What Is Going On? [Paperhat Soulmate AU]

dementia makes an entrance

((AN- Double Upload whaaaat? Also, thanks to the, like, three people who commented and voted on this story! It means a ton!))

Dementia may be what you call stupid. She's never been good at science, she was never able to memorize her multiplication charts, or write stories that make people weep with joy and sorrow. But, she has always been intuitive.

She knew that there was something strange going on between Dr. Flug and Black Hat that neither one was going to, or wanted to, acknowledge. So, it was up to her to play detective. James Bond style.

And so, the over-dramatic lizard woman made her way to the labs where Dr. Flug spent most of his time.

"WHAT'S UP WITH YOU AND BLACK HAT." She screamed, jumping up and slamming her hands down on his shoulders, waiting for whatever he was doing to explode before turning him around forcefully.

"Dementia! How many times have I told-" the scientist said, cutting himself off when he realized what she had just screamed. "W-what do you m-m-mean by that?"

"Don't try and pull a fast one over me, mister. I already know something strange is going on. Now, all that's left here is for you to tell me." Dementia said, holding up her finger to signify that she would tolerate no nonsense. The doctor sighed, turning around and beckoning her to an isolated corner of the room.

"Okay, since I know you won't leave this alone until I yield, here's the truth. I saw... Some of Black Hat's soul scars." Dementia gasped, opening her mouth to interrogate Dr. Flug, but he slapped his hand over her mouth. "His soulmate is depressed. They cut themselves and he was just sitting there sadly! It was awful and now he isn't talking to me!"

Though Dementia was thoroughly distressed that Black Hat's soulmate was not her, she toughed it up.

"Hey, Flug, don't cry on me now, you big baby." She teased, elbowing him a little harder than was strictly necessary. "How about we have a girl's night? Just you, me, popcorn, and a bad movie! I'll ask Black Hat for you if you can take the night off." Flug sniffed back tears, both because he felt bad for Black Hat and she had elbowed him really hard.

"Fine, Dementia." he caved, "But only this once."

But he had already seal his fate for that night and many nights after this, he knew. As soon as he was finished his sentence, Dementia was off to find Black Hat. She soon found him in a solitary alcove filled with pillows and such, the type which he would usually deem "a disgrace to all villainy".

"Hey Black Hat?" Dementia said, putting on her best clueless face, "Could Dr. Flug have the night off?" Black Hat shoots her a questioning look "You work him so hard, and he's so distressed-" Black Hat perks up "about something. He said something about a soulmate?" Tense.

"Soulmate, huh?" Black Hat nearly sputtered, struggling to regain his composure, "Did his die or something? Or did he find out who they are yet?"

"I don't know, but he was on the verge of crying. Can he have the night off or?" Dementia pleaded, already knowing that she had won. Black Hat simply pursed him lips and nodded, and went back to... Humming? Weird, Dementia thought as she absconded.

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"I-It's just, I don't really think I have a soulmate! Have you ever felt like that?" Flug cries out, his face buried 6 inches deep in your carpet thirty minutes into Titanic. Apparently, he gets really emotional in the face of historical romance. "I mean, I've never gotten a soulmark and as far as I know I've never even felt the tiniest one of their emotions."

"Wow, that's rough." Dementia says, wondering if he'll knock something over in all of his distressed flailing. Slowly moving everything that can be spilled away from his wrath, Dementia asks, "What will you do if you ever find your soulmate?" Dr. Flug scoffs as if that's a silly question.

"I'll be overjoyed! I'd do the same things everyone would do if they found their soulmate. But," Dr. Flug says, trailing off and looking teary-eyed (which is quick becoming his usual expression), "I would feel kind of bad for them."

"Why?" Dementia asked, slightly shocked.

"Well, why would anyone want a soulmate like me? I'm not... Interesting or anything. Also, I- um." The scientist said, seemingly debating whether or not to share the piece of information about himself, "I cut. I used to cut myself. Underneath my lab coat, there's just rows and rows of scars. Whoever my soulmate is, if they exist, has to to put up with them, along with flashes of my awful moods, I'm sure. So... Yeah." Flug said, turning towards Dementia.

"I feel bad for them."

Dementia was left speechless. She never knew that was how he felt.

"Let's get back to the movie." Dementia said, steering the attention back to a shot of Rose and Jack. Out of the corner of her eye, Dementia saw something. And once she turned her head, it was gone, but she could have sworn that Black Hat was standing there. The pieces were all coming into place.

And tomorrow, Dementia was going to finish the puzzle.