PickleMoon1

[2006]

Adam liked the swing at sunset. The sky looked like fire and as he went up as high as he could it felt like flying. He'd extend his legs and he'd shoot off over the lake and far off beyond it. On the downward swing his feet would kick up dust and he'd see that outside world dip below fire and water. He hadn't left the island since they moved away from New York to Chicago, but that's okay, out there was bad, here he got his own room and he didn't mind being homeschooled he's learning so much interesting stuff and there's no other kids to be mean to him. 

As the sky darkened the porch light turned on behind him and he jumped off the swing, landing a safe distance from the cliffside, it was time to come in for dinner.

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[2004]

A year after the Beast of Arkansas had been executed Hector found himself at a crossroads as he had faced all through the years since his mentors arrest. Another man sat across from him, not nearly as palatable nor persuasive as Manny Sherman had been. The recounting of events by the children of Las Palmas Orphanage had remarkable consistency between them, the staff did not... 

The further he dug the deeper the corruption went. His job restricted him from the things he'd like to do to the officers of the third precinct, who looked the other way to feed their addictions, he'd shot and killed Frederick Lemay, who used his dealing connections to get away with violence against the most vulnerable, after he'd attacked Hector during his arrest. And Rominski. He wouldn't call the man 'father', the priest sat in cuffs, indignant, insistent on his innocence, that all those kids were liars, but Hector had found the playroom. He'd found so much more that took him back to his own childhood although he did not suffer the things Rominski inflicted in his own childhood there was a lot that felt disturbingly familiar, and were it not for the confines of his job he'd beat the man to death like he'd come close to doing to the Beast the day he'd learnt how to create art...

Hector worked on his passions in secret over the years, he listened carefully when Sherman had imparted his lessons and no one new that Hector Munday, accomplished criminal profiler and FBI agent, was a killer. Teller was the first to go, he facilitated the whole operation, burying the evidence for a high... Hector made it look like an accident. He didn't even take momentos to prevent exposing the death as a murder... 

There was this one boy. Adam Jones. He was a difficult placement as the children were redistributed into different temporary situations while the case was ongoing. He'd had his tape recorder ready when it'd been his time to speak with him but the boy said nothing, pale eyes flat and detached, the tape was left to run and he didn't interrupt as nothing but the natural sound of breathing and the movement of fabric as they shift in their seats had been picked up amongst the static by the microphone... He'd looked into the boy in his free time, what had happened to his family, he'd reminded him of himself.

Hector walked down a dim side street after the frustrating interrogation, it helped him clear his head, if it was up to him they'd all pay tonight, but he'd worked too hard to go out as someone who 'snapped' and went on a spree killing of everyone connected to the Las Palmas case. He knew where his obligation ended but as he past a run down playground lit by streetlights he saw him through the chain link fence. Adam sitting on one of the swings, not swinging but holding the chains tightly in his small hands. It wasn't the first time he'd run off from the court assigned guardians, Hector stood there until the boy looked up at him, raising his hands to appear less threatening as he took a step closer.

"I'm not here to make you go back." He assures, but what else was he supposed to do? He can't let the child free roam, it's dangerous. "Can I sit here?" He asks, sitting in the other swing after the boy shrugged, careful to keep his feet flat on the ground as the swing set wasn't made for a man his size. He sat there, looking ahead and he waited... Cars rushed past, the tall buildings overshadow the nights sky and moths danced under the sickly yellow light, lit over a bus stop across from the park. They didn't speak. He'd never been alone with the child, it was psychologically irresponsible because of his history, having an abusive father and suffering further after. But now he senses slight movement out of his peripheral, he glanced to the side, the boy was moving his thin legs, not quite swinging, Hector thought about what he'd read in the ruling around Holly Jones, who'd shot her abusive husband in front of Adam and subsequently took her own life after being denied contact with him in prison... Did the boy agree with his late mother's actions?

