beneath-our-masks

[beneath-our-masks]

Hello! As a tribute to Storyteller Saturday (and as a thank you for following me!), I am sneaking into all of my followers’ inboxes to ask a WIP-related question. Here’s one for you: How do your OCs celebrate their birthdays?

Thank you for the ask and sorry this one sat in my askbox so long! In Signature Powers, birthdays aren’t really a thing, so I finally decided to nag my co-author and get answers for this for the Beneath Our Masks kids (if anyone is interested in learning more, we’re on @beneath-our-masks!)

Concerned’s OCs

Skyler: celebrates with parents, they have a small cheap cake and get one gift that is a little expensive for how poor they are : p

Kai: doesn’t celebrate, he’s never had a party or anything so he just views it as any other day.

Kira: celebrates with parents and sometimes Kai if Kai can make it, lots of presents : p

Hakim: Something generic with family.

Riley: Lots of presents but avoids home at all costs

Schott: Gives his cats gifts. (Ten interjects to say that Imani would take him out for a drink lol or at least get him a small gift)

Ten’s OC’s

Dakota: Usually just him and his mom. His mom takes the day off work, bakes a cake, and they do something together.

Siham: Their parents definitely have a big thing with all their friends and it’s kinda chaos lol but Siham, the extrovert, enjoys it quite a bit.

Ace: No one on Earth knows their birthday but the crew probably picks a day and shows them the stereotypical Earth birthday.

Haeun: Family evening, with a couple of friends invited over.

Bayleigh: Bay used to celebrate it with Eryn, her mentor, since her parents are pretty absent and tend to forget. However, after Eryn dies, Bay tends to celebrate with friends (usually she and Haeun do something, they’re besties)

Thanks for the ask!

[beneath-our-masks]

Hey taglist, I’m sorry: @imaghostwriter @goose-books @fizzyhedgehog @marlettwrites

We never talk about the woman who shaped Bayleigh’s life when her parents weren’t there.

After what happened to her, Bayleigh doesn’t want to.

Trigger Warnings: Death, blood, mention of gore, guns, kidnapping, dissociation, loss, grief. Please tell me if you need anything else trigger tagged and I will add it as soon as I can.

Word count: 873

AN: Brief note–this one is rough. Bay does heal from this loss, but there’s not a ton of healing in this particular fic. However, it is important to understand her and who she is, so we’re posting it. Please read the trigger warnings and read with discretion, and take care of yourself.

—————–

Ow.

Everything hurt as Bayleigh started to wake up. Blinking the sleep away, she began to stretch…but something kept her arms from going where they wanted to. Adrenaline kicked in right away, jolting her more awake. Tile floor. Locked room. Cold, harsh, almost medical light. Eryn, also bound in front of her. But Eryn was in a chair, facing Bayleigh. Bayleigh herself was on the floor. A quick examination showed that they were both still in their hero uniforms, so identity wasn’t an issue…yet. Experimentally, Bayleigh did her best to move, but she couldn’t stand; her hands and ankles were bound to the floor on short chains. She opened her mouth to say something to Eryn, but the door slammed open, bringing a haggard-looking man. He grinned at Bayleigh, mirth in his gaze, as he took a pistol out of his belt.

Keep reading

[beneath-our-masks]

We never talk about the woman who shaped Bayleigh’s life when her parents weren’t there.

After what happened to her, Bayleigh doesn’t want to.

Trigger Warnings: Death, blood, mention of gore, guns, kidnapping, dissociation, loss, grief. Please tell me if you need anything else trigger tagged and I will add it as soon as I can.

Word count: 873

AN: Brief note--this one is rough. Bay does heal from this loss, but there’s not a ton of healing in this particular fic. However, it is important to understand her and who she is, so we’re posting it. Please read the trigger warnings and read with discretion, and take care of yourself.

-----------------

Ow.

Everything hurt as Bayleigh started to wake up. Blinking the sleep away, she began to stretch...but something kept her arms from going where they wanted to. Adrenaline kicked in right away, jolting her more awake. Tile floor. Locked room. Cold, harsh, almost medical light. Eryn, also bound in front of her. But Eryn was in a chair, facing Bayleigh. Bayleigh herself was on the floor. A quick examination showed that they were both still in their hero uniforms, so identity wasn’t an issue...yet. Experimentally, Bayleigh did her best to move, but she couldn’t stand; her hands and ankles were bound to the floor on short chains. She opened her mouth to say something to Eryn, but the door slammed open, bringing a haggard-looking man. He grinned at Bayleigh, mirth in his gaze, as he took a pistol out of his belt.

“Well, well, well, little Mirror. Let’s test your vocal talents. Feel like telling me where the organization’s based?” 

“What organization?” Bayleigh asked, doing her best to play dumb. “It’s just me and Bridge.” The Bridge, the amazing hero known for her combination of martial arts and terrifying flexibility. Bayleigh knew her as Eryn, her mentor and one of her best friends, and had never seen her so vulnerable. She even swore that as she looked into Eryn’s eyes, she could see a little bit of fear.

