to stop digging this hole before he wasn't able to get out of it. "Just.. Be ready for it in case, y'know? These are dangerous people."

"That is not comforting! Why didn't you mention this earlier?"

Simon chewed his lip. Originally it was just so he didn't have to do as much work to get Ryland to the surface. But he also didn't consider that there might be some violence when they actually got up there until just now. But it did linger in the back of his mind during all of this, so that wasn't the whole truth either. Did he admit that?

No. No, he couldn't risk Ryland being upset at him.

"I didn't consider it until now.." He said as the hole the members had been cutting into the submarine fell out.

A little white lie never hurt. Right?

Chapter Text

Grace would love to address his realization. Except, no he wouldn't. That was the least of his concerns and also the last thing he wanted to think about. Because there's no way, right? It has to be a hoax, born only of loneliness. Yeah, that had to be it. Also, he really needed to focus because Simon had just warned him that he might get jumped the second he left this hunk of metal.

He stared at the opening to get out, nervous. Luckily Simon stood up and immediately went to the opening first. Simon was visibly tense. He shuffled after Simon, peeking over Simon's shoulder. It made him feel very cowardly, but he pretty much always felt that way these days. No matter how much Rocky and the other Eridians called him brave, he never truly felt that way.

God he missed Erid. He missed the pebbles, and Rocky, and his house, and god he missed having his aids.

A woman showed up on the other side of the exit. Grace had the immediate instinct to cower behind Simon, though he fought against it. This woman was battered and intimidating. The same intimidating that Stratt was. That wasn't the most pleasant thought. In fact, it was quite the opposite. The woman stared at him for a long time, her hand on her hip. Was that a fricking baton?

"Are you Dr. Grace?" The woman asked, sounding unimpressed. Well, that made Grace feel great.

"Yes, ma'am, that's me. Hello." He was painfully aware of how his voice cracked when he spoke. Simon glanced over at him. "Uh, can we step out? Without you getting us?" Based on Simon's irritated look, he probably wasn't meant to make it known they had an idea that was a possibility. "N-not that you would get us!" Mhm, keep digging that hole Ryland. You're totally going to talk out of it.

"Yes, doctor. You may come out." Grace nodded and nudged Simon gently to get him to move. But the woman immediately grabbed her baton. "Ahem. I said you may step out, doctor. The convict will stay while we refill his oxygen tanks and prepare him to go back to his expedition."

Wait, what? "What, no, he'll stay with me, thank you." Grace grabbed Simon's arm, feeling the dull thrum of panic under his skin. "I need a guide."

"We have more suitable guides than the convict, doctor."

"I don't know who you're talking about. I would like Simon, thank you." Grace wasn't good at being entitled, but he was putting on his best performance. He clung to Simon's arm and pouted, making himself seem as petulant as he could. How pathetic. He was never gonna let himself live this down. Clearly Simon wouldn't either, based on the glint in his eyes.

The woman seemed awfully confused. "Why would you want a convict as your guide?"

"Because I know him and he seems awfully nice."

The woman shook her head in disbelief. "I mean... Whatever you need, doctor."

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That easily? Ryland had some wicked luck. Simon looked at Ryland in surprise, who was already staring at Simon. Ryland grinned, clearly pretty proud of his persuasion. It brought a small smile to Simon's face, even if it was followed by an eye-roll. He took a step out of the submarine, tapping his foot on the sold, reliable ground of the facility. God, that was such a nice feeling.

He took a moment to adjust, then stepped all the way out and helped Ryland out. The man was limping, which did make him a little concerned. He'd ask later so Ava didn't realize. He didn't need her exploiting that weakness.

"So, where's my lab? Depending on the equipment you have available, I might need a few things." Ryland was right back to talking, clearly excited to start working. How odd. Nobody enjoyed labor. Except apparently Ryland Grace. What a weirdo. Simon meant that with a surprising amount of fondness that he wasn't expecting.

"You will get no extra resources. What is there is all you will get. We'll cut into the convict's rations to accommodate you. Other than that, you will be allowed nothing extra." Ava started to walk, gesturing for them to follow.

Simon was far from surprised that he would have his rations cut. Ryland did not share that sentiment. "Wait, what? No, why would he get his rations cut?"

"He's an unnecessary asset. You need to be prioritized, doctor."

"That's bullhonky!" Ryland insisted.

Seriously, what was this guy's problem with swearing? "Ryland, it's fine. They'd only cut them by like half. I'll manage." He appreciated Ryland's insistence on him being treated well, but he really didn't need it. Ava was right, Ryland's life was worth a hundred of his lives. And Ryland has already managed to keep him from being sent back down, so that was already plenty more than he deserved. Ryland didn't seem happy with that. "You shouldn't have to just manage."

"Doctor, your empathy is inspiring." Ava commented dryly, clearly being sarcastic. "But resources are very limited. And you are our priority. As useful as you are, that doesn't earn you special treatment. You should feel lucky the convict even gets to stay here with you. That is already more than I should've given. Now, are you done complaining about your cushy situation?"

Ryland seemed to shrink under Ava's angry tone. Simon did feel bad, sure, but it was definitely something Ryland had to hear. He was sweet, but it seemed that came with him being delusional. Simon wished he was surprised. There was silence for the rest of the walk to the lab. Eventually Ava paused in front of a door and took out a key ring, unlocking it.

"Your lab, Dr. Grace." She said as she stepped out of the way.

