looking-down-the-barrel-blog - Tumblr blog

[looking-down-the-barrel-blog]

Sitting down cross-legged on the well, he tugged on Claudia's shirt trying to hint to her he wanted her to sit with him. Tilting his head, he grinned slyly at her, "But I thought you didn't want anything for your birthday. It's not important, remember?" He prompted, grinning ear-to-ear about being right. "Honestly? I don't give two shits if your eighteen, or a thousand, or whatever you are, birthdays count. At least, they do in your world." As far back as he could remember, his only family had been his siblings, and they were just as young and unaware of their birthdays as he was. They didn't exactly celebrate birthdays in Halloween town either. Creatures just came to be when they were needed. The only celebration they needed was Halloween itself. But it was exciting to him to have something else to celebrate, even if she hadn't wanted to.

"Yeah, I wish you could stay here too. None of those bitches to knock you down. Especially if you're with us." He grinned a little mischievously, "The Trick-or-Treaters are notorious." Lightening up slightly, his smile turned more pleasant. "Anyway, I'm glad you like it. Happy Birthday, Worry-warts. And stop tryin' to do everything on your own."

Claudia smiled and laughed a little as he grabbed her hand and started to drag her along with him. Even though she would never admit it, his excitement and his childish behavior was started to grow on her. She actually found it kind of adorable, but who wouldn’t? It took all her will power not to stare at all the strange but awesome creatures they passed, she was a little disappointed that she wasn’t supposed to be here or else she would have wanted to stop and talk to each and every one of them. She stepped up onto the bricks with Barrel as he looked down at his reflection. This was without a doubt the coolest place she had ever been to ever, and being a goddess and her human years spent searching for her sisters she had seen a lot of different places. “Wow, this whole place is unbelievable, Barrel.” She said with a smile. “I can’t believe you live here, I wish that I could. What place is better to live in then a place dedicated to Halloween? At least the strange and unusual are normal here.”

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Barrel glared back at her, crossing his arms. "I'm not dumb!" He hated it. People always assumed. It wasn't his fault if everyone was too boring. Scoffing, he started scratching the inside of his ear with his pinkie, bored. "I know we're talkin' about you. But I don't care. You're no fun." He glanced at her from the corner of his eye. "S'not my fault. Your game is dull."

She couldn’t help but stare at him for a moment, blinking almost dumbfounded. In Morgana’s mind, she wasn’t being difficult in the slightest or playing any kind of decent game with him. “I’m talking about me, Blondie. Are you actually this much of a numbskull or..?” She let the question trail off. “If you think this game is difficult, then you wouldn’t last a day around me.” She put extra emphasis on the game, because it almost made her laugh thinking about it as one.

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Barrel wanted to keel over and pass out, but took the hand anyway, still out of breath. "Thanks... but I.. I'm never.. doing that again!" Leaning back, he stretched his back, groaning. "Why would people want to do this in the first place?"

"It is good for you." The seventeen year old said, smiling. "You have to work your way up though. You can’t just start all at once." She offered her hand as support for him to straighten back up. 

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Barrel almost tripped at the sudden gust of wind, feet digging into the leaf covered dirt as he braced himself against it. He started hyperventilating, eyes wide. The doors slammed loudly, and Barrel ended up toppling over once more. Gripping the leaves under his hands, he stared wide-eyed at the figure. The scream was much louder this time, hurting his throat at the wail. Barrel forced himself to stop, but his body shook in fear as he stared like a deer in headlights. "J-Jack! W-What were you doing there? I just- You were- How- I wasn't-" Barrel couldn't complete a sentence, voice failing him. So, instead, he went with his second option. Run. Which probably wasn't a good idea racing a man with legs as long as his, but he still tried anyway. Bolting off the ground, Barrel spun and ran off.

Barrel may have been speed-walking, but Jack was faster. Using the shadows to his advantage, he arrived at the Graveyard before Barrel and slunk into the corridor to Hallowe’en Town, closing the tomb door after him. He didn’t have to wait long, for he then he heard a voice.

"Who’s there!?"

A strong gust of wind blew through the corridor to the Holiday world, slamming the tomb doors open. There, Jack stood, arms folded and a curious look on his skull.

"Not like you to be paranoid, Barrel…"

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So, since you accepted my application ... where'll you be this friday night?

I'm guessing your place? Is that the right answer? 'Cause I don't know, I can't see the future.

