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floorbed · 4 years

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pen playlist tiem. brain full of thoughts i think this is my longest playlist ever . lyrics and annotation and sections under the cut for funsies heh

home

me and my husband - mitski

and i am the idiot with a painted face / in the corner taking up space / but when he walks in i am loved / i am loved / me and my husband we’re doing better / it’s always been just him and me together / so i bet all i have on that furrowed brow / and at least in this lifetime we’re sticking together

turf war - momma

the kings and queens are on the court / they’re sitting pretty on the floor

this charming man - the smiths

a jumped up pantry boy / who never knew his place / he said return the ring / he knows so much about these things / he knows so much about these things

utopia - cowgirl clue

living in a great utopia is quite nice is quite nice / living in a great utopia you pay the price you pay the price / living in a great utopia roll the dice kiss goodbye / living the dream living the dream living the dream

bubblegum bitch - marina and the diamonds

got a figure like a pin up got a figure like a doll / don’t care if you think i’m dumb i don’t care at all / candy bear sweetie pie wanna be adored / i’m the girl you’d die for / i’ll chew you up and spit you out / cus that’s what young love is all about

…

oh dear diary, i met a boy

(do the) act like you never met me - tv girl

the hidden kisses / the clumsy conspiratory glance / but i don’t really mind it no / i always liked the way you danced

it will come back - hozier

don’t give it a hand / offer it a soul / honey make this easy / leave it to the land / this is what it knows / honey that’s how it sleeps / don’t let it in with no intention to keep it / jesus christ don’t be kind to it / honey don’t feed it it will come back

real men - mitski

little boys cry and look around for comfort and / always get what they want

song against sex - neutral milk hotel

and he said oh boy you are so pretty / enough to wrap tight in rice paper string / and when i finally kissed him / the whole world began to ring / lost like a bell that’s tipping over / with two cracks along both sides / and i knew the world was over / so i took a look outside

(running away before the trial and seeing the world for the first time vibes!)

exile, early party

april and the phantom - animal collective

i’m sorry april / but you’ll be fine till then / i’m the phantom / i’m the phantom / i’m the phantom

(Pens First Summoning Dot Mp3)

insects are all around us - money mark

(from pens very first introduction in session 1 when he was walking in the woods and was described like looking like a lil insect)

bug - alex g

and when you go there / you stay there / bug in the crosshair / you stay there

king of carrot flowers pt 2 & 3 - neutral milk hotel

i love you jesus christ / jesus christ i love you yes i do

you’ll miss me when i’m not around - grimes

if you don’t bleed then you don’t die / cross my heart and hope to fly / if you like it then you’ll make it out alive / if they could see me now / smiling six feet underground / i’ll tie my feet to rocks and drown / you’ll miss me when i’m not around

rich bitch juice (HANA remix) - alice longyu gao

don’t you dare talk to me / bitch

fool - moonbounce

you could’ve let me think im right / i could’ve tried to keep my cool / i could’ve followed my own rules / i could’ve used you like a tool / i could’ve played a fucking fool

isle

hooped earrings - the front bottoms

and you have gotta do this now or you can never come home again / yeah you have gotta do this now or you can never come home again / and there are not so many options / there’s not so many ways that this could possibly end / so you have gotta do this now or you can never come home again

wicked boy - alex g

real men walk / on the outside / on the outside / on the outside / and they take it for the team

black hair - alex g

it’s not what you are / it’s just what you did / don’t hang up the phone / i love you to death / eternal return / eternal return / eternal return / eternal return

rabbit heart - florence & the machine

this is a gift it comes with a price / who is the lamb and who is the knife / when minas is king and he holds me so tight / and turns me to gold in the sunlight

oh ana - mother mother

i’ll fake god / i’ll fake god / i’ll fake god / i’ll fake god today / hop up on a cloud and watch the world decay

i am my own hell - teen suicide

i’m learning all kinds of tricks / how to drain the blood from my face

brick - alex g

i know that you’re lying / you think i don’t but i always fucking do

come back - alex g

made my promise and i’m keeping it for kicks / yeah i really didn’t think that it would stain like this / yeah i really didn’t think that it would stain like this

river of the night

trick - alex g

(this is what his Contract Signing Dream sounded like that’s all)

call this # now - the garden

call this number now / if you wanna check it out / well just do yourself a favor and just call this number now / call this number now

long way down - teen suicide

you’re a spoiled kid who’s never gonna get / anything that you deserve / i know this life’s gonna be just fine / but with any luck you know the next one’s gonna hurt

business man - mother mother

talkin bout the business man / devil with a sunday plan / buddy with a stupid laugh / just talkin bout the business man / pretty little baby / pretty little monster / went to the good school / left with honors

king rat - modest mouse

deep water / deep water / senseless denial / i went down like a rag doll rat of a child

oh lucky lucky lucky lucky me again / i said it looks like i’ve got to use my feet again / well i just spent my last one hundred dollars / god i’ll pay my bill again

after dying and being saved

new gods - grimes

hands reaching out to new gods / you can’t give me what i want / but what do i know? / i wanna i wanna i wanna let go / i wear black eyeliner / black attire yeah / so take me higher and higher and higher

…

only brand new gods can save me

home again - carole king

sometimes i wonder if i’m ever gonna make it home again / it’s so far and out of sight / i really need someone to talk to and nobody else / knows how to comfort me tonight / snow is cold rain is wet / chills my soul through the marrow / i won’t be happy till i see you alone again / till i’m home again and feeling right

miracle - paramore

and have i told you / i’m not going / cuz i’ve been waiting for a miracle / and i’m not leaving / i won’t let you / let you give up on a miracle / when it might save you

(Pen And Ori. Pen Telling Ori He’s Not Going To Stay At The Castle [Bc He Couldnt Imagine Not Seeing Her Everyday.] Pens Naive Optimism + His Want T.o Make Her Feel Better Abt The Future and The World And Everything)

dinner and diatribes - hozier

i knew it from the first look of / the look of mischief in your eyes / friends are a fate that befell me / head is the talking type / i’d suffer hell if you’d tell me / what you’d do to me tonight

(Pen And Juni Anthem)

funny - the scary jokes

and i laughed and i laughed and i gasped and i cried / and i tried not to think of my love as a punchline / but i knew the truth would catch up with me sometime / and oh what a funny joke am i

(pen crying on the bed in castle ravenloft dot mp3)

pretty funny - dogfight (lindsay mendez)

isn’t it funny? isn’t it funny? aren’t you funny? / pathetically naive and desperate to believe you could always find some good / well you misunderstood or you’ve been dreaming / cus people are just cruel

(pen crying on the bed in castle ravenloft dot mp3 Part 2)

until it goes - john congleton

oh my vengeance i swear will be biblical

…

my bride my bride how do i silence / this restlessness inside me / inside i see it kneeling through keyholes / my bride i need no absolution / on this day of my execution / just stay with me stay with me stay with me stay with me until the horror goes

(abandonment issues pen be like *stay with me stay with me stay with me stay with me noises*. also one day i want pen to hurt everyone who has severely fucked with him and thats all [m****** and d******])

beautiful - carole king

you’ve got to get up every morning / with a smile on your face / and show the world all the love in your heart / then people gonna treat you better / youre gonna find yes you will / that you’re beautiful as you feel

don’t ask me to explain - of montreal

i’d like to marry all of my close friends / live in a big house together by an angry sea / am i the devil’s marbles don’t move on without me / who will be watching my body when i sleep / who will i believe in

(Pen Be Like I Love Ori And Juni And Alba And That Is My Disease. )

100 years - florence welch

i believe in you /and in our hearts we know the truth / and i believe in love / even the darker it gets the more i do / you try and fill us with your hate and we will shine a light / and the days will become endless / and never turn to night

...

a hundred arms / a hundred years / you can always find me here / and lord don’t let me break this / let me hold it lightly / give me arms to pray with / instead of ones that hold too tightly

