sparrxwmxn

[sparrxwmxn]

Terence had called ahead, nervously telling the hostess on the phone that he was coming on a first date and was there any way they could put a candle on the table for them? The hostess had reassured him she would try her best before confirming their reservation.

So, he was delighted to find, as they approached their table, a single, flickering candle on the little table tucked into a quiet corner of the restaurant.

Nipping around the table, Terence pulled out Molly's chair with a flourish, giving her a sheepish grin.

"Gotta admit, this is the first date I've ever been on. Is this what I'm supposed to do?" he asked, blush rising again in his cheeks.

Was he being a corny idiot? He really hoped Molly found it endearing and not skeevy.

Did she say your everything?

She felt so stupid. Maybe he didn't notice, or maybe he was just nice enough to not call her out on it. Tearing her eyes away from his face to really look at the bouquet, her grin stretched further across her face. No one had ever gotten her flowers before... outside of her mom, anyway.

Gently removing them from his grip, she breathed in the scent, using it as an excuse to form a coherent sentence. "That's... so nice, thank you. They're beautiful." And they complimented the red of her dress. Holding them to her chest with one hand, she linked her other arm with his.

"Oh, yeah, yeah, me too," she nodded, hoping she didn't stick out like a sore thumb once inside. Truthfully, her stomach was currently cutting flips, but surely by the time they were seated and ordered the nerves would subside a little... right?

[sparrxwmxn]

Pull it together, Hanson.

Terence cleared his throat, finally tearing has gaze away from Molly and looking down at the flowers in his hand. He stuck them out, eyes averted as he blushed even harder.

"Wow-ah," he chuckled, rubbing the back of his head with his free hand. "Thanks. These are for you! I wasn't sure what kind you liked but the lady at the shop said these were in season and the golden roses reminded me of your hair so I said sure."

He was babbling, finally daring to look back up at her and smile helplessly. She was a dream, he thought deliriously. Adorable and funny and willing to put up with... Well, him.

He gestured to the restaurant behind him, holding out an elbow.

"Shall we? I don't know about you but I'm starving."

Though she felt a little guilty for going out with everything that was happening around town, she was no use to anyone doing anything else. Sitting at home worrying over Andy was not going to solve his problems, and... she liked Terence. From the times they had spoken he was funny, he was nice, and he was definitely cute. She had been given a chance, somehow, and she didn't want to blow it. Hopefully him getting to know her better wouldn't do that.

After a lot of squealing in her room, wondering if she should back out, then squealing some more, she had enlisted the help of Marie to get ready. It had been a long time since Molly had gone on a proper date, and she was nervous. For a fashion major, she felt like she knew absolutely nothing as she tried to style her hair, pick out a dress and apply just enough makeup, not too much, not too little. After reassurance from her friend, she sucked it up and left the house, her stomach in knots hoping that Terence didn't stand her up.

But there he was, already waiting for her as she approached the restaurant, with... were those flowers?

"I do? I mean, thank you." Confidence was attractive, she reminded herself. She could be confident, she could do this. But she couldn't hide the redness rising to her own cheeks. She had thought he was cute in casual clothes, but wow. "You do, too," she said before she could chicken out, feeling the heat in her cheeks grow stronger. "I like your... um... everything."

[sparrxwmxn]

@princeofthcseas

If there was one thing that Terence really loved about Evermore, it was having other guys around. Not that sparrowmen were rare in Pixie Hollow, but Terence had been surrounded by girls most of his life. Chasing after Tink and the gang for years.

But he'd started making friends here, after trying to go to the gym, and eventually finding a blast of a time at the Rage Cage. Somewhere to blow a few bucks and get out some of the energy that tended to pent up inside him.

He was shrugging off his coat when he spotted Eric, waving at the other guy.

"Hey man, nice to see you! Ready to bust some vases or something?"