“Hmm,” the man murmured, giving her a theatrical pout. “Let’s see if we can get something a little bit more truthful out of you.” He loaded the pistol with a single bullet, spun the chamber around, slapped it in place. Then, the metal of the barrel touched Eryn’s temple. “Every three seconds, I’ll pull the trigger, just for you!” he cackled. “So you’d better tell me something that’ll stop me! Now, let’s begin. One...two...three!” One click. Nothing. Eryn struggled, but she was restrained even more than Bayleigh. “One…” Her chair was strapped to the wall, complete with a metal collar securing her neck. “Two…” And the cuffs she wore...Bayleigh recognized them as power nullification cuffs. “Three!” One more empty click. Eryn fought through the power restraint, just barely, and began to stretch. But the moment the man noticed it, he beat her over the head with the butt of the pistol until she slumped forward, unconscious. Blood matted her hair, but the man seemed nonplussed--he simply grabbed her hair and held her head up, so Bayleigh could see Eryn’s face.

“Stop!” Bayleigh screamed.

“One!” the man giggled.

 “I…”

“Two!”

“We’re...!” The lie wouldn’t come to her lips.

“Three!” Another empty click. “Well, well, well, there’s just two more chances at most!”

“We’re on the outskirts of town!” Bayleigh blurted. It wasn’t untrue…

The man lowered the gun. “Care to tell me where, exactly?”

“There’s an abandoned farmhouse,” Bayleigh mumbled, forcing her gaze to fall to the floor. She had to make this believable. “There’s a trap door. In the living room, under the mat. It leads to the facility.” 

“Hmm…” the man murmured. His playful demeanor left for one moment...then came right back. “Survey says…!” Bayleigh jerked her head up as she saw him move the gun out of the corner of her eye. His finger was on the trigger. Bayleigh opened her mouth to say something, anything, but she was too late. 

The gunshot was deafening. 

A scream echoed through Bayleigh’s ears--it took her a moment to realize it was hers. It took her a moment to process anything beside the splattering blood, bone, brain. There was more. Bayleigh didn’t want to think about what it was. The scream stopped. Hot tears pricked at the edge of her vision, but she blinked them away. She struggled futilely against her restraints, full of blind rage, but no matter how she pulled, all she did was rub her own skin raw. Another agonized scream, this one borne of sheer anger and helplessness, escaped her as the man laughed.

And laughed.

And laughed.

The laughing echoing in her mind, her struggles ceased. Bayleigh knelt on the floor, shaking, doing her best not to throw up as the white tile before her started to turn red with the blood of the closest person she had to a real parent. Voices came. The man’s laughter stopped. People. Her team. But Bayleigh didn’t process it. She was somewhere else, alone. Everything echoed around her, on another plane, somewhere nothing could touch her. People called her name, but her body didn’t move to respond. Her restraints fell away, but she barely felt the change. It wasn’t until a gentle touch on her shoulder that she started to come back to reality.

“Bayleigh. Bay, can you stand?” 

“Agent Schott…” The words stumbled out of her mouth and fell to the ground, drowning in Eryn’s blood. 

“Can you get up? Are you physically hurt?” 

I’m fine.

The words should have been easy.

I’m fine.

She’d been practicing that lie her whole life.

I’m fine.

It slipped from her lips as easily as breath, hiding the tears, the insecurities, the self-hatred.

“I’m…” That single word was the blow that it took to send Bayleigh’s walls crumbling. Within seconds, she was sobbing into Agent Schott’s shirt, hanging onto him like he was the only real thing in the world.

[beneath-our-masks]

Tagging my taglist: @fizzyhedgehog @imaghostwriter @marlettwrites

I was going to come up with an elegant summary, but basically, Riley hates therapy. A lot.

Shockingly enough, there are no content warnings aside from mild language (I think there is one (1) swear).

–

Imani smiled as Riley walked into the office. “Hey Riley, come on in and sit down. We didn’t get off on the best foot before, but I do want to say I’m sorry for reacting so harshly toward you. How are you doing today?” she asked.

Riley rolled their eyes and leaned on the doorframe, not fully entering the room. “Why is this mandatory?” they asked, frowning.

“You hacked into most of the files; you know that most of your peers acquired their powers under traumatic circumstances. And those who didn’t at least need check-ins, since being a teenager is already a lot without having powers, being a hero, and everything else,” Imani explained pleasantly.

Groaning, Riley entered the room. “Yes, but why do I also have to partake in this horrible charade?” They asked, going up to a bookshelf and scanning over the books, frowning at the fact most of them had to do with queer studies and superpowers. “Why do you care so much?” Riley motioned at the books. “Like who cares about this shit?” Yes, Riley was queer, but they didn’t really understand the newfound obsession people have been taking to it.

Keep reading

[beneath-our-masks]

I was going to come up with an elegant summary, but basically, Riley hates therapy. A lot.

Shockingly enough, there are no content warnings aside from mild language (I think there is one (1) swear).

--

Imani smiled as Riley walked into the office. “Hey Riley, come on in and sit down. We didn’t get off on the best foot before, but I do want to say I’m sorry for reacting so harshly toward you. How are you doing today?” she asked.

Riley rolled their eyes and leaned on the doorframe, not fully entering the room. "Why is this mandatory?" they asked, frowning.

"You hacked into most of the files; you know that most of your peers acquired their powers under traumatic circumstances. And those who didn't at least need check-ins, since being a teenager is already a lot without having powers, being a hero, and everything else," Imani explained pleasantly.

Groaning, Riley entered the room. "Yes, but why do I also have to partake in this horrible charade?" They asked, going up to a bookshelf and scanning over the books, frowning at the fact most of them had to do with queer studies and superpowers. "Why do you care so much?" Riley motioned at the books. "Like who cares about this shit?" Yes, Riley was queer, but they didn't really understand the newfound obsession people have been taking to it.