Simon followed Ryland in on instinct. It was a simple lab, with little more than a microscope, some petri dishes, a lonely pipette, and a handful of gross cotton swabs. The room itself was achingly familiar on the inside, though. Simon thought about it for a while, considering the path they took. Unfortunately, it didn't click until the door was slammed shut and locked behind them.

This was literally just a refurbished cell.

And now he was in prison again.

Chapter Text

Grace took embarrassingly long to notice that he was trapped. He heard the door slam and the lock click, but he didn't understand what that implied for a good minute. "...Um. Did she just lock us in here?" He asked, hearing the nervous shake in his voice even as he tried a laugh. "Oh, it's a joke. It has to be a joke right? Ha-ha, you got me! You can unlock it now.." He said to the door. He was met with no answer.

"They don't joke much around here." Simon sounded horribly resigned. It did not help with the panic in Grace's chest.

"But... They'll open it again soon. Right?" He was starting to feel angry at Simon. Simon had to have known about this. Or at least known it was a possibility. Why didn't he say anything?

Simon looked to the side, shaking his head. "...Welcome to your job. Not the warmest welcome, I know. But it is what it is."

Grace looked around. The lab wasn't sterile. Not even a little bit. But it felt like it was purely because it was so plain. He hated it. It was a miserable white room with pale lighting that made it feel artificial. Soulless. It reminded him too much of the Hail Mary. When he woke up alone and confused with no memories and two dead friends with him.

He didn't like it. He felt like he couldn't breathe properly. All he could think about was Yao and Ilyukina. They didn't deserve to die. And the last thing they ever saw was probably a room just as sterile to go under. They knew they were going to die, but they didn't know it wasn't going to be their choice like they thought. What if he died here? What if he died without ever seeing the Eridians again? He couldn't get his lungs to let go of air. He couldn't exhale---

A warm, firm hand on his shoulder snapped him out of it. Simon was looking at him, clearly concerned and yet unsurprised. He felt himself exhale, then inhale a painful gulp of air. He was crying. When did that happen? He leaned into Simon on instinct. He needed that comfort. His grief and panic was still burning in his chest, but at least he had a solid body to lean into.

Simon was doing a good job at being comforting, even if he was clearly out of practice. Grace couldn't keep track of how long they stayed like that. Time wasn't moving like it should. It was swimming in his mind, feeling both longer and shorter than he was used to. It was making him dizzy. And his face was numb, so he couldn't even tell if he was still crying.

And yet Simon held him the entire time.

How lucky he was to have a friend like that. So kind and comforting. Simon didn't know this was going to happen. Simon would've never set him up for that. Simon was too good a friend for that. If Simon had thought this would happen, he would've said something. It was unreasonable to think otherwise. With how Simon was being with him, there's no way Simon could hurt him.

Right?

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Simon knew deep down something like this was likely to happen.

And yet he still brought Ryland here. He still followed Ryland into the room. And he didn't fight to avoid the door closing. Maybe some part of him wanted this. He could spend an unlimited amount of time with Ryland without feeling crowding. It was very appealing. Spending so much time with a sweet man was heaven. And he even had an angel to keep him company.

But he didn't think he did it on purpose. It was getting hard to tell. He hardly put any thought into things anymore, how would he be able to tell if he had planned something he didn't even know about. He was a horrible person, he knew that. It wasn't unreasonable to think his subconscious did horrible things too. It was still part of him.

Ryland had calmed down a while ago. He was pretty sure the man was tired though. Ryland had been napping before they got up here, surely he still wanted some sleep. Simon shifted to look at Ryland, feeling a pang of guilt and worry at the look on his face. He tried to soften his voice, though he wasn't sure how well that was working. "Hey, why don't you lay down?"

"Mm." Ryland shrugged, pulling away. Simon watched him look around, landing on the sorry excuse for a bed. Clearly a prison bed. Simon frowned and shrugged off some of his layers, going to the bed and trying to make it into a somewhat comfortable place to sleep. It wasn't a lot, but it was something that wasn't a cold piece of sheet metal with a thin blanket.

"Does that seem better?"

"Yes, thank you Simon." Ryland muttered, going over and settling in the bed. He was out cold within moments.

Simon stared for a while, then went and sat against the wall, letting himself get lost in his thoughts. He didn't know anything about science. he wouldn't be of much help as Ryland worked. He'd basically just end up being company. Maybe he could fight his way out and they could escape together? Would it be better than the decorated cell to be on the run from the C.O.I for the rest of their lives? Was it even realistic to consider?

"Fuck..." Simon huffed, knowing he was at the end of the road here. He'd need more information if he wanted to plan an escape. Would Ryland even want to be free? Of course he would, he seemed so miserable once he realized they were locked away. But Simon didn't want Ryland to realize he could leave. It was selfish, but he didn't want to be apart.

Would it be so wrong to just resign to being locked away together?

Chapter Text

Grace slept for a while. But in his dreams, he was back on Erid, with Rocky, Adrian and the pebbles. In his dreams, he was home. It felt so incredibly real, that when he woke up in a sterile, distant lab he was confused. This wasn't his home. Where did it go? Looking around the lab, the memories of the day before came rushing in.

Grace felt a deep sorrow at the loneliness that followed the realization he was so far from his home. Then it was even worse when he realized he was alone. Like he was before he was shipped off on Hail Mary. He hated being alone. He hadn't been alone since he met Rocky. And he had always had company from there. Being alone was something of the past for so long. He hated it. He itched for company, for his friends---

That's when it clicked. Where was Simon?