"My mama used to bring me here all the time." The kid spoke for the first time in Hector's presence and he turned to him to show he was listening. "She said if you go high enough it's like flying, but that's not really true, the sky is way up there and I'm not." Adam's dark hair falls into his eyes and Hector ignores the part of him that wants to brush it out of his face. He clears his throat as he carefully speaks. "Your mother was right."

Adam actually looked up at him as he carefully continued. "There's this place, where a house sits on top of a cliffside overlooking a lake, outside the house is a swing and if you got high enough you'd swear you'd flown right over the water."

The boy looked ahead as two moths tempt fate under the lights, would Hector have believed a man like himself at that age? Doctors, teachers, neighbours, they all saw his bruises, that he was losing weight and struggling to breathe, and they left him only marginally better off than the small person beside him. He'd never spoken of that place, it was too dangerous to risk the only place he could go if everything went wrong but the child needed this. Adam craned his head up high enough to see the sky far above the buildings, visibly attempting to picture what he'd been told. "I want to fly."

"Perhaps one day you will."

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[2017]

Today was the day of the grand opening of the world's fair hotel, the replica murder castle on an island, their castle. He'd counted down the days on the callendar. The rest of that construction company would be coming, when the young man greeted them they noticed two things immediately: the way his uniform matched the animatronics to the smallest detail, even his hairstyle, and his haunting blue eyes...

When their host joins them they'll get to be the first ones to witness the hotel in a fully operational state. It was promised to be unforgettable evening.

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[1999]

The Edwards were fundamentally decent people. Hector had first met Mark and Jennifer early on in his career, their son had been murdered and despite his best efforts he'd been unable to deliver them justice. On the day of Sherman's sentencing he'd made up his mind to visit them, bringing them a gift. He sat at their table a week later, sliding an envelope across their table. "I found him."

It had been intense, watching the two of them look through Polaroids of the man who'd stollen their child and what Hector had done, he watched as they processed his vigilantism, when they met his eye again he knew they would understand. They asked how they could ever repay him and he was ready to tell them everything he'd done since the Beast opened his eyes...

__

[2003]

The day of Manny Sherman's execution Hector watched the news, his part of the case was well passed. Shortly after he'd learnt that Jennifer had been diagnosed with cancer, unlike his mother Mrs Edwards never smoked in her life. He was kept busy with work but put aside what he could to help the only living people who really knew who he was. Ultimately preserving her life for a time.

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[2004]

It had only been a few months since Adam had lost his mother and gone to that terrible place when the big man came around. He shot the Orderly dead, Adam saw it from the window. He was much further away than the first time he'd watched someone die, the Orderly's head didn't explode like the first time, Adam guesses it's because the gun was a lot smaller than the one his mama used on his dad. The man didn't flinch when he did it, he heard he was a secret agent, he probably killed bad guys all the time...

Later he learnt his name was Hector and he looked at Adam like he understood, Adam still wasn't sure if he was only pretending, he didn't try to force him to speak like all the rest of the adults, he didn't try to make him answer questions about the bad things. 

Adam snuck out to follow him once and saw the way he got rid of the policeman who ignored him and the other kids... Adam wishes he could be like Hector.

When Hector told him about flying he really believed him, when he looks at him again his face is serious like he's making an important decision. He doesn't talk as he holds out a large hand and Adam takes it, it was completely foreign to him, feeling safe with an adult... But he believes Hector understands and so when he tells Adam that he needs to arrange some things and to go back until he returns he feels... Hope.

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[2014]

"Ten years ago to the day the nation was rocked by the firey end of special agent Hector Munday." Says a newscaster on the tv. "Even more horrifying in the fact that the orphan, Adam Jones, just ten years old, was kidnapped by the rogue agent and presumed dead."

The tv is switched off by the very much alive twenty year old Adam Jones, he celebrates the anniversary very differently than the people on the news. Although he has worn a lot of names since then he was still Adam under it all...