"The vast majority of psychological research has been done on privileged straight white college students, so bringing in queer identities is important to me, especially as a queer person. And, well, you can imagine why I care about powers. And to answer your first question," Imani continued, doing her best to school her expression, "it's a program requirement. It was in the informational packet people received. Helps ensure safety and minimal risk and all that."

Riley grimaced, "Is there any way for me to get out of this?" They leaned against the back wall, arms crossed over their chest, as they looked at Imani.

"Nope, it's mandatory to ensure that all of you are safe. So, just so I make sure I'm referring to you correctly, what name would you like to be called in these sessions and what are your preferred pronouns?

"Let me guess, if I refuse to play along, I can't be on the team, correct?" Riley frowned.

"I mean, you can, but you'll just prolong your torture," Imani joked. "Whether or not you talk to me, we have to do enough therapy each week for me to get the information I need. Usually that's an hour, but if I'm not getting what I need it can be longer."

Giving in, Riley sighed and went to sit down. "Riley. They/Them."

"Okay, perfect. So, Riley, how do you feel about being here? Do you feel alright about your roommate situation, about everyone here?" Imani asked, ready to take notes.

"Fine. Everything and everyone is fine."

"Do you get along with Dakota?"

Riley shrugged.

"Okay. How is school?"

Scowling, Riley tried to keep his voice level, "It's fine."

“What school do you go to?" Imani asked, noticing that Riley wasn't happy about this topic.

Their scowl deepened, "Only the most privileged private school in the city."

"You say that like you don't like it. Are there things in particular about it that you dislike?"

"What's there to like?" Riley rolled their eyes.

"Okay, you tell me. What's one thing about school that you don't hate?" Imani asked gently. “I’m sure you can come up with one.”

"Nothing. There is nothing to like." Riley hissed out.

"Okay, we can drop it for now. But I do have to ask you---do you feel safe at school?"

Riley barked out a laugh, "Yeah, totally. People are afraid to come near me since they know who my parents are."

"What do you mean?" Imani asked.

Riley shrugged, "Does it matter?"

"I'm just curious. It could help me if I understood. Your moms aren't scary people, at least from what I see--am I wrong?"

Riley groaned, "They are mama bears, tiger moms, and frankly, I wish they weren't with me. Now can we move on?"

"You wish they weren't with you? What do you mean by that?" Imani asked.

Riley's left leg began to bounce from irritation and anxiety, "Next question."

"Alright. How do you get along with...your little sister? I have that right?"

"Yes, you do. And we get along great."

"That's great! Can you tell me a little about her? How old is she? What's she like?"

Sighing, Riley spoke, "She's four. Adopted at the same time I was. She's a bubbling little ball of energy with budding illusion powers."

Imani smiled. "What do you two do together?"

"Is this necessary? All these questions?"

"I mean I do have to get some information to show that these sessions are achieving something with you. I could keep asking other questions, but I get the feeling this line of questioning is one you'll  actually answer."

Sighing again, Riley rolled their shoulders, trying to relax. "Fine, whatever. I take her to the park after I pick her up from pre-school."

"That sounds nice. Is there anything I can do besides abandoning these sessions entirely to make you more comfortable here?"

"No." A slight smirk flitted across Riley's face.

"Okay, well, let me know if that changes. We can do the sessions outside the office if you hate the office, we can restructure how we do it. So let me know. Anyhow, I know you don't want to talk about your parents, but I do have to ask--do you feel safe at home?

Rolling their eyes, Riley nodded, "Yes. Now oh my god please stop talking."

Imani chuckled. "Well, since you asked so kindly, I think we can end this session early. Any other thoughts or requests for me regarding next time, aside from scrapping it altogether?"

"No."

"Alright. Well, thank you for putting up with this, and I'm looking forward to talking with you more next week," Imani replied with a smile. "Feel free to head out."

[beneath-our-masks]

Tagging my taglist: @fizzyhedgehog @imaghostwriter @marlettwrites

Title: Beneath Our Masks

Authors: Ten (they/them) and Concerned/Cas (he/him)

Genre: Scifi/fantasy? Superhero stuff. That’s a genre.

Plot: These are just bite-sized stories about a team of ten teenage superheroes and who they are in and out of their hero personas. Think of them as like. Comic-sized installments (except, Ten and Concerned can’t draw well enough to make them into comics so here they live). Some of it is superhero missions. Some of it is feely angst. Some of it is just Teenagers Being Teenagers Except They Have Superpowers. These characters were made based on the Masks roleplaying system by Magpie Games, so please give them some love! Hence why this is never gonna be published lol.

さらに読む

[beneath-our-masks]

Title: Beneath Our Masks

Authors: Ten (they/them) and Concerned/Cas (he/him)

Genre: Scifi/fantasy? Superhero stuff. That’s a genre.

Plot: These are just bite-sized stories about a team of ten teenage superheroes and who they are in and out of their hero personas. Think of them as like. Comic-sized installments (except, Ten and Concerned can’t draw well enough to make them into comics so here they live). Some of it is superhero missions. Some of it is feely angst. Some of it is just Teenagers Being Teenagers Except They Have Superpowers. These characters were made based on the Masks roleplaying system by Magpie Games, so please give them some love! Hence why this is never gonna be published lol.

