Chapter Text
'Sincerely,'
'Dr. Henry Jekyll.'
Henry slumped in his chair as he skimmed his pen across the final 'l', sure that he would go mad if he had to sign another half-hearted letter to the particularly tedious patron. His eyes drifted to the window as he tapped his forefinger on the pen, gaze tracing the people walking below as the morning sun began to rise. This was hardly intended to be one of those sleepless nights.
He sighed, eyes drifting back to the small stack of papers remaining before flicking to the faintly larger stack of finished papers.
He'd done enough work for now. He figured the least he could permit himself was to take the morning off.
Besides, it was a nice morning, perhaps when he was truly finished with his work he could finally go out as Hyde and blow off some steam. For now, though, he figured he could head to the kitchen for a snack and some tea, then perhaps get back to work after a half hour or so. Not to mention that Rachel had begun to make a habit of baking late at night ever since the arrival of Jasper, perhaps a few of those cookies were still left over?
Pushing himself from the desk, Henry pulled on his coat and headed out the door, greeting lodgers as he passed them. The day had been more stressful than usual so Jekyll was relieved to see that none of them needed help with anything, he was far too tired to help with anything productive.
He strolled into the kitchen, spotting a plate of cookies on the counter and grabbing one at Hyde's insistence, he walked over to the stove where Rachel was making breakfast. The maid turned around to greet him and gasped in indignation when she spotted the cookie in his hand.
"Hey! That's for Edward when he gets back!"
"But he's on the run, he hasn't even been seen in two weeks. Why would you make him cookies?"
Her face shifted into confusion. "No? Oh, well, my mother saw him in our neighborhood yesterday, so I guess it makes sense that you wouldn't know. I don't even remember telling him where I lived. He asked about... About my brother." She sniffled a little for some reason. "I guess he must have heard about him from one of his old friends."
Now it was Jekyll's turn to be confused. Not only did he not know that Rachel had a brother (he would have to ask to meet him), he hadn't gone out as Edward for two weeks, as his alter ego had constantly reminded him ever since he was put on lockdown. Had someone imitated him?
No, no. He was overthinking it, she must have been mistaken.
"Well, just because he visited your brother doesn't mean he'll stop by, he is wanted after all."
"And whose fault is that Doc?" she raised her voice, giving him a glare that made guilt roil in his gut.
He cringed. She would never let him live that down, even if she had somewhat forgiven him. He still felt bad, even if he technically blamed himself for the fire.
"Rachel, you must understand that there really weren't any other options that we could have taken to-" Henry began.
Crack!
He jumped sharply as Rachel half-dropped, half-threw a pan onto a nearby counter, the dish being thankfully empty but surprising him nonetheless. "You could have figured out some other way to get the lodgers out! You know, instead of selling out Edward!"
"I sincerely apologize but-"
"No, you're not sincere," Rachel interrupted, tone smooth and level despite how upset he knew she was. After a few moments passed, however, her back turned to him as she continued preparing breakfast, she eventually gave a small sigh. "Well, I'm busy making breakfast for the lodgers, off you go." With that, she waved him away.
One guilt-filled cup of tea and breakfast later, Henry retreated to his study to finish today's paperwork. It was crucial that he finish it, not only for the society but also so he could finally get a full night of sleep.
"What do you think that was about? Don't you think we should try to figure out what she meant?" A familiar voice murmured from one of the cupboards as Henry passed it.
Edward wasn't exactly a fan of watching Henry do paperwork so he ended up pestering him most of the time. Henry ignored him and did his best to focus on his paperwork as Edward made an attempt to convince Henry to let him out.
"And what do you suggest? That I go chasing around some random person? It could have been an honest mistake on her mother's part."
"I'd rather that you do something other than stay cooped up in here all damn day. But hey, it's your life right? It's not like you're wasting mine too." Edward retreated into their subconscious before Henry could say anything in response.
He sighed and continued to fill out his paperwork in silence.
He mostly forgets about that conversation with Rachel.
Henry had more work today than before, mostly due to the lodger’s new experiment a few days back. They had all pitched in to be able to make a machine that could detect anomalies in reality, only to have it overload and explode a few hours later.
Thankfully no one was hurt and the machine was scrapped. It still meant more paperwork though. He would have to work on that with Robert later today.
So Henry goes about his usual schedule, he meets with patrons, deals with the finances, and works on his chemical projects. He even had to examine all of the lodger's projects and tools after a break-in that was reported last night. Nothing had been stolen whatsoever though, so the police hadn't been called, but it had made Henry wary enough to invest in a new lock.
It was boring. So boring that Edward had retired to the mind space, probably to find some memory to mess with Jekyll but at least he had a moment of peace.