#mel talks #penance the jester #dnd tag

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badlydrawndrawnings · 5 years

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atwq book two thoughts

i know from a search online there’s a supplementary book (kind of?) published between the second and third book, and i saw the news netflix is like, probably developing an atwq series? i love reading supplementary material, but i currently have no way of reading it, and netflix for all i know, could adapt it and i can be ‘uh....what the hell is this?’. so i’m gonna take a break from reading the atwq series (idk how long) to figure out what i’m going to do. like, i may jump into the third book and save the supplementary book for last to make myself feel better about the possible bittersweet ending this series is gonna have.

as a kid i did not take lemony’s warning into consideration, so the me now knows better and realistically readjust ending expectations. good thing too, considering this book reveal a lot more than i thought. i guess it’s a given due to the fact it’s a four-book series and not thirteen-book series like asoue.

more of the review under the cut. i also have some asoue rambling opinions -one is which related to some atwq/tua things in regards to lemony and his family, and some thoughts on the possible netflix!atwq series.

so before going to the plot, i want to talk about kit and lemony’s last conversation for the time being. actually, i want to talk about the snicket family in general.

teen!kit took what is probably the biggest risk for their plan to steal...whatever they wanted to steal from vfd (so it’s important enough for kit to deciding to continue the job solo but not important enough for lemony deciding to not send in a replacement despite probably the one who came with the idea; will talk about that when i get to lemony). it’s a big risk on kit’s end, and it hurts lemony is more than willing cut short the conversation. i don’t blame him for it, not really. there’s the matter of people overhearing and hiding it from their chaperones.

but teen!kit getting caught by the police makes me think of the end with kit thinking both of her brothers are dead. obviously teen!kit will have her breaking out of their custody and meet lemony and jacques again because clearly she’s not in prison by asoue (unless she actually served time, but i doubt it; adult!kit broke taxi laws and safety and got away with it) or something akin to it. now, kit in some parts of tua knew lemony was alive. she did recommended the asoue books after all. but when was the last time they talk to each other? i presumed lemony was on the run for the last 15 years since olaf pinning lemony for crimes sort of corresponded with beatrice and bertrand getting married. in their what turn out to be their last conversation (probably right before it all went to crap for lemony or before lemony’s mistaken death), did lemony cut the conversation short? or was it kit who cut the conversation short?

like maybe kit could be comparing lemony’s situation to her and thought it would end the same way, only for her to proven wrong in the worse possible way.

while kit is the important snicket that is the protagonist of her own story told in the illustrations (adult!kit confirm to have worsen eyesight as an adult), it’s nice to see jacques get a name drop. i suspect he has no clue what his younger siblings are planning or does knows, but is too far away, even father than lemony and his resident in strain’d-by-the-sea (sbts) to help out (i’m thinking the latter like the way lemony wants kit to send his regards makes me think jacques has some idea the younger siblings are planning). with the last snicket sibling out of way, i need to talk about their family.

i think i should have mention this in my review of the first atwq book, but it’s more noticeable here. lemony seems to have some memories (the hike is what i want to talk about that’s the flag that made me go ‘uhhh’ out loud and got some glances; also my headcanon about e snicket enjoying camping and nature feels more sensible now) of his parents. but in tua, lemony most likely/confirm to be taken as a baby and still crawling. with lemony’s comment about his mother and father on the day he and his siblings got taken in the tua, i assumed that at least all three or one of the siblings were able to meet up with their parents again as teenagers/young adults before their death and told their grief on that day.

yet in this book and the last book to some minor degree, lemony talks about his parents as if he reunited with them before atwq series started. i’m not going to lie, and i should have brought it up in my last review, but i went ‘wtf’ at the first chapter of the first book i almost bought the fake parents act and the fact s. theodora markson figured it out made me go ‘oh thank good so lemony haven’t reunited with his parents yet” (s. theodora markson looking past the act means she is more competent than she looks, so i’m wondering why she’s...that with the main case she’s working on). i also made a note in my last review kid!lemony uses his imagination for familiar comfort and joy from out of his loneliness, so i’m wondering that’s the case here. i think while mentions of his parents is lemony thinking of what he wants to think, the ones with more details are ‘real’, in a sense jacques and kit told lemony. like the hike.

jacques and kit could actually remember that day and told lemony because they remember most of the events even if some parts are fuzzy. i say this because i was five and ran into traffic and almost got ran over. the memory of the incident itself is fuzzy, but i remember most of it to where i know it really did happen.

with some sad feelings of the snicket family situation out of the way, i get to talk about the atwq characters. i only know jake hix and cleo knight for one book, but i love them and i hope they become high school sweethearts (like they exist and those who are devoted to one another have great happiness with one another).

jake is honestly that meme of that guy going ‘i’ll feed you all’. i don’t want to call jake team (food) mom yet because i have a semi-bad experience of another fandom with a male character who cooks and is call ‘team mom’ due to the early parts of the fandom going out of control with it (it chilled down now hence ‘semi-bad experience’). but seriously, jake is going to care for the kids and he’s gonna feed them all and no one can stop him. no one will also stop him when he learns cleo isn’t actually okay and got kidnapped (he’s so devoted to her and her goal this is why i say i hope they become high school sweethearts) to where he was willing to crash her car in the clinic but didn’t because the car is like, non-destructible. i thought with his character description he would have like, bangs. the illustration shows that’s not the case. his bowtie is very dapper.

cleo really only showed up close to the ending so i kind don’t have a good grip of of her character like jake. but my goodness, i love her illustration (the full one that has her looking menacingly not the poster of her face). cleo’s outfit screams rich kid vibe (granted she is one) + late 1970s clothing with the future flair (cleo being ‘modern’ as she can be is helping my headcanon the vibe of the asoue world is like, slowly rebuilding and getting dominated by the world in first 20th century due to rose tinted glasses). the black and white motif her family has going on screams ‘in theory, we could order a hit man but we choose not to’ and that’s because they decided to drain the sea instead. that’s how rich they are. anyway, i doubt cleo wants to kill a person. she has to create a formula and save sbts. i don’t want to call her team (chemistry) dad just yet, because i don’t have a good grip f her character. but i like how she help moxie with her injury, and how goal driven she is to save her town from her family’s mistake.

since cleo and ellington were able to make their plan work to a degree, ellington is probably older than lemony and not just taller than him (i know 12-13 years old can look older than their real age, but people i know those age when i was in middle school only got mistaken as a freshman). also, the kid friendly noir vibes are now getting stronger. ellington just pretended to be someone else and like, it’s raising the red flags in my mind and i’m the eye emoji now i am on my guard i may be under attack. however, i still have my heart on my sleeve for her and have hopes of her reuniting with her father, who I now really think he’s a good dad and was specifically targeted (like cleo) due to being a naturalist.

it helps hangfire really shows how terrible he is. he tried to pretend to be her father! i know his voice mimicry is basically akin to juni cortez’s mimicry, but this is just cruel had ellington been there.

whatever hangfire’s group is doing, i’m not seeing how this relates with the BB statue and the people he kidnapped. we got a chemist who does things with tubes and bunsen burners and dangerous chemicals that makes one wear goggles, and a man who likes the natural environment. the tadpoles that bites are confusing me more though. why would someone create tadpoles that bites? still, with more detail of what hangfire is part of and with parts of his plan known at last, the plot is picking up speed. i’m scared, intrigued, and excited to read what will happen next, especially since hangfire is like, now going to be active in his own plan + group. they’re clearly not giving a damn about human life given their name of the inhumane society. whatever they’re planning and with the people they kidnapped so far, it has to do with the BB creature itself. is this going into the supernatural realm? is this connected to possibly the great unknown? am i overthinking connections?

