#contemporarybardess

[contemporarybardess]

Okay, so my first few days in this town have been off to a rough start. Anybody know of any places that are hiring?

[realmackross]

PARTIES: @contemporarybardess, @realmackross TIMING: Sometime in the spring SUMMARY: Elora & Mack have a Twilight themed date night where some secrets are revealed... WARNINGS: Just a soft thread with a sire and a zombie! ♥

It had been a while since Mackenzie had gotten to do anything just fun and cute with Elora. In fact, it had felt like it had been months. And she knew it probably had to do something with the fact that the two still didn’t live together, but Mack just wasn’t ready. The one year anniversary of Brody’s death had literally just passed, and she still couldn’t bring herself to fully commit every part of her life to Elora; though she clearly wasn’t going to tell Elora that. She loved the woman with most of her heart, but moving on still felt wrong.

However, tonight, she was going to make it a point to spend time with her girlfriend, and she knew just the place to go…

“I really hope you like sparkly vampires. It’s the only thing showing, and I thought that if we got bored of seeing Robert Pattison’s sparkling peeled potato skin, we could just make out.” Mackenzie looked over at Elora with a hopeful grin as she shut off the engine on her Mini Cooper. The first movie hadn’t quite started yet, so there was still time for concessions, bathroom breaks, and finding a spot in the grass up front with the blankets she brought, if Elora didn’t want to stay in the car the whole time.

—

Finally, just a cozy date night watching a cheesy vampire movie with her girlfriend. No violence. No cosmic bullshit cutting in. Just Elora and Mackenzie…and the other people watching the Twilight marathon, of course. While she always got butterflies whenever she saw her still, quality alone time that wasn’t interrupted was rare. They both had very…busy and eventful lives after all. 

“Well I used to have a crush on that sparkly potato skin when I was younger. But I’d never turn down a makeout session, you know that.” It was a bit embarrassing to admit she was a recovering Twihard, but she also knew pretty much every girl went through that phase at one point or another. 

“Y’know, I was expecting a better turnout” she said, looking out at the crowd of people. The turnout seemed decent, but definitely didn’t seem to match the fervor the online petition had implied would be present. “I guess not everyone can tough it out through all the movies, eh? Can’t blame them, I’m not so sure we’ll make it either.” She was hoping that they’d get too tired to give Mack an excuse to spend the night at Elora’s place. Or for Elora to spend the night at Mack’s. Either way, they hadn’t had much time co-habitating and she definitely wanted to make it happen. It just felt more cozy and couple-y.

—

When Mack had heard that Elora had a crush on Edward Cullen, a wide grin spread across her cheeks, “Wait…what? Were you a Twihard, Elora Spiros?” Mackenzie had never really gotten the appeal of the movies, at least not when they had first released, considering she was only ten years old. But by the time she had turned thirteen, it was all she could talk about. She had caught the tail end of the obsession, but it didn’t matter. The pasty sparkly vampires and werewolf who wore jorts had their hooks in her heart, and she wanted more. It would take another year or so for her to actually grow out of it, but rumor has it, there’s still some of Mackenzie Ross’s (TwihardGirlie98) fanfic still floating around the internet today.

“I…Okay, I’ll admit it. I was a Twihard, too. But like at the tailend of the hype, because I was ten when the first movie came out, and my parents wouldn’t let me read the books until I was a little older…” If she could blush, she would, “Who was your favorite character?” This date was already so telling, but she loved it. It made her feel so much closer to Elora. Something she needed out of fear that they might have been drifting apart.

“You know, I’m surprised too, but it’s probably because everyone and their mother and brother own all the movies and don’t want to be bothered by sitting in a car for three years just to see Edward Cullen sparkle and brood on the big screen.” Mack laughed softly. “Besides, I would rather us not make it…if you catch my drift…” She grinned coyly at Elora.

—

With mock embarrassment, Elora put her hands up and said “Guilty as charged! Me and pretty much everyone else I went to middle school with.” She then caught herself, as she technically didn’t go to school with any of them. “Well, the girls who were the same age as me, I should say. It was like some hive mind virus that targeted tween girls specifically. It was sort of some weird fever dream we all woke up out of years later.” All of her Twilight merch was long gone now, burned up with pretty much everything else, but she hung on to a lot of her New Moon T-shirts until well after her teenage years. Those times were fun to look back on, even if they did make her cringe more than anything. 

“I knew it! You totally seem like the type! No offense, of course. Nobody’s immune from the Twilight phenomenon, not even the infallible Ms. Mackenzie Ross.” She thought about Mack’s question for a little while. There were so many characters, but not many that were particularly good or likable. “I like the dad. What was his name? Charlie? He had a good head on his shoulders and only wanted what was best for Bella. Took the whole existence of vampires and werewolves surprisingly well. I mean, mildly freaked out of course, but didn’t get hung up on it too much! The real question is…Team Jacob or Team Edward?”

“I wouldn’t mind cutting out early either” Elora said, knowing fully well what her girlfriend had in mind. It had been a while since they had a chill night just to themselves, and while watching bad vampire romance was a good date night it wasn’t quite what Elora had wanted. “Let’s at least make it to the baseball scene from the first movie. After that everything goes downhill anyway”.

—

Mack laughed at Elora. She knew exactly what the other woman was talking about though, because she had witnessed its phenomena, even growing up on movie sets. She could remember the adults on set talking about it and trying to ask them what they were talking about. Even some of her younger co-stars had been allowed to bask in the glory of its success, but Mack had been left on the sidelines, until she wasn’t anymore and her room was plastered from head-to-toe. But the real height of her obsession came, when she was allowed to attend the Breaking Dawn Pt. 1 premiere. She hadn’t recalled the memory until now, sitting next to her girlfriend while having this conversation, and she honestly wasn’t quite sure if she had wanted to admit it out of the fear of being teased for eternity by Elora, “Yeah, yeah…the dad was cool. Nice guy in real life too. And you’re right. He did keep a pretty level head. You know…he kind of reminds me of Kaden. Have you two met? He wouldn’t get the reference, but if you ever meet him, tell me he doesn’t remind you of Charlie.”

Mackenzie was trying to stall, but it was getting harder and harder, because even she wanted to laugh at herself and the situation, “Oh come on…why did you have to ask me that?” She paused thinking, before finally giving the redhead an answer, “So I was Team Edward all the way growing up, but there is some bias because I had worked on a movie with Robert before, but now that I’m an actual member of the undead, I’m gonna have to go Team Jacob. Who wouldn’t love a nice, warm fuzzy werewolf to snuggle up to on cold, winter nights. Any chance you might be able to grow some fur? Perpetually cold dead girl over here.” She let out a snort, before playfully nudging her girlfriend to let her know she was kidding.

“Totally fine with waiting for the baseball scene. It’s like the best part of the movie, but I have a tiny bit of embarrassing information to share, and I don’t know if it will make you want to cut out sooner or not leave at all…” Mackenzie forced down the nerves that had formed in her throat as she pulled out her phone and searched online for something. When she finally found it, she quickly handed off her phone to Elora and turned away from the window. It was a video of a little Mackenzie at the Breaking Dawn Part 1 premiere answering everybody’s favorite question – the one Elora had just asked. And as she heard her voice fill the car, she couldn’t help but put her head down in embarrassment.

—

She wasn’t sure why, but Elora’s eyes widened a bit when Mack mentioned Charlie being a nice guy in real life as well as on screen. Sure, she was a major celebrity who had met pretty much all of the huge A-listers already, but did she really mean to tell her she’d met the Charlie Swan?

“Man, I’ll never get over you just knowing people. It must be so cool to know what people are like off camera. Well…the ones who are nice at least” She had heard talk of a Kaden in town, but had never gotten the pleasure of actually meeting him. “Nah, I’ve never met him. Nice guy then, I’m assuming? It’s nice to see decent guys around here, they aren’t super common.” It was true. There a lot of shady folks hanging around here, so knowing who was friend or foe was very important information to have. 

“Well I’m glad you finally came around to the side of reason! Jacob was so much better for her, I can’t believe she went with the crusty vampire man instead.” She laughed a bit at the fur comment, knowing that feathers just wouldn’t fill the same purpose for her. “I mean, there technically is a way I can make myself warm, it would just be very painful for me and probably burn you to a crisp. So…sorry but your dreams of a furnace girlfriend are going to have to be put on the back burner.”

She couldn’t help but crack a smile as she saw a young Mack, fully human and full of life, giving her interview. She was so young then, she always found it interesting seeing people she met as adults when they were children. “That’s adorable! You were so excited for the sparkly man! Also…really puts into perspective how long you’ve been a star for. I guess being a fan girl is a little different when you know the people personally, huh?”

—

Mackenzie had learned early on that celebrities were just people. It had come after an embarrassing moment on one of the first sets she had worked on, when she had gotten so nervous to be around one of the leading stars that she started to cry. It had stopped production, but the person she was working with had been patient with her and had spoken to her in a way that reassured her that everything was okay, and to remember that even the biggest Hollywood stars were just people and this was just a job, and at the end of the day they were all just friends having fun together. Of course, that worked until Mack grew older and started to realize that not all actors felt the same way; some who thought they hung the moon. But at the end of the day, Mack had learned to be kind and humble, and whenever there was someone feeling nervous, she was going to treat them with the same respect she had learned as a child, “At the end of the day, they’re all just people. Even the ones who think they’re God’s greatest gift to man.” She smiled warmly at Elora, before changing the subject to Kaden, “But yeah, if you want me to introduce you to him sometime, just let me know.”

Elora’s comment about Edward and Jacob made Mack laugh, “Crusty vampire man. That’s so accurate it hurts though. That’s why there’s fanfiction. So all your literary and movie dreams come true, when the plot doesn’t go the way you want it to.” She couldn’t believe she had just admitted that either. This trip to Twilight was proving to be more embarrassing for Mack than anything else, but she wouldn’t have it any other way, “You know, that's a shame though that you’d burn me to a crisp. I guess I’ll just stick with my fifteen heated blankets.” She was being serious too. “You heard me.”

It was a relief when the video was over, and Mack could put her phone away. If Elora wanted more, she could google it for herself, “Yeah…mention that, and I’ll disown you, Elora Spiros.” She was joking of course. “I mean, I’ll be honest – despite what I told you earlier, I still bragged to the few friends that I had that I knew Edward Cullen. I couldn’t help myself though. I was young and dumb.”

Looking up, Mackenzie noticed the movie was about to start, “Did you want anything, before this thing starts?” She was honestly looking forward more to the makeout sesh and what might follow then watching a movie about sparkly vampires.

—

“Yeah, everyone’s just another person. It’s just that some people need to be reminded that they’re only people.” Elora knew all too well what some members of the rich and powerful thought of themselves. Some people thought themselves to be gods of some degree, and demanded they be treated as such. “I’d like that. The more friends the better in this town, that’s for sure.” 

Elora knew about fanfiction all too well. She had written some herself, mostly when she was a teenager through her early 20s. It’s not a phase of her life she’s proud of, but if Mack was willing to show an embarrassing moment from her past then Elora figured she should be too. “Well, since we’re sharing. I know quite a bit about fanfiction and writing the ending I want. I actually used to post on AO3 a lot…I kind of had a problem actually. I just had a lot of my own ideas on what the canon should be so I wrote it into existence!” She knew there were a lot of fanfiction writers out there so saying she wrote wasn’t the most embarrassing thing in the world. However, she would fight tooth and nail to stop Mack from actually reading what she wrote. Her screenname wasn’t exactly easy to guess. 

“How could you NOT brag?! I don’t care how famous you are, every girl that age had the hots for Mr. Pattinson. And now he’s off being Batman, times really have changed.” She thought, thinking about how his acting skills really did have a huge glow up after the Twilight movies wrapped. He was a good actor when he wasn’t sparkling like a diamond. 

“We can just share some popcorn. I don’t want to eat too much, especially if we have…y’know…plans for after this.” The baseball scene couldn’t come fast enough. Although Elora had to admit she’d probably genuinely enjoy watching the movie up until that point.

—

“I’m not like that am I?” Mackenzie looked at Elora. She had come to this town hoping and praying she wouldn’t be recognized, but knew she probably would. Of course, the mansion out on World’s End Isle probably didn’t make her seem very humble or down-to-Earth, but Mackenzie tried to be. She really did. “I just…I don’t want to be perceived as an asshole.” Now, she was paranoid. Did Elora ever think of her that way?

Mack’s smile had dropped as she worried, until Elora had brought up AO3 and fanfiction, “Wait…what?! You wrote fanfiction? I want to read it! I showed you my embarrassing red carpet video, and look, I’ll even tell you my screenname, because I’m sure my stuff is still out there, if you tell me yours or at least share some of your fanfiction!” Her sad face turned to one of a puppy dog pout, she wanted to see this fanfiction dammit!

“I mean, I guess you have a point, and he really did glow up, didn’t he. Now, he’s got a kid. Good for him, you know? But if you think this is going to take my mind off of you admitting that you wrote fanfiction, you’re wrong.” It was hard talking about anything else now. “Look, I’ll go get the popcorn and soda…” She paused thinking on Elora’s words with a grin, “And nothing else…and while I’m gone, you can pull up AO3…accidentally leave your phone on the dash, and I can be all…whoops! What is this?!” Mackenzie put the puppy dog pout on and stared at her girlfriend.

—

 Elora felt her heart stop for a moment at Mack’s question. In truth, she was one of the realest and most down to earth people she had ever met. “Not at all!” She blurted out quickly. “Quite the opposite, actually. I’ve met some fairly well recognized bands and artists and there’s just so many pompous douches in the entertainment industry.” She then grabbed hold of Mack’s hand and looked into her eyes. “But not you. Never you.” 

Elora’s panic soon gave way to embarrassment as it seemed Mack wouldn’t let her off the hook about her fanfic days. She wouldn’t mind sharing if it was any good. But making a fic where the Cullen clan enter the World Series of Poker and titling it “High Stakes” isn’t exactly the peak of literature. Still, Mack did have a point. If she could see a mildly embarrassing red carpet video, they could cringe at some bad fics together

“Fiiine, you win. But be nice! I was a teenager. I think…maybe early 20s. Either way, I’m a much better writer now!” She begrudgingly opened up to her old screenname on AO3 and set her phone on the dash, resigning herself to her fate. If she can love me after reading these she’ll love me through anything, she thought to herself with a smirk. She was starting to get peckish and hoped she’d come back with their popcorn soon.

—

Mackenzie had immediately felt relief at Elora’s words in regards to her fame and the way she had treated people. There had easily been the exceptions, like Jade. But even with Jade, Mack had originally tried to be nice. But the loving grip Elora had on Mack’s hand solidified just how right she had gotten it when she had chosen to start falling in love with this woman. Someone who had chosen to see the real Mackenzie Ross for more than just a celebrity.

A giddiness had taken over the young actress though when Elora finally agreed to let Mack see the fanfic, and like a child excited on Christmas morning, Mackenzie hurried off to get the popcorn.

And just like that she was back in a flash and right back in her seat next to Elora, “Here’s your popcorn. Now gimme gimme gimme!” She was impatient like a child until she noticed the phone sitting on the dash, and quickly pulled it back. For the next hour, Mackenzie was going to sit and read the beautiful works of art that her girlfriend had gifted to the world, while the inspiration for such works played in the background.

—

As her girlfriend scrolled through some of the worst fanfiction she can remember reading in a very long time, Elora simply tried to focus on the movie. It actually wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be, there were some genuine sweet and entertaining moments. Nevertheless, it was still Twilight. The cheesiness would always be there to stop it from being more than just a guilty pleasure watch. 

At long last the fated baseball scene ran its course, and the pair shot each other a knowing look as their deadline had finally arrived. 

“Well,” Elora began, “Shall we head back to my place for a little night cap? Maybe we can do something less embarrassing than reading my old fics.”

—

Mackenzie had squealed with delight, throwing Elora a glance of genuine enjoyment every now and then, sometimes just stopping to catch the redhead in a moment of intrigue. God, she’s beautiful. The way the light from the screen accented the silhouette of her face and more had easily made Mackenzie ready to leave, and when the time had finally come, and Elora spoke, the zombie was in full agreement with the idea, “Babe, I might take inspiration from your old fics.”

Leaning over to give Elora her phone back, Mackenzie snuck in a quick kiss, before starting the engine of her Mini Cooper. Giving Edward and his ragtag team of vampires one last look, she peeled out of the parking lot with her girlfriend ready to go home and make a little magic of their own and the fifty things of glitter Mackenzie kept stashed in her bathroom for special occasions.

[recoveringdreamer]

TIMING: recent LOCATION: the raven PARTIES: @contemporarybardess & @recoveringdreamer SUMMARY: elora and felix... experience the raven together. CONTENT: none!

If there was one thing Elora loved more than a good night out, it was finding some fun urban legends around town to explore. In a town like Wicked’s Rest, most urban legends actually ended up being true, but there were some that, as far as Elora knew, were completely unconfirmed. One such rumor around town was that of a magic speakeasy hidden behind a mural of a raven. Elora was now very well acquainted with the various monsters, fae, shapeshifters, and magic users in the town, and the idea of a secret club where they all openly hang around each other intrigued and excited her. 

As she came upon the towering mural of the raven, she did precisely as instructed. “Good evening, Mr. Raven”, she began, gazing at the painted eyes that nevertheless seemed to shine with life. Suddenly, a door appeared where there was previously only brick and mortar. While she probably shouldn’t have been surprised at this point, she was still caught off guard as the entrance just seemed to appear out of nowhere. 

Almost hesitant to even go near the magical door, she slowly reached out and grasped the handle, turning it and opening the door before stepping inside. 

Surprising no one who knew them, Felix discovered the Raven purely by accident. They’d stumbled upon the mural and admired it for a moment, patting the painted raven on the head and offering it a quiet hello without any expectation that a door would appear in response to the greeting. Once there, Felix couldn’t help but enter. Certain sayings about curiosity and cats did tend to hold some truth, after all.

They weren’t really sure what they’d expected upon entering the building, but the bar hidden within wasn’t entirely anticipated. It was a nice atmosphere, though, a pleasant vibe. Felix wandered a little further in, taking a seat at the bar next to a woman.

“Have you been here before?” They turned towards her with a friendly smile. “I, um… I’m not really sure what to order?”

—

The atmosphere of the bar that Elora stepped into was dark and almost ethereal. Not usually her aesthetic by any means, but it definitely seemed to fit the mysterious nature of the bar itself. She moved through the dimly lit rows of tables as she tried to navigate to the bar area. While she was a bit hungry, she could also really go for a drink. The people at the assorted tables appeared to be normal, but already knew that they were likely anything but normal. 

As she finally grabbed a seat at the bar, she looked at the menu dumbfoundedly. None of the drinks being served were anything she had ever heard of before. What was worse was that there weren’t even any descriptions of the drinks on the menu anywhere. Asking the bartender was, of course, always an option. But Elora would rather accidentally order a glass of pure olive oil than have to bother the bartender with a perfectly reasonable question. 

As she scrutinized the menu, trying to find a drink that sounded like it resembled anything she was familiar with, she felt somebody sit down just beside her. 

“First time, actually. I have a menu in front of me and I’m not really sure what to order either. Have you ever heard of a ‘black lagoon beach comber’? Or an ‘arcane adonis’?” She inquired, not really sure if they were the type to know much alcohol. “Oh, did you mean food? I haven’t looked at the food items yet, but I am kinda hungry. I hope they’re a little less confusing.”

She then stopped talking, realizing she hadn’t even introduced herself yet. 

“Where are my manners,” she began, extending a hand to the stranger. “I’m Elora, by the way.”

There was some quiet relief in not being the only one who looked lost. Felix knew that they were slower than some people. They knew that they were easily fooled, knew that they tended to fall for just about anything they were told. They’d been called stupid more than once, and they weren’t sure it wasn’t a fair accusation. So in situations like this one, their first assumption was always that they were the thing that was wrong. That everyone else knew exactly what they were doing and what was happening while Felix was the odd man out. It wasn’t a very good feeling.

So the woman next to him sharing in his confusion was nice. It felt good, felt better than being alone. It was nice to have someone explain things to you, but Felix preferred to have someone just as lost as they were figure things out with them instead. It always seemed kinder, somehow.

Letting out a quiet laugh, they shook their head. “Never heard of it, sorry,” they said. “But, um… I bet it’s black, right? So maybe it’s made with some kind of activated charcoal? No idea on the other one, though.” Maybe they could use the themed names to puzzle some things out, but certainly not everything. “The food menu isn’t much more descriptive, though.”

They didn’t even realize they’d jumped into the conversations sans introduction until they were looking down at the stranger — at Elora’s hand. With a sheepish smile, they reached out and gave it a shake. “Felix. Are you, uh… from around here?”

—

It was comforting to Elora to know that she wasn’t completely alone in her confusion. While she had definitely picked up on a few of the town’s secrets, there always seemed to be people who were “in the know” about things she had no clue about. She worried that this place would mostly be comprised of regulars, people who had been here for years and knew every little secret inside and out. She was worried about sticking out like a sore thumb. Thankfully, however, she had met someone who also seemed to be confused by the cryptic menu listings. 

“Very nice to meet you Felix. Maybe we can figure out this menu together,” she said as she turned her attention to the food items. Maybe a drink wouldn’t be a good idea for her first time in this place anyway. “Also, in spite of my lack of accent, I’m actually from the south! Right along the border of South Carolina and Georgia. I only moved here this past summer. How about you?”

“Let’s see… Roasted Squonk? I’m not sure what that would…oh wow I don’t even know if I can pronounce that one, it just looks like a random jumble of letters” she continued as her eyes kept scanning the menu in front of her in confusion. “Hmmm, maybe we should ask the bartender what they recommend?”

Part of her wanted to leave in order to avoid embarrassing herself, but her curiosity had the better of her still. Besides, she couldn’t get up and leave now that somebody was sitting down next to her, it would be incredibly rude after all. 

The idea of having someone to help them unravel the puzzling menu brought with it a sense of relief, because Felix wasn’t particularly good at making the smallest of decisions in the best of circumstances. For the most part, they went to the same restaurants and ate the same meals, and the routine was a comfort. This was pretty far from their comfort zone, and they offered Elora a grateful smile to communicate as much.

“Oh, hey, that’s cool! I’ve, uh… I’ve never been to the south.” They’d never really been much of anywhere, really, but that wasn’t something to discuss with a near-stranger. “I’m from here. From Wicked’s Rest. But, um, I moved away when I was a kid. And then moved back! Obviously. Since I’m here now.” They punctuated the awkward sentence with a quiet laugh, then looked back to the menu.

The idea of roasted squonk made them a little uneasy. They’d freed one from a bear trap once, kept it in their apartment until it was healed enough to release back into the woods. Eating one certainly wasn’t something they had any interest in, so they quickly struck that option from their mind. “Fried aravo? Do you… think it would taste like chicken?”

They continued studying the menu, commenting here and there. They turned towards Elora to comment on the presence of ‘spaghetti and bookwyrms,’ but when they looked back to point the menu item out… it was gone. “Um… I swear it was there. It was right where… that one is now…” Was this menu supposed to be incomprehensibly confusing?

—

While Elora had known some locals who had been in town for a while, it was still always interesting to get to know somebody with such a history here. 

“Oh wow, that’s pretty cool! Have any fun stories from living here? I feel like pretty much everyone else here does at this point.” Since the pair were literally at a magical speakeasy contemplating eating fantasy creatures for dinner, Elora assumed that Felix wouldn’t be very shy to talk about the supernatural. 

