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naceisonthecase · 3 years ago

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Summary: Basically, red string of fate but make it supernatural.

Word Count: 5,218

[Read on AO3]

@aceandnancy @bughead-bones @ismokechurros @nacegolden @nocturne-alley

🔎

The Red String of Fate: Fact or Fiction? The title of the article read. Nancy couldn’t read anymore, not even if it was Bess who had sent it and was most likely going to broach the subject as soon as she came downstairs. Grabbing her bag off the hook she left her room and headed down the stairs.

“Good morning Nancy!” Her dad and Ryan echoed as she entered the kitchen. This was still taking some time to get used to, her two dads side by side drinking coffee and cooking breakfast as if it was the most normal thing in the world. Which, Nancy thought, would explain the state and smell of the kitchen.

“Morning,” Nancy replied. She moved through the kitchen toward Carson, letting him wrap his arms around her. As he moved away Nancy spied a circle of red around his pinky finger. “What happened to your finger?” Her eyes wandered away from the mark on his finger, the same size and shape of his wedding ring, scanning his face for any sort of incriminating clues.

“Must have burned it when helping Ryan cook.” He said, nonchalantly. He shook his hand as if that would erase the mark.

“That’s unusual for a burn. It’s a perfect circle.” Nancy had grabbed her father’s hand and was turning it back and forth to observe it more completely. “Does it hurt?”

Carson wrestled his hand back. Placing both hands on Nancy’s shoulders he held his daughter at arm’s length. “It’s just a burn, Nancy. Nothing serious, nothing supernatural.” Another thing that would take some getting used to -- her dad knowing about the weird, paranormal happenings around their seaside town. “And, no it doesn’t hurt. Not even a little.”

Nancy nodded at her father, not quite convinced, and he released her. She wandered over to a cabinet and grabbed a mug to pour herself a cup of coffee. The action caused a small red object to be knocked off the countertop. Her coffee momentarily forgotten, Nancy bent down and picked it up. A spool of red thread. How did it get there? Who did it belong to?

“What’s this?” She showed the spool to Carson. He had started dishing himself up a plate of food and squinted at the object in Nancy’s hand.

“It's a spool of thread. Probably belonged to your mother.”

“Mom didn’t sew.”

Carson shrugged. “We’ve reached our before breakfast question quota. Can we discuss it after we eat?”

Nancy put the spool back on the counter and turned to Ryan. He was wearing an apron and a gaudy chef’s hat standing by the stove with a spatula in hand.

It would have been comical if it wasn’t so disastrous.

“You want some,” Ryan asked proudly, showcasing his burnt scrambled eggs as if they were a masterpiece.

Nancy screwed up her face. “I think I’ll pass.” She said, finally pouring herself a cup of coffee.

“They aren’t as bad as they look or smell.” Nancy turned to see Bess seated at the breakfast table. She had a plate of burnt eggs, bacon, and toast in front of her and was smiling around a mouthful of food.

“Nancy, you have to eat something,” Carson said, passing by Nancy to seat himself down by Bess.

“I’m fine with just coffee. I’ll just get something at The Claw,” she said, shrugging off her father’s recommendation. She snuck a look at her phone to check the time. “Speaking of, Bess, I think we should get a move on. You know how George is when we’re late.”

“You think it’s a good idea to go back to work so soon after…” The rest of Carson’s sentence faded away, the implication of after hanging heavy in the air.

“Yeah, Nancy, George ok’d your extended absence. Just as she did Ace’s.” Bess was quick to add, filling the silence.

At the mention of his name, Nancy’s hand tightened around her mug, her stomach spinning. She put the mug back down on the counter. She hadn’t mentioned her dreamscape or the part each of them played in the journey to any of her friends. The closest she had come was Ace, and that hadn’t gone as planned.

“It's been weeks. I need some semblance of normalcy back in my life, and that means,” Nancy swung her bag over her shoulder so it hung across her body, “returning for my usual shift at The Claw.”

“Remember, you can come home at any time.”

The smoke alarm chose then to blare its angry head. Carson rushed off to the smoke alarm, ordering Ryan to begin opening windows around the house.

“And, I think that’s our cue to leave,” Nancy said to Bess, speaking louder over the wails going off in her house.

Bess nodded, just as happy to escape the chaoticness of the household as Nancy was. She reached for a napkin that was laying on her lap, dabbing at her lips politely as if she were dining at a fancy restaurant, and quickly went off to get her belongings.

🔎

“Don’t you think it’s quite romantic though?” Bess said, continuing the conversation they were having on the ride over about the article she had sent Nancy.

“It sure is something.”

Bess gasped, a hand flying to her chest in shock. “You don’t believe in soulmates?” She nearly screeched.

“Love I believe in,” Nancy said, approaching the door to The Claw, “but soulmates…there’s no proof.” Nancy pushed open the door to The Claw. Her gaze travelled over the room -- she spotted George and Nick at the bar. With Ace.

Ace was home? He wasn’t supposed to be home for another two weeks.

Nancy felt her throat constrict, she stood frozen in place. She thought facing him with these new fully realized feelings would be difficult enough standing on his front stoop, a rehearsed speech at the ready, but that didn’t hold a candle to seeing him unexpectedly here amongst their friends in a familiar environment and completely lost for words.

Ace looked up at the door at the sound of the chime. He beamed when he saw his two friends but his eyes remained on Nancy longer, Bess having already sauntered into the restaurant and over to the bar, wrapping her arms around Ace from behind, Ace’s hand coming up to pat her arm. His concentration broke off Nancy for the time being.

Nancy took a deep breath, then crossed the threshold.

Out of Bess’s hold, Ace was off his stool and was coming towards her before Nancy was even halfway across the restaurant. She froze in her tracks.

“Hey, Nancy!”

“Hey, Ace! Uh, how was your trip? How is...how is Amanda?” She felt a sudden prick against her finger, nothing more than a needlepoint but it made her look down anyway. Her finger was snagged in her bag buckle and she yanked it free.

“It was great.” She heard Ace saying And looked back up. “Amanda is good too.” It was as if he wanted to say more but shut his mouth instead.

They were such simple answers but it made her heart ache. The throbbing in her finger intensified and she jammed her hands into her coat pockets, slowly moving away.

“I should put my things in the back,” Nancy announced, walking away.

“Wait, Nancy.” He reached out a hand to stop her progress, his hand lingering on her arm. “How are you doing?”

She took a deep breath in before answering. “I’m alright.” She nodded, a faint smile tracing her lips. “Just recovering from nearly dying. So, you know, the usual.”

Ace nodded, not taking his hand or eyes off her. The pain in her finger had subsided, it was nothing more than pinched flesh after all. She was only thinking about it because she couldn’t allow her thoughts to settle on how Ace’s touch felt on her arm. Like his touch was meant to be there.

She gulped, trying to find her voice, and pulled away. “Ace, I need to go.”

She saw visible disappointment, concern, and curiosity flash through his eyes. Then she turned and disappeared into the kitchen. He stood there watching after her until Bess called him back to the bar to fill them in on his romantic getaway, and as a loyal platanchor he willingly obliged.

🔎

Nancy sat on the bench in front of the set of lockers. The kitchen was empty and she could spend the short time before her shift alone. And, Ace wasn’t yet in the kitchen, watching her from above.

He was with Amanda, and according to him, they were doing good. She couldn’t have these thoughts. She had to forget about this crush, or whatever it was, and move on. No matter how much she wanted to run her fingers through his gorgeous locks, again, or kiss him, and not an almost dreamscape kiss this time, she couldn’t act on it. She wouldn’t. She would just have to figure out a way to get through this shift without these feelings interfering and then figure out how to get over him.

“Drew, get your ass out here. We need you.” George called from the dining area signalling that her shift had begun.

She stood from the bench and smoothed down the front of her uniform, composing herself before heading out into the thick of it. Her first day back in weeks.

Ace was entering the kitchen as she was leaving, the two were in a dance for access to the door. He moved to his left, she moved to her right. Then vice versa. Eventually Ace allowed her enough room to scoot by, laughing. She felt his eyes on her back as she moved past. What greeted her on the other side was the typical Saturday lunch rush. She did want normalcy, she remembered, as she dug into her pocket for her notebook and flipped it open to a clean sheet to begin taking orders.

From there the hours became a blur of jotting down orders, filling and refilling water glasses, and polite smiles that she didn’t wholeheartedly feel. It was filled with lobster rolls, fried calamari, fish and chips, and The Claw’s famous clam chowder being passed from the kitchen to the awaiting customers. She was more or less in a state of workflow uncommon to her gig as a waitress when Nick stopped her, pulling her aside.

“Nancy, your hand looks serious.”

It had begun to hurt more, a constant pounding but she continued to play off as best she could even though the pain was getting to her. She looked down and saw that her finger was scratched up and bleeding, and a rash was beginning to spread through her entire hand.

“I must have been itching it. Not a big deal.”

George and Bess had gravitated towards her too and Ace had moved to the serving hatch, a cloth hung over his shoulder and his arms resting on the ledge. Great a full audience!

“I know first aid,” Ace piped up eagerly from the hatch, “I was a Boy Scout”

Nancy’s heartbeat quickened but she kept her voice steady as she said, “as much as I appreciate your concern, and I do, it’s just a few scratches. I can easily wash it up in the bathroom and be back in a minute.”

“You are not serving food with that,” George pointed in the direction of Nancy’s hand, a look of horror on her face.

“Oh, Nancy, it’s dripping!” Bess exclaimed, hands fluttering to her mouth. A few patrons close enough to be in earshot turned to see what the commotion was about.

Sure enough, during the few seconds of the conversation, it had gotten worse and now a green goo was emanating from the wound.

“Oh, ew,” Nancy said, extending her other hand quickly just in time to catch a glob before it fell to the floor.

“Take Ace up on his offer,” George ordered, nodding towards the kitchen, “then go home. The rest of you back to work.”

Nancy sighed. Keeping her mind preoccupied and not focusing on her crush on Ace hadn’t worked and now she was going to be in a room alone with him. Unprepared and in unknown territory. Then she winced and pulled her hand toward her chest. Her hand was in excruciating pain and she had to admit that it needed tending to. So, with a groan, she turned to meet him.

🔎

Ace was sitting on the bench searching around in the first aid kit when Nancy arrived in the back room.

“Let me take a closer look,” he said when he saw her paused at the top of the steps. He tucked his hair behind his ear, watching her descend the stairs and closing the distance between them.’God, that hair!’ she thought as she sat down beside him and extended her hand for him to inspect. “It looks like an infection. A gnarly one.”

“Gnarly?” Nancy said an awkward laugh in her voice. He smiled. She looked away. She couldn’t fall back into their usual behaviour no matter how easy and familiar it was.

“Don’t worry, it’s nothing we can’t fix.” Ace said, picking up and ripping into the small packet, unfolding the wipe into the perfect square with such care.

She found herself staring too long at his hands as he took her own and wiped away the blood and grime from her skin. She flinched, shaking herself away from the memory of those fingers entwined in hers.

“Does it sting?” Ace’s hands slowed. Nancy shook her head. “Good,” he said, ripping into another packet. “Because this isn’t a one-and-done job.”

In the end, it took seven of the tiny wipes to clean the blood and green goopy mess. During which, Nancy had gone through all the symptoms she’d experienced with the lust butterflies, many times over. Although, fortunately for her, under better control. By the time Ace was applying a thin layer of an antibiotic ointment to the scratches she was wondering if he could feel how fast her pulse was racing, how sweaty her hand was in his or if he could see the heat upon her cheeks, and if he did, did he assume it was just a side effect from the infection or something more? After he secured the bandage in place he dropped his hands to his lap.

“All done.” He said, proudly. He admired his handiwork for a moment then looked up, meeting Nancy’s eye.

The two of them shared an extended moment of eye contact, his eyes so blue and portraying a deepness that many didn’t know the extent of, an ocean she was falling into. She scrambled to her feet at once conscious of how close she had gravitated to him. She had been practically sitting in his lap.

“Uh, thanks, Ace. It feels better already.” She felt herself falling back into those eyes, and pulled away before it could last any longer by heading for her locker. “I should be getting home.”

“I can give you a ride.” Ace said. Nancy popped off her lock and turned to look behind her. Ace was still on the bench, his hands balled together in his lap. He was rubbing his thumb against his other hand, watching her, eager for her to accept.

“It’s fine, Ace,” Nancy said. “I can walk. Bess can drive my car home.” She proceeded to shimmy into her jacket, careful not to upset her bandaged finger and fanned out her hair that had been trapped behind the collar. She then reached into her pocket for her car keys, putting them into her empty locker and writing a quick note, slipping it through the slates of Bess’s locker.

“Are you mad at me?”

Nancy faced Ace, her hands stilled on her coat buttons. “No--no I’m not mad at you.” She couldn’t take that sad, puppy dog-eyed look and busied herself with her coat.

“Then why have you been avoiding me all day?”

Nancy thought back on her shift as she continued with the buttons. When Ace was at the serving hatch she would wait until he was back at the sink before continuing her job. When she was in the kitchen she would ignore his calls and waves for her attention, And, if he was out in the dining area fetching something or chatting with George, Nick, or Bess she would take the longer route to where she was going. It hurt to stay away. It almost felt as if she was being pulled in his direction but she fought against that feeling.

“I--I wasn’t -- I haven’t been avoiding you.” Nancy lied.

“And, you’re letting Bess drive your car? She still drives on the wrong side of the road.”

“You should keep Florence here,” Nancy said, slinging her bag over her shoulder. “For when you pick up Amanda from the hotel.”

“Um, Nancy, actually about that.” Ace started. He stood from the bench in an attempt to stop her but she had already made her exit through the back door.

Outside, Nancy leaned back on the wall of The Claw. Her eyes shut.

When did this become so hard?

Ace was her best friend. But she had to put a kibosh on these thoughts before it ruined what they had. And, luckily for her, she had a mystery on her hands to do just that. Literally.

🔎

Nancy hadn’t walked home. Instead, she had made the trek to The Historical Society. She had let herself in and found Hannah doing inventory.

“I need your help,” Nancy said after acquiring Hannah’s attention. She had her bandaged hand raised. When she had left The Claw it was, as she had told Ace, feeling significantly better but by the time she had reached The Historical Society the pain level was off the charts and the green goo was seeping through the bandaging. And, she was beginning to feel faint.

Hannah was at her side at once, immediately leading her over to a chair. She re-cleaned and bandaged the wound and handed Nancy a high-strength painkiller and a glass of water, which dulled the pain a bit. Hannah sat down across from her to hear the events that lead to this predicament.

“Hand me your bag.” Hannah requested after Nancy finished detailing the story. “I’m going to test the buckle for any supernatural or natural causes of this infection.” Nancy did as she was told, but the short litmus paper-type test turned up nothing of concern.

“Could it be something from the lockboxes, something I let out when I got the shroud? Which, again, I profusely apologize for.”

Hannah was silent for a moment, in thought. “This is nothing like anything I recall seeing or hearing about before. But we can take a look.” Hannah got up from the table and returned with an armload of gathered papers, records, and books that could be of use.

That had been four hours ago and still, there were no answers. And, her finger was again protesting loudly.

“I’m sorry, Nancy.” Hannah placed a hand on the younger woman's uninfected hand and squeezed it.

“It’s alright. We tried.” Nancy reassured her. “Actually, Hannah, while I’m here could we discuss something else?”

“Anything.”

Right now Nancy needed motherly advice. And, after losing a mother, a grandmother, a potential step-mother, and learning about her biological mother’s death all in less than a year, Hannah Gruen was the last maternal figure she had.

Nancy took a deep breath, letting it out in a slow exhale. “Have you ever had a crush on someone that wasn’t available?”

“Yes, I have. My best friend.”

“What did you do about it?”

“I told them.”

Nancy’s eyebrows shot up. “You told them?” She said in disbelief. “Even though there was no chance you’d be together? Weren’t you worried you were risking your friendship?”

Hannah shook her head. “I was at the beginning. But, it ended up being better for the both of us that I told the truth. The truth holds power.”

The truth holds power, that was something Nancy believed too.

“Thanks.” Hannah gave Nancy’s hand another squeeze, then she got up from the table to return to her work.

Nancy felt a sudden weight in her coat pocket. Reaching in she pulled out the spool she had found in her kitchen that morning. She stared at it for a few seconds in bewilderment. How had it magically appeared in her pocket when she had left it on the counter before she left for The Claw? The longer she stared at it the object and the colour became familiar for some reason, something that Bess was talking about. Nancy dug her phone out of her other pocket and opened it. The article that Bess had sent her was still on the screen. The red string of fate. Nancy scanned the article.

‘According to Japanese legend,’ she read, ‘there is a thread that originates from the heart and extends through our pinky finger connecting us to those that we are fated to meet.’ Nancy looked down at her finger. The infected finger, the one now covered in bandages, was her pinky. The red mark her dad swore was a burn wound its way around his pinky. ‘It is said that no matter how much you stretch or tangle the invisible red string it can never be broken.’

Nancy recalled how her finger felt better when feelings of attraction were coursing through her body when she was in the back room with Ace and had gotten worse when that attraction was being suppressed, as she was trying to do the entire day. How she had felt that strange pull whenever she was near him as if being pulled closer by a thread.

So much for forgetting these feelings. They were as much a part of her as her traumas.

“Hannah,” Nancy called, and the owner of The Historical Society appeared in her office doorway, “I think I know what this is.”

Nancy placed the spool on the table and handed her phone to Hannah so she could read through the article herself. She recounted for Hannah finding the mark on her dad’s finger. Him downplaying it as a burn.

Nancy’s eyes widened, as a thought occurred to her. “I need to see if he’s alright.”

“You check on your dad, and I’ll look further into this,” Hannah said, handing Nancy her phone back. “I’ll let you know if I find anything.”

Nancy grabbed her bag off the table and ran out of The Historical Society. Her phone clutched in her hand, she dialled her home number. Carson didn’t answer after the first or second ring and the worry began to build in Nancy until her stomach ached. When he did pick up on the third ring he could hear him talking to someone in the background. Ryan she presumed.

“Did you happen to touch the spool? The one I knocked off the counter this morning.”

“Hello to you too,” Carson replied sarcastically. He covered the receiver but she could still make out him saying “It’s Nancy.” to Ryan. They had a snippet of a side conversation and then she could hear the sound of the speakerphone being turned on.

This wasn’t the time for the speakerphone.

“What were you saying?” Carson asked and Nancy repeated herself. “I kicked it off the stairs by accident, picked it up and put it on the kitchen counter. Is this important for something sleuthing-related?”

“I’ll get back to you on that,” Nancy said, putting an end to that line of conversation. She decided to change her tactic to avoid his growing suspicion. “Hey, by the way, how’s your hand?”

