Marked

Notes: In a world with soulmate name marks Person A has none and gets a random name on them, later they deal with person B who claims its their name. Not quite as cracky a prompt when put in TEW. AU, obviously.

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Ruben regards the societal obsession over soulmarks with disdain. The idea that each person is born incomplete is interesting and has some facts to base it on, but the idea that another person -preordained by fate or the whimsy of some god- is all that's needed to fix that is absolutely absurd. The means by which soulmarks appear is a puzzling process that Ruben finds fascinating, but the fact that people take them so seriously is an endless source of frustration. The world is filled with people. The odds of finding someone that matches a person's mark is very high, and them having a matching name is not as rare as people think.

Chance and odds play into the whole thing far more than humanity would like to admit. Ruben takes his own situation as proof of that. At 28 he has yet to spontaneously develop a name on any part of his body. That's seven years beyond even the most extreme case of slow emergence. When he was younger he had taken it for a sign that he was a complete being, now he thinks it more likely that he simply refuses to give into the nonsense of the idea of fate.

Not that Ruben can use his own life as a case study of any kind. Familial expectation and the high cost of getting a doctorate had not allowed Ruben the choice to tell the truth about his lack of a mark. Father had demanded it as a condition of funding, and it had given Ruben great pleasure to reveal the very male name he had spent a long time permanently inking into his own arm. An ordeal he had been very careful with.

Careful that the pigment used and the process to embed it under his skin looked as natural as possible. Allowing the self-inflicted mark the time needed to heal before revealing it. Careful in the selection of a name as well. The popularity of names is not entirely unpredictable. Ruben had taken care to choose a name that was well out of favor for most countries, but not so out of favor as to be unbelievable.

Showing his parents the name on his arm is one of the sweetest memories Ruben has of them. He'd timed it perfectly so there were plenty of witnesses, enough of their peers around that they could not refute the sacrosanct bond of a soulmark without being socially ostracized. Laura might complain of their colder treatment of Ruben after that, but it was an honest relief to him.

The memories of why he has the name he has, and a lifetime of disgust pass through Ruben's mind in a fraction of a second. He's left feeling rather numb and stupefied as his phone creaks warningly in his hand. It is not a pleasant feeling. "What?"

"I know!" Laura squeals in giddy happiness, and it makes Ruben flinch. "I was surprised too! He's a little rough looking, but it's kind of hot too. Like, hm, he looks like a detective cliche but it really works for him."

"Detective?" Ruben questions as his mind starts to catch up and slowly overcome his surprise. There are more important things than the fact that there's a man named Sebastian with Ruben's name marked on him in this world. Like the fact that Ruben has already been questioned by the police four times, and they have yet to lose interest in him. Laura doesn't need to know that right now though. "Laura what are you talking about?"

"Oh, he was one of the men who told me," Laura leaves the statement hanging unfinished. About the death of their parents doesn't need to be said. Liberal artist and lover of protests she might be, Laura is not the kind of person who would attract the authorities attention any other way. "He works with missing people, notifying family comes with the territory it seems."

Which is not as comforting as he'd hoped. Ruben keeps his thoughts to himself though. There is no evidence at all to implicate him, he had made sure of it. As the eldest -and least embarrassing child- Laura will inherit everything, and motive will be harder to prove with money not being a factor. The questioning will cease eventually.

"I don't think-"

"Nope, you won't be thinking at all," Laura cuts him off with a firm voice he's too used to hearing. It's the one she uses when she is going to force him to do something he doesn't like, but she thinks will be good for him. Ruben hates that voice, but he's powerless against it. "I've sent you the details for dinner tonight. Meet him, Ruben, he's your soulmate. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Laura," Ruben sighs and rubs at his temple where he can feel the very beginnings of a headache forming. He loves his sister like nothing else in the world, but that love comes with a price.

"Good," the command drops from her voice and she's back to light and giddy. "And I expect details of my new brother in law tomorrow."

Ruben sighs again when he pockets his phone and frowns down at the name inked into his skin. He had a teacher once who was fond of the infinite monkey theorem and would apply it to everything regardless of if it fit or not. Ruben does not appreciate the thought.

He turns with regret to his tools and picks up a syringe he had been hoping not to use. The restrained man thrashes and tries to scream as the drug slides harmlessly into his system to pull him into a deeply medicated sleep. There's no time at all for the experimentation he had planned to do if he's to meet this Sebastian and assess how much of a threat he might be.

Maintaining appearances is tiring, but Ruben is determined to make something out of the night as he pushes his tool cart out of the cell and locks his specimen in. It might be worth it to play along with this whole charade if the man isn't too unbearable. What better alibi than a soulmate who is a cop after all?

Ruben contemplates the possibilities laid before him as he walks through a hall of locked doors. Not hearing the sounds that come from behind them anymore.

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