duplicity inbox | un: prince

[rosebyanyother]

"Morrigan Prince. I'm afraid I'm too busy to answer at the moment, but leave a message and I promise to respond as soon as I'm able."

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[rosebyanyother]

[Peter should have reached out, too. But clearheaded, later, he's been...worried about how Jon might feel. About him, about their friendship.

Reading this message, he feels ashamed. And disappointed. And then ashamed again for that disappointment.]

There's nothing to forgive. You didn't take advantage of me, Jon.
No more than I took advantage of you, at any rate.

But I'm sorry too.
I should have checked in with you the day after and I didn't.
Have you been alright? After all of that.

[compellingstatement]

You didn't do anything.
You even tried to stop me.

[Which, looking back on that and just how out of their minds they were... Jon's stomach does a strange little flip-flop. He's feeling something about that, and he doesn't entirely want to name it.]

I appreciate that.
What you did.
If I'd run into someone else or, god forbid, that damn orgy, I don't know what other people would have done to me.
Thank you.

I'm fine.
It's just been on my mind.
I've been trying to figure out what the ritual was even for.
But the books I've found are completely useless so far.

[rosebyanyother]

You're welcome, I suppose.
I just didn't want you to have too many regrets about it all.

[About him, Peter really means but does not say.]

Do you think it was something that was intended to be malevolent?
Or perhaps that's a stupid question.
It's just that spring IS associated with fertility.

...Which still might be troubling, I realize.

[compellingstatement]

I don't regret

[He sends that without meaning to after typing and deleting and typing and deleting again for a solid two minutes. The next set of messages come in a frantic wave as he tries to clarify for himself as much as Peter.]

You're not what I regret.
I mean, I regret using you.
But not if you don't feel used.
Do you?
No, you said you didn't.
Sorry.
I regret it was all like that.
It seems like we keep having things be like that and I don't want it to be.
I like you too much for that.
I mean, you're my friend.
I appreciate you as a friend.

[There's finally a pause.]

The tentacle monsters hatched in May.
Maybe it was for them?

[rosebyanyother]

["As a friend". But also, "I like you too much". Peter reads both those statements over a few times and wonders. Though, really, what is he even wondering about? He knows he...feels more for Jon that simple friendship though even he isn't sure what the extent of it is. Admitting to it seems futile, however. Jon is in love and even if the object of that love isn't currently present....

Peter knows intimately that it doesn't matter. A year's absence from Juno hasn't mattered to him. And though perhaps he does have some room...no, Jon's separation is too fresh.

Perhaps.]

Yes, I regret that part too.
If anything were to happen, I'd rather it be genuine and not coerced.





I think I must have missed the tentacle monsters.

[For a complete change of subject.]

[compellingstatement]

Thank god you did, they were horrible.
One latched itself onto me and I had to practically set it on fire to get it to let go.
Elias was trying to convince me I'd have to let it have sex with me to get it off.

[Which... the extremely hefty fine he'd received in the mail recently indicated that Elias was probably right that letting the thing have its way was what he was supposed to do. But Jon is a very stubborn man when he wants to be.

There's a bit of a longer pause as he considers what he wants to say next. Reading that second line... does Peter want something? Jon had offered to play cats with him, but the other man had never taken him up on the offer. He'd just sort of assumed there wasn't that much interest there.]

Coerced.
Yes, that seems to be unfortunately common.





There's an art gallery near the Institute.
They're doing an exhibit with artists painting the night sky.
Would you like to come with me to it?
I just thought with what you painted on me before... maybe?

[rosebyanyother]

Duplicity never stops being surprising does it?
Or predictable. Depending on how you look at it.

[Speaking of surprising.]

Yes, I think I'd like that a lot.
When would you like to go?

[compellingstatement]

[When. Right. When?]

Tonight?
Only if that's enough time.
It can be tomorrow.
Or whenever, really.
No rush.

[rosebyanyother]

I have a shift tonight, unfortunately.
Tomorrow, though, is great.
If you give me the address, I can meet you there. Or pick you up at the Institute? What time are you generally done for the day?

[compellingstatement]

[Tomorrow. Good, fine. That gives him time to prepare. Somehow. Mentally? Yes, mentally. He also now needs to offer a reasonable time to Peter.]

8 PM.
Give or take.
Let's say 8 PM?
I'll meet you at the entrance.

[He sends along an address.]

[rosebyanyother]

Fantastic.
I look forward to it.