“Fried Aravo? Where do you see…” she trailed off as the words on the menu seemed to twist and reform in front of her eyes. She had heard of rotating menus, but was this really an hourly rotation? It was hard enough keeping up with their options as it was! “Whoa…this place is a little-” 

She was suddenly cut off by the gravely voice of the bartender. “Sorry folks, busy night. What can I get ya?” he drawled out. He was a pale man, tall and thin, dressed in an all black three piece velvet suit. 

“Uhhh, well I was actually hoping you could maybe offer some recommendations? My friend and I here are new and…well we have no idea what to order,” she said in response, hoping that the bartender could at least steer them in the right direction. Drinks aside, she was really starting to get hungry! 

Felix let out a nervous laugh, looking down at their hands. “Um, a couple. Depending on your idea of fun, I guess.” Most of their stories felt more… stressful than anything. From all the things that had nearly killed them to the Grit Pit’s vicious grip on their life, they weren’t sure they’d call most of their Wicked’s Rest activities fun. 

By the time they looked back at the menu, the fried aravo had vanished. What was more, the menu seemed to be ‘updating’ in real time. They might have had limited experience when it came to restaurants, but this didn’t exactly seem standard.

The guidance of the bartender was a welcome thing. Felix offered him a relieved smile, nodding along as Elora spoke. “Yeah, we, um… We’re not really sure what’s good? So we’d love to know what you get!”

The bartender studied them both for a moment before nodding his head. “Your food will be out shortly,” he said, then turned away. 

Felix looked back to Elora, blinking owlishly. “Um… what?”

Elora really didn’t know what to make of the bartender’s statement. Had he ordered for them? All she could do was sigh. Maybe this was just part of the experience? Full service dining, so full service that you don’t even have to order for yourself? She just hoped that whatever she was served would at least be edible. She gave up on the idea of finding a decent drink, even though she needed one more now than before she came in. 

“Guess we’re getting a surprise. I just hope it isn’t too…out there, you know?” 

She flashed a nervous smile to Felix. In spite of the very stressful ordering process, Elora still had optimistic excitement that the night would turn out great! If nothing else, it was already shaping up to be a very unique experience, and she loved unique experiences. 

“It’s okay, I’m sure he knows the menu like the back of his hand. Probably just going to get something first timers typically like eating. While we wait, maybe we can people watch a bit? There’s a lot of mysterious looking groups of people sitting at some of the tables, I love coming up with ideas of what their backgrounds could be. You know the best part? Since this place is magic, their background could literally be anything.”

“That guy right there,” she pointed at a man in a charcoal business suit sitting next to a man with longer hair and strange markings tattooed on his arms. “Bodyguard for a powerful spellcaster. The weird thing is… that’s actually probably what his story is! Already a cool background story, and he’s probably the lamest one here! Well, aside from us, that is. Unless you lead a particularly exciting life?” 

“Yeah…” Felix agreed, looking down at the menu again. It had already changed since the last time they’d taken a glance, now boasting boiled ballybogs as the special of the night. (How could something be the special of the night if the menu changed this often? Wouldn’t special of the moment be a more accurate claim?) 

But the restaurant was bustling, and the crowd raised Felix’s hopes that the food they were going to be served would be good. After all, surely this many people wouldn’t be here if the place was bad, would they? Popular menu items were popular for a reason. Felix knew that. And Elora had a point — they kind of had an expert doing the ordering for them.

Glancing in the direction the bartender had disappeared in, Felix nodded hesitantly. “You, um… You don’t have any food allergies, do you? I feel like he should have asked us if we had food allergies. Unless he already knows?” Stranger things had happened in this town, that was for sure. Still, Felix would be pleasantly surprised if they didn’t wind up being served something with enough dairy to make them sick.

People watching seemed like a good distraction, and they offered Elora a small smile and another nod. “That’s true,” they said, noting the way she seemed to accept magic as reality. Did she know about different species? Part of Felix wanted to shift enough to listen for her heartbeat or sniff her out, but it seemed risky… and a little nosy. They didn’t want to be nosy.

“Oh, no, my life, uh… definitely isn’t ‘spellcaster bodyguard’ levels of exciting.” They laughed nervously. “What about yours?” Did she have some hidden secret? If she did, she probably wouldn’t say it here. It wouldn’t be a secret if she did. Scanning the crowd, Felix nodded to an older woman sitting at a table alone. “What about her?”

Felix had raised a good point. The man hadn’t even asked either of them for allergies, just assuming any type of food would be safe. Elora didn’t have any allergies, thankfully, but she had hoped that Felix also didn’t have to worry. 

“Wow, I guess he didn’t. I hope he actually knows and isn’t just guessing. You don’t have any allergies, do you? I don’t have any myself.” 

Elora let out a light laugh at Felix’s comment. “We can’t all lead such exciting lives. Me, I work at a tea shop. Trying to get some sort of footing in the music industry and spinning my wheels for the most part. Nothing out of the ordinary, honestly there’s probably about a million people with my kind of story.” While it was mostly true, she left out her true identity, her powers, and just exactly who it was that she worked for. Not exactly something you spill when it’s your first time meeting someone, she thought.

Elora turned her gaze over to the old woman Felix had pointed out. She seemed very unassuming. Regular street clothes that a woman her age would normally wear, nothing unusual or otherworldly about her appearance at all. Honestly, if she were in any normal human bar she would fit right in. But since she was here, she seemed to stand out more than any of the flashy robes and jewelry of any of the other patrons. 

“This lady likes to keep a low profile,” Elora began, dropping her voice just a bit. “Keep tabs on any business dealings discussed at a nearby table. One party will think the people they’re negotiating with are the ones in charge, when really she’s the one pulling the strings. Of course, with her tucked away like that, nobody will realize it.” 

She was pretty proud of the story she was able to spin on the fly. She also sort of liked the little reality she had made up in her head, whether it was true or not. It was certainly a great way to make the mundane so much more exciting. 

Just then, the gravely voice of the bartender crooned behind them again. 

“Yer food’s here. Enjoy!” he said before laying both plates in front of the pair. In a flash he was gone and Elora and Felix were left to examine their plates of…well Elora wasn’t quite sure yet. She looked to Felix in order to gauge their reaction.

“Milk upsets my stomach,” Felix admitted, almost sheepishly. “But it’s okay! Honestly, it’s not even that big of a deal. It doesn’t upset my stomach that badly or anything.” They’d eat whatever the waiter brought them and hope for the best; anything else would be impolite. 

A tea shop sounded nice. Felix couldn’t help but wish that they worked at a tea shop instead of the Grit Pit. They tried to imagine it — employment in a nice, calm store surrounded by pleasant scents and warm machinery instead of the dingy violence of the ring, but it was difficult to do. After all, Felix had been fourteen when they were whisked away from society. The Grit Pit was the first and only experience they had with employment at all. Everything they knew about alternative options was rooted in fiction and daydreams. “Do you like it? The tea shop, I mean. Is it nice?”

The woman they’d pointed out looked ordinary, though Felix wasn’t sure it was true. After all, ordinary in Wicked’s Rest tended to mean something wholly different than what it might represent to the rest of the world. This was a town full of nonhuman entities living human lives. What was ordinary, in that context? Was anything?

They liked Elora’s description. In a way, it reminded them of Natalia, who might fit the description fairly well herself. They scanned the crowd, searching for someone else they might be able to use for the game next. The man in the robe sitting by the window felt too obvious; the old lady muttering to herself at a table in the corner felt cruel. Before Felix could settle on anyone, the waiter returned, placing the plates down on the bar before vanishing again.

Felix studied the food on the plate with wide eyes. He wasn’t sure if there was dairy in it. In fact, Felix wasn’t sure there was anything edible at all on the plate that had been presented to them. It looked like… a tree branch, coated in breading and dropped in the fryer. Something seemed to be moving beneath the fried layer. Felix swallowed, picking up a fork and knife. “Uh, yeah,” they said uncertainly. “Looks… good. Really good. Um, what’d you get?”

Elora was a bit sad to hear Felix was lactose intolerant. She had known several others with the issue, but was thankfully immune from it herself. She could put away milk and cheese at a frankly disturbing rate. “Well,” she began “I sure hope they don’t bring out any dairy. Something tells me anything dairy here wouldn’t be coming from a cow anyway. Maybe you’ll get lucky?” she offered, hoping that Felix’s meal wouldn’t end in a night stuck in the bathroom. She’d had those nights herself, but for different reasons than food. 

Was the tea shop nice? Sure, the front of it was. Now wasn’t really the time to talk about what happened at the back however. “Oh yes, it’s very relaxing actually! It smells amazing in there, you should pop in some time.” Just don’t talk to the owner about making any deals, she thought to herself. 

She then watched as first Felix and then her own plate was set down in front of her. Her meal looked to be…a glowing rock? However, when Elora poked at it, the texture felt more like that of Jell-o. It glowed with a bright purple energy that couldn’t have been the work of food dye. She hesitated a bit before her attention was drawn to Felix’s question. 

“Oh, I got uh…something that hopefully won’t leave me with any sort of curse. Yours looks…” she started, settling in on Felix’s dish which looked to be barely edible. “Firm. Very firm. And somewhat alive, even.” At this point Elora wasn’t sure whether or not that could even be considered a bad thing. Were there worse things to get here? Were these really the “beginner friendly” meals? Or was the bartender pulling some sort of prank on them?

“You know, this definitely makes for a unique experience” she said to Felix, now trying to embrace the novelty of the bar. “It’s not a place you go to regularly every weekend, at least it’s not for me. But despite the…eccentric nature of everyone here, I’m still having a good time. And all the patrons here with their interesting stories and my hopefully edible gem jello will make a memory that I can hopefully keep with me for a while.” 

She then dug her spoon into the strange rock jell-o in front of her and took a bite. It was…surprisingly delicious. It was sweet and flavorful. In fact, she had tasted some flavors that she had never even experienced before. If umami was the fifth flavor, this dish had some sort of sixth and seventh flavor that she’d never known about before. 

“Wow…try yours! Mine’s amazing!”

“That’s probably true!” Given the items they’d seen on the menu, something as mundane as cow’s milk might be entirely impossible to find here. Felix wasn’t sure if they were allergic to things like aravo or snicker-snacker, but they’d probably be fine, right? The jaguar ate all kinds of weird stuff when he was in charge, and Felix never seemed to suffer too much indigestion in the aftermath. (Usually, it was more guilt and horror. They might have preferred the indigestion.) 

They smiled as Elora went on, pleased to hear that she enjoyed her work. “Hey, maybe I will! I like tea.” They liked pretty much any hot drink that wasn’t coffee. That much caffeine tended to make them a little jittery, and they’d prefer not to be that. Plus, the idea of visiting their new friend at work was a nice one.

Nicer, perhaps, than whatever was on their plate. Felix liked to try not to judge books by their cover or plates by their appearance, but this looked… weird. Elora’s didn’t look any less strange. Felix wasn’t sure they’d ever seen food glow like that before. Was it even edible? Would Elora glow when she ate it? There were so many unanswered questions here.

“Yeah, I think… it’ll be, um, interesting!” That was the nicest true assumption he could make before tasting it, wasn’t it? Even if it was bad, it would still be an experience. And… there was something to be said for that. Not everything had to be good. Sometimes, it was enough for a thing to be interesting. 

Elora dug her spoon into the contents of her plate and, inspired by her bravery, Felix used their fork and knife to saw off a bit of his own. He held it up briefly before shoving it into his mouth. It hit their tongue all at once, and they paused. They chewed once. Twice. Three times. It was…  good? Really good, actually. It wasn’t a taste Felix knew how to describe, but they thought it was one of the best things they’d ever tasted.

Nodding as Elora spoke, Felix got a larger bite with their fork. “This is actually awesome,” they agreed. “I, uh… I’ll be honest, I didn’t think it would be, but it’s good. Do you want to try a bite of mine?”

“You definitely should!” Elora began, hoping to get more regulars at the tea shop. While there was a very strong staple group of customers who came in regularly, it was nice to see new faces every now and then too. “And what do you do for work? If it’s a shop or something maybe I can pop in for a visit too!”

She shoveled another spoonful of her meal into her mouth while she watched them take the first bite of their own meal. The expression on their face told her everything she needed to know. 

“Good, right? Maybe I was a little quick to write this place off. The chefs back there know what they’re doing!”

She listened as Felix offered her a bite of their food, and Elora swallowed hard reminding herself not to be put off by the way it looked. She pushed her plate over to Felix so they could also try a bite of her food as well. Simultaneously, the pair took a bite of each other’s food, and once again they gave the same amazed expression. 

“This is…I have no idea what this is. And to be honest, I think I’m better off not knowing. But I may have to come around here more often if everything on the menu is this good!” She then went back to finishing up her own meal, already down to a few bites left. In spite of this, Elora felt very full, like after a Thanksgiving dinner.  “I’d love to try a drink, but it’s already getting kinda late. I should probably head back home after this, and I don’t want to order anything that’s going to make me feel a lot more than tipsy,” she said with a giggle. “How about you? Any exciting plans for the rest of the night?” 

It was natural, of course, for the question to be turned around on Felix. That was what small talk was, wasn’t it? One person shared some small detail about their life, then they asked the other person to do the same. But work wasn’t something Felix liked to talk about so long as they could help it, and they shifted with discomfort at the question. “I, um, work at a gym.” It was a familiar lie, one they tended to give anyone who asked. As was its followup: “But it’s not really the kind of place people can visit.” 

They didn’t like people to know what they did, much less people like Elora, who they found cool and interesting. And people like Elora, who they found cool and interesting, weren’t the sort who’d enjoy a night at the Grit Pit, anyway. It catered to a pretty specific audience.

The food was a welcome distraction from the conversation, which was a little funny. Felix had been expecting the opposite — for easy conversation to make bad food go down a little easier. But life was unpredictable, they supposed; sometimes, food that looked inedible was actually one of the best things you’d ever tasted. 

“Really good,” they agreed with a grin, taking a bit of her food as it was offered to them. Like the food on his own plate, Elora’s was far better than it looked on the outside, even if the taste wasn’t one Felix quite knew how to describe. It was like nothing they’d ever eaten before, and they had very little to compare it to. 

Swallowing the bite in their mouth, they nodded along. “I guess the downside is that I’d have no idea how to order it again if I came back,” they admitted with a laugh. The waiter had given no indication as to what either dish was called and, even if he had, Felix was sure the menu wouldn’t include it the next time they looked at it. The menu items didn’t seem to stay in place for very long at all. “Yeah, I might have to come back another day to try the drinks.” There was really no telling how alcoholic the drinks might be; Felix wasn’t sure tonight was the night to find out. “Oh, I have work later. I, um, work nights a lot. So I definitely can’t have a drink.” The higher ups at the Pit didn’t tend to care whether the fighters were sober or not, but Felix would rather not try to fight drunk. “Maybe we could come back sometime, though?”

“Oh! A gym?” Elora said nodding her head thoughtfully. She supposed they seemed like the type. She had never really been a fan of gym bros, but this one at least seemed pretty down to earth. “Why can’t people visit? Some sort of underground members only type of place like this little speakeasy here?” 

Elora looked down at Felix’s plate, pleased to see they seemed to be devouring it all down similarly to how she had inhaled her own food. 

“That’s really good! I’m glad you liked your food too. This place seemed like it could be hit or miss, but I guess they never miss, huh?” she said, now taking a peek at the food the other patrons had. It was largely unidentifiable, but they all seemed to be enjoying their food regardless. 

She took a moment to process what Felix had said about not being able to reorder the food. She supposed they were right, although she figured she could order the “glowing rock jello” again and the staff would probably know what she was talking about. Then again, for all she knew, there could 7 different kinds of glowing rock jello rotating on the menu. 

“Oh you work nights at the gym? Makes sense, must be one of those 24 hour ones. Do a lot of people actually come work out at, like, 2 am? Seems like an ungodly hour, but people run all sorts of schedules here.” A 2am workout circuit didn’t seem too far-fetched to her, she just hadn’t had a full conversation with someone who worked night shifts before. She thought they were all pale and sleep deprived, but this one looked downright human. 

“I’d love to come back some time, for sure! This place is definitely on my radar. It was also great meeting you tonight Felix. Who knows, maybe I’ll end up finding your super secret gym some day and drop in on you at work.” 

“Yeah,” Felix confirmed, feeling a little guilty at the lie. It wasn’t like they didn’t want to be honest with people, but… their contract prevented them from saying too much, and people got a little frustrated when you couldn’t answer many questions. And, on another level… there was no small amount of shame there, too. They didn’t like what they did, and they didn’t like for people to know about it. People would think less of them if they did. How could they not? It was shameful. “It’s, um… Yeah. It’s pretty exclusive.” Another lie, though this one was better than the truth. No one should go to the Grit Pit, Felix thought. Especially not someone as nice as Elora.

She was right about the food, too. The menu seemed risky in a way, like the kind of thing that could easily go terribly wrong, but the food was good. And it seemed they weren’t the only ones who thought so – the rest of the patrons seemed to be enjoying their meals, too. Felix wondered how many of them had ordered themselves and how many, like Elora and Felix, had needed the waiter to pitch in with an assist. 

“Something like that, yeah,” Felix chuckled nervously, trying to figure out how to explain the situation without outright lying, but without telling the whole truth, either. It wasn’t a line they particularly enjoyed walking, though it was one they had to balance fairly often these days. “People in this town definitely have, uh… unique schedules.” That, at least, wasn’t a lie. Felix knew some of their coworkers preferred the late nights at the Grit Pit, given their more nocturnal nature.

They let out another nervous chuckle as she mentioned ‘finding’ their secret gym, unease settling low in their gut. Please don’t, they wanted to say, but it would be giving too much away. So they only shrugged instead, offered a smile that was a little forced. “I’d much rather hang out when I’m, um… off the clock. Do more things like this!”

Elora cocked her head to the side a bit as she listened to Felix’s explanation of where they worked. They were being a bit dodgy, and Elora could definitely sense that. Still, however, she knew it wasn’t her place to pry. Often, when people intended to keep secrets, they did so with very good reason. 

“Well, maybe one day I’ll be cool enough. Unless it’s like some strong man type of thing, then I’ll never get in,” she said, offering a weak flex of her bicep and pointing to it before putting her arm back down. 

“But yes, we should absolutely do more fun things like this! Here, I’ll put my number in your phone. Hit me up if you ever want to go out again! Would you mind if I ever brought my girlfriend along? She’s super sweet, and usually loves these kinds of things. No pressure of course, I know meeting new people can be a little bit much sometimes.” She certainly didn’t to make Felix uncomfortable by essentially making them a third wheel for things, but she was excited to make a new friend and wanted them to meet the important people in their life. Plus, it was generally better for her partner to know the people she was hanging out with at the very least. 

“And with that, I should probably head out. It was really nice meeting you, have a great night! Don’t work yourself too hard.”

There was a rush of relief as she seemed content to drop the subject, and Felix offered a weak smile in gratitude. “Nothing like that, no.” They didn’t add that they hoped she’d never be ‘cool enough’ to catch the Grit Pit’s attention, though the thought was there. Elora seemed kind, and kind people had no place in the Grit Pit.

Things like this certainly seemed far more agreeable, anyway. Felix had more friends now than they used to, but you could never have too many, could you? “Hey, no, of course she could come along. The more the, uh, merrier, right?” Maybe Mona would want to tag along sometimes, too, or Natalia. They didn’t think Anita would be interested — she seemed more content to do her own thing — but Teagan might. It was funny; Felix never imagined they’d have so many people to choose from when it came to inviting a person to hang out. 

“It was nice meeting you, too, Elora! We should definitely do it again sometime.”

[singdreamchild]

An Alliance Forged || Cassius & Elora

Location: A Latte to Love

Timing: October 8th, midday

Parties: Cassius (@singdreamchild) & Elora (@contemporarybardess)

Summary: Elora sits across from Cassius at a crowded Latte to Love. They discuss their own histories with the town. But more importantly, they discuss the idea of venturing to a sentient haunted house together.

Content Warnings: None

The fall semester was just starting to hit full swing and UMWR students seemed to be swarming all of the local shops and restaurants near campus. Normally, Elora didn’t mind a crowd. But as she came into her favorite coffee shop, A Latte to Love, she saw it was absolutely packed with students sitting at tables with their laptops out. This was normally a place for her to relax and maybe get a bit of work done, but now it seemed that there wasn’t even a spot for her to sit down. 

As she awkwardly maneuvered through the crowd, she kept an eye out for any tables that may have had a vacancy. She made her way to the counter and paid for her drink, considering taking her coffee on the go and trying to work from home today. But her ratty apartment hadn’t felt much like home, and the local noise and excitement that seemed to be in unending supply in Worm’s Row would make focusing nearly impossible. She figured she’d rather take her chances with the college kids. 

As she stepped away from the counter, she saw a booth that was only occupied on one side. The man at the table had his laptop open and seemed as though he didn’t want to be bothered. He was pale, with blonde hair. He certainly didn’t look like anybody she was used to seeing in the south, so she debated taking the risk of interrupting the man. However, she decided that coming to this town was about new beginnings and making friends with other people who were “special” like her. 

“Excuse me”, Elora said, sliding into the other side of the booth. “I don’t usually invade people’s space like this but…” she trailed off, gesturing at the crowded coffee shop around them. “I’m just going to try and see if I can get some work done, I’ll try not to bug you too much, if that’s alright”. 

It was crowded, and Cassius had never been one for crowds. Still, he had gotten there before the rush picked up and packed the place, and he was in the middle of grading answers to the reading questions for the chapter he had assigned to his students. He had put his earbuds in to drown out the sounds, letting the song he was listening to keep him sane from the amount of people that were talking around him. He was having a hard time controlling his hunger lately, and he had to fake himself breathing instead of actually doing so, mostly because he didn’t trust himself. 

In recent weeks, he had found himself going through the motions of his life instead of truly living. Grade homework, go to work, sleep. He didn’t need the sleep of course, but he found that he’d rather not deal with the real world for as long as possible, and he couldn’t get himself to focus on a book and certainly couldn’t get himself to write. That day, however, he was finding himself at Latte to Love, he had switched it up on himself to at least appear as something other than what he truly was. 

Cassius found himself frowning at the lyrics of the song that was playing in his ears, 

Someone switched off our innocence, (our) excitement, our joy of life

Where has it gone? When'd it begun?

Who do we have to blame for what is lost?

He quickly paused the song, finding it was hitting a bit too close to home in that current moment. In that moment, he saw a figure walk up to him. He blinked, looking up to see the woman before him. He pulled an earbud out of his ear to hear her better. “Oh, yeah go for it.” He spoke, pulling his grading pile closer to himself as to not take up the entire table. “Seems like a lot of people had the same idea today.” He remarked, referring to the plethora of college students that were getting their work done. 

“If you feel the urge to bug me, I do not mind.” He then said, only half paying attention as his focus drifted back to his laptop, which he was using to enter the grade of the assignment to each student as he finished. Mostly good grades, seeing as how he was currently working on the AP assignments as opposed to the freshman. 

The man welcoming her to sit down was a relief to Elora, the last thing she wanted to be was a nuisance to anybody. 

“School’s back in session. I guess that means the whole student body is going to start hanging around here a lot more often. Which I suppose means I have to either get used to the crowd or find a different place to get some work done.” She looked over at the man and flashed a quick smile. 