Trigger Warnings: Trigger warnings will be tagged on each post and said in bold before all of them since we have a GIANT spectrum, but off the top of my head, here are some common ones: PTSD, anxiety, depression, abuse, death of family member, violence, homo/bi/a/phobia, etc. There will be no explicit sexual content, as most of these characters are minors and Ten is too ace to write smut for the few that aren’t; however, all implied sexual content/romance will be trigger tagged.

Characters: Hooo boy there are a lot! So here is the tl;dr about each of them (with a link to all stories about them hopefully):

Ten’s Characters (Click names to browse their tag):

Aeicekh/Ace, a pink alien with telekinesis and pheromone powers. They’re learning how to control their powers as they navigate this strange planet that they’ve been thrust onto, and learning that earth is not as terrible as it seemed at first.

Siham, a 14-year-old nb Muslim who has no powers but has decided they will kick ass anyway. Who needs gender or powers when you have two (2) swords and a positive attitude?

Haeun, a 16-year-old astrophysicist’s daughter who somehow got astral powers. She can create stars, black holes, and most stellar phenomena. “Can create,” however, does not mean “Can control.” Disaster lesbian.

Dakota, a 16-year-old boy whose powers are the product of a horrific experiment, He has super-strength that is enhanced by rage. One of the calmest, softest bois you will ever meet.

Bayleigh, a 17-year-old lone wolf who relies on no one but herself (or so she likes to think). She has the power to copy the power of others, as well as insane martial arts skills. Biphobes will eat her fist. Second-in-command of the crew.

Imani/ Agent Jefferson, a licensed counselor who helps lead the team. Sees all these kids with Traumatic Backstories and decides that they need a therapist and she will be it. Loves her girlfriend and her little superhero family.

Concerned’s Characters (Click names to browse their tag):

Kira, a 14-year-old girl who was transformed into a plant-human hybrid. She also has some degree of technomancy. A gentle bean with a little selective mutism and a lot of gentle love.

Skyler, a 15-year-old who’s balancing work, school, and a superhero life. Can control rodents/insects and transform their body into any material they touch. Friend to vermin and enemy of defined gender.

Riley, a 17-year-old intersex teen who’s fabulous beyond belief and is severely allergic to rules and laws. Likes to hack into anything they can get their grubby hands on and has emotion control that they refuse to use.

Kai, a 19-year-old super senior with a legacy to uphold. But all he wants to do is ignore his regeneration, powers over air, and phasing, and trash the legacy his abusive family shoved onto him.

Hakim, an 18-year-old whose powers of physical mutation, energy transference, and telekinesis come from a curse that is killing him slowly. Softboi and leader of the group.

James/Agent Schott, a man who started out trying to figure out the mysterious force that doomed people like Hakim and ended up as a part time dad. Loves his team and his pampered, spoiled cat.

Final Things:

Please ask to be added to taglist if you want!

This is a collaborative effort– Ten’s main blog is @planets-and-prose for writing, but they will reply to posts with @irairaptero.  Cas’s writeblr is @blitz-spirit-and-foray for one wip and @thegrimandsanguine for another. @thelanternintheforest is the blog Cas will reply from. We’ll both answer any asks and we love to hear questions about our characters!!!

[beneath-our-masks]

Williams, Kira

General Notes

Largely presents with issues with mutism (Usually manifests as a stutter) and various anxiety disorders.

No medications--however, figuring out if an SSRI would interact with her physiology in any strong way would be ideal.

Family environment is supportive. Fathers are very involved with Kira’s education and her training here.

Session One

Date: 10/7

Scheduled Time: 10:00 am

Notes: 

-Stutter fluctuates heavily with anxiety, making more difficult topics difficult to address and talk through. 

-Seems secure and feeling safe in all environments, but is still nervous around everyone here.

Does note that she is close with Kai and knows that he’ll protect her.

-Despite transformation, does not seem like a likely candidate for suicidality or self-harm. Seems, day-to-day, to suffer less from depression and more from anxiety.

-Definitely has trouble talking about anything that isn’t happy and isn’t quite honest about her feelings with the situations. Needs time to trust.

-Overall no urgent red flags for safety or mental health as of now, but will definitely need more sessions than some to help deal with her anxiety, low self-esteem and any depressive spells that might occur.

Items for Next Session

-Kira is going to try and strike up a conversation with at least one of the new trainees. I’ve told her to have Kai around as a buffer if it would make her feel more comfortable.

-I’ve asked her to make a small toolkit of things that make her feel calm and happy--I’ll ask her about how that went next session.

Action Items

-Check in with her dads about the possibility of seeing a therapist more regularly than I am available--find list of recommended therapists for people with powers, esp. Transformed. 

-Find a more efficient method of communication than writing--maybe utilize her technopathy.

------------------------

Read the full description of Kira’s first session here: https://beneath-our-masks.tumblr.com/post/184769770759/kiras-session-1

[beneath-our-masks]

Tag Your OC’s: Things That Happen In Ten’s/Concerned’s/their roommate’s apartment

Which OC is the one who gets hurt and calmly asks for help as they bleed everywhere, which OC is the one who freaks out and almost faints at the sight of the blood, and which OC is the functional one who actually gets the first aid kit?

(Bay, Skyler, Kai, and Dakota are the ones who calmly ask for help as they bleed everywhere

Siham, Haeun, Hakim, and Ace are the ones who freak out at the blood

Imani, Kira, and Scott are the ones who calmly gets the first aid kit. Riley is an enigma lol)

[beneath-our-masks]

Guess what Concerned and Ten are doing!

