Chapter Three: Home Invasion

"I'm an 'intelligent' sociopath. I don't have problems with drugs, I don't commit crimes, I don't take pleasure in hurting people, and I don't typically have relationship problems. I do have a complete lack of empathy. But I consider that an advantage, most of the time. Do I know the difference between right and wrong, and do I want to be good? Sure. ... A peaceful and orderly world is a more comfortable world for me to live in. So do I avoid breaking the law because it's 'right'? No, I avoid breaking the law because it makes sense."
― M.E. Thomas, Confessions of a Sociopath: A Life Spent Hiding in Plain Sight

Iris sat on the stairs, listening in on the appointment between Tate and her father. Not that there was much to listen to, neither one of them was saying anything. Iris quietly jumped at the sound of her father's phone ringing, afraid she made some noise, she grabbed the banister in case she needed to make a quick escape upstairs.

"Sorry." Ben apologized to Tate and Iris let out a sigh of relief and let go of the banister.

"So, what do shrinks think about when a wildly brilliant patient doesn't talk to punish said psychiatrist? I bet you think about sex." Iris blushed, thankful that her sister wasn't around, that would certainly cause some teasing.

"Do you think about sex a lot?" her father asked Tate in his 'doctor' voice.

"I think about one girl in particular," Iris was very thankful her sister wasn't around because she somehow knew where this was going, "You daughter, Iris. I jerk off thinking about her. A lot." Iris covered her beet-red face with her hands.

"I'm not comfortable with you talking about my daughter, Tate." For the first time in a long time, Iris thanked her father. She wanted to get away from this conversation but for some reason, she couldn't find enough will to leave. Something seemed to be keeping her here, making her listen.

"Don't you want to know what I do to her?" Violet quietly came down the stairs and pointed to their father's office door with a questioning look, Iris hushed her and gestured for her to sit down, "How I lay her on the bed and caress her soft skin, make her purr like a little kitten," Violet's eyes went wide as she looked at her sister, "She's a virgin. They get wet so easily."

"Do you turn to these thoughts to comfort yourself in times of stress?"

"Actually, yes. I jerk off a lot to make the visions go away. Blood and the carnage. I want the thoughts to go away and you're not helping me." Iris could hear the slight tone of pleading in his voice, even though it was very faint, simply covered by a tone of sarcasm. He was pulling what any typical teenager would do, pretend to not care when in actuality they did.

"Well, we've only been working together a few weeks now." Ben calmly remarked, making the sisters look at each other. Was their father seeing Tate when they weren't around?

"Well, you're sexual, right?" the sudden question change didn't honestly surprise Iris but it seemed to surprise Violet, who obviously hadn't heard the first part of the session, "Iris told me about the affair with the girl in Boston. Not much older than her, she said." The girls knew that would cause their father to get upset, so they slowly got up and went back up to Iris' room, pretending like they've been there the whole time.

-AHS-

Iris wasn't sure why she was here, with the girl who caused her and her sister nothing but trouble ever since they day they had meet. Violet still didn't know about the whole 'fake drug' fiasco. To be quite honest, it was kind of awkward.

"I thought you hated smoking." Iris finally said, hoping that would silence some of the awkwardness.

"I've taken it up," she offered it to Iris, who shook her head, "I can't sleep. I'm terrified of everything," she looked at Iris, "What attacked me wasn't human."
"It was Tate." Iris insisted for some bizarre reason, she knew she saw that creature.

"No, you saw that other thing, too." Leah insisted.

"He was trying to freak us both out," Iris wasn't sure why she continued to defend Tate, so she decided to try and change the topic, "What'd you tell your parents?" Leah gave a light scoff.

"Don't worry. I told them I got attacked by some chola on Melrose who wanted my Chanel," She looked at Iris, her big sunglasses and hat covering almost her entire face, "Couldn't tell them I went to your hose to score coke, could I? I had to file a fake police report and everything."

"How deep are the cuts?" Iris asked, looking at the bandage on Leah's face, remembering the creature clawing at her face and giving a little flinch at the memory.

"Deep," she takes another drag, "God, and I-I can't stop thinking about that mouth."

