#tw: trypanophobia

[hatchetfield-murder-mystery]

Murder Mystery 3

A few days later, a group of friends decides to take a dip in the lake. Shedding their clothes off and picking up their inflatables, they took off running towards the water. They swam for hours, splashing each other, playing games, and competing on who did the best cannonballs.

One of the teens, felt something bump against her back. She was pretty sure her boyfriend was just teasing, so she spun around.

What she saw sent her screaming and flailing towards the shore. It was a body, floating in the water. Blonde with a small frame. The rest of the teens turned towards the commotion and they saw it too. A lifeless corpse of a middle-aged woman with syringes all over her face, causing it to bloat in some spots.

The group scrambled out of the water and away into their homes, not wanting to be caught with the body and become potential suspects.

It took a while until the authorities eventually found the body. Though it was deformed, almost to the point of non-recognition, they managed to identify the corpse as one Linda Monroe, the president of Hatchetfield's Boating Society. And it was later discovered that the syringes had once contained plastic surgery fillers. Whether she died before or after getting thrown in the lake, was yet to be determined.

[sortofanobsession]

Will o’ the Wisp - Ch. 10 (Umbrella Academy WIP) Diego x Reader slow burn

Author’s note: I've had this one mostly done for a few days but haven't been on my personal comp since then. Here you go. Events of Episode 1x09 Changes. Translations are at the end.

So as it goes, Y/N = your name. Y/N/N = your nickname. Reader pronouns She/Her.

Tag Requests are Open just message me.

Primary Pairing: Diego Hargreeves x Female!Reader (Slow Burn Season 1)

Series/TUA Masterlist

Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 11

Word count: 3k+

Content Warning: bleeding out, bleeding, injury, blood transfusions, needles, Trypanophobia (fear of needles), medical procedures, Anger, Sibling Rivalry, Stitches, mentions of death, mentions of murder, cussing/swearing/cursing, Panic Attacks, Exhaustion, threats, imprisonment, fear, neglect, abuse.

Chapter 10: More Dangerous than Me? 

Allison is bleeding out, and no one knows what to do.

“Y/N! Do something!” Her hands start to shake. 

“It’s too deep, she might drown if I just close the outside, or her throat might swell closed. I can’t…I told you I can only do surface wounds.” She backs up until she hits something solid. She jumps when she feels hands on her arms. She looks back to see she’d backed right into Diego. 

“I’ll only make it worse. I could kill her,” she says, her voice small and almost too quiet.

“It’s okay. We’ll figure it out,” he tells her. He rubs her arms to try and offer her what little comfort he can.  

They rush to get Allison back to the academy.

“Come on! Let's go!” Five shouts when they get there.

“I don't think she's breathing,” Luther tells them.

“If we don't get her upstairs," Klaus says as he goes to help Luther carry her. "She's gonna die.”

“She's suffered a severe laceration to her larynx,” Grace informs them once inside and in the med room.  “One of you will need to give blood.”

Luther, Klaus, Five, and Diego volunteer. Luther insists on doing it.

“I'm afraid that's not possible, dear boy,” Pogo sadly says, “Your blood is more compatible with mine.” Grace and Pogo continue to gather what they need.

“Hey, don't sweat it,” Klaus tells Luther. “I got this, big guy. I love needles.”

“Master Klaus,” Pogo starts. “Your blood is, how shall I say this? Too polluted.”

“Move,” Diego steps in.

“Yeah, go on,” Klaus says.

“I'll do it,” Diego rolls up his sleeves but faints at the sight of the needle.

"Oh, for the love of-" Y/N takes off her jacket and throws it at Klaus before holding her arm out for Grace to prepare her arm for the needle. "I'm going to put most powers of my into the Wisp so that there hopefully won't be a temp difference. Though a tiny bit might actually help, I'm no expert."

"It should be fine," Pogo assures as he and Grace get back to work. 

"I should be doing it," Diego crouches beside her once he came to. Someone had brought her a chair. The room was quiet now that Pogo and Grace had managed to do what they could to save Allison. Luther refuses to leave Allison. Grace stays in case she is needed. Diego continues, "You're too exhausted, and you're-"

"You passed out just looking at the needle, and are you forgetting you have a bullet wound too," she tells him. Something in her stressed and sleep-deprived mind has her fingers twitching to brush her fingers along the scars on his face because of how close he is and how sincere he is being. But she fights that urge.