i don’t have too much to say for most of the other secondary characters. i hope qwerty deals with his moth problems (so if moth balls stop moths from eating clothing, can they work in libraries? can qwerty even afford some non killing month repellent with his sub-librarian salary?), pip and squeak need to stop working and go be kids (their dad must be close to death if he’s that sick and they have to work), and prosper lost can tone down the watching. also, i think the mitchum parents don’t really love each other or not as much as before and need a divorce or couple counseling (their bickering is making me concern), and stew...still can’t find any pity or anything to find him a character i love to hate.

in regards to moxie, she is honestly the best friend lemony needs. she’s sticking her life to helping lemony with his case and while having opinions at the end of the day she just wants to help her friend in need. she puts up with so much give her an award like she got ditched at the library and stay to give lemony a piece of her mind before going all ‘okay so what we gonna do next’. she also gave him a dumb haircut. that is best friend material and i want their friendship to go into their adult years (yes i still think she’s the kind editor).

also, LEMONY CANONICALLY HAD A BOWL CUT HAIRSTYLE. he now has reasons to wear a hat and hide his face for the time being.

i said most things in regard to lemony in the snicket family situations paragraphs at the beginning of this post, so talking about kid!lemony as a solo character is not going as wordy. in this book kid!lemony could have died several times, one time by hangfire’s hand! he’s a kid, and this is really something a 17 or 18 should be in (even then i don’t want a 17 and 18 year old, or anyone of any age, be in his situation). he’s risking so much of his life for sbts and the people living there, all without knowing his sister is also in trouble as well until the final chapter. with lemony learning what happen to kit, i can’t help but wonder his worry for family will affect his actions in the next two books. though now i am question is actions pre-atwq like lemony almost got thrown out of vfd?? shoot lemony, i didn’t think he like vfd a lot as an adult ‘active’ member of vfd but he was still loyal, but this is new. i also don’t want to say he’s staging a coup but he and a whole other sbg members -kit is obvious- are clearly doing something that’s totally a coup? was being frames for crimes he didn’t commit, living on the run, and losing everything (fiancee, friends, and family) broke adult!lemony so much it made him ‘passive’ (i don’t think it’s the right word but it’s the one i can think of now)?

my feelings on s. theodora markson are the same as before, but i think she may be smarter than she looks given a re-think of the last book. her current behavior makes me think she is ‘warming’ up to lemony, even in the last book. she took him off probation was being ‘nice’ and when teasing lemony about his not-crush on ellington (i legit don’t know if lemony has a crush on her or is really wanting to help her out). that’s something an adult does to a child who may or may not have a crush on someone. theodora still treats lemony like she did in the previous book, no doubt due to vfd rules and her upbringing in vfd.

i only have read two books of atwq, so i probably don’t carry too much weight on my two cents of a netflix adaptation. but i am thinking of the changes netflix asoue made with hector and kit, and vfd as a freaking whole. hector is not part of vfd the organization anymore, but he can be replaced with larry-your-waiter (just got to rewrite the balloon stuff with something else). kit is giving me a headache because i still can’t figure out if she was retcon into the youngest snicket in netflix show, and excluding that netflix!kit’s change of personality/character makes me think netflix!kit would not have gotten caught and like, kit needs to get caught it’s important for her off screen story and kid!lemony story as a side thing. because it’s the books, vfd is still the ‘old. old as balls’ conspiracy secret organization, while netflix is the ‘hey let’s make our (book) club be something more to change the world’ secret agent organization made by ishmael. well, netflix good luck with the hole you dug that is possibly kit and vfd.

it’s now round two of asoue character cameos (kit doesn’t count she’s a protagonist of her own off-screen story), and widdershins is a surprise. before i get into his atwq cameo and my opinion of the character, i want to copy-paste something from my first atwq review: asoue was one of my first fandom i entered via me me and my sister. no one else read the books or weren’t fans of them, so we turn to each other to talk about them. i began lurking pre-atwq books, but gave up after several months due to being in more active fandoms and i had bad timing to join when it was basically dead, and i outgrew the target demographic when atwq came out and i had no chance to read the books. i only made the decision to re-lurk (sparingly i am still in more active fandoms) and make and share content in 2016 (and i’m too used to lurking for this fandom. i can reblog for fandoms, just not for this fandom and i’m trying to overcome whatever is making me not do it).

so, i’m a fandom hermit living in the woods away from fandom society and i suddenly decided to enter fandom society, and all of my opinions are free of influences and other fan opinions (sans my sister but we talk more about the plot and story than characters). my opinion of widdershins is a dislike-neutral-*thinking emoji*. i dislike him, but i don’t hate him. and if i have to make a tier list of all the important and semi-important asoue characters from favorite to hated, widdershins would actually be lump in the middle with the other true-neutral characters i have.

disliking widdershins should be obvious. with a most likely vfd upbringing, he probably thinks his actions are acceptable and the norm but they blur a lot with his parenting to where his actions are just plain awful. the big one is him throwing fernald under the bus or allowing jacques to throw fernald under the bus when it came to the anwhistle aquatic fire (i’m not sure what happen here). don’t get me started with the talk of arranged marriages and willingness to send fiona and the baudelaires -which is basically two teens, a teen i call a kid, and a baby- into a life or death place (and sunny almost died) and left without instructions and maybe no note (with the reveal of violet’s fifteenth date i wonder if widdershins and phil were putting up decorations and when they had to leave, widdershins went ‘the balloons will do’ because they spell out vfd and somehow thought he was killing two birds with one stone; it’s still bad as no note).

the whole *thinking emoji* came from the happy family photo. it got me asking ‘what the heck is up with this guy’ and a fascination on trying to figure out how he ticks. with re-reads, i got the impression widdershins was a normal and calm person/vfd member as can be. fernald clearly liked widdershins before the anwhistle aquatic fire. widdershins being fernald and fiona’s stepfather is proof mrs. widdershins loved him -flaws and all- and accept his proposal in spite of the age gap that went over my head as a kid. the way he speaks of josephine, kit, and jacques means he has friends who like him. i sort of came to the idea his level of jerkass and awfulness gradually build up over time post anwhistle aquatic fire (being its worst by tgg), and i took his off-screen actions in the end based off the photo and my impressions of pre-fire widdershins that widdershins realized what he become -probably when he got the news fernald and fiona double cross olaf- and clean up his act to be with them again, even if it kills him.

so i’m kind of please teen!widdershins (that tiny as hell illustration makes me think he’s a teen okay) is calm and normal? he’s not screaming ‘aye’ every other sentence. he’s more considerate to others. he’s nice as he can be to kid!lemony when breaking the news teen!kit got caught (widdershins breaking the news makes me think kit and him are friends). he even complimented kid!lemony for the not coup kid!lemony is planning (he’s probably going along with the not coup he’s clearly not stopping it; and i want to say their friendship ended when widdershins believed a certain daily punctilio story and showed it everyone- including beatrice- which lead to widdershins forgetting lemony’s name, yet lemony was part of the crew of two after jacques, so something else must have been the cause?). teen!widdershins has his philosophy of not hesitating, but it’s not consuming his life. from what i read, teen!widdershins is someone (kid and teen) fernald would and probably did got along with: it’s the older big brother (figure) who has cool stories to tell while also being sensible with kind words and advice when the younger sibling feels down and needs help and probably let said sibling do whatever they want. it perfectly lines up with my messed up widdershins-caliban theory headcanon holy ****

with the cameo now in mind, i can’t help but wonder if teen!widdershins would hesitate -or not hesitate- to punch his adult self for becoming radically different.

#atwq #all the wrong questions #when did you see her last #lemony snicket #asoue #a series of unfortunate events #this is a text post

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youcantkillamutant · 6 years

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A Map Made in Heaven (Chapter 3)

Prologue...Chapter 1...Chapter 2

Author: youcantkillamutant

Fandom: Marvel (Black Panther)

Pairing: Erik Stevens/Killmonger x Black!OC

Summary: Erik ‘Killmonger’ Stevens is the biggest bootlegger in South Carolina, but he wants to be more than the middle man. After he receives a letter from an ‘old friend’ of his father, he embarks on a quest to find his homeland. Enter Audrey Cade, the finest mapmaker in the County.