[sparrxwmxn]

@mcllydavis

Terence had agonized over the text for a long time before sending it, a simple "Hey, wanna get dinner? Like, an official date, if you want!" then tossed the phone aside and yanked his hoodie down over his head to wallow in anxiety until the affirmative response came back. The details had fallen into place after that, and now here he was, shuffling his feet in dress pants and a button down, holding a small bouquet of flowers on the sidewalk outside of Tiana's Place, waiting for Molly.

He checked his phone; still another five minutes before they agreed to meet. Terence swallowed and put his phone away, checking his hair in the reflection of the front window, before his eyes caught Molly watching him in the reflection and he whirled, face flushing red.

"Oh, hey! Wow-" he stopped and looked her up and down, mouth open in a perfect 'o'.

"You look great!"

[sparrxwmxn]

Terence smiled at her offer.

"I've got plenty, thanks Dess," he replied, reaching out and squeezing her shoulder as much to reassure her as him. He rolled back his shoulders again, trying to disperse some of the tension.

"Feels weird to try flying without the equipment, you know?" he joked, gesturing over his shoulder. Taking one last deep breath, he crouched slightly, then pushed and shot up a fair bit faster than he was anticipating.

He swallowed his yelp, feeling like a new sparrowman again, struggling to get used to his own limbs. Squeezing his arms to his sides and straightening his legs, he managed to regain some control, looking down at Dessa on the sidewalk.

He beckoned, a grin spreading across his face. Despite the dire circumstances, despite the danger they might be facing if someone saw them, there was something just so right about taking to the air again.

Dessa was petrified. This was the kind of bad idea she should be talking her friends out of, not actively signing herself up for... but the stakes were different. This wasn't a spontaneous adventure, this was about trying to find one of her missing best friends. And while she could do it alone and not drag Terence into a possible disaster, she also knew there was safety in numbers, and it wasn't fair to exclude him.

She was as careful as ever applying the dust. She had to admit that she missed flying; she didn't feel right without her wings. But while she was too nervous to take to the skies in a town filled with clumsies, that wasn't the main issue. Knowing that their pixie dust was limited, that if she ever needed to fly and she ran out she could never fly again... it was such a dreadful feeling, she hadn't so much as looked at her supply since arriving to town.

Now, standing outside of Terence's door, there was the usual mix of adrenaline and fear that followed any event out of the ordinary, but also a determination. They couldn't let this be for nothing. "Ready as I'll ever be," she nodded. "Don't you worry about that. There's still a decent amount left if you need some after this." Safely tucked into her bottom drawer.

[sparrxwmxn]

@thebrightsidc

The blanket was dusty when Terence yanked it out from underneath his bed and unwrapped it. He coughed, waving a hand to disperse the cloud of particles, then unwrapped the shoe box. The glow was faint, but panic gripped him as he pulled open the lid and stared down at the green bag in the bottom of the cardboard square. A tiny dribble had leaked out of one of the seams, making the material glitter with its own internal glow. Terence was relieved it hadn't floated.

He ran his finger across the spill and swiped it on the back of his neck, his back twitching with the missing wings that had taken so long to adjust to. Flipping open the pouch, he sunk the measuring spoon he'd chosen from the kitchen into the shifting, glowing dust and held it up over his head. Holding his breath, he closed his eyes and tilted the spoon.

At first, it felt like a cool breeze playing along his skin, then he felt the tell-tale lightening of his limbs, lifting slightly off the carpet. Swallowing hard, he returned the bag to the box and wrapped the blanket around it again. That should be enough for an hour or so of flying here. Shoving the bundle back under his bed, Terence focused, bringing himself back to the floor and heading to the front door, pulling shoes and a jacket on for his nighttime excursion.

Dessa's knock brought a mixture of fear and relief into his throat, and he tried to smile when he opened the door.

"Hey. Did you have enough? Ready?"

[sparrxwmxn]

Terence pushed the napkin across the table.

"That'd be great. I'll keep my ear to the ground too, let you know if I hear anything."

He checked the time on his phone, grimacing.

"Shoot, I have to get going. Seriously, it was amazing to see you again, Molly."