Grace jumped up from the makeshift bed, feeling the quick and potent rise of panic in his chest. "Simon? Simon??" He whispered, looking around in panic. He walked the whole length of the room, looking for Simon desperately.

He was alone.

He wandered around, hoping that Simon would just magically show up. Obviously that wasn't how it works. Simon was gone. But where? Why? And when? While he was sleeping? That made him feel guilty. He slept through his friend getting taken. How much worse does it get? Someone should've stayed up to keep watch. He lost his only company in this horrible place.

Grace didn't get to dwell on it much longer, because the door opened. He turned around, hoping it was Simon. That it was not. A group of men he didn't recognize came in. "Um... Hello?" He took a small step back, eyeing the men warily. He didn't like this. It was different. That made him nervous.

There was no answer. Just one man shutting the door while the others closed in on Grace. He felt the panic in his chest flutter like a trapped bird. This was way too familiar. He wanted to run, to scream, to do anything. But he was frozen in his spot. The rest of the whole ordeal was a blur of painful familiarity and memories.

He was tackled, wrestled down. He felt something sharp in his back. And just like that, he was back on the ground, staring at the sky with his face in the dirt. Getting betrayed by the people he thought were his friends. Being given the illusion of choice just to be forced into it despite his answer. A fox trapped in the jaws of hunting hounds. It would have been poetic if he was running for a better reason than just being scared. But no, it was only an act of cowardice.

And this time he couldn't even fight. He was caught in a snare.

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Simon woke up in a dark room. Alone and tied to a chair. He must have dozed off and got taken. He couldn't say he was surprised. Being locked away should've been more than enough of a hint that they were prisoners here. Interrogations were in order. Where was Ryland? Good question. Probably in a similar but different room. About to get the same treatment as he would.

He wondered what they would question him about. How he got Ryland? What he saw in the blood ocean? Some secret third option? Who's to know other than them. All he could do was wait while he pondered possible answers. Should he risk lying? That depends on what's asked. Just in case, he had one version of the truth and one lie formulated for the most likely questions.

Simon waited for an awfully long time before someone came in. He tilted his head back to see who it was. He was less than surprised to see Ava. She was the most likely option, after all. "Oh look who decided to visit. Took a while." He wasn't gonna show any weakness here. He had to appear cocky and assured. The more in-control he seemed, the less leverage they had.

"Convict." Ava said curtly, going and sitting across from Simon. She kept her face blank, and he did the same. "I have a few questions to ask you. I suggest telling the truth here. We've already spoken to the doctor. Anything you say that does not align with what he's told us will be met with punishment. Are we in the clear here?"

"Crystal." Simon felt the anger rise in him, knowing that Ava had gotten ahold of Ryland. If he was harmed, Simon would make them pay. A man that sweet didn't deserve to ever feel pain by someone's hand. It may as well be sacrilege. To harm an angel had to be punishable by God, right? "Ask away."

"How did you find the doctor?"

"He was just there when I woke up. I have no idea how he got in."

Ava frowned, but didn't do anything. At least Ryland knew to tell the truth as well. "Understood. What did you find during your expedition?"

"That was more of an execution than anything. But I'm sure you're well aware." Simon felt a mild pride in the annoyed tick of Ava's jaw. "But regardless, nothing particularly important. Not what you were looking for, and nothing useful."

Ava sighed and rubbed her temples. "I see. Alright, one more question for you. We don't need much more information from you than we already have." She pursed her lips and leaned her elbows on the table. "...Dr. Grace mentioned a siren. While you were down there, you did report abnormal activity in your logs. I have to know... Is this siren you both mentioned real?"

Simon wasn't sure how to answer that. Was it real? If it was, what did that mean? Would people still be sent down there if he said no? But in the back of his mind, a familiar tone whispered to him.

It couldn't have been real. It had to be a fluke. It's perfectly fine to send others down to visit. You and Ryland are just crazy. It's okay. All safe down there.

"...No. There was no siren."

Chapter Text

Grace didn't remember the details of getting interrogated. He barely remembered the questions. Before he knew it, he was back in the room. Still alone, still living in the memories that being taken had sparked. He laid down in the bed and stared at the wall until the door opened again.

He lifted his head and looked over at the door. Instead of seeing more unfamiliar people, he watched Simon get shoved in. Simon was bruised and his nose was bleeding. That got Grace out of his mind for the most part, and he hopped up. "Oh gosh. Simon, are you alright?" He went over, worried about Simon. The man was clearly beaten. But why? What had happened?

"'M fine." Simon muttered, rubbing his nose with his sleeve. "I should be asking you. They didn't do anything to you, right?"

Grace hesitated. He wasn't sure if he was alright, and he didn't know if he wanted Simon to know about what had happened to him. Everything that happened before Hail Mary were bad memories. Ones he wasn't sure he wanted to share yet. Not until he thought he could deal with it himself. "...Not really. I'm alright, for the most part. They drugged me and asked me questions. Not much else happened."

Simon relaxed a little, but still looked Grace over. Grace was still favouring his good leg, keeping most of his weight on it. Simon frowned. "What happened to your leg? You've been limping since we got here."