“I lost less blood because of your hot hands,” he says, earning him a small chuckle. He takes that as a win. She's been on edge and too serious all day. 

“I’m okay, tough guy,” she assures him. "At worst, I get a bit woozy. Either way, Allison gets what she needs. That's what matters. And you avoid the needle." She pinches his arm and grins. He glares, but there is no heat in it. "You don't have to stay if it makes you uncomfortable." She gestures to the needle and tubes.

"I'm fine," Diego tells her.

"I'm probably just going to close my eyes and switch to the Wisp."

"All the more reason to stay," he states.

"You're going to hover until this apocalypse thing is sorted out, especially after what happened at the rave and this." She gestures to Allison.

He doesn't answer but still hasn't moved from where he's crouched beside her.

"Right," she chuckles, and she pats his cheek. "Sad it took the end of the world for you to turn so sweet, cariño."

He’s taken aback by the term of endearment, but he doesn’t hate it. He does technically call her one constantly. Mi Luz. It was a common term of endearment. He shouldn’t be so surprised. Then again, it might be the exhaustion and the blood loss talking. Even if it is a controlled loss. "We'll stop it," he assures her as he removes her hand from his face but keeps it in his own. It felt unnaturally cold for her since she had willed so much of herself into the Wisp, for Allison's sake. He stood up but kept her hand, warming it some between his own. "Maybe you should get some sleep," he suggests. She shook her head. "Why not?" he adds.

"Because this is not a time to risk losing my control. It's a balancing game when it comes to my powers. How much focus and power I have and where it is can change everything. If I touch something, it will burst into flames if I touch it too hot. Will my watch band melt or my shoes? Just because I wasn't thinking. Allison is in too fragile a state to risk anything."

“Then I guess we wait,” Diego states. And they all do. Only leaving when Grace tells them it’s enough and removes the needle. Luther, of course, stays with Allison.

“You should go lie down,” Diego tells her. “You used your powers a lot and are low on sleep and blood, mi luz.” He decides to just lean into the whole endearment thing. 

“I’m fine,” she assures him and smiles. She laughs a bit at his skeptical look before adding, “I’ll go down and get a drink and snack. Like when you donate blood. I’ll be okay. Just got to hydrate. We don’t have time for me to be out of commission. I will relent to you hovering and a snack. Deal?”

“Deal,” he says. It might be the blood loss and lack of sleep, but she feels unusually bold and kisses his cheek before she hurries off to the kitchen. He is stunned and just watches her go. He stands there way longer than necessary before he grins to himself and goes to find the others. 

“The bastard that nearly killed our sister's still out there,” Diego tells Five and Klaus. “With Viktor.” 

Y/N hurries her pace toward them. 

“We need to go after them.”

Five disagrees, “Viktor is not important.”

“You can’t be serious,” Y/N says as she reaches them. A sandwich and a glass of juice in her hands courtesy of Grace. “V is family.” Diego goes to stand beside her as she speaks. He sees her brows furrow. Unbeknownst to him, she wonders when he last ate. He’d spent so long with her, and before that, he’d been in jail. She offers him a bite of her sandwich. He rolls his eyes, but when she doesn't move to lower it, he takes a small bite. He thinks it was worth it when she smiles at him. But he turns back to focus on the important discussion he was having. 

“A little heartless even for you, Five,” their brother points out.

“I'm not saying I don't care about them,” Five admits, “but if the apocalypse happens today, they die along with the other seven billion of us.”

“Harold Jenkins is our first priority.”

“I agree.”

“Let's go.”

“You guys count me out,” Klaus says. “I mean, you know, no offense or whatever. It's just I kind of feel like this is a whole lot of pressure for newly-sober me, so -” 

“You're coming,” Diego states. Y/N just sips her juice and watches her chaotic siblings. 

“No, no, no,” Klaus says. “I mean, I think we can all agree that my power's, I mean, it's pretty much useless. I'd just be holding you guys back.”

“Klaus, get up,” Five says.

“You can't make me.”

Diego hurls a knife at the couch Klaus is sitting on. Y/N rolls her eyes.

Klaus gets up. “Oh, then again, a little exercise couldn’t hurt. Yeah.”