He went outside and sat on the swing, the sky bleeding  red painted in broad sharp strokes, he didn't regret living on the island with Hector and the Edwards, but now Mark and Jennifer were gone and it was just the two of them... They have plans, he'd heard more about Hector's dreams for the island growing up and he wanted to help him. There's just one more thing he had to do to be like his hero.

Despite all the evidence Rominski had gotten a pitiful sentence for everything he'd done. It was a gift that he'd been chosen for Adam's final test. Hector brought him to the island, roughed up but alive, it didn't take that monster long to recognise Adam and plead on his hands and knees like many others had to the former priest as Hector presented him a knife and stood back to watch him become the man he was always supposed to be.

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[Now]

They'd had a few close calls over the years living as the Du'mets, running the murder castle was only as easy as their guests made it, he called them, guided them in and work the control room during visits, sometimes a straggler stumbles in while others are being hunted through the halls, every time they immediately attack and so he does what he's been raised to do. 

He's patched Hector up when necessary, he was over sixty now and showed little sign off stopping anytime soon. Adam has thought about the fact that one day he may be the only one left, he could move more freely off the island as his adult self was fully anonymous, when he's by himself he'll seek out his own creative partner to collaborate with, Hector understands that Adam is only being practical about it. He'd moved from the lighthouse to one of the out buildings, a man needs his own space after all but he still liked to watch the sunset from that high place. Hector joined him on the swings. The Cat close behind, jumping into Hector's lap, Adam scratched his little grey ear, silence rested comfortably between them as it often did.

He'd be forever grateful to the man who showed him how to fly.

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@delurkr @ctrvpani @vincedoll @conra @tinynightmarewoman @oblivious-troll @eframschweigersskincells @aydeenchan @mybrainrotforreal @kindheartedgummybears

I keep giving Hector adoption papers for his murdery children and he and Adam have a lot in common so this concept just clicked in my head that in at least some timelines Du'met would legitimately raise a complicit son to carry on his legacy, all very wholesome of course

Whenever Jiwoon wants something, he's hellbent and determined on getting it, by any means necessary.

So really, you shouldn't have been shocked when he murdered your manager on the final day of shooting.

But you were. You screamed when you discovered the body, mangled beyond recognition as you scrambled for your phone to call the police.

Jiwoon had stopped you before you could, though.

"Shh," He had whispered, his hand covering your mouth to prevent you from making any sounds as he gently pried your phone from your hand, hanging up the call before the operator could even get a word in, "Make any noise, and I'll make sure you can never speak again, yeah?"

The threat was enough for you to do whatever he said. You didn't want to die, and you knew that the only chance of survival was to just go along with whatever he had planned until a chance to escape presented itself.

But that never happened, and you've been trapped in his penthouse for… months now, you think. It's hard to keep track of time when the days begin to blur together.

You'd think that, given his status as a popular idol, he wouldn't be able to just keep you locked up like this. Surely, someone would drop by and find you eventually, right? But it never happened.

"No one ever visits." Had been Jiwoon's explanation when you cautiously asked one night. It was… sad. It felt horrible, feeling bad for the man, but that feeling of pity wasn't an easy thing to squash down, not when he had that distant look in his eyes. Like he was somewhere else entirely.

With no one coming to your rescue any time soon, your fate was practically sealed. Jiwoon never let you leave his penthouse, and you couldn't escape through the balcony. The drop was way too high to justify taking any risks, and just the thought alone had you feeling sick to your stomach.

The only thing you could do was just… get comfortable.

A task that was far easier said than done, because Jiwoon made it damn near impossible.

His sense of boundaries was pretty much nonexistent, you've learned. If he wanted attention, he was going to get it from you, even if you clearly weren't in the mood to entertain him. You could be watching some random movie, and he'd turn the TV off and throw himself in your lap and demand you pay attention to him.