[beneath-our-masks]

Whumptober Day 1: Shaking Hands

Ten here! I asked Concerned if I could destroy one of his characters with angst and he gave me the biggest shit-eating grin so basically this is his fault and not mine at all lol. TW for spiders/arachnophobia. Expect more prompt fills for @whumptober2019! Prompts used are here

Tagging @marlettwrites (you did say to tag you in all the things lol)

“Fancy seeing you here.” Riley whipped around from the computer console to see Phobos, the villain their team was hunting, right behind them. She wasn’t supposed to be here. The only reason they were there without a guard was because the plan had been so solid, and Riley had pridefully insisted they could do it on their own. 

As they saw the smirk on the villain’s face, they suddenly realized that pride may have fucked them over.

A quick couple of taps to their headset alerted the rest of the team, covertly, that something was up, as Riley did their best to think of a way out. “Agreed, I’d have thought when I saw you next it’d be behind bars,” they replied, doing their best to remain suave as they surreptitiously took their USB out of the computer console. The villain laughed.

“Well, not if I can help it. I can assume you got quite a bit of information, so bravo to you. Quite commendable. Too bad it won’t make it out of this room.”

“We’ll see about that,” Riley snickered. No escape. The only other door was locked, they’d checked. They felt a little panic start to rise up as the villain snapped her fingers. 

“I’ll be even more impressed if you can manage to get out. Ta-ta, Bells. Have fun!” She shut the door, and...nothing happened. Riley took a careful step forward. Nothing. Another. Nothing. They dashed to the door and wiggled the handle. It was locked, but they could handle that. And But then as they looked around the room, it became clear what the problem was.

A single large tarantula climbed across the console keyboard. Riley hissed in a breath and started jiggling the handle more frantically. Another spider crawled from beneath the desk. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck. The panic was setting in, Riley HATED spiders, they couldn’t think, they couldn’t move...until they felt something on their hand. A giant, hairy spider with  beady eyes and clicking pincers climbed up their arm. Riley screamed and did their best to fling the spider off, but suddenly, there were just more, and more, and more. 

Riley skittered away from as many spiders as they could, and ended in a corner with spiders advancing on them, unflinching. They clutched their shaking hands to their chest and sank to their knees, doing their best to curl up and cover their face and as much of their body as possible. Tears seeped from their eyes and sobs began to shake their body. They were being covered in the thing they were most scared of, and they couldn’t, they couldn’t, they were hyperventilating so hard that they were seeing spots, it wouldn’t end…

-------

Dakota smashed through the door to the room that Riley had last been seen in, just to find them curled up in a corner, shaking. “Riley? Riley, what’s wrong?” Dakota asked, their rage melting away in seconds to be replaced by worry. He knelt next to his shaking partner. “What’s happening?” No response--Riley just did their best to shy away. Then it hit Dakota--Phobos did her work by preying on fear, fear that increased with the subject’s anxiety. Dakota himself had steadfastly had to ignore the illusion of the ground dropping out from under him more and more and more. So if Riley was seeing something--probably spiders?--the more they panicked, the worse it would get.

“Riley, I need you to breathe. It’s an illusion. They get worse when you get more and more scared. Can you breathe for me? Deep, deep breaths. In...out...in...out.” Dakota sat next to Riley, continuing to do their best to soothe. “Okay, look up. Can you look? To see if there’s less of the bad things?” Riley peeked, and what they saw seemed to calm them a bit. “Okay, take another few breaths.” For a minute, everything was silent aside from Riley’s shaking breaths, until they looked up again and visibly calmed. “Is it better?” Riley nodded, and reached for Dakota. Dakota picked up Riley, and he felt Riley grab onto his shirt and lean into him, still shaking. Tears began to soak his shirt, and all Dakota could do was hold Riley as close as possible.

“You’re okay, it’s okay. We’re going to get you out. It’s alright.” Dakota pressed a kiss to Riley’s head and started to leave. Phobos had better hope he didn’t see her...because after seeing Riley broken on the ground, he wasn’t about to pull his punches.

-------

“Here, Ry,” Dakota soothed when he led Riley into their dorm room. “We’re home, okay? We’re here. Are you feeling any better?” 

“Thank you,” Riley mumbled, hugging Dakota close. They were still a little bit shaky, still feeling like there were spiders crawling up their skin, but their boyfriend was there, and as long as he stayed, it would be okay. 

“Want me to keep cuddling?” Riley just nodded into Dakota’s chest, and then they felt an arm slip to their back and to their thighs. Gently, they were lifted into another bridal carry, and before they knew it, they were on Dakota’s bed, in his lap, with Dakota’s fingers massaging their scalp. Their eyes started to slip shut...and then a realization hit and they jolted upward.

“No, no, nonono…” 

“What? What’s wrong?” 

“I...I can’t sleep,” Riley did their best to explain, unable to voice the animalistic fear that when they closed their eyes, everything would be back, they wouldn’t be safe anymore. When they closed their eyes there was no Dakota to keep them safe. “I can’t.” 

“Ohhh.” Dakota...sounded like he understood. He understood. “Nightmares?” Riley nodded. “Here, I know it’s scary, but I’m going to be here even if you don’t know it. And when you wake up I’m going to be here too to help you remember that everything is gonna be okay.”

“But in the nightmare…”

“I promise, I’ll wake you if it looks like you’re having a nightmare. Promise.” There was still fear...but Riley was exhausted from the adrenaline. Even the short walk to the van, and then to their dorm, had been an endeavor. Their body just wanted rest, and...if they fell asleep feeling safe like they did now, hopefully it would be okay.