"I'll check the area," she summons several orbs. 

“Fine, but stay behind me,” Diego tells her, knowing most of her focus will be elsewhere. She rolls her eyes but humors him, even going as far as to grip the back of his shirt. She uses several Wisp orbs to search the area outside the cabin, finding nothing. She shakes her head and focuses back on the scene Diego had led her to. The very dead body of Leonard Peabody, with numerous knives and other projectiles embedded in his chest. She winces as she lets go of Diego. He looks back at her just as her eyes return to their normal color. She shakes her head when her eyes meet his. They both turn back to the dead body on the floor.

"I have seen more than most," she says, leaning against the wall. "But even this is…yikes."

"It's not exactly what I was expecting."

"The understatement of the year."

"No sign of Viktor," Klaus says. 

"Not outside either," she adds. 

"Let's get out of here," Diego says. "Before the cops come." He shakes his head at her when she goes to offer the Wisp to act as a lookout. "You are too burnt out, and we may need you later."

"In a minute," Five says.

"Come on, Five, what are you-"

"Ugh, wow." Klaus retches as Five checks the prosthetics eye against the dead man's eye.

"Same eye color, same pupil size. Guys, this is it. The eye I've been carrying around for decades, it- It's found its rightful home."

“Gross,” she states, and Klaus agrees. 

"We got the guy we needed to kill to stop the apocalypse."

"Yay!" Klaus says. "Let's go." Diego stops him.

"No, no."

“What?” she asks. 

"It can't be this easy."

Five frowns. "Look, this is the note that I got from the Commission."

"The one that says, 'Protect Harold Jenkins,' aka Leonard Peabody."

"Yeah?"

"But who killed him? Who did this?"

“No one is here,” she points out. 

"I have a crazy idea."

“When don’t you?” she sighs. Klaus nods in agreement. She knows that time is running out. She’d tracked the police response times far too many times. She was starting to get anxious at not checking to see if they were close. 

"Crazy, but why don't we find Viktor and ask what happened? If Viktor got away from this asshole, he might be headed back to the Academy."

Once at the Academy, she finally lets Diego talk her into getting some sleep. But only if he stays with her. He relented. But he had snuck out at some point. She woke up alone and let the Wisp drift around until she heard fighting and the sound of something shattering. She was on her feet as fast as possible. She hurries into the living room.

"What the hell is going on?" She rushes to where Diego is unconscious on the floor. "Five?" 

"He'll be fine." She glares at him before going back to checking Diego over. He groans as she runs her fingers through his hair, looking for injuries, and she finds a sore spot. Earning a laugh from her. His eyes snap open at the sound and the feeling of fingers along his scalp. He stares up at her. She smiles down at him.

"You good, cariño?" She asks quietly. Her fingers are still searching for injuries. 

"Y-yeah," he manages to say. He clears his throat as she pulls away. "Yeah, I'm good." He remembers that he’d been fighting Hazel and is on his feet as fast as he can manage. She watches him curiously before she is pulled to her feet and against him as he looks around the room.

“No one’s here,” she assures him. Diego nods. Y/N huffs a laugh and pats his chest as she pulls away from him. She still has no idea what has just happened, but he was back on his feet. Diego lets her go and glares at Five. 

Five looks back at him, gaze shifting over to his sister before focusing back on Diego. “I am curious. Your girlfriend, Patch.” He emphasizes the name. Again looking between his now oddly close sibling. “What did you like about her?” 

Diego hesitates a bit and looks between his siblings. His gaze lingers a bit too long on his sister, who looks back at him with a curious look. “This should be interesting,” she mutters, stealing a drink of her Five’s margarita. He snatches it back. “None for you. You’ll have more alcohol than blood in your BAC.”

“Fair point,” she admits before grinning at their other brother. “We’re still waiting, Diego.”

Diego rolls his eyes at her but answers, “A lot of things.” He thinks about it and adds, “Cute butt, nice legs.”

She chuckles. "Classy."

“Anything a little more profound than that?” Five asks.

“She believed in people,” Diego says. “No matter how much shit and filth she saw,” he glances at their sister again. “On the streets. She always saw the good inside.”

“Well,” Five acknowledges his answer. “I'm sure she'll be proud to know that you're killing Hazel and Cha-Cha as a way to honor her memory.”