She had to admit, despite all of the crazy things that happen in this town, the people here all seemed to be good. For the most part, at least. Mack, Monty, and Ariadne all seemed to be good hearted people, but each with a story and secrets that went much deeper than the surface. This man, in spite of looking like an extra who wandered off of the Twilight set, also seemed to have a good nature about him. 

“Good to know, but I’ll keep the bugging to a minimum.” She then extended her hand out to the man. “Elora Spiros, I’m still kinda new here. You are?” 

Cassius sighed at the mention of school, nodding his head. Serves him right for deciding to settle down in a town that had a college on its grounds. He had only done it to himself, in the end. “Don’t I know it,” he muttered with a shake of his head. “I’m a high school teacher.” He explained with a shrug of his shoulder. “I usually hang out at Masque of the Red Eye,” he then spoke. “College kids find it a strange place to study, but I decided to switch it up today.” He looked around, realizing how foolish of an idea it had been. Stick to what you know, Hawthorne, he thought to himself.

He looked down to the hand, having half a mind to just stare at her in response, but sucked it up and shook her hand. “Cassius Hawthorne,” He responded before dropping her hand. “I’ve lived here for ten years. So if you have any questions about the town, I’m sure I could answer.” He gave a polite smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. He wasn’t quite sure why he was volunteering himself to show the girl around, but the words had already left his mouth. 

Inwardly, he cursed to himself. So much of who he was fought against what he needed to be. Naturally friendly, that was him. But it put him in danger. The more people he knew, the more people that could find out what he was. And he couldn’t have that. 

The Masque of the Red Eye…she had heard of that place before. Lloid had mentioned that it was where “all the brooding goth types like to hang out at”. He also mentioned it’s a hotbed for blood suckers. Now that she knew that there were undead in this town, she couldn’t help but wonder if there were vampires here too as well as zombies. She eyed her new acquaintance a bit suspiciously, but decided he couldn’t be a vampire since it was daylight and he wasn’t currently a giant ball of fire. 

“Masque of the Red Eye definitely sounds…quieter. It’s not my usual vibe but maybe I should check it out.” 

“I appreciate the offer, I’ll let you know if I have any questions. Oh well, here’s one.” She leaned in a bit closer to him. “Is there something in the water here? I mean other than a ton of microplastics. I feel like half the people I meet are batshit crazy and the other half seem completely unfazed by it all.” 

She looked over at the college students, who all seemed to be fresh faced teens. Probably an incoming freshman class. She wondered if they knew about the rumors surrounding this town or the fact that they’re all true. She thought about how many students at the university dropped out or transferred schools early on. She tried not to think about how many have gone mysteriously missing.

The vampire shrugged his shoulder again, giving a half-smile. “No, it’s not a lot of people’s vibe. But they have a good open-mic night for poetry that I like to attend on occasion,” he explained as he rubbed the back of his neck. Cassius tucked the recently graded paper to the bottom of his pile before picking the papers up and neatening his pile before setting them back down. 

Her question caught him off-guard. It was certainly a right of passage when moving to Wicked’s Rest, to realize that where one moved turned out to be full of supernatural beings. Whether the individual that moved there knew that it was supernatural in nature, well, that remained to be known. “Ah, yes.” Cassius took a sip of his coffee, trying to put off answering it as much as possible. He stared down at the cup for a long moment, trying to figure out what to say. “There’s a lot of curious individuals that live in this town, curioser still are the creatures that call Wicked’s Rest their habitat as well.” He decided to be vague, it was easier than being labeled a crazy person for admitting there was magic at play. 

He didn’t know much about the creatures that existed, but Cassius had seen enough to know that nothing really surprised him anymore. He shrugged both his shoulders, giving a sheepish smile. “Afraid I don’t know anything other than that. Just watch yourself at night and stick to marked paths when walking the nature trails and you should be just fine.”

The concept of an open mic night intrigued Elora. While she had never written much poetry, and certainly didn’t consider herself to be good, she was at least interested in listening to other people. 

She noticed him tuck some papers underneath a pile and saw red ink towards the top of each sheet. While she hadn’t been through schooling, she had watched enough movies and television to know what red marks on a paper meant. 

“Teaching high school must be hard. You come here to grade papers, I assume? I hope they’re good, I’ve heard stories of some pretty awful work students turn in sometimes.”

“What sort of creatures are we talking about? I’m interested in knowing what types of animals or…others live here. I’ve heard plenty of stories of the otherworldly.” 

She took his word of caution with interest , although couldn’t help but note it had come just a bit too late. 

“I’ll have to keep that warning in mind. Unfortunately some of the shadier people in this town already got to me once, I’ll try to make sure it doesn’t happen again, though, thank you! I’m sure if you’ve been here 10 years you must have been roughed up yourself a few times, right?”

Cassius nodded his head in response to her assumption. “I’m either writing or grading papers when I go to a coffee shop. Separating my living and working spaces helps keep my mind in one place.” He explained, pointing to his head for emphasis. “This paper is for my AP students. I don’t really have the freshman students write papers. They get PowerPoint instead.” He waved a hand in dismissal. “Worst paper I’ve ever received was a plagiarized essay. Or the ones that get put into a word changer and make them sound all weird.”

He then frowned, not knowing how to describe creatures that shouldn’t exist to someone. “Honestly? I don’t rightly know.” He decided to say. “Sometimes I feel like my eyes have played tricks on me. Others, well… let’s just say I’ve gotten up close and personal with them.” He gave a terse smile. “Like birds with human-looking teeth.” He widened his eyes and raised his brows at the mention of the toothed birds. “Honestly, I feel crazy when I talk about it.” He added on, not knowing if she’d be willing to believe him or not. Still, he found that he didn’t really care if she did.

The vampire frowned as the woman said she had been attacked. Unfortunately, it wasn’t uncommon. “That’s why I make sure I keep something on me while living in a town like this.” He spoke, patting his pant pocket that held his knife. It wasn’t much, but it worked in a pinch. Luckily, he had only needed to use it once. Otherwise, he kept to himself to stay out of harm’s reach. “Only once, and it was recent,” Cassius explained with a shrug of his shoulder. “I tend to try and keep to myself. Especially in a town like this.”

Elora nodded in response to what the man in front of her was saying. “I’m sure the AP students’ papers are a lot nicer to read. I never understood the need to cheat at something. I mean, if you skate by and ‘achieve’ something without earning it, does it even really mean anything?” A formal education was never something Elora had available to her as a child, as she had lived a fairly isolated life. While she could read and write now, it was only at about a 4th grade level. Still, she had come that far completely on her own. Hearing this man speak of writing and poring through many pages of essays in a single afternoon certainly made her feel much smaller in comparison, but she never let her expression reflect that. 

“A bird with human teeth?” She answered incredulously, also wondering if a siren could be considered a form of bird with human teeth. If that were the case, maybe she could find some form of kinship after all? She knew many sirens and other creatures living in their own communities had heard of the siren girl who sold her entire colony down the river for a boy. But she still held out hope that any sirens that were here would be understanding and willing to give her a chance at redemption. 

“Honestly, that’s not crazy at all. Seems more tame than some other stories I’ve heard here. Did you hear about the apples with faces on them? Or the houses that have a mind of their own? I mean those all seem pretty ‘out there’ to me. But at the same time, I’d love to see something like that firsthand. Wouldn’t you? I mean a haunted house is one thing, but one that can think? You go to sit on the couch and it’s just pulled away right from under you? I think it’d be kind of a charming experience.” She had to admit she had an unusual definition of “charming”.

“Believe me,” she said, her voice growing a bit quieter, causing her to lean in a bit more. “I’ve kept protection on me ever since.” She casually palmed the knife she had looted off of the ranger who attacked her over its holster. She had never considered herself to be a graverobber, but it wasn’t as if the man had any need for it anymore. 

“I hope it didn’t do any serious damage to you, and I’m glad you’re okay.” She resisted the urge to attempt making a fist with her left hand, something she often tried to do whenever she thought of her injury. It served as a physical reminder that her injury was real and she had not, in fact, hallucinated it all in some bad dream. “Does it get lonely? Keeping to yourself all the time? I mean, I’m all for safety, but I also need people. Some kind of human interaction, you know what I mean?”

Cassius took a drink from his long-forgotten coffee cup, then nodded his head. “The AP students actually try with their papers,” he explained. “As opposed to the freshman students who think they can get away with a paper written by an AI.” He rolled his eyes, thinking back to the countless papers he had gotten that were too well-written to be written by thirteen and fourteen-year-olds. 

“Apples with faces? Now you’re talking.” Cassius couldn’t help but roll his eyes at such a creature. Nothing surprised him anymore, not after all the weird shit he’d seen over the years. “Oh, sentient houses.” He nodded his head, pursing his lips. “Sure, why not?” He narrowed his gaze at her as she spoke of wanting actually to experience such a thing. “You and I have very different ideas of a good time.” He remarked, raising a brow at the woman. “How about you experience the living house and report back to me with your findings?” He suggested with his brows raised. Thank you very much. He wasn’t stepping near anything of the sort.

His amused face fell to a soft frown, nodding his head slowly as she spoke to the lengths she had to go to to keep herself safe. He recalled the first time he had to use a knife. It left him shaking. “I’m more experienced in things than I look.” He said vaguely in response. “I’ve learned a trick or two to keep myself safe.” He didn’t say that he got very lucky and ended up being saved at the last second by someone else. 

His gaze fell to his hands. Did he get lonely? Of course, he did. But after spending the past fifty years being careful not to get too close to anyone, the pang of loneliness had long faded into an avoidable background noise. In recent months, he had found himself growing closer to people. Still, he couldn’t help but think of the dangers of doing so. “The loneliness becomes a companion after a while,” he answered quietly. “I have a small few that I speak with. I try to keep it small.” He forced an awkward smile as if to say that it didn’t bother him. And truthfully, it didn’t. Not anymore, anyway.

As she heard of freshman students throwing away their chance at a quality education, Elora couldn’t help but feel a flash of anger well up. If she had been given the chance, she felt she would have taken advantage as much as she could have. But then again, she couldn’t say with any certainty exactly what she would do. Those who were granted privileges tended to overlook them.

“Well you’re no fun” she chided playfully. “If the house eats me because there’s nobody there to protect me, I’m blaming you!” 

She took a moment to assess the man in front of her. He didn’t exactly look like the type who could hold his own in a fight. If she was being honest, it looked as if he’d barely needed to use his hands for anything beyond writing for most of his life. Not exactly the spitting image of a rough and tumble survivalist, but she had come to learn already that nothing is as it seems in this town. 

“Well I’m glad you’ve picked up a few tricks, maybe I can learn a few myself. Or maybe I should keep to myself more, like you said to do. At least until I get a feel for whose friendly and who isn’t.” 

She hadn’t wanted to live an isolated life. That wasn’t why she came to this town in the first place. She had heard of odd creatures and many layers of mystery, but she wasn’t quite prepared for the level of hostility the town had presented right out of the gate. There really wasn’t much sense in trying to make friends if they were all trying to kill you, was there? Still, she couldn’t give up hope now. She was nearly out of money completely, she couldn’t afford to run off somewhere else. Besides, she had done nothing but run for the past 8 years. She was tired of it. 

“I’m glad you keep a select few in your circle at least. It’s better than complete isolation. There are some more friendly people here then? I’ve met a few already that I trust, but I’m always open to meeting more. Need as many allies as you can get in this town, right?”

Giving an amused smile at the woman’s reaction, Cassius ran a hand across his face idly. “If you’re looking for the adventurous type, I’m afraid you’re barking up the wrong tree.” He remarked, that same smile still lingering despite the truth of his words. He would sooner run than interact with something that could get him into trouble. It’s what he was conditioned to do. “I’m sure you can find several people that would be more than happy to go adventuring into a conscious and very haunted house with you.”

Cassius hummed, staring down at his hands. Picking up tricks was a strong way of putting it. More staying out of harm’s way and getting extremely lucky was more like it. Having a strong elder vampire backing your every move seemed to help things. “It’s a double-edged sword,” he began to explain. “On one hand, you have less of a chance of running into trouble, because you’re avoiding it entirely.” He adjusted his sitting position as he spoke, sitting up straighter as he crossed one leg over the other. “On the other, however, it’s a lonely world. And we as people are social creatures by nature, and can only withstand that for so long.” 

He looked down to his work that was in front of him, and shook his head. “Don’t be like me, make friends and take risks.” He pointed a finger in her direction with raised brows. “Allies,” he echoed with a hollow expression. He had been recruiting more allies as of late, even ones that he would have rather run away from than actually align himself with. Desperate times, and all that. He thought about extending that circle, and it scared him. The idea of allowing himself to potentially get close to more people than he already had was daunting, but he was certainly getting better at it in recent months, so he had to give himself credit for that. He opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it after a few seconds. He couldn’t get himself to put himself out there more than he already had. 

Just as Elora had suspected, the pale man in front of her was cautious to a fault. Boring.  What was the point of survival if you couldn’t enjoy your life? Still, she could appreciate his outlook on life. Keep a small circle and keep your head down; it didn’t seem like bad advice. Just not advice she felt like taking.

Just as she was thinking how a lonely life simply wouldn’t do for her, she heard Cassius imploring her to put herself out there. She couldn’t help but feel caught off guard by his expression when the word “allies” came up. She wasn’t necessarily asking him for an alliance right there on the spot, more generally speaking on needing more friends to help bail her out when she made bad choices. 

Yet something gave the man pause, almost as if he did want to form some sort of alliance or friendship with her. She figured their conversation was interesting enough and seemed like a genuinely good person. Plus, he had been a resident of this town for quite some time, he probably knew plenty of its secrets. That, to her, seemed like a very fun guy to keep around! Even if he didn’t want to explore any of those secrets with her. 

“I’ll tell you what,” she began, leaning in closer to the man. By now, the noise surrounding them had died down considerably, so they were able to speak at a normal volume again. “If you accept my alliance, I’ll sweeten the pot.” She looked at the man for a considerable amount of time, wondering just what she could sweeten the pot with. She didn’t exactly have anything to offer. “Actually, no I won’t. I…honestly don’t bring much to the table. But I’d still like to be friends!”

Cassius let out a huff of laughter as she admitted that she had nothing to bring to the table. This woman, she was blunt with what she wanted. Cassius? Well, he was still trying to learn to make friends. After centuries of being taught to stay away from people for his own safety, it was hard to break that. Still, it couldn’t… couldn't hurt, right? The corners of his mouth twitched into a frown, though he was careful to school his features before doubt and wariness took over.

“I don’t… usually stick my neck out for complete strangers.” He answered honestly, staring down at his hands. “And I’m still trying to break out of this shell I’ve made.” He paused, interlocking his fingers, then resting his chin down on them. He didn’t know how to let someone down gently. He didn’t get involved in things that would get him into trouble. 

But…

He thought back to a conversation he had with Inge, and he sighed, shutting his eyes as he realized he was getting far too wreckless lately. “You want to see a haunted, sentient house?” He asked, bringing back up the previous conversation. “Fine. I’ll… go… with you.” He bit out, fighting his better nature that wanted to stay home with a good book. “Seeing as how you’ll probably go anyway, this way we can see just how much trouble you like to get yourself into.” Cassius forced a smile onto his face, and it showed. 

“I’m sure you bring plenty to the table, don’t sell yourself short.” He then spoke, waving a hand at her dismissively. He looked around to see if anyone was listening in, but everyone either had headphones in or was sucked into their own conversations. “I bring supernatural strength to the table,” he spoke to her in a serious tone. “Though that comes with drawbacks.” He pointed to the window, specifically at the overcast sky. “Despite my being out during the day, the sun is not my friend.” He raised a brow, looking at her intently. “Catch my drift?”

To Elora’s surprise, Cassius had… agreed? To go to the haunted house with her? She couldn’t help but wonder why he had the sudden change in attitude. Maybe she’d convinced him take a walk on the wild side for a change. She couldn’t help but flash a big warm smile at him in approval. 

“You won’t be disappointed, trust me. I’m not completely useless in defending myself either. I do appreciate you sticking your neck out for me though.”

She couldn’t help but give the man another appraisal when he mentioned super strength. By her assessment, he barely looked strong enough to carry a gallon of milk. Then he spoke further, bringing up certain quirks that sounded all too familiar to her. A vampire out in broad daylight, she didn’t think it was possible. She thought the only vampires who could do that were of the sparkly variety. Then she made note of his dark clothing and lack of exposed skin and put two and two together. She considered herself lucky this one was friendly and not hungry. 

“You’re a…” she said in disbelief, before stopping herself. She knew better than to make a scene, and the last thing she wanted to do was blow her new friend’s cover. “It must be hard getting dressed in the morning when you can’t look at yourself. Also must suck cooking with a garlic allergy. I love garlic.” She nodded, and gave a knowing raise of her eyebrow. 

“Your secret is safe with me, Mr. Hawthorne. But I’ll hold you to that haunted house visit. After all, I’d love to see that super strength in action. And maybe ask you some more questions about…people like yourself. If you wouldn’t mind? I happen to be special, myself. I have a very slender, almost bird like figure, an enthralling voice, and tend to be VERY persuasive. If you catch my drift.” 

The vampire chuckled despite himself, ducking his head as she lamented about the loss of garlic. “I’ve grown used to it.” He shrugged his shoulders. “Not that I can’t eat garlic, it just… produces unwanted side effects,” he explained with a wave of his hands. He knew the more people he told, the more he put himself at risk, but he found that he was tired of hiding all the time. Maybe Elora wasn’t so bad, seeing as she had taken the news with curiosity and fascination over fear and disgust. Maybe she wouldn’t be a bad ally, after all. 

“Hopefully I won’t need to use it,” he grumbled in response, rolling his eyes. “Hopefully we won’t encounter anything too crazy while there.” He spoke, hoping that he was right. Man, this was a bad idea. Still, there was that voice in the back of his mind that demanded he live a little. He nodded his head slowly as she explained that she, herself, wasn’t all that she appeared. He wasn’t sure what exactly she was, but he was sure he would find out when they exchanged questions. “I’m unfamiliar, but I’m sure we can discuss our… conditions further when we’re trapped in a sentient building.” He widened his eyes and raised his brows as he spoke. “What could possibly go wrong?”

[chasseurdeloup]

Well if you see any around, just call animal control. And if you see someone grabbing any of them off the ground or something, make note if it's a pain in the ass kid with dark hair who doesn't show emotion on her face at any given moment and hangs around with a pain in the ass man with a busted knee who can't drive-- call that in, too. Maybe note what they look like and where they are, that sort of thing. Don't confront them if you don't feel safe to, of course. Just be smart.

If only. Don't think it's going to happen anytime soon, though. For now, it keeps me busy, that's for sure.

It's frustrating is what it is. I'd love to do something to help the situation, but unfortunately ya can't help every animal all on your own.

That's a good point too. Honestly, it'd be nice if the wildlife here acted normally for a change.

[mortemoppetere]

WICKED'S REST + POST APOCALYPTIC

( feat: @apaininyourneck, @contemporarybardess, @thesilentmedium, @dirtwatchman, @spaceforanother, @eldritchaccident, @letsbenditlikebennett, & @phoenixleah )

[wickedsrest-rp]

The scream will set you free | Group Thread

TIMING: Current LOCATION: Downtown (Outside the encased Shelter in Place) PARTIES: Siobhan (@banisheed), Alex (@letsbenditlikebennett), Elora (@contemporarybardess), Ren SUMMARY: The situation grows dire after one of the emergency shelters is taken by and encased in the goo. Four people -- Ariadne, Mack, Jade, and Oliver -- are still trapped inside. Siobhan, Alex, Elora, and Ren find themselves on a bridge overlooking the goo, and when they realize others are trapped and they have a way to help, the four of them save the day... and soon, maybe, the town. For now.

The more the goo oozed over the town, the more faces Alex found encased in it. Every time she saw one she couldn’t help but examine them and found herself desperately hoping the features under the mineral weren’t familiar. Maybe the nightmare of loved ones faces wouldn’t haunt her so much if Cass wasn’t literally living with the stuff. She couldn’t help but think of Nora and the crystals. These statues weren’t the same– at least she didn’t think so. It seemed a worse fate somehow, especially if they were alive under there, but thinking of them as corpses wasn’t a much more comforting thought. 

There was little Alex could do to fight the sludge. She wasn’t much of a fighter even in the best of circumstances even. Maybe desperate circumstances brought it out of her from time to time, but she wasn’t sure tooth and claw could do much against goo. So instead, she walked alongside Ren toward a large gymnasium space downtown that had been turned into a makeshift shelter for those displaced by the sludge. The tote bags she had on hand had a variety of canned foods and blankets that she hoped could be useful. She wanted to be useful. 

The little bridge that went from the university campus to the stretch of businesses downtown directly overlooked the gymnasium. Alex glanced down at her phone to see texts from Mack and Ariadne letting her know that they had arrived a few hours ago, but when she looked up, she instinctively placed an arm out in front of Ren to stop them both in their tracks. “Something’s not right,” she stated and moved toward the railing of the bridge. The smell of sludge was pungent in the air and she could see the crowd of people moving away from where the shelter once stood. The building was absolutely covered in the substance that oozed thickly down the walls. No. 

“Ariadne and Mack are in there,” she said shakily. Alex hated the sound of her voice in that moment. It wasn’t the commanding tone she found herself able to fake when there was an emergency to take care of. This was different. She felt defeated because what could they do? The sludge was already looking harder than it had moments ago while it was still somehow pouring through the blocks. 

“Stop,” Alex directed to anyone approaching from behind, “The area is going to be taped off soon, but it’s not safe.” She assumed it would be anyway. She hadn’t actually made any calls yet, but if she spoke with an air of authority, most would listen. Those who didn’t would see the sludge and hopefully gain some sense. 

Ren had been with Alex when the news of the ooze spread through town. The werewolf had got a message from her older sister and told Ren with such alarm. As if the nymph couldn’t feel the sudden shift of nature beneath her skin. Whole colonies of bugs were buried in that ichor. Humans weren't the only beings rendered still and silent by the terrible stuff. 

Renata Daryova wasn't much of a fae. She didn't connect to nature in the same way those raised in an aos si might. There were barely six hours a day she spent out of her glamour, and those were only because she had to sleep and couldn't control the magic while she did so. Still, she'd never been this cut off from the source. Nature was weeping, bleeding. The nymph felt faint. Dizzy. Distracted. As if she wasn't already from the stress of being separated from Gael, from her– 

This was a disaster. 

Ren didn't have time to be selfish with her skills. There were people that needed protecting. And Alex was already on that path. Ren would just have to do whatever it took to aid the other tiny redhead. (If nothing else, the bright ginger pair stood out like a beacon against the black. Not that either of them particularly liked being stared at. Maybe it'd be worth something, maybe it could be a good thing. If it saved just one person by pointing them in the right direction, then being perceived wasn't the worst fate.) 

A stifled panic straightened Ren's back as Alex made her observation. Big green eyes trailed the werewolf's gaze towards the place they were supposed to meet up with the other girls. The entomid didn't really know Mack all that well but Ariadne… the thought of her joining the sea of stone faces was enough to make the shy fae quietly reach over towards Alex's hand. 

"We– We rescue them, yes? We have to try."

When Elora had heard that there was a makeshift shelter at a nearby gymnasium, she took her time getting her supplies ready and packed up. Worm’s Row had almost been completely taken over by the sludge at this point, making travel nearly impossible. Part of her wanted to just ride things out in her ratty apartment, but she knew she’d run out of supplies or be overtaken by the goo sooner or later. Besides, riding things out with Mack sounded a lot better than staying alone for however long it would take to clear up. If it ever would. 