There was this one time when he woke you up in the dead of night after finally getting home from… his late-night activities, and he had the audacity to act shocked when you got upset at him.

"What could possibly be more important than giving me attention?" He had asked, and you swear you would've strangled him if you knew it wouldn't get you killed.

Luckily for you, he had days where he preferred just existing with you, rather than needing to touch you in some way. Those days were the ones you preferred most, because you could put as much distance between the two of you, and he wouldn't even bat an eye.

But recently… he's been distant.

At first, you tried just brushing it off. He's a busy man; you can't expect him to be around all the time. You don't want him to be around all the time. But this just felt different. He wasn't trying to spend time with you anymore. He wasn't demanding attention from you.

He just… left you alone.

It shouldn't be bothering you like this. You should be jumping with joy, celebrating the fact that he seemingly was losing interest in you.

But really, it scared you more than anything. If he's starting to grow bored of you, then that means he'll probably get rid of you soon, right? You'd become a liability. A witness to his crimes, one that he couldn't risk letting go.

That thought alone was a terrifying one. You didn't want to die, not one bit. Even after all these months trapped in his hold, death was never an option you wanted.

It should've been the scariest thought. It wasn't.

For some reason, the thought of Jiwoon losing interest in you made you feel… upset. A weird heaviness weighed in your heart, and you didn't know what to do about it. Surely, you're not starting to love him, right? That would be insane.

He kidnapped you. He murdered your manager. He's murdered so many other people, and played you their screams when he wanted your input on how to incorporate them into his music. You couldn't possibly love a man like him!

The heaviness never went away, no matter how hard you tried to focus on other things. Jiwoon seemed completely oblivious to your distress, which just made you feel even worse, because the entire time you've been here, he always seemed to know exactly what you were feeling.

And now it's been almost a week since you've seen him, and you felt like you were going insane.

He just up and left in the middle of the night without telling you. No note for you to wake up to, and no telling when he'll be back. You knew where he was, at least. You didn't have access to a phone, but you saw him on one of those talk shows, and he mentioned being on tour.

Just a small little detail that would've been nice to know before he left.

It was the middle of the night when you heard the penthouse door beep before opening. You were curled up on the couch, watching some rerun of an old drama. You couldn't sleep, anxiety eating away at you. You needed to see Jiwoon. Needed to confirm for yourself whether or not you were going to die soon.

Your gaze follows him as he makes his way towards the kitchen. He seemed tired, understandably so. You were waiting patiently for him to at least glance your way, but he doesn't. He goes to the fridge, pulls out a bottle of water, and chugs at least half of it before putting it back.

"Jiwoon," You call out, voice a bit quiet. You can't remember the last time you'd spoken out loud, and you'd honestly forgotten what your voice sounded like.

The idol doesn't react. It's like he was purposefully ignoring you, leaving the kitchen and stepping toward the hallway that leads to his room. You could just let him go, and try again later. But there was this sinking feeling in your chest that if you didn't get him to talk tonight, then you'll never get another chance.

"Stop!" You hadn't meant to yell. Your voice cracked, and Jiwoon halts in his steps, his head turning back and his gaze finally meeting yours. You hate the feeling of relief that rushes through you, and you sit up a bit, trying to calm your rapidly beating heart as your mind rushes to piece together something that will make him stay.

All you can come up with is a pathetic, "Please don't leave me."

The silence stretches, and Jiwoon just stares at you. It feels like you're losing everything, and you want to scream and throw things at him. How dare he make you feel like this.

For a long moment, it doesn't seem like he's going to respond. You half expect him to just leave without a word. But much to your surprise—and relief—Jiwoon turns to face you fully.

"Why?" He asks.

One word. It's the first thing he's said to you in ages, and it has your heart racing like this is some stupid drama. God, it makes you feel so pathetic.

"Why…?" You echo, unsure of what his question could possibly mean.