Diego looks to Y/N. She gives a half-hearted smile. Her eyes are sad. She hadn’t known Patch well or for very long, but she found her first. 

“Guys! No, let me -” Viktor shouts from inside the bunker. 

“You locked up our brother because you think he has powers?” Diego and Klaus are shocked. 

“No, I know he does,” Luther answers. “Pogo told me. He's always known, and so did Dad.”

“Why would they hide this from us?” Diego asks. “I mean, am I the only one that didn't know this place existed?”

“He hid so much from us.”

“He hid it because he was afraid of him.”

“Oh, that's ridiculous.”

“Is it? Dad's lied about everything else, why is this so far-fetched?”

“If you're right, then maybe he's the one who killed Peabody.”

“And cut Allison's throat.”

“Whoa, no.”

“Let's I ju- Sorry, just, let's go back, all right?” Klaus says. “This is Viktor we're talking about. Our brother. The one who always cried when we stepped on ants as kids.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“What the-” Y/N hurries into the dimly lit room. “Let him go.” Her eyes begin to glow as the Wisp takes full form.

“I can’t do that,” Luther says. “Just let me-”

“Now!” The Wisp crackles and burns like full-on flames. Bright yellow and orange flicker in the air above them. Her eyes lit to match. The heat distorts the air around it.

“Guys,” Luther starts. “I know it's difficult to accept. If you just let me-”

“It's not difficult to accept. It's impossible to accept,” Klaus continues to argue his point.

“No, they're right,” Diego speaks up. “Look, we can't keep Viktor locked up without proof.”

“Wh- What more proof do you need? Why don't we just open the door and ask?”

“No, he's not goin' anywhere.”

"Like hell, let him go," she looks between her brothers. 

"Sorry, Y/N, it's for the best," Luther says.

"Bullshit! He's afraid," she says before sending a small Wisp toward the bunker. The smaller one is a softer, calm Wisp as the majority of her powers continue to burn above her and Luther. Tears in her own eyes evaporate to steam as she takes in the fear in Viktor’s eyes. She focuses back on their supposed leader. “This is insane, Luther,” she hisses at him. Flames dance in her eyes as she glares at him. Klaus wipes away sweat as the temperature in the room rises. He glances at Diego. Diego looks between his siblings. He has to defuse this situation before it gets worse.

“No, even if you're right, Luther. Viktor needs our help,” Diego points out. “And we can't do that if he's locked in a cage.”

“Do you really think Viktor is any more dangerous than me right now?” Y/N states as the Wisp moves closer to Luther. Her hands now glowing as she steps towards him as well. Diego knows this could go very bad, very fast. It’s worse than someone burning a candle at both ends. This is like someone threw gasoline on a raging fire. 

"You don't want to do this, Y/N," Luther says.

"Going to lock me up too?" She challenges. "Good luck with that. Try and lay a finger on me, Number One. I dare you." She rips her watch off, and it melts in her hand. The smell of burning plastic and metal made most of them flinch. Viktor just stares. He’d never seen his sister this vicious. He glances at the smaller Wisp in the bunker. It was odd how its gentle blue light contrasted with the angry figures outside the bunker. 

"That's not-" Luther starts. He looks over at Diego and Klaus. "This is what needs to happen."

Diego shakes his head and focuses on her. She might actually listen to him. He needs her to calm down before she does something she can't undo. "Luz, you need to give yourself a break," Diego says as he moves closer. “We can handle this another way.”

"Not while V's in there," she refuses. "I won't leave him in the dark, alone. I didn't have a choice with Ben. I have the choice now."

“What good are you to Viktor if you waste all your energy on Luther?” Diego urges her to ease off. Her eyes snap to his. "First, it's finding Five, then Klaus, then Luther and Klaus again, Allison, now this. All while searching for Viktor. There isn't going to be any of you left if you don't take it easy."

"If we fail, we all die anyway, Diego,” She tells him. Tears turn to steam again as her eyes turn to fiery blue. “Why stop now?”

She’s hurting, and he knows it. She can’t keep this up. She’s running on rage and adrenaline, but those never last long. “Because you’re not alone in this fight. We can help Viktor without you burning yourself out.” He turns towards Luther. “And we are helping Viktor.” 