“Promise?” Riley asked weakly, hating that they sounded this weak but too exhausted to make an effort to sound otherwise.

“I promise. It’s okay. I’ll be right here.” Dakota resumed massaging Riley’s scalp, and with a gentle kiss pressed to their forehead, Riley felt themselves peacefully drifting off.

[beneath-our-masks]

Character sheet by @bitterkass (NOT MINE)

Meet one of Mod Ten’s OC’s, Bayleigh Wood!

[beneath-our-masks]

10. Bear Hug/ 11. Playing With Hair (sorta)

Have a short and tiny combination of these two prompts that’s a little bit (a lot) fluffy.

It was midnight, Dakota was about ready to sleep, and the clicking of Riley’s keyboard was still going. He took a deep breath and rubbed some sleep out of his eyes. He was pretty used to Riley working throughout the night, but now he was worried about his partner. Riley’s eyelids were drooping and they looked exhausted, but they were not about to stop. 

“Babe, are you sure you don’t want to come snuggle me?” Dakota wheedled. 

“I’ll go to bed in a couple hours,” Riley replied through a yawn.

“You’re exhausted, love.”

“‘M...fine.” The yawn that interrupted their speech did nothing for Riley’s point. Dakota sighed and stood, making his way over to stand behind Riley. He put his hands on Riley’s shoulder, ghosted them down to Riley’s sides...and then lifted Riley out of their seat and into a bear hug. “Wh--put me down!” Riley struggled, and Dakota moved to hold them in a bridal carry.

“You need sleep,” Dakota insisted, ignoring Riley’s feeble movements as he shifted them in his arms. “You’re exhausted,” he murmured, holding Riley with one arm and playing with their hair with the other. 

“‘M not t’red…” Riley mumbled as their eyelids started to droop. As Dakota placed them on his bed, he pressed a gentle kiss to Riley’s forehead and slipped into bed next to him. Riley was on the inside, as always; it was instinct. If anything happened, Dakota wanted to be between it and Riley. If someone broke in, tried to take them, Dakota wanted to be the easiest target. So it was always Riley on the inside.

Dakota pulled Riley to his chest, and Riley, barely awake, nestled into their boyfriend’s form. The small gesture of trust and comfort made Dakota’s heart soar as he continued to stroke Riley’s hair with one hand. “I love you,” Dakota whispered. Riley mumbled something back that might have been “I love you too,” but it was completely incoherent and into Dakota’s chest. Dakota chuckled and let his eyes slip shut.

He always slept better with Riley at his side.

Tagging @marlettwrites @imaghostwriter @fizzyhedgehog

[beneath-our-masks]

42-48 for the get to know your characters ask game please! Use anyone you want, surprise me!

hahaaaaaaaaaaaa this is going to get long! Ten is in normal text and Concerned is in italics.

42. Is there anything in your character’s past that they regret, haunts them, or they wish they could change?

Kai wants to have been less of a jerk in the beginning.

Riley kind of regrets being a dick to his adoptive moms in the beginning of their adoption.

Bayleigh wishes she could have saved her mentor, Eryn, and that she was still around.

Haeun is haunted by the time she lost control of her powers and accidentally hurt her older sister

Dakota is haunted by the things that was done to him during his experimentation--doesn't regret it, but has nightmares about it and is scared a lot

43. Does your character have a switch that changes aspects of their personality whether they are around friends, family, etc. Is there someone who gets to see their true self?

Bayleigh is hecking PR queen. One minute she'll be ready to absolutely destroy someone and then reporters come up and she flips a switch to "nice sweet PR girl"

Imani definitely is different in a psych session than she is with Liv. And when around the kids.

Riley's personality is super different when they're trying to get something they want.

44. Is there a particular event that would emotionally devastate your character?

Riley's is probably their little sister getting severely injured, or losing Dakota.

Hakim wouldn't be able to deal with someone on the team getting severely hurt bc of a bad call he made.

Bayleigh's... Ha. haha. hahahaha. Um. I may or may not have done that to Bayleigh. I may or may not have killed off the one adult who cared about her. But now for Bayleigh it would be losing anyone else on her team.

Siham would not be able to handle losing their family or their found family. They bond themselves so tightly that if they lose that, they'll be inconsolable

Dakota is perpetually afraid of hurting Riley with his strength. He couldn't deal with that.

Ace could not lose Skyler or Schott. (which. Will happen but they'll get strong enough to deal with them dying of old age)

Haeun couldn't handle losing control and hurting someone again.

45. Is your character the kind to hide their true emotions or do they wear their heart on their sleeve?

Kira shows her emotions on her sleeve, well more like how her hair moves with her emotions. Kai tends to hide his emotions.Hakim is an open book.Skyler hides their emotions.Riley is uh...Riley.

Bay is the queen of stonewalling about emotions.Haeun hides some and shows others, but is a bit more private.Dakota, Ace, and Siham are all very open.

46. What is some random affectionate thing that your character always does to their lover?

Dakota will lift Riley up a lot when he's super happy/when he needs Riley to get some hecking sleep

Bayleigh (more in private) likes to tap Hakim's butt. It seems like. Sexual. But for her it's more like a little expression of affection that doesn't overwhelm her.

Hakim does little touches, like hand-holds, constantly.