"It was a mask. He was purposely trying to terrorize you," Iris insisted and looked again at Leah, now frowning at the hat, "That hat doesn't really suit you." Course she was wearing one, but at least it wasn't as big and tacky as Leah's.

"It serves a purpose. Look," she took it off and showed Iris a part of it that was starting to turn white, "My hair is turning white from fear," She must've seen Iris' doubting look because she then added, "Yeah, I read on the Internet that's possible," She puts the hat back on and looks at Iris, "Do you believe in the devil?"

"No." Iris lied, she didn't believe in God but she knew there was a devil.

The other night only confirmed her suspicions.

"I do," she looked at Iris, "I've looked into his eyes."

-AHS-

Nothing much happened over the next few days. Addy broke into their house…again. Dad left to Boston because one of his patients apparently tried to commit suicide. So, it was just the women left in the house. Iris and Violet sat in Violet's room, Violet doing homework while Iris finished her Tate sketch by adding some color.

"I turned it down," Violet snapped, making Iris sigh at her sister's attitude, "What do you want?" Their mother opened the door, her head peering into Violet's room.

"Can I come in?" Violet doesn't answer so Iris nods her head, "Hi," she says as she walked in with a plate that has two chocolate cupcakes on it, "Our kooky neighbor made you cupcakes." She held up the plate, one chocolate cupcake had a candied violet and the other had a candied iris.

"Huh. A candied violet." Violet remarked, looking at it.

"That's original." Iris muttered as she took the plate from her mom and set it on the bedside table. Their mom sat down on the bed, pulling Iris' feet up and setting them on her lap.

"Want to watch a movie? I figured since your dad's gone tonight, we could have a little girl's night." Iris would rather hang herself.

"Yeah." Violet began, glancing over at her sister.

"No thanks." She finished, glancing up at her mom and then resuming her picture.

"Thought it might be fun to hang out." Vivien tried.

"Can't. Homework." Fuck! Iris didn't have as great as an excuse, so Iris figured the best thing to do was to remain quite.

"Are you two mad at me about something?" Neither answered, so Iris turned to the cupcakes on the bedside table and picked them up. She held them out to her mother.

"Why don't you eat it since you're eating for two now?" she didn't even bother to hide the shock on her face, "What, you think we're stupid?"

"You stopped drinking wine at dinner, and you're gaining weight in your face." Violet stated.

"I was gonna tell you tonight." Vivien told her daughters as Iris put the cupcakes back on the bedside table.

"You know the statistics, when you have a baby over forty." Iris reminded her mother.

"Yeah, I do," she looked at both of her daughters, "You want to talk about it?"
"No, thanks. We're good." Vivien looked over at Iris, who wasn't even looking up at her mother, only drawing. Vivien sighed and walked to the door, "Having a baby isn't going to keep you and Dad together, if that's what you're thinking."

"Violet." Iris hissed and smacked her sister in the arm.

"Wow, Violet," Vivien turned back around, "I am really appreciating your optimism on this. Really am. Come on, go ahead and say all your mean things." She held her arms out.

"I think you're weak." Iris sighed, she knew that comment was going to come out if her mother offered the chance.

"Okay." Vivien simply said and left. Iris set her drawing aside and picked the cupcakes up and set them outside.

"Aren't you going to say something?" Violet asked her sister, who simply resumed her drawing.

"Nope." And that was it. It was silent between the sisters, only the music playing in the background as they worked on their separate things.

"Violet! Iris! Girls! Answer me!" They threw their things aside, going down the stairs side by side as they saw their mother at the bottom, a frantic look on her face.

"How are we supposed to finish our work if you keep interrupting us?" Violet irritably asked and then looked at her mother.

"What's the matter?" Iris asked.

"Where's your phone?"

"Upstairs." The girls simultaneously answered.

"Go, go, go, go, go get it," the two turn to go back up the stairs, "Dial 911."
"Who's that?" Iris asked, pointing to the door.

"Just go into one of your rooms, lock the door, don't come out until I tell you…"Neither move, they didn't want their mother to deal with whatever was at the door alone, "Now!" The twins looked at each other before going up the stairs and going into Iris' room, since it was the closest. Violet shuts the door as Iris grabs her bag and dump the contents.