“Yeah,” Klaus agrees with Diego. “And for all we know, Viktor might be struggling with this new power. I mean, it must be scary. Terrifying, really, to discover that you can do something that you never thought you could do.” 

Diego sighs as that seems to do the trick, and she drops the raging fire that is the Wisp and moves over to the glass. The heat leaves her hands as she reaches for the glass. Her eyes lack the rage and heat they had before. She puts more of her powers into the Wisp inside the bunker with Viktor. She keeps it as calm and comforting as possible. Like she would on the nights Klaus and Ben would hide from the darkness in her room. "I'll stay with you, V. I promise. I'll stay with you in the dark."

“Look," Luther keeps arguing his point. "If what Pogo told me is even half true, then he is not just a danger to us.”

“I don’t care,” she says. “I’m not-”

 They all turn as Allison comes in. Y/N moves to lean against the wall beside the door, the Wisp still in with Viktor. She focuses on giving off a comforting feeling. She sends all the love she has into the Wisp. 

“Allison, what are you doing down here?” Luther asks. “You should be in bed.”

Allison writes on the notepad to let Viktor go.

“I can't do that,” Luther tells her. “She hurt you.”

“I'm sorry, but she's staying put.” Luther tries to assure her. “Just until we know what we're dealing with.”

Allison is clearly not happy with the answer. An angry noise leaves her damaged throat. 

“She stays put,” Luther adds. 

Allison tries to go past Luther, but he stops her. She pushes at him. She silently cries as she hits him.

“Come on,” Luther starts.

Allison sobs. 

“Come on,” Luther repeats. “You need to rest.”

“I'm sorry! I'm sorry!” Viktor looks up at the Wisp and then back through the glass. “Y/N, please!”

“The Wisp won't leave you, V. I’ll still be with you.”

“Then the rest of you needs to rest,” Diego insists. 

“Let's go.”

“No! No! No! No!” Viktor calls after them. 

She lets Diego lead her toward her room. “I wonder if he would have made a room for me if I hadn’t been so willing to-”

“Don’t think like that,” Diego tells her.

“Why not? We have similar powers. V uses sound. I use light. It’s tied to my emotions, just like V’s. I could have easily taken Luther out or even melted that door. Especially as the Wisp. I don’t even know if there is a limit beyond how much oxygen there is in a room as to how hot I can heat it. I could burn this entire place down with everyone in it if I wanted to.”

“But you don’t want to,” Diego counters. “You have more control.”

“Do I? I lost it at the rave. I meant what I said down there. How is Viktor more dangerous than me?” She asks. “How do we know that? Because Luther says? Diego, we-” The blood drains from her face as she realizes what Viktor is about to do. She can feel it in the air inside the bunker. She focuses a bit more on the Wisp.

“Cari…” She starts as she looks at him, her eyes glowing bright blue from her powers. The brightness contrasts with her paling skin. 

Diego is immediately concerned. He reaches out in case she passes out. 

 “Run,” she tells him. 

Then all hell breaks loose. 

“Cariño”/”Cari” Dear, Sweetie, Honey, etc. Term of Endearment 

“Mi luz” My light, Term of Endearment

[fanfic-chan]

God I really hate having trypanophobia. Legit almost passed out at work earlier today because I had to read about like vaccines and health policy stuff and literally all it had was a few cartoon needle/blood images off to the side and it still made me feel lightheaded and sick to my stomach while reading it. So embarrassing...

(Other than that, work went pretty well today and I was able to get through everything else just fine, and even doing the register was a lot easier on my second day despite not being a very socially adept person!^^)

[peterokii]

another t4t seroroki sticker sheet

[sunnixsunshine]

Trypanophobia Zoro propaganda :)

[gracebethartacc]

SHAMBLES OUT OF IBIS COVERED IN BLOOD hi guys I did KICB au design timeline refs yay :3

[spidey-bie]

Hobie with a friend or s/o who's afraid of needles anyone?

TW: Needles of course

Hobie hooks you up with someone that he's close with to ease your anxiety.

Whether if it's for a shot, a piercing, or a tattoo he somehow knows a guy.

He's helping to calm you down before you go in.

Also he'll definitely go in with you if you ask him to.

(This next paragraph is for me. IDC.)