[compellingstatement]

Me, too.

((continued over here))

truth meme continuations

[rosebyanyother]

jonathan sims #1

[rosebyanyother]

(from here)

It's the first time I've had feelings for two people at once as well.

I don't want to do anything that comes between you and Martin.
If you think he'd be jealous then nothing has to change.

I would rather be a little lonely than lose you as a friend.

[compellingstatement]

After seeing what Martin went through with the Lonely, what I've been through, lonely is really the last thing I want you to be, Morrigan.
Even just a little.

God this feels so complicated.
There are things I feel more comfortable about with you than Martin and I don't know what that means.
Maybe because you're not from our world?
There's not that history?

Like the damn cat thing.
I know he'd indulge me, but it felt easy telling you I'd play with you that way.
I guess because you work at the Naughty Persian?

And I think I liked what happened during the ritual.

[And he keeps typing again, his embarrassment growing as he tries to stop and can't.]

It's not something I'd want to do daily, or anything.
But I liked...
I think I liked making you happy the most?
It felt good to be able to just make someone else feel good.
And I don't know what really happened, but everything sort of narrowed down to you.
Everything inside my head got quieter.
All the fear from everyone around, all the horror in their lives.
It wasn't gone, but with you like that, it was just quieter for a little while.
It was... nice.
And I was curious about all your reactions and what would happen next.
The only other person that's really happened with is Martin.
I thought he'd be the only one I'd want to try things with when it wasn't being forced on us.
But I think if you wanted it and Martin was okay with it, I'd want that.
Maybe to count as part of my quota, too.

Or we could just spend time together, too.
I like talking to you.

tim stoker

[rosebyanyother]

(from here)


I hadn't intended on doing anything about it. I've met Martin, I'm aware that they love each other very much.

[He doesn't actually mean to say anything more, but then...]

Though Jon has now told me that he has similar feelings for me.

jonathan sims #2

[rosebyanyother]

(from here)


I haven't seen, actually. But now at least I'll be on the lookout.
It's always something, isn't it?


So. What DO you enjoy about being treated like a cat?

[Just because he really likes you doesn't mean he's not sometimes a shit, Jon.]

martin blackwood

[rosebyanyother]

(from here)


Not as good as you are for him, I'm sure.
The last time I was in any sort of relationship was 15 years ago.
And I'm in love with someone else. Not that he's here, of course.

But it's complicated...

Anyway. I appreciate your saying so but I think you and Jon should actually have a discussion about this. You seem nice enough. I don't want to hurt you. And I certainly don't want to complicate things for Jon. Or lose him completely down the line if you change your mind.

[compellingstatement]

[Oh, for-!]

I swear to god, Morrigan!

I like... being taken care of and not having to talk or think.
Or not think like I usually do.
I feel everyone around me constantly.
Their fears, terrible things that happened to them or the people they know or the people who know people they know.
Everything's so loud, and I have to push back against it constantly.
Even then, things come through.
When I'm playing a cat, it's like I can turn down the volume and I don't have to fight as hard not to Know.
I don't have to feel stressed about doing the right thing next.
And I'm not as hungry, or I am, but I'm not thinking about it?
Everything's just overwhelming all the time, and it's... simpler.

If you tell anyone about this, I will say I'll never talk to you again, but probably I'll talk to you again.

[buffeted]

Well, I'm not sure about that. [ that he's so good for jon. he tries, but this is the first thing remotely like a healthy relationship he's ever had. ]
I'm sure we'll talk about it. I don't want him to feel guilty about caring for someone else.

nate hawthorne

[rosebyanyother]

(from here)

Out of curiosity, are they aware of what you can do?

Qi'ra

[rosebyanyother]

(from here)

An efficient way of going about it! Though, I suspect, not without some resistance.

I'm very curious as to who you are.

tim drake

[rosebyanyother]

(from here)

I was being hired to steal something else.

But I think you misunderstand.

[He doesn't know WHY he's clarifying this, but it feels like he can't stop himself from addressing it.]

The woman I stole from wasn't my client. She was the test, from a third party.

sally boyle

[rosebyanyother]

(from here)


Force ends up being so MESSY. Though I'll admit the subterfuge was partially because I had been challenged to complete the theft with minimum collateral damage.


...I'll also admit to being a bit confused. Where does the suppository enter into all of this? And do you mean literally drill his brains or something else?

[toplieutenant]

Once it was done, he had little resistance. He was dead.

My name is Qi'ra. You?