"Vi, I can't find it," there was a thump and Iris quickly turned around, her sister was unconscious on the floor and a man in a mask was slowly edging toward her. "NO!" She grabbed the closest thing, which was her algebra text book, and used that as a shield.

"I'm going to hate math even more if it fails me now." Iris thought as she crawled across her bed and stood on the other side, the man stood at the other side, staring at her. She quickly glanced at her sister, who was unresponsive.

"Don't worry Vi," She glanced at the masked man and then at her bed, finally seeing her phone under her bag of colored pencils, "I'm not leaving you behind." She threw the text book at the man, grabbed her phone and ran for the door. Unfortunately, she wasn't fast enough because the man knocked her in the back of the head before she even had a chance to make it to the stairs.

-AHS-

Iris' head was pounding, her wrists were burning, and she was getting kind of hungry. Of course, two of the three problems were because of the psychopaths that had her, her mom, and sister tied up.

"I have money. Please take anything." Vivien begged.

"We're not here to rob you," a female voice answered and then turned to her companions, "Masks off," they do so and Iris wasn't surprised about one of them being her dad's client, "The nurses saw R. Franklin; he had nothing to hide," she checked her watch, "Twelve minutes."

"Then the fun begins." Bianca, her father's patient, said looking to the three Harmon women.

"I have a surprise for you guys," Fiona, the 'leader' of the trio, said as she pulled a bowl out of her bag. Course it meant absolutely nothing to the three Harmon women, it was just an ugly bowl, but to the psychopaths? It was what they dedicated their whole life to.

"No way." Dallas breathed as he and Bianca stood on both sides of Fiona.

"I got it on eBay. Authenticated," she looked between her friends, "It's the one he sued to bash Maria." Iris didn't like the sound of that.

"Let me see it," Fiona hands it to Dallas, "Holy shit. Can feel the energy in this. This is bitchin'." Bianca looked to Fiona.

"Who goes first?" Bianca asked, looking at the three of them, "Which one is Gladys?" Fiona looked at the three of them, of course they would have to improvise. R. Franklin only killed two girls in this house but…the more the merrier for them. Fiona finally decided on Iris, pointing at her with her knife. Bianca threw a nurse's outfit at Iris and Fiona came over and freed Iris wrists.

"Screw you, psycho! I'm not putting this on!" She threw it back at them and stood up.

"You have to. Everything has to be perfect." Bianca insisted.

"Take your clothes off!" Dallas snaps as he takes a step towards Iris and tries to rip her t-shirt off.

"NO! Mom! Vi!" she screamed as Dallas ripped her shirt.

"Stop it!" Violet yelled at them, begging them to leave her sister alone.

"Put it on me!" Vivien pleaded, looking towards Fiona and Bianca.

"Oh, all three of you will be wearing uniforms. He had a bad experience with the mercury in a broken thermometer. That's why he took Gladys upstairs and drowned her in the tub," she explained and looked to Iris, "And you, Maria-he saved you for last," She looked to Vivien, "And you?" She finally looked at Violet, "Well, you're just going to make this much more fun."

"R. Franklin was the first. Before Manson. He changed culture. We're paying tribute to him." Bianca explained.

"We're not going to be part of your sick reenactment." Violet spat.

"Put this on," Fiona said and threw the nurses outfit back in Iris' lap, "You won't like it if I have to make you," Iris took it and cast a glance at Violet, giving her a slight nod, Iris looked back at Fiona before she threw the nurses outfit in her face and gave her a head-but. Iris quickly ran out of the room and towards the front door before someone pulled her into a small separate room.

It was Tate.

"Tate, they're trying to kill us!" Iris whimpered, all logic of why he would be here thrown out the window. She didn't care, him being here was better than no one being here.

"You have to get them to the basement." Tate explained, his hands sill gripping her arms.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Iris demanded, what did the basement have to do with anything!?

"The basement! Just do it!" He snaps and then takes a step back, disappearing just as Bianca comes in and pulls Iris out.

-AHS-

Upstairs in the bathroom, Fiona turned on the tub while Iris slowly (hoping to buy time) got dressed in the weird nurses' outfit.

"What's taking you so long?" Fiona snapped.