"I know I should be over this by now. I mean I'm grown but I still can't even get a simple shot by mys-"

Your vision started to blur and your breaths were uneven.

"Lovely." He holds you close to his chest.

"You're so brave. Y'know that yeah?" He pauses and looks down at you.

"Couldn't be more proud of you facing your fears and all that."

He knows so many breathing exercises since he has to constantly keep calm in his symbiote riddled world.

Hobie will keep you distracted making sure that you never get a glimpse of the needle.

Before, during, and after the process he'll keep your eyes on him.

He'll gently playing with your fingers or talk to you about anything to keep your mind off off of.

If you're incredibly terrified, like me, and you just wish someone would hold you as you cry you'll be getting the shot while sitting in his lap.

If you're getting a tattoo or a piercing, and you choose to get it done by a professional same procedure.

Even if you're sitting there for hours on end he'll keep your mind occupied. He'll sing to you knowing that his terrible voice with make you laugh.

Also Hobie will just give you a piercing himself if you ask.

"Ducky, do you want me to count down o-"

"Nope. Just do it."

A/N: I used more slang this time. Typing this with shaking fingers since I have to go in to get blood work later today. My arms still hurt from the 2 shots I got Friday. I was near tears just from those. I was supposed to get blood work done at the same place but after pricking me twice I was told that I have deep veins so I have to go to another place. I wanna live out my "I'm getting every piercing under the sun" phase but idk how I'm gonna deal with the needle.

[autumnday19]

Going to be celebrating this March 15th by getting stabbed (getting my covid shot)

[harveylikestoart]

Welcome to Leon’s Medical Malpractice how may we help you?

[fizzy4president]

More Arsentropolis!!!!!!!!

I made some silly designs for the dogs and rats in the game concept, along with a new character!!!!

Miss Thorn, is a 32 year old nurse at the local hospital, that has been shut down and abandoned for over a year. No other personnel remains in this facility and certainly not any patients, alive patients for that part.

She tends to roam around the hospital, taking care of patients, that died long ago. She has brainwashed herself into thinking that these patients are alive and need treatment. She isn’t as stable and sane ever since the hospital shut down, as she seems to have completely descended into madness.

Sometimes she has even attacked and kidnapped trespassers in the hospital, infecting them with poison so that she can take care of them. Only to later infect them again once recovered. Miss Thorn has gone lenghts far beyond her limit to fulfill her ”duty”. She is under the influence of Raphael, the ”archangel” of healing. He keeps her alive so that she can continue her duties, but he is probably one of the reasons she is no longer herself.

Uncensored below cut

If I were to make a game of this, she would be the first antagonist. The game starts in the hospital she’s in, with the protagonist/player waking up in a hospital bed after a 6 year long coma. Player goes through a few puzzles and challanges, without her being a threat in the start. After a while she discovers you, chasing you down, demanding to get back to bed and take your pills. There are more challenges, until she is lured to a pit of needles, that she then falls into. She’s not dead yet though, chasing you with needles as she’s slowly dying from the ones pierced into her flesh. But eventually she dies shortly before the player escapes, because of her injuries and infections from the needles.

That first part would be called ”Trypanophobia”, as it will have a lot of needles 😭

I’m planning to make the other parts phobia themed as well but I’m not sure what phobias to go with yet.

[cleanycleanyclean]

Post 2; Green Favs

[scarstarved]

Pitch Black (2000) dir. David Twohy

[angels-playspace]

gots m blud dwaw!!! it was SOOPER SCAWEE n weelee huwt BU I DIDS IT!!! madez me feel weel bad bu got wawa n dat make m betta. i also told mama bout m pacees n se was okee wi it, n even ncuriged i use it duwin da bud daw!!

[sylvsforest]

Tryptophobia warning ⚠️

Jane, 2023

[actress4him]

June of Doom 2023

Previous | Next | Masterlist

Taglist: @painful-pooch

Day 6 - “You’re doing great.” | Injection | Nightmare | Duct Tape

Also qualifies for @whumpawoman ’s Whump Girl Summer Day 2 - Migraine

Contains: lady whump with male whumper, needle, fear of needles, injected with unknown substance, restraints, migraine, nausea mention, captivity

.

.