“Same as the last time you asked.”

“Alright then, I’ll see you soon.”

“You’re coming home?”

“Yeah, I’ve had a long day.” Nancy ended the call and dropped her phone into her pocket. She slowed her pace, suddenly feeling weak and dizzy. Her worry catching up to her.

She had nothing to worry about. Her dad was fine. Good even, he seemed to enjoy having Ryan around. Maybe she was wrong about this lead and the spool hadn’t caused the infection. But that still brought to mind why she had found it in her pocket. Nancy caught herself itching her finger over the bandage as she thought this over. The wound had begun leaking through the bandages again and she stopped her itching.

Suddenly her phone began ringing and she took it back out to answer the call.

“Hello?”

“Nancy,” it was Nick who answered the phone, “you have to return to The Claw ASAP.”

“Why? What’s going on?”

There was a shuffling as the phone was passed between hands. Now it was George’s voice on the other end. “It’s Ace, he’s caught whatever weird finger fungus you have.”

No, this was definitely the spool.

🔎

Nancy got back to The Claw in record time. Although it was not yet eight o’clock the restaurant was empty of patrons and only Nick and George could be seen in the dining area.

“They’re in the back,” Nick called as soon as Nancy passed through The Claw’s doors.

Ace was sitting on the bench, Bess knelt in front of him pressing a damp cloth to his face. “Oh, Nancy, you’re back!” She exclaimed once she saw her.

Ace turned. He was pale, too pale, showing off dark bags under his eyes and a sheen of sweat glistened on his skin, soaking through his clothes. And, his pinky was just as green and goopy as hers was. Despite this, he smiled at the sight of her. Nancy threw her bag to the side and knelt beside Bess.

“I’ll give you two some time alone,” Bess said, handing Nancy the wet cloth, then she exited the backroom.

Her phone then decided to ring. She snuck a look at the caller ID. “It’s Hannah.” She said to Ace. “I should take it.” Getting to her feet she walked a few paces away to take the call.

“I was looking through my photocopies of the Women in White’s spellbook,” Hannah explained after Nancy accepted the call, “and found a spell similar to this red string of fate curse.”

“This isn’t exactly the Women in White’s MO.” The moment she voiced it she knew. “It’s Temperance’s.”

“I was thinking the same thing. She’s changed the spell in some way. To only hex those who haven’t found or confessed to their destined partner. If they have it shows up only as a red mark around their pinky, no infection.”

The red mark showed her dad had met his soulmate, her mom, and even though she was gone she was still his soulmate.

“The bad news does remain the same,” Hannah continued, “when the infection gets to the heart both destined partners die.”

Nancy swallowed hard and looked back at Ace. He was looking back at her. This time when they shared a long moment of eye contact she didn’t avert her eyes. Her heart pounded. “Is there a cure?” Nancy felt her voice crack on the final word.

“Nothing that I’ve found yet, but I’ll keep looking.”

There was no discernable cure. Ace was running out of time. And, because this curse had connected the two of them, so was she.

Nancy thanked Hannah and hung up, gravitating back to Ace, and sitting by his side. She entwined her hands with his cold, clammy ones. Not caring how the goop squelched between their fingers. It had made her feel better when she was at her worst when they were unattaching the wraith from feeding on her life force, and she wanted to show the same compassion to him. The longer they sat there, the worse her symptoms got until she was the same feverish mess that he was.

She held his hand as tight as she could, ignoring all the butterflies fluttering inside her. “This is my fault,” Ace parted his chapped lips to protest but Nancy silenced him. “No, that’s the truth.”

This reminded her of what Hannah had told her back at The Historical Society. Truth has power. Maybe confessing would lessen the curse.

She couldn’t look at him as she spoke instead looking over his shoulder as she recited a modified version of the script she had planned weeks previously. “In New York, I had this dreamscape experience with you at the bluffs. It was -- it was powerful and I felt things. For you. At first, I thought that it was the wraith manipulating how I felt but it wasn’t. I-- I know that now. And, I know you’re with Amanda and I don’t want to ruin that. And, right now I should be my first priority and put relationships on the backburner. And, I know this could risk everything we have, but, I needed -- I needed to tell you.”

Ace was silent, and he removed his hands from hers. Nancy was preparing herself for the worst, for Ace to say that he didn’t want to be friends with her anymore. That she should stay out of his and Amanda’s relationship. She frantically wiped at her eyes, trying to compose herself for what was coming.

“And, you don’t need to reciprocate. You’ve--you’ve become very special to me and I--I can’t lose you.”

“Nancy, slow down,” Nancy looked tearfully into his eyes, stopping her unconscious stream of thought, and he grabbed her hand again. Some of his colour had returned and the dark circles under his eyes weren’t as pronounced. “Amanda broke up with me.

Nancy gulped. “She did what now?” She hadn’t expected this.

“She said I wasn’t all in. And, she’s right. I’m not. So, she stayed behind in Portland.” Ace squeezed their conjoined hands. “And, you’re right too. Your first priority should be yourself right now. You shouldn’t be jumping into a relationship with me or anyone else until you're ready. But, I’m always going to be by your side. Nothing will change that.”

A sudden green smoke filled the room making Nancy and Ace cough. When enough smoke cleared away, and they were able to get a good look at each other, Nancy noticed Ace’s pinky had healed, good as new, and quickly removed her bandages. Except for the line of scratches, it was as if nothing had happened in the first place.

George, Nick, and Bess rushed into the back room, waving the smoke away with their hands that was drifting towards them as it drifted to the kitchen windows.

“What the hell is going on back here?” George said, “We smelled smoke.”

“It’s the tail-end of Temperance’s soulmate curse,” Nancy responded.

When each of her friends looked back at her with confused and shocked expressions she unclasped her hands from Ace’s and stood to face her friends. She had another truth to reveal.

“Temperance is back. She used my blood from her machine to return. Now, she’s somewhere in Horseshoe Bay. Waiting. Trying to learn about me. About us. About this town. So she can destroy it.”

“So, what’s the plan?” Ace said, coming up to join her. “How are we going to kick this bitch out of our house?”

Nancy smiled at him.

Maybe there was something about this soulmate thing after all.

#Nace #Nancy Drew CW #Nace fanfiction #ndcentral #ahhhh my first Nancy Drew fic #I hope this is good and that people like it

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echo-hiraeth · 4 years ago

Text

Phasmophobia - Marcus Moreno x F!Reader

Summary: Marcus is dating a streamer and finally gets to join in on the fun. Though he isn’t exactly prepared for what’s about to go down.

Warnings: Use of profanity, mentions of the paranormal, mainly fluff

Masterlist

Dating a heroic would bring an array of changes for most people, but being a successful streamer had made you somewhat familiar with the public eye. Not that you were anywhere near as famous as he was, but you were well-off, a couple million followers under your wing. The public was well aware of your successful relationship and Marcus Moreno making showing off his new fiancée was hot news for about a week.

Since the announcement you’d been getting spammed with requests to bring him on for your stream and you finally caved. One of the people that kept nagging about it was Marcus himself, he loved watching you and wanted nothing more than to be a part of it. So eventually, you’d agreed, declaring to your following that he’d be joining you for a special Halloween stream to play some horror games with you.

Tonight was the night and Marcus had been nervously pacing around all day, picking out a new outfit every ten minutes. “Oh my God will you just sit down and eat your dinner!”, you interrupted him.

He walked over to where you were sitting, plopping down on the chair with a heavy sigh. “What if I suck? What if they don’t like me?”

“I like you, I love you even, isn’t that enough?”, you asked, touching your foot to his under the table.

He stuffed a fork full of spaghetti in his mouth. “I mean yeah, but this is important to me! This is my big debut as your sidekick.”

You started laughing, nearly choking on your food. “Okay, okay, well, I’ll go set up and do my make-up, why don’t you get ready?”

You went over your set-up once again, making sure the two computers were running smoothly before walking into your shared bathroom. The make-up you wore for your streams was simple, just some bb-cream, mascara and light eyeliner, but for today, seeing how it was Halloween-themed you’d do some more. You had prepared a little outfit, with the top that Marcus enjoyed so much. You put on a deep crimson lipstick and executed the perfect smoky-eye with different shades of brown.

Unknown to your fiancé, you’d set up some surprises for him, one of those including new options for your followers to spend their channel points on. One of these included a “kiss” and “hug” choice. You’d filled Marcus in on the schedule, some “just chatting” followed up by a couple rounds of “Phasmophobia”. The new and immensely popular game was based on a ghost hunting concept. You had invited two of your streamer friends to join the both of you, which they gladly accepted.

“Honey?”, you called out, immediately hearing the footsteps trail up the stairs. “Are you almost done?”

“Hey, this look okay?”, he asked, gesturing towards his little button-up shirt.

You huffed out a breathy laugh, giving him a set of nods. “You could’ve just worn a t-shirt, baby, no need to get all dolled up.”

“Says you”, he cooed, wrapping his arms around your waist. “Do you really have to wear that top?”

“Yes! It is a very necessary requirement, now go get settled, we start in five minutes.”

He was so nervous that it was showstoppingly adorable. The way he softly asked you if he looked okay, if his equipment was good to go, it was plain endearing. After checking another last time you finally pressed the “go live” button. The chat was immediately filled with eager followers, telling you hello and asking a plethora of questions. Marcus introduced himself and the view count jumped up by hundreds, if not thousands in mere seconds.

“So you guys, Marcus was so kind to join us today! Let’s give him some love in the chat, because he’ll need it”, you announced, putting an arm around him.

He quirked a brow at you. “What do you mean?”

“Weeeeeell, let’s just say that I quickly tried out the game for myself last night and that it’s definitely not your cup of tea.”

“Are you calling me a wimp?”, he asked, eyes narrowed.

You smiled into the camera before facing him again. “Perhaps.”

“Oh, you’re gonna regret that.”

Your “just chatting” was really more of a q&a session, keeping you there for just under an hour. Most of the questions were about the two of you, seeing how neither of you really had been interviewed as of late due to the ongoing pandemic. You were happy to answer most of them, refraining from the ones that were a tad bit too personal for both of your liking. The channel points had been well spent tonight, landing Marcus kiss after kiss after kiss, to a point where you decided to disable the option for a bit.

“Alright, Marcus will retreat to his own little corner and we can get started on some games”, you stated, switching your overlay around. The main screen was your game capture though you also had both your and Marcus’ cameras on display, along with the chat box and a subscription goal.

“What’s the game again?” he asked.

“Phasmophobia. The premise of the game is basically that you and your friends go to this haunted location where you’re supposed to investigate what kind of ghost it is. But the ghost can enter a ‘hunting’ mode and grab your butt, which is absolutely terrifying”, you explained, setting up your game and inviting your friends to join in.

The first few games were just all of you messing about while trying to figure out the controls and such. Until you heard a scream coming from Marcus. You spun around in your chair, doubling over in laughter as he was screaming at his screen, getting chased by some ghost in the game.

“Back off demon bitch! UNHAND MEEEEEE”, he yelled, slamming the keys on his keyboard. “Honey, open the door! I’m not playing around, open the damn door! Open the do-“, he cut himself off with another high-pitched scream, throwing his headphones off.

You nearly fell off your chair, quickly looking at your own stream to see him get caught and die in-game just in time. “Marcus nooooo!”

“I died? No way, what the hell am I supposed to do now?”, he asked with a pout.

You were wiping at your eyes, seeing how you started tearing up a bit from laughter. “Oh my God, somebody clip that PLEASE! I need to see that again”, you giggled.

He stood up from his chair, coming over to your to wrap his arms around you. “I thought you were going to protect me.”

“I’m sorry baby, do you want to sit with me for a bit?”, you suggested, pressing a kiss to his upper arm.

“You’re right, this isn’t the game for me, my old heart can’t take it”, he mumbled, dragging his chair over to sit down next to you.

“We’ll invite someone else to take your spot, until then you and I can work it out together”, you offered, finishing with a peck to his pouty lips.

“I like the sound of that”, he confessed, slipping an arm around your waist. “My fiancée is a badass after all.”

#marcus moreno x reader #marcus moreno #pedro pascal #imagine #we can be heroes

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otterplusharchive · 4 years ago

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rey! do you have any recs for kdramas? i have never watched any, but i like lovable characters and romance ? thank you in advance!

I DO IN FACT HAVE DRAMA RECS HII not all of these will be kdramas, but ill start with the kdramas ive watched and enjoyed and ill include all the warnings for them that i can remember off the top of my head and a brief synopsis for u!

kdramas-

1. weight lifting fairy kim bok joo

this was probably one of the first kdramas i saw people post about in like 2015 and i watched a little bit of it in 2016 but then only just got around to finishing it last year. the basic gist of it is its about a young sports college weight lifter, kim bok joo, centering around her navigating through her life and trying to figure out who she is and what she wants in life and what she wants to be. her romantic interest in the show is a swimmer and they have a sort of rivals to friends to lovers, he is SO in love with her and its adorable. i absolutely loved the side characters in this show theyre all so fun and kim bok joos best friends and weight lifting team are especially delightful. my main warning would be that this show addresses eating disorders and theres a lot of mention of both weight gain and weight loss, theres also a plot point early on where kim bok joo has a crush on her eventual love interests older brother but it gets resolved and the older brother literally goes "i didnt realize you had a crush on me and if i knew that i wouldnt have been so friendly with you, it would be completely innapropriate for us to be in a relationship". overall its a really sweet and emotional fun show but if you have issues with weight talk id skip this one

2. tale of the nine tailed

this one is really recent from last year and i didnt expect to be so hooked by it but boy howdy did i get attached to all the characters and the wild plot. it feels hard to explain the plot but basically a nine tailed fox named lee yeon is living in modern day seoul and is working for the underworld finding paranormal spirits/creatures/other rogue foxes that are causing havoc on the world, hes resigned himself to living this life while waiting for his girlfriend who died tragically 600 years ago to come back to life because he traded his status as a mountain god in order to ensure that her soul would one day be reincarnated. a plucky investigative journalist named nam ji ah figures out that hes not human and shenanagins ensue because she looks exactly like his dead girlfriend oooooo whatll happen. the plot beyond that gets really wild and its hard to explain and is easier to just watch. if u enjoy paranormal adventures this one is good. my one big complaint and issue with this is that the immortal mountain spirit meets his original girlfriend when shes a child and she continues to visit him off and on as she grows up which is Hm I Dont Like That! but thankfully the present time romance our female lead meets him when shes about 30 if im remembering right. also warnings for general fantasy violence, references to child abuse, animal death, and abandonment issues

3. extraordinary you

HUGE unreality warning for this. if you have issues with feeling unreal or have paranoia/delusions about not being a real person id avoid this one just because of its premise

ok i know i said tale of the nine tailed was a hard plot to explain but BOY extraordinary you is even HARDER to explain. because its so wild but so good. its about a girl who realizes that she is literally a side character in a comic book, and the story becomes her trying to change the story to save her character from dying but it becomes a lot more than that. the romance in this is literally tooth achingly sweet and the show itself is very pretty, i loved the side characters in this one and the show was engaging and interesting to watch it became really layered and meta. super reccomend this one honestly. my main issues/warnings that i can remember off the top of my head were just one character being the classic controlling boyfriend stereotype, bullying someone specifically for being poor, unreality like i mentioned before, and then at the very end there was this love interest for a side character who got reincarnated from a past piece of writing that they had been in and put in the comic but she was a student and he was the school cook which is weird but thankfully they like barely interact at all and theres no real romance he just like recognizes her and its barely a thing at the end of the show but its still weird

4. mystic pop up bar

big warning for suicide, sexual harrasment (which is framed as being bad and the guy whos harrassing the girl literally gets thrown off a roof)

i havent finished this one yet and thats mainly because im not emotionally ready because this one makes me soooo emotional. if you like found family this is a good one. its about a pop up bar run by a woman whos been tasked with solving the problems of a certain amount of people in order to atone for her crimes in the past before dying, shes able to enter the dreams of people and solve their issues using the information she gets in the dreams. paranormal shenanagins ensue, she acquires a son and a husband and it kills me its so fun and quirky and fun despite handling dark themes and peoples problems. also very sweet the found family murders me

5. kingdom (netflix original)

i literally am not going to be able to watch any other zombie media because kingdom and train to busan are the best pieces of zombie media ive ever seen. warnings for gore and violence and just general horror aspects.

i absolutely love this one its so thrilling and well done, i love the acting and the way that this show looks its absolutely gorgeous. a zombie plague breaks out in joseon period korea where the emperor has died and then was brought back to life by the queen and her father in a ploy to try and keep their family in political power, the crown prince must find answers. a lot more happens and its very dramatic and good i love the characters in this one

cdramas

1. the untamed. if you follow me and you havent watched the untamed im begging you to watch the untamed. literally one of the most beautiful stories ive experienced in my life i am not joking when i say i cried multiple times over it. the main characters are canonically gay in love and have a son together please watch the untamed. handles a lot of dark themes, heres a tw guide

2. the sleuth of the ming dynasty

this is another one i havent finished but its fun so far, very gay, found family, food, and solving murder mysteries during the ming dynasty

3. hikaru no go (also known as qi hun)

havent finished this one, there is some propaganda about hong kong in the first episode but as far as i know thats the only instance of something like that in the show

this ones about the game go and so far its very sweet and fun, local boy awakens a ghost who was a master of the game of go hundreds of years ago and eventually is persuaded to learn how to play go with the aid of the ghost. im really liking this one so far its very cute and i love the characters in it. if youve watched the untamed nie huaisangs actor ji li is in this one!

4. the legend of yunqian

this ones very short and on youtube, all the episodes are about 5 minutes long and its a lesbian time travel fantasy adventure with a happy ending! funny and cute

jdramas

1. cherry magic

please please please watch cherry magic. the premise sounds very much like a weird yaoi kind of thing but trust me on this. trust me. it is so heart warming and sweet and i was so emotional about it and the growth of the main character.

adachi gains the power to read peoples minds on his 30th birthday based off a urban legend that if youre a 30 year old virgin that youll become a wizard. after gaining this power he accidentally finds out that his extremely popular and handsome coworker has a crush on him, and shenanagins ensue along with adachi having blossoming feelings in return. this show was really refreshing in a lot of ways, adachi is a main character who like.. is unsure of himself and insecure in a very kind of realistic way, he closes himself off and is afraid to reach out to people and through the course of the show we see him slowly come out of his shell and realize that hes likeable and lovable and that people want to be around him and its so nice to see. my main complaint about this show is that i dont really like the background couple, but otherwise this is a very sweet and refreshing gay romance that has a happy ending!

some others that i myself havent seen but that ive seen people talk about a lot and that i want to watch eventually:

- the legend of fei (cdrama)

- the wolf (cdrama)

- gaurdian (cdrama, not the kdrama one called goblin)

- healer (kdrama, i did watch some of this one but it was in 2016 and i never finished it so i barely remember any of it but i do remember liking it)

- nobody knows (kdrama)

- its ok to not be ok (kdrama)

sorry this is so long but i hope youll be able to find a drama u enjoy!!