"Oh. Right." Grace glanced down at his leg. Then he rolled his pant leg up. The leg was a little scarred up, but the most obvious thing was that it was really crooked. Bent almost entirely outwards. "I, uh, had an accident as a kid. Never healed properly. Usually I have my cane or a crutch, but when I showed up in your sub I didn't have either."

Simon was staring intently at his leg. Surprisingly, he didn't see any disgust or pity in that gaze. In fact, all he saw was pure awe. It made him feel oddly warm. He wasn't used to people not acting negatively to his disability.

"...Your scars are so well-healed." Simon muttered, still staring.

"You think? I mean, I guess they're not that bad." Grace shifted awkwardly. "They did heal better than my chemical burns." He let his pant leg back down, tapping his foot on the ground. "Uh, are you sure you're okay? Your nose is still bleeding pretty bad."

There was a flash of disappointment in Simon's eyes when Grace's leg was covered back up, but he tried not to show it. "I also got asked some questions. One of my answers wasn't that satisfactory to them. Should've expected that, but I still answered right."

Grace frowned. He looked around, then grabbed the cleanest piece of fabric he saw. Everything was horribly dirty for how sterile the room itself was. He went over and gently dabbed at Simon's nose with the rag, trying his best to be careful.

Simon flinched at first, but quickly relaxed. He watched Grace closely. "...Thank you."

Grace smiled. "Of course. What else are friends for?" Mhm. Friends. Totally. What crush?

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Simon was used to people being strange. Everyone was strange where he's from. Everyone had some kind of strange habit or an odd quirk.

But Ryland was a special kind of strange.

He didn't want to bring it up, but Ryland's habits bordered on insane. Not unhealthy exactly, but.. Uncanny.

Ryland would make such weird sounds at time. Ones that humans probably shouldn't be able to make. Plus it felt like Ryland could see better than him. Half the time he'd find Ryland awake and working without the lights on. There was no way he'd be able to see in that low of lighting, right?

But the thing that disturbed Simon the most was his overdeveloped senses of smell and hearing. Ryland could tell such strange things apart so easily. Like when guards came to the door and he got ready to fight, Ryland would assure him that it was just food. And the one other time they actually had come for a different reason, Ryland had let Simon know. Not once had he been wrong.

It was confusing. Simon had even started to wonder if Ryland was even a human at times. If he was, then he was some special new genus or something. Whatever it was, Simon was painfully aware of it. He didn't want to feel unnerved by his only friend by any means, but it was close to impossible by now.

Ryland either hadn't noticed or hadn't cared to acknowledge it. He was still friendly, and he'd talk to Simon constantly while he worked.

Speaking of work, god Simon didn't understand at least half the stuff Ryland said. He tried to listen, but Ryland often talked too fast and said too many unfamiliar words for him to actually follow along properly. But regardless, he liked to hear Ryland talk because it was better than silence.

More often than not, he found himself staring at Ryland's leg. He remembered the scars, how well they had healed. It was hard to forget them, truthfully. Scars that healed cleanly were a sign of fantastic luck. At least to him. And clean scars were some of the most beautiful things he could think of. Ryland had also mentioned other scars, which Simon assumed meant the ones that he saw on the side of Ryland's face. He could guess they went down his neck and arm too.

Simon was tempted to ask about them, but he didn't want to pry. So he'd just admire them.

There was a lot to admire about Ryland. From his clean scars, well-maintained hair, and his incredible work ethic to his odd little habits. Ryland was an interesting person. So much to see and understand. So many questions to be asked should he ever feel like it was a good time. He wondered what else there was to know.

But for now, he'd stick to watching.

Chapter Text

Grace was happy to have work to do. Seriously, he was. But also, it was difficult work. He didn't have much to work with, and he didn't even know what he was looking for. Then again, he didn't know what he was looking for when it came to the taumeoba and he still found that. he was sure he could find something at some point.

That would be much easier if he wasn't so incredibly distracted.

Simon had been hanging around him a lot more often. Sitting on the ground next to him while he worked, staring holes into his leg, and watching him quite literally constantly. It was driving Grace nuts. He wanted to write his development of very mild, teeny-tiny, miniscule feelings for Simon as loneliness. Except if that was the case, being exposed to more humans would probably have stopped that, right?

These feelings had not gone away. Which was a problem. For a lot of reasons. One being that he could hardly work. Another being that there were bigger problems. And also, Simon is the first human friend he's had since Stratt. He could not jeopardize that with feelings that probably didn't mean anything and were definitely not reciprocated.

There was also one other potential problem, though he had yet to actually ask. But he was pretty sure Simon was quite a bit younger than him. Not like concerningly, he hoped. He was pretty sure Simon was in his late twenties. That did not change the fact that Grace was almost twice Simon's age in that situation. And that was the best case scenario.

So yeah, Grace had to do something about this. Because he could not do that.

He hoped to god Simon didn't know about his feelings. But sometimes it felt like Simon did, in fact, know about it and was actively trying to make it worse.

Simon very rarely allowed Grace to touch him. That being said, Simon had taken it upon himself to initiate a lot of physical contact. It was mild at first, but it very quickly got a lot bolder. Like right this moment, because Simon had rolled up his pant leg and was tracing his scars with his fingers. Which, by the way, did nothing to help with Grace's focus. Shocking, I know.

"How old were you when you got these?" Simon asked, looking up at Grace.

"Um... I think I was eight or nine? I was pretty young, that's all I know."

"What was the accident?"