“What are you doing?” Lainey scrambles backwards across the room, eyes wide and trained on the syringe in the man’s hand. “What is that, don’t bring that anywhere near me! I draw the line at needles, okay? Alright actually I draw the line…a long time ago, at the hitting and the bone breaking and the kidnapping, but…but needles are an entirely different story.” Her back hits the wall, and she begins creeping along it sideways, not ever looking away from the terrifying point. “What is even in that? How do I know that it’s new, and not contaminated? How do I know you know what you’re doing? And why do you even need to give me a shot, anyway? I’m not sick! I don’t need medicine!”

Growling, the man tosses the syringe back into the box he’d gotten from one of the cabinets. It doesn’t make her relax any, and for good reason. All he does then is lunge toward her, trying to get his hands on her. She dodges with a yelp. Her reflexes aren’t what they should be, though, she’s slow from the atrocious pain in her ribs and lack of enough food, and it doesn’t take long for him to corner her, slamming her into the wall.

“No!” she screams, thrashing in his grip. “You are not sticking that thing in me! Let me go!”

He drags her to the cabinets with one arm around her waist, fishing in them with his free hand for something she doesn’t see, too focused on clawing and kicking and trying to escape him. Then she’s taken to the corner, where something metal is clamped around one wrist. He lets go of her waist but yanks her by the chain now attached to her, hooking it to an eye bolt on one wall, then latching onto her other arm and doing the same. With her arms now spread wide, all continuing to struggle gets her is metal cuffs cutting into her wrists.

The syringe returns and is rapidly approaching her. For once, Lainey’s defiance crumbles into pure fear. “Please…please don’t. Please don’t do this, I’m…” His fingers prod one of her outstretched arms, and she jolts. “Can…can I at least know what’s in it before you…?”

The needle pricks her skin and she whimpers, shutting her eyes tightly. This isn’t happening, this isn’t happening. She feels like she might pass out.

An eternity later, he’s done. Lainey gasps for breath, jiggling her arm up and down, trying to erase the feeling of the needle. A couple of tears escape down her cheeks when she opens her eyes.

The man is putting the box away and locking the cabinet. He leaves without having spoken a single word.

As soon as he’s locked the door again, Isa uncurls from where she’s been hiding by the stairs and limps toward her. “You, um…you okay?”

“No.” Her voice wavers. “I hate needles.”

Isa nods, biting the inside of her cheek. “I can…tell you what it probably was, at least. If you wanna know.”

“Yeah, I wanna know.” She doesn’t, what if it’s something awful like some deadly disease? But if Isa knows what it is then she’s likely gotten it before, and she survived. So that’s something. And if she is gonna die, she wants to know ahead of time.

“I mean, I don’t know actually what it is, but I know what it does. It’s, um…it’s to mess with your magic. I get the feeling he wants to get rid of it altogether, but he hasn’t actually figured out how yet.”

It isn’t a deadly disease, but it’s almost equally as horrifying. “What do you mean, ‘mess with my magic’? What is it gonna do?”

Isa gives her patented one shoulder shrug. “Not sure. I don’t know which one he gave you…or which one did what. Besides, our magic is different, so you’ll probably react differently than me. It may not do anything to your magic. All I can say with fairly definite certainty is that you’ll feel like crap for a while.”

“Fantastic.” Lainey shuts her eyes again, trying to calm down and process everything. Even though she understands - intellectually at least - why, the fact that Isa continues to just sit and watch these things happen to her bothers her a lot. “Why don’t you ever say anything? Why don’t you try to help me?”

Isa’s voice is quiet when she responds. “I can’t. It would…it would do you no good, and I would just get hurt, too. Remember what happened the last time you tried to help me?”

Of course she remembers. Isa was getting whipped, and because she’d tried to stop the man she’d gotten the same treatment. Her back still hurts days later. “I know.”

“I wish you would stop trying to help me.” She settles down on the floor by Lainey’s feet, every movement stiff and careful. “You’re making things far too hard on yourself.”

“I can’t help it. I can’t just sit there and watch you get hurt like that.”

Silence falls for a moment. Lainey tries desperately not to think about the needle and the unknown, magic-altering substance that’s now flowing through her body. “I’ve never actually asked you about your magic. It’s, um…enhanced hearing? Something like that?”