He had been helping the lodgers with their projects. Most of them were reluctant to let him assist due to Frankenstein’s propaganda but as he was the best neo-alchemist in the building they kind of needed him, particularly when scrapes and injuries were a common side effect of many of the lodger's fascinations with things that whir, wind, explode or spontaneously combust. In one particular incident, he had headed to grab some chemicals for Ito when he heard Griffin and Helsby talking about the break-in.
"-yesterday. And he didn't even recognize me! He was acting really strange, not like himself at all." Griffin whispered fervently, catching Jekyll’s attention, prompting the doctor to freeze just behind the door. He didn't recognize them? Who was 'he'?
"Are you sure it was actually him? Why would he show up here while the police are after him?" Helsby had replied.
"Of course I'm sure, he never wears anything but that stupid cape, I'd recognize Edward anywhere. I'm not sure why he would show up here but why would anyone else break into the society?"
What?
He had wanted to listen in more but they spotted him and immediately clammed up, no doubt afraid that Jekyll would tell the police about the new development. He supposed it was fair, from their point of view he had tossed his close assistant under the wheels of the carriage as soon as it suited him. Frankenstein back-talking him probably didn’t help.
"You know, It's rude to eavesdrop." Griffin glared at him, ice in his voice.
"Ah, my apologies Mr. Griffin," Jekyll said and turned away. He was half-afraid the man would burn a hole through his head with such a glare.
He hurried to grab Ito's chemicals, delivered them to her with a rushed apology, and went back to his office, carefully locking the door behind him.
An unpleasant, nagging feeling settled in Henry's stomach. It nervously crept through his veins as he shuffled towards his desk, pulling the key out of his pocket and inserting it into the keyhole of the drawer which was, thankfully, still locked.
He rifled through the drawer and pulled out all of the salt packets, grabbing the letter opener on his desk and slicing one of them open. Surprisingly, there was no shortage. Henry breathed a sigh of relief, Edward hadn't done anything without Jekyll knowing about it.
But if it wasn't Edward then who was it? Griffin had insisted that it was Hyde but he must have been mistaken. Perhaps it was a coincidence.
But then who would have broken into the society? None of the lodgers had reported anything stolen and Jekyll was sure that he'd gone over everything. Maybe he should call the police? No, that was too much of a risk.
What was going on?
Was there some kind of copycat running around as Hyde? What would they gain from impersonating a wanted criminal? Why was he the last to hear about it? Was it just some unfortunate bloke who looked like him?
“Henry!”
At that moment, Henry was perched on the dining room chair in his own house, a cup of lavender tea in one hand. Robert was sat across from him with his own black coffee, a troubled look on his face. His brow was creased and he kept tapping at the table with one finger in a fidgety way --coffee forgotten.
He had been so caught up in the questions circling in his head that he hadn’t heard the other doctor addressing him until he had practically yelled at him, Henry's hand jerking and causing him to splash some of the tea onto the document.
“Ah, I’m so very sorry Robert. It appears I had my head up in the clouds again.” He apologized, inspecting the document to see if it could be salvaged, dabbing at the wet spots around the paper.
“It’s fine Henry. I was asking you whether you had heard the news of Mr. Hyde?” Henry paused.
“What news?” He asked tentatively.
“Apparently, he’s stopped hiding. He’s back to skipping around on rooftops. Or so I heard from a client of mine.”
Henry hesitated, considering the words for a few moments. Surely there was some way to sway the conversation away from this topic? After all, talking about Edward always had the vague danger of him letting slip more than he should. No, he needed to gently push the conversation somewhere else, or at least vaguely indulge the other doctor until the topic was exhausted -- a small tactic that Henry had learned from his years of talking to dull patrons. He just hoped Robert wouldn't recognize it when it was used against him.
He already knew that it wasn’t actually him, and he wished he could tell Robert to reassure him but it wasn’t like he could just say 'Oh actually that’s a fake, I’m Hyde.' So he simply bit his tongue and nodded. “Oh yes, I heard about that earlier today. From the lodgers," Henry said. "Regardless, he'll probably just stick to his nature and be caught soon, considering all those bar fights and light thievery we're always hearing of."
Step one to exhausting a topic; say what the other person wants to hear. In this case, Henry knew that Robert merely wanted to gossip, and it wasn't like Hyde's escapades were anything secretive.
“Yes but it was quite peculiar, my client, Sir Danvers, said he had already met Hyde but that he was acting in the oddest manner,” Robert said conspiratorially.
Oh yes, Sir Danvers, Hyde had a field day making fun of that pretentious fop every time he met him so he knew that that much was true. But if Sir Danvers already knew what he looked like then shouldn’t he be able to recognize him a mile away? This copycat must have been extremely good if he had fooled someone who knew him from up close.
Wait, an odd manner? What did that mean?
“What do you mean by that?” He asked, having completely forgotten the soaked document.