Warnings: Mentions of slavery, cursing, violence, blood

Words: 5K+

A/N: Back with that 1920’s bootleggers AU that absolutely no one asked for! Thank you to @k-michaelis as always for the review and love! And thank you everyone else for reading liking and reblogging I love hearing what y’all think of the story :)

I only own my original characters of course. As usual Marvel don’t sue me I’m broke.

Listening to: The Long Way Around by the Dixie Chicks, Pay Dearly by Johnnyswim, and The Good War by Kimbra

CHAPTER III

June 12, 1920: Charleston, SC

“Are you done yet?” Erik sang this question, as he had for the past few days. The pair were in Cade’s Atlas, Erik watching Audrey paint broad border lines and etch forests into existence.

“Didn’t your momma tell you a watched pot never boils Mr. Stevens?”

“My momma’s been in penitentiary since I was six.”

“I—I’m so sorry.” Shock staggered Audrey’s words. Over the past few days, Mr. Stevens watched Audrey work. He was a fairly quiet audience, questioning her technique and methods not to challenge her, but for his own edification. He rarely shared anything personal, unless it had to do with Wakanda.

“Pigs take anyone they can.” Erik shrugged, but Audrey had a feeling it wasn’t as casual as he played it off to be.

“Do you ever go see her?”

“She told me not to.”

Erik could remember the day they took her away. It was the last time he cried. His whole world sat out on the porch, mom pouring lemonade and dad rocking in a chair. Erik was playing with something, though he couldn’t remember what. Sirens whined louder and louder as they approached the house. Erik’s mother turned to him, eyes soft.

“Don’t come looking for me.” Tires screeched on the pavement.

“But Ma!” Car doors slammed.

“You don’t need to see me like that baby. Promise me you won’t come.” Men shouted, boots pounded on the steps, N’Jobu placed his hand on Erik’s shoulders.

“I—I promise momma.” The pigs pulled her away before he could utter another word.

“Just give me another hour. I’ll be done then, I promise.” Audrey’s voice, low and cautious, pulled Erik back to the present. Audrey decided she was done questioning Killmonger for the day, and focused on the map.

When Audrey opened the note from Mrs. Kae, she was disappointed. It was only a few words, more of a riddle than a clue: Wakandan blood runs strong and rings true, but the key we are given glows bold and blue. Gibberish. Audrey didn’t bother showing it to Erik, but she didn’t want to throw it away either. She taped it in the last page of her sketchbook, returning to the page to puzzle over the words after Erik left the shop every day for lunch.

Audrey kept a list of notes on Wakanda’s possible whereabouts next to her as she drew. Mrs. Kae had mentioned the sea and a forest, so Audrey knew she was looking for something on the coast. North or South? Erik had mentioned that before everything “went to shit” he remembered his father taking business trips to Wakanda. He informed Audrey that his father would return with gifts from “home” for him and his mother the next day. That meant that it couldn’t have been more than a few hours drive from Charleston. North or South? Klaue had only mentioned a ferryman and the silent water. Audrey decided to interpret that as a fact that the bridge to Wakanda wasn’t on a rocky bluff. The closest thing to that description was the Francis Marion National Forest to the North.

The fact that Wakanda was unmapped is what made Audrey’s brain hurt the most. Even with all of the information she was able to pull and rationalize, Audrey could still be wrong. She could be miles off. Or the whole place could just not exist. That was the most frustrating part for Audrey. She hated to think that all of this work she was putting in would be worthless if Wakanda isn’t real.

The map had taken longer than usual because she was constantly fighting herself for trusting Erik’s word, a criminal’s word, that Wakanda exists. Audrey did her best to remind herself of Killmonger’s seedy background otherwise she might find herself beginning to like him. She began to make up outrageous stories about him to keep her feelings in check. Erik brought her dinner? He probably picked it up from Roland’s after punching a man and leaving him to drown in his own blood in a city gutter somewhere. Erik brought her a new set of ink pens? He probably found them on the black market or stole them from an art store three towns over. Or he could just be nice… Audrey shook herself from her spiraling mind. Mr. Stevens is a client, nothing more.

“Okay, I’m done.” Erik leaned over Audrey’s shoulder, admiring the map and inhaling her scent. Fresh parchment and brown sugar.

“Well then baby doll, It was nice doing business with you.” Erik reached to grab the map, a sort of listless sadness falling to his gut, but Audrey snatched it out of his reach.

“I’m coming with you.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m coming with you to find Wakanda.”

“Says who?”

“I do. I made the damn map Stevens!”

“Yeah and?” Audrey was too busy flitting around the shop to see Erik’s unimpressed expression. “What about your momma? You just gon leave her with the shop?”

“Yes I am. She can handle the shop, she’s done it before. I’m going.” Audrey was out of the door and hopping up the stairs to her apartment when she finished. She dragged Erik along to make sure he didn’t drive off without her. “Just have to grab a few things…”

Audrey ignored Erik’s grumblings as she pushed her way through the apartment door, bee-lining to her bedroom and dragging out a backpack she had only used a few times. It was bulkier than she was used to, but she had no idea how long this search would take. Erik on the other hand was frozen in the kitchen. Sure, he’d been into women’s bedrooms before, but he wasn’t here for that. Erik was beginning to believe that Audrey would never see him as anything other than a client, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to test her limits either. He’d gotten what he wanted, the map was within his reach, but he didn’t want to shake Audrey either.

Erik surprised himself when he admitted that he wanted a partner on this trip. Someone to share the frustration in the search, the joy in the discovery and the disappointment should things go wrong. Don’t think like that Erik. Don’t think that shit into existence. Instead of staying in his own mind, Erik observed Audrey’s tiny apartment. The kitchen was covered in paintings of the world. France opening to a window over the silver sink and Greece crawling across the cupboard doors. The wood floor creaked as Audrey flitted back and forth, shoving one last shirt into her bag and grabbing her pencil case.

“All done!” Audrey bounded down the stairs, Erik following slowly behind.

“You’re really going to leave your mom?”

“I’ll write her a note.”

“Are you sure that will be en—” Erik stopped short when they arrived back in the shop. Audrey breezed past him, kissing her mother on the cheek and grabbing a few maps on the table behind her.

“Ma! I was just abut to write you a note.” In a moment of brattiness, Audrey turned to Erik to stick her tongue out.

“I’m going on a research trip with Mr. Stevens.” Audrey’s mother nodded to her. She had done this plenty of times, running to the nearest train station and hopping on the express to explore another state. It was all a part of the job.

“Alright honey. You be careful.” She gave Audrey what looked to be a bone crushing hug, releasing her after a few moments and turning to Erik.

“I’d like to speak with you before you go Mr. Stevens.” This time Audrey stopped short, wondering what her mother was up to. “Go on Audrey, he’ll meet you at the car in just a minute.” Audrey pushed down the embarrassment she had from being shooed away by her mother and walked out of Cade’s Atlas, refusing to linger at the door.

“Audrey is my only child, I try to let her do what she wants, but I’m still her momma. Now, I don’t know what the two of you are up to, but if you hurt my girl, there will be a price to pay.” Killmonger admired the strength in Mrs. Cade’s delivery. He even laughed a little at her last statement.

“Mrs. Cade, is that a threat?” Erik didn’t have to wonder where Audrey got her fire from.

“Of course not. You of all people should know it’s a promise.” Mrs. Cade’s voice dripped with serpentine sweetness and Erik’s vicious smile mirrored her own.

“I’ll return her in one piece Mrs. Cade. You don’t need to worry about a thing.”

—o—

With the map in hand and a tank full of gas, the pair of explorers could have set off that second, but Erik had a few things to take care of in town. He parked in front of Oakies as usual, opening Audrey’s door in a heartbeat. Instead of following him in though, she made her way to Junie’s Sweet Shop. If she was really on her way to discover Wakanda, she needed to see her best friend one last time.

