Grell walked down the hallway; her typical smile plastered on her face as she strolled along. Her greetings of good morning were casual, and most of the other morning workers barely glanced at her. Aside from the absence of her beloved red coat, there was no sign that anything was wrong in the least.

She was, after all, a very good actress.

Inside, her mind was racing and her thoughts were more chaotic than usual. Since leaving William's place the night earlier, she hadn't stopped thinking about the way he had acted. There had been many times in the past when there had been misunderstandings and disagreements. After Campania had sank, William had spoken to her harshly about her failings before he had learned of that deserter's involvement. It was the next day before he had apologized, but he had admitted he had jumped to conclusions. That had been enough for her.

What had happened yesterday, however, was different. She hadn't done anything wrong, yet William had still angrily thrown her out even after realizing this fact. She hadn't even been able to gather her red coat, which she had left hanging on a chair in the kitchen. William had seem so unusually enraged at her very presence, and the old fear that she was only deluding herself about his ability to ever love her gnawed at her mind. Pushing all those fears aside, she smiled brightly as she approached his door and knocked boldly. After receiving no response from within, her smile slipped ever so slightly as she raised her hand to knock once more.

"Mr. Spears isn't in," Ms. Fletcher announced from her nearby desk, "He had a meeting this morning with Upper Management, but he hasn't returned."

Grell turned towards her, careful to keep her face neutral. "He hasn't returned?" she repeated in a questioning tone. "That's not like him. Will you let me know when Will's back in his office?"

Ms. Fletcher smiled slightly and nodded. "I will send word when Mr. Spears comes in," she said in her usual, polite tone.

Grell returned the smile, but she felt even colder on the inside as she turned and walked to her own small office. Closing the door, she slumped against as she tried to order her thoughts. There was a chance that Will's meeting just ran a bit longer than usual, so there was no real reason to worry. Taking a deep breath, she walked over to her desk and frowned at the stacks of paperwork waiting for her. Although this was the part of the job that she hated the most, she decided that she would actually put forth extra effort to complete it all. That would hopefully make William happy. With a look of determination, she attacked the paperwork and began to work diligently.

She wasn't sure how much time had passed when she heard a soft knock on her door. "Yes?" she asked, hoping it was Ms. Fletcher with news of William or even William himself. She was disappointed and surprised to see if was only Ronald. He never knocked as he shared this office, but then Grell noticed the young, smiling brunette by his side. Grell thought she had seen her down in accounting before, although they had never spoken.

"Senior," Ronald began, "This is Emily. I thought it was time for you to meet."

"Hello," Emily said in a slightly shy tone, "It's nice to finally meet you."

Grell was tempted to tease the girl a bit since she knew her unfairly tarnished reputation was widespread, but she decided to hold back for Ronald's sake. "Nice to meet you as well," Grell replied, as she stood and walked over to the pair, "especially as seeing how you've captured the heart of a certain young reaper."

Emily laughed and blushed a deeper shade of red. She really didn't appear to be the kind of girl that Ronald pursued. She was pretty, although Grell would hesitate to call her beautiful, and she wasn't flashy or forward. Perhaps this difference was part of what had captured Ronald's eye in the first place, but the way he was looking at her now made one thing very clear.

He was in love.

Emily tugged at Ronald's arm gently. "I have to get back," she said, "My break's almost over."

Ronald gave her a mock pout. "Already?" he asked.

"I'm afraid so," she replied, "Our supervisor is really strict about being late." Smiling shyly, she turned towards Grell. "It was nice meeting you," she repeated.

"Same," Grell returned.

Ronald gently kissed her on the lips. "See you after work," he said, "I have a lot planned for us tonight."

Emily laughed softly. "I'm looking forward to it," she stated, before pulling away and hurrying down the hall. Ronald watched her go until she was out of sight; the smile never slipping from his face. Finally he shut the door and both walked to their respective desks, but Ronald's mind was still obviously far from his work. Grell almost laughed aloud when he sighed loudly.

"She seems nice," Grell offered.

"She's perfect!" Ronald exclaimed, "I've never dated anyone like her before. She's sweet and considerate and just everything. You know?"

"So what are your plans for tonight?" asked Grell.

Ronald's smile grew. "I have reservations at a great restaurant," he answered, "It's going to cost me nearly a month's salary, but it will be worth it. Afterwards, I thought we'd just go for a walk under the stars or something."

"Sounds romantic," Grell replied, "and a little unlike you. I figured you were planning a romp in the bedroom."

"Normally I would," Ronald agreed, "but it's a bit different with Emily. I don't how to explain it. I guess things aren't the same when you really care for someone."