Jiwoon's head cocks to the side, his expression devoid of any real emotion. You can't tell what he's thinking, and you hate it. You hate him.

"Why should I stay?"

And that… that was a stupid question, no?

He's the one who kidnapped you. He's the one who dragged you into his fucked up life. He's the one who clings to you, the one who forces his love upon you, the one who disregarded the fact that you wanted nothing to do with him. Everything is his fault, and yet he's asking you why he should stay. Like you're the villain, and he's the victim.

You don't even realize you're crying until you finally speak again, your words shaking as you choke on a sob, "I love you."

The confession hurts. It's not romantic. This is not the love story you pictured yourself going through. You love him, and you hate him.

But your words seem to do the trick, because Jiwoon smiles. It's like nothing ever happened, like he hadn't put you through emotional distress as he crosses the room and practically throws himself at you.

"해바라기," He coos, the affectionate nickname sending a shiver down your spine as his hands cup your cheeks, brushing away your tears. You used to hate it when he called you that, but now it has your heart racing in a way that makes you feel dizzy, "I love you, too."

His words break the dam, and you sob as you throw your arms around him, clinging to him, utterly terrified that he'd take it all back and push you away.

In the back of your mind, you realize that he'd done all of this on purpose. He grew distant, acted like he didn't care about you anymore, all to break you down. It makes you sick to your stomach, and you hate that you fell for it so easily.

But you can't deny it. In some sick and twisted way, you do love Jiwoon. And you hate that you do.

Seriously, how did your life end up like this?

MINA post-fog, dark!yandere, survivor!reader, obsession, harm against reader, possessive behavior, minor taeyoung/reader, blood, stab wounds, reader death (temporary)

Life in the fog had been hell.

You're thrown into trial after trial with no moment of rest, save for the brief seconds at the campfire. You'd gotten used to it, even became known for being one of the better survivors because of your determination to live.

Newer killers don't faze you. Sure, it takes a few attempts to learn how they behave, and what atrocious powers the Entity gave them, but it was nothing big.

But that changed when Mina came around. She wasn't... new. Not necessarily. She behaved similarly to Jiwoon, with the knives and the bat, but... there was something odd about her. Taeyoung explained that she wasn't real. An artificial creation he'd made to be exactly like Jiwoon.

How hilarious that she ended up here. It didn't really matter, because you expected her to be like every other killer. But she wasn't.

No, Mina developed this weird obsession with you. It wasn't immediate, no. She had been obsessed with her creator, Taeyoung. She ignored you for the most part, until you got in the way of her getting her hands on Taeyoung.

You'd taken a hit for him, and it's like her whole world stopped. You had blood dripping from your head, your face contorted in pain. But you looked at her with nothing but pure malice, and it's like this switched flipped in her mind. She's been attached to you ever since, and you hate it. You hate her.

It's like she was hunting you down, because no matter how many trials you're forced through, it's almost always her. And you died every single time. Either by her hand or by the Entity.

Each time, without fail, before killing you, Mina will crouch down next to you and ask, "Do you love me?"

And every time, you say no. You'll never love her. It pisses her off, and you're in so much pain before ending up back at the campfire, but you refused to give her the satisfaction of submission. She's truly insane, if she thinks you'll ever fall in love with her.

You didn't think you'd ever actually fall in love with anyone here. Survival was your priority, and escaping the fog in general was your ultimate goal.

But... you've started to develop a bit of a soft spot for Taeyoung.

He's got this awkward charm to him, and he's fresh meat around here, so you felt this need to be his protector until he got the hang of things.

It's not love. Maybe a minor crush, at most, but you wouldn't call it love. Mina thought differently, because how else could things have ended up like this?

There were three generators left.

Vee and Gabe had been killed, and Taeyoung was one hook away from dying. You'd been left alone the entire trial, no matter how many times you tried to get Mina's attention. She'd look at you, and there'd be this cold rage in her gaze before she'd go after someone else.

