Firstly, I own nothing to do with the Blacklist. I am just a huge fan.

Thank you so much for being so kind! Thank you for the reviews and follows, I really appreciate it! Hope this one is all right?

Chapter 5

When Liz jogged into the park the next morning, she was disappointed to find the Siberian Husky wasn't waiting for her.

No, what she got instead, was that peculiar man from the day before. Red.

She caught him out of the corner of her eye sitting on the green bench where Raymond usually waited near for her of a morning; One arm stretched across the back of the bench, one leg crossed over the other, one of his brown loafers bobbing up and down as he swung his foot to a silent rhythm that no one else could hear but himself, it seemed.

She thought she saw his head move in her direction and her stomach sank. She really was unsure of what to make of the man; Her conversation with him previously replayed in her mind automatically, and it had been anything but pleasant.

He had made cryptic comments about fur being far hotter than clothing and had boasted about how he had above par smelling and hearing sense than the normal human ability. Hell, he even correctly guessed the fragrance of the antiperspirant she was often wearing. He had made her feel extremely uncomfortable, particularly in the way he seemed to stare at her, like she was some sort of personal deity.

He was reason enough alone for her to consider pretending she hadn't seen him while she made a run for it back out of the park. He was definitely the type of man sitting in the park that you wanted to avoid, yet he was having none of it.

He made it clear he had seen her when he lifted his arm off the bench, raising his hand and twiddling his fingers at her in a wave. Just what he was doing alone made a gush of uneasiness gather inside of her as her stomach filled with knots.

"Good morning, Lizzie," he called loudly in greeting, his voice cheerful.

Inhaling deeply, she reluctantly started striding towards him. Once she was standing about three inches away from him, she answered back, "Yes. Good morning to you, too."

"He hasn't arrived yet again, I take it?" Red asked, though she wasn't completely following. When she stared at him in confusion, he sent a tight-lipped smile her way. "The dog? The canine friend you had mentioned during our last meeting?"

Understanding immediately flickered across her face. "Oh, yeah, that's right," she muttered, forcing out an awkward laugh while avoiding his gaze when she realized he was back to staring up at her. Jesus, why was the man so creepy? Why did he elicit such discomfort within her with his eyes and mere body language alone? "He, um, he doesn't seem to be here this morning." Deliberately, she dragged her eyes around the park, finding the scenery so much less daunting than the man sitting on the bench in front of her.

"What are you up to today?"

When she brought her eyes back to him, she saw he was still smiling at her, his head tilted to the side as he raked his greyish-green eyes down her workout gear. It took Liz a second to get her head straight. "Um, well... I'm studying at the moment so... when I get home I'll probably get changed and head off."

"Studying?" He returned his eyes to her face at last, making her feel disturbingly tense. "Studying what exactly?" He simply sounded harmlessly interested in what she did.

"Psychology," she explained shortly.

"Psychology," he repeated under his breath with a nod. "And is that something in which you enjoy?"

"Well, you kind of do have to enjoy it if you're investing all your time into getting a diploma. But yeah, it... it is something I find myself enjoying."

He nodded again, lifting his gaze to meet hers. He was squinting at her through the glare of the early morning sun. He wasn't wearing his sunglasses today, she observed. She also thought that there was a strange familiarity there about his eyes, though Liz wasn't entirely sure why she felt that way. The familiarity of them didn't stop her from feeling uncomfortable in his presence, however.

Liz purposefully avoided his gaze again by glancing down at her hands, which she laced in front of her stomach by the fingers. She was in flight or fight mode, and every muscle in her body was aching for her to make a flight and get away from him as quickly as humanly possible.

"How ironic it is," she heard him say, and when she glanced up at him, his eyes were still on her.

He was chewing the inside of his cheek as he looked up at her, his head still tilted to the side. He reminded her of Raymond then, for some strange reason, which was ridiculous. Just with the way she had noticed Raymond would tilt his head a particular way.