"So, are these vintage?" Iris casually asked.

"Nurses' catalogue," Fiona answered as Bianca came in, eating Iris' cupcake from Constance, "Really? You're eating?"
"It was, like, sitting there, saying 'eat me'." Bianca explained as Fiona rolled her eyes and looked again at Iris, who was still taking her time to get dressed.

"Step on it! Time's a-wastin', sister."

"Tell me what's going on downstairs." Iris demanded, pausing her dress-up. Neither one of them answered, which made her even more nervous about what Tate wanted her to do in going downstairs to the basement.

"You got all the cell phones?" Fiona asked Bianca, whose face was all scrunched up, like she was in pain.

"Yeah, I…I told you. The one in the kitchen and…" her stomach gives a nasty growl and she immediately wraps her arms around it, "ooh, stomachache." Iris was getting pissed off that neither one of them would answer her.

"Answer me! What's he doing to my mother and my sister?!" But still, no damn answer from either one of them.

"Jesus, I'm gonna shit myself." Bianca grumbled.

"Not in the staging area!" Fiona snapped, holding a hand out.

"Just don't start without me." Bianca said as she stumbled out of the bathroom. Iris glanced at the door and Fiona and quickly went to grab one of her dad's razors but Fiona turned back around too soon.

"Are you kidding me?" she checked her watch, "It's 10:57, get in the tub," she walks to the door, "Bianca, it's almost time!" she yelled in the hall and came back to Iris, "You have to put someone under water for three minutes until they lost consciousness. The brain begins to die from oxygen deprivation," Iris chuckles, "This is funny to you?"
"What's funny is that you think you know everything about this damn house, which clearly shows that you know nothing," Iris remarked, taking a page out of her sister's book, and crossing her arms, "This isn't even the right tub." That part was true, the tub before this was one…was disgusting. It was covered in rust and mildew, it was the nastiest thing ever. Iris thought gay's couldn't stand shit like that.

"Second floor bathroom. I used to study the crime scene photos." Fiona stated.

"The one he used is in the basement. We totally remolded this bathroom." Iris remarked with a roll of her eyes, thankful to see the confusion in Fiona's eyes. She was questioning herself.

"You think I'm gonna fall for that?"

"Sweetie, you already have." Iris thought but aloud she said, "It's a grimy claw-foot tub with a chrome faucet," she gestured out in the hall, "go look."
-AHS-

As Fiona and Iris walks down, Iris keeps her cool (even though Fiona has her knife pressed into her back as a warning).

"You better not be messing with me." Fiona warned. Iris saw Tate standing to the side and gave him a small nod, she hoped he had something better than the shit he pulled on Leah. This bitch deserved worse than that.

"It's down here, around the corner." Iris said and turned just as the lights went out. A hand grabbed her and immediately led her to the stairs, making her scramble up them (Even though she was in this hideous nurse's outfit).

"Mom!? Violet!?" Iris cried when she finally reached upstairs. The two of them ran out of the living room, hugging her and then pulling her outside and running down the street.

"Help! Somebody help us! Call the police! Help!"

-AHS-

Violet and Iris sat in the kitchen, listening to their parents talk to the police about 'the night'. It was a night that none of the girls wanted to talk about but Ben did. He wanted 'to help them'. They weren't crazy, it was just a traumatizing experience. Finally, when the police came into the kitchen, Iris and Violet took that as their cue to go talk to their parents.

"You mom said that you told her Tate helped you escape?" Ben asked Iris as she walked in.

"Yeah. Thanks for not dragging him into all that." Iris said with a nod.

"What was he doing in the house?" Ben asked.

"How should I know?" Iris snapped. Why was this such a big deal? He helped her so she wouldn't get killed. Shouldn't her 'father' be happy about that?

"Iris…"Ben warned.

"You think she let him in?" Violet demanded, immediately coming to her sister's defense.

"I don't know why Tate was here, but I'm glad he was. You weren't," Iris remarked, leaving with her sister before turning back to her mom, "You were really brave, Mom." They leave and go upstairs into their separate bedrooms.

As Iris closes her door, she leans her forehead against it and lets out a sigh.

"Thank you Tate."

Iris swore she heard Tate reply back.