So, with a heavy pack in tow, she parkoured her way around the roof of her building until she found a patch of ground clear enough to move. Not too long after that, she found herself closing in on the gym. But…something didn’t seem right. It was covered in…something. Then, in horror, she realised. Mack, Ariadne, and everybody else in that building, was stuck in that goo. And she didn’t even have any assurance that any of them were alive. Her mind didn’t think, it couldn’t, her feet just started moving her body towards the danger, focused only on trying to save whoever she could. 

She ran across the bridge, and found two others standing there, also looking out at the gym. She could see rays of sunlight shimmering off of two heads full of auburn hair. Guess it’ll be the ginger trio to the rescue, Elora thought to herself as she approached them. She figured they were contemplating helping as well, and three heads would certainly be better than one. 

Frantically she ran up to the duo. 

“Do you two know what’s going on? Are the people in there okay? I was on my way to join the shelter, but it looks like it’s covered in that goo.” 

When Siobhan saw three other people on the bridge, she was ready to turn around. She hadn’t come here because she was seeking shelter, someone like her didn’t need shelter, she didn’t want these people thinking that she did. Inside her red wagon, cushioned with blankets and pillows, her dog softly whined in his sleep, paws twitching as he chased off imaginary squirrels. She didn’t need shelter, but as the goo spread through the acres of her farm, the curious creature soundly asleep in her wagon, wasn’t safe; he needed shelter. As she approached, she could see what had become of the shelter and watched crowds shift and disperse. She should have left too, but her grip tightened around the wagon’s handle and the truth settled into her: her best chance to get the dog somewhere safe was that damned shelter. 

Siobhan grit her teeth and pulled herself and her wagon up to the group. She recognized Alex, though she didn’t wave. The other child gave her a familiar chill, which only soured her mood further. And the woman was…alright, Siobhan was the most fine with the strange woman. It didn’t escape her that everyone else had red hair, and there she was, turning up brunette to the party. As the suggestion to help rose into the air, Siobhan rolled her eyes. She knew it was a terrible idea to come here. Her dog growled softly this time, Siobhan hoped he caught his dream squirrel. 

“And how do you lot plan on doing that?” Siobhan gestured, unamused. “That building is covered with the...” Siobhan winced. “…goo and even if you find some opening, you have no idea what state the inside of that building is in.” Siobhan gestured to the crowds of people turning away. “They have the right idea. What do you plan to do, Alex? And…child and…woman…” Of course, she didn’t plan on leaving either—she was desperate—but she also didn’t plan on letting any of them know that she shared their optimistic opinion. She thought she heard that Ariadne was in there and the sadness that gave her made her uncomfortable enough to be rooted in place. 

The situation was bleak. Alex knew as much but she didn’t necessarily appreciate the professor pointing it out. Even this was something she could fight tooth and claw, it wasn’t exactly like that was a thing she was practiced at. Rhett had been the exception, not the rule, if her past actions were any indication. How the hell was she supposed to stop goo? She tried to think of everything she knew about minerals, but the abnormality was something else entirely. It likely had its own properties that were consistent, it was just difficult to know what those were. 

It hardened around people and was beginning to harden around the building. Alex pulled at the sleeve of the khaki green jacket she wore and racked her brain for any idea of what to try. Cass had mentioned before maybe using her lava to melt the hardened goo, but there was no way she could attempt that now. If she knew Aria and Mack were in there, she’d sure as hell try and Alex thought that may have scared her more. 

“How different can it be from other minerals,” Alex spoke through gritted teeth. She couldn’t quite take her eyes away from ooze flowing from the building and swallowed back the lump in her throat. She moved to grab some caution tape from her bag from the state park that she wasn’t necessarily supposed to have. She handed it to Ren. “Start taping off the area so no one else can get through. You’d think people wouldn’t run right toward the goo, but if working at the state park has taught me one thing it’s that there’s always someone who’s gonna do the dumbest thing possible.” 

She waved to the other redhead with a somewhat solemn look. “The goo’s taken over that shelter… Don’t know if everyone’s gotten out yet,” Alex spoke truthfully even though the truth tasted like acid on her tongue. She didn’t know this woman and she wasn’t exactly sure she was someone who knew there had to be something more sinister about the goo. “I’m Alex,” she said after a pause, “You might wanna clear the area. There’s some other shelters over in Deersprings that should still be goo free. Not sure search and rescue is really a volunteer job for just anyone with this shit.” 

The implication was there. Whether or not it was taken was hardly something Alex could really consider. She turned to Professor Dolan. “Haven’t figured that one out quite yet,” she retorted, “It’s not like there’s a guide on probably cursed goo. The people going the other way do have the right idea. So if you wanna follow them, go ahead. I’m not asking you or anyone else to stay.” 

She knew that Ren would stay though Alex wasn’t sure how much they could really do. She studied the paths the ooze took from afar and steeled herself against the pit of nerves that threatened to take the wheel. “It may be supernatural, but it’s still a mineral of some kind. Heat, force, or acidty of some extreme nature should be able to destroy or at least break it.” She began to pace as she thought over options, none of which were very good. She looked to Ren and spoke lowly, “Cass thought of maybe trying her lava before… I don’t think she’s physically up for that yet.” 

She turned to the others, “Anyone else chill about the fact the supernatural exists and know of anything supernaturally hot, acidic, or able to deliver an extreme amount of force?” 

Ren's mind was ablaze. Heated currents swirled her thoughts around and around, a tornado of possibilities and almost all of them grim. Another fae joined the small group and the nymph had to stifle any of her programming that urged her to take advantage of the chaos to dispose of the woman. She was pessimistic and scowling, that much wasn't too strange to Ren. Kind of reminded her of Darya and the ‘strict rules, high expectations’ attitude the older woman viewed the world with. 

This only soured the nymph’s mood further which made her all the more happy to busy herself with the caution tape. Ren didn’t even say anything, just nodded to Alex and headed off. Keeping her head on a swivel for anything out of place. Any signs of life inside the ichor covered edifice. The nymph was quick and dextrous, this kind of thing shouldn’t have even been a challenge. The only thing that slowed her, however, was the creeping dread the ooze seemed to carry. The frozen faces of those completely stuck, the frantic screams of those who had only stepped in it to find they couldn’t move their limb anymore. It was horrifying. But she had a job to do. 

A few moments later, the entomid returned. Dropping down to the bridge from a rooftop above. She sidled up to Alex, resuming her spot next to the werewolf. “Northwest corner of building is clear. Lights still on inside. Stuff is on lower floors outsides, but if we could… If we get bridge to the windows perhaps?” A pause, her solution was flawed. Marred by the same problem Alex was trying to find a solution to. “Ah but– would still need something to split bars over glass.” Ren bit at her lower lip. Concern was getting the best of her, and that wasn’t something she could afford. Too much was at stake here. 

The strange woman’s suggestion puzzled Elora; did she know of anything supernaturally hot, acidic or forceful? Sure, she was considered “supernatural” herself, but didn’t exactly have any tools to help in that regard. Maybe she could persuade the goo to vanish? At this point, it wouldn’t surprise her if the goo itself was sentient enough to fall prey to her magic. 

Anticipation and suspense filled Elora as she watched the more nimble looking woman go scouting. She seemed to effortlessly traverse the terrain, and Elora found herself impressed and a tad envious. Were their chances really so grim? Surely there must have been some hope, for the sake of everyone inside. She glanced again at her phone screen checking her text conversation with Mack. Her last message, sent about an hour and a half ago, was still showing “delivered”. A knot started to form in the pit of her stomach, growing quickly, like an all consuming black hole in her gut. 

She was relieved, then, to hear that there was still a light on inside the building and that there was some corner of the building not yet consumed by the all consuming goo. Signs of life were still present, but she wasn’t sure how long things would stay that way. They needed to act, and they needed to do so quickly. Maybe if they could get inside they could use some of the furniture to make a path to the bridge, like some high stakes game of “the floor is lava”. Of course, getting inside the building was a task to figure out in and of itself. 

“I don’t suppose anybody has a crowbar or anything with them? I packed for survival, didn’t think to bring anything but the essentials. And for some reason I can’t get a hold of anybody inside the building either, so they won’t be much help until we get there.” She paused again. She knew there were some good people in that shelter, she’d put her own life on the line if it meant saving theirs. “I’m willing to try anything at all”. 

“Oh yes, let me use my acid breath to help us…” Siobhan whined, gesturing languidly. She knew she was being unhelpful, it wasn’t in her nature to be helpful; not with goo anyway. If one of them was fated to die, then she could be really helpful. Heroics weren’t in her blood, altruism wasn’t a skill she cared to gain and by no means did she mind that Ariadne—the student that complimented her relentlessly and who was already dead and whose peril sparked an odd flutter of fear in her chest—was inside that goo infested gymnasium. “Yes, let me use my bridge building powers…” She rolled her eyes and then started rolling her wagon with her sleeping dog away. “Well, you lot have fun playing Goo Rescue Team; I’m going to be sensible.” With a wave, she turned her back to them and started down the bridge, opposite the shelter and the three gingers. 

The fae child did a good job taping off the area; the perimeter of the bridge was secure and no other stray humans bumbled around the area. Siobhan walked to the edge of the taped area, holding it up so she could duck underneath, when something on the horizon caught her attention. Well, ‘horizon’ wasn’t accurate, it was more like right in front of her. And ‘caught her attention’ meant she’d nearly walked into it. Siobhan dropped the tape and looked up; from a fissure in the ground, a swollen mound of sludge had silently squeezed through the earth and stood at attention. Siobhan stepped back. The mass burbled and more goo oozed from the crack, giving birth to an identical mound conjoined to the first. It looked like— “Tits,” Siobhan hissed. “Bloody tits.” She rushed back to the centre of the bridge, interrupting the gang of gingers. “Tits,” she repeated, gesturing at the goo mounds that cut off the exit. “Fucking tits. We’re gooed in right now. Can’t go forward…” She gestured to the shelter and its black, sludge shell. “Can’t go back…” She gestured to the imposing goo tits, which were due to burst anytime soon, she could tell; something about them was malicious. 

She looked at them. “Ideas. Now. What did you say? We need some kind of force? What did you say? Crowbar?” She pulled a knife from the pocket of her coat and then another. “This is all I’ve got.” To demonstrate the futility, with perfect aim she didn’t even have the time to be smug about, she threw the knife into a patch of goo near the shelter. The goo made her point as it absorbed the knife, encasing it with hardened sludge. “How are we going to get a bridge to the window? What? Can any of you fly?” The acid that poured out at the idea of flight was reflexive; another thing she didn’t have the luxury of reacting to. The dog growled again in his sleep; the dream squirrels were feisty today. 

Under normal circumstances, Alex would want to gain the approval of one of the university’s professors, but these weren’t normal circumstances. There was a good chance two people that she loved were stuck in that building and the thought of giving up made her stomach turn more than pushing forward. So she found Professor Dolan’s complaints grating, especially as no one asked her to stay and help. In fact, she had Ren putting up the caution tape for the sole purpose of keeping people safely away from the incoming goo. 

“Again, not asking for your help,” Alex snapped at the professor, “So please go somewhere safe and preferably out of earshot.” For her, that meant farther away than most, not that she was going to drop that one on Siobhan. At least the other woman seemed willing to help, not that Alex was sure how she could help. It seemed like she knew some people who may have been trapped in the building as well. 

So as Siobhan walked off, Alex returned her attention to Ren and the other redhead to try and come up with some sort of plan. She looked at their surroundings and there wasn’t anything notably helpful. There were some trees still standing and some old buildings with trash cans out on the street. Those would be flimsy at best. “No crowbar,” she answered, still scanning the area before she heard the loud exclamation of one of her favorite body parts. 

“I love tits as much as the next lesbian, but I don’t think that’s gonna help here,” Alex rolled her eyes, not fully looking over to see what Professor Dolan was complaining about now until she mentioned that they were now gooed. She turned to face where Siobhan was standing. Oh. The tits thing made a lot more sense in the context of there being two mounds of goo that looked oddly like breasts trapping them in place. 

“I never thought I’d be this disappointed for someone to mean tits literally,” Alex grimaced. She wasn’t really that upset that Siobhan now wanted to help their efforts, but part of her wished that the banshee had been able to get away before getting quite literally booby trapped. “I don’t think a crowbar will do much… and not so sure we’d be able to build a bridge with much integrity… definitely not now that we’re trapped here.” 

Things were looking worse by the second. It was funny. Alex had been worried about Cass being the one to become a goo statue with the stuff leaking into her cave and here she was essentially surrounded by the stuff. The mention of flying made her look to Ren as discreetly as she could, but she didn’t think Ren being able to fly over the goo would do much for a whole group of them. Part of her worried Ren would push herself too hard either way. “No flying here,” she answered, “Claws are more my specialty… which does jack shit here. Don’t think my Bic lighter is gonna get us a lot in the way of heat either.” 

A thrum of panic was settling in. More than the ire of being around strangers, being around another fae, Ren saw the metaphorical walls caving in as the goo got closer. The mention of flying was tossed out and it looked like an ever looming inevitability rather than a last resort. She wouldn't let Alex join the legions of statues. Wouldn't let anyone else on this bridge either, but if she had to choose, Ren already made her choice. Even if it meant the werewolf would see the nymph for what she was. Even if potentially many people could get a glimpse of the buggy monster that sat just beneath her glamour.

There wasn't much Ren could add here either. She had no magic, not really. She was spry, good enough at getting herself in and out of places but she'd always been a one man show. Working in tandem with others seemed cumbersome. Terrifying. Even now the entomid struggled to let herself lean on anyone else for support. It wasn't like she was going to camouflage her way out of this pickle. Nor could she fight it with the many many knives she had hidden on her person. 

"No weapons, perhaps… gas line? No we could not get below street… one of these buildings must have something we could use." Ren was scanning around, searching for anything at all that could be useful when another fissure ruptured. Spewing viscous splatters of the ichor. A hearty thwop resounded as the first hit part of the bridge, a second glob rained down and almost hit Alex on her shoulder but Ren was able to whirl the tiny werewolf away. Shouting "Watch out!" was all she could do for the other two though, as a flurry of blobs flung through the air. 

The somewhat older woman was proving to be…unhelpful at best. Each of her words dripping with sarcasm that really didn’t bring them any closer to their goal. If anything, valuable time was being wasted, which wasn’t a resource they had much of in the first place. Elora began tuning her out, so she almost missed hearing the woman’s complaints of very uniquely shaped goo formations. Sure enough, there they were. Very realistically sculpted goo breasts trapping them in place. Really brings a new meaning to “look but don’t touch” she thought to herself. Shame, she was really looking forward to the woman’s departure. 

Flight. Of course, why hadn’t she thought of a solution that simple? She was practically a bipedal bird, after all. Then again, that would mean showing her true form to a group of strangers, and she didn’t know if she was ready to take such a big risk yet. She had only revealed her true identity to a select few people in town, and only after they confided their true selves to her. As far as she knew, all three of these women could be perfectly normal people who would be horrified by her true form. 

She didn’t have time to ponder that decision much longer, as suddenly another big fissure opened up with more goo coming down around them. These ones, very sadly, weren’t shaped like boobs. However, they were likely just as deadly all the same. She dove out of the way of one blob that nearly struck her right in the head. As she was on the ground, she heard other areas of the bridge being pelted. When the bombardment had ended, she looked up to see if the other three were okay. While nobody seemed to be too worse for wear, they had a new predicament on their hands. Both ends of the bridge were now blocked off by the goo, effectively trapping them. She looked over the side rail of the bridge and determined it was probably far too high of a drop to survive. At least, for a normal human that is.

“Well shit, this really just went from bad to worse. We’ll have to forget about the shelter for right now. If we don’t break this goo, we’ll be stranded here!” 

She thought back to one of the stories passed around from her grandmother about the savagery of human beings in desperate situations. She told her of a Donner Party (which, given what ended up happening, didn’t sound very festive) and how they all ate each other when stranded in the mountains. Is that what would happen to her? Killed for a meal out of desperation? 

Siobhan wrenched her wagon out of the path of a raining goo chunk. It splattered on the ground and a string of sludge spread to her boot. Siobhan jerked, the goo had no give. She pulled her foot out and watched her boot solidify into a single mass. The amount of goo it had taken to claim her boot was drop compared to the perched tit balloons waiting to spew--a drop compared to the ocean of goo around them. Just a drop, and it had claimed her boot--a thousand dollars worth of genuine leather--so thoroughly that even she, in all of her materialistic glory, didn’t think about taking it back. To put it simply: they were fucked. “Are you certain that fire is effective against the goo?” Siobhan asked, mourning the loss of her boot with one short whine. She pulled the wagon close to her, still harbouring the sleeping dog that wouldn’t wake unless food was rattled or someone uttered one of several forbidden words, the most powerful of which being G-R-E-E-N-I-E. She was thankful his mind was so singularly focused. 

She turned to look at the gingers, whom she’d begun to think of as one conglomerate mess of red-hair. Something tickled the back of Siobhan’s mind; visions of the clearing by her house where she screamed flashed between their ginger heads. Despite the gooey state of her farther fields, her clearing was…well, to use an uncreative word, clear. To use a more creative one required more mental facilities than Siobhan was willing to spare. What was easier: hoping to find some sort of gas line, possibly blow themselves up, or a scream? She glanced down at her dog and the air heaved out of her lungs with the force of her guilt. Then she looked at the gingers and didn’t feel very guilty at all. Alex has said the goo was a mineral and she’d shattered plenty of minerals with her voice before. “Are you certain…” She tried again, looking at Alex, “are you certain that the goo is a mineral? That it can be destroyed?” 

She glanced between the other unnamed gingers, the child and the woman, “one of you take care of the dog. Cover its ears.” She pushed the wagon towards them and then addressed the ginger mass as a whole. “I have a proverbial pickaxe and…” Goo splattered beside her and she jumped away, hobbling on her remaining booted foot. “Excuse me, I was trying to give a delicate speech about--” More goo flew through the air and splashed around them. As she turned around, she noticed the twin goo mounds throbbing. She twisted back towards them. “I’m going to scream. I don’t have time to explain; perhaps it won’t work--in which case, it was an honour for you all to know me and bask in my beauty. Cover your ears, it won’t help much but it will make you think it does and the mind is powerful. Someone cover the dog’s ears, that also won’t help much but it’s better than nothing and I care more about the dog than any of you. Questions? Yes, I am always this charming. Ready?” 

It didn’t take long for Alex to realize that she should have just enjoyed the giant pair of goo tits while she could. Even if it was still goo, at least it was aesthetically pleasing because boobs always were. Goo rain? Not so much. Bird shit would make better rain than this stuff and it was flowing around them too. The eruption itself sent her stumbling into a lamppost which resulted in several splinters in her palm and her cardigan getting a sizable rip in it. She frowned down at the tattered sleeve. Alan had just gotten it for her as part of her capsule wardrobe and it was her favorite since it was forest green. She was also pretty sure the cardigan itself cost more than her rent. She wasn’t sure if that said more about her rent or the cardigan. 

Given how quickly things had taken a turn, Alex was fairly certain the situation was grim. She wasn’t giving up, she just wasn’t sure how much their efforts would count now that they were trapped with little to no resources to work with outside of the goo itself. When the redhead she didn’t know spoke, it was hard for the werewolf to not bite back that they already were stranded. It wouldn’t be helpful, not that Professor Dolan had been helpful even remotely up until this point. 

“Right,” Alex smiled weakly, “Gotta put on our own life vests first or whatever.” Except this wasn’t a boat and it wasn’t the ocean they were surrounded by. They couldn’t swim or float their way through. The bits that splattered through the sky like rain couldn’t be dodged with an umbrella they didn’t have. Siobhan’s boot had been evidence enough of that. Everything that touched the goo just became a part of it and Alex didn’t want to be goo. 

Then the professor was saying something about screaming and covering her dog’s ears. In how confidently Siobhan spoke and the new wave of determination that seemed to overtake her, Alex wondered if maybe there was something more to the whole screaming thing. That seemed too lucky though. “Scream,” she looked at Siobhan with a blank stare. 

Screaming. Great. The odd older woman must have been a banshee then. At least, that’s what came to mind for the scattered thoughts of the frantic bug fae. Ren didn’t like being trapped, the idea of being trapped in goo was even less appealing. While her face did not betray any of the troubled waters just beneath the surface, it was rapidly devolving into a whirlpool. 

The entomid turned, nodded towards the banshee and scooted even closer to Alex. Already taking a protective stance behind the other girl, ready to awkwardly fly them both to relative safety if she had to. And hopefully, to avoid being seen, should the scream mess with her glamour. It wasn’t exactly a feature of the powerful wail, but it sure was hard to keep concentration when your whole mind was filled with shrill screeches. Ren couldn’t help but shudder at the thought.  

Banshees were powerful. Feared creatures even amongst real wardens. Among the fae they were almost revered. Being so close to another one… well… It wasn’t a pleasant experience. But neither was any of this. 

“I would recommend listening to instruction, cover ears if you can.” 

Elora certainly knew the power of sound, and was also all too familiar with the piercing shriek of a banshee. While it seemed unlikely to cut through this goo, since nothing else has been able to cut through it, it was a better idea than anybody else had been able to come up with. If it was weak to sound, maybe she could offer some help after all? Not that her voice could compare in force to the powerful cry of a banshee, but it was probably better than nothing. 

Reluctantly, and with a bit of frightful anticipation, she slid over to the other girls. She would probably be a bit more resistant to the sound, she figured. She was used to supernaturally loud sounds after all. Putting her own ears in danger, she calmly reached down and placed both hands over the ears of the dog. She took a deep breath and tried to find her happy place. 

“Alright then,” she said with a nod. “Do your thing.” 

Siobhan was often taken by perverse fantasies. Despite the permission she’d been given to scream at the goo breasts, or perhaps because of it, she imagined instead turning on the girls and screaming at them. She imagined her laughter carrying through the goo as it swallowed her. Then she thought, given her luck, she’d discover the ravings of an after-life were factual and the redheads would team up and throw after-life stones at her. Uncharacteristically, she pushed the fantasy away and in the same, chillingly strange breath, she thanked the redheaded woman for taking care of her dog.

Siobhan turned, greeting the breasts like an enemy, locking down the mounds with her gaze. She didn’t like the idea of being a hero; like pastel florals, it didn’t suit her. In her adolescence, she’d learned what her role in this world was: it wasn’t to be liked, it wasn’t to be admired, it wasn’t to save people. There existed something in her nature that soured altruism; a rotten apple didn’t turn any less putrid simply because someone had chosen to eat it. Siobhan, like produce at the back of a fridge (she had some yogurt that was going bad, didn’t she?), couldn’t transform into something palatable. Yet, as she sucked air into her lungs, smiling as her chest expanded, the most perverse of fantasies flickered into her mind. The same fantasies that once plagued a little girl who shared her name, her face but none of her sensibilities.

Perhaps she could be something else: something loved, something treasured.

Siobhan screamed. The inhuman sound screeched across the landscape, turning good glass into confetti and whatever birds hadn’t exploded, rose up into confused spirals, dripping blood as they remembered how wings worked. The goo breasts rumbled and through her narrow, blurred vision, she recognized her foolishness. Of course. How stupid had she been? The goo was obviously swollen and now she’d freed it. This was what heroism wrought; she should have known better. Siobhan closed her eyes. In the after-life, would the women forgive her? How strange it was that she hoped they would. Tink, tink, tink. She opened her eyes.