"What's with the sudden questions?" Grace hadn't meant to sound so defensive. But that was one of his least favorite questions. Ever. Because he had heard it ever since he had kept his mobility aids longer than it would usually take for the injury to heal. A lot of questions, some accusations about faking it, the works. "Sorry, not like that. Obviously you can ask questions. It's just a tough subject. I was in a car accident."

"A car?"

"...Nevermind. What about the scarring on your face? What's that from?"

"...I think we're done with questions."

Back to walking on eggshells.

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Simon hated it when Ryland touched him when he didn't want it, intentional or not. What he hated more was Ryland shooing him off occasionally when he wanted to touch Ryland. It pissed him off. He knew it was hypocritical to feel so upset about it, but also fuck that. He just wanted to feel Ryland's warmth when he wanted it. He didn't think that was a big ask.

Also, the questions were getting on his nerves. he didn't want to talk about his past. But he wanted Ryland to tell him everything. His original hesitation to ask things was long gone. He was sick of just watching. He wanted to know things about Ryland, he wanted to feel Ryland, he just wanted to have Ryland to himself. He wanted to know every detail of Ryland and store it way to remember. And he would never share it with anyone. Because that knowledge belonged to him.

And, of course, these thoughts came with guilt. Ryland didn't owe him any details. It was unfair of him to expect them and not even give any of his own in return. But also, he found it hard to care for long.

Yeah, he was selfish. Sue him. He was given a lovely man to keep him company, a literal angel in both personality and looks, and he was meant to just let him be? No, he wanted to know everything. And he wanted to keep Ryland stowed away. Nobody else deserved to see him. Not even Simon truly did.

His angel. Being locked away again should've been hell, but he was with an angel so clearly it was heaven. Angels couldn't be found in hell. So he was inclined to believe that he couldn't be in hell.

He was selfish. Being self-aware at least earned him some good will, right? Regardless, he knew it was bad. But it would be easier to stop if Ryland seemed to care more. Ryland only shooed him off occasionally. Ryland only questioned him occasionally. Otherwise, it was just pure acceptance and easy conversation. How was he meant to let this angel out of his sight when that was what he got? What was he meant to do to stop if Ryland hardly ever stopped him?

Acceptance wasn't necessarily Ryland saying he didn't mind. But it also wasn't Ryland sayin he did mind. Why would Simon stop if it wasn't a real issue?

This was the same train of thought Simon entertained while he traced Ryland's scars, listening to Ryland talk about work he didn't care about. Over and over and over again. If Ryland didn't stop him, it meant he could keep going. He could nurse his selfishness if it was neutrally received because neutrality wasn't negativity.

He knew that wasn't a good train of thoughts to entertain. He knew that he should ask.

But he could always do that some other day.

Chapter Text

Grace was fine with the days blending together at first. He wasn't really keeping track of how long it's been, he's just been working for the most part. Monotony was a relief after everything that happened. At least, it was for a while. But now he was antsy. He wanted to walk around, to have more free-reign. He was sick of being cooped up for so long. It was driving him insane.

What was driving him even more insane, however, was Simon constantly being all up on him. It was fine at first! He even liked having someone to touch. But now it was getting to be way too much. Every single time Simon touched him, he had the urge to claw at his skin to try and get rid of the feeling. Obviously he hadn't, but that was only because he didn't want to offend Simon. And every time he got a little closer to actually doing so.

He's been trying to be gentle about introducing the idea that he needed space. Brushing Simon off him, making up excuses, whatever he could. But Simon either didn't catch on or just ignored it. He hoped Simon was just oblivious, honestly. He didn't want to think that Simon would so blatantly ignore the boundaries he was setting when he'd been so careful about not doing the same for Simon, no matter how badly he wanted to push a little.

But he didn't get to live in his denial bubble for long.

Simon had, once again, sat beside Grace on the floor, leaning into Grace's leg. He itched immediately, the warmth that used to be comforting now burning like fire ants. "I'm trying to work, Simon. I need a little bit of space to focus, you know?" He was trying to be gentle, to be careful about it. But apparently he hadn't been gentle enough.

"You used to focus just fine with me here." Simon sounded confused, and a little hurt.

"I know, it's just--- I don't know, it's getting harder. I need to focus better. Work is getting more difficult and I need to make sure I make less mistakes. It's just a precaution---"

"But you haven't made any more mistakes than you used to." Simon insisted, now sounding frustrated. "What changed?"

"I just told you, work is getting more difficult---"

"You're doing the same thing as before! Why are you lying to me?!"

"Because I NEED SOME SPACE!" Grace snapped. Well, that answered that. Simon WAS just straight-up ignoring him. And that was frustrating. He was getting overwhelmed. "I need space. I need to NOT have you clinging to me! It's overwhelming, and too warm, and I've BEEN saying it, and you're just ignoring me! So GET OFF!"

Grace didn't want to yell. But it was like Simon couldn't hear him unless he did. And if he had to yell to get his point across, then that's just something he'll have to do.

But, boy, if he had known how Simon would react, he would've just kept it to himself.

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Simon should've known that being selfish was gonna catch up to him. In fact, he did know it, deep down. Somehow that wasn't enough to prepare him for Ryland actually yelling at him for it. He never thought Ryland ever would, honestly. Maybe he had thought he could get away with being selfish forever. And that was on him for sure.

But that didn't excuse Ryland raising his voice like that at him.