#long post

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imagine-organization-xiii · 4 years ago

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Ideal Halloween themed dates for each organization member? 🎃

This was amazingly done by Sam last night while I was suffering from the hurricane in a blackout. AND GUESS WHO WAS FORCED TO WORK WHEN SHE SHOULD BE AT HOME HELPING CLEAN UP THE YARD UGH

Xemnas - Go for a late-night walk in the cemetery - Is it totally creepy at night? Yes. Do you both love it? Absolutely! There’s something special in the air on halloween night, maybe it was wayward spirits or the sense of mischief in the air, but whatever it is, it’s positively enthralling. The two of you walk amongst the graves, basking in the brightness of the moonlight and talking of your plans for the future. Hearing Xemnas talk of his goals is one of the many reasons you fell in love with him in the first place, after all. And if that weren’t good enough, the superior even takes a little extra time to surprise you with a small picnic set up under an old willow tree. There, the two of you eat lit only by a single candle and the full moon, until you decide to lay down and look at the sky until your eyes grow heavy.

Xigbar - Watch a Scary Movie at the Drive-In! - Xigbar likes to think of himself as a cool guy, and what would be cooler than picking up his sweetheart and taking them to scary movies at the drive-in? Watching a scary flick on the big screen is fun, but what’s even better is you holding him close to you when you are scared!! Score!! And when the movie is over, Xigbar might drive you both up to “make-out point” and well.. You know.. Best not hope there aren’t any psycho killers in the woods that night!!! You don’t want to end up in the sequel!

Xaldin - Build a Fire and Tell Ghost Stories - Camping out in the woods on Halloween night? Most people would say that doing so would be a terrible idea. BUT NOT YOU AND XALDIN! Camping on a cool fall night like Halloween is an absolute dream, and the two of you have the entire night to yourselves with no one else to bother you. Curled up together in front of the warm fire, now the real fun begins. You start to pass around your flashlight, telling stories and doing your best to scare the other until the end of the night when you are too scared to sleep alone. You curl up in Xaldin’s sleeping bag, resting your head on his shoulder as you ask him to protect you. You can literally feel his pride swell as you curl into him, as he longs to to protect you from what bumps in the night.

Vexen - Set Up Your Own Haunted House - Well, At first, Vexen didn’t feel that Halloween was a good enough excuse to be leaving his lab, so in your stubbornness, you decided to bring Halloween to him. You proceeded to sneak into the lab during the few hours that Vexen was not around, covering the walls in countless halloween decorations. Needless to day, Vexen was not particularly pleased at first at your redecoration. In fact he was furious. But as the day went one and he watched all of his fellow organization members coming to see ‘the haunted lab’, he couldn't help but see how happy scaring your fellow members was making you. And by the end of the night, he may or may not have stolen some of your fake blood and scared Demyx so badly he nearly soiled his trousers. Maybe taking a day off for Halloween wasn’t so bad after all.

Lexaeus - Make Decorated Halloween Cookies - Ohhh!!!! Baking is one of your favorite shared activities, and making fun halloween shapes is an absolute blast! You started with a basic sugar, something fun and easy, making shapes like ghosts and pumpkins! Working with Royal icing for the first time was a bit of a challenge, but you were able to figure it out after a few less than perfect tests. More and more cookies go into the oven, the warm smells drawing in everyone in the castle at least once to see where the aromas came from. By the end of the night, you are both covered in flower and grinning ear to ear as everyone has a taste of your treats!

Zexion - Have a horror movie marathon - Curled up in the dark Room, Zexion waited for you. The table was covered with candles and snack foods of all sorts. Neither of you were huge movie buffs, but after weeks of being hounded by the other members to watch a series of movies you hadn’t even heard of before, you eventually caved into trying something new. At first, you started with a classic slasher fic, you know.. With the teenagers having sex and then WHAM serial killer. You didn’t need to know horror movies to know how it would go, but you still jumped and clung to Zexion as hard as you could. The more and more movies you played, you became comfortable and snuggled close under the blankets with Zexion. Eventually, his hands started to wander, either uninterested by the film or simply unable to resist you. Either way, you didn’t pay much to the movies after that.

Saix - Get Spooked at a Haunted House - At first you thought it would be a great idea to go to a haunted house with your sweetheart, though Saix didn’t seem to agree. At first it was smooth sailing, walking through the house and jumping at the occasional spider prop or ghost puppet, until the first performer came through. The man wielded a chainsaw and charged your way, earning a squeal from you. Saix immediately moved to defend you, and in doing so, looked so intense that the chainsaw wielding man stopped in his tracks. “Woah, dude! You’re terrifying dude! Who did your makeup? Hey, Charlie! Get in here!!” in a matter of minutes, half of the cast of this haunted house, zombies and spirits alike, were in the room with you, complimenting how absolutely terrifying your boyfriend looked. And While he seemed unamused at their gawking, you could swear you saw a little smirk on his lips. Definitely not what you expected, but this certainly was a fun night of surprises!

Axel - Do a Late-Night Corn Maze! - Because who doesn’t love getting lost in the dark! No for real though, you thought you wouldn’t like the maze, but with every step, you and Axel had lots of fun! He even brought some flashlights and snacks to enjoy along the walk! Though as you walk farther along the trail, Axel decides it’s the perfect moment to regale you with a story, one about a couple that got lost on this very trail. It’s a good story, and you know he is trying to scare you but it won’t work until-- What was that??? You turn around and look for the source of the sound, but as soon as you turn back-- GOTCHA!! You scream. Loud. And all you can hear is Axel’s piercing laughter. Oh he got you good. You give him a punch in the arm, perhaps a little too hard. This maze wasn’t over yet and you were determined to get him back.

Demyx - Carve Pumpkins! - Man, trusting Demyx with a knife worried you at first, but every step was a barrel of fun! Scooping out the pumpkin was really messy and watching Demyx scream as he stuck his arm inside his pumpkin was an absolute riot. Pumpkin guts got everywhere, and then you had to CARVE the thing! Demyx quickly grew tired of actually carving his pumpkin, and simply drew a smiley face on the outside with a sharpie, but upon seeing the pumpkin you carved, he is utterly FLOORED. Suddenly, he is lifting the gourd up and carrying it around the castle, so proud of your work and bragging it to everyone in the castle!

Luxord - Take a Haunted Ghost Tour - A lot of “haunted” cities have these, but they are essentially a night of visiting actual haunted sites like houses and graveyards accompanied by a guide! And while you might not see any paranormal activity on your tour, hearing the tales of each stop is absolutely fascinating! And while this isn’t a ‘traditional’ halloween date, you and Luxord have a terribly good time learning! Though Luxord having a canteen of hot cider and a hip flask of bourbon definitely helped.

Marluxia - Plan or make your own Halloween costumes! - If ANYONE loves a good dressing up, it’s Marluxia! After one very LONG trip to the costume store to buy accessories, the entire night became a movie style makeover montage! Each of you pulled clothes out from your closet and box of accessories to make as many original looks as possible, doing each other's makeup and playing some fun spooky songs in the background! It was a total blast!! And when you’re both tucked out from your costume adventure, you both curl up in your most comfortable looks and watch as many episodes of The X-Files as you can before falling asleep in bed.

Larxene - Go Apple Picking - At first, Larxene wasn’t extremely interested in apple picking, saying that it was a lot of hiking for some heavy apples, but something about dressing in matching flannels and seeing how much there was to do seemed to change her mind. After picking a good amount of apples, (And Larxene showing up any dude that was trying to pick apples by zapping them out of trees) the two of you decided to hit up the small festival outside of the orchard. Among the stalls there were different kinds of foods and drinks for sale which you tried and loved! You never were able to eat all of the apples you picked, but eventually shared them with the rest of the organization so that they didn’t go bad.

Roxas - Celebrate Mischief Night! - You didn’t know about mischief night until Axel and Roxas told you about it, but apparently it is the night when the youths of twilight town ran amuck with pranks of all sorts! And how could you say no to that! At first the two of you started in twilight town, joining with the other children as they draw on the streets and egg houses. The adrenalin filled you as you ran from angry store clerks and fled in the woods. There was no way they would find you now. But as you walked through the woods, it became painfully apparent that you were becoming lost, until you and Roxas came across a large mansion in the woods. You could stay there until morning to go home, but the mischievous glint in Roxas’s eye begged to differ. Suddenly your rolls of toilet paper were flying as you TP’d the mansion with sniper-like accuracy. It was so fun you nearly fell over in laughter before opening a portal back home, leaving the mysterious mansion behind. As you left, you wondered what it held, but knew that you would probably never know.

Xion - Go Trick or Treating! - Are you two a little old for trick-or-treating? Maybe so, but it is so much fun to dress up in fun costumes and collect candy! Xion is so small and cute, no one would raise any questions as to if she were too old or not. And after a whole evening of running from house to house, collecting so much candy that your pillowcases are full, you both retire back home to curl up together, watch a spooky movie, and trade candy all night! (Or until she falls asleep next to you!)

#organization xiii headcanons #holiday headcanons #halloween headcanons #image headcanon #kingdom hearts headcanon

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onthevirgeofdestruction · 4 years ago

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Tied in Green

Words: 5,858 Content Warnings: Food, Lonliness, Magical S//H in a weird way? Characters: Remus (POV), Roman, Virgil Ships: Dukexiety Rating: T Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort

FFN Mirror - Playlist

Remus isn’t ashamed of himself. He agrees that sometimes he doesn’t like the things that suck him in. The things that he can’t get out of his head and make him feel horrible for even thinking. Those things upset him, too. But ultimately, he’s not ashamed of who he is or what he likes. But he’s pretty certain everyone else is.

He doesn’t keep friends for very long. His mom pushes him aside more often than not. Remus can be himself in private, but not here, she says. It’s what she always says. People will laugh at his jokes in school, but they never actually want to hang out. Remus is alone again, listening to his brother and friends laugh in the other room. They sound like they’re having fun and he’s jealous. But he knows better than to ask to join. He would do something to ruin it for Roman, anyway. Remus knocked twice at his desk.

Roman gets all awkward and weird and it’s clearly just a pity invite even if Remus did ask to join. They don’t make fun of him, but there’s not much of an effort to include him either. Roman and his friends don’t let him in on inside jokes, don’t ask his opinions, and sometimes talked like he’s not there. They acknowledge him if he talks, but that’s it. Remus doesn’t get included, which hurts more than sitting alone, sometimes.

Remus only wanted to spend time with his brother. His friends are always over and Remus never has the chance anymore. He’s too busy with his homework when they’re not over. He missed Roman. And Remus couldn’t deny that it hurt that Roman always seemed to make time for his friends, but never for Remus.

They used to be inseparable. His mom used to joke that they were twins because Remus never acted his age and they looked so alike. They weren’t supposed to grow apart. When they were kids, they planned on having adventures together. But this was the third time this week alone that Remus is stuck listening to Roman playfully bicker with his friends the next room over.

The headphones weren’t enough sometimes, and tonight was one of those times. Remus sighed and dropped his computer headphones on his desk. He wasn’t paying any attention to this book, anyway. They were playing a four-player game with three players and kept lamenting that the game was too hard. But they never asked him to join. He kept hoping they would. He considered just going over and inviting himself, but he didn’t feel like being pitied today. And what if he said something? What if he did something? Remus rapped his knuckle on the desk again.

Remus slipped on his boots and a windbreaker and headed out of his room, glancing into Roman’s open door as he passed. They were laughing at a TV show together. He headed down the stairs with a sigh. “I’m going for a walk, ma,” Remus called into his mother’s office as he passed and she held her finger over her lips while she was on the phone. Right. Remus headed out the front door and locked up behind himself.

The fall night was enchanting. It was somewhat chilly for a windbreaker, but Remus welcomed it. Remus enjoyed having sleeves to play with, so he liked fall and winter. This windbreaker has a zipper on the cuff that Remus fiddled with while he walked down the street. He didn’t have anywhere in mind to go, honestly. He just wanted to get out of there. It didn’t feel right.

He could go to the corner store that was near his house that had a great selection of weird gummy candies. He could also go for some pizza-flavoured chips. This was a stomach ache waiting to happen, but Remus wasn’t exactly known for self-control. He was known for taking dares from strangers and getting suspended for scaling the wall of the school just to see if he could.

He kicked at an acorn as he walked down the sidewalk with his hands in his pockets. He was going to eat an entire package of pizza chips and he knew it. And they always made his breath smell like throw up, which Remus thought was incredibly cool that the flavourings could taste so good and smell so bad as soon as they got wet.

No one else liked his pizza-chip breath, though. Actually, he was the only one he knew who liked those pizza chips. Sour cream and onion sounded good, too. He liked to eat them with the pizza chips. If you got the right brands of chips, it was like eating pizza and ranch. His mom might get mad at him for just leaving to buy snacks at the corner store, so he’d need a way to hide the bag from her.

Remus wished he knew how to reign himself in, he honestly did. He was always running his mouth and getting himself in trouble before he even knew what was happening. He knew he could be unpleasant, too. And he was worried about what he was capable of. Remus had some bad thoughts and dark knowledge and he didn’t want to act on them, but they were there. He knew how to do lots of bad things. In a weak moment he could, right? He didn’t want to… but…

He tried his hardest, but he wasn’t soft and cuddly. Roman’s friend Patton was sweet and nice and Remus would give anything just to sit with him and watch a movie sometime. Patton talked through movies, too. They could whisper to each other and split a bowl of popcorn. It would be amazing. Patton smelled like fabric softener and made Remus feel bubbly with delight.

But Remus unsettled Patton. He was too nice to say it, but Roman asked him to dial it back for Patton’s sake more than once. Logan at least was interested when Remus brought up interesting things that popped into his head. But Remus had seen Patton recoil before. And Roman would sigh and roll his eyes and tell Remus that they shouldn’t talk about that. Patton would apologize sometimes.

That generally made Remus feel worse because it’s not like he intended to freak out Patton, but it wasn’t Patton’s fault for not liking the subject matter, either. They just came out of Remus’s mouth and it was his inability to not run his mouth that was the cause. Remus pulled at the zipper a few times, feeling bad all over again for it. It had been a while since Remus’s last fuck up with Patton, but Remus never forgot. He knew he should stop pining pointlessly.

Someone was coming up on the sidewalk drew Remus’s eye and out of his self-pity pit. It looked like there was a fellow weirdo out tonight. Someone in a stylistic fox mask and a trench coat was coming down towards Remus on the sidewalk from over the small hill Remus had to walk up to get to the corner store. The outfit reminded Remus of a comic book villain. Actually, if they flipped the fox mask for a kabuki one, they’d basically be Yokai from Big Hero Six. Remus wondered what a cosplayer or whatever was doing on a nighttime walk, and also if Remus could join them. Remus had a mostly put-together Deathstroke cosplay in his closet he could go put on.

“Hey, can I ask what the costume is? It looks great,” Remus waved when he got close enough for the stranger to hear.

“Thanks, but this is just me,” The stranger shrugged, walking up to Remus. “How would you like to be someone else, though?” The stranger asked out of absolutely nowhere.

“I’d give anything,” Remus replied before he even considered it.

“Even your soul?” The stranger asked, and Remus stopped to weigh his options. What was Remus doing with his soul, anyway? “I kid, you don’t actually have to think about that,” The stranger chuckled out a deep rattling noise that shook their whole torso while they shook their head. “Nothing so permanent. How about some time?” They offered again, an amused smile barely peeking out from under the mask.

“Like sitting through a seminar or something?” Remus asked, shifting his weight on his feet and furrowing his eyebrows.

“No, that’s so dreadfully boring. Just a bit off the end for as long as you use what I’m offering. It’s a very fair trade,” They reassured him dismissively. This was red flag central for some grade-A weird, dangerous shit. Awesome. Not awesome? Remus wasn’t sure. He still wanted to be someone else.

“Oh, is this some deal with the devil shit?” Remus hummed curiously, still not sure how to parse this situation.

“No, no. Not affiliated. Just someone that gets called the devil often. I’m sure you can relate,” The masked stranger waved their hands.

“Boy, do I ever,” Remus agreed and crossed his arms. Remus’s stupid suggestions often got him in the hot seat. Not that he didn’t deserve it, but… “The exact amount of time? Not some stupid equation where I’m getting screwed like a prom date?” Remus did the smart thing and double-check for once instead of his impulsiveness taking the wheel.

“Damn, who are you dealing with usually? No, the exact amount of time. Second per second off the natural lifespan. If you started taking better care of yourself, you’d barely lose a thing,” They shrugged, speaking as if they didn’t understand the distrust.

“What’s in it for you?” Remus furrowed his eyebrows at the masked stranger, tapping his finger on his crossed arms.

“I get the time and the entertainment value of it all. The paranormal gets boring without doing this kind of thing every once in a while,” The stranger twisted their hand in the air and leaned on one leg. They put their hand on their hip and looked Remus up and down.

Remus was still suspicious about the whole thing. Something-something and deals with the fae? Not that this looked like a fairy or anything. Actually, how would Remus know how to identify the fae? The fae could look like anything, and Remus doesn’t have any iron on him.

“Iron does nothing to me, anyway. Soft and cuddly, right? Something Patton would like? I’ve got just the thing,” They held up a finger and a bright green ribbon materialized around it.

“Ah, didn’t realize you were listening,” Remus chuckled to himself. The stranger clearly knew what Remus wanted. He hoped that was the only thing they heard, though. “You know what, fuck me up, fam,” Remus declared, holding up his hand in the air triumphantly. The ribbon appeared in Remus’s hand and he gripped it enthusiastically.

“Just tie it onto yourself. Take it off to be human again, so put it somewhere easy to reach. And if it goes more than a small distance from you, it’ll show up in your hand again. This is only yours, so don’t bother trying to use it on someone else or giving it away. It’ll never work. If you try to show it off, it also won’t work, because that’s a fucking headache. You’ll have to change somewhere private. Have fun and try not to get yourself killed, please. That sucks for the both of us,” They sounded delighted while Remus looked at the silky ribbon. It was a bright green, like fresh leaves in spring and not subtle at all. Exactly his style. Remus shoved the ribbon in his pocket and bowed deeply, twisting his hand in front of him and stepping one leg to the side.