Around them, shards of goo fluttered like blackened snow. The breasts were gone. They were here, alive, left with the echo of Siobhan’s scream. Without another wasted moment, without a second given to recovery, Siobhan raced down the other end of the bridge--knowing that on the other end was a clear path, she could leave--and stared down the gymnasium. Childish glee charged her next scream, aimed at the shelter. Again, a quake of sound erupted around them; snapping branches and cracking brick. 

More broken goo rained on them, evidence of her good work--and wasn’t it good? Didn’t she deserve praise? Wouldn’t someone tell her what a great job she’d done? Siobhan turned to the redheads and for a moment, found herself wondering if they would forgive her. 

There was a certain nervous energy in the air despite the fact all four women remained composed. Part of Alex wondered if that was just her own anxieties flaring up as they remained trapped on the bridge. The professor’s plan could work though she didn’t look forward to the sound. The dog was safe with Elora and Ren was close behind her. She took a steadying breath and smashed her hands over her ears in anticipation. 

As quickly as the sound happened, Alex could feel some of the kickback vibrating through her body, but she felt the collapse of the goo turned strange breast-shaped mineral abnormality into pieces. Before she could even process it fully, the professor had levelled another powerful scream at the gymnasium and a rain of hardened sludge was falling around them. 

“Fuck,” Alex practically shouted as one of the chunks hit her square in the head. It was coming down fast and they needed to move. Siobhan had the right idea running down the clear path on the bridge. She couldn’t hear herself or much of anything… which in different circumstances would have been a super cool break from the whole super hearing thing, but alas, scent and sight it was. 

“Come on,” she said, still much louder than she realized as she grabbed Ren’s hand and looked to Elora with the dog before she followed along the path Siobhan had created. “Try to avoid the bigger pieces!” 

Only in retrospect did Ren realize she had heard a banshee’s scream before. Or rather, almost heard one. The alleyway, the strange creatures that seemed to eat sound until they were so engorged upon it that they burst. The goo, in kind, responded violently to the sudden vibrations. And once again, Ren’s body felt like it was on an electric wire. 

The sound was aimed away, thankfully, but it still wreaked havoc on her. Causing her glamour to slip for just a moment. Luckily enough, Alex was already reaching for her hand, and the contact was enough to restore her focus fully. 

Shaken, but still standing. Ren shook the shock from her system and nodded toward the other tiny red-head. Hoping against hope that everyone else was just as taken by the scream to fully notice what had happened. What had broken, if only for a second. Alex had taken a strike to the head, and the nervous entomid quickly began to fuss over the rapidly weeping wound. 

“Let us get to safety.” She agreed, pulling along the werewolf as the rest of the group began to shift from the bridge to the space created by the wailing woman. 

She was expecting a very loud and disorienting scream, but Elora still wasn’t prepared for the sound that came from the banshee’s mouth. Her hands were occupied trying to stop the dog from going deaf or worse, so she bore a greater brunt of the damage than the others on the bridge. A sharp ringing sensation filled her ears, and for a brief moment she heard nothing else. She began to worry that the banshee had made her completely deaf, which would have posed a bit of an issue for writing music. She felt her legs get weak and she ended up in a seated position on the bridge, still focused on holding her hands over the dog’s ears and trying not to let go. 

She was so focused on this task that she didn’t initially realize that the goobies (goo boobies) had shattered from the sound. She was overjoyed to find out that there just might be a way off of this bridge after all. The celebration was short lived as chunks of hardened goo fell and struck one of the other women right in the head. If their plan of screaming at the goo was going to continue, they’d still have hearing loss and falling goo debris to contend with. She again thought of Mackenzie and Ariadne, and wondered if the scream hurt them too badly or if the layers of goo muffled the sound enough to a safe level. 

The group moved towards the gym as safely as they could, hoping to extract anyone sheltered there if they could. The rescue mission could almost be declared a success, but they’d still need to forge a path to safety. While the screams has cleared up a good portion of the goo, there was still way more that needed to be cleared out. 

“Maybe someone in the gym has enough heavy duty earplugs we can all use? I don’t know how many more screams my hearing can take!” Elora said, not realizing she was practically yelling. 

With the bridge cleared, the group of them moved with urgency: from one task on to the next. Siobhan’s attention dropped to the dog; he shook, tail tucked between his legs, staring up at the world with wide eyes. The woman had done as good a job as she could have protecting him and Siobhan knelt, taking the dog’s placating licks against her palm. He continued to shake as she picked him up, carrying him towards the shelter. 

The shelter, also free from goo, seemed to be given new life. Things seemed safer, despite the shards of goo fluttering down. Ariadne was safe, confirmed by her fluff of blonde hair as she stood beside three other people. Siobhan had done something ‘good’, she realised: something undeniably and morally good. Yet, even against the relief of knowing the young mare wasn’t dead-again, she didn’t feel heroic. Her stomach twisted and the dog continued to shake, whining through his nose in whistles. She spared a glance out at the bridge and wondered what was happening around the city at this moment, what other terror the goo was causing. 

But for now, there was the shelter, freed and sturdy and willing to hold them. 

[poisonousdelights]

PARTIES: @poisonousdelights & @contemporarybardess TIME: Beginning of March WHERE: The Sugar Pot SUMMARY: After Isa brings a sweet treat in for her coworkers her and Elora begin to talk about some uncomfortable topics. Elora lets some things slip about the shop and it's owner and soon after wishes she hadn't opened her mouth. WARNINGS: Alludes to substance abuse tw and drug abuse tw. Also alludes to parental death tw.

For as many times as the customers at The Sugar Pot had made her feel like a worthless human being, there were just as many times where Isa’s coworkers had made her feel the exact opposite. Alistair finding out the true nature of her incarceration had been the very thing to seal her love for the people that she worked with, the man having taken it in stride and not let it color his judgment of her. It was the acceptance, the way that he made her past seem like no big deal, that had made her walk into work the next day with her head held high and a renewed sense of pride. 

So, of course she brought cupcakes.

There were half a dozen cupcakes from the Bread Cemetery in hand when she made her way behind the counter, a mental note in mind to hide away the chocolate for her boss and another for Tommy when he inevitably walked through the door that day. She did it almost immediately before she forgot and the two ended up with nothing later on. But the rest, the rest of them were free game. Isa opened the box as she walked up to Elora, a bright smile on her face as she held it out to her. “Pick one. Or two, I don’t mind. We just have to save one for Melody.”

Another day at The Sugar Pot, and another day of serving up smiles. At least, that’s what Elora would always say when she was on the job. In truth, customer service sucked. It definitely wasn’t awful, and her coworkers definitely made the experience much better. Sure there was some shady business done in the back which Elora largely ignored. She just had to keep head down and tell herself that Alistair always had a good justification for what went on back there.

As she locked eyes with Isa, carrying a container of cupcakes, her eyes lit up immediately. 

“These are for us? That’s so sweet of you!” Elora said to her coworker before happily grabbing her favorite, red velvet. “Any particular occasion? Or just having a bit of a sweet tooth?” she asked, flashing a coy smile. 

“Ahhh, of course. Melody works hard here, we definitely can’t leave her without one. These look great by the way, where did you get them?” 

Immediately, the stop by the bakery and the spent cash that she probably should have held onto was worth it. The joy that just the sight of the cupcakes had brought to Elora was everything she had needed to tell her this was a good idea. “Maybe a bit of both. Definitely the sweet tooth but a small celebration for a victory I didn’t think I would ever get.” Isa was going to be tight lipped though. Even if Melody and Alistair accepted what had happened, that didn’t mean her coworkers would be comfortable with her situation if they didn’t already know. “Also, Alistair is a good man and I thought he deserved a cupcake. I didn’t want to play favorites though.”

She beamed at the mention of Melody’s work, nodding her head vigorously. “ Yes, yes she does. And she does such a good job. This place is perfect, don’t you think?” Maybe Isa was laying it on a little thick but she couldn’t help it. She felt like the shop was sent to her as some sort of savior, especially now that she wasn’t constantly worried that her boss would fire her over a charge that she didn’t deserve. “Oh, the Bread Bakery. You haven’t been? If you haven’t, you’re in for a treat because those are delicious.”

Elora nodded when she mentioned celebrating a victory as well as Alistair. Elora didn’t know much about Isa yet, but she was curious about the victory she was talking about. As for Alistair being a good man, she already knew the darker underlayer behind Alistair’s kind demeanor. She knew his help always came with a price. But instead, she opted not to say anything quite yet. 

“Ah, well if I can benefit off of Alistair’s kindness even more, then I’ll happily do that! I’m sure he’ll love them.”

Elora took a bite of her cupcake and looked around the store, taking in the splendor of the meticulously decorated store around them. “It definitely is! Melody is a miracle worker, I swear. She really knows how to make a place feel nice and home-y.” 

She’d ordered a few things from the bread bakery from time to time. She also knew Lil from her adventures in the haunted house. They had even offered her a job when she first came to town, which she turned down for another opportunity that didn’t pan out. Thankfully Alistair had stepped in and given her a job when she had needed it. She noticed he seemed to have a habit of doing this. “I’ve been there a few times, actually! Great place, never tried their cupcakes though. Glad to see they’re just as good as the rest of their baked goods. Really nice people that own the place too!”

As Elora finished her cupcake, she decided to finish getting everything set up for when customers start coming in. “So, I take it you like it here so far? Customer service isn’t too frustrating for you? ‘Cause I’ll be honest, I have my moments sometimes” she said, followed by a laugh to imply she was joking, even though she wasn’t. She hated customer service. But she also had bills. 

“I don’t know how she does it all with having Tommy as well. Superhuman, I guess.” Leaning against the counter, arms stretched out over the top, Isa couldn’t stop the realization that it was actually possible to be a superhuman. Hell, she could turn into a snake, there was no telling if Melody could shift or not. Though she wasn’t quite sure how shifting could help someone run a store so the comment was a little skewed. 

Thinking back to her experience at the bakery, she had to agree with the other girl. The people there had been nothing but nice if not a tiny bit strange. Or maybe the shop itself was a little strange. Either way, Isa enjoyed it. It was better than boring. “I heard you’re supposed to stay away from their bagels though. Not sure why but someone warned me against them before I even walked in the door so I just…didn’t get any. Not that I was there for them.” And nothing had seemed too off about them when her gaze had lingered on them a little longer than they should have. If people were warning against them though, she imagined the staff was used to a side eye or two toward the display. 

Elora couldn't have known how uncomfortable her question would make the lamia feel. Her smile faded a little as she thought back to how some of the customers could treat her, sure that the other was unaware of this because they didn’t work together too often. She started to pick at the ends of her fingers as nervous laughter bubbled to the surface. “It’s the worst part of the job, honestly. It wasn’t my first choice but…this place was the only job I could get when I was applying.” There were no indications of a joke as there was with Elora, but she shrugged it off as if it didn’t hurt to have people constantly glaring in her direction, some even refusing to let her help them. “I’m not well liked in this town. Which is why I owe a lot to Alistair.”

Elora couldn’t do much other than nod in agreement. She had never been a fan of children and the task of raising one always seemed like a massive undertaking she really wanted no part of. Melody did indeed seem almost superhuman in that respect.

Elora cocked her head at Isa’s comment about the bakery’s bagels. “What makes the bagels so bad? And why do they keep making them? Seems hard to mess up a bagel when you get so much else right.” She then shrugged her shoulders and continued setting up the register for the day. She hadn’t been inside the store very often, usually just to pick up an order very briefly. She wondered if there was more to the store than met the eye. Then she realized that of course there was more to the store than met the eye. That described pretty much every store in Wicked’s Rest, including this tea shop! 

She could see Isa immediately become uncomfortable and felt a pit of guilt boring into her gut. She had clearly struck some sort of nerve, even if she was trying to play if off. She didn’t know much about the other woman, but she seemed kind enough. She couldn’t wrap her head around why so much of the town would ostracize her like that. 

“I get it. I had a hard time finding a place to work too. I had a good one lined up, but it unfortunately fell through, and money was running out quick. Thankfully Alistair was able to take me in too. I don’t have any formal education, grew up way off the grid, and no other marketable skills. You can imagine that would make finding a job nearly impossible.” She then looked over at the girl, who so kindly brought cupcakes in for the other employees. “I can’t imagine why you wouldn’t be well liked. I know we don’t know each other all that well but you seem very kind to me! Some people in this town are just…well..assholes. And others are really cagey and standoffish, for good reason I guess. What’s important is that the people who like you are the ones who matter. And so far it seems you at least have me and Alistair. 

“I don’t know. Something about them being haunted and assaulting people? It was weird.” And she wouldn’t admit to keeping an eye on the baked goods the whole time she was getting those cupcakes. Isa didn’t truly believe things could be haunted but she’d enough weird things to think something else could be going on. Like a spellcaster playing a ‘fun’ joke on unsuspecting people. That’s what they did, after all.

It was a surprise to find that Elora had trouble with the job hunt as well but she supposed that she shouldn’t have been too shocked. Alistair really did take in the strays, didn’t they? They had said as much when they had discussed her own employment with her but it hadn’t registered until Isa heard Elora’s story. It only made her happier to be working with someone who cared so much for others that they would give second chances to those who needed it. “I guess we both owe a lot to them, huh?” She was also curious though, and not shy when it came to bringing up what she didn’t understand. “What does ‘off the grid’ mean? Was it bad?”

Her lips pressed together when Elora brought up the fact that she didn’t understand, confirmation that she had no clue about her past. The rumor mill must not have reached her yet or maybe this shop was immune to it all. She took a moment to think about whether she wanted to get into it or not. The last thing Isa wanted was for her coworker to feel uncomfortable with her but eventually she would hear it from a disgruntled customer who didn’t know how to keep their mouth shut. The best thing would be for Elora to hear it from her, right?

“So, a lot of people think I did something awful that I didn’t do. I mean, I went to prison because of it, they found me guilty, but I never did it. I wouldn’t have…” She sighed softly, her last moments with Ruth popping into her head. “I wouldn’t have hurt her. But they think I pushed a friend of mine off of a water tower one night.” She stopped there, not wanting to relive the night anymore than she had to. “Just bad circumstances, really.” At least Isa had Alistair, and Maggie. Maggie was all she would need in life. But…hopefully she could still have Elora on her side too. 

After everything she’d endured over the past year or so, Elora could do nothing but roll her eyes at the notion of the bagels assaulting people. 

“Killer pastries, color me shocked!” she said sarcastically. She was surprised the tea leaves in the shop weren’t sentient and bloodthirsty. Still, she found herself morbidly curious about visiting the bakery just to see if those claims were true. At this point she found the idea charming rather than terrifying. 

“Well hey, if you say you didn’t do it, I believe you.” She said thoughtfully. People in this town tended to assume the worst in people. Oftentimes these assumptions were correct, but could still lead to some false beliefs of guilt. 

“More than anything else, I believe Alistair is a good judge of character. In spite of their own…complexities. If they believe you’re a good person, then so do I!””

The girl’s sarcastic response did help relieve some of the tension that Isa was now feeling as the conversation geared towards her uncomfortable past. She gave a hesitant laugh, still waiting for the shoe to drop but somehow it didn’t. It amazed her that she was starting to meet more and more people around this town that didn’t hate her for the things that happened to Ruth and she couldn’t help but feel a little choked up 

But she pushed it back knowing it would be a little strange for her to cry in front of someone just because they said they believed her. It wasn’t something she was able to do the night before but at least she’d been online when she was talking to Alistair. Needless to say, her heart and good mood soared to new levels. “I appreciate that so much, Elora. I can’t believe how…accepting everyone is at this shop.” And she couldn’t. It was the weirdest thing to go from being so hated to being so accepted in the span of twenty-four hours. 

But something did catch her attention. Isa wasn’t as focused on her own issues once Elora brought up their boss and their issues. The curiosity got the better of her. “What do you mean when you say complexities?”

Regardless of what Isa may or may not have been guilty of, Elora was hardly in a place to judge. She thought back to her old colony. Her friends, her father and mother. Their images ripped through her brain again, sending shockwaves, causing her to tense her face and clench her fist a bit. She composed herself quickly thereafter. Now was not the time for another breakdown. 

“We all have skeletons in our closet. Nothing’s black and white, I think anybody here can tell you that. What really matters is what you’ve done since your past.” she said with a casual shrug of the shoulders. “Besides, the official record doesn’t tell even half the truth most of the time. If you say you’re innocent, then I believe it until I have a reason not to.” 

Elora paused a bit at Isa’s question, not sure exactly how to proceed. Her first meeting with Alistair told her all she really needed to know about them. She had just assumed that Isa was at least somewhat filled in on what they really does behind the scenes. But now it seemed that the woman was oblivious to that, that Alistair was simply a kindly blind tea shop manager handing out jobs to supernatural orphans. 

“You know…complexities. Their…” Elora contemplated lying, which she was horrible at.The only time she’s able to convince people of anything other than the truth is when she compels them to believe it. And she was certainly not about to break her “no powers unless absolutely necessary” rule for something relatively minor such as this. “Well you know, Their little shady side business they run in the back.” she said simply, hoping the other woman would leave it at that.

She saw the way Elora had disappeared somewhere else, somewhere that wasn’t as nice as the tea shop with their cupcakes and the beautiful aromas floating through the air. There was definitely something upsetting about the place she had gone judging by the look on her face but Isa wasn’t going to push it. It was uncomfortable enough talking about a bad instance in the past when everybody already knew about it, she couldn’t imagine being coaxed into talking about her secrets when she was new to town. But something did happen. That much was confirmed when the other girl spoke up once more. “Yea, I guess we do. Just call this the shop of misfit toys.”

It was so refreshing and the lamia was so relieved until she saw Elora hesitate to answer her question. What could the kind person who had given her a second chance at laugh be doing that could qualify as a complexity. Frowning while she waited for her coworker to keep going, Isa allowed so many things to run through her mind. There was so much she was learning about this town that she hadn’t previously known about so the wildest thoughts kept coming to mind. 

“Shady side business…?” Oh, that did not sound good. Oh, no…what kind of shady side business? “Please tell me they’re not doing anything illegal.” Because she was still on probation. If her probation officer came by and found out her boss was doing something that could land them in jail she would most certainly head back there herself and Isa really didn’t want to have to quit her job. No one else would take her. “What exactly are they doing?”

“Shop of misfit toys is pretty accurate! I feel like the jack in the box with the broken spring.” Elora said with a smirk. She knew that she didn’t have many other opportunities for employment, same as Isa, so was grateful for what she could get. And, after all, Alistair and Melody were very good to her. 

“Oh well um…” Elora hesitated at Isa’s question. Illegal seemed like an understatement for what went on in that back room. “Nothing very bad, honestly.” Depended on your outlook. “You know he was a pharmacist before he lost his sight, right? Well he’s still in the business of healing people. Just uses more unconventional means to do it, sort of like herbal remedies!” Sort of like them, but also nothing like them at all. “It’s a tea shop after all, we have plenty of material. And no, I don’t think that counts as illegal since it technically isn’t practicing medicine.” Another half truth. Murder certainly wasn’t practicing medicine. 

“I’m just, yknow, not into all that new age healing shit. I’d much rather rely on more traditional medicine, but to each their own!” She looked over to Isa, hoping she hadn’t caused her too much worry. “Sorry, didn’t mean to freak you out too much!”

“Only if I can be the boat that won’t float.” It was a joke but a halfhearted one at that. It’s how Isa felt sometimes, always drowning. Or at least struggling not to sink below the surface. Suddenly she was wondering how this happy conversation had turned so depressing.

Even as Elora tried to explain what she meant, the lamia had a gut feeling that the explanation given wasn’t exactly what was going on in the back. It was plausible, yes, and Isa had no problem with Alistair trying to heal people but the shakiness of Elora’s words made her doubt their truthfulness. It was all very sketchy but she wasn’t about to come right out and say that. 

Maybe it was better that Isa knew nothing about it all. Maybe that’s how it should be since she was already in trouble with the law around here. If she stayed out of whatever Alistair was doing in that back room then she couldn’t be seen as an accomplice, right? But then there was the explanation that was given and how Elora made a point to say herbal remedies. Why did that sound like something she needed to look into? No, she didn’t have any ailments herself, which she was very thankful for, but it all gave the impression that her boss might know where to start when it came to her unique issues. Spellcasters used that stuff, right? Maybe they could point her in the direction of a market where she could run into some…

“No…you didn’t freak me out too badly. I’m still on probation so being involved with a business that’s doing illegal things wouldn’t have been a good thing. But it makes sense.” She still looked doubtful as Isa gazed up at her coworker but she hoped that Elora would believe that she’d dropped the subject. She had, at least for now. “I shouldn’t be worried, right? It’s just herbs?”

Elora couldn’t help but feel as though her explanation was rather shaky, but Isa certainly didn’t lead on to that  suspicion as she breathed a  sigh of relief. Alistair the herbalist she recited in her head. It had a nice ring to it, she had to admit.

“Yeah, you know Al.” Why did she call them Al? “Always looking for ways to promote his tea and healing properties. But yes, completely legal herbs only. The fun ones you have to go under the bridge in Deersprings at…uh, nevermind. You’re on probation, probably not a good idea to tell you.” 

Elora couldn’t help but grow increasingly curious about the nature of her alleged crime, but knew better than to pry. Some skeletons are better left in their closets, locked away safely where nobody can set them free.  Elora began to feel that the long the conversation continued the more likely she was to let something slip that she wasn’t supposed to. She decided to cut the interaction short by making herself busy. 

“Oh wow, I just realized there’s a whole case of jasmine tea leaves in back that I haven’t stocked yet. I should probably get on that. Okay, back to work!” She said, halfheartedly clapping her hands, hoping that would be enough signal to end the conversation and get back to work.

“Fun herbs?” Oh how she missed fun herbs. One day, a day when she was no longer being held back by an angry man who didn’t like her just because he had to test her every now and then, she would be able to let loose and enjoy those fun herbs once more. Maybe she’d go to…Al, as Elora called them, then since they apparently knew where the good stuff was.,,if that's what they were actually doing. Isa wanted so badly to believe that but deep down she somehow knew that there was more to this that Elora wasn’t telling her. It made her nervous but what else could she do?

For some reason she also thought that her coworker was keeping secrets about herself as well. She wasn’t one to pry into people’s business, Isa always wanted to extend that courtesy since she wanted that respect in return, but she couldn’t help but wonder what was going on there. Elora was new to town but in her experience the newbies were the ones with the most sordid pasts. She had said she was a misfit toy, after all.

Both of these suspicions seemed more plausible when Elora tried to scurry off, most likely to get away from a coworker who didn’t seem too convinced about the legality of this business. It only made her more curious about it all but the lamia decided to keep quiet as she nodded. “You know what? I told Alistair I would clean the dispensers so I should probably get on that.” She gave a halfhearted smile before she turned to start on her task but her mind was racing with what this could all possibly mean. What was Alistair really doing in that back room? How did Elora get involved with it all? And was she possibly in danger of going back to prison because of it? 

Fuck, she hoped not.

[uncannysam]

Uh, yeah. I love Wizard's of Waverly Place. I used to aspire to be like Alex Russo until I realized I didn't have magical powers which that's changed recently... and that if I wanted to survive, I would actually need to be productive in life. I guess I've just been living under a rock.

A Wizard's of Waverly Place reference? I didn't realize you were a woman of good taste. That's very true though, I'm surprised you've gone this long without realizing some shit is definitely not right. I've been here like 6 months and I figured that out real quick.

[loftylockjaw]

@contemporarybardess (continued from here):

Well that's a good point, I guess. Someone has to do it after all. I keep forgetting Wicked's Rest has such an active night life. This way at least people leaving the bars will have a cabby so they don't feel the need to do anything stupid.