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"It's positively wicked~ The pie shouldn't take long to make. I've got everything already fixed, we just need to add the pumpkin." She smirked at him, eyes glowing bright. "My house is just up that hill over there, come along now." The rag doll hummed lightly to herself as she skipped and danced up the hill to her home, hoping that Barrel wasn't too far behind her. Turning back to him, she placed her stitched up hand on the door to her house and pushed it open, "Come on in!"

Barrel grinned back at her, glad to hear it wouldn't be long until pie. His smile dropped lightly when she didn't take the pumpkin from him, arms starting to ache from the awkward position. Hauling it closer to his chest, he followed after her, grin back in form. He didn't think twice when she opened the door, already halfway through the door by the time she welcomed him in. He didn't bother with looking around. At this moment, his stomach was doing the thinking. "Now how long to pie?" He tilted his head curiously.

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ooc: Sadly, it is time to get off. I'll be sure to reply to everyone tomorrow~

And, so far, I've accidentally unfollowed eight people. Well then... Again, sorry everyone that I unfollowed! Here's hoping no more people were unfollowed.

G'night~

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The rag doll giggled and jumped off of the tombstone, simply overjoyed that he decided to help her out on her little mission. "Perfect! Well, get to singin'! We've got ourselves a pumpkin to find!" As he began to sing, Melody sunk down low to the ground, searching for the light orange gleam of a pumpkin. She almost didn't notice that he'd found anything until he pulled the giant, glowing pumpkin into view. "Oh my!" She squealed, jumping with excitement, "It's absolutely perfect!"

Barrel rose an eyebrow at her, "This pie better be awesome. 'Cause this is one kickass pumpkin." He leaned back slightly, admiring its size. "Sometimes dumb luck helps~" He sand happily to himself. Bringing it to the girl, he offered it to her. "Sooo how long until pie?" He tilted his head, a hopeful look in his eyes. Barrel was never one for patience.

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"Did not!" Barrel counted, much like a child. "Thanks! And if you see the Skeleton man, well, the other skeleton man, you never met me!" Barrel still eyed him cautiously, still freaked by his skeleton face. It reminded him way too much of Jack. Shaking it off, he grinned uneasily to himself, "you're paranoid. Calm your ass."

Still jittery, Barrel speed walked towards the graveyard where he planned to escape to Halloween Town and make a mad dash to the Holiday trees. Jack would never look for him in Easter Town, surely? A cold wind hit him, and his hairs stood on end. Why was he so scared? Spinning, Barrel looked around, swearing he could feel someone watching him. Gulping, Barrel rose his head, trying to draw on his courage. "Who's there!?"

Jack nodded enthusiastically at each of the points, as though these were things he never ever would have considered! “Thank you for the advice though, I will keep it in mind!”

"You did scream like a girl!" Jack countered, grinning widely, though he did raise his eyebrows at the mention of Barrel hitting him over the head… "In that case, I wish you good luck," he nodded his head to Barrel, "and let you get on your way. Just remember to keep your head down, alright?" With that, he waved goodbye and turned the corner, where he hid in the shadows.

There, he reversed the spell to reveal his bony form and began creeping through the shadows after Barrel.

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Tilting his head, he squinted his eyes for a moment, trying to focus. It was a hard task for him. He never did have the ability to focus on a subject for long periods of time. "Nope," he shook his head. "You always play guessing games with people? They're kinda dull."

Morgana let out a slightly annoyed sigh. “I’ve already given you one, you were just to careless to notice it.” She said, thinking back to what she’d said to him about lumping her in with them.

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The girl stood up on the headstone and began to jump from one to the other, searching the yard for the perfect pumpkin. She giggled at his comment, "They only glow when you sing to them, silly. You gotta make 'em feel special, that's the trick." She said with a nod of her head. "You help me find a big one and I'll make you the best pumpkin bat pie you've ever had. It's simply.. To die for."

"Yeah, they feel pretty special to me too. I mean, some just taste way better than others." Barrel chuckled, still shifting through the yard. He definitely hadn't thought of singing to them. Barrel's head shot up as she spoke, mind fully focused for once. "Pie?" Tilting his head, he grinned wickedly. "You drive a hard bargain. You've got yourself a deal."

Wandering through the yard, he began to sing enthusiasticly, to see if it would indeed help; "Three blind mice~ Three blind mice~ See how they run! See how they run! They all ran after the farmer’s wife, who cuts off their tails with a carving knife! Did you ever see such a thing in you life, as three blind mice?' Distracted, Barrel almost tripped over a pumpkin. Steadying himself, he grinned at his find. "This one big enough?" he asked, hauling the large pumpkin in his arms.