When she entered, Audrey tried to remember every little detail. She didn’t know when she’d be back. She waved to the kids out front, giving their new puppy a scratch before making her way to the back. Junie was slamming a wad of dough down on the counter. It hit the linoleum with a slap and the scent of cinnamon and sugar flew through the air to Audrey.

“I’m gonna miss your cinnamon scrolls?” Junie looked up to see Audrey’s exaggerated pout as she whined.

“Why are you gonna miss them young lady? Going somewhere?”

“Kind of. I mean yeah I’m leaving for a bit. I came to say goodbye.” In all the time she’d known her, Audrey had never made a point to say goodbye to Junie. If she ever left, it was never for more than a few days and Junie would see Audrey at the shop the second she returned. Junie could tell that something was different this time.

“Goodbye?”

“For a little while I guess. I’m going on a research trip…with Mr. Stevens.”

“With Killmonger?” Junie narrowed her eyes, though her hands never stopped kneading the dough she was working on. Audrey flinched at the laser focus Junie had on her.

“Are you sure you aren’t eloping?”

“Junie, what? No! Why would you say that?” Audrey sputtered question after question while Junie shrugged.

“People talk Audrey. They’ve seen his ride at your shop all hours of the day…” Junie trailed off suggestively, and Audrey slapped her on the arm.

“We are not eloping. We’re going to find Wakanda. It’s a research trip.” Audrey did her best to emphasize the professional nature of this trip but Junie ignored that in favor of her own assumptions.

“I’m sure you can elope in Wakanda.”

“Junie! We’re not getting married. Now can you pack us something sweet for the road?” Audrey did her best to reign in her frustration. Junie loved to tease Audrey about any and all gentlemen callers she had. She wasn’t technically wrong, Mr. Stevens had spent a lot of time at Cade’s Atlas while Audrey was making the map, but that didn’t mean anything was going on with them.

Junie filled a small box with cookies and muffins and Audrey requested more, sliding a $20 bill into Junie’s pocket.

“Audrey! You take that back! I don’t want your money.”

“Too bad!” In reality Audrey just wanted $20 worth of sweets, because if all she got was that little box, it would be gone before she could blink. In the time they’d spent together, Audrey found that Mr. Stevens tended to eat most of her sweets. She was beginning to think those gold fangs were fillers for cavities instead of intimidation tactics.

Junie loaded up two more cake boxes full of treats and the two women hugged their goodbye. Arms full, Audrey crossed the street to Oakies. Someone opened the door for her and she entered the juice joint for what could very well be her last time. On stage a woman murmured about ‘hell, calling me home’ with a cellist by her side and some kind of electric piano in front of her. She waved to the bartender, taking a seat at the golden booth Mr, Stevens claimed as his throne.

“Killmonger sir, Ms. Cade has returned.” Erik nodded to his best bartender, Emerson as he gathered his bags. Killmonger had already put his club in the right hands, contacted his distributor’s and warned them of his hiatus, and ensured that Mrs. Floyd could air out his apartment every few days. He wasn’t quite sure how long this whole search could take. He gathered the envelope from his father last, and made his way to Audrey.

“Finished with your goodbyes baby doll?” Audrey stood and narrowed her eyes at his tone.

“What? The biggest bootlegger in the County doesn’t have anyone to say goodbye to?” Audrey’s tone was teasing, but for the first time Erik truly thought about it. Most of his colleagues were just that, colleagues. Erik didn’t do friends. Too messy and too much work. But, Audrey may be on to something. There was someone who had been on his mind since this morning. Years longer than that if he was being honest with himself.

“There might be one person. If you don’t mind a little road trip?”

—o—

June 12, 1920: Ridgeland Correctional Institution; Ridgeland, SC

Audrey should really stop agreeing to road trips with criminals. The pair, well Erik, had packed everything into the car with ease. Erik barely allowed Audrey to carry the pastries to the car, and she wanted to kick her fluttering heart for reacting at his gentile act. Mr. Stevens could be kind when he wanted, but Audrey hasn’t forgotten that threat. She doubted she ever would which is why she was pinching herself for agreeing to yet another road trip with Erik ‘Killmonger’ Stevens.

Erik felt…unsure of how he felt. He tried to rationalize his choice as he sped South. Audrey was silent, reading some book about tides and sketching periodically. For once he wished she would open her big mouth and talk, if only for a distraction. Erik needed a distraction so he could stop thinking about what he was about to do. He missed his mother. Of course he missed her, but he made her a promise and he was about to break it. He was about to break a promise he kept for over a decade. All to say goodbye.

“Don’t come looking for me.”

Erik took the long way around. He’d mapped out a route to the Ridgeland Correctional Institution when his mother had first been taken. He knew every road that ran through it, every conceivable way to get to his mother. Still, he never once took it. He’d planned elaborate escape plans in his head, even thought of assembling a team at one point, but never acted on it. He soaked up every detail of the place, from the rotting wooden sign to the cracked pavement.

As he approached the door, he felt excitement bubbling up. The kind he remembered from childhood, when his father would return from Wakanda with stories and gifts. He was going to see his momma. He felt his heart rise at the prospect of telling his mother he was finally going home. He huffed a quiet disbelieving laugh at the realization. After all of these years, he was returning home. He felt closer to N’Jobu just thinking about it.

Audrey walked cautiously behind Erik. She’d never been to a jail before and certainly not the main penitentiary for the county. Audrey wondered if he was meeting with some criminal before she remembered the conversation they’d had this morning.

“My momma’s been in penitentiary since I was six.”

Erik pulled open the door with the kind of confidence Audrey could never muster when walking into the holding cell of the worst criminals in the state. She saw Erik’s small smile reflected in the window of the door as it swung wide. He held the door and ushered her in, and she watched Erik sign in at the front desk. They waited for a moment in silence, and then Erik was called to the front again.

He disappeared through a slate grey door with an old mean-faced white man following behind. Audrey found herself holding her breath as she waited. She watched the seconds tick by on her watch, doing her best not to catch anyone’s eye. She tried, but she couldn’t help looking at the families that sat waiting. Babies and mothers and brothers and sons all waiting to see someone they loved beyond belief, behind the iron bars of a shitty cell.

She caught the eye of a little boy unintentionally. He was staring at her, and she only turned to look at him when she felt his look. He was young, way too young to be in the waiting room of a prison. He had big brown eyes chubby cheeks and ears he might grow into. She gave him a wave and he waved back happy with the attention. Before she could do anything else, Erik burst through the doors. He strode through the waiting area, right past Audrey, and into the bright, hot day.

“Excuse me.” Audrey waved to get the receptionists attention. The white woman drew her blue eyes up to her face, confused and bewildered.

“My partner went back to see someone, but he just stormed out. Did something happen?”

“Name?”

“Erik Stevens.”

“Oh! Yes m’am something did happen.” Audrey raised a brow, encouraging her to elaborate and quickly. Audrey had no way of knowing if Erik would leave her stranded here.

“He came to see his mother, but she…well she passed away.”

“What?”

“He came to see his mother but she died here a few years ago.” Years? Shouldn’t he have been notified? even if he wasn’t next of kin, he was her son. The courts could have sent him a letter or something. There was no point unloading those questions on this broad though. She didn’t seem to be the type of girl with the answers, but Erik deserved something from this place.

“Did she have any personal affects?”

“We throw everything away after a year if no one comes to pick them up.” The woman got a look at Audrey’s face and apologized. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

“Sure you are.”

—o—

June 13, 1920: Rantowles, SC

Audrey was happy to see that Erik hadn’t left her stranded, but she wasn’t sure how to breach this conversation. In the end he opened the door for her, and they didn’t talk about anything at all. The sun was falling fast in the sky and Erik pulled over at a motel, got the pair separate rooms and bade Audrey a goodnight.