Shockin, I know. But then, I suppose there ain't much else to do round here but get drunk and wonder where the fuck you went wrong livin in a town with giants legs stickin out the ground and skyquakes and oozy, gooey flats.

[contemporarybardess]

Exodus || Elora Solo

Parties: @contemporarybardess

Timing: Current

Location: Elora's Home

Triggers: Gun Use tw

Summary: Elora's quiet evening to herself is interrupted.

In spite of experiencing more than her own fair share of trauma and loss, Elora Spiros always figured she had a pretty good head on her shoulders in spite of it all. Why, then, did she have this recent sense of paranoia? Every time she stepped out of her house for any minor thing, she always felt an extra pair of eyes watching her. It had been this way for the past two weeks. In spite of this, she had never found anybody near her home. Ginger, her 200 pound hellhound she had managed to domesticate into a pet, would stare into the distance and growl, but never broke into pursuit of whatever it sensed. 

Tonight was her first night of relative calm, and she decided to enjoy it by staying in and making herself a nice cup of tea. She put some music on and poured herself a cup before huddling in front of her laptop and putting on a movie. She settled on a cheesy romantic comedy, a pretty bad one at that, in order to help further lighten the mood a little. Just as she settled in, Ginger nudged her leg with her nose, indicating she wanted to be let out. 

With a soft sigh, Elora paused the movie and sauntered over to the back door. “Be quick, Gingy, I just have to see how it ends” Elora said sarcastically before watching the beast run outside. She always wondered if she should ever try her hand at filmmaking, after all, it’s not like she could do a much worse job than some of the stuff she saw getting pumped out.

Suddenly, a deep booming bark echoed through her house, reverberating inside her chest. “I swear Gingy if it’s another rabbit…” Elora trailed off, walking outside to where she heard her dog barking. She could see her nose pointed towards a darkened area of the woods behind her house, her deep growl still sending vibrations through her body. Suddenly, that feeling of dread had returned. The pit in her stomach grew to a size larger than it had ever been before, and Elora suddenly found her hands shaking. For what felt like an eternity, the silence was only underscored by Ginger’s low growling. 

Then, the silence was suddenly broken when a shot rang out. Then another. And then another. Elora felt an intense burning sensation in her right shoulder and knew she had been hit. She didn’t have time to worry about the wound now, she needed to get herself and Ginger back in the house. If she could barricade them and buy time for the police to show up, they could finally know some peace while the crazy person gets locked up. 

She had almost made to the doorway of her home, when suddenly her heart sank. Standing in the doorway was a tall man dressed in leathers, carrying various knives and firearms. Another shot rang out from the distance, landing about 5 inches to the left of Elora’s left foot. 

“Hold your fire ye damn idiot, can’t ya see I’m standing right here?!” The man in the doorway yelled into the distance. Clearly, the two men were in cahoots. An organized attack from people this well armed and coordinated could only mean one thing. These weren’t just random murderers, they were hunters. And she was meant to be the prey, of course. 

“Whaddowe have here? I was expecting the sole survivor of the Red Waters Massacre to put up more of a fight than this.” 

How did they know about that? The massacre, while still fresh in Elora’s mind, had happened years ago. While she was certain the massacre was popular in hunters’ circles, she wouldn’t think that any would go so far as to track her down all this way unless they felt they had unfinished business with her in particular. But the only person that would fit that description would be…no.

She refocused her mind. This could not be happening. Not now, not after everything she had fought for to earn herself a normal life in this town. She tried to sneak in a punch to the gut on the man standing at her door while his guard was down, but he quickly blocked that attack and grabbed hard onto her arm. He then swung her around until she stumbled and fell onto her kitchen floor. 

While Elora was on the ground, Ginger leapt into action, pouncing on the man. With a few swift kicks, the man was able to subdue Ginger for the time being, but not before she got in several deep bites on the man. 

“Fuckin’ beast. It’s one thing to be a monster yourself, but at least you look human. And here you are playing mother to some abomination. I’d gut you like a fish right here and now, but he wants us to leave you alive.” 

He. She knew fully well who “he” was. If he really knew where she was, then everyone she was close with here was also in danger. It didn’t matter if they were fae, undead, or human. This band of hunters wouldn’t discriminate if it meant hurting her. Hurting her for daring to defy their will and surviving. 

“I s’pose it doesn’t mean I can’t take a couple fingers as souvenirs? After all, you don’t need those to live.” The hunter said, now moving his dirty bearded face close to Elora’s. His breath smelled of cheap bourbon. She heard the other man enter the house; followed immediately by the sound of him screaming and Ginger growling savagely. 

Her tall assailant got up to watch as his partner was being mauled by Ginger, now back and ready to fight. As he moved to aid his friend, Elora mustered up enough strength to sweep his leg, causing the man to trip. With a sickening crunching sound, Ginger snapped the gunmen’s neck and haphazardly tossed his body back outside. 

Still on the ground, the taller assailant reached for his own pistol and aimed it at Ginger. Elora quickly grabbed the man’s hand and wrestled with the gun for a while, before it became dislodged from both of their grasps and skidded across the floor. Elora noticed a familiar glow starting within Ginger’s stomach. She allowed the man to dive for the gun, giving her distance from the man. As the man finally secured his pistol and staggered back to his feet, a brilliant flash of light erupted from Ginger’s mouth, and the man was unceremoniously set ablaze. 

The man’s screams died down quickly as his body crumpled to the ground. Not wanting to waste any time, Elora quickly worked to extinguish the blaze so the entire estate didn’t burn down. Miraculously, she was able to contain the fire well and only ended up with some charred cabinetry and melted tiles. 

She didn’t know what to do with the bodies. She didn’t care at that point. Jake wouldn’t stop sending men after her until he could get whatever revenge he wanted on her. And he would hurt anybody he needed to in order to make Elora give in. There was only one way to truly stop this. 

Hunt down Jake before she gets hunted down herself. 

There were, of course, some caveats to this plan. Mainly that she had no idea where Jake actually was and that, if she did find him, she’d be hopelessly outgunned. In spite of this, it was the only way to keep herself and the people she loved safe. She would have to leave town. And she knew there was a good chance she’d never make it back. But if it meant that, at the end of it all, she would achieve a life of peace, it would be worth the temporary sacrifices. 

Elora grabbed a bag and packed whatever essentials she could find. She called Ginger to her side and walked out the front door with her.

She had some goodbyes she needed to make.

[realmackross]

PARTIES: @contemporarybardess, @realmackross TIMING: A Saturday Evening in October SUMMARY: Mackenzie meets Elora at Maized & Confused for something that some might call a first date. 😊 WARNINGS: Murder mention tw, Grief mention tw

It was approaching 4pm, and Elora waited nervously in the parking lot of the town’s featured corn maze, Maized and Confused. She knew that the maze wasn’t too far from Monty’s ranch, and wondered if Mackenzie was nearby. She remembered watching her on TV late at night as she bounced around between motels, but she hadn’t expected to ever come face to face with her in person. Not that she ever idolized her when she knew her as an actress, she was never the type to obsess or fawn over celebrities. She had plans on becoming famous herself one day, and would only be annoyed if any fans acted that way towards her. 

And yet, the day she had taken her to Monty, something different occurred. The person on the screen was no longer an abstract hypothetical, she was real flesh and blood and far more captivating than any camera could do proper justice. The only real issue is she was, to put it bluntly, dead. That is, she was walking and talking like a normal human being. But she was dead all the same, and brain hungry. Hey, nobody was perfect. 

While she waited, she thought she may as well get their tickets, and quickly made her way to the ticket booth. She figured it was definitely a better look than just standing around awkwardly in the parking lot. The cold fall air of Maine was finally starting to put a harsh chill over the town, but Elora had thankfully dressed in many layers. The wind was hardly blowing, so their day out should at least be tolerable. She had hoped the weather wouldn’t end their day early. Expectantly, she walked away from the ticket booth and eagerly waited for her date. 

—

Mackenzie hadn’t been on a date since well…Brody. To say she was nervous was an understatement. If her heart could beat, it would’ve been beating right out of her cold, dead chest. But this was good right? It was a step moving forward? She would always love Brody. He would forever be the boy who had her heart, and she was still grieving him; she was just trying something new. Trying to move forward and do better for herself. But never would she have imagined it would have been with someone who saved her life…err death?

Pulling into the parking lot of Maized and Confused, Mackenzie checked in the mirror to see if everything looked okay. She wanted to look less dead than usual, and for the first time in a while, she had really taken the time to get ready and to look her best. More so than when she had a shift at Dance Macabre. “Okay, Mack. It’s just one date. A thank you for saving me sort of thing…You got this.”

Peptalk out of the way, the zombie got out of her Mini and made her way to the entrance finding Elora was already there, “Hey! Sorry, I’m a little late. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was kinda nervous.” She shot Elora an uneasy laugh, before glancing down to see the tickets already in her date’s hands, “Oh, hey you didn’t have to do that. This was going to be my treat for you saving me, even though I mean it’ll never be enough, but you know, just…” Realizing she was talking way more than she needed to, Mackenzie quickly got quiet and looked to the ground embarrassed, “Sorry. I talk a lot when I’m nervous.”

—

When Elora saw a car pull up and park, she looked on eagerly, having a strong suspicion it would be Mackenzie. She was happy to see this confirmed when the blonde stepped out of her car and locked eyes with her. She flashed her a warm smile as she approached. She had been looking forward to seeing her again since the incident that brought them to the ranch. She was really looking forward to spending some quality time with the woman now that she wasn’t so…feral. 

“You don’t have to be nervous, I’ve seen you looking a lot worse after all.” She could tell the other woman was about as nervous as she was, maybe even more. She wanted to diffuse the situation as much as she could, the sooner they all calmed down and got comfortable the more they’d be able to just enjoy the night. “Well, I’m the one who asked you to come here with me. Figured it’s only right I be the one to get the tickets, right? Besides, they weren’t that much.” 

She found that Mackenzie talked faster when she was nervous, which was a trait she seemed to share. She was trying to taper it back, it was no use having two balls of anxiety talking to each other. She contemplated grabbing Mackenzie’s hand and leading her towards the maze, but decided to simply gesture behind herself and say “You ready?” 

They walked towards the maze slowly, and she hoped it wouldn’t be a waste of time and money. Some corn mazes could be really fun, but a lot of others were just a short walk in a circle. Many didn’t have much of a “maze” like quality to them at all, but she had heard good things about this one in particular. 

—

Mackenzie knew Elora had a point. She was knocking on death’s door, again, the first time Elora had seen her. But tonight, she had hoped she’d make a different impression. That the two could just have a fun evening with laughter and maybe a kiss at the end of the night if they had hit it off and vibed well together, “You do have a point, about both things, so thank you. But any snacks, hot cocoa, or souvenirs are on me.” She smiled softly. It was the very least she could do for someone who had saved her.

Mackenzie was excited. The last time she had been in a corn maze had been when she was just a kid. She could remember the excitement, but also the absolute terror of getting lost. But her mom and dad had been right by her side the whole time, which seemed to make things a lot better, and by the end of the night, she was laughing and not scared anymore, “Absolutely. Let’s do this.” Of course, this was Wicked’s Rest so there was no guarantee there wasn’t going to be some monster lurking in the shadows.

Moving forward, Mackenzie took note of what was around them, so they could hopefully find their way back to the entrance if worse came to worst, “So have you been through one of these before?” She slowly walked alongside Elora eager to learn more about her new friend.

—

“You drive a hard bargain”, Elora replied with a smirk. She was relieved her date had offered to buy any extras, but didn’t want to come off as a bum. “I could go for some hot cocoa after all, maybe after we find our way out. Assuming, of course, they don’t have to come in and rescue us”. She was sure they could find their way out without a problem. After all, these things are mostly for kids, right? 

“Haven’t been to one of these since I was a kid,” she began “and I gotta say the ones back home weren’t quite so creepy. Guess that’s the Wicked’s Rest effect, anything in this town instantly has double the creepy factor.” It was true, her father would take her into human society often enough to not feel isolated from the world. As a result, she had quite a few “normal” childhood experiences she could look back on. She really didn’t like the idea of walking through the mysterious dark cornfields if there was the chance of something jumping out at her, though. For all she knew, the corn itself might be some blood sucking carnivore variety. 

The pair made their way inside the maze, and were surprised to see six different divergent paths right from the start. Usually things moved in a straight line before giving a two way intersection to choose from. Already, this seemed just a tad more elaborate than a standard corn maze. Not that Elora was worried, the two of them could still find their way through… eventually. 

“So, I know you were an actress. And now, somehow and some way, you’ve passed away. If you don’t mind me asking, what happened? And what brought you to Wicked’s Rest, of all places? I mean, we’re kind of on the opposite end of the country from where you were before.” 

—

Mackenzie shrugged, “What can I say? I’ve just had to negotiate on more than one occasion, so I know my stuff.” It was true. Being an actress meant negotiating things on the regular, and if it wasn’t her who was doing it, she was certainly telling her manager, publicist, and other members on her team what she wanted. “Plus hot cocoa and maybe a s’more or two are a given, considering it’s actually cold here in Maine.” She laughed, but was also glad she had decided to order some warmer clothes, including flannel, at the first cold spell. “And yeah, I’d say this thing takes us thirty minutes, maybe an hour tops.” She wanted to keep that confidence, but this was like living over a Hellmouth, and by the end of the night, who knew what they were going to witness.

She let her eyes shift from people to scarecrows to pumpkins, now that that trademarked Wicked’s Rest Paranoia was starting to creep in ever so slowly, “Yeah, same here. The last time I went was with my parents when I was little. I was so scared, but by the end of it, I loved it. Give me the night to see if I can say the same for this place.” However, Mackenzie’s words had seemed to fade as they came up immediately to a multitude of path options, “Well, this is already starting out as a challenge…”

Watching as some kids ran past them randomly choosing a path, Mack turned her attention back to her date and the questions that were already being asked, “Whoa, I would say you move fast, but you did see me at my lowest, so that’s fair.” She paused for a minute trying to figure out how much she wanted to divulge. “Um, well, ironically enough, I was working on a tv show called Dropped, and when I went to do a stunt, the person that was supposed to pull the rigging on my harness back in time didn’t, and I broke my neck and back in the fall. The last thing I remember was waking up extremely hungry.”

After it had happened and Mackenzie had realized she had eaten one of the crew members, someone she had been very fond of, she had shut down for nearly a month. It had taken Taylor, her assistant, convincing her that everything was okay and that what she had done was an accident, for Mackenzie to resume “living”. At least up until the last day with Brody. “And as for choosing Wicked’s Rest, I kind of just closed my eyes and picked a spot. The furthest away I could be from everything and everyone I loved.” She wasn’t ready to confess anything about Brody to Elora. “What about you? How did you end up here? And since you know what I am, are you something other than just a normal human being? AND the more important question…Which path?” She wanted to keep up this conversation, but if they didn’t start moving they were going to be there all night, which honestly at this rate, she didn’t mind.

—

When Elora had asked about Mack’s human death, she didn’t mean to pry into anything sensitive. Not that the very nature of death wasn’t extremely sensitive or personal, it was just an elephant in the room she figured should be asked about. The truth was, she sucked at small talk. Big talk. Now that was more her speed. But big talk isn’t really ideal for a first date, now is it? Ask about her favorite music, color, flower. Normal stuff like that. 

“Well while we’re being honest with each other”, the two had come to a complete stop a while ago, almost frozen in place at the amount of choices they had in front of them. She lowered her voice a bit, not wanting any families or passing children to overhear their talk. Already she had found herself a bit absorbed in the closeness the two of them shared and she had briefly forgotten they were in a public place. “I didn’t really grow up with a ton of human interaction. A little bit of it, but not much. I come from a species called sirens. We’re kind of…bird people, I guess you could say? You’ve probably heard the more famous myths, ‘the siren’s song’ that lead sailors to guide their ships directly into certain death. While it’s a neat trick, traditional hunting was far more reliable.” She could already imagine judgment from her date with telling her that her people hunted humans regularly, so quickly added, “I didn’t really participate in hunting humans. Some in the colony did, but I and my family didn’t participate. We were sort of in a…transitionary period let’s call it at the time. Moving away from the old traditions and embracing more humane and modern ways of living.” Perhaps it was this “tradition” of hunting humans that lead to the hunters being enlisted. Maybe if they had abandoned the old ways, they’d all still be alive today. 

“I came here for a second chance. And a shot at finding people who I can relate to on a level that I can’t do with regular humans. And I’ve heard plenty of rumors about this town and the paranormal creatures that live here. Figured this would be just as good a place as anywhere else.” 

Looking down the many branching paths were starting to disorient her, and they hadn’t even gone down one of the paths yet. She decided to go down one branching out towards the northeast. She was very impressed at how big the corn maze seemed to be now, did it seem this large from the outside? 

“Sorry for the hard hitting questions. Let’s go to something normal. What do you like to do for fun? I mean other than getting lost in corn fields, of course.” 

—

Mackenzie definitely hadn’t seen their date going in this direction, but they weren’t really conventional in many ways to begin with. She did, however, find herself engrossed in Elora’s tale about her family and her life. So there were zombies, mares, vampires, selkies, mediums, ghosts, werewolves, fae, and now sirens? This definitely had been a monster’s stomping ground. Not to say that Elora was a monster. She was far from it. Her red hair shining under the moonlight and soft skin made Mackenzie’s dead heart want to beat. The woman was beautiful, and it had been the first time she had felt this way since Brody.

It had also made her feel somewhat ashamed and embarrassed though. Did she deserve this happiness? To be with someone else after what she had done to him? It tore at her conscience, but she had needed a nice night. Something fun and enjoyable, and as much as she hated herself on the regular, she wasn’t going to let tonight be one of those nights.

“Wow, first, I didn’t even think sirens were real. No offense, and you saved my life. You’re far from what your ancestors believed. Trust me. I wouldn’t be here, if you hadn’t taken the time and risked your life to help me. Just remember that.” She smiled softly, before following along down a random path with her date.

“No, it’s totally fine. I actually didn’t mind them. I’m so used to getting stupid questions from paparazzi and fans that it’s nice being asked something genuine.” She strolled along next Elora occasionally glancing up at her as they walked. “As for fun. I’ve recently taken up the art of being a hermit since coming here.” Mackenzie laughed, “I’m kidding…sort of. But I like karate, dancing, singing and writing songs, watching movies; even though I miss working in movies. Hanging out with the few friends I’ve made so far. What about you?”

—

It was comforting for Elora to hear that Mackenzie thought she was a good person. She was nervous she’d be seen as a monster, like most people saw her as once they learned her true identity. Then again, she wasn’t a normal person. And she had her own experience in eating human flesh. 

“Well, you’re not the scary monster Mr. Romero made you out to be. You’re very sweet, and genuine. And have a lot more to say than just “Guh…braaaiiins” Elora said, giving her best zombie impression.

“I like music, mostly writing and producing. Guess that’s something you and I share! What genre? I also dabble in painting, though I’m far from good at it. Other than that, movies and TV shows are good! Most of what I learned about human society has come from movies and TV, so I’ve watched A. Lot.” She was happy that they had a few shared interests they could bond over. Maybe they could collab? Talk about a power couple. 

“Friends are hard to come by in this town, I’ve learned”. It was hard to say, since a big part of why she came here was to make new friends and feel a sense of belonging. She just kept telling herself it would be a little trickier and longer than she’d like, and that’s okay. “It’s why I’m grateful I’ve been able to meet people like you and Monty.” 

Just then, they heard a rustling in the corn fields, and could barely make out a bipedal creature of some kind running through the corn. While this would normally terrify Elora, it seemed almost as if it were trying to hide from them, not ambush them. 

—

Mackenzie laughed a little harder than she probably should have at Elora’s zombie joke. It was kind though. And considering the way she had felt about herself since becoming a flesh eating monster, the compliment had meant a lot, “Do I really sound like that? Because if I do I probably need to work on my acting skills a little more.” Unfortunately, as much as she had wanted it to be an act, it just wasn’t, “But that’s very kind of you. Guess I’ve just had a hard time not seeing myself as something other than a monster lately, but that’s a story for another time.”

She moved along through the grass as they slowly made turn after turn not paying much attention to anything, but their conversation, “Really? Uh, pop is what I was trying to break into, before going off the grid, but I love all kinds of music. You paint? That’s supes cool. I can paint stick figures. Maybe you can model for me one day, and I’ll paint you like one of my french sticks.” It was probably a super lame joke, but Mack didn’t care. She was enjoying herself, “And if that’s not an option, then maybe we could write a song together?” She leaned in towards Elora and nudged her playfully with her shoulder.

“I can’t say that I’ve had as big of a struggle, but then again, I’ve lived a life where most people wanted to be my friend, but not because they genuinely wanted to know me. Though, I’ve found there are some people around here that have surprised me. And Monty is a very kind man. I’m glad we both have him in our lives. And hey, maybe I could introduce you to some of my friends. Like Alex, I think you’d love her. And Milo.” She wanted badly to say Winter, but considering they weren’t speaking right now, she thought it best to not even bring her up.

Looking forward, Mackenzie stopped walking when she heard a noise followed by something small dashing through the maze and into some stalks of corn, “You just saw that too right?” She looked over at Elora.

—

She wanted to write a song together with her. It was like something out of the cheesy rom coms Elora binge watched as a guilty pleasure, and she loved it. 

“Oh yeah, give me a beret and a long cigarette and I’d love to be your French stick!”

She wasn’t familiar with the people she had mentioned yet, but she was sure they were lovely people.

“Have you met Cassius or Ariadne? They’ve been great at welcoming me too.” 

She focused her eyes again on the figure in the corn. “I sure did. Y’know, I think I heard a rumor. That there was a creature in the corn fields named Gourdon who tries to hide away from people and hates getting his picture taken. It’s like a small challenge with the people in town to try and get him on camera.” 

A mischievous smile flashed across Elora’s lips. 

“You thinkin’ what I’m thinkin’?”

—

This night had been going so much better than her anxious mind had said it would be, and Mackenzie was grateful for that. They were even making cute little inside jokes, “Really? Consider it done. Next date…I mean, if you want a next date…I’m turning you into a work of art. Not that you’re not one already, but you know what I mean.” There she went rambling again, but it was okay.

“I have actually! They’re great people too. I don’t know them as well, but I’m glad you’re making friends. You deserve friends and happiness.” Mackenzie had genuinely meant that too. If Elora had come here looking for a better life, then that’s what the zombie had hoped for her.

Okay, good. She wasn’t losing her mind. “Gourdon huh?” Mackenzie looked back to where the creature had tried to hide, seeing the corn stalks rustle again. Glancing over to Elora, she caught sight of the grin, and slowly started to pull out her phone and switch it onto the camera app, “Oh yeah.” The idea to split up had crossed her mind, but she knew good and well, she’d get lost, if she broke away trying to snap a picture of this thing.

—

Here she was already thinking about a second date. I’m so in there, Elora thought to herself. “I’d love a second date, of course! After we catch this thing of course!” she said before taking out her phone and pointing in the general direction she had saw the creature. While venturing into the cornfield may not have been the smartest decision, she had suddenly found her focus placed solely on catching Gourdon on camera. 

She sauntered into the cornfield, before realizing having two cameras was better than one. 

“Mack, hun, would you mind going further down the cornfield that way? Maybe try to cut him off if he runs that way?” She hadn’t meant for a pet name to slip out. Growing up in South Carolina and working a couple waitressing jobs to get by, little terms of affection just sort of slipped out even in casual settings. 