"Excuse me?" she said in confusion. She shook her head. "Ironic?" She had no idea what he was talking about. It was as though he was starting a conversation she hadn't even known they were having.

"Yes, ironic." His lips curled into a smile again, his voice a low, deep rumble. "I just find it... ironic how a person can have preference over one form rather than the other." It was like Red knew something she didn't, and it made her stomach muscles tighten.

What on earth was he talking about?

"Um. I'm not so sure that I'm following?" she spluttered, shaking her head again.

"Does your boyfriend know?" he suddenly asked, making her blood feel as though it had turned ice-cold. It was an utterly unpleasant sensation.

"Excuse me? My... my boyfriend?" How did he even know she had a boyfriend?

They had only met once before, and Liz certainly hadn't talked to a stranger about her relationship. The only person she could remember mentioning Tom to was not a person at all, but a dog. Raymond.

Her relationship with Tom, she felt, was private and her own personal business. She hardly even talked about her relationship with anyone, not even with the fellow students in her Psychology class. Unless he was simply assuming she did have one? Yes, he was probably only assuming. After all, plenty of women her age and younger were known to be in steady, serious relationships.

"Forgive me if I'm seeming intrusive and prying..." He paused, placing a hand on the left side of his chest, his fingers splayed. "But does Tom know about the scar? The bite?" Oh my God, she thought fearfully as he went on, dipping his chin towards her hands, How does he know his name is Tom? "Does he know how you came to get it and just what it means for you?"

Fear made her heart race furiously in her chest. He even knew about the bite. How a dog had tried to save her by pulling her out of her burning childhood home, saving her life and giving her an injury in the process. How did he know about that? Who was this man?

Just what it means for her? "What are you talking about?" she burst out, her voice shaking. "I... I don't understand?"

"You are very nearly thirty years old, Lizzie." God, so he even knew her age? "It will happen sooner or later, no doubt." She realized his face looked filled with concern, with sympathy. "And, when the time does eventually come, you'll be powerless to stop it. The first time..." His voice trailed off as he shook his head at her, almost wistfully, as though he was remembering something in his past, his eyes going distanced and faraway although he was still staring at her. "Good heavens, the first time, Lizzie. The first time is always... excruciating, but it does become easier." She saw the muscle below his eyelid twitch. "First, it's the strangest tingling sensation in both your fingers and your toes, and then gradually... it builds, spreading around your skin, until it reaches the inside out. Shaking your rib-cage, your... spine. It isn't an entirely painless process but it dissipates the more it happens."

It was as though he was trying to console her and ease her mind somehow. Console her for whatever reason, Liz had no idea in the world. She didn't even know what he was talking about to begin with.

"Look, I... I don't know who the hell you think you are or how you possibly know things about me, but I... I never told you any of that?" Her body started shaking; she was that unnerved by him and what he was telling her. She gritted her teeth, grounding out in a terrified mutter, "How did you know about Tom and the bite from the dog? Just who the hell do you think you are?"

Trepidation taking hold of her, Liz spun around, making the walk back through the park hurriedly, her instincts to run winning.

"Just stay away from me," she cried out fearfully, not bothering to turn her head back to check and see if he had heard her.

Even as she reached the front steps to the apartment, she was still shaking uncontrollably. She felt sick with fear, because how could he have known all those things about her? How could this stranger know so many things about her? Personal things? And what was he talking about, with going into his little weird description about tingling hands and toes?

Hope you enjoyed this one? :-) Human Red and Lizzie's conversation didn't go down so well, but I hope you enjoyed it nevertheless. The story probably keeps getting more and more ridiculous, but it IS an AU. Hoping you don't mind it.

Thank you so much for being so kind and encouraging about the story. I never expected that! Next chapter, while Tom is away at a weekend "teacher conference", Liz will let Raymond sleep over where some strangely nightly occurrences will happen. :) If there is anything else you would like to see in the story, feel free to let me know. Thank you again, and hopefully see you next update!