He hesitated for a moment, having risen out of his seat in preparation to hurry out the door. He smiled down at Molly, then ducked his head and pressed the lightest kiss to her cheek.

"I want to see you again," he murmured against her cheek, a request, a prayer, a wish all wrapped up in one. Then he was out the door, face red and heart beating out of his chest. He didn't have any dust, but he felt like his feet were skimming along the pavement anyway.

END ~

What a joy, Terence thought, to have faith in someone like that. The very tenets of his life as a sparrowman - faith, trust, pixie dust - and never once could Terence remember feeling that level of devotion and admiration.

Terence let a few self-indulgent tears slip down his own cheeks, dashing them away with the back of his hand before Molly noticed.

"That's the spirit," he replied, voice shaking and husky with the tears he was trying to hold back.

"Here, how about you take my number? I wish I'd given it to you before," he chuckled, digging a pen out of his coat pocket and scribbling his phone number on a napkin.

[sparrxwmxn]

One of their very first mornings in Evermore, Terence had taken his last bag of dust and buried it under his bed, enclosed in a shoebox with a blanket over top.

And he hadn't looked at it once.

Maybe that made him a bad dustkeeper, but once he'd determined that there wasn't any going back or finding more, a strange sort of peace had washed over him. He missed flying sometimes, sure, but the risk of being caught wasn't something he wanted to even test. But now, in the face of such a mystery and possible danger, the substance called to him in his head.

"Okay, yeah. I'll come with. I have a shift until four today. Meet at my place?"

Terence pulled back, loathe to let go just yet. Afraid that if he let her leave the circle of his arms, that she'd disappear as well. The terror that had been building since his eyes landed on Talia threatened the choke him in that moment.

"Yeah, you're right. Someone will know something, right? And we can get together with some folks to start looking in the woods. I doubt they would have gotten out of town with.... You know, all the weirdness about it. Gosh, I might even break out some dust if we need it, you know?"

He was rambling now, finally letting his arms loosen, instead grabbing one of her hands and running a thumb reassuringly across her knuckles.

[sparrxwmxn]

"As much as I'd like that I do have to get to work," Terence replied, biting his lip as he thought.

"Here, why don't you take my number? Then at least if you get in trouble, you have someone to call?" He offered, digging around in his pockets for a pen.

"Oh, I'm Terence," he added, now hunting for a scrap of paper or a receipt or something to scribble on.

Terence frowned as his eyes roved over the young lady's face in front of him. Was she okay? Was he making it worse by trying to encourage her?

"Can... Can I do anything for you? Is there someone checking in on you?"

The questions left his mouth before he really got a chance to think about them. As always, his instinct to help, to provide, to be useful reared its head to the surface and wrinkled it's brow at the young woman before him.

[sparrxwmxn]

What a joy, Terence thought, to have faith in someone like that. The very tenets of his life as a sparrowman - faith, trust, pixie dust - and never once could Terence remember feeling that level of devotion and admiration.

Terence let a few self-indulgent tears slip down his own cheeks, dashing them away with the back of his hand before Molly noticed.

"That's the spirit," he replied, voice shaking and husky with the tears he was trying to hold back.

"Here, how about you take my number? I wish I'd given it to you before," he chuckled, digging a pen out of his coat pocket and scribbling his phone number on a napkin.

Oh my God.

Terence could have melted through the floor. Her brother was missing?

"Molly..." he whispered, tears pricking at his eyes. He couldn't even fathom what to say. Everything he could think of didn't hardly seem like enough.

He swallowed and leaned forward, putting a hand on her knee.

"Please tell me if there's anything I can do. Anything at all."

[sparrxwmxn]

Oh my God.

Terence could have melted through the floor. Her brother was missing?

"Molly..." he whispered, tears pricking at his eyes. He couldn't even fathom what to say. Everything he could think of didn't hardly seem like enough.

He swallowed and leaned forward, putting a hand on her knee.

"Please tell me if there's anything I can do. Anything at all."