With that, the two women took off into the cornfield trying to catch the elusive Gourdon. Sure, it wasn’t a conventional date night, but it was one Elora was sure she wouldn’t be forgetting any time soon.

—

So this was officially a date, and they were now officially going on a second date. Mackenzie was giddy and so badly wanted to blush. But Elora was right. They had a creature to catch. Did you win a prize if you had proof? She wasn’t sure. It was like going after Bigfoot, except this little guy lived in a cornfield and wasn’t quite as intimidating - or so it seemed. She hadn’t actually seen him yet.

“Right. Creature first.” Wait…Did Elora just call me hun? It had somewhat caught her off guard, and she wanted to overthink it, but didn’t. Couldn’t, especially because she had picked up on the slightest of movement just up ahead in the direction that her date had requested she go, “No, not at all, Babe.” She glanced back over to the red head with a wink, before heading in the opposite direction.

Mackenzie tiptoed forward towards the rustling, and without much of a chance to get her phone up, she watched as Gourdon slipped out and started running back towards Elora, “Elora! It’s coming towards you!” Picking up her pace, Mackenzie moved forwards back towards the siren and hopefully Gourdon.

—

Babe? Had Elora’s old habit worked out in her favor? She’d worried that, if anything, it would have came on too strong too quickly. Not only was her date into her, but she was also down to chase cryptids in a corn field with her. If that wasn’t a match written in the stars, she didn’t know what was. She felt as though she was walking on air.

Soon, however, she had to come back to earth as she heard Mackenzie’s voice call out that Gourdon was headed her way. It was hard to get a decent view through the corn, and she was mostly navigating through her phone’s camera so she’d know when the creature came into frame. Finally, she heard the rustling and ran full speed towards where it was coming from, trying to cut the creature off. 

Suddenly, the full force of a grown adult landed on top of her, and she felt all the air leave her body as she hit the ground. Instead of a mischievous corn gremlin, it was her date for the evening. While she normally would have been upset that their prey had escaped them, feeling the warmth and closeness of her laying on top of her was extremely comforting and exciting. All she could do was look into the other woman’s eyes, unsure of what to do next.

—

Mackenzie was determined to get a picture of this thing. If not for herself, then at least for Elora. The night had definitely taken an unexpected turn, but that was par for the course in Wicked’s Rest. At least it wasn’t a fucking giant ass spider. She hated spiders, especially huge ones that made you feel way too much when they stuck their fangs into your stomach. This little cryptid was a far better thing to try and catch.

However, it was the brief glance down at her phone that had caused Mackenzie to falter, and before long, she was stumbling forwards and into another form; Elora’s form.

As they both hit the ground with a thud, Mackenzie’s phone went flying and so did her pride. She had been so embarrassed, but as she looked down at the woman she was currently laying on top of, all anxiousness faded away. Moving a cold hand upwards, she gently moved some strands of red hair out of Elora’s face, before she slowly leaned in and laid a soft kiss on her lips. One that didn’t linger too long, but was just right. The perfect movie kiss, but one that was real and held more passion than kissing her co-stars. A kiss filled with genuine love and want.

—

When Elora felt the woman’s hands on her face, she felt a comforting warmth build within her in spite of the icy cold temperature of the woman’s hands. It was like a scene out of a movie. And true to the script, the pair shared a loving kiss. Only the butterflies and fireworks portrayed in the movies didn’t even come close to doing this sensation justice. This was something else entirely. Something she had never felt before. No boy in her past had ever kissed her the way that the one and only Mackenzie Ross had just kissed her. And she never wanted to be kissed by anyone else again. 

Breathless, she just laid there and looked into Mackenzie’s eyes. Finally, she took a shaky breath and cleared her throat. 

“I, uh, think we lost him. Not that I mind, at all. That was…wow. Incredible” This time she reached her head up to give her date another kiss, this one just as magical as the previous one had been. 

She could feel herself blushing. While she had done a good job of maintaining her composure through the night, all of that had now gone out the window. While she wasn’t expecting things to progress so quickly, it still felt so natural. And so right. Like they were meant to slam into each other in this cornfield the whole time. 

“Not that I mind laying here with you, because I don’t at all. But we should probably make our way out of this maze before people forget we’re in here”. 

—

Mackenzie couldn’t help but stare back into Elora’s inviting eyes. Everything about this moment had been perfect. So much so that the thoughts of guilt, shame, and even, for the first time in a while, grief, had left her. She just wanted to stay in this moment forever. Just her and her date while it felt like time stood still and nothing else mattered, “Yeah…” Mackenzie’s voice was airy, “I think we did.”

The second kiss, soft and sweet, had left Mackenzie longing for more. She was breathless, both literally and figuratively. But her body seemed to appear different with the rise and fall of her chest from excitement by the entire situation.

This moment far surpassed what the past several months had brought. Not only had Elora saved her, but she had also given her a reason to feel whole again. Tomorrow might be another story, but tonight she was going to enjoy every lingering minute of it.

“I think you’re right. I don’t think I want to end a perfect night by being eaten by a giant pumpkin, because you know it’s probably possible.” She laughed softly as she rolled off her date and found her way back to her feet, helping Elora up in the process. Finding their way out hadn’t been as hard as Mackenzie had thought it would be, especially since she was currently on Cloud 9, but she did make sure to let her hand meet Elora’s and walked as slowly as she possibly could to make the night last. But this was only the start of something special, and she was looking forward to every upcoming moment and the possibility of more unexpected kisses in cornfields, the rain, and any other obstacles Wicked’s Rest threw in their way.

[deathsplaything]

Woe to those that dip their shrimp in tea, for I will hunt ye down and smite thee.

I'm...not putting shrimp in any of the tea. That sounds awful and sounds like unnecessary shrimp death.

[singdreamchild]

Playing House || Cassius & Elora

TIMING: During Goo PARTIES: Cassius (@singdreamchild) & Elora (@contemporarybardess) SUMMARY: Elora wants to visit the creepy house. Cassius tags along because he's got a bad feeling. Turns out, he should have listened to that gut feeling.

To say that Cassius was disappointed that Elora didn’t forget their excursion was an understatement. She had messaged him a few days ago to finalize their plans to meet in front of the abandoned haunted house in the dead of night. Everything in Cassius screamed about how bad of an idea this was, but he felt it was too late to back out. He had brought a pack of things with him, just in case. A flashlight, a portable phone charger (one never knew when one needed a phone charger these days), and a lighter. Why the lighter? Who knew? He just felt that sometimes fire could be handy in a pinch. He sat in his Lexus after Elora had pulled up, and he just stared at the steering wheel forlornly until the woman knocked on the driver’s side window. Right, definitely no getting out of this. Giving one final sigh, Cassius grabbed his bag and then stepped out the door to his car. 

“Well, I showed up,” he announced after locking the door to his car, giving a smile that was more of a grimace, really. He really wished that the whole ‘I’m sick, I can’t come’ excuse would have worked on her. It wouldn’t have, seeing as she already knew he was a member of the walking dead. He looked down at the woman, giving her a weary look before casting his gaze over at the house. “No way to talk you out of this?” He asked her, taking in the house. 

It was an old house, a colonial revival to be precise. The white citing on the house was cracked and peeling off in places, and the covered porch was leaning to one side. The windows were, somehow, still intact. The vampire’s shoulders sagged as he realized he was really going to do this. He was really hoping there was a way to talk her out of this. He gripped the shoulder of his satchel, making a face as he stared at the grand home. Dammit, Elora.

Navigating around the goo to make it out of her ratty apartment wasn’t an easy task for Elora, but she’d never let a little deadly sludge get in the way between her and a good time. She wasn’t as spry as she once was, but she was an expert “The Floor is Lava” player back in the day. Now, here she was, approaching the allegedly sentient house. A sense of dread came over Elora before swiftly being replaced with anticipation. This was going to be a blast. For her part, she had packed lightly: a change of clothes, some snacks, and a 64 ounce jug of water. She found the motivational words written along the jug, such as “10am- keep it up!”, to be charming if not wholly ineffective. Most days she barely finished half of it. 

As she approached the only vehicle parked in front, assuming it to belong to Cassius, she noticed it was a rather nice looking Lexus. Fancy car for a teacher’s salary, she noted to herself. She came closer to the window and noticed Cassius looked as though he really didn’t want to be there. Ah well, she’d parkoured her way across rooftops to be here. No way she was going to have her fun spoiled now. 

“Thank you for coming willingly so I didn’t have to drag you out of your crypt. Don’t think I don’t know where you live,” she said teasingly. “No way I’m being talked out of this now. What else will I do tonight? Wade back through the goo so I can sit in my apartment all night? Not a chance, buddy.”

The house itself looked gorgeous. An old colonial style. Can’t beat an old classic, that’s for sure. Time definitely looked as though it had run its course on certain areas of the house, but so far it at least seemed to be structurally intact. Sensing hesitation from her partner in crime, she forged ahead and quickly approached the front entrance of the house. As she came closer, the front doors of the building opened up on their own, seemingly inviting them both inside. 

With a quick glance over her shoulder, Elora shouted “Let’s go Cassius! It’s being polite by holding the door for us and everything!” before rushing inside. 

Cassius’s eyes bugged out when she mentioned he lived in a crypt. How could she possibly…? No, she had to be joking with him. “Ha bloody ha.” He spoke in a monotone voice, shaking his head. Of course, there was the part of him begging her to change her mind. He wanted nothing more than to return to his hotel room and read another book, grade some homework, and lesson plan until the sun came back. 

He groaned as the door opened on its own, throwing his head back and questioning to whoever was out there why this was his fate. Of course, the fucking creepy old house’s door was opening on its fucking own. Of course, Cassius was going to die in there. It was inevitable. And there went Elora, running toward the house as if it was a fucking amusement park ride that she had been waiting to go on for years. He stifled another groan as he trudged forward, dragging his feet like a little kid being told to do their housework. 

“Being polite and ushering in its latest victims, more like it!” Cassius called back, brows knitting together in worry. He stopped at the doorway's threshold, half-expecting that he wouldn’t be allowed to cross the threshold. He frowned, staring down at the bottom of the door frame, then up at Elora. He took a deep breath, and… he walked through. Nothing happened. It was as if whoever owned this house wanted him to come in and join them.

The house inside was eerie. The furniture was covered in white sheets, and the wallpaper was weathered and old. Time had not been kind to its interior, and the cobwebs in corners of the room, scratches in the floor, and exposed pieces of furniture echoed that sentiment. The door closed behind him, and Cassius turned back to look at it, brows knit together in worry. “You sure you want to do this?” He asked one last time, looking back into the entryway. A mirror was mounted on the wall, and a crack was running through it. In the reflection, it was just Elora. Cassius was nowhere to be seen. “Stupid mirrors,” he muttered to himself.

The house definitely looked as though nobody had lived there for about 100 years. Elora considered this to be ideal conditions to up the creepy factor. She delighted when she heard the door slam behind them, knowing that Cassius was a bit far away from the threshold to have closed it himself. His spooked expression supported this assumption. 

“Well close the door behind you next time, what were you raised in a barn?”, she teased. She considered it ironic since she was the one raised, more or less, in the wild.

She supposed she shouldn’t have been surprised when Cassius’s reflection didn’t join her own, but it still caught her a bit off guard. Hearing about his vampirism was one thing, having a visual confirmation of it was something else entirely. She wondered what he would do if she told him he had something in his teeth. It wasn’t like he had any way to check, it would probably keep him busy for a little while. 

She moved from the entryway into the foyer area, and immediately a record player on a side table scratched to life, almost as if waiting for her to enter. It was a very grainy and static-filled rendition of Toreador’s March from Carmen. She felt as though it should have offered a glimpse into the level of refinement from the home’s glory days, but it only succeeded in making her even more uneasy. 

Seeing as this was her idea, she didn’t want to let Cassius find out about her nerves, so she simply cast a cautious smile back at him. “Gotta love a little ambiance, right?”

“I was hoping to keep it open in case I wanted to make a run for it,” Cassius muttered to himself, looking back at the closed door with a forlorn expression. Well, no turning back now, was there? He took a few steps forward, taking a deep breath as he took in the state of the house. It wasn’t that bad, was it? He continued to look in the mirror, his hand pressing against the glass that didn’t share his reflection. It was annoying, not knowing if he looked presentable, having to use a phone camera for every little thing. Fixing his hair? Phone camera. Putting on makeup? Phone camera. It was awful. 

Cassius froze as the record began to play on its own. Of course, it was bloody Carmen. He rolled his eyes, already getting a little tired of the house’s games. He wasn’t spooked, he was annoyed. Taking another step forward, he watched as another door flung itself open down the hall. He looked over to Elora, making a face at her. “Oh yeah, the ambiance is great.” He replied in annoyance before turning his attention to the door that flung itself open. He took a careful step forward, then another. Nothing happened, so he continued walking down the hall. As he stepped into the room, his eyes grew wide. A giant feast was prepared in the dining room. A roast turkey, several different sides, glasses of wine. “You’ve… got to see this.” He called over to her, stepping into the room fully. He put a hand out, half expecting the food on the table to vanish, but it didn’t.

The house had certainly made Elora and Cassius feel at home, but she worried that this was simply to lull them into a false sense of security. After all, what did it gain from pampering its guests? If there was any evil here, the house certainly wasn’t being heavy handed about it. Still, they had to be careful. She knew the moment either of them let down their guard would be the moment that- 

Her thoughts were interrupted by Cassius calling out to her from the dining room. Suddenly the aroma of well seasoned turkey, stuffing, and cranberries filled her nose. It was like an early Thanksgiving dinner prepared by the house itself, very enticing but also very suspicious. She quickly made her way to the dining room and looked at the exorbitant array of food laid out before them. It was enough to feed 10 people, easily. And yet, there were only two of them there. Surely the ghost house hadn’t slaved away expecting more people? 

“It’d probably be rude not to eat the meal…just be cautious.” She spoke to Cassius but didn’t take her eyes off of the table. She didn’t want to offend the house, since she didn’t know what it would do to them now that they were within its walls. She figured the food must be a form of luring them into a false sense of security, but likely wasn’t dangerous itself. 

Reluctantly, she sat down at the table, and patted the seat next to her, beckoning Cassius to join her at the table. 

Not one to eat enchanted food, Cassius didn’t make a move to sit down. Instead, he stood in the doorway, uncertainty plain in his eyes. The chair beside Elora pushed itself out of its own accord as if telling him to sit. The vampire’s brows knitted together but knew he didn’t want to see the repercussions if he didn’t do what the house wanted him to do. He walked over to the chair and then sat on the pushed-out chair. Without skipping a beat, the chair pushed itself in, and the napkin sat on his lap. It was as if an invisible butler were serving him. He hated it. He wanted to run out of this house and never go back. But there he was, stuck in a haunted, enchanted house with nowhere to go.

He looked at Elora, watching as she hesitantly reached out for the food. “This surely has something in it, right?” He whispered to her, worry clear on his face. He didn’t really need to eat, but he felt like, in this scenario, it would be seen as extremely rude not to. “Fuck,” he swore under his breath before picking up the mashed potatoes and plopping them onto the plate with the serving spoon. His posture was rigid as if he were ready to bolt out of there at any second. “Whatever you eat, be careful.” He warned her, staring down at his plate. He wouldn’t take anything else. He didn’t even want to eat what he had taken. 

Slowly, he reached for the fork, gripping it like he was about to use it as a weapon. He looked to Elora, waiting to take a bite of food when she did. If they were in this, they were in it together. The second the food hit his tongue, his entire demeanor shifted. “Heavens,” an overly English voice came from Cassius. “I forgot to tidy my study!” He declared, shoving himself out of the seat and heading toward the office at the end of the hall. It wasn’t that he was a visitor here, he belonged here. He always had. This was his house.

The food certainly smelled delicious, and she watched Cassius to see if he was going to eat the food. When it appeared that he was going to, she picked up a fork full of mashed potatoes, and held them in front of her face. 

“Down the hatch,” she said, as she moved the fork to her mouth. As soon as she felt the food hit her mouth, something changed drastically. Something was wrong. Terribly, terribly wrong. For one thing, the house was a proper mess! Dust everywhere, dishes laid out all over in the kitchen. Where was the help? Was the lady of the house really expected to maintain such an expansive home all by herself? 

“My word…” she uttered out in an exaggerated southern belle accent. “I’m glad the chef is doing their job right, but what are the maids doing? I can’t possibly sit down and enjoy this meal with the house looking like such a disaster! What if the mayor comes ‘round to visit?” 

She quickly stood up as she noticed her husband also rising to tidy his study. 

“Make sure the foyer is tidied up while you’re at it, hun. Honestly, I don’t know what is wrong with the help lately. I’m goin’ to grab the ol’ feather duster.” 

A distant part of Cassius’s brain was terrified, realizing that he was stuck in his own body with no way to control it. It was as if he were possessed by something, and there was not a thing he could do about it. “The maids have always been slacking in their duties,” he grumbled as he threw his napkin onto the table and walked off to the foyer. That part of him that was still him was screaming, trying to regain control. “A right disaster,” he grumbled as he walked into the kitchen and pulled a dust rag from under the sink. 

For a brief moment, Cassius regained control. “What the fuck?” He wondered aloud, brows pulling together in worry before his posture went straighter, and held his head high, concern melting into snobbishness. He walked into the study, and it was as if the house came to life before him. The dull color of the walls went from a dusty grey to a vibrant green wallpaper. The desk in the center of the room went from scratched and covered in papers to polished and tidied. 

The part of him that was still fighting stumbled backward. “This isn’t right.” He muttered, walking out of the room and heading down the hall. “Elora!” He called out before he snapped back into the snobbish Brit that the house was forcing him to perform as. “I do think that food was a touch tainted if I’m behaving out of place,” he muttered, looking down at his clothes and guffawing. “What in the bloody hell am I wearing?” He exclaimed, looking up to Elora. What the bloody hell are you wearing? Pants?” He shook his head. “There simply must be something to change into with us looking so very untoward.” He spoke before turning and heading for the staircase to change out of such horrific clothes.

In her frenzied dusting, Elora hadn’t even noticed that she had felt out of sorts to an extent. Now that her husband had mentioned it, however, she couldn’t help but acknowledge she felt a bit… peculiar. Although she couldn’t quite place her finger on what felt wrong exactly. Her true self was fighting internally to regain control, and briefly Elora breathed sharply before throwing down the feather duster and trying to get the hell out of that house. Mid stride, however, her newfound debutante persona took over her body once again. 

“Good heavens! Pants! I didn’t even know either of us owned a pair of denim jeans! Those are for the factory workers. And why are there holes in them?! You can see my knee caps for heaven’s sake!” She crossed her legs in front of each other, trying to cover the exposed skin. “Well I’m relieved it’s just the two of us here right now. I’ll need to change into something more becoming before somebody sees me.” 

She then gave Cassius a once over, before continuing. “You put on one of your good suits hun. I’m not sure what you’re doing wearing all of that dreary dark clothing. And have you been going through my jewelry box? Can’t say I’ve ever seen a man so…accessorized” she shook her head once again. “Let’s get presentable, shall we?” 

As her husband worked feverishly to find a good suit to change into, she found one of her nicest ball gowns and quickly changed into it. She stood behind the privacy screen in the room, of course, so as not to tempt her husband with impure thoughts at an inappropriate time. 

“I don’t know what’s happening to us Ca--” her accent had dropped and she had begun to speak Cassius’s name before her voice caught in her throat entirely. “Darling. “ she finished her sentence, in that same damn southern belle act. What was really going on? Elora continued to come in and out of her senses with no real understanding of why other than the house was fucking with them somehow. The question wasn’t how, but why it wanted her and Cassius to play act in this way. Was it just for amusement? 

“Not for suitable company,” Cassius spoke, nose upturned at the very idea that the two would dress in such heinous ways. As they walked up the stairs and into the bedroom, he had another moment of clarity. This wasn’t right, this wasn’t right! He froze in the middle of the hall, wide-eyed. He tried to move backward, but it was like wading through mud. The house fought back, and suddenly he was propelled forward and into the bedroom where his suits were. 

Cassius’s hands were moving on their own accord as they plucked out a checkered red and black suit. Part of him was relieved that at least the house hadn’t forced him to wear the tan suit. He wouldn’t be caught dead in a tan suit. At least this one had black in it. He continued to struggle against the control the house had put on him, wracking his mind to figure out why he was being forced into such an act. 

Curious, he opened his mouth to speak. “My name is–” his voice stopped. He couldn’t say his name. Elora couldn’t say his name. He closed his eyes and raised his head upward, fed up and trying to find a way to get the house to let them be themselves without being forced into such strange roles. “We’ll play your game, but don’t… don’t possess us or whatever it is you’re trying to do!” He called out to the house, blue eyes searching and frantic at nothing in particular. The house made no response, but he found that his movements were, at least, his own again. “I think it gave us control back.” He looked down at the ridiculous suit, frowning. “But I think it wants us to play along with it.” The door to the bedroom that had been flung shut when it pushed Cassius into the room had opened as if it were agreeing with what he said. 

He took a careful step forward, and there was no resistance. “Alright.” He spoke slowly, brows furrowed as he took another step forward. So far, so good. “Let’s… see what happens.” He muttered, looking back at Elora once before walking into the hall. All the doors to the upstairs were shut. “Guess it wants us to go back down.” He spoke and made his way to the stairs. Still no resistance.

As he walked down the large staircase, music began to play from the parlor room. “You want us to… dance?” He asked, feeling a tad silly to be talking to a house. But it could understand him, somehow. The music shut off. “No, not dance.” He corrected, and the music played again. He thought back to what the house had forced them to do in the first place. “You want us to clean that room?” He asked, brows raising as the music grew louder. That was exactly what the house wanted from them. “You could have just asked,” he grumbled as he looked toward Elora with a raised brow. Were they doing this?

It wasn’t long after Cassius spoke to the house that Elora felt her senses fully come back to her as she regained control of her body. She looked down, more than a bit disgusted to find herself wearing a frilly ball gown. It was, in her opinion, an ugly cream colored number with gaudy pearls sewn into the upper chest area of the gown. The bottom poofed out unnaturally to the point where it was difficult for her to walk without knocking things over. Was she really expected to spend the rest of the night in this? 

“Before you come after me with ‘I told you so’s… I may have made a bad call wanting to come here”, she whispered to Cassius as they made their way downstairs. 

“Does it just want a maid service? It could prepare all that food but some dusting and scrubbing the floors is outside of its ability?” 

The house rumbled at the comment, shaking the walls, seeming to communicate anger at Elora’s question. 

“I was just asking…” she muttered, sheepishly. The last thing she needed was to have the house cave in on top of them purely out of spite. “Right, well. Let’s get started then”. She got to work dusting off furniture. She didn’t know how long the house had laid empty, but it seemed as though over a century of dust had built up. She had to marvel at how the house was even still standing with no upkeep over so much time. 

“It’s a shame this house is from before the invention of the vacuum cleaner. These floors are going to take forever to clean” she said, wiping sweat from her brow. They had only just begun to clean, but already she could feel herself start to overheat. A fancy ball gown wasn’t exactly the attire to be doing housework in.

Cassius couldn’t help but think that something would happen to them if he didn’t follow the house’s rules. Something they couldn’t walk away from. The house wasn’t being courteous to them. The house was making them play some twisted game of house that children would play for their amusement. This house was playing with them like dolls. As Elora pleaded for him not to say, ‘I told you so,’ Cassius shot her a pointed glare. “I knew what I was getting myself into.” He confessed, knowing that something was going to happen here. He didn’t want her to go at it alone, for whatever reason. He was an idiot. That’s what he was. 