At first, he was sad that Ryland had yelled. He was sad that he hadn't listened to the man to the point that yelling was the only way it was getting across. He felt bad. Then he was angry. At himself for being like that, for being so horrible. Then, inexplicably, at Ryland. Because how dare Ryland yell at him like that? How was that at all fair? He just wanted to be close to the man. How was that a crime?

He grit his teeth, feeling that anger bubble into his throat. It was an unfamiliar anger. Nothing like the anger he was used to. Because it was so potent, and it wasn't for anyone that was doing something wrong. It was at the sweetest man he'd ever known, simply for putting down a boundary.

"What makes you think you can yell at me?!" He growled, the words not passing through his mind before they were out of his mouth. He was to angry to keep them down. "I saved you! I got you a job, helped you avoid the siren, kept you from getting trown around! And this is how you thank me?!"

He stood up, his lips peeled back in a snarl. He was distantly aware of Ryland's fearful look, but not enough to care. No, he was angry. All he wanted was the comfort of someone else's touch. But he wasn't even allowed to have that. How was that fair at all?

"Wait, Simon, that's not what I meant--- I just--- Touch is getting overwhelming, I can't---"

"Shut up!" Simon snapped. "All I wanted in return for getting you here was getting to know you. How is that a problem?! You didn't care up until now! What changed? Am I not good enough for you?!"

"I never said that! I just--- I just can't---" Ryland was getting ready to cry. The tears were welling up, and he was shrinking into himself.

That's what got Simon out of his head.

He had made Ryland cry. How dare he do that? Ryland didn't deserve that just for putting down some limits. He was a piece of shit. He made an angel cry with his words. Sacrilege. Of course. He was so mad at the thought of someone hurting this sweet man. So caught up in making sure he kept this man safe and indulging himself as he did.

So much so that he was the one who hurt him.

What a piece of shit he was.

Chapter Text

Grace was never good at keeping his emotions in check. He had a lot of feelings, and they were almost always too big to keep to himself. It had gained him a lot of labels as a kid. Weird, annoying, emotional, childish, the works. He knew it wasn't normal, but there was nothing he could really do about it. It was just part of who he was.

And, more often than not, he couldn't handle being yelled at. It was something that triggered a lot of emotions all at once. Frustration, fear, anger, and shame. All of which had a tendency to, you guessed it, make him cry. When all paired together, like right now, it meant a small, itty-bitty, teeny-tiny meltdown. Very miniscule.

Okay, maybe it was a lot worse than miniscule. Sue him. His only human friend in god knows how long is yelling at him just because he needed less physical contact. If you were him, you'd be crying too.

It was already embarrassing to have to tell his friend he didn't like excessive touch. Added onto his meltdown and how upset Simon had been about him saying it, he felt like a total idiot. Which wasn't uncommon. All of his smarts went to academic fields, not social skills or emotional intelligence. Academically, he was gifted. Socially, he was behind.

"I wasn't trying to say that... Please don't be upset at me. I just--- I don't work normal. My brain, it's like wired differently--- I can't do the things other people can. Not as easy anyway---" Grace scrubbed at his face, feeling horrible. He didn't want to accidentally push Simon away. Lord knows it's happened a few times before.

"...Shit. Ryland---" Simon took a step forward, then caught himself and sat down on the floor a little ways away.

Grace sniffled, wiping his eyes. He'd at least managed to keep relatively quiet with his crying. A win is a win. "I'm sorry. I'm not trying to say you're not good enough or anything, I just--- I can't deal with being touched all the time. It's too much. I need my space.."

Simon shook his head, clearly frustrated. "No, no. Don't apologize, you didn't do anything wrong. I should be apologizing. I should've just listened to you instead of pushing. That's on me. It's just... Been a while since I've had a friend. I might have gotten ahead of myself. I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Thank you for apologizing." Grace was still crying a little, but Simon's apology had helped him calm down. He didn't think Simon was trying to yell either. That did help him not feel as angry. Simon was also wired differently, though it was in a way Grace wasn't used to seeing. It reminded him of when he volunteered at the animal shelter. There was one dog that always huddled in the corner and snapped at anyone who came by.

Everyone had written the poor thing down as aggressive, but Grace didn't buy it. By the time that dog actually started to show signs of improving, she was already listed to be put down. That's when it actually clicked for Grace. Why he didn't think she was actually aggressive and out to hurt people. Because she wasn't mean or irredeemable.

She was scared.

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The rest of the day went by quietly. Simon kept his distance, admittedly for his own reasons. He still itched to tuck against Ryland's leg, to hear Ryland talk. But he was nervous to accidentally upset Ryland again. He couldn't handle that again. He's seen a lot of people cry, but it's never quite felt the same as when Ryland did. Maybe it's because of how genuine it was, or maybe it was just because it was Ryland. Maybe it was just because of how sudden it was.

That made him feel even worse. Ryland had been so incredibly patient towards him that he hadn't said anything until it was too much to ignore. And he had been too caught-up in how much he itched to have the comfort that he wanted that he ignored all the signs and pushed anyway.

What was even worse is that he still wanted that comfort. And a tiny part of him urged him to just take it anyway, even if Ryland had asked for space. All that did was cause a bone-deep sense of guilt to nest itself between his ribs, kicking at his heart like a stuck rabbit.

When Ryland had eventually gone to bed, Simon stayed up. In the first few days, Ryland had sheepishly asked Simon to watch him sleep. Something about customs from his planet. He was willing, mostly because he wanted to make sure Ryland stayed safe. And Ryland did the same when Simon was asleep. Even if he didn't sleep long out of pure nerves.