“So what does it do?” Remus asked, looking up to the masked stranger from his bow. They had lifted their mask just enough for Remus to make out a sharp-toothed grin as they faded from existence. Well, that was delightfully creepy. “Oh, points for style,” Remus hummed, and he made out the faintest deep cackle that also faded away.

What a nice… whatever that was. Mysterious entities that could read thoughts and create things from nothing were good in Remus’s book. He felt the ribbon between his fingers in his pocket. It felt pleasantly warm. He could find out what it did by putting it on. But this probably wasn’t private enough to use it. He was out in the open. Maybe it only mattered if people were looking at him? Well, he still had his chip-acquisition duty to get to.

Remus resumed his walk down the street. He couldn’t have anticipated a depression walk resulting in a deal with a demon or whatever, but it certainly was a better outcome than usual. He continued to feel the toasty ribbon in his pocket as he walked down the road. The possibilities filled his mind as he trekked on. Soft and cuddly, huh? Another Patton? That would be weird. A bear? Bears probably aren’t cuddly for very long. Remus would love to be a bear, though. Remus, but capable of fighting his impulsiveness? Unrealistic, even for magic.

Were there… weird magic people always listening to his thoughts? He really hoped not. Remus had some awful thoughts. Terrible, horrible, sickening thoughts. Thoughts he was always thankful that at least no one could hear. And someone heard. Magical beings probably wouldn’t listen all the time, right? If they were listening to all of his thoughts, they never would have talked with Remus. Or they would have treated Remus way worse. He also couldn’t imagine some weird magical entity wanting to listen to Remus thinking about what cooked stink bugs might smell like and what he would look like with a giraffe neck even when he wasn’t having shitty thoughts. Maybe they only listened out for random wishes. Was that a genie? No, there weren’t three wishes and the fox mask demon got something in return.

He should be more concerned about literally cutting his life short with a magic ribbon, but he wasn’t. Remus couldn’t think out that far. Every time he questioned if it was the right idea, he wondered what he got to turn into. It was something non-human, and it seemed like the random magic stranger didn’t like things that would make a big kerfuffle, so it was probably something that would blend in. It made the most sense with what they said. Unless it was all a trick, anyway.

Remus opened the convenience store door and made a bee-line to the snacks aisle. He grabbed some gummy brains and rats and examined the shelf for anything else. Candy moustaches? Sure, why not? Remus turned aisles to grab chips and headed up to the register, also tossing up a bottle of soda from a cooler near the register.

The cashier kept one eye on the TV while checking Remus out, not even acknowledging him. That was normal, at least. Remus waved after he picked up his bag of snacks, but the cashier was staunchly watching the TV again. He cracked open the bags of chips to snack on as he walked down the sidewalk, taking a handful of each flavour and shoving them all into his mouth at once.

It was a tasty combo. If Remus ate them down enough, he could roll the bags and make them easier to sneak past everyone, and since they were open, he’d have to eat them evenly, anyway. It was a win-win. Maybe not for Remus’s life span, but that was years out and Remus didn’t know how to even conceptualize that. He could start jogging or something. That’s healthy, right? Probably not enough to cancel out eating an entire bag’s worth of potato chips on the way home. But he already planned on doing that and just because he got a magic ribbon didn’t mean he needed to go changing his very important impulsive plans.

How did his lifespan work, anyway? Mm, chips. Remus decided he didn’t care. Was that an awful thought? Well, maybe as long as it was only Remus’s life span. It’s kind of like deciding to only eat fast food or something. He could ask the mysterious fox mask person if he ever saw them again, but otherwise, there wasn’t much else to do about it. He had more important things to do, like make sure he ate the same amount of chips from each bag.

The walk back to his house went much faster as Remus gorged himself on chips. He rolled up the remaining chips bags so they wouldn’t stick out of the shopping bag. Perfect, now he shouldn’t have to share if Roman saw and his mom won’t see and he won’t get in trouble. He still had a random grocery bag, but maybe luck would be on his side. He didn’t want to share any of this. It would throw off the balance of the bags.

The front door unlocked with a click and Remus stepped in, locking up behind himself. He glanced at the wall clock and realized the trip took a solid forty-five minutes longer than it should have. Does talking with weird demons warp time? He hoped he wasn’t in trouble. He could legally be out, but his mother didn’t like him wandering around at night getting in trouble. Remus walked down the hall, waving to his mom in the office. She didn’t even look up from her computer. What was she doing working that late, anyway?

Roman’s bedroom door was closed as he passed it. Remus sighed as he stepped into his bedroom and closed the door behind him. He had no reason to worry; it seemed. Nobody cared that he came home safe. Remus kicked off his shoes, which thudded on the floor, and dropped off the snacks bag on his desk.

Remus looked around the room and reached into his pocket. Well, it was the moment of truth. Did Remus hate being perceived in the manner he was so much he was willing to literally shorten his lifespan to be something else? He stared at the ribbon. Finding out what it was he could turn into would help him decide, right? This should be an important decision. Or something. He didn’t care anymore. Remus put his foot upon his desk chair and tied the ribbon into a bow on his ankle. As soon as the ribbons pulled into place, Remus felt overwhelmingly dizzy. Like he did a backflip into another dimension and out again.

His brain wasn’t working at first. There was so much new input he didn’t expect that it took him a moment to settle into even comprehending. Things were brighter and louder and stronger smelling. And… taller. Or he was significantly smaller. He did not know yet. Remus stumbled and fell over, reaching up for his head. There were no fingers, though, only a paw pad pressing into a damp nose. Huh. Remus closed his eyes and tried to get his bearings. He swore he had better senses and spatial awareness. Remus wobbled over to the floor-length mirror after he pulled himself up.

That was the largest cat he’d ever seen, staring back at him with bright spring-green eyes in the mirror. It was not a cat breed he’d recognized. He was thick with fluff and had tawny grey fur spotted with black tabby markings. Remus swished his tail and spun around, looking at himself before turning back to the mirror. A big fluffy cat certainly fit the bill. Remus wanted to pet himself, even.

Walking on all fours didn’t take any adjusting to after he gained his bearings, and there was no pile of clothes where he was, so magic must have been helping Remus to adjust. His tail was weirding him out, though. He could only control it if it consciously focused on it, but otherwise, it swished about without his input.

He licked his paw and ran it across the top of his head to make the big gray tuft there stick straight up. Other than being probably three times the size of his nana’s house cat, Remus was pretty cute. He sat on the floor and examined himself. He should turn back, right? No, he should check stuff out to help him decide. Remus headed around his room.

Things were bizarre at this height, but it was an interesting type of strange. Remus weaved under his desk chair and went under the desk. It was a nice hidey-hole as a cat. He disliked small spaces less; it was comfortable under here. He pushed his head on the corner of the desk and his eyes widened. Fuck, that feels nice. No wonder cats do it all the time. Remus pushed his head against the side of the desk a few more times.

Remus looked up at his loft bed. Could he get up there? Remus backed up across the room to get a running start and had to swerve to dodge the bed frame. Fuck, he was faster than he expected. He backed up to jump on top of his dresser instead and made it easily in a single leap. Remus primed himself for the wide gap at the edge of the dresser and bounded, landing easily in the middle of the bed. Wow, he could leap farther than he thought, too. It might have helped that he was big. He dug around in the sheets and curled up. Being a cat wasn’t the most fun possible choice when magic was involved, but he was loving every second of this.

He hopped down with silent ease off the bed and jumped up to work the knob. It took him multiple tries to grip it, but he got the door open and walked next door to Roman’s room. The door was closed, but that was no match for his monster kitty paws now that he knew the trick. Remus opened the door with ease and strutted into the bedroom. Roman was doing homework with his headphones on at the floor-height table. He bounced his knee while he sat bent over the textbook and his notebook, humming along to the music.

“Yeah?” Roman’s eyes moved to the door after a lag while he finished writing something. “Oh!” Roman chuckled to himself. “Did Remus bring you home or something?” Roman asked, holding out his hand. Remus walked up and sniffed Roman’s hand to keep up the act. It smelled strongly of pencil graphite and notebook paper, but there was a faint hint of some sugar cookies under that.

Remus bumped his head into Roman’s hand and Roman pet him. Remus thought it would feel more like a massage, but it was mostly that the motion was soothing. It made Remus feel safe and comfortable and loved. The petting was smooth and made his brain tingle in the best way. Remus flopped down on the floor next to Roman, who kept petting him. Roman leaned to look into the empty hallway.

“Re?” Roman called out, and Remus meowed in reply. “Hm. You’re very smart to get the door open, but stay out of my mom’s office. She won’t mind if you visit us, but she doesn’t like pets,” Roman warned Remus. He was well aware. Can’t please everyone. Remus laid his head against Roman’s leg and started purring. It must have been reflexive because he couldn’t stop even if he wanted to.

Roman continued petting Remus slowly while he went back to his homework. Remus’s ears twitched at the small noises the pencil made against the paper. He wouldn’t mind just sitting here doing homework quietly with Roman as a human, either. Maybe he could try again. But not right now. He couldn’t describe how happy he was to relax with Roman and get affection like this. It was honestly worth any minutes he lost off the end of his life.

What were minutes, anyway? They didn’t make a difference in the long run. Remus wasted minutes of his life on absolute shit. This was worth it. Remus closed his eyes and relaxed, listening to the muted sounds of Roman’s music and the rustling of pages while Roman worked. The time passed and Remus never second-guessed the use of his time again.

“Hey, kitty. I’ve got to get ready for bed. C’mon, let’s get you back to Remus,” Roman alerted him, standing up. Roman stretched out his legs. Remus meowed in objection and rubbed against Roman’s jeans. Roman moved past Remus and headed out his bedroom door into the hall. Remus followed, rolling his eyes. Roman pushed open Remus’s door the rest of the way and stuck his head in. “Remus—” Roman stopped talking and looked around the bedroom.

“Huh. I wonder where he is,” Roman hummed. He squatted down and signed, picking up Remus. “I guess I’ll take you back out myself,” Roman told him, and Remus meowed in objection again. “Sorry, kitty, we don’t have food or a bathroom for you. You can come to visit again, though. I don’t know exactly where Remus found you,” Roman explained evenly and headed downstairs. He unlocked the backdoor and dropped Remus outside. Remus spun around to glare at Roman before bolting back into the house.

“Cat, no!” Roman shot quietly, holding out his hand. Remus bounded up the stairs and rushed into his room. He couldn’t pull the door closed, so he rushed under his loft and yanked at the curtain before pulling off the ribbon with his teeth.

That dimension-hopping sensation overwhelmed Remus again, and he fell against his desk while the world did a triple somersault and took him with it. Remus ran his hand through his hair and exhaled hard, the air hissing through his teeth. He held his head with both hands and filled his lungs completely. The world didn’t smell as strong as a human. He let out the air slowly.

“Kitty,” Roman whispered, sticking his head into Remus’s room. “Kitty, where are you?”

“I’ll handle it, Ro,” Remus informed him, pulling open the curtain on his loft bed to look at Roman.

“Oh! I didn’t see you in there. Cute cat. It’s almost bedtime, so hurry,” Roman waved and stood up straight.

“G’night,” Remus waved back.

“Oh. Yeah. You too,” Roman sighed and turned into the hall. Remus slowly pulled himself up to his feet. The dizziness was all gone, but he was still disoriented from the missing senses and the height. Remus was so tall. How did he never notice?

Remus needed some contingency stuff. He pulled a fashion scarf out of his dresser and tied it onto the doorknob so Remus could pull his door closed. Well, there was still the potential of getting locked out if he left and couldn’t turn back… Remus glanced at the window. It’s the second story, so it’s not a big deal if he left it unlocked, right? Remus didn’t know how he’d get up there just yet, but maybe he could jump from the tree? The gap was wide for a human, but as a cat, he should be okay. Maybe he could change back and move some stuff around in the backyard. Remus unlocked the window with a small nod to himself.

He started to get ready for bed but ended up glancing at the window again. Maybe he should make sure he can make the gap, right? Remus kicked off his socks and opened up the window enough to get out, pulling out the screen and leaning it against the wall. He crawled through and sat on the slanted roof and closed the window again. He took a deep breath of the night air and looked up at the moon.

A good night to prowl. He tied the ribbon on his ankle and turned into a cat again. It was much easier this time, though it was still extremely disorienting. Remus waited to regain his sense of up and down before standing up and walking along the ledge of the roof towards the big honkin’ American Elm in the backyard. Roman and Remus’s tire swing still hung from a low, thick branch.

Remus primed himself and took a running leap of faith towards the Elm. He soared across the gap easily and ended up overshooting just barely able to sink his claws in another branch in time and avoided hitting one that was on his lower left and tumbled to the ground. Remus scrambled to pull himself up and took a deep breath for his pounding heart.

He looked down, and it looked like he was miles from the ground. He suddenly understood how cats got caught in trees because this was freaky. Remus knew intellectually that he could hop down to a lower branch or jump for the tire swing. The branch he was on didn’t allow for much mobility, so he made a hail-mary for the tire swing, landing in the net over the hole and getting his paw caught while the tire swing swung from the motion. Remus hissed at the net and pulled his foot out carefully before hopping down to the ground.

Well. That was scary-awesome. But Remus was a free cat right now who happened to be able to jump farther than Remus could even comprehend. Remus made a run for the fence and used his back claws to propel himself up the fence and bounded over easily. He jumped down into the grass and ran for the sake of it.

All the fun of running away without actually doing so. There was a playground they used to go to as kids that Remus wanted to check out. It was long since not fun anymore, but as a cat, who knows? Remus wanted to feel like a kid again. He was too amped up to sleep anyway, and he was once again at a height he could enjoy a playground at and it was all he could think of.

He bounded across yards and down the lane. The public park was between Remus’s neighbourhood and the apartment complex next door, so Remus had to make two blocks on much smaller feet. He was moving much faster, though, and had more endurance. He enjoyed the wind in his face as he ran down the lane.

The playground’s parking lot was lit, but the playground itself sat shrouded in darkness. That was no problem for Remus’s cat eyes, though. They adjusted almost instantaneously as he stepped into the shade and walked into the park. The playscape was probably not comfortable on his paws, but there were other things to check out, still. Remus walked past the play structure. The web might be fun. That was still kind of fun as an adult. The park was technically closed, though, and he couldn’t play on it while kids were here. He could hurt one of them or someone would think he’s a pervert, and he’d get in trouble and go to jail.

Remus wasn’t alone out here. There sat a person who looked Remus’s age sitting on the swings. Their head hung limply, and they held onto the chain at eye height. They were barely swinging at all. It was more like a minor despondent sway. They looked really miserable. Remus couldn’t swing as a cat, but he also was curious about the other stranger. One stranger tonight gave Remus magic powers, so random night strangers were much more interesting now.

That fact alone made Remus also wanted to return the favour to the universe if he could. The fox-masked being cheered Remus up. Maybe Remus could cheer up the sad person who appeared to be 70% hoodie by volume and kicking at the pebbles under the swings. Remus walked up in front of the person and sat down, meowing. Their head was down and their hood was up, so Remus couldn’t see their face.

The stranger didn’t look up from soundlessly staring down at nothing. Remus stepped closer, meowing again. He looked up at the stranger’s face from the ground. They looked empty. Their eyes were unfocused and their expression was somewhere between numb and desolate. Remus meowed louder, and the stranger blinked. They recoiled their head and rubbed their eyes, blinking a few more times before their eyes focused enough to notice Remus.

“Oh. Hey,” The stranger greeted Remus. Remus rubbed against the person’s legs. He hoped they weren’t allergic. They watched Remus weave around their legs for what felt like an eternity, but they never sniffled, so it seemed okay for now. “You’re really friendly, huh?” The person reached down their hand and Remus bumped into their hand right away.

The sad person let out a weak chuckle through their nose and scratched at Remus’s chin. Remus froze for a moment and pushed down into the stranger’s hand to help them scratch harder. That was better than pets. That made Remus feel like his entire body was tingling with elation. The stranger stopped scratching and sat up on the swing. But Remus wasn’t having that. He jumped up and deposited himself right on the person’s lap.

“Woah,” The stranger seemed amused and went back to gently scratching behind Remus’s ear. Remus purred like a motorboat idling on a lake. One that might explode and kill twenty bystanders and sink a dinghy named Frank. Remus’s back leg twitched automatically as he settled down. He was probably vibrating the entire stranger he purred so hard.

When the stranger stopped again, Remus meowed and licked at their hand, sitting limply next to Remus again. “You’re kind of needy,” The stranger sounded amused, switching to petting Remus with their other hand instead. Remus carefully laid down and licked the stranger’s hand again.

Remus liked it when cats did this, so he hoped this person would, too. They reached up to rub their eyes again and paused, sniffing the air. They sniffed again and tried smelling where Remus licked them.

“Fuck, cat, that’s noxious. What the hell did you eat?” They snickered, putting their hand back down. Remus tried to say ‘chips’, but a weird meow came out instead, so he rested his head on the stranger’s hand.

“Do you belong to someone?” The person asked curiously. They sat up more and looked around the area. They dug around at the thick fur on Remus’s neck and hummed in dissatisfaction. “A nice cat like you deserves a good home. It’s not safe out here for you,” They shook their head and went back to petting them. “But thanks for visiting,” They smiled down at Remus. “I’ve got school, I should get going,” They sounded sad, but Remus jumped off and spun around to sit and watch them get up.

The stranger dragged themselves off the swing and waved to Remus. Remus meowed and waved a paw back, which made the stranger give a small smile in return. Remus had school too, so he should probably get home. But he got them to smile, so it satisfied the need to do something nice for the world in return as he bounded down the street back towards his house.

---

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hyucksong · 5 years ago

Text

halloween!dream

SO YOU WANT TO FALL IN LOVE?

CHOOSE WISELY:

///

LEE MARK : THE BEAST OF THE FULL MOON

falling in love with a werewolf was a challenge

first off, the dog hair – or, the wolf hair; it got everywhere, on your clothes when you cuddled, in your food when he cooked, and in your mouth when you kissed

you didn’t even know where it came from – his face was baby smooth except for patches of stubble above his lip and his thick head of hair

loving Werewolf!Mark means having to endure his overly cuddly nature, his sudden bouts of jealousy whenever you went near Alpha!Johnny; it meant dealing with his overbearing appetite and his constant jabbering with his mouth full of meat

most importantly, it meant having to give him lots of love whenever the full moon came out by setting a day on your calendar apart completely for him and only for him

and then showering him in plenty of love with his frank ocean playlist playing in the background

if you know what i mean

(you weren’t complaining)

loving werewolf mark was easy, and you thought it would be just as easy if he was anything else; a vampire, ghost, zombie – whatever

loving werewolf mark was easy because of his little smiles and giggles at your stupidest jokes

loving wolf mark was easy because of the way his chest would vibrate with joy as you laid on top of him

loving mark was easy because of the way his lips locked with yours and the small growling sound he’d make whenever you tugged on his bottom lip too hard

loving him was easy because he loved you

and you were glad

even with the random bones in the back garden that mark would say was from the neighborhood raccoon

doesn’t he know that raccoon’s don’t eat bones?