With a happy hum, he got started on his paperwork without glancing Grell's way. Had he done so, he might have seen the crestfallen look on her face. After all, she knew exactly what it was like when you cared for someone.

Glancing up at the clock, she clicked her tongue in disapproval. William should have returned to the office a long time ago. She only hoped that everything was okay.

((x))

William had never been much of a drinker. He would occasionally drink with dinner or when he was forced to socialize, but it had never held much interest for him. The idea of being drunk or even tipsy simply didn't appeal to him - at least it didn't usually.

Sitting quietly in the back of a noisy pub, all William wanted to do was to get drunk. He wanted to drown all the questions swirling about in his head, and the worry about how badly he would be punished for his stunt with Upper Management this morning, but more than anything, he wanted to wash away the horrible mental images that now seem to skulk constantly within his mind. He could just see himself ripping through this crowd, killing all the foolish humans, and laughing as he splashed about in their blood. The thought made him choke back another glass. There was something seriously wrong with him, and he knew that he should turn himself in to the proper authorities. He could be institutionalized until the cause for these horrible thoughts could be found and treated, but he hesitated. He had seen others go to the institute only to return as little more than shells. While his own madness frightened him, the prospect of being mentally destroyed was also frightening.

There was a woman standing near the bar that caught his eye, and he knew before he even nodded to her that she was a prostitute. He typically barely paid attention to these women, and he wasn't the type to draw them his way, but this woman was different.

Her hair was red.

She smiled at him when he nodded and slowly began to weave his way. Her walk was exaggerated and designed only to draw attention, but no one else seemed to notice her as she sauntered up to William's table. "Hello, sir," she purred, "Looking for some company?"

William's heart sank as he examined her up close. He had no idea how old she was, but it was obvious that she hadn't aged well. Thick makeup clung to the sagging flesh of her face, catching in the creases about her overly red lips. Her muddy brown eyes were dull and listless as she batted fake eyelashes at him and ran her tongue over her gently rotting teeth. The vivid hair, which had caught his eye before, was nothing more than an ill-fitting wig, and he could see graying strands peeking out around the edges.

He knew he should just walk away and leave the poor woman to his own devices, but a voice that barely even sounded like his own suddenly spoke. "That's precisely what I'm looking for."

She nodded as she smiled wider. "Going to buy me something to drink first?" she ventured to ask.

"No," he said curtly, as he stood up and took her arm.

She didn't seemed surprised by her treatment, and silently walked along with him. Once there were outside, she pointed down the street. "My flat's that way," she offered, "No one should be there now."

He recognized that saying no one should be there meant that she shared it with other women like herself, but he only nodded as he let go of her arm so that she could lead the way. Falling into step behind her, he focused her eyes on her (fake) red hair. It wasn't as long as Grell's, but watching it move with the woman's steps reminded him of the last time he had seen Grell; kneeling on the floor cleaning up the broken bowl. The way her hips had moved and flexed while she was on her knees claimed his senses, and he could feel himself growing hard in his slacks. Soon, he would have his release.

The woman led him down an alleyway to a small place that seemed to be little more than an afterthought jammed between other buildings. Other women, all with the same tired, haggard eyes, were gathered outside, but they stepped out of the way to allow them inside.

There was no ceremony to their actions. After closing the door, the woman disrobed as she moved towards a dirty bed that had seen far too many people in its time. She started to remove the wig, but William stopped her.

"Leave it on," he insisted as he undressed.

She nodded quietly as she took her place on the bed. She had probably heard weirder requests in her time, but William no longer cared as he stripped and moved to lay on top of her.

Her skin was soft and pliant, and William almost winced at the feel of it beneath his hands as he slid inside. "That feels so good," the woman said without any sign of emotion. She probably said that to all her clients to keep them happy, and a dark rage began to fill his mind.

"Shut up," he growled, as he drew back his fist to hit her. This was all wrong, and it was her fault somehow, although the tiny portion of his mind that was still rational didn't know how. Still, this was all wrong. He shouldn't be in this place. He should be back at his apartment.

She should be Grell.

The woman winced and turned her head slightly as she awaited the blow, and the sight shocked William as he realized what he was about to do. Immediately, he pulled out of her and moved away as he struggled to gain control over himself.

She sat up on the bed with an emotion that was hard to read and watched him as he quickly dressed and tossed some money on a broken table. He raced out the door blindly, and somewhere behind him he heard a whoop of laughter. Somehow he knew it was directed at him, and his anger only grew. He had to get out of here before he could no longer control his growing rage, so he quickly teleported away. Although it was against the rules, he didn't care if there were witnesses to him simply vanishing.