He couldn't bring himself to actually watch Ryland this time, though. Instead he sat on the floor by the bed, dwelling in his own mind. Or, more accurately, wallowing in pity.

Ryland had mentioned being wired different than normal people. Simon didn't know what that was supposed to mean, but he did understand it. He's been told similar things his whole life, notably from his mother. She said it wasn't anything bad, that he was just a little different than the others. But then why did Ryland say it like he was ashamed of it? There was nothing wrong with being different, right?

If there was something wrong with being different, and Ryland was as bad as he was trying to make it seem, what did that mean for Simon?

All things considered, Ryland was an angel. Accidentally ripped from his heaven and dropped into the hell that Simon called home. And if Ryland thought being different was so bad, clearly that meant it was considered a sin. Wouldn't be the first one Simon would have committed, and likely wouldn't be the last.

But if it made Ryland bad, it made Simon the devil. He didn't want to think about that, but he knew it was true. He and Ryland couldn't possibly be further apart in their temperaments, and yet somehow they were even further apart than that in terms of sin. From what he could tell, the only sin Ryland is guilty of is being different. But Simon had so much more than that piled up.

He's also different, but he's also a murderer. A soldier for a less-than-holy cause. Someone who hurt for a place in the world. A selfish person who let greed consume them. He's given in to most of the sins on the list, if not all, and has hardly brushed near any of the opposing virtues. Though, there was nothing he could do now to repent.

He was past redemption.

Chapter Text

Simon hasn't been very talkative. At first, Grace didn't mind all that much. He knew it was a possibility when he stood up to Simon. Also, as terrible as it was, he hadn't even noticed at first because Simon didn't talk much to begin with. He felt bad about that, obviously, but he was pretty relieved for the first few days so he didn't have to address the situation.

But once it hit the week mark, he knew something had to be wrong.

That also sounds bad. He noticed way before the week mark! It's just that it hadn't occurred to him that he might need to actually do something about it. That doesn't sound much better. He's not a terrible friend! He's just very distracted. Speaking of distracted, he actually made a decent amount of progress in his work. Even if they gave him a lot of projects to work on, his main concern was what they'd been feeding them. It didn't taste very good, and he also couldn't tell what it was, which wasn't ideal. So he's been working on finding out what it was.

Needless to say, he's gotten quite sick after puzzling out what the weird fibers he could see under the microscope were.

Simon had clearly wanted to help while he vomited his guts out, but was also clearly avoiding doing so. Grace appreciated that on a logical level, but was irrationally angry about it as well.

Yes, he had told Simon off for being all over him. And he had meant it. He couldn't handle the consistent amount of touch, it was fudging up his nervous system big time.

But now he missed the touch. A lot. And he felt horrible for it because he had been so insistent on not letting Simon touch him only to change his mind out of pure selfishness. He's never been good at this. He's lost a lot of relationships by putting that wall up, and he's driven away any hope of rekindling such relationships by immediately seeking it again. It was a viciously harmful cycle for both him and the party involved.

He should've known it was gonna happen. He probably did. And yet, he had ruined stuff with Simon anyway. Maybe he was a bad person.

Should he even still try to fix things with Simon? He wanted to, but was it okay to? Would Simon just be more upset? He hoped not. He was never good at being on people's bad side.

Before he could even finish considering it, he heard people outside. And not with food this time. That was bad. Reaaally bad. Because whenever they came without food, they wanted something. He looked over at Simon and clicked his tongue quietly. They had established a sort of code in their time locked up. Simon immediately looked over and nodded, tensing.

He wondered what they could possibly want this time.

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Simon's been doing a lot of thinking. Way too much thinking, truthfully. He wanted to make it up to Ryland. To the sweet man he had accidentally hurt. The thing was, he didn't know how. Ryland had made it very clear he didn't want affection. But what else was there for Simon to give? His words? He'd never been good with those.

He'd been thinking for about a week and still hadn't figured out. And that pained him because Ryland had been miserably sick. He didn't know why and couldn't find the words to ask. So he had to just watch and hope.

Maybe that's why the C.O.I had showed up again. To check on Ryland. He had to hope.

But hope had never worked out for him. Why should he be surprised that it wasn't working again?

"We want you to help us make a biological weapon, Doctor." Ava said, standing in the doorway with a handful of soldiers. What a joke. Like Ryland would ever agree to something like that.

"...What?" Ryland seemed horrified, and more than a little appalled. "You want me to be a catalyst for biological warfare? No, no, absolutely not! There is nothing you could do to get me to do something like that!"

"Well, actually..." Ava had this look on her face. Like she wasn't wanting to do this, but wasn't exactly against it. "We do have an idea." She gestured to the soldiers, and they stepped forward.

Simon immediately lunged to block them from Ryland. But they weren't trying to get to Ryland. They were trying to get to him.

Wait. Him? Why would they be going for him?

The confusion slowed him down, and before he knew it he was being dragged away from Ryland, held firmly between two of the soldiers. Why? What use was restraining him going to do to make Ryland do what they wanted? It didn't make sense.

"Agree to make the weapon, or we beat your pet convict blue and bloody."

Oh. Well, there's his answer. How did he not piece that together sooner?