HUANG RENJUN : THE SPELLCASTER OF EVIL

dating this warlock (not witch) meant playing plenty of pranks on his friends with potions in their drinks that turned them into frogs and sprinkling powder on the food that made them squawk like a chicken

it meant being the test subject to all his experiments,

and him taking you on apology dates for accidentally turning you into a goldfish for 3 days

huang renjun was the warlock that would act really intimidating to strangers who came to get potions from him and then whine when you hit him on the back on the head for calling a customer a, “hopeless human who was going to die by tripping on the fucks that renjun gave, which was none”

expect him to drink amnesia potions on purpose just to experience the feeling he first felt when falling in love with you all over again

and you having to force him to drink onion juice mixed with (mark’s) werewolf hair, the remedy of amnesia potions

sometimes when he’s bored he’ll just lay on you and read his spell books for hours and hours, until he falls asleep on you with his 10-pound book smashing his face

whenever he feels like kissing you but you’re too far away or you’re out with your friends he’ll teleport to you and press a small kiss to your lips before disappearing

which always leaves you a flustered mess

he’s done it when you were in a work meeting before, and you couldn’t help but yell out his name in embarrassment

he’d even done it when you were in a dressing room, trying to wiggle your way out of a way-too-tight dress

and the only way you knew he was there was when he whistled and you saw him leaning against the wall in the mirror

cue your scream

and his lips attaching to yours with a strength you didn’t know he had

but you liked it

and that kiss led to…something that would get you arrested if you told the store assistant the truth when you walked out the dressing room with messy hair and smudged lipstick

renjun’s kisses were magical, and you were sure it wasn’t because of any spell he had cast on you; it was because of the way his hands rested on your waist and how he’d make a small whining sound whenever you pulled away too early

renjun once made the amortentia potion from harry potter just to see if the recipe was real, and he was delighted to smell your sweet shampoo

but he was even happier to hear that you smelled the scent of his wizarding robe mixed with your perfume

LEE JENO : THE CAT-MAN

when you first met jeno, you knew there was something about him that screamed, “cat”

little did you know that it was actually because he was a cat

dating cat-man jeno was just like dating a normal jeno, except for the random hairballs you’d find on the floor and grumble about

whenever you hugged him his chest would reverberate with a low purr that caused your heart to warm

if you were feeling particularly flirty and you brought your finger up to his chin to lead his lips to yours, you’d see his eyes go half-lidded and his pupils go from barely-there slits to full-blown love shot eyes

his back would hunch and he’d melt into your touch with a soft meow in your ear

if you scared him his ears would perk back and his body would have a physical reaction to your scare, jumping away quickly

if it was winter, you could catch him cuddled in your blankets in a little ball (as little as a ball he could be,,,he was a full-grown man after all) with his little ears twitching from time to time at the small sounds

your personal favorite part of dating lee cat-man jeno was when you’d get in a heated make-out session, and he’d move from your lips to your neck and he’d rub his head on you

you didn’t know why he did it, but it was a moment of cuteness and it was those small things that made your own heartbeat a thousand times faster

expect him refusing to come near you if you ever wore perfume because it was too strong and he was sensitive

(plus he liked your natural scent the best, but that was way too embarrassing to say)

whenever he kisses you and he nicks your lips or tongue with his sharp teeth on accident

your pantry? filled with cat toys and cat food

(and a dead mouse or two)

you’d always have a ginormous supply of kleenex boxes because he would sneeze a few times every hour because he was essentially allergic to himself

how that was possible, you didn’t know

but what you did know was that his favorite part to be touched was behind his human ears,

and he loved those touches even more if they happened to be kisses

jeno expects you to pepper him in kisses at least twice an hour

and you were perfectly happy to oblige

LEE DONGHYUCK : THE TRANSPARENT BEING

ghost!haechan was even worse than the real thing

you thought he could get away with pranks when he was alive? think again -- he was undetectable now

he always thought it was his favorite part of being dead -- the pranks

oh, and you too

you dated him back when he was alive, and if you thought those dates were fun

oh boy

ghost haechan seemed more alive than when he was actually alive, so while you were sad you couldn't hold his hand or kiss him, you were at least happy that he was happy

but you really missed kissing the smile on his face and kissing the moles scattered on his cheeks and kissing his ears and kissing his eyelids and...you missed him

so you might have sold part of your soul to be immortal and live forever with haechan (and to kiss him forever)

he scolded you at first, but you shut him up with a quick peck to the cheek

and he was convinced (it was your choice after all)

dates where you and he scare the daylights out of paranormal TV show hosts and then delete the footage of it all happening afterward

boxes of polaroids being wasted because “you can’t even see me in that picture!”

“you’re a ghost haechan, your natural state is overexposure”

“and you have half a soul, shut up”

you two experienced everything together, and you both had fun testing the limits of your half-dead and half-alive soul, not being afraid to do the wildest things, like skydiving without a parachute and jumping off Niagara falls

and;

“hey, can we have sex?”

you furrowed your brows in thought,,,you didn’t really know

“i...i don’t know? i think so?”

cue the curious look that made your heart jump with excitement

“wanna try?”

“hell yes.”

you didn’t know that ghosts could give such visible hickeys, but you weren’t really complaining because his slightly transparent neck was littered with evidence of your love to him

and even though only you could see them,

you didn’t mind

NA JAEMIN : THE ROTTEN BOY

sometimes he’ll unstitch his arm to raise it up for a high-five if he’s laying down

you’d think a rotting body would not only smell bad, but would also just be...disgusting in general, but because of the careful care jaemin took care of his body (and a potion or two from renjun) he’s basically a normal boy

except for when it’s the full moon, then he goes to his decomposed state, and during those times he just hides in his room and doesn’t come out until the next day

and ever since he started dating you, he absolutely refused to even let you into the same apartment as him on the full moon because he didn’t want you finding him disgusting

but you knew how to pick locks

and you must say, jaemin is overdramatic because the only difference was his skin was slightly green and his eye would occasionally pop out

not a big deal!!!

he’s a slow walker and prefers riding bikes to anything else, he takes you on dates in the park just to walk around all the time, but it’s always at night

his kisses are slow and he takes his time to do anything, his hand resting at your waist travels like a snail up your back to your neck, and the kisses he places on your neck are open-mouthed and leisurely

he says he loves taking his time because then he can make a map of every inch of your body

when i say everything he does it slow, i mean everything

eating? slow. breathing? slow. blinking? slow. having sex? slow (unless you beg nicely)

he hates the heat and doesn’t go out in the summer, the exact opposite of every couple in the world

winter is the season that couples cuddle together for hours on end, but you two are always out doing stuff those days

summertime is when you blast the AC and cuddle, watch all the movies you missed throughout the year and kiss the most often

if you are laying next to him he’s fingers will always find their way to your thigh and rub slow circles on the inside of them, you always give him a pointed look, but he always ignores it

if you ignore his affection he’ll whine and then suddenly all the energy from his past life floods him, and he throws a mini tantrum

all you have to do to stop him is climb on top of him and connect your lips to his

and it’s one of the few times where his kisses are rushed and harried, and where his heart beats like he’s been briskly walking for an hour

it’s one of the few times he feels the blood rush through his veins, something he’s rarely felt since he died

and he loves it

ZHONG CHENLE : THE BLOODSUCKER

chenle is the only one here who didn’t tell you he was a vampire after a whole year of dating

his reason was that “he didn’t want to scare you off because he was like 300 years old”

but you were like, “my boyfriend???? an immortal being??? sick dude”

of course, you wanted to spend an eternity with him, but you didn’t want to ask renjun for a potion, he was a busy man, and when you asked chenle to “do that thing where you turn people”, he said he didn’t want to bite you

so you were like: looks like i gotta poison myself now

long-story-short, you let something venomous bite you and told chenle that he’d have to bite you to suck the venom out your body, like on those survival shows

but he just took you to the ER

after you completely recovered you ask him to turn you again because you wanted to grow old with him

and honestly, he wanted to spend forever with you, too

but he had his own moral code about biting-to-turn people, so he did the next best thing

he reversed his immortality for you

yeah he was still a vampy emo teen vampire

just without the eternal lifespan, but he didn’t really care about that anyway

kissing him meant getting used to his fangs getting caught on your lips and always having them a little cut-up

constantly walking in on him drinking something red and he freaks out, saying it’s a non-violent blend

you: i literally don’t care baby, i don’t even know what that means

chenle: :( b-but,,,it’s vegan

you reading something that said vampire bites were supposed to feel good, and you ask him if that was true and he just shrugs

it takes two weeks to convince him to bite you (not to turn you) but,,,that shit Hurted

it felt like two needles....that’s it

the only rewarding thing coming from that was the look on his face when he pulled away from your neck, his face pink and a little trail of blood falling down his plush lips

“h-how was it?”

you didn’t say anything to him, instead opting to tell him with your lips, blood smearing

maybe fictional characters were wrong when they said bites felt good, but you didn’t mind the pain if it resulted in the loving kisses you shared with chenle that night

PARK JISUNG : THE MAN OF THE UNDERWORLD

you met jisung on your way to the convenience store, him stuffing his face with his second bowl of human ramen

you just gave him a concerned look while he paid no attention to you, until you walked a little closer to where he sat outside

his nose scrunched and he looked up, his bright eyes not matching up with the red devil horns on his head

“i thought i smelled an angel”

“i didn’t think you could smell anything with your nose shoved in that ramen”

when you two started dating, everyone said that it seemed flip-flopped; that he was like an angel and you the demon...but clearly they knew nothing of your relationship dynamic

there was a reason he was a demon after all; his mischevious nature much worse than your harmless teasing

his pranks would usually result in him getting in a fight with some human and you would always have to calm them both down

in that way, you were the mediating angel

making fun of him for being scared of roller coasters

him shutting you up by promptly telling you to "keep your pretty angel mouth shut” with a pout on his face and a kiss ready on his lips

dates to the underworld, which was prettier than you thought; you’d go lava surfing or just go to his dorm and watch movies

dates to the paradise world, that was less annoying than jisung thought; you’d go to cloud parks where you’d parkour from cloud to cloud, or you’d just sit at the parks and hold hands

you two were so pure :’)

kisses were timid and shy at first but as the relationship progressed they were longer and more sudden

sometimes days would pass where you wouldn’t even brush against each other because neither of you felt like it and then there were some days where he couldn’t keep his head from the crook of your neck or his hands from your soft sides

him gently nudging you with his horns to show affection when you were cooking because he was too shy to wrap his arms around you and kiss your shoulder

his skin turning burning-hot whenever you made him shy by kissing his nose or playing with his ears

his hands were always warm and welcoming, and you couldn’t help yourself when you got the urge to play with his fingers

every time you touched him or brushed up against him, you’d always think of how warm he was, even on the coldest days on earth, he still seemed to burn red-hot

he’d never tell you it was because your presence sent his heart into overdrive

but you had a sneaking suspicion

692 notes · View notes

survey--s · 1 year ago

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620.

Do you ever have days where you just don’t do anything? I always do something even if it's just housework, having a shower or walking the dog. I used to have days where I never even got out of bed but looking back that was a symptom of some serious MH issues so I'm glad life is no longer like that. Have you ever been extremely tired but refused to go to sleep? It's not that I've refused to go sleep, it's that my mind has been too active to let me sleep. What is your favorite episode of True Life, if you have one at all? I've never heard of that show. Well, I have on here but I don't know what it's about or anything. Have you ever experienced something paranormal? No. I don't really believe in that kind of thing. What’s the longest amount of time you’ve been stuck in traffic? About 4-5 hours on the motorway once when there was a serious accident. Luckily we'd just stopped for food/drink so we just sat and ate McDonald's lol. Everyone was leaving their cars to go and pee on the hard shoulder hah. Best field trip experience? Going to Paris in sixth form. Have you ever been to New York City? I have not. If so, is it all its cracked up to be? ... What is the most amount of money you’ve spent on a meal before? Personally, around £30 a head but I've attended meals where it cost over £300 per person before. What museums have you visited, if any? Hundreds of them. I honestly couldn't list them all. My childhood holidays were spent traipsing round museums and churches lol. Have you ever had a group project and one of your partners bailed on you? Sure. That's why I much prefer to work alone. What’s your worst traveling experience? Probably flying to Australia and the turbulence being so bad that you could feel the plane drop and all the lights were flickering constantly. It felt like it lasted forever but in reality it was probably only 15 minutes. Sims 1, 2, or 3? Why? I never played the third one, but the 1st and 2nd were both good.

Have you ever dealt with noisy neighbors or roommates? How did that go? Yeah, when I lived with Chris out downstairs neighbours were always arguing lol. We mostly just ignored it. Who was (or is) the teacher that gave you the hardest time in school? I have no idea - possibly my tutor in year...9 I think it was? Best muffin you’ve ever had? I love the raspberry and peach ones from Starbucks though I don't even know if they sell them anymore. Otherwise I tend to go for blueberry ones. Have you ever taken a woodshop class? Yeah. If so, was it required? Yeah, it was just part of our Design Technology. How much time do you spend on Facebook, if you have one? I'm logged in pretty much all the time. What area of math are you best at? Worst? I'm not really good at any kind of maths, lol. I mean, I can do basic arithmetic but nothing more complex than that. How do you feel when you meet someone with the same music taste as you? It's great. How often do you “half-ass” things (put little effort in)? Christ, all the time lol. Most people don't care how much effort you put into something as long as it gets done to a decent standard. Do you ever feel self-conscious when you eat around other people? Yeah, with messy foods. Has a teacher ever made you hate yourself/your work? Nope. How reliable is your internet connection? It's been fine since the engineer came out to sort it on Friday. He's moved the connection onto a better wall so hopefully it solves the issue we've been having with damp. Have you ever missed a meeting/event that was required/necessary? Sure. What’s something that makes you incredibly nervous? Driving in new places. What’s the latest you’ve ever stayed up to finish homework/a project? I pulled plenty of all-nighters in university. If you don’t have glasses, how would you feel if you had to get them? .... If you do have glasses, how would you feel if you didn’t need them anymore? My life would be much easier if I didn't need to wear them lol. I've kind of resigned myself to a life with glasses though. My prescription is too complex for surgery and I can't cope with contacts. How many vegetarians do you know? Not very many. I live in farming country and pretty much everyone likes to eat good quality, local meat. Have you ever considered going to art school? Nope. Is there anyone in your life who consistently angers you? Dog owners who let their dogs run up to mine even when they're very clearly fucking terrified. How quickly can you write an essay? It depends on the length and the topic, and how formal it has to be. Have you ever had problems falling asleep in class? No. Have you ever been on the barrier or front row at a concert? Just small local ones. What bug frightens you most? Cockroaches. Are your parents supportive of you? Yes. How often do you take the train to go places? Never. Our local trains are awful - they're always cancelled or delayed and it's just so much more convenient to drive. Do you play with your phone in awkward situations? If I'm alone, sure, but I try not to do it with others. Have you ever participated in a mock trial, or a real trial? No, neither.

#survey #surveys

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imjeralee · 4 years ago

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Comfort in Despair: Chapter 4 - “Have You Seen My Son?”

Leon x F!Reader

Disclaimer: Do not own Pokemon

Summary:

Galar is rich in folklore and tales of the supernatural.

As a Pokemon Researcher who specialises in ghost types, this is a great opportunity for you to investigate and learn more about the paranormal.

Along the way, you meet Leon (in the most awkward way possible) who becomes embroiled in your adventures.

^ Basically this story is about ghosts :/

Rating: General/Teen

Note: So uh, apparently my previous chapter scared one of my readers who was reading it at night. So I changed the warning below -

Warnings: Don’t read this fic at night

Have You Seen My Son?

...

[It is estimated that 8 million children around the world go missing each year]

...

When it's almost sunrise, a Vullaby squawks somewhere in the distance and you turn to Leon and give him a little shake. "Leon, wake up."

He's lying on his back and up close you can see his long eyelashes and angular features and you feel bad for waking him up considering how comfortable and peaceful he looks. He begins to stir in his sleeping bag and murmurs and groans under his breath before he opens his eyes wearily and glances up where he sees you looking at him from above. His eyes grow wide.

You notice that he's staring but you turn away to roll your sleeping bag properly. "It's almost time to watch the sunrise. It's freezing, so wear something warm."

"Oh, right," Leon croaks out groggily as he moves to sit up, then he throws a glance to you as you get ready, pulling the straps of your bag over your shoulders and tugging on them firmly. He rolls out of his sleeping bag and you leave the tent, letting him get changed in private.

It's extremely chilly outside as you wait for him and your damaged coat isn't doing very well in the frigid air so you rub your arms in an attempt to keep warm, teeth chattering as you stand shivering on the spot until Charizard creates a fire for you so you thank him, hop over and warm yourself until Leon emerges from the tent in his white, woolly sweats and looking very warm. His long hair is a tangled mess though, sticking up in all possible directions which makes you giggle.

"...Mornin'," Leon greets you rather gruffly; his voice is slightly hoarse.

"Good morning. Here, have some water," you unscrew the lid off a flask and give him it; he accepts it with a mutter of thanks and downs one big gulp.

Then he slips on his shoes and grabs a comb from his bag, using it to quickly tame his unruly hair before he decides to tie it in a low ponytail. "I'll be back in a few minutes..."

He wanders off with a small drawstring bag which he slings over one broad shoulder, possibly to brush his teeth and wash his face which you had done so in the morning. Charizard goes with him, probably to ensure he doesn't get lost along the way. You wait by the fire and Zorua wakes up, stretching on her frontal paws before she looks at you and you feed her some berries and play with her.

Leon returns shortly, looking slightly more awake. "Should we go?"

"Do you want something to eat first?"

"No, I'm fine."

"Okay, let's go then. I know a good spot. Follow me."

Zorua leaps on top of Charizard's head as you and Leon begin your trek. He definitely seems more awake now as he walks with Charizard though your journey is spent in silence. The spot for watching the sunrise is a grassy hill which isn't far away from your campsite at all so in a few minutes down the path and you locate the hill and turn to Leon with a grin.

"Here we are."

Leon offers you a gentle smile and you both head up. It's not steep at all and it's not rocky in the slightest, but Leon gives you his hand just in case. You smile at him awkwardly as you slip your hand in his and he helps pull you up though it's not necessary.

Eventually, you arrive at the top of the hill and head to the edge before you carefully lower yourself to sit cross-legged with Zorua in your lap whilst Leon sits beside you and Charizard plops down beside him.