Erik wanted to shoot himself in the foot for the hope he let find its way into his heart. He should have known his mother would die in that place. Everybody dies there. Everybody dies. The fact that he let himself believe he might still have one parent alive was the dumbest thing he’s done in a long time. He couldn’t believe he was stupid enough to believe he could see her again, after all of these years. He let his self-loathing put him to sleep, praying to Bast or whoever the hell else could hear him that he’d wake up tomorrow feeling better than he did today.

Morning came and Audrey was up with the sun. She spread the map out on her bed again, feeling the forests they would go through to find Wakanda. A knock sounded on her door, followed by a command to be ready in ten minutes. Audrey was glad to see that Mr. Stevens could still talk, even if it was doling out demands. She couldn’t even begin to imagine what he must be feeling. She didn’t want to. That didn’t stop her from trying to empathize with the man when they were back in the car and on the road.

“If you want to talk, I’ll listen.” Erik gazed at Audrey for as long as he could before pulling his eyes back to the road. They drove for another hour, Audrey noting the sign for the city of Rantowles again.

“What are we doing here?” Erik only slid the clutch into park and let the automobile idle.

N’Jobu always told Erik if he wanted to come home, he should bring a gift. That’s why he made this pit stop in Rantowles. To pick up a little gift. Ulysses Klaue was waiting outside of his gunmetal grey building with a khaki backpack and a maniacal grin. Audrey couldn’t figure out why the hell Klaue was coming along and she “accidentally” stomped on Erik’s foot when he ushered her out of the front seat and pointed to the back seat.

“I’ve got to be honest, I don’t like the idea of being the third wheel on your honeymoon. Why am I needed along this little adventure again?” Killmonger had an easy answer for Klaue, that Audrey had never even heard before now.

“Audrey’s got most of the location figured out, but having you along will help us to be sure we’re on the right path.” Audrey wanted to slap him for keeping her in the dark, but refrained. Besides, you can only hit so hard from the back seat.

“Alright, I’ll come, I’m due for a vacation anyways.” Audrey tried to ignore the shivers that rippled down her spine as Klaue laughed and they sped north on highway 17.

—o—

June 13, 1920: Francis Marion National Forest; Awendaw, SC

Killmonger pulled into a dirt patch and threw the automobile in park. The trio of explorers hopped out the machine, Audrey begrudgingly accepting the assistance of Erik’s hand. She was still getting the hang of these clunky hiking boots, not to mention the pants. The three of them made quite the group, matching in khaki and burdened with backpacks.

“Does this look familiar to you?”

“It’s dirt and trees boy, I need to get closer if I’m going to remember.” Audrey noted the way Erik’s fist clenched at the word ‘boy’ and prayed he wouldn’t do anything reckless. She warily watch Klaue make his way to the treeline making an aborted movement to follow when Erik pulled her back, into his chest.

“Audrey.” Her head whipped around at the sound of his voice in her ear. She stared at him in disbelief. Sure they spent a lot of time together in the past week, but he’d never dared to touch Audrey.

“Hmm?” Audrey reply was distracted by his scent, and that was not what Erik wanted to hear.

“Audrey! This is serious. You need to stay close to me. No matter what.”

“What?” Audrey heard the urgency in his voice but couldn’t understand it. No, she didn’t trust Klaue, but they weren’t going on some crazy dangerous mission. For all intents and purposes, this was just a hike in the woods.

“I made a promise to your momma that I would bring you ba—” Erik rolled his eyes as he was interrupted by Klaue.

“What are you two whispering about back there? Come on love birds! It’s time to find the hidden city.” Klaue nearly giggled with glee. Audrey gave Erik a look that shamed him for inviting this crazy man on their hunt for Wakanda but he only nudged her forward with a palm on her back.

Walking across the treelike was like stepping into another world. Suddenly everything was deeper, greener. The trees enveloped the group and Audrey was grateful for the hand on her back. She could get lost in these woods in a heartbeat seeing as they’d barely been mapped. When Audrey had requested the maps to the area, she found the only ones available had been from the parks’ inception. The ragged edges and faded borders had left a lot to be desired and Audrey noted that she should probably convince the state to let her redo the maps when she returned.

They walked until the sun was high in the sky Klaue leading them north, then south, then west. Audrey protested each time he led them in another direction, but for some reason, Erik listened to Klaue instead of Audrey. In fact, he barely said a word to Audrey the whole time they were out there, instead using the time to banter with Klaue. It’s not that Audrey was jealous, she just couldn’t understand what she had done to make Erik act so cold with her.

Either way, she was sick of their shit. After lunch, she resolved to go her own way, with or without the boys. The trio sat in a clearing where the trees filtered the sunlight. Erik admired the way the light bounced off of Audrey’s brown skin and prayed she remembered their conversation. He had a plan, and she’d already ruined it by coming along. He didn’t need to alter it any further, not even for a pretty little bird.

“Now Klaue, I think you owe me an explanation.” He pulled a pistol from his back, and Audrey stumbled back, behind Erik. They hadn’t even finished eating. Klaue glanced up, bits of ham hanging from his mouth and falling into his beard.

“Woah boy. What’s all that about?”

“Oh this? Just a little incentive. Why are you leading us on a wild goose chase?” Erik sauntered up to Klaue, and Audrey followed behind, under the guise of getting something from her backpack. She had a feeling this is what Erik meant earlier today when he told her to stay close.

“Boy, you better put that gun away”

“Answer my question.” Erik pressed the pistol into Klaue’s temple.

“You don’t want to go there boy. Those people are savages—”

“Wrong answer.”

Bang! Birds erupted from the trees, wings beating loud like the blades of boat fans. Audrey stumbled, falling on her butt as she gaped at Erik’s back. Erik, meanwhile took his time wiping the blood off of his pistol with Klaue’s own handkerchief. He turned and offered her his hand, but Audrey scrambled back before she scrambled up.

“What the hell was that? He was helping us!”

“Was he? He wasn’t leading us anywhere close to where you think Wakanda might be. He was wasting my time. Our time.” Killmonger was annoyed he even had to explain himself.

“So you shot him?” Audrey fired back and began to pace. “Oh lord, I’ve just witnessed a murder.” She whirled on Erik “You made me witness a murder!”

“You said you wanted to come baby doll.” He sneered the endearment. “Besides, we don’t need him to find Wakanda. You made the damn map.” He tucked his pistol back into his pants, and bent down towards the corpse of Klaue.

“So why would you—” Audrey’s voice gave out and so did she. She had no idea what this man was planning, and at this point she was too shocked to try deciphering him.

“You gon’ help or nah?” Erik was busy moving the food off of the picnic blanket while he spoke and the words came out muffled.

“Absolutely not!” Audrey was offended at the mere suggestion that she might help Killmonger move a dead body.

“Well you either need to help out up or dry up. I’m not trying to hear all that noise.” It had been a while since Killmonger had quickly killed a man, and he forgot how much he reveled in the lingering silence of a dead body.

“Whatever.” Audrey scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Once you’re done with that Stevens, maybe you can do something useful like help me look for the country you’re so keen to find when you aren’t murdering people.”

“Watch your tone baby doll. Don’t forget how easily I can snap your pretty little neck.” Killmonger didn’t need to be close to Audrey to scare her. His threat rang in the air between them while he wrapped Klaue’s corpse in their picnic blanket.

“Besides, any white man who’s been to Wakanda ain’t never had good intentions.”

—o—

With Audrey’s directions, the pair and some ‘luggage’ found themselves on the shore of a sandy beach. No rocks or bluffs, just perfect sand and calm waters. That was enough to bring a smile to Audrey’s face, but she couldn’t see a bridge of any kind. She decided to return to the tree line and look for anything out of the ordinary. This time, Erik trailed behind her, dragging the dead man’s body along quietly.

He didn’t touch her again, even when she tripped and landed on her hands and knees in front of him. He watched her fall, and she looked back to see him staring as she rose. Audrey glared back, ignoring the feeling stirring in her stomach in favor of finding anything that could prove her map right. She finally saw something where the trees kissed the sand and sea.