Chapter Text

Grace took longer than he'd like to admit to process what was said. It took even longer to understand it, and even longer than that to actually react. "Wait, hold on--- Why do you need the weapon? What good will it do? I don't even think I'm qualified to do that!" He wasn't lying about not being qualified, but he was pretty sure if he really tried he could definitely find something out eventually.

But he didn't have that amount of time! He wanted to get back to Erid, and he'd been puzzling it over with himself to try and figure out the best way to manage to do so. He went though a lot of theories, and the one that made the most sense was that he had somehow come into contact with a wormhole. Hey, he said the most sense, not complete sense. In fact, it was far-fetched at best. He'd been fully convinced that wormholes were real since forever, but with no proof there was no way to know, or understand.

Good grief, pay attention to what's at hand, Ryland!

"Surely there's something else I can do? I don't think I could do what you're asking." He glanced at Simon, worried. Simon didn't seem surprised at his current situation. In fact, he didn't even seem alarmed. Just resigned, and visibly irritated.

"You said you were a molecular biologist, correct?" Ava inquired, staring at Grace intently.

"That is right. But that is not the same as a microbiologist, which is who you would have better luck getting a biological weapon out of. While I know plenty about cells and certain microbes, I am not qualified to make new things with this knowledge, especially not a weapon---"

Ava gestured with her hand and Simon was shoved to the ground and given a sharp kick in the side. Grace immediately shut his mouth in surprise. "I didn't ask if you were qualified." She turned her gaze on Grace. "Could you do it, provided the right materials?"

Grace stared at Simon. He was obviously in pain, but refused to look back at Grace. "...I don't know."

Ava narrowed her eyes, and again one of the guards she had brought slammed Simon's face into the ground with their foot.

"Stop that!" Grace hated seeing this. It was hard to admit, but their stupid idea had worked. "I--- Fuck, fine. I can try. It would take a while.." He swallowed, then turned to Ava. He tried to keep a brave face. "But if it doesn't come through within a month, I will not continue to work on it. And if I agree to this... I want to try and find a way back to where I came from."

Ava considered, then nodded to the guards. They released Simon, and Grace immediately went to him to try and help him up. "Deal. Thank you for your time, doctor. What would you need to begin this project?"

Grace rattled off anything he could think of, and told her that if he could think of anything else he would let her know. She seemed pleased enough with that and left. Grace was still looking Simon over. "Oh gosh, how hurt are you? Why did they do that? What was the point of that? If they were upset with me, why did they hurt you--?"

Simon just huffed and leaned into Grace. "Sorry, I know you don't like the touch. Just... Give me a second."

Grace just nodded. He wasn't sure what to do. He'd made a deal to make a weapon. Something to be used in biological warfare. Obviously, he didn't necessarily have to actually do it. They wouldn't know the difference.

But, deep down, he was curious. He'd like to try, even though if it did work he would never hand it over. But it would be quite the challenge. Something new.

Would it be a crime to try it out?

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Simon's face hurts, but his ribs hurt more. Broken? He didn't think so, but he also wouldn't be surprised. He was kicked pretty hard. Not the worst he'd ever had, but pretty damn bad. He really should've expected that. In fact, he was more surprised that it wasn't as bad as it could've been. Getting out with a hurt face and some potentially broken ribs was almost a mercy.

And, admittedly, having Ryland hold him and look over his injuries was really nice. He felt very cared for. It had been a long time since he'd been doted on. And he missed touching Ryland. Yeah, that was selfish. Sue him. He's wanted to touch Ryland again for so long, he was dying to have this again. And since Ryland wasn't showing any signs of being uncomfortable, he wasn't in a rush to move away.

Ryland was asking a bunch of questions, but he was barely listening. His ears were ringing. Maybe his face wasn't hurting as much as his head was. Speaking of, he had a headache. A pretty bad one. He felt a weird warmness on the side of his head that he had gotten kicked and shoved into the ground on. That was strange. He reached up and touched it. The warmness spread onto his hand, and he frowned, pulling it back to study it.

Blood.

Well, that wasn't ideal.

"..Hey. Um." He muttered, holding his hand out to Ryland.

Ryland stopped his questions and turned his attention to Simon. Immediately he launched into a panic. "Blood?! From where? Where are you bleeding? How much? Does it hurt very much? How badly."

"My head, no idea how much, it hurts pretty badly." Simon was pretty pleased with not passing out so far. Though his headache was getting worse by the second. "Could we sit down?"

"Yes, yes, come on." Ryland rushed him to sit, immediately starting to fuss over the head wound. Simon wasn't too keen on putting up a fight about it, mostly because Ryland was sitting really close. It was great. Ryland ran very cold, but he was happy for the proximity. And sitting down was helping his headache. It would probably be better if he laid down, but he didn't want to. In fact, all he wanted was to lean into Ryland.

Maybe he could ask? Would that be allowed? Would Ryland mind? Only one way to know. "...Do you mind?" He asked vaguely, too embarrassed to elaborate. He wasn't used to asking for stuff like this.

Thankfully, Ryland seemed to understand well enough. "Sure. Thank you for asking." He seemed happy that Simon had asked, and scooted closer.

Simon practically jumped at the opportunity, leaning into Ryland and snaking an arm loosely around Ryland's waist. It was more instinct than anything, really. He wasn't planning on doing that. Ryland seemed surprised, maybe even a little flustered. Simon was hardly paying attention to that. The ringing in his ears was worse.

He wasn't surprised when he started to lose consciousness.