"Well, that's just it. There weren't any bar fights, at least none that he was apparently involved in, and no such thievery occurred. Besides, Danvers even mentioned that he didn't seem to be under any influences -- alcohol or otherwise -- which betrays almost every single description of the man other than his physical appearance," Robert ranted, waving his hands a couple of times as he explained, Henry unable to stop himself from cocking an eyebrow. "He said that Hyde had seemed oddly polite, especially after what he said about his mother the last time they had bumped into each other. Sir Danvers said he almost seemed like a completely different person," Robert continued.
It was a completely different person but, again, Henry couldn't say that.
"He barely even had a chance of finishing the conversation before Hyde suddenly seemed panicked and ran for the hills." He finished, leaning back in his chair and looking Henry in the eyes, "What do you make of it?"
Okay, so rule one of avoiding a topic had not worked quite as well as Henry would have hoped, perhaps it was time to shift to the second rule; try to draw the conversation to a close, which could be done either dismissively or with an excuse. Considering Robert already knew Henry's evening was cleared to make time for him, he would have to go for the former.
"Well, he is a wanted criminal, perhaps he simply realized the risk of speaking with Sir Danvers in the street like that and left." Henry tried to sound nonchalant as he pulled out a new piece of paper to begin redoing his document.
"No, I mean his demeanor, not the whole running away thing." Robert huffed.
"Ah, well. Maybe he simply wanted company after being alone for two weeks. He already knows Sir Danvers, it wouldn't be too wild of a guess to assume that he decided to be more polite just for conversation."
"I suppose that would make sense," He allowed, but then suddenly his face turned serious. "But Henry, please stay away from that man, he could be dangerous. I've heard a lot of unsavory things about him and I'd sleep better knowing that you are safe."
Henry's heart fluttered a bit at his worry and he could hear Hyde groaning in disgust from one of the many mirrors in his office. Henry ignored him.
"Of course Robert. You know I wouldn't associate with a wanted criminal." Henry placated him, finishing up the new document and shoving the drenched one into the trash can.
They both went back to work on their documents, Henry with even more questions than before.
The next day he received a letter from Sergeant Brokenshire requesting his presence at the police station. Thankfully he hadn't found out about the recent break-in but since Henry didn't know what they were discussing, that just made him more nervous.
"Ah, Dr Jekyll, please sit down." Brokenshire beckoned him and Henry did just that, making himself comfortable. Or at least as comfortable as you can get when there's always that lingering worry of getting arrested, anyway.
"What seems to be the problem, Sergeant?" Henry was eager to get to the issue at hand, he was so close to finishing all the work he had for today, the doctor just wanted to get this over with.
"Mr. Edward Hyde has been spotted running around in the same area as the Society, you wouldn't happen to know anything about that would you?"
Henry almost narrowed his eyes, he could feel Hyde's distaste for the man bubbling up inside him but he beat it back with a metaphorical stick and plastered a look of indifference onto his face.
"What exactly are you implying?" He asked the sergeant in a tone that didn't betray his feelings.
"I'm not implying anything, doctor, simply giving you a warning. Hyde is a wanted criminal after all." Brokenshire responded placatingly.
Henry probably would have had some sort of overly polite retort, like when a client really annoyed him, but he simply didn't have the energy. He would have to try and end this conversation as soon as possible.
"Well, thank you for the warning, I'll be sure to keep the lodgers safe. Although I have to ask, where exactly was he spotted?" Henry asked him, hoping to get some answers to the mystery.
“You see, that’s the odd thing. He walked up to a police officer to ask him for directions towards the society, and then tried to act surprised when the officer tried to put him in cuffs!"
“Well then, how did he escape?” If this copycat had outright walked up to an officer of the law, he must have been caught, surely? What kind of fool impersonates a wanted criminal without knowing?
“He got lucky, a member of the forty elephants lady gang saw him getting arrested and took pity, knocked out the officer with a bat, we have no idea what happened after that though,” Brokenshire sighed, sounding frustrated at the thought of Hyde escaping.
“Well, I believe he’ll be caught in no time, after all, you are the one in charge of catching him. I have full faith in your abilities, Sergeant.” Henry knew he was probably going overboard with the compliments but getting on the sergeant’s good side would probably be important if this imposter was caught. He may not like copycats but he would not let the man be hanged for gallivanting around as Hyde. He was probably just some starry-eyed kid who had chosen to idolize the wrong kind of role model.
“You flatter me, Dr. Jekyll, however, I must get back to work soon, you ought to leave.” The doctor did so gladly, relieved to be out of the office.
This was the last straw. At this rate, with this copycat running around, the search for Hyde would restart and Jekyll would have to put up with Hyde for at least another two weeks.
Henry had to find out if this was all just a big misunderstanding or, perhaps, a joke in the poorest taste. He pulled on his coat and hat and headed to the society.
He would have to go look for him tonight.