“What kind of tree is that?” Erik was surprised to hear Audrey speaking to him at all, but drew his gaze to the tree she was talking about.

“I don’t know, it looks like all the others.” It wasn’t, and Audrey could see that. Most of the trees in this region were lushly leafy and slender trunked. This tree was the complete opposite. It had a thick gnarled trunk and was bare branched. It almost looked like it was pasted there not planted in the ground.

“No it doesn’t. It looks like a baobab tree. Baobab trees don’t grow in the South, or in this country at all.”

“So?” Ignoring Erik, Audrey started towards the tree, palms out. It felt like a normal tree, though the bark was smoother than she expected. She stopped down to inspect the trunk, roots, and soil, looking for any sign that this was a sign. Erik was a bit more hesitant, dropping Klaue’s body to the ground with a thud. Before he could touch a fingertip to the tree Audrey spoke.

“You said your dad was from Wakanda right? And that they had their own language? What did it look like?”

“I can’t describe that shit baby doll.”

“Did it look like this?” Erik stooped down beside Audrey brushing her small shoulder with his broad one. He was shocked to see the Wakandan alphabet spelling out: Welcome Home. His breath hitched.

“Yeah. It—” Erik ran his fingers over the tree and for a moment the pair could have sworn it glowed blue. He caressed the letters again and there was another ebb of sapphire light. Audrey grabbed Erik’s wrist and pushed his hand on the tree trunk, holding it there with her own.

“Stevens, put both of your hands on the tree.” Indigo light pulsed through the tree trunk like blood through veins. Erik tried to focus on Audrey’s words and ignore her brown hand on his.

“What?”

“Just do it. I think the tree knows you’re Wakandan.”

“That’s the stupidest shit I’ve ever…” Erik couldn’t finish his sentence because the world fell open before him. More specifically, the bridge to Wakanda rose from the sea.

A/N: So this chapter ate my whollllle weekend lol. I wasn’t sure I’d get it out today but it wouldn’t leave me alone either. I thought about breaking it up into two chapters but...that...never...happened? This is basically the end of Part 1 of this story and the rest will be Erik and Audrey in Wakanda, which I’m excited to write! Hope you guys like it!

As always I love reviews and reblogs :)

Taglist: @ontheroadtoenlightenment @thatrandomfangirl98 @muse-of-mbaku @k-michaelis @dreadedphilosphy @panthergoddessbast @princessstevens @killmoncoochie @queenamaniii

#A Map Made in Heaven #erikxblackOC #erik killmonger fic #black panther #bp #black panther fic #mine #my writing #Erik Killmonger #1920's AU

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punkscowardschampions · 6 years

Text

Rio & Buster

Rio: Just got off the phone with Junior Buster: Yeah? Rio: Yep Rio: That was Rio: Unexpected Buster: I was on my way back home. Do you want me to turn around the other way? Buster: I get that it wasn't my place to speak for you Rio: No Rio: He convinced me you didn't convince him of this Rio: and with all he had to say, I believe him Buster: Good Buster: I'm not sorry Rio: As much as it would be easier to believe he's just got new Dad nerves about this Rio: it was a lot harder to tell Demi all he had to so Rio: that's not the easy way out, like Rio: not that there is one, in this situation Buster: Yeah Buster: Been there, had them. It obviously wasn't that Buster: Did he tell you about how it went between them? He hadn't spoken to Demi when we did Buster: I can guess but Rio: Your guess would probably cover it Rio: Not well at all Buster: I'm not sorry for that either. Better it happened now than down the line Rio: No, I agree Rio: Reckons he's at least convinced him that he can't just leave with her Rio: so that's something Buster: I'd kill him if he tried Rio: Buster Rio: Can't blame him Rio: or say you haven't thought the same thing before Buster: Yeah I can Buster: He shouldn't know what Junior was feeling, I knew yours Rio: Not everyone is us Rio: but yeah, its shit, really shit Buster: Well they should get on our level, babe Buster: I'm sorry I left you with nobody but the dog for company Rio: I've really brought our average down, haven't I Rio: Its alright, Messi's a great shoulder to cry on, used to all sorts the poor sod Buster: True Buster: Least I kicked myself out into the night and not him Buster: Can't have Jay mad at me as well as you Rio: She'd never forgive you, like Rio: but you know I'm not mad at you, idiot Buster: Yeah? Buster: You can be, if you need Rio: I ain't Rio: You've not done anything wrong here Buster: That's a lie but I don't wanna fight again Rio: Do you want me to go? Rio: Give me 10 to pack a bag Buster: No Buster: I want you to stay Buster: Both of you Rio: Are you sure? Really think about it Rio: Because you didn't sign up for this either Rio: You don't have to Buster: I've had plenty of time to think about it while you were pretending anything but this would happen Buster: Trust me Rio: Yeah Rio: Such a know-it-all, like Buster: Don't be mad I've taken your crown once Rio: You know you'd rather that than all the self-loathing Buster: 'Course Buster: I'm at Tesco raiding the newborn aisle so we don't have to take the piss by stealing Demi's essentials as well as the baby Buster: Need anything? Rio: Don't Rio: I feel so awful for him, I can't even be lighthearted about it Rio: Some pads, the big ones Rio: Sexy Buster: Don't. Be happy for yourself Buster: He'll still get to play daddy Buster: You still are. Original MILF, remember? Rio: I can't Rio: It doesn't feel real Rio: It might not be yet Rio: How are you being so calm? Buster: Let's go get your daughter Buster: It will then Buster: You can't get more real than a screaming baby, like Buster: You think I'm calm? You really have handed over your know-it-all crown, babe Rio: Can we Buster: We can Buster: As soon as I pay for my armfuls of baby bullshit Buster: Don't worry, there's nothing exciting, we can shop together for that Rio: are we allowed? Rio: are you sure? Buster: I promise Rio: I think I'm in shock Rio: have we really done this? Buster: I know Buster: But it's happening Buster: You can have everything you want Rio: That can't be true Rio: That doesn't happen Buster: It can Buster: Look at me, got it all, ain't I? Rio: Yeah Rio: Born for it like, posh boy Buster: I got you out of the 24 Buster: Can't say nothing Rio: Alright, no need to make me sound like I've come from the bargain bin, thanks very much Buster: I'm just saying we're forever on the up babe, nothing's changed on that score Rio: You promise nothing's changed? Rio: You said there was nothing left Buster: 'Cause you were lying Buster: I couldn't live that lie with, or for you Buster: I love you too much Rio: but Rio: what if he takes us to court and wins and we can't keep her Rio: will you still leave Buster: I'll never leave you again Rio: I need you, okay Buster: I need you just as much Buster: I'm not going anywhere Rio: I'm sorry it came to this Buster: I know Buster: But it's all going to be alright Rio: Yeah Rio: Its got to be, I've got to be Rio: if we're really doing this Buster: I know it's scary but I also know you can do this Rio: Poor Venus Rio: what if she won't bond with me Rio: she shouldn't have been away from me for this long so soon Buster: Yeah, I wish she hadn't been, but we'll figure it out Buster: At least it's happening now instead of weeks or months or years late Rio: I suppose so Rio: What are you going to tell the girls? Buster: The truth Buster: I don't see any way around it Buster: I'll just tell them that you're keeping her and she's part of the family now Buster: They'll be more excited than anything else I reckon Rio: I can give you time to have that conversation though Rio: so you don't have to do it right now Buster: It's fine Buster: We can do it together Buster: We've handled worse questions from Jay about her mum and everything Rio: Poor baby Rio: why can't anything ever be simple? Buster: Some things money can't buy, but you never heard me say that, yeah? Buster: This is good news, anyway, she loves being a big sister Rio: I'll never tell Rio: Who doesn't love having underlings to do their bidding? Rio: Gutted it ain't a boy, though Buster: Never gonna get one at this rate Rio: Unlucky Rio: Even Henry got one on his third attempt Buster: Well, technically I've only had two so far, babe so Buster: Not bested like Rio: Umm doesn't mean you get a free pass Rio: 'scuse me Buster: Yeah yeah Buster: You'll be too busy mothering to keep tabs on me Buster: Unlucky Rio: Fuck you Rio: I'm in a fragile state, at least lie to me that you're gonna be faithful Buster: No more lies, babe Rio: Yeah Rio: didn't exactly go to plan Buster: Just as well we've got a new plan Buster: And it's time to put it into action 'cause I'm done here Buster: Get yourself ready I'll be back soon Rio: Thanks Rio: For everything Buster: No need to thank me Rio: That ain't true Rio: You didn't give up Rio: on either of us Buster: I never will Buster: I love you Rio: I love you, Buster Buster: Venus is lucky to have you, don't forget that, yeah? Buster: You're a good mum, Rio Rio: I try Rio: and I'm going to keep trying Rio: that's all we can do, yeah? Buster: Even when it was killing you, you were trying to do the best thing for her, which you reckoned was being with those two Buster: That's not just trying Buster: That's giving it all Rio: We'd all do the same Rio: Regardless of how it hurts us, its what you do Buster: Not me, well selfish, like Rio: You're not Rio: You know you aren't Buster: Keep that to yourself, babe Buster: I've got a rep Rio: Do my best but Rio: building quite another rep all by yourself Rio: Junie and Mum were well impressed Rio: if you gonna show yourself up, I can't save you, like Buster: Yeah, well Buster: I'd do anything for you Rio: Stop Rio: You're too good for me Buster: No Rio: Are too Rio: but its alright, know you thrive on the stress so Rio: Welcome Buster: Cheers Buster: On that note, I'm pulling in Buster: Time to do this Rio: I'll come help you unpack Rio: Though you're probably being so dramatic about how much you got, as per Buster: Me? Never Buster: No clue how you got that idea