He reappeared in his apartment, but it provided him no escape from the torment in his own mind. He was losing precious control by the second, but he had no idea what he should do. The idea of turning himself over to the institute seemed less appealing by the second, but he couldn't see any other option available to him. Stumbling almost blindly, he went to the kitchen in the vain hope that a cold glass of water might help.

That's when he saw the red coat, her red coat, hanging with deceptive innocence on the back of a chair.

The tiny fragment of his rational mind realized that Grell must have left it behind when he had thrown her out the day before, but the sight of it only angered him more. Somehow Grell was the key to all of this, and he picked up the coat to bring it close to his face. It even smelled like her, and his neglected member throbbed and ached with the realization.

A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. He wanted to ignore it, but he sound repeated itself and reverberated in his head painfully. With something of a growl, he stomped to the door and swung it open to yell at whoever it was creating such a noise. To his surprise, Grell was standing there with a peculiar look on her face.

"Will," she gasped, "I wanted to check on you. Where have you been? Oh, and you have my coat."

She might have said more, but William wasn't listening as he yanked her inside and shut the door. Ignoring her surprised gasp, he slammed her against the wall and shoved his mouth on hers until he could taste blood. This was how this was supposed to feel as he rubbed his aching groin against her and began tearing at her shirt. Lust intermingled with his rage as he jerked and tugged at her clothes until she made the mistake of pushing him away.

((x))

Grell had vivid fantasies of her and William which she loved to play from time to time in her head like an imagined cinematic record. There were times that he was a gentlemen; hesitant and gentle with each touch, but there were other fantasies where they simply couldn't contain their passion for each other. She had always enjoyed these fantasies, but a part of her hadn't been prepared for the reality.

To say that had been surprised when William had jerked her inside and shoved her against the wall to kiss her roughly would have been a massive understatement. Still, his lips were finally on hers and his hands were roaming her body. She had longed for his touch for so long that she wanted to ignore the fact that he was acting oddly, but then she heard the ripping of her shirt and the sound of a few buttons hitting the floor.

Pushing him back slightly, she looked into his eyes. "We don't have to rush, darling," she said.

William's lips pulled back in a snarl and he suddenly punched her without warning. Her hand banged painfully into the wall behind her, and she could feel the area around her eye swelling. There was no question now that something was definitely wrong. While William had never hesitated to physically discipline his subordinates, he wasn't acting as supervisor in this case, nor had she done anything wrong. She shoved him away, harder this time, and met him with a cold gaze.

"Stop it," she demanded, as she pushed away from the wall and reached for the door.

With a growl, he jerked her back by her hair and threw her in the direction of the couch. She stumbled slightly, but managed to keep her footing as he approached while undoing his pants.

William was stronger than her, but she was not weak by any stretch of the imagination. When he stepped closer, she caught him directly on the chin with a perfect uppercut that sent him reeling back a few steps, but he wouldn't go down so easily. He caught her second punch in midair and twisted her wrist painfully as he hit her once more in the face. Blood poured from her nose as he reached down to manipulate her own slacks.

Grell didn't hesitate to bring her knee up sharply into William's crotch. She heard his quick intake and breath as he fell beside her, but she didn't take the time to see if he was okay. Grabbing her coat, she ran outside as the first few tears filled her eyes. William, her William, had attempted to rape her, and she just couldn't wrap her mind around that fact. Nothing about this made sense. Choking back sobs, she ran blindly towards home.

((x))

Ronald felt like he was walking on air as he navigated the familiar route towards Emily's house. She had wanted to go home and change, and he actually appreciated this time before their date. He had already decided that tonight was the night he was going to admit that he loved Emily, and he was anxious and excited. There was a fear that she might not feel the same way, but deep in his heart he thought that perhaps this was the true beginning of their relationship.

As he walked around the corner, a strange noise reached his ears. Looking up, he saw Grell running from a building in a strange state. There was blood on her face and her clothes were ripped, but what upset Ronald the most was that she was crying. He had seen her upset in the past, but he had never seen her so broken and sobbing. She was apparently too caught up in her problems to even notice Ronald as she turned and ran off in the opposite direction.

It only took Ronald a second to realize she had ran from William's place, and Ronald frowned darkly as he wondered what that truly meant. Putting his date on hold, he walked up and knocked on William's door, which swung open easily. William was leaning over the couch slightly.

"What's going on Mr. Spears?" Ronald asked, "I just saw Senior Sutcliff run out."

When William raised his eyes to look at Ronald, he realized he had made a crucial mistake because what he saw was not the eyes of a reaper.