Riley's are all sexual lol

47. Is your character outgoing? Would they be the leader of the friend group, or the quiet one that gets dragged along?

Kira: She's homeschooled, and due to being called a 'freak', is very shy. She'd be the quiet one that is dragged along, unless it's Kai. Kai is the one getting dragged around by Kira.

Kai: Kai doesn't have any friends until the team (and that's only after he gets nicer), so he's the one who is dragged around cause he doesn't know what to do really.

Hakim: Though he is the leader of the group, he is actually a follower most of the time. He likes to listen to others before making decisions.

Riley: Leader. Hands down they lead. Not well, but they don't care.

Skyler: Follower. All the way.

Bayleigh and Siham are more leaders. Ace, Dakota, and Haeun are followers. Siham and Ace are very outgoing.

48. Is there anything in particular that would ignite your character’s jealousy? Or does your character not get envious?

The only jealous character I have is Bay, and even then she's not THAT jealous. But she gets a little bit possessive when Hakim gets super deep with someone that isn't her. She's also jealous of people's normal, happy families.

Kai in the beginning, is jealous of everyone having (to his knowledge) a nice, happy family.

Kira is sometimes jealous that other people look "normal."

Riley had some jealousy with Haeun, because Haeun and Dakota were pretty close (they have the whole "I'm terrified of killing my loved ones with power I don't know how to control" thing in common) and Riley wanted the emotional intimacy that Dakota and Haeun had.

[beneath-our-masks]

6. Getting Caught Making Out

In which Bay is a horny teenager (and Hakim is as well)

Also pls note that Mod Ten is absolutely dead thanks to Japanese translation and her brain barely works in either language so please excuse mistakes :/

There’s heavy making out in this but no sex, so pls skip if that bothers you

It really wasn’t their fault.

Bayleigh and Hakim had a project to do while everyone else trained, and it wasn’t exactly their fault that the case drafts took about a third of the time that Jefferson gave them, and it definitely wasn’t their fault that when they’d told Jefferson that they’d finished, she deemed the case drafts good and said they could have the next twenty minutes to themselves.

How was that not supposed to lead to Bayleigh in Hakim’s lap on his bed, wrapping her legs around him as they made out so intensely they both kept forgetting to breathe? Honestly, it was bound to happen.

Naturally, about fifteen minutes later, Bayleigh was shoving Hakim into the mattress, loving how much better he was getting at kissing, his hands all over him before they settled on gripping his ass. Sure, they promised each other that they were going to keep track of time, but even fully clothed, neither of them were about to stop for even a second. Hakim had wanted to take it slow and not have sex for a while, probably until things with his Doom got worked out, and Bayleigh was alright with it; however, that absolutely did not mean that she wasn’t going to make out with him and grope him like there was no tomorrow.

Hakim moaned lowly against Bayleigh’s lips, and Bayleigh responded by deepening her kiss. They were both breathing heavily, and the kisses had gone from gentle and loving to “literally anything but ripping each other’s clothes off” in minutes. Bayleigh was about to rest her hands on Hakim’s chest and yank herself even closer to him…

And then the doorknob moved.

In a single smooth motion, Bayleigh tried to disengage herself from her position on top of Hakim, so she could look like she was doing literally anything besides straddling her boyfriend. The motion was just a little off, her leg caught on the side of the bed, and she crashed to the ground, unharmed aside from her pride as she turned and saw Kai standing in the doorway. He’d seen the whole thing. For a minute, everything seemed to freeze--Bayleigh on the floor, Hakim reaching to grab Bayleigh a little too late, Kai, jaw dropped and in the doorway. Then, Kai started to laugh.

“Oh my god,” he gasped as his shoulders shook with laughter. Bayleigh buried her bright red face in her hands. 

“I’m gonna kick your ass,” she grumbled as Kai continued to laugh. Kai just shook his head and turned around, being sure to shut the door behind him, leaving Bayleigh to stand.

“Are you okay?” Hakim asked awkwardly.

“You mean aside from my dignity? Yeah.” They both looked at each other, mortified, before Bayleigh snickered and buried her face in Hakim’s shoulder. “At least we were clothed,” she mumbled, trying to lighten the mood. 

Hakim turned a little redder. “That’s true,” he replied with a smile before kissing Bay’s forehead. “Wanna head out before we embarrass ourselves again?”

“Sounds good,” Bay replied with a soft smile.

@marlettwrites @fizzyhedgehog @imaghostwriter

[beneath-our-masks]

Bayleigh and Kai

Hi Mod Ten here ready to rant about one of their favorite friendships! @marlettwrites I’m sorry I’m tagging you bc you’re amazing with the way you write character relationships and like. idk you liked the Kai and Haeun dynamic so have something different yet Similar!

TW for mention of death, child abuse, parental neglect, and grieving

So. Both Bayleigh and Kai come from shitty families but completely opposite extremes. Kai comes from parents who control his every move and beat him when he doesn’t fall in line, and Bayleigh comes from parents who just want her to stay out of the way (they’re both very famous lawyers), and even when she’s, say, sick enough to go to the hospital, they’re just annoyed that she’s taking them away from work (she was an accident).

Kai deals with this (initially) by bullying kids and beating them up, so he can feel like he’s in control. He starts this with the team, but Imani puts a stop to it way early and gets him to start slowly learning to be better. Bayleigh is quiet and cold, especially at school--hero work is the only place she feels valued, especially because of her mentor, Eryn, who is the only adult figure who cares for her (until the team). And it comes to a head when they spar, since they both hate each other initially, and Kai almost kills Bayleigh (as you do).