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lovemesomesurveys · 4 years

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the good ol’ days...

When you were a kid…

Were you happy or sad when you found out your babysitter was coming? Yeah, my babysitters were my aunt or my older brother, both of which were fun. My aunt liked to do fun activities, like arts and crafts, play games, and watch movies. My brother liked making silly home videos. Like, we’d have our own talk show and pretend to be the host and guests and all that. I had a keyboard and he used it to make the theme song for our show and when we’d go to commercial break, which consisted of actual commercials on the TV lmao. It was fun.

Did you have a boyfriend in kindergarten? No.

Did you ever play hopscotch at school? No. That would be hard to do in a wheelchair. Did you refuse to eat your vegetables? I was very picky (still am).

What did you usually dress up as on Halloween? I was a witch and a vampire a lot.

What was your favorite television show? As a real little kid I was obsessed with Barney. As I got a little older I was into Arthur, NickJr, WB Kids, and Saturday morning cartoons that came on ABC (stuff like Recess and Pepperann). Did you have D.E.A.R. time in school? (Drop Everything and Read) I remember silent reading and accelerated reading... I don’t remember having something like that specifically, but it’s possible. Or at least something like it. Did you ever read the ‘Magic Treehouse’ series? Yes. How about the 'Bailey School Kids’ series? Yep. Do you remember the first movie you ever saw in theaters? Not the first, but one that comes to mind is The Rugrats Movie. Who was your best friend in elementary school? Angela was my best friend in some grades, but you know how kids are…once they vibe with someone else, they’ll hang out with them 24/7. Angela was a way more sociable kid so she got close with everyone, while I remained terrible at making friends. If she wasn’t my best friend at the time, I had no one. <<< Yeah, I definitely can relate to that. Friends changed all the time, one day you’re best friends with so and so and then the next you’re not and they’re playing with someone else. I had a few different best friends. It wasn’t until 5th grade that I made more permanent, real friends. Did they continue to be your best friend in middle school? Yes. I made a couple others as well. Did you ever watch 'The Land Before Time’ movies? Yes. Did you ever watch the show 'Arthur’? I loved Arthur. Did the tooth fairy give you a lot of money? It was a lot to me. How often did you visit your nearest grandparents? I spent a lot of time at both sets of grandparents as a kid. My paternal grandparents moved out of state; though, when I was like 10, so we only saw them when they came to visit every summer for a couple months (they had an RV). My cousins and I were at my maternal grandparents’ house all the time. That was the family hangout spot. Did you ever play with 'Little People’ toys? Yes. How about Polly Pockets? Yes. Did you collect anything when you were a kid? Barbie dolls and clothes/accessories, Pokemon cards, stuffed animals, and rocks. My paternal grandparents did a lot of traveling and it became a thing between my Nana and I where she brought me back a rock from various places they went to. It started when she and I would go on walks together and I’d pick up pretty or cool looking rock. She’d write the place and date on it, so it’s pretty neat to look back on. Did you get an allowance? Yes. What was your favorite sport to play? What is it now? I never enjoyed sports. What foods did you not like then that you do like now? Spinach is one that comes to mind. I think it’s creamed spinach that I wasn’t a fan of (I don’t know if I’d like it now, haven’t tried it since then). I love regular spinach now with my scrambled eggs and sandwiches. Were you into American Girl dolls? Nah. I loved played Barbies, but dolls like that weren’t my thing. What was your first pet and what did you name it? We had a dog named Buster when I was like 3 years old, so I don’t remember him much. However, we got a dog when I was 5 and I named him, Scruffy. He was with us until I was 18 years old. Did you ever read the 'Junie B. Jones’ books? Yesss, I loved those. What did you want to be when you were a kid? A teacher. I loved playing school. What was your first word? Your first sentence? (If you remember) I’m not sure. Have you moved into a new house since you were a kid? We moved a few times when I was really little, but the house we moved into when I was about 5 we lived in until my early 20s. Were you friends with your neighbors? Yeah, I was really close to these 3 girls that lived next door. Did you enjoy exploring your backyard? I played out in the front yard more. Did you bake cookies with your grandparents? Yeah. What was your biggest fear when you were a kid? Bugs! That’s definitely still one of them. Who did you look up to most? My mom and grandma. Did you ever play the 'Reader Rabbit’ computer games? Yes. Did you have a swing set in your backyard? I did. How about a sandbox? No. How old were you when you learned how to ride a bike? I didn’t ride a bike. Did you ever spy on your neighbors through the window? No... Were you a teacher’s pet in kindergarten? Haha yeah. I kinda always was. Teachers loved me. Did you ever build a treehouse or a fort in your yard? No. My cousins and I built blanket forts in the house, though. Did you ever find anything interesting in your yard? *shrug* Possibly. Did you ever have 'themed birthdays’? Yes. Did your parents let you drink soda? Yes. Did you ever watch 'The Powerpuff Girls’ or 'Dexter’s Laboratory’? Yep yep. Did you sleep with a blanket or stuffed animal? Well, yeah, I slept with a blanket lol. I had stuffed animals on my bed with me as well. Did you ever have a night light? Yeah. My TV was also like my nightlight. I still have to sleep with my TV on. I need to have some light and sound. Did you watch 'Winnie the Pooh’? Yesss, the movies and the animated series on the Disney Channel. I loved Winnie the Pooh. Still do. Not too long ago I watched a few episodes on Disney+. Did you ever have an imaginary friend? What was their name? No. The only thing I did was make up other people that were there whenever my cousins and I played school or house. We’d make up other friends and give them names, as well as describe what they looked like and what they were wearing. What kinds of games did you play with your friends during Recess? I remember 4-square and tag. I couldn’t go on the playground, so I don’t really remember what else we did to be honest. I guess just hung out or I watched them play on the playground. Did you dream of being a princess or did you not really care about that? Nah, that wasn’t really my thing. Did you have a special name for your pacifier? What was it? Not that I can recall. Did you watch 'Blues Clues’? Yeppp. What kind of car did your parents have? I can picture a few of them, but I don’t recall what kind they were, exactly. Did you ever flush anything down the toilet by mistake? I don’t think so. Were you afraid to sleep by yourself