"That's awful, Terence, I'm so sorry." Molly knew her apologies didn't mean that much, they didn't do anything, but she meant it. It was so sad to see how many people had been affected by those that had gone missing, and she wondered if anyone had gotten by unscathed.

Pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, she chewed on it for a moment before nodding slowly, her answer delayed. As if that would make it less true. "My brother. It's weird, being here without him." Dropping her eyes to her lap, she picked at a loose string on the hem of her shirt. "He's always... he's always just been here, you know. Ever since I was born."

[sparrxwmxn]

Terence frowned as his eyes roved over the young lady's face in front of him. Was she okay? Was he making it worse by trying to encourage her?

"Can... Can I do anything for you? Is there someone checking in on you?"

The questions left his mouth before he really got a chance to think about them. As always, his instinct to help, to provide, to be useful reared its head to the surface and wrinkled it's brow at the young woman before him.

He was missing people too. The horrible feeling that had been forming in her mind was worsening. It was hard enough to get by on any other day sometimes with the way her mind was in bits and pieces from the substances she indulged and the memories that she struggled to grasp. With this? She couldn't deal with it. She couldn't handle it. She was spiraling further and further into the rabbit hole and without Whit she was lost.

But she kept a smile on her face, even as the light in her eyes dimmed. She was unsettlingly calm on the outside because if she wasn't her world was going to fall apart.

"No worries! Well, there are much to worry about. But I will keep looking. Whit couldn't have gotten far. She must be playing a game or some sort. Maybe it's a group game of hide and seek and we all missed the memo. No worries at all!"

[sparrxwmxn]

Terence pulled back, loathe to let go just yet. Afraid that if he let her leave the circle of his arms, that she'd disappear as well. The terror that had been building since his eyes landed on Talia threatened the choke him in that moment.

"Yeah, you're right. Someone will know something, right? And we can get together with some folks to start looking in the woods. I doubt they would have gotten out of town with.... You know, all the weirdness about it. Gosh, I might even break out some dust if we need it, you know?"

He was rambling now, finally letting his arms loosen, instead grabbing one of her hands and running a thumb reassuringly across her knuckles.

Dessa hugged him back tightly, letting out an exhale of a breath she didn't realize she had been holding until her lungs had began to burn. She cared so deeply about all of her friends, an the thought of Rosetta being out there somewhere... lost, confused, scared, alone... and Zarina, despite their differences. That was bad enough. She could hardly imagined if anyone else she loved were to be among the missing people.

"That's three of us," she murmured, wondering who she should check on next. The smartest thing to do would be to shoot them all texts and hope they replied, but part of her just wanted to see them all face to face. To know with her own eyes. "Me either. I just can't imagine..."

Her leaving without saying anything. Where she could have possibly gone. None of them could even fly out of this town, she knew that, so where could Rosetta be? "I'm sure they'll find her soon, all of them. There's too many people affected for someone to not know... something."

[sparrxwmxn]

As he stared at her, he suddenly realized he hadn't even checked the list for her name. He wanted to smack himself when it dawned on him. Sometimes Terence could be such an air-head. But Talia showing up on his doorstep had thrown everything for a loop.

He was pleased when she squeezed back, guiding her over to the table he'd been sitting at.

"Two of my friends were on the lists," Terence replied, an ache starting up in his chest. Ro and Zarina... where were they? Were they safe?

"What about you?" His eyebrows drew together in concern and he leaned forward slightly, wanting to wrap and arm around her shoulder.

"You too," Molly breathed, a little flustered by his hand on hers. She would be lying if she said she didn't check the list for his name, relieved he hadn't joined Andy and all of the others... even though she wasn't sure their paths would ever cross again. She had been kicking herself every day since they met at the fair for not putting herself out there and giving him her number, even if he wasn't actually interested.

"I mean, it's nice to see you again." Not that that needed clarification. She squeezed his hand back when her thoughts aligned. "Are you okay? Like, with all of the people that... you know. I'm sorry if any if you're close to any of them."