As he stared at the dirtied room, Cassius couldn’t help but wonder why the house wanted the room clean. Surely, it could do it by itself. No, there was an ulterior motive here that he didn’t understand or want to. Carefully, he picked up a conveniently placed duster and began to dust the furniture. “Something’s not right,” he whispered toward Elora through gritted teeth. “Why would it want us to clean a room it could clean itself? Why play the part of previous tenants?” He kept dusting, not wanting to upset the house. Could the house be upset? He wasn’t about to find out.

He felt ridiculous in the suit he was in. He felt ridiculous with the feather duster in his hand. He felt stupid for setting foot into the house. Why did he care what happened to this woman? He was a vampire and should start acting like it. But he wasn’t. He was the most human vampire that probably existed. Too much moral compass or something like that. He sighed, frustrated. “We’re going to die in this bloody house.” He complained under his breath, and the house seemed to shudder in response. It made him freeze. The house had agreed with him, hadn’t it?

The question that Elora heard Cassius ask was certainly a logical one, however she had learned not to question the motives of most things in this town. After all, most of the time the reasoning boiled down to “just because” or “the universe hates you”. But she had to admit that having them play act as some Victorian era aristocratic married couple goes beyond the normal flavor of weirdness this town usually presented. 

“Maybe this is the house’s way of having us pay it back for the food it served us? Maybe once everything is ship shape it’ll let us go!” she said hopefully, knowing fully well that this probably wouldn’t be the case. 

“Y’know, I know it goes against your entire aesthetic, but a suit actually doesn’t look too bad on you. I, on the other hand, feel like I look ridiculous in this big puffy thing” she said, gesturing to her dress. 

When she felt the house settle in agreement to Cassius’s statement about dying in that house, Elora felt her blood run cold. The house was the predator and they were the prey, weren’t they? 

“Is this house going to work us to death?” She whispered to Cassius, hoping the house couldn’t hear. “Because if so we need to make a plan to get out, and fast. I don’t care if it kills us. I’d rather die trying to escape than die more slowly rotting away in here”. 

Cassius puffed out a breath at Elora’s compliment. “I feel ridiculous. I feel not me.” He stared down at the shoes, making a face. “Definitely not me.” He muttered before looking at Elora’s dress. “I mean…” he tried to find something nice to say about it, but the house had really done her a disservice. “No, I’m sorry. It is really puffy and ridiculous, isn’t it?” He couldn’t help but bark out a laugh at the sight of her in the giant dress. The house slammed its doors at his laugh, which caused Cassius to stand up straighter. “Right, getting to work.” He told the house as he kept scrubbing. 

“I know we do, but I don’t… I don’t know!” He pulled his phone out, no signal. “No signal.” Cassius muttered, “Of bloody course, there’s no signal.” He shoved his phone back into his pocket before the house could get mad at him for slacking off again. “What we need to do is conserve our energy. If the house allows us to sleep, I’ll stay awake. I’m already dead. I don’t need the sleep.” He wiped off the bookshelf, looking around the house. “It’ll be rough, but we’ll figure it out.” He looked around the room, afraid the house was listening to their every word. 

He thought about how this would be the second time that Cassius didn’t show up to a date with Lukas and subsequently freaking him out. “I need to send a text.” He grumbled, pulling his phone out again. He opened his messages to Lukas and typed out a message. “Stuck in stupid house. Don’t know when I’ll get out—working on it.” It was short and cryptic, but it would work for now. He walked around the house, and when he finally got a signal, he sent the message. 

Cassius returned to the parlor with a heavy sigh and returned to his dusting. “Do you have any ideas?” He asked Elora with a raised brow. Since you got us into this mess, he didn’t say but very much wanted to say. “Let’s just keep our heads low for now. If we find an out, we take it.” He whispered toward her, afraid that the house would be listening. 

So that was their plan. Do as little as possible while making the house believe they were cooperating until they could figure out a better plan. Operation Survive the Night was a go.

[zombiebabysitter]

The Ruins of the Day || Charlie & Elora

LOCATION: Wicked's Rest Police Station TIMING: Right after Faces PARTIES: Charlie (@zombiebabysitter) & Elora (@contemporarybardess) SUMMARY: Charlie heads to report his friends' murders. Elora is already there complaining about the dogs. WARNINGS: None

__

While the new crop of big dogs lumbering around town was a welcome sight to Elora, she loved big dogs after all, she simply couldn’t find a home for all of them. They were strong, aggressive, and dangerous, and not everyone had the knowledge or the means to deal with them as she did. As such, she felt it was her civic duty to tell some sort of authority about what was happening. Who better than WRPD? 

She didn’t particularly enjoy talking to cops, she felt as though they always talked down to or demeaned her. While she was living on the road, she had been stopped countless times by greasy old men on a power trip. A busted taillight here, an expired registration there. All valid reasons, sure, but their overall demeanor and attitude towards her always tended to leave a bad taste in her mouth. Still, these animals needed homes or some sort of relocation, so they seemed like the best men for the job. 

As she was giving her statement to the apathetic officer behind the glass; his badge read “Winslow”, she noticed he had stopped writing down words and seemed to be doodling on the bottom corner of the paper. 

“Hey! Are you even listening? This is important, sir.” Her southern upbringing and manners lead her to still call the man sir, even as she was scolding him. 

“Look, you’re not the first person making a report about the dogs. There’s about 50 of these reports. The thing is…” 

Before the officer could finish his sentence, the pair’s conversation was cut short by the doors to the precinct swinging open. A man stormed in frantically, looking like one of the men on her mother’s old “Twisted Sister” record. One of the trinkets she had taken from the human world as a memento. She turned to face the man, and couldn’t help but notice a nasty looking wound on his arm. It almost looked as if an animal had attacked him. 

Driving to the police station had been a blur. Charlie wasn’t letting himself feel the intense emotions that were threatening to make themselves known. He didn’t have time. He had to report what happened, let anyone know what happened. The large van was parked in front of the building and Charlie rushed into the precinct with a crazed look in his eyes, only vaguely aware of the feeling of blood on his right forearm. 

“My friends and I were attacked in Eluria Cemetery!” He exclaimed as he rushed up to the counter, slamming his hands down on the desk, the bleeding bite mark on full display for all to see. The bored looking police officer seemed to take this far more seriously than he was taking Elora’s complaint about what may or may not be real dogs. He muttered something into his walkie, looking down at Charlie’s arm with a tight frown. “What happened to your friends?” He asked, trying to get more information out of a rapidly unraveling Charlie. “They’re…” his face fell as he threatened to resolve into a puddle of tears. “They didn’t make it.” Was all he was able to get out. 

Charlie looked over to Elora, barely able to recognize that the woman was even there. “I… they’re dead.” He finally got himself to say to the officer who was relaying the information into his walkie. “My name is Charlie Hart. My friends are - were - Lindsay Carlton, Gareth Wilder, and Victoria Marx.” He tapped his black painted fingernails on the counter, biting at his lip ring. Nothing felt real at that moment. What should have been a simple outing with friends turned deadly, and dammit if Charlie didn’t want to say he fucking told them so. 

“We were supposed to perform here. Our band was.” He added, realizing what a nightmare this whole situation already was and was going to continue to be. His band was gone. His livelihood was ripped away from him. His best friends were never coming back. And to top it all off? Zombies! Fucking Night of the Living Dead up in this bitch!

Elora’s heart sank as she heard the poor man’s tale. Many people who weren’t native to the area has no clue of the dangers that lurked around in Wicked’s Rest. Regular streets and alleyways could be dangerous in this town, let alone poking around the fucking cemetery. Those poor people signed their own death warrants the minute they stepped in there and didn’t even realize it. The man was lucky to have escaped with his life, but knew all too well what that bite on his arm could mean. 

Wait…those names sounded familiar. They were supposed to perform. Elora, took another look at the man, this time a bit more closely. The hair, the general aesthetic. Charlie Hart…of course!

“Zombie Babysitter! You guys are…were…really good! I mean it’s not generally my kind of music but…sorry not the time is it? I’m Elora by the way!” She said, not sure whether to shake the man’s hand or not. She’d never been in the presence of somebody so famous before, and certainly not a famous person on the verge of a mental breakdown. “I’m really sorry to hear about your friends…I know you guys were probably pretty close. This town holds a lot of surprises and deadly secrets. Dangers you don’t really see anywhere else. Whoever booked you here should have told you…” 

She felt sad for the senselessly lost lives, but she also felt angry. Angry for Charlie who just lost all of his friends in a way that could have been prevented with a simple word of caution. This group wasn’t the first to fall victim to the things that go bump in the night here. Many were unsuspecting. Even worse, local businesses, not wanting to scare away tourism, neglected to tell people of the dangers the town held. The summertime, busiest for tourists thanks to the many beaches, was also the time where disappearances were at their highest. 

Not expecting to be recognized, Charlie sunk into himself at Elora’s sudden recognition. At least she was able to recognize that now was not the time. She knew his band, and now she knew that they were gone. The unreleased album that would have propelled them into stardom (as Lindz would say) was now going to be an in-memorium album for his murdered friends. The more he thought about it, the more in his own head Charlie became. “Whoever booked us is getting fucking fired,” he growled to himself after a prolonged period of silence on his end. “They’re going to be lucky I don’t–” He looked to the police officer, then back to his shoes. “Never mind,” he muttered under his breath, realizing he didn’t want to say something too incriminating in front of Johnny Law over there.

The officer went about asking Charlie questions and gathering information, then finally ended it with a “You should really get that bite treated.” Charlie looked down at the bite, frowning at it. “Yeah.” He spoke, his words hollow as they didn’t quite process through his mind. “Yeah, you’re right.” He finally repeated, the words seeming to sing in a bit better. “We’ll be in contact,” the officer added, and Charlie nodded his head slowly as he looked back over to Elora. 

“Wouldn’t happen to know where a good doctor in this place would be, would you?” He asked the woman with a sheepish smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Sorry that I interrupted your, uh… your report.” He added, pointing toward the officer who was busy filing paperwork after he’d filed his report. Charlie cleared his throat and shuffled off to the door, suddenly faced with the crippling thought of what he’d have to do next. As he put his hand on the door handle, he froze. Zombies. There were zombies, and he was going to turn into one, wasn’t he? That’s how the stories went, anyway. How much longer did he have left? What was going to happen to him? His grip tightened on the handle before he flung the door open and walked out. He needed to find answers.

As Charlie spoke, Elora could feel the combination of pain and anger rising up within him. It was a feeling she had felt herself. Only difference was he had somebody to direct that anger at other than himself. It was a unique form of grief that could very easily consume somebody if they let it. 

“There’s a hospital not too far from here. I can give you directions if you want, but uh…” Elora said looking down at the bite wound. “I’m guessing you weren’t attacked or bitten by an animal.” She knew all too well, thanks to Mack, how the zombification process worked. While he’d have his life as usual, he’d come back as a brain hungry undead creature. She followed him out, hoping to help the man come to terms with his fate.

“If it’s any consolation, it isn’t like in the movies. You won’t turn right away. And when you do turn, you’ll get to keep your mind and humanity mostly intact. You’ll just have a new craving for flesh and brains. It’s sort of a complicated existence. At least, that’s what I’ve heard.” She was hoping that she wasn’t overloading him with information, but it was very important information he needed to know. “When you get to the hospital, tell them it was an animal bite. They’ll clean it and give you antibiotics without having to know about what really attacked you. Some people, miraculously, are still skeptics in this town and may not take you seriously.”

Continuing to stare down at the bite mark, Charlie blinked at it. “No, they uh…” He looked back to the officer, who occasionally shot glances in the pair’s direction. He motioned with his head for her to follow him outside if she wanted to, then left the building and headed out to his car. When Elora followed, she began talking about what the process was. It sounded… well, it didn’t sound great. “How long does it take?” He asked her, suddenly hanging onto her every word like a lifeline. “Do I have days? Hours? Minutes?” His eyes went wide, thinking of all the things he’d never gotten to do in his life. Shit, he’d never even gone skydiving. Now he was going to be a shambling undead? Could a zombie skydive…?

She said he wouldn’t turn right away. So what did that mean? When would he turn? “What, like… activates it?” He then asked instead, frowning. “I saw them, they were eating my friends’ brains. I saw the inside of their skulls.” A wave of nausea washed over Charlie at the memory, and waved his hand around in the air as if he were physically trying to dismiss it with a wave of his hand. “They’re gone, and I have a feeling that the police here are going to do fuck all if what you’re saying is true, about people not believing it.” 

Charlie leaned against his van, gaze going distant as he grappled with the fact that he’d never see his friends again. “I kept telling them we shouldn’t go.” He murmured, hugging himself tightly as he relived the memories that would now be the last ones he had of the three. “Who’s uh… who do you know that’s a zombie?” He asked Elora finally, wanting to talk about anything other than what he’d just been through. 

“Well, I have good news and bad news!” Elora said, hoping to jazz up the explanation a little. “It doesn’t ‘activate’ until you die. So you can more or less live your life as normal! This could mean you have decades or weeks depending on how reckless or unlucky you are.”

The man had obviously been through an extremely traumatic event and was more or less processing the experience in short bursts. The three zombies that she had met in town were all able to keep their urges mostly under control, but she had heard of those who lost so much of their humanity that they essentially became feral beasts. Attacks from these zombies could be extremely brutal, as there’s no decorum or mercy in their feeding. Oftentimes they don’t even wait for their prey to die before they start chomping into them. In other words, she wasn’t surprised by what the man was telling her, but she still couldn’t imagine watching it happen to her friends like he had. 

“They’ll investigate, but they deal with regular people murders. Can’t very well arrest a zombie, now can you? Although there are some slayers in town who’d be happy to put them down. For a price, of course.” She realized she was getting ahead of herself and should limit her info dumping for the sake of Charlie’s already traumatized yet thankfully still intact brain. “But that’s a different can of worms for a different day. Let’s focus on one thing at a time, getting you some help!” 

She was pleasantly surprised at the turn the conversation had taken. He seemed to want to make pleasant small talk, likely to take his mind off of everything else. “Met a weird pale dude named Lloid when I first got here, had an inkling right away he was undead. Then, not long after meeting him, I found a zombie girl in a frenzied state on a spree of terror across the town. Got her fixed up and back to normal. Now we’re dating! She’s actually a very lovely girl when she isn’t hunting people for their brains. And, by the way, hunting for brains happens very rarely for her. She usually has a dealer that hooks her up. Maybe I could ask her for their name? You know, just in case your turning happens soon.” 

Absorbing all the information the very talkative woman provided to him, Charlie nodded his head slowly, absorbing it all like a sponge. “Not until I die…” He echoed slowly, the cogs in his head starting to turn. He already promised himself he was going to stop being so anxious about the ‘what ifs,’ and now he was being given the exact reason why the ‘what ifs’ didn’t fucking matter! He could live life to the max without a care in the world! What’s the worst that was going to happen, he die and fucking come back to life? 

Charlie began to nod his head harder, a small smile creeping onto his face. First stop was a fucking cliff over some water. “You know what, keep the info for now. I don’t plan on eating it anytime soon.” He told her, hoping that he would be able to keep himself alive in town long enough to not have to worry about it. 

The woman who called herself Elora earlier was definitely overflowing with information. Seems like she had more to share than Charlie was willing to take in. “Listen, I should… get this cleaned up.” He decided, pointing to his bleeding arm. “But… here.” He pulled out a napkin from his back pocket and a pen he had on him and wrote down his contact information. “We’ll keep in contact, yeah?” He handed it over to her and hopped into his van, rolling down the window once it had started up. “Thanks for the help. I… have some shit I have to get done before leaving town. This sure won’t be the last time you see me.” He told her with a point in her direction before driving off. 

Fuck being afraid of everything that moved, he was going to live forever. He turned up the AC/DC song that was playing as he drove down the street, expression filled with determination. Oh yeah, he was going to get up to some serious shit. 

[contemporarybardess]

Tender Resignation || Elora & Alistair

Parties: @deathsplaything & @contemporarybardess

Timing: Present

Location: The Sugar Pot

Triggers: None

Summary: Elora puts in her official resignation at the Sugar Pot

The hardest part was out of the way. Elora was in an extremely emotional state after her conversation with Mack, but she had one more person she needed to talk to before she headed out of town for good. Interestingly enough, she was scheduled for a shift the next day. She was currently on her way to let Alistair know that she wouldn’t be able to make it in. 

It was the afternoon, so the shop was still open. Elora quickly breezed and said hello to Melody as she entered. “Is Alistair here? I need to talk to him. It’s…sort of an urgent issue. I promise I’ll fill you in as soon as I’m done talking to him.” 

She didn’t like being short with Melody or coming as if she was keeping something from her. After all, the two had bonded over her time working at the Sugar Pot. However, there was a chance that both of them could be in danger, and she couldn’t waste anytime explaining herself twice. 

_____

It was near the end of the day for the Sugar Pot, and Melody had let Alistair go home early, nothing she couldn’t finish on her own. It was near closing that Elora came into the shop, looking as white as a sheet. “Oh, no they’re at home,” Melody explained. “Give me a moment, alright?” She pulled out her phone and called up Alistair. “Can you come downstairs? It’s urgent.” She told them, then hung up the phone before they could protest. It wasn’t longer than two minutes before Alistair was walking through the front doors of the shop with Brutus leading the way. 

“What’s the problem?” They asked hurriedly, half expecting someone to be bleeding out in the middle of the shop, that’s the way things seemed to go for them. “Oh, not that kind of urgent,” Melody spoke apologetically. Alistair seemed to understand, nodding their head slowly after looking through the gaze of their familiar. “Right. What’s the matter, Elora?” Alistair asked with furrowed brows.

_____

Elora waited patiently for Alistair’s arrival. She sometimes forgot he lived right above the shop, and thought it to be very convenient given the current circumstances. 

“Listen, somebody from my past has found me, and they sent people to kidnap me. I don’t know how long he’s been stalking me or how much he knows about me, but this one really fucked up guy”, Elora explained, trying to hold it down enough to work out an explanation. Trying not to break completely. “He’ll do whatever it takes to hurt me. Killing me isn’t enough. The longer I stay in town…the more and more danger everyone I know here is going to be in.” 

She knew Alistair was crafty enough to probably hold his own if some of Jake’s goons came after him. But there was no way she’d forgive herself if he or Melody were to get hurt because of her. It wasn’t a risk she was willing to even entertain.

____________________________________

As soon as the information was out of her mouth, Alistair knew what Elora was inferring. She was leaving town. Of course, they wanted to tell her that the two of them could take care of themselves, that they’d willingly fight by her side if it came to it, but that’s not what she was asking of them. “I’m sorry this is happening to you.” They spoke softly, weight shifting side to side as they processed the information. 

Melody took the news harder, letting out a soft noise before walking over to Elora and hugging her tight. “We’re here for you if you decide to come back, you hear me? We’re tougher than we look.” She gave Elora a sad smile, then took a step away. Alistair moved away from the front door, a lot more subdued and quieter than Meldoy was about the situation. 

“You’re always welcome here, okay? Anything you need, we’re here for you. If you ever come back, you have a job here.” Alistair told her, nodding their head with a tight smile. It was hard to lose an employee, especially one as enigmatic and larger than life as Elora.

_____

They were both so sweet to her about it, this was one of the most difficult things Elora had to do. However, they at least seemed to understand. It was also reassuring to know that she was always welcome back if she were ever to return. She wanted to say that if she wasn’t back in a year’s time, she had probably been killed in her pursuit of justice. She knew, though, that that would only make them worry more. 

“Thank you both…” She could feel tears welling up again, feeling as if a dam were about to break when Melody embraced her. She needed to hold it together. She needed to come off as the strong person she needed to be to take on this challenge. “I won’t be alone. I have a little muscle with me in the form of Ginger. She’s tied up outside, I figured it probably wouldn’t be a good idea to bring her around Brutus. 

She then approached Alistair, opening her arms to offer up a hug as well. “Thank you for everything. I won’t forget either of you.” 

Alistair wasn’t a hugger. Physical contact besides someone guiding them around by holding their hand was the extent of things. But as they watched through Brutus’s eyes, Elora opened her arms up to them, and they knew they couldn’t just turn it down. “Keep Ginger close, and call us if you ever need anything, you understand? I don’t care how far away you are, we’ll help you.” They closed the gap between themselves and Elora and hugged her tightly, albeit briefly before stepping away.

“Take care of yourself,” Alistair told Elora with a curt nod of their head. Melody, meanwhile felt the need to wipe a tear away, sad to lose Elora, especially like this. “We aren’t scared of hunters. Hunters are scared of us.” She told Elora, handing her over a bag she had been preparing since the moment Elora walked in with that sad expression. “Tea bags, your favorites.” She started as she handed it over. “Some spending money– don’t tell me no. The last thing you need is them tracking you through your debit card.” Melody held up a finger as Elora opened her mouth to protest. “I won’t be hearing no for an answer. Just… give him hell when you see him, okay?” Melody pleaded, giving Elora’s shoulders one final squeeze before letting her go. 

_____

Knowing she had allies was comforting for Elora. Even though she was leaving everything behind, she wouldn’t be truly alone. “Thank you again. I plan on ditching my phone, since it’s such an easy way to track me down. But I know the number to the store, and I’ll call if I ever have any issues…or just get a little homesick.” When she had first met Alistair, she didn’t exactly appreciate the manner in which he healed people. But she thought back to his insistence on exterminating the bad in order to help the good thrive better. Isn’t that what she was doing? 

“Melody” she answered with a warm smile. “You’ve always been too good to me. This is all so thoughtful.” For what seemed like the millionth time over the past couple days, Elora found herself overwhelmed with emotion. Here were all of these people all worried for her and wanting the best for her. She could never thank them enough. If she lived, she vowed to repay them all for the help they’d given her. “Don’t worry. When I’m through with him, hell will look like it would have been a better alternative.” She wiped again at the tears welling up in her eyes as she graciously accepted the bag. 

“I’ll miss you guys. I really will.” 

Alistair cracked a sad smile, knowing it would be sad to see Elora go. But there was no changing a made-up kind, they knew that all too well. “Take care of yourself.” Was all they could say before opening the door for Elora. If she had to get out of there, then they weren’t going to stop her. “We’ll miss you too, Elora.” Melody said softly, giving Elora one final squeeze before letting her go. 

“Hold on.” Alistair suddenly said, letting go of the door and disappearing into the back room. They began running their hands across meticulously labeled bottles in the healing room until they came across the one they needed. Coming back out, Alistair handed Elora a vial. “It’s a powerful healing potion. I was saving it for a rainy day, but you may need it more. Don’t let him win. No matter what.”

It was hard to let employees go when it was such a small business, everyone became a family. And losing family, well, it was something that Alistair was used to. Even if they didn’t want to be. “Good luck.” They finally said before letting Elora go out the door and on the run. 

While Elora knew Alistair had many different potions in the back room, she didn’t know he was in possession of such a powerful healing potion. Furthermore, she didn’t think he would give said powerful potion to her. 

With a nod of determination, Elora simply replied “I won’t”, before heading out the door. This was the start of a new chapter, one that she would hopefully be done with soon. However, she knew the truth. He was a weasely little snake who would put a hundred men in front of him for cover. It didn’t matter. None of it did. She’d find him, and they’d have their last standoff. Devil take the hindmost.