Though not as stunning as the view from the Meetup Spot, the hill grants a breathtaking view of the Wild Area from the Grove where you can see a huge stretch of grassy pastures below, including various rivers and lakes bathed in darkness.

In the horizon, the sun peeks out from the mountain and the sky is streaked with orange and red hues. The breeze is stronger and colder and you let out a sneeze.

As you mutter a quick 'bless me' under your breath and rub at your nose with a tissue, Leon quickly pulls off his sweater and drapes it around your shoulders and over your back. You go still, wide-eyed.

"This'll keep you warm," Leon says as he tucks the sweater in and loops the arms around your neck.

You end up shrinking away from him which you hope he doesn't notice. "...Thanks, Leon."

"You're welcome."

Leon's sweater is wrapped tightly around you and he is left in this tight, long-sleeved black shirt but the cold doesn't seem to affect him. Charizard watches your interaction with the champion from the corner of his eye before he snickers under his breath in wheezy huffs.

"Were you up all night?" Leon adds when he notices that you appear slightly drained, and you nod. He winces slightly at your response but you shrug.

"I'm used to it. I'm the equivalent of a Noctowl. How about you? Did you sleep okay last night?"

"Yep!" he says cheerfully.

"Good," you reply, as it appears he didn't hear the radio going off last night, and your wristwatch beeps, indicating the sunrise is due to start.

You and Leon grow silent and focus on the magnificent view before your very eyes as the sun begins to creep up over the mountain and light pours into the valley. It dispels the darkness easily, the light growing brighter and brighter until the clouds are dissolved in a tawny, gentle hue. As the sun begins its gradual ascent, the sky brightens up entirely and bathes the landscape with a warm glow. The sunlight becomes so intense that you have to shield your eyes and Leon does the same.

When the light becomes bearable and the atmosphere grows slightly warmer, you lower your arm, close your eyes and inhale a deep breath, holding it in for a few seconds before exhaling with content. The sunlight feels nice on your face.

"Getting to see the sunrise is the best part of my day," you murmur under your breath as you re-open your eyes, curling your fist before you hold it triumphantly in the air, "In the end, light will always conquer darkness."

Leon ponders your words carefully then he says, "I once told myself I would see the sunrise with someone special," Upon realising what he'd just blurted out, he begins to attempt to correct himself.

You let out a loud laugh in response, "It's fine, Leon. You can bring your special someone here next time. Just don't tell them I showed you this place first."

"Ah...y-yeah."

The sunrise is over so it's time to head back. Your trip back to camp is in silence which you don't mind and you return Leon's hoodie to him and he mumbles his thanks. It looks like Leon has not recovered from what he'd unintentionally let slip despite your reassurance.

Although it's time for you to split ways, Leon asks if you want to stay for some breakfast which you agree to after your stomach rumbles loudly in front of him. He laughs (much to your embarrassment) and brings out some food for you and Charizard to start cooking whilst he finishes stowing away the tent and pack the majority of his camping supplies into his bag.

When he's completed his task, he returns to the cooking area where you have all gathered, cooking some beans and slices of toast in the metal pan. Charizard waits with his bowl whilst Zorua sits beside you with her legs folded and her tail wagging in the air, watching. Gengar stays in your shadow, unwilling to come out or be active during the day.

Once you have finished heating the beans and toasting the bread, Charizard hands you his bowl.

"It must suck not having thumbs," you utter as you empty some beans and toast into the bowl, which you then hand to the flame pokemon. You do the same, slipping in some food for Leon which you hand to him.

As you begin to eat, you notice it's actually been a while since you have eaten breakfast with someone who wasn't Sonia or Professor Magnolia. You crunch your toast, musing to yourself. You want to say something to Leon but you discover you are quite nervous though you do spare him a quick sideways glance to see what he is up to every now and then, only to realise that he has been staring at you and when he realises he has been caught, he hastily looks away.

The same tension from last night is returning.

After you finish eating, you wash up quickly and Leon packs the remainder of his belongings before extinguishing the fire. The campsite is now empty. It is as though no-one had stayed here.

Zorua is the first to leave.

She has decided to return to the manor and has assured everyone that she can make her way on her own. She transforms herself into a little rosy-cheeked, pigtailed farm girl so not to draw attention to herself nor does she want to risk being captured by some plucky trainer. You give her an additional helping of Pecha berries in a small ziplock bag to take away and enjoy but she ends up carrying the bag in her mouth and gleefully scampers through the woods on all fours and out of sight.

You and Leon watch before you sigh haplessly.

It's also time to take Leon back to the Dappled Grove where you will split up but the trek will take roughly two or three hours maximum.

You're about to set foot onto the trail until the sounds of wooden wheels rolling over the gritty path coupled with the rhythmic trotting of hooves heading towards your direction forces you and Leon to turn round.

A grizzled-looking Tauros is pulling an old-fashioned wagon towards your direction. A man in a loose flannel shirt, matching slacks, brown jacket and grey flatcap is perched at the front of the carriage with a frail-looking woman by his left, his wife presumably, and once they spot you, they get Tauros to come to a gradual stop.

"Easy there, Toro," the man drawls, before he turns to Leon and tips his hat, "Good mornin'. What're you doin' all the way out here, Mr Champion?"

You recognise the man. He is one of the farmers who works for Turrfield Orchards, a popular supplier of produce. You are aware that this farmer makes regular trips to Motostoke in the early hours of the morning from a farm somewhere in the Rolling Fields and you've seen him various times when you leave the Wild Area at dawn but he never speaks to you.

"Good morning, mister," Leon says cheerily with a grin; he tips his snapback in response, "We're on our way to the Dappled Grove."

"What a coincidence, we’re on our way there too. Ain't that right, dear?" the farmer barks out jovially, turning to his wife with a chuckle. "If you walk, it’s gonna take about three hours tops. Why dontcha hitch a ride wi' us? We'll get you there in no time!"

"Thanks!" Leon replies, and he glances at you with a grin before he heads over to the side of the caravan which is transporting several bales of hay and huge pots of berries. Leon recalls Charizard then throws his bag into the awaiting carriage. You can only smile at him awkwardly as you trail after the champion.

However, the farmer turns to you and you freeze up, hesitant in approaching the wagon. You know something is wrong when the farmer appears to regard you with disdain in his eyes.

He says, "We only got space for one."

A stunned expression appears on Leon's face whilst you blink blankly at the group, before you throw a downtrodden glance to the floor, biting down on your lip.

The farmer leans towards Leon and although he employs a hushed tone, you can hear what he says. "This girl is trouble. She's bad luck round these parts. People say she's cursed. If you know what's good for ya, stay away from her."

You heard everything loud and clear and you're quick to retreat, taking a few steps backwards, knowing all too well that you are not welcome onboard the Tauros wagon.

"It's okay, Leon. Go ahead. I can make it back on my own." You mumble. This farmer doesn't like you and you don't like him very much either.

"You heard the lady. Come on, Mr Champion."

Leon stares intently at you and his expression slowly becomes unreadable. However, he grabs his bag, hauling it out of the caravan. "No, I changed my mind. Thanks for your generous offer, but..." Leon promptly returns to your side with his bag, "We can manage on our own, thank you very much."

Following that is a rather strained silence as you and the farmer stare at Leon with widened eyes.

"Leon...?" you croak out.

Leon turns and smiles warmly at you. "Let's go."

The farmer snorts under his breath at the rejection. "Suit yerselves." With the reigns in his hands, he flicks them with a turn of his wrists and Tauros picks up speed again, galloping down the path and out of your view.

You cannot believe what had just happened and you gawk at the champion beside you. "Leon, why did you do that? You could've gotten a ride."

Leon smiles at you gently. "Well, I'd rather stay and walk with you."

And your heartbeat soars, your stomach doing backflips.

"Are you alright?" Leon asks, "your face is really red."

You snap out of your reverie. "O-oh! Yeah, I-I'm fine.." you stutter, trying to smile in response. "And he's wrong, I'm not bad luck!" you add, until something weighty smacks you in the back and you go stumbling forwards; although Leon grabs your hand, you still drop over the dirt, collapsing on your front.

Lifting your head up, you see a Hoothoot flying above you in a circle before it perches itself in the branch of a tree to your left, crowing with mirth. You wonder if it's the same Hoothoot from last night that had also harassed Leon when he was taking a bath.

"Arceus, you Hoothoot are the worst!!" you moan out before you can help it, cursing the Hoothoot.

Leon steps over you carefully to hoist you up though he ends up lifting your back off the ground and you remain sitting in the mud, feeling somewhat defeated. "You okay?"

You nod weakly.

Leon chuckles as he kneels beside you and helps dusts you down, wiping some flecks of dry mud from your shoulders and back whilst you shake your hair free of earth. "You have some dirt on your face."

"Where?"

"Right here." He says, but before you can move, Leon uses his sleeve to wipe at your cheek gently. His white sweater now has a mud patch but he grins to himself whilst your heart pounds furiously once more. Smiling at you, he says, "Let's go."

"...Okay."

You both continue making your way together through the forest until you reach the familiar landscape of the Dappled Grove. You have finally arrived. As though a stone has dropped in the pit of your gut, you throw your glance down sadly as you realise you will be parting ways with Leon for certain.

"Well, this is it." you say morosely as you gesture to the Dappled Grove's wooden signpost. It contains a few arrows pointing to various locations, outlining the directions to Rolling Fields and West Lake Axwell. "Wherever you're headed to next, you can use this."

Leon joins your side to inspect the sign. "Great! Thanks for all your help."

"No problem."

"It was really nice meeting you," Leon adds, sticking his hand to you and your face falls.

Oh.

A handshake.

Your heart plummets when you realise you were the only one who had been blushing and feeling butterfrees in the stomach the entire duration you had been together and you can't help but feel silly...

Leon has treated you as he would treat anyone, any regular fan. He was just being himself...he is kind and friendly to everyone, fans, friends and foes alike. You're no different than the rest.

It hurts in some sense upon realisation but nevertheless, you steel your nerves and slip your hand into his palm; his hand is so large, your little fingers are bundled up within his and his hand is also extremely warm despite the cold temperature. He proceeds to give you a firm shake and you force yourself to smile. Leon has some serious grip.

"Same. It was very nice to meet you," you reply, when you let go and your fingers are tingling from the contact.

"This is for you," Leon brings out his wallet and pulls out two ten thousand pokedollar bills, "For the coat."

"Ah, right...but um, my coat didn't cost twenty thousand. Let me give you some change for that..." As you fiddle around with your bag and pull out your pulse, Leon chuckles.

"Please, I want you to keep it. I insist," he adds, before he reaches for your hand and presses the money into your palm, forcing your fingers to curl over the money.

You're reduced to a blushing mess again from the contact. "O-oh...well, thanks...I appreciate it."

"What's your blog called? May I have a look?"

"Sure..." you utter the name of your website and also spell it out to him which he saves onto his phone.

"Thanks! I'll be sure to check it out."

You nod, cheeks growing warm, “When's your next match by the way?"

"In a week."

"I'll cheer for you."

His face goes pink and he slides his gaze to the ground. "Thank you. Do you want a ticket? I'll get you one."

"No need, I'll just join the rest of the rabble and sign up, go through the League's official website and try my luck in getting one."

"Usually my matches are sold out in seconds and people resell the tickets at inflated prices..."

"Well, you never know, I might get lucky."

Leon chuckles in response as you shrug, "I'll get a ticket for you," he reaffirms, and he sounds quite adamant in getting you one. "So...what are you planning to do now?"

"Hmm, I'm actually looking for a Grimmsnarl, Dusclops or Dusknoir. I heard there are some in the Stony Wilderness but I can never find one."

"I can help you with that. Let me know when you need assistance."

"Thanks, Leon. That sounds awesome. I'll give you a call, okay?"

He nods, his smile widening.

"Bye, Leon."

"Bye! Good luck with your research!"

"Thanks!"

It feels awkward as you wave at him and Leon and Charizard wave in response as you split up.

You take a few steps before you decide to throw a glimpse over your shoulder and you notice that he has done the same and now he is looking at you; your heart leaps in your throat and you should really look away but Leon grins and waves again. You meekly wave back and you're first to turn away, your breath caught in your throat.

Instead of heading towards the Meetup Spot to get the train that will take you to Wedgehurst, you call for a Corviknight taxi. You wait at least fifteen minutes, sitting on a tree stump and searching online using your Rotom phone on 'signs that a guy likes you'.

You couldn't help yourself.

When the search results load, you click on the first available result that you see on Rotom's search engine, which is an online article detailing ten telltale signs when a guy like a girl.

Sign one: the guy will want to spend his time with the girl and make an effort to contact her. You ponder to yourself but you don't know Leon well enough to fully know if he wants to spend all his time with you so you ignore this one.

Sign two, body language. If a guy like a girl, he's either very nervous, intimidated or shy and he might even make an attempt to touch her. When you read this, you recall how Leon got all flustered and nervous around you on several occasions but you earnestly believed this was because Leon wasn't used to girls. He did seem to touch you a lot though. Unfortunately, you cannot really tell so you move onto the next sign.

Sign three, the guy will ask questions and remember little details. Having only met Leon for one night, it's natural if Leon asked you plenty of questions and it's too early for him to show that he has remembered your every little detail. You will only find out if you ever meet him again. Emphasis on if.

Before you can read the rest of the article, the Corviknight taxi arrives and you bookmark the page to be read later and put Rotom away.

The cabbie opens the carriage door for you and you climb in, poking your head out the window; you ask to be taken to Wyndon which would take twenty or so minutes. The cabbie climbs on the massive bird and you're off. The carriage is lifted high in the air and you buckle up for the bumpy ride. Once you're seated properly, you peer out the window where you see the huge stretch of greenery below you.

You are glad to have left the Wild Area.

It's not a kind place. Although you're prepared, you are thoroughly exhausted, drenched with sweat and caked in dirt. Travelling through the Wild Area really takes a toll on you and challenges one's mental and physical strength.

That being said, you worry about Leon and you wonder if you can see Leon and Charizard down below but ultimately, you can't.

You're too high up.

Sighing, you roll the window down and rest your elbows on the sill to stare at the sky where you see singing Gossifleur and Eldegoss floating in the air and you wave at them and they wave at you in response. Some bird pokemon fly past too and you wave to them. The ride back to civilisation is a soothing and calming one.

Eventually, the barren land of the Wild Area gradually disappears behind you and you see buildings ahead. Corviknight zooms past, heading towards the direction of a huge Ferris wheel that looms in the horizon and grows closer and closer into view, followed by towering skyscrapers. This is your prime indication that you have now arrived at Wyndon.

Corviknight drops you off in front of the fountain. You hop out, pay the cabbie and check Big Bill, the clock tower of Wyndon. It is now almost ten am and the city is very busy.

Your first task is to buy a new coat. The streets are bustling as you make your way to the boutique. You got your coat from here so you're going to buy yourself a new one. Leon's generosity won't be forgotten. You step inside the shop and head over to the outerwear section and you're hoping to get a coat that is identical to your current one but unfortunately the design is no longer for sale and so you settle for a basic but warm and waterproof, black parka that costs eighteen thousand.

You part with your muddy, burnt coat and emerge from the changing room in your new threads.

"Well, it was a good run," you murmur as you fold your ruined coat and slot it inside the clothing recycling bin.

Wyndon Stadium is your next destination so you make your way over, passing the river and the ferris wheel and once you arrive at the enormous, dome-shaped building, you head through the clear glass doors. Although Leon has informed you that he has no matches until a week later, you're stunned to see that it is full of tourists and locals.

Once you're inside, Rotom sounds off and you absent-mindedly check the screen. It's a message from an unknown person and it says:

Unknown: Hi, this is Leon. Did you make it out of the Wild Area ok?

You reread the message a second time and your heart starts pounding viciously. You cannot believe your eyes. The Champion of Galar has messaged you! You are so stunned, you completely stop in your tracks. You are about to type a reply though you pause briefly, wondering if you are replying to his message way too quickly. You don't want to come across as an Eager McBeaver nor do you want to look like a sad sport who does nothing but look at their phone every single minute of their day.

Nevertheless, you decide it's best to send a reply since you don't want to leave it too late to reply that it becomes awkward....therefore you quickly type a quick message and hit send.

You: Yep! I made it out alive :')

With the reply sent, you excitedly add Leon to your contacts, thus increasing the number of contacts in your phonebook to a total of five which is a vast improvement compared to two or three years ago and then you put Rotom away, slightly worried about what the Champion's reply would be and how long he might take to reply.

The text from Leon has elevated your mood to an unimaginable extent. Glancing around the stadium lobby, there are plenty of people ogling the glass cabinet displays that contains the many trophies and awards won by past Champions of Galar. Leon's trophies take up two entire rows and there are also tonnes of posters with his face on them decorating the walls of Wyndon Stadium.

He's everywhere you look.

It's inescapable, and a merchandise kiosk that has just opened up grabs your attention and you head over immediately. You're first in line and the clerk is stacking up some stock on the shelves until she spots you, pausing in her activities to head over to the counter.

"Good morning, how may I help you?" she asks with an absurdly cheerful smile on her face.

You look at the random items she was placing on the shelves. As expected, it's all got Leon's face printed on it. There is a Leon mug, a Leon tumbler, a Leon flask, a Leon scarf...even a Leon mousemat too.

There's Leon everything.

"Wow, this must be Leon heaven." you say, incredibly overwhelmed.

"It is! This is the Leon-exclusive merchandise stall."

"Oh really?" you suddenly have the urge to buy something with his face on it so you say, "I'd like to buy a poster of Leon, please."

"Of course! Which one do you want? Leon on his own? Leon with Chairman Rose? Leon holding a beer? Leon with an ultra ball? Leon with Charizard?"

"Just Leon on his own will be fine."

"With or without an ultra ball?"

"Leon with no ultra ball, thanks."

"Got it!" the clerk cheerfully ducks underneath the counter for a split second and quickly stands back up with a rolled canvas under her arm. "This one?"

And she proceeds to unravel it, revealing Leon striking his famous Champion pose; the canvas is also at least one metre long.

"Wow. It's perfect. How much?" you ask, digging a hand into your bag to fetch your purse.

"Five thousand."

You hesitate but this is official merchandise so you suppose it is value for the money so you count your bills and hand over the cash; you want to show that you support Leon in the best way possible and what is the best possible way to do so other than buy overpriced merchandise? The clerk happily hands you the poster which is too big for a bag so you hold the rolled up print under your armpit.

"We also have a Leon action figure for sale! This is the new and improved version of Leon with his signature snapback and fully rotating arms for impressive ball-throwing action!" the clerk grabs the Leon figurine she was describing off a random shelf and holds it up to you, "Charizard and accessories sold separately."