This wasn't right. This was different. Something deep in the very core of your being tells you that something was wrong, something worse than the life you're currently living.

You're not sure you've ever felt this way in a trial before. Not even when you first ended up here. The dread settling in your chest is what urged you to look for Taeyoung. Maybe you can tell him to hide so that Mina will be forced to kill you, and he can get hatch.

You've done it before, for other survivors. You can do it again.

Except when you find Taeyoung, he's not alone. He's on the ground, with Mina on top of him.

Her weapon was thrown to the side, and she took to stabbing the poor man numerous times with her throwing blades. He's still alive, by some miracle, and you're calling out before you can even think to stop yourself.

Mina pauses just before she can stab him again, her head tilting up just a bit as those yellow eyes pierce into you. There's so much blood covering her skin, and it makes you sick to death wondering if Vee and Gabe had experienced this same treatment.

"여보," Mina's voice is shaking, a mix between rage and delight. Her hands are shaking, and there's this sick look of affection in her gaze that had nausea rising in your throat.

This isn't supposed to be happening, right? She's going off script. Trials aren't supposed to go this way.

But the Entity was doing nothing to stop her, and you just had this gut feeling that this wasn't going to end peacefully.

"Mina," Your own voice shakes, and her head cocks to the side just a bit at the sound of her name falling from your lips, "He's done nothing to you. Just... let him go, yeah?" You try to keep the desperation out of your words, but it's hard to hide as your gaze drops down to Taeyoung.

He's barely clinging on, at this point.

"Let him go?" Mina echoes, laughing like you'd told her some hilarious joke, "No. No, no, no, I can't do that!" She says in between giggles, before her expression drops into something far more serious, that anger returning to her gaze as she looks down at Taeyoung, "No... no, he wants to take you from me."

"No, he doesn't–"

"He want to keep you away from me, and I can't let him do that."

"Mina–"

"I have to kill him. If I kill him, then you can't love him. Even if it's only temporary, I'll kill him as many times as I need to. I won't let him take you away from–"

"I don't love him, I love you!"

Silence takes hold of the air between the two of you, save for Taeyoung's gasps for air as he bleeds out beneath Mina. She stares at you, eyes wide. You stare back, because you didn't even think before saying that.

You don't love Mina, you really don't. It had been a last-ditch effort to somehow save his life.

"...You do?" Mina asks, her voice so quiet and so hopeful. For a moment, you felt guilty for lying to her. You stomp that guilt down, reminding yourself that she's undeserving of any kindness. Not from you.

Still, you nod, "Yeah. I do. So... please... stop hurting him."

For a long moment, Mina doesn't say anything. She stares at you, and you can see her considering your words. Your heart beats in your chest, anxiety through the roof as you wait for some sort of response.

And then—

"Liar."

Mina slams the blade down into Taeyoung's chest, giving it one final twist for good measure before pulling it out as she stands up. Blood drips from it, and you stand there frozen as she approaches you.

Fear.

Genuine fear, that's what you're feeling in this moment. It's a feeling you were familiar with, but you've never felt it to this extreme.

You stumble back, but Mina's hand snatches your wrist before you can get far, and you can feel blood smearing on your skin as she pulls you close.

It's like everything moves in slow motion. There's a sudden searing pain in your body, and you look down just enough to see that Mina has stabbed the blade into your chest.

She lets go of your wrist, cupping your cheek instead as her thumb lovingly caresses just under your eye, nothing but pure affection in her gaze, even as she's stabbing you.

"Don't worry, you'll love me for real soon enough," She says, leaning forward until her lips are mere inches from yours, "We have all the time in the world."

Your vision fades, and when it clears, you're back at the campfire. This was far worse than you could've imagined, and you're at a loss on what you could possibly do to deal with this.

Really, you can only hope that the Entity takes pity on you and keeps you out of trials with Mina for a while.