[sparrxwmxn]

The sparrowman felt like he was in a haze. After reassuring himself and Talia of the other's continued presence, he's gathered up his stuff and started walking to work, with the intention of going about his normal business. But a coffee sounded too good to pass up as he passed The Lucky Cat and he ducked in.

Nursing the beverage, he'd taken up residence at a table by the window, checking the news feeds and trying to work his brain around what exactly was going on. So it was, when a familiar voice called his name, he looked up to find Molly there, in her adorable glory.

He gazed at her, a smile breaking out on his face as relief he didn't realize he was waiting for flooded his chest.

"Molly, hey!" He stood and hurried over to her, reaching out and grabbing her hand to squeeze.

"It's so nice to see you again," he said earnestly.

LOCATION: the lucky cat café FOR: @sparrxwmxn

Molly liked to go to Java Lava for the selection, but knowing that the lady that owned it was beyond those that were missing, the motherly woman that always smiled at her and asked how she was and actually seemed to care... it left her with a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, so she'd gone out of her way to The Lucky Cat instead. It was her second favorite place anyway, and Kim hadn't been specific about where the bagel had to come from. She was just walking through the doors when she saw him there. At first, Molly was sure her eyes were playing tricks on her, but she was calling his name before she could be sure, or even stop to wonder if it was a bad idea. "Terence?"

[sparrxwmxn]

To Terence, it seemed like the whole world had slowed down around them. He felt like he couldn't even call it a tragedy, because nothing had been confirmed, but nothing removed the pit that had opened up in his stomach ever since Talia had thrown her arms around him in his doorway and he'd heard the news.

He walked with his head down, taking the long route home from the theater after his shift of staring out the window, no one coming in to escape their problems with some fiction.

His head jerked up as he heard the tumble of words, and he grimaced sympathetically at the face on the poster.

"No, I'm sorry. I'm missing some people too," he tried to empathize. "But there's so many people on the case, I'm sure everyone will turn up soon, you're right! We just have to stay hopeful and keep looking for them."

open starter location: outside wonderland

"Have you seen my friend Whit?" Alice asked, her voice strangely calm as she held the missing poster in front of her. "She's late for a very important date and I...I need to know she's okay. She has to be okay, right?" Ever since the news hit her mind had been moving a million miles a minute and her coping skills were not...the best. She couldn't focus or think right and after crying about it in solitude her mind just went into straight denial. "She has to be here somewhere....she has to be alright. So I'm checking work first and then her favorite spots and...it's going to be just fine! Right?"

[sparrxwmxn]

Terence froze as her arms went around him, shock rippling through his system as his hand found the back of her head and her lower back, cradling her into his chest. Then he relaxed into her, rocking them back and forth slightly.

When she pulled away, he looked down at her, heart cracking just a hair as she cried. Amazed she was even here, he brushed a hand over her cheek, then fully registered what she said.

"What? Gone?" He took the phone she handed to him, eyes darting over the words.

"Holy shit..." he muttered, running a hand through his hair.

He handed her device back to her, then pulled her into another embrace.

"You know I'd never go anywhere, Tink," he murmured, a slight laugh on his words even as a rush of guilt flooded him. His friends were missing, and this was no time to be laughing.

Talia didn't even give him time breathe before her arms were wrapped around him in a tight embrace. "thank god you're okay." she mumbled against his chest, tears stinging her eyes as she held onto him like he was an anchor against the storm. it was hard for tink to be vulnerable like this but because of the circumstance the floodgates were opened.

pulling away slightly she tried to wipe away the few tears that had managed to escape. "didn't you hear? rosetta disappeared, zarina too...we had our qualms but i'd never want anything bad to happen to her." she shook her head in disbelief of it all. ending the call, and quickly pulling up the mayors psa on her phone and handing it to terence. "it's like a chunk of people missing right now, what the fuck is going on." she gulped, meeting his eyes. "when i saw the names i was scared you were gone too, i just had to know."