"That's a bit of a ripoff." you utter, rubbing your chin as you take the figurine off her to inspect it further.

The figurine comes with an exact replica of his Champion attire, his snapback (which appears to be inseparable from his head and hair) and he also comes with a red cape lined with fur. You look at his little white Champion booties and laugh.

"But this one is limited edition and it's also the last one in stock!"

"Last one in stock?"

"Correct."

"Limited edition?"

"Indeed."

"Hm. Alright. How much?"

"Usually it's twelve thousand nine hundred but today, I'll give it to you for ten thousand."

"Alright fine, I'll take the action figure too."

"Thank you, young lady, you won't regret it!"

"I just spent fifteen thousand quid on Leon merchandise," you mutter to yourself as you rummage through your bag for your wallet once again, "I have no regrets."

"Spoken like a true Leon fan!"

You're pretty sure the clerk's claims of the Leon figurine being the 'last one in stock' were falsified so you would experience increased pressure to buy it but you vehemently don't care; the Leon figurine looks sturdy, well-made and the resemblance to him is uncanny. The clerk puts the figurine away into the box and carefully eases it into a large bag with the Macro Cosmos logo on it.

"Perhaps you'd be interested in a huggable Leon body pillow too?" she asks, brows wiggling suggestively.

"Uh...I think I'll pass."

"Mm-hmm, suit yourself.....but how about this pair of Leon night slippers?"

"Slippers? Can I have a look?"

Behind you, you suddenly hear a loud groan of frustration.

"Are you finished yet, lady? You're holding up the goddamn queue!" a voice screams behind you and you turn round to see that there is a small line of teenage girls standing behind you.

"Okay, okay, I'm done, geez..."

You leave the kiosk with poster and bag in hand and return to the lobby, glancing at a bunch of kids running up to Ball Guy who stands near the sofas, waving his arms around happily in the air, a perpetual grin on the round mascot mask.

"Hey, hey, hey kids! I'm your friendly neighbourhood Ball Guyl!" he greets them joyfully as they circle him, his voice muffled behind the mask.

"I don't give a Raticate's ass! Give me my free ball, loser!" one of the kids scream.

"Hurry! Make him faint and take his experience points!" another kid yells before he kicks him in the shin.

Ball Guy reels from the impact and emits a pained grunt before he falls to the ground, clutching his knee to his chest. Once he's down, the children scream and yell as they surround and clamber over him; their little hands ransacking his pockets before they run off with a bunch of capsules.

You glance around, wondering if anyone else had witnessed this but it appears no-one had bothered to pay Ball Guy any attention. You walk up to him as he continues rolling around on the floor in agony.

"Yep…children are the future…" you hear him groan weakly.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, thanks for asking..." Ball guy mutters, and you give him your hand. He looks up and then gasps. "Huh? Oh hey, chuck, you're back!"

You grin as he takes your hand, jumps back onto his feet and grabs the rim of the mask, tearing it off with a loud pop to reveal a young man with a mop of messy blonde hair and bright blue eyes. He shakes his hair in the same manner that reminds you of a shampoo commerical before he gives you an affable, friendly smile.

A few customers are shocked to see the true face of Ball Guy whilst some of the younger children with their parents start screaming about Ball Guy's head being ripped off. However, he is oblivious to them and you exchange a brief hug.

"How was it? Did you find the house? Did you perform any exorcisms?" he asks enthusiastically.

"I'm not an exorcist, Jace," you mutter, "But yes, I found the house and I sealed away an evil spirit too."

"And you say you're not an exorcist? Hello?! You sealed an evil spirit."

"Well, yeah, but it was nothing."

Jace pointedly rolls his eyes in response to your laidback reply and crosses his arms. "Pfft. It was 'nothing'. What's that you got there anyway?"

"Oh, these?" you lift up the poster and the Macro Cosmos bag with the Leon figurine, "Just some stuff. Here, hold this for a moment." You give him the poster to clutch so you can put the figurine on the floor and grab the broken radio from your bag. "Unfortunately this happened too."

Swapping your poster for the radio, Jace holds the device limply in his hands, turns it round and raises a brow. "What happened?"

"Gengar threw me into a wall and it broke," you reply nonchalantly with a shrug whilst Jace blinks numbly at you, "Oh yeah. I almost forgot. Hey Gengar, I want you to meet Jace."

Following that, Jace looks up and around until Gengar appears from your shadow on the ground and rises into the air, emitting an evil cackle as he floats high above you and Jace's complexion goes a tad paler than usual as he makes eye contact with the pokemon.

"Oh..." he gulps, knees going weak as Gengar proceeds to circle him, "A ghost pokemon?"

"Yep, and he's decided to stay with me," you say happily, when Gengar stops and returns to float by your side. You and Gengar grin at each other before he decides to jump into someone else's shadow, his red eyes gleaming from within.

"I think he'll be a wonderful pokemon partner. Suits you, too."

"Thanks. We haven't really had the chance to get to know each better yet but that's okay, we can chat later. So... uh, the radio. Can it be fixed?"

"Of course! Give me a few days though."

"Sure. Thanks in advance. Oh, I also met the Champion last night too."

Jace's jaw drops at you revelation. "What? You met the Leon!!! Really? What's he-"

"BALL GUY!"

You and Jace wince under the loud voice and throw your glances to the far end of the lobby to see a red-faced and bloated-looking, blob of a man in a suit that looks like it's far too tight for him, standing at the closed doors that would lead to the pitch. It's the manager of Wyndon stadium. He watches the two of you with his arms crossed over his chest, tapping one foot impatiently over the ground.

"Ball Guy, get over here now! And put the damn mask back on!"

Jace acknowledges his boss with an apologetic nod and fixes the mask back over his head. "Sorry," his voice has gone back to being muffled, "I need to go back to work now but I'll take care of your radio. I'll call you when it's fixed."

"Thanks Jace."

"No problem. See you."

"Bye-bye, have fun at work! Remember, if you hear any voices from the radio, don't respond."

"Yep, I hear ya. Hey duckie, take this before you go," Jace scoops a Dusk Ball from his pocket and plops it into your hand, then gives you a thumb up.

"Thanks!"

Jace returns to his Ball Guy persona, wiggling his arms in the air and entertaining the customers whilst you leave Wyndon Stadium to head home. On the way to the train station, you pass Wyndon Police station, one of the biggest branches of Galar Police.

It's a large building opposite the river with many floor-to-ceiling windows, the walls painted in blue and red to fit in with the majority of Wyndon's more contemporary architecture and design.

Once you near, you spot a small group of women outside the gates, yelling over each other and waving flyers and League cards in their fists. A few policemen with a Herdier and Grapploct in uniform, badge and hat are keeping the noisy crowd at bay.

"Calm down, you lot!" they're doing their best but the women are hysterical, screaming about their missing sons. "They're gym challengers, madam, that's normal-"

The women are unappeased, condemning the officers for their lack of empathy and compassion and that on this occasion, it is abnormal for gym challengers with fully functioning Rotom phones to go missing or unreachable for such a long time.

The policemen sigh heavily. "We've already taken your testimony, and we 'ave officers on the case and patrollin' as we speak. You're all best to go back to yer homes and wait for us to contact you, you hear me?"

As you pass them, an iron grip seizes your arm and you are promptly halted in your path. A crumpled flyer is shoved in your face with the words 'HAVE YOU SEEN THIS YOUNG MAN?' stamped on the front and you blink at the photograph of a random boy. It is slowly lowered, revealing a woman with a peaky face and mousy eyes.

"Have you seen my son?"

"No, ma'am, I haven't," you murmur, though you take the flyer off her to study the face of the missing boy; it's the photo from his league card, a smiling, young face full of freshness and simplicity. He appears to be sixteen years old at least. "...Hmm, where was the last place he was seen? The Giant's Seat, perhaps?"

She looks at you in bewilderment though you had casually uttered those words under your breath. "How did...how did you know???"

"Lots of people have gone missing there," you add, "It's a case I'm working on right now."

Immediately, the group of shrieking women go silent and all heads turn to you. Everyone's staring keenly at your direction all of a sudden, even the policemen and the pokemon. It only takes a matter of seconds for you to become swamped by the women who are now shoving their flyers or League cards of their missing sons in front of your face, demanding if you know anything about their missing whereabouts and if you could help them with this seemingly hopeless situation.

The policemen chat to themselves briefly until you see the group heading towards your direction and this doesn't look very good; you believe they might apprehend you and you might be questioned but you are saved in time when a gentleman in a suit with an Arcanine and Manectric plodding beside him appears at the gates and stops the officers before they can even take one step forwards.

They immediately salute him upon his arrival. "Chief!"

"It's alright, let her go," he drawls, "She knows what's she doing and she's done work for us before."

The policemen have no choice but to oblige and let you off. Chief successfully ushers the officers away and when he turns to you, he gives you a wink. You mouth a 'thank you' and leave the station vicinity with the group of women who have decided to follow you, hoping that you may be able to help them figure out what happened to their children.

...

#leon #dande #leon x reader #Leon x you #comfort in despair #jeralee #archiveofmyown #pokemon #pokemonshield #pokemonsword #pokemon shield and sword #pkmn #fanfic #fic #reader insert

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surveys-at-your-service · 4 years ago

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Survey #357

“your magic white rabbit has left its writing on the wall / we follow like alice, and just keep diving down the hole”

Are you better at telling stories or writing them? Writing, by a long shot. What’s one song you hate, but know every word to? i'm a barbie girl in a fckn barbie woooooorld What’s your favorite magazine? I don’t read magazines. If you could be an animal for one day, which animal would you choose? Probably a house cat. Be indoors and safe, able to just nap... lol. But I'd want another cat as a friend, too! Do you prefer outdoor or indoor concerts/events? Indoors, by a mile. I get hot outside way too easily. Do you know if you were a planned child? I don't know. What’s your favorite gem? Dragon's breath opal. As an adult, do you want to live in an apartment or a house? I'd like to live in a house, especially with the pets I want. I doubt many apartment complexes would allow multiple reptiles and inverts. Do you like the stem or leafy part of the broccoli? It doesn't matter much to me, but I prefer the stem. The texture is more likeable to me. Do bats frighten you? No, I adore bats! Does Paris appeal to you? Yeah, it's a pretty place. Are you a KPOP fan? No, I've never really checked it out. How long was your longest relationship? Over three and a half years. First time you kissed the last person you kissed? We were outside roasting marshmallows one night. Do you have to really know someone to kiss them? Absolutely. I don't dish 'em out for nothing. Were you anyone’s first kiss? No. If you had to be named after one of the 50 states of America, what state would you WANT to be named after? I actually think "Nevada" would be kinda pretty as a name? Do you think morals are universal or relative to the beliefs, traditions, or practices of individuals or groups? I've wondered this for a long while, really. I lean towards it being a mix, maybe? But more towards universal, I think... with some exceptions. This answer is all over the place, I honestly don't know. Is torture ever a good option? If no, why not? If yes, when? No? I think the "why not" is obvious... You just don't. What do you think is one one of the most undervalued professions right now? Teachers, garbagemen, retail and food workers... There's a lot. Have you ever seen anyone have a heart attack? Thank Christ no. Have you personalized your answering machine/voicemail? No. Have you ever had Fiji brand water? I actually don't believe I have, though it's always looked appealing to me, haha. What’s your favorite horror movie? The Crazies and the first Silent Hill, as well as both Blair Witch Projects. What was the worst thing a friend has either done or said to you? I'd rather not even think about things the bitch said to me. Are you biracial? No. When was the last time you got mad and broke something? I've never broken something when mad. What color dress did you wear to prom? My first was maroon, second one was black. Who is the cutest baby you know? My friend has a daughter named Scarlett who is absolutely gorgeous. Have you ever thrown a rock at a window? No, because I respect people's fucking property. Has anyone ever thrown a rock at your window? No. Does your hair react well to dye, or does it damage it? It likes to not take dye at all. >.> I have only had one instance where a friend dyed it red and it stuck for months and months, but we kept it in for a couple hours, I think. My normal hairdresser says it's because my hair is really healthy and I guess rejects it. What kind of pet do you wish you had? I ramble plenty about how I want tarantulas and more reptiles, haha. I also DESPERATELY want to rescue or foster an opossum. When was the last time you were diagnosed with something? Are you concerned about anything regarding your physical or mental health at the moment? I haven't been diagnosed with anything in quite some time, I believe, but as I'm going through the process of being approved for TMS therapy for my depression, my bipolar diagnosis is being questioned, which is... strange to me. It's been acknowledged by many a doctor that I have bipolar 2, but if insurance recognizes my primary diagnosis as bipolar, they won't cover TMS because it can massively excite the mania portion of bipolarity, and therefore I can't do it because we can't manually afford it. I'm willing to take the risk by far, as I've never had issues with mania, but I can't without insurance. I'm just waiting to hear back from them... What is one blanket judgment you tend to make about people (like, you judge all people who live at home, all people who drink, etc)? Does this judgment come from a particular personal experience? I really don't know. How do you react to other people yelling or slamming doors? Is this something you ever do too? I get very scared if it's a man. I don't like anyone doing it, and my anxiety will spike regardless, I'm just terrified of angry men. Have you ever lost your cool at work or somewhere else important? What happened as a result? No. Who has the power to break you? Jason still might. I don't know. Is anyone in your family blind? My sister is legally blind in one eye. Do you believe in evolution? Yeah. I do find the concept odd, that ALL LIFE originated from one thing, but I sure ain't got a better explanation, so. What job do you think people should be paid the most for? Surgeons, maybe? I dunno, that's a big question. Were you ever held back a year in school? Did you ever skip a grade? No. Have you ever been given a hickey? Have you given one? Yeah to both. What is your least favourite thing about your full name? I have the most basic white bitch middle name in the world, lol. Do you like the age you are? Eh, I don't mind it much, but I think it'd be better to be in my early 20s versus mid 20s. I'm just always so tired now. I can't believe I used to refuse to go to sleep before 10:30. What’s your favourite kind of poptart? The chocolate sundae one. If you had to eat one type (Chinese, etc.) of food which would it be? American bc I'm not very adventurous with food at all. When did your family immigrate to wherever you live now? *shrug* Are your fingers long, or short? Long. Mom's always said I have "piano fingers." Do you play Pokemon Go? If so, what level are you and who’s your buddy? Yeah, I love it, but don't play it nearly as much as I want because I don't exactly go anywhere, lol. My bud's Charmeleon, and I'm probably like five EXP from level 28. Do you ever sit indoors and wear sunglasses or a hat? I don't own either, so. Do you know how to read animals’ behavior? I honestly think I'm very good at it. Do you like playing video games? If so, what do you usually play? Yes, but not as much as I used to. All I really play nowadays is World of Warcraft. The only working console I have is a PS2, and I haven't bought a new game in probably a couple years, but there are definitely ones I want to play, mainly on PS4. Just can't afford it right now. Have you ever viewed the moon through a telescope? No. Do you know how to properly eat food with chopsticks? No. There's no way I could, given my tremors. Do you prefer reading books, comic books, manga/graphic novels, magazines, or the newspaper? Books. When is the last time you ate donuts? It's been months, man. I've seriously been craving a glazed one, though. Krispy Kreme sounds amaaaaaziiiiiing. Has anyone ever called you sexy? Somehow. Do you like raisins? NO NO NO NO NO. Have you ever overheard a conversation you weren’t supposed to? More than once. Do you like ants? They're genuinely extremely fascinating animals, but they're seriously annoying nevertheless. Did you like the movie Antz? I loved it as a kid. What was your favorite ice cream flavor when you were little? Chocolate. Is it still your favorite? Eh, depends on the day. By the way, what is your name? Brittany. What time zone do you live in? EST. Do you like cats? I love cats. What’s the most creepy experience you’ve ever had? One night when my mom and sister were at the beach for a dance competition, I was having trouble sleeping, and it only got worse when my dog Teddy started freaking the fuck out, barking loudly and staring intently at the foot of the bed. I was so scared that I tried to force his head to lie down, but he fought against me. I was terrified, but got up out of the bed and went into the living room to call my mom at like 3 in the damn morning, and she had to have our neighbor come over to sleep in the house with me (I was in a different room that night). You can't convince me that there wasn't paranormal shit going on. I think the house was haunted honestly, for multiple reasons. What’s the most boring game to exist? Why do you dislike it so much? Hm, I dunno. What’s the coolest place that you've ever been to? What’d you do there? Disney World was very memorable as a kid. We just went around collecting signatures, going on rides, all that fun stuff. I'll never forget fireworks at the castle. If you’re interested in having a long-term relationship with someone, do you think that waiting a certain amount of time before you first have sex is a good idea? Or does it not matter? I think it's a good idea, personally, mostly for the sake of reducing the spread of STDs. Just because you think you'll be long-term, doesn't mean you will be. Besides that, isn't there a science that sex and feelings of love are connected? Like, sex is impossible without at least some underlying emotions? I might be entirely wrong, in which case forgive me for spreading misinformation, but if that's so and things don't go as planned, you've gotten emotionally invested in someone too early and wind up getting hurt. You do you, I just don't think it's smart. Have you ever discovered something big by looking through someone’s phone, Facebook, email, etc.? No. Have you kept anything from your past relationships? (Things they left at your house, gifts, notes, etc) Do you think that’s a big deal for future relationships or not? Yeah, like plushies and little stuff like that. When it's tiny things like I just mentioned, I really don't think it matters. I think some things might be questionable to keep, but at the same time, I don't think it's really wrong to keep memories of a happy time, if the thing still brings you joy and has been emotionally disconnected from the ex? Idk. Do you have any financial regrets? Either way, what’s an example of a GOOD financial decision you’ve made? Going to and dropping out of college three fucking times. I don't know about a good financial decision seeing as I'm not even in charge of my own finances, nor really have any to begin with. Are you a believer in “signs” from the Universe about things in your life? If you are, can you think of a particular example? No. Name some things that one or both of your parents are really good at or really interested in. Mom LOVES medical stuff, like watching surgeries and stuff like that. She is also absolutely incredible with children. Dad likes sports a lot, hockey and football especially. Think of a good friend of the opposite sex (currently or in the past). Have you ever had any sort of “more than a friend” or sexual thoughts about them? If not, can you explain why? Well, we dated briefly, so... It was awkward to, but I let myself imagine sexual situations a few times to help myself understand if I really did like-like him, or if he was truly just a brother to me. Turns out, he's a bro. If someone told you that you would never achieve something and you ended up doing it, would you have any interest in finding that person and showing them? I'ma be honest, yes. I wouldn't actively seek them out, but rather just hope they somehow find out or I run into them or something. What is the most jealousy-induced thing you’ve ever done? Apparently, be the girl Juan liked instead of this girl that literally threatened to deck me. Guess what? We're friends now lmaoooo.