The ironic thing is that despite their completely opposite upbringings, they both have one maladaptive coping mechanism in common--neither of them can express a Single Emotion. They didn’t grow up with parents who expressed soft emotions, so they don’t know how to do it. They also don’t know how to ask for help--Bayleigh is better at this but still pretty bad, especially after Eryn dies.

They both quickly learn about each other’s situations--Bay pretty quickly picks up on Kai’s reaction to his parents, and then vaguely mentions her own parents. And then they just develop this grudging, weird understanding and this very quiet kind of awkward support that I (and Concerned) love to bits.

Bayleigh, the day after Eryn dies, has pretty much cried her eyes out and she’s still working with the team because where else is she going to go? To parents who don’t care? And she just doesn’t sleep because how do you when your mentor is killed right in front of you and very much isolates herself when she can, and after a little bit, before she’s ready to talk about how she feels, she goes to Kai, exhausted and looking dead, and just quietly goes “Wanna see if you can finally beat me?” and what she means is “I’m lost and I just need to be around someone without emotions” and Kai understands, at least sort of, and they spar and Bay feels a little bit less empty.

Kai, after a long series of bad decisions that led to him joining an evil organization and coming back when he realized how much his team cared for him and wanted him back, is in limbo, because his parents will kill him for disgracing his family and he doesn’t know if he’ll even be allowed back into the team and DEFINITELY doesn’t know where he’ll live and when he’s just waiting in the common area alone, waiting to hear if he’s gonna be forced back with his parents, Bay comes out and sits near him and he finds the voice to say “Parents kinda suck.” And Bay just goes “Yeah. Wanna talk about it?” and Kai shakes his head no and Bay nods and just goes “Cool.” and goes to her room and grabs a book bc she knows it’s Kai’s preferred escapism method and goes “Here, this one wasn’t bad” and tosses it at him and Kai almost cries but he doesn’t and they sit together in silence.

And they both get lucky--they’re with people who teach them how to be a little softer, a little more expressive, but when they just can’t express themselves and just need someone who understands what they don’t say, they can go to each other. and AGH that just always makes me and Concerned scream a little bit. They insult each other constantly, will be the first to want to fight each other and slam each other into the ground, but when it comes down to it they're fiercely loyal to each other and are incredible friends, even if the closest they get to saying it is "You're not a total bitch" because after what they've both had to fight, if they have to fight in the future, they're sure as hell gonna do it together.

[beneath-our-masks]

17. Early Morning Cuddling

Ten here: This is super short and has zero (0) plot but I need y’all to understand how in love Imani is with her girlfriend mmkay. Please ask about Liv she’s Amazing

Imani loved her job. 

It was incredibly fulfilling and she loved seeing the kids she was around grow. Seeing Kai slowly make friends, seeing Haeun come into her own, seeing Riley and Bay learn slowly that they didn’t have to keep themselves closed off, watching Skyler give themselves time to breathe, and so so much more. Every time Kira did a session without stuttering or Ace mastered another “human” thing or Hakim showed that he was learning to trust himself...she couldn’t imagine too much that would have been more rewarding as a job. But there were challenges, and one of them was being away from Liv every weekend.

Naturally, Liv couldn’t be at the base with Imani. For one, it was a heavy security risk, and for another, Liv just had different things to do. Sure, she occasionally helped work with the security at the base, but she always came and worked in the common area, and that was if she was even allowed back where the kids were. And sometimes she did help Riley and Kira, but Imani didn’t interact with her much aside from a smile or two or a hello. She didn’t think PDA was professional, and was always paranoid about revealing that she was with Liv in a work setting. Again, it could spell danger for her. 

But that didn’t make the distance easier.

Then again, the weekends with distance made Imani treasure everything even more when she did get to be with Liv. Like now, for example, waking up next to a very sleepy Liv. Imani took a moment to revel in how beautiful her girlfriend was, even sprawled out over the bed and with the loose bun she put her hair in completely askew and half knotted-up. They’d been together for almost two years, and though it hadn’t always been easy, Imani was just as in love with her as she’d been in the beginning, if not more so.

“Morning, beautiful,” Imani murmured as she looked adoringly at her girlfriend. Liv made a sleepy moaning sound and reached in Imani’s general direction, patting around and missing entirely. Chuckling to herself, Imani moved closer, and when Liv’s hand made contact, Imani was pulled into Liv’s embrace. “I love you too,” Imani giggled, looking up to press a kiss to Liv’s jawline. Usually Imani hated how short she was, but she couldn’t deny that she was the perfect spoon for Liv, and she loved how snugly she fit into Liv’s hold. “Babe, you know I’m gonna have to get up.”

“Noooo,” Liv mumbled sleepily into Imani’s hair, squeezing her a little more tightly. “Y’re warm.” 

“Unlike you, I can’t work until two in the morning. I have to get up eventually.” 

Liv groaned. “Fifteen minutes for cuddles,” she sleepily insisted.

“Alright. I suppose I could spare fifteen minutes.” There was no uncertainty in her voice--Imani deliberately woke up early so she could savor these moments. Having such different schedules meant that Imani was usually fully asleep before Liv went to bed, and Imani was usually up before Liv, and not by a small margin. Every little moment was special.

Imani practically glowed as she snuggled back into Liv and pressed a couple feathery kisses to her cheek, neck, chin. She’d never imagined she could be this happy.

Tagging @marlettwrites @aconstantcrisis @imaghostwriter @fizzyhedgehog