“Uh, no, it’s…I can feel…vibrations. Disturbances in the air. Stuff like that. Mostly movement, footsteps, heartbeats, breathing…” She tips her head back to lean it against the concrete blocks. “It isn’t as strong as it used to be.”

Lainey’s heart skips a beat. “Because of…this?”

“Yeah.” Isa looks up at her. Not for the first time, Lainey wonders about the scar that slashes across her lips, but she hasn’t had the courage to ask where it came from. “The good news is, he should have figured out by now what worked and what didn’t. So…unless he thinks something might work on you that didn’t on me, hopefully you won’t have to go through so many.”

“How many did he give you?”

She shrugs again. “I don’t remember.”

An uncomfortable feeling is slowly beginning to make itself known. It started in the arm he injected, but it’s spreading across her body and she’s finding it hard to ignore any longer. Her head is beginning to hurt, but elsewhere she can’t really pinpoint what the feeling is. She just feels…wrong.

“What is it?”

She glanced down at Isa. It’s rare for her to ask questions, so she must have had a weird look on her face. “I feel off. Headache. And…I don’t know, like my nerves are…crawling.”

Isa hums in acknowledgment. “I think I know the feeling you’re talking about. Sorry to tell you that the headache will probably get worse.”

It does. Steadily over the next maybe half hour, the pain grows from mild and annoying to head caught in a vice. And then keeps getting worse. She’s never had a migraine before, but she’s heard about the symptoms. They always sounded miserable. They feel much more miserable than she’d imagined.

“I think I’m gonna pass out.” She’s been trying to keep herself distracted with conversation, but she’s running out of things to say after so many days - has it been a week now? maybe more? - and her head is making it very hard to focus on anything else.

“You don’t want to pass out, you might dislocate your shoulders,” Isa replies matter of factly.

“Obviously I don’t want to pass out, I just…” She moans, wishing desperately that there was an escape from these blasted fluorescent lights. But no, they stay on twenty-four seven, buzzing their incessant buzz and flickering without any sort of pattern.

“Just focus on breathing.” Grabbing their current, almost empty water bottle, Isa struggles to her feet. “Here, you need to keep hydrated.” She twists off the cap and holds the mouth up to Lainey’s lips, tipping it to help her take a drink.

The water feels good on her throat, but churns in her already disturbed stomach. “I-I can…I can make more if we need it.”

Isa frowns. “I wouldn’t recommend using your magic while that’s in your system. I don’t know what kind of side effects it would have. We’ll make do.”

“But…what if I can’t after this?” The thought is terrifying. She’s never needed her magic before as much as they do right now, but she’s always liked it. It’s been a part of her for so long, and to think about it being taken away…

“I don’t think that’s going to happen. And even if it does at some point, it’s okay. I’ve survived this long without water magic. We’ll survive, too.”

No one says anything for another few minutes, Isa leaning her shoulders against the wall with her weight off her bad leg, and Lainey focusing on deep breaths with her eyes shut. Another wave of excruciating pain comes over her, and she cries out through gritted teeth, dropping her head forward.

“I can’t do this!” she pants. “I can’t take it anymore!”

“You have to.” She’d glare at Isa for that lovely bit of encouragement if she could lift her head up again. “I know it sucks, but…you’re doing great, okay? You’re…you’ve handled all of this really well. Ever since you got here. You’re strong, and…if anyone can get through this, it’s you.”

She didn’t expect that kind of talk coming from Isa. She’s always stoic, and distant, and never seems happy with the way that Lainey handles things. For a moment she doesn’t reply, thinking about how strong Isa is. She’s only had to survive this torture for a week, and she’s had Isa to help coach her through it and to do things like give her water when she’s chained up. As much as they clash sometimes, this whole situation would be so much worse if she was alone.

“Thanks,” she finally whispers. “I don’t feel strong right now.”

“I know.” Tentatively, Isa reaches out, hand hovering just in front of Lainey’s shoulder for a moment before dropping again without touching. “Hopefully not too much longer now.”

[triforce-of-mischief]

pain.

feeling something inside that doesn't belong.

what if it shatters inside?

unknown substances entering the bloodstream.

loss of consent.

betrayal of trust.

restraint.

fainting.

vomiting.

screaming.

crying.

making a scene.

acting like a child.

traumatic memories that never go away.

"it's just a little needle."

no it's not.