#survey #surveys #questions #lyrics: ''white rabbit'' by egypt central

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jarofrebuke-transcripts · 4 years ago

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Jar of Rebuke Episode 5 Unofficial Transcript

Season 1 Episode 5: Perfect Attendance

INTRO

The following audio recording is classified documentation for Case [audio distortion] with the Enclosure. Unauthorized access to this information will lead to immediate intervention. Progress further if proper clearance has been given.

TODD

Hey Jared, it's Dr. Carmen. Listen, I know you asked to cash in on some of that paid time off you've got, but I wanted to let you know that I couldn't fulfill your request quite yet. There's one little thing I need you to look into for me first. There's some circulating rumors of a former teacher causing some trouble at the local school. I say former because she's been dead for about a hundred years or so. I don't know the exact details yet besides what Dr. Rahal heard- footprints with no source, flying clocks, startled janitors- you know the drill. So I need you to go and investigate. Since you're just so good with those little kiddos that come by your place at night, I figured you'd be even better with some actual kids. And since you've been doing a little personal community outreach, why not put that to use? Now go see what you can figure out and report back to me, then we can discuss that vacation time of yours. Oh, also you're welcome for the plumbing fixture, by the way. I know you've been too busy to stop by with a proper thanks, but I'm just glad we could get that all fixed up for you. Well, I'll keep an eye out for your report by the end of the week. See you around.

JARED

“Oh you're welcome for the plumbing fixture, by the way.” Oh, geez Louise, I literally never asked them to fix my plumbing. I called it- now he's gonna hold that over my head for gods-know-how long. I know that some folks say that being motivated by spite ain't the best way to live but it's a real hell of a motivator. I don't plan to delete this voicemail till I get that chat about time off because if I get brushed out about that PTO again after everything, I'm going to remind them that he guaranteed me a talk about it. I mean he normally sends me out over the dangerous stuff, but this was just tedious. More like Todd just wanted to send me out on an errand and just threw me out over the first thing that he could. I mean, considering that I drowned a few weeks ago, this was expected to be a bit of a piece of cake. While it wasn't life-threatening, it was annoying. And draining.

So today, I just so happened to bump into the principal of the local school. I know that she goes to the Chronicle Inn’s country store a lot, especially during her lunch breaks. So I went in the afternoon and spent some time there talking with Ester and Laura as I waited for her to arrive. Ester was wearing a really lovely dress and a floral apron, the pale pink accented her gray hair really nicely. And Laura was already in her denim overalls and plaid flannel. Apparently she was wanting to get some woodworking done in her workshop, but then she decided to stay in and help Ester out with managing the shop for the afternoon rush, you know, since all the folks started pouring in on their lunch breaks. And that afternoon rush was what I'd waited for because that's when Mrs. Anika Ralsh showed up. We haven't really ever talked much, just enough to get to know each other's names and general identities. So when she saw me she greeted me with a small smile and a wave. She asked how I'd been doing, you know, what I'd been up to, the usual. I had planned on how I was going to broach the subject of the haunting in the school considering that it's not exactly something that just, uh, comes up naturally in conversation. I needed to find some inconspicuous way to shift focus to, to that topic in a way that wouldn't trigger too many red flags. But then she dropped the bombshell on me!

She said that she'd spoken to Darius and that he mentioned that I had some curiosity with the supernatural, which was weird because I remember mentioning that passively to him like once when I panicked when he asked me what I do for a living. And that was a while ago. I'm shocked that he remembered. So I basically told her what I told him. Yeah, I'm a scientist who studies natural phenomena around here but I also have an interest in supernatural phenomena but that's more of a hobby. Which is a boldface lie, but far more acceptable than the truth. The script in my head of how the conversation would go was now entirely thrown off which did, in all honesty, throw me completely off my rhythm. But she actually got far more to the point than I would have planned to so I guess it worked for the best.

Anika said that she hadn't been sure who to reach out to about this, but when Darius had mentioned me she thought it'd be worth a shot to ask me to look into things. That there's a ghost of a deceased teacher that keeps stirring up trouble at the local school. It was a former teacher who taught fifth graders back in like the 80s or something like that. She taught up until the day she died, and she's rumored to still linger around. But she's been getting more disruptive than before and it's getting a bit out of hand. So, Anika asked me if I knew a way to get this ghost to calm down, but to not get rid of her. Apparently this Mrs. Alice Caller has been a part of the school community for so long that even if she scares or startles people sometimes they don't really want her gone. She startles the staff more than anything, the teachers and all that. But the students seem to get a kick out of it. Every building has their character after all, that's what Anika said. And I guess you could consider a haunting to be a splash of character.

Anyways, so yeah, after chatting for a bit and pretending that I had my knowledge of ghosts and hauntings due to at-home research and not my nine to five, even if it's more of a six to five. I told her I could investigate, but I'd probably want to do it when there weren't, you know, students in the halls? She'd asked if I was free literally that evening and considering Todd was basically holding my paid time off as hostage I said of course. I mean the sooner I got it done the sooner I could have some sort of vacation. As preemptive compensation, she bought me lunch which was really nice and told me to come by school after I finished eating. She took her food to go, but I stayed and ate there at the end and chatted with Ester and Laura a bit more. I also texted Darius and asked if he told Anika about my supernatural interests. He said yes and apologized if he shouldn't have told her but I said that it was fine, that I was mostly surprised that he'd remembered. I'd mentioned it a while back and we really don't ever talk about it, so the fact that he remembered... it was sweet. I mean especially considering I let him do most of the talking in conversation. He has a nice voice and tells really nice stories. I was flattered more than anything.

After I ate and played some mindless puzzle games on my phone I headed out towards the school. If I'd really wanted to I could have walked but I had driven to the end from my house anyways and had no reason to just leave my car behind. I got there a little before the last class ended and just went to the front office. After some light chit chat, I was given a tour. It was one floor, maybe like 13 classrooms in total. Not including the small computer lab, the gym, the restrooms or closets. I saw teachers wrapping up classes and students getting ready to head home. Nothing seemed off during the first walk through. She asked me when I got into tracking the supernatural and I told her about two years ago. Not a lie, I guess. She asked what I did for the Enclosure. “We don't really know what it is you all do, I guess we're just curious,” is what she'd said. I felt like she was reading every movement and microexpression in response to whatever my answer would be. I kind of panicked. I told her that I just keep tabs on the natural anomalies, animal behavior primarily. I told her I'm involved in monitoring wildlife just to make sure that the ecosystem is in balance and stuff like that. Then I quickly changed the topic because I know jack diddley about biology beyond the basics.

I got to talking to Anika about what's been happening, which was what Todd had said and then some. Flying clocks, footprints, and startled staff. But there were also a few other things as well. Things apparently turn on and off by themselves, like the janitor's vacuums or the lights. One time the cleaning staff heard some stuff moving around in an empty room and then when they investigated the room, apparently a bunch of desks got moved around and flipped over. Seems that this Mrs. Caller has also been knocking over projectors and has made things go missing, especially in the old classroom where she taught. After Anika showed me around the whole school, uh, greeting kids as classes let out, which, let me tell you, made me incredibly uncomfortable. Again, I'm not good with kids, so I just kind of gave awkward waves and half smiles to them. Anyways, after she showed me around and led me back to where Mrs. Caller's former classroom was, she asked if I needed anything before she'd go back to work and leave me to meander. Right before she walked away though she asked if I had any tools for the ghost hunting. I hate calling it that. I'm not hunting the ghosts or anything, I'm more just trying to communicate, check in and see what's going on. They don't always want to talk and I definitely respect that. I mean, heck, there's times I sure don't want to talk to people. I told her I mostly wanted to check out the place first. I would bring in my equipment from my car once all the students were gone. She asked if I needed to wait till night time and I told her that that's just a rumor. Paranormal investigations often happen at night because it's quieter from interruptions and easier to use the night vision. But if the ghost has been haunting during the day then it makes sense to investigate during the day as well.

So we walked back to the front door. She went into what I guess is her office and I went and grabbed my kit that I keep in my trunk. It's got an EMF sensor, a voice recorder, which is basically just a fancier version of what I use for these journal entries. An infrared thermometer, high power camera, other nifty little tools. Mostly the basics, they don't give me the heavy duty kit for assignments like these, of course. I made my way back to Mrs. Caller's former classroom and gave passing greetings to everyone that I passed and made eye contact with. Just a little smile and wave, asking how are you, as neither party planned for an extensive conversation. I got over there and introduced myself as I set up the equipment. I definitely felt something. I wasn't sure if it was her or not but with the way that it felt, well I felt more comfortable. It felt more familiar. So I told her my name, that I was there just to communicate and see if I could help calm her down at all. I explained what I was setting up and what all it would do. I felt my muscles relax as I just felt far more comfortable in this situation than being surrounded by students while talking to Anika. Nothing against Anika, I felt quite comfortable talking to her back at the restaurant. I think it was just the whole being surrounded by people thing. So I got everything set up and started to poke around the classroom. I started asking general questions, ones that I'm encouraged to ask based on protocol. What do you want, how did you die, why are you here? And so on. I hate those questions. What makes anyone think that those spirits would want to answer them anyway?

So after I got very little response I sat down on top of one of the desks crisscross applesauce, put the equipment down and just chatted. I asked how she was feeling. I apologized if it was bothersome being pestered with questions especially if she'd been primarily been being ignored, except for people prying. I asked why she lingered in her former classroom, like why this place? That was when a small frame holding up what looked like an obituary caught my attention, a hung up above the door, so I asked her about it. I heard some beeps from my pile of tools but I didn't need to pick it up. I knew that particular beeping. It wasn't an auditory reception, it was an energy spike. And I could feel the shift in… the atmosphere? The mood of the room? At first I just felt like I was being watched, but then I felt like it was more, um, that I was encroaching in someone else's living space. That I was somewhere that I shouldn't be or doing something that I shouldn't be doing. I slid myself off the desk and went to start gathering my supplies, but then the feeling went away. Seems like she'd just been upset that I was sitting with my feet up on the desk like that. So I muttered an apology and just made my way over towards the door to take a closer look at the obituary. It felt like something was practically breathing down the back of my neck. Not literally, but, I don't know. I could just feel it there. I turned around slowly and saw, unsurprisingly, nothing. But I knew in my gut that she was right there.

Then what scared me more than anything was that the classroom door flew open behind me. Not enough to slam on the wall or anything, but enough to make a sound. It was just some student who apparently left her notebook behind her something. She couldn't have been more than, what ,13? She was sweet, asked what I was doing back there. I told her a half truth, which is pretty much just my life at this point. I told her I was investigating on behalf of Mrs. Ralsh, which in my opinion is not a lie, just not the whole truth. She then went on to tell me about an experience that her dad had last year. Apparently her dad is one of the school janitors that had an incident early one morning when he'd come to clean up the place during the weekend. He was helping wax the floors in the halls by the back door, and at some point he turned to see footprints in the wax finishing on the tile. Her dad got pretty freaked out since he knew that he did not hear or see anyone walk by and the footprints were all too small to be his. He followed the footprints to the back door. He tried the handle but the door was locked, it was a door that needed a key to be unlocked. So he used his key to open the door and discovered footprints leading from the door to the direction of the town's cemetery, which wasn't too far away. The same cemetery that Mrs. Caller was buried in. I asked her if her dad had experienced anything else since then with Mrs. Caller, and she said that he's seen loads of stuff. But normally he sees the aftermath, like he has to clean up the messes that she makes if the other teachers can't for whatever reason. So I thanked her, she grabbed her things, and then she wished me luck before she hurried out.

So once again I stood alone in the classroom. Well, alone besides the presence of Mrs. Caller, which was definitely still strong. Maybe it was a bit smarmy of me, but I asked her, “now why would the girl wish me luck?” I was told that Mrs. Caller isn't aggressive towards people but she definitely wants her presence to be known, and I guess she didn't like the idea of the disrespect in my tone in her own classroom. Suddenly there was a blur in front of me and the sound of shattering glass, the framed obituary that hung above the door had been knocked off the wall and landed practically at my feet, which made me jump instinctively. Thankfully my boots are sturdy enough that I didn't have to worry too much about getting hurt from the glass, but I noticed that there was something tucked behind the obituary in the frame. My hands are already fairly scarred up from work and I don't think the nerve endings in my fingertips really work as well as they used to, so I kind of just reached down without thinking. I brushed away the glass and picked up the paper so that I could examine it.

The obituary itself was hardly remarkable, exactly what I'd expect from a beloved school teacher who passed away many many years ago. But what was behind it was odd. An old Enclosure business card. I still have it with me. It looks probably as old as the obituary, if not older. It's the same general logo but it doesn't look as modern, as if they've updated it since then. The colors aren't as bright, aren't as jarring. But something about it made my stomach twist. It felt wrong, not like the uncanny valley wrong, but just I don't like looking at it. I pocketed the business card and carefully put the obituary on the desk. I asked what Mrs. Caller was trying to tell me, but the energy felt... tired? Strained? A little concerned. I asked for literally any other message, any other sign, anything that could be helpful with whatever this, this business card is. Then I saw chairs in the classroom start to move. Instead of them all being pushed into desks they were all shifted as if whoever was seated in the chairs were all facing me. I was the focus at that point. It suddenly felt like I was being watched far more intensely than I've been in a haunting situation. It was like I was standing in front of a crowd who were all watching me with narrowed, scrutinizing eyes. At first I just gave a huff and said “oh haha, very funny”. But then, the smell of something sweet. It was... it was a mild smell, not like anything I've ever smelled before, but as soon as that smell hit my senses my chest hurt and my stomach churned. I looked back at the obituary on the desk and saw Mrs. Caller's smiling face, then looked up to see the words “do your homework” written on the whiteboard in neat handwriting and one of the markers uncapped on the little storage ledge thing. So I told her, okay, I would, but I had to leave. I felt sick, which has never happened in a situation like this before. I normally have a gut of steel but something about that sweet smell just shook me to my core. I hurriedly capped the marker, wiped off the whiteboard, and then rushed over and started to power down my equipment that I hardly even used. I have been chased, drowned, attacked, and so many worse, worse things than having empty chairs turned to face me, but my heart was thudding in my chest and my palms started to sweat. I needed to leave. The sweet smell still lingered and I couldn't stand it!

I packed up my equipment and just got out of there. As I made my way back towards the front door I knew I couldn't be seen by anyone like that, I couldn't stand the idea of anyone's eyes on me at that point. I ducked into the bathroom, I tucked myself into a stall. I put my box down on the floor and just sat on the toilet before I just... stared at my hands. My scarred, now nicked-with-glass fingers, the creases in my palms, the swirl of my fingertips. I just reminded myself that I was there. The sweet smell was replaced by the smell of cleaning supplies and other musty smells. While it wouldn't normally be a pleasant smell it was far better than whatever I had smelled previously. After a few deep breaths I finally stood up and started to prepare to leave. That was when my bathroom stall flew open to reveal... nobody. It was more like Mrs. Caller was telling me to skedaddle on home and get working on my homework. I don't know why I couldn't fully see her like the ghost set the Chronicle Inn, but I could surely feel her presence strongly enough.

I'll admit I got a little huffy with her. I told her it was rude to barge into a stall like that and I was getting ready. Considering I hadn't actually used the bathroom, I just grabbed my stuff and headed out. Thankfully I made it to the front entrance without really catching anyone's attention. I was actually even able to slip by the front door without anyone noticing me, or at least they didn't call out to me. I felt a little bad without saying goodbye to Anika, especially after only being there for like, what, an hour? But I just wanted to get home. And now I'm home. And what was my homework? Well I decided to look more into this Alice Caller. She had a husband who passed away not long before she did. The husband worked in town and apparently had some ties with the Enclosure. Not an employee, they don't really hire townsfolk. But seemingly a friend of a former employee. I did hours of digging after I got home and found a mention in a newspaper of him and a Dr. Severin Kelder. I don't know why that name stuck out to me, but it did. I don't know if I've seen it on a research file before, or what. But I'm going to look more into it when I have my work computer at the lab tomorrow. Maybe Mrs. Caller saw the Enclosure logo on my equipment or something? But why was that business card even there? This business card isn't even for a particular person. I mean, it has a phone number on it but no name. I don't recognize the number and when I looked through my roster of numbers it didn't match anything. So perhaps, it was an older, no longer used number? Also, Todd said that Mrs. Caller died like a hundred years ago. Well, if this business card from the Enclosure was there, then that's impossible. The Enclosure settled here in like the 1930s. I think Todd was just exaggerating. Also both Anika and the obituary said that she taught and then died in like the 80s, so, whatever. Not that that really matters.

I put the old Enclosure business card away in the back of one of my drawers. I don't want to look at it anymore than I have to, it reminds me of that sweet smell in the classroom and I hate it. I normally love sweets and sweet smelling things, but something about that particular smell, it… I don't know. It triggers flight or fight down to my very core. Even if I know logically that I'm safe. [shivers] Just thinking about it is sitting me on pins and needles. Oh gods, and I didn't even tell anyone about the broken glass. A janitor probably had to clean it up. Totally forgot. Now I feel like a jerk... should I send an apology? Should I call in the morning?

[tapping sounds] Oh, I hear you! But you're not coming in, not after last time! I don't want to have to replace my couch again. I told you to just please, please leave me alone. Why'd you even want in my place so bad? There's other houses for you to knock on! [takes a deep breath] They're just kids, Jared. They're just doing whatever it is that they do. There is no need to shout at them. They don't know better. Sorry! I'm gonna stop the research for tonight and get some rest, I've stayed up way too late and I think that the black-eyed children are drawn to my house due to the fact that my lights are still on. I'm gonna call Anika in the morning and see if I could come back Friday after school, have the place relatively to myself, examine a bit further. It also gives me time between now and then to do some more research. I know Todd wanted the files on his desk by the end of the week, but I could always go in Friday afternoon and drop off the files Saturday. Still at the end of the week, he never specified what day. So, till next time, I guess. This is Dr. Jared Hel, signing off.

OUTRO

Jar of Rebuke is written and produced by Casper Oliver, who is also the voice of Dr. Jared Hel. Dr. Todd Carmen is voiced by Conrad Miszuk. The intro is read by Vanessa Rosengrant, and credits are read by Ashley Craft, who has created the podcast official graphics. Music was created by Luke Menniss, spelled m-e-n-n-i-s-s, who you can find and support on Bandcamp, Spotify and Twitch. Find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for updates. You can support us on Patreon or Podhero by following the links in our episode description. And special thanks to our patreon supporters Becky Thompson, Perry Bruns, Tristan Fraud, Nico Allen and Devin Wright.

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