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"Well, for one, don't sound so concerned for your victim. Sheesh, that's, like, rule number one or somethin'. Two, don't let the tattoos do all the work. It takes hard work to scare people! You gotta work those tattoos! Three, lighting. The colour of the lights really sets the mood." Shaking his head, he waved it off, "but there's too much to critique and not enough time. I have to get outta here."

Barrel froze at his wording, huffing childishly, "I did not! I was.. a little startled." He folded his arms defensively. "Oh, Gods, no! That's Oogie's sorta thing. Jack's more on the 'mental torture' sort of thing, which is worse. I'm thinkin' of hitting him over the head. You know, to take away his memory. But there's a chance it wont work and he'd be more pissed about it." Barrel shivered, fear hitting him hard again. "Y-yeah, sorry man, but I really have to run. I can't let him find me." Barrel looked over his shoulder as if the tall, shadowed figure would appear behind him.

Jack gave an amused chuckle when Barrel called himself the ‘master’. “Oh really?” He asked, playing innocent. “What do I need to improve on?” Folding his arms, he showed full interest in this ‘masterclass’. Barrel continued talking, and Jack pursed his lips slightly. What did Barrel do that would require him to flee? He knew there was one way to find out.

"A… Skeleton man?" Jack repeated, raising an eyebrow. "Man, no wonder you screamed like a girl. My tattoos must have given you a scare! What, is he going to eat you or something?"

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"Urg," Barrel's head fell back, a groan escaping him. "I don't like riddles and mind numbing jumbo. That's Shock's thing. Can't I have a clue?"

Morgana made a little face after hearing his name; it was closely followed by a smirk. “I think I like Blondie better.” A small sigh escaped her as her eyes looked him up and down quickly. “Did I not just say it.. That everything is not what it seems.”

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"Assumed. Implied. Same thing. Okay, maybe it's not, but running sucks anyway. So cheers to living a long, unhealthy existence!"

"It’s implied to not be painful? I don’t think you. I think you just assumed"

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Melody's lips pulled up into the cheekiest of smiles and she shook her head. "No zombies today, I'm afraid~ I've come to pick the perfect pumpkin." Her catlike eyes shined bright as she spoke and she leaned in closer to him, lowering her voice. "Sally told me this is the best place to find a pumpkin. Pumpkins love the dead~" Melody giggled and covered her lips. She knew she would get in an awful lot of trouble for being in the graveyard after dark, but she just loved breaking the rules.

"Oh?" Barrel glanced beside him, searching around. "Find a good one yet?" He pepped up quickly at the mention of Ms Sally, his grin spreading ear to ear. Jumping down, Barrel tread around the the yard keeping within ear shot, arms spread out as if to keep balance. "Well you're never going to find the perfectly deformed pumpkin sittin' there. Or are you hopin' to lure one out with your hummin'?"

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"Really?" Barrel stared up at him in slight shock. "I thought all of you had given up on Hallowe'en. Most of you are doing it wrong." Pushing himself back up, he dusted himself off. "Yeah, you're good. But you could do with a few pointers from the master." Barrel grinned, aiming a thumb at himself, completely unaware was was speaking to the King of Halloween.

He faltered, eyes flashing down as his grin disappeared. "Well.. see, I kinda did something I wasn't reeeaaally suppose to and now this skeleton man is going to kick my ass. So, when I saw the skeleton face.." he chuckled nervously, still eyeing the man's face wearily. "Wait.. are those tattoos?" Barrel leaned closed, observing them with amusement, "or did you just draw them on? They look kinda real."

Jack gave a twisted grin at Barrel’s reaction, amused by how easy the youth was to scare. However, at his next statement, Jack realised that not only was Jack human, Barrel didn’t recognise him. He quickly changed tactics and gave a light-hearted laugh.

"You think? Heh heh, I am working on my scaring for Hallowe’en. I’ll be working in a house of horrors." He lied. "Now, why were you running? Most people who take up running as an excercise start with walking, you know."

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morgana--davies replied to your post: OOC: I don’t know why, but I’ve been getting a few...

OOC: Your tumblr app, if you have one, could be doing it if you leave it open and such

Aah, that could be it. Better than the thought of someone hacking me though they'd be a boring hacker if all they did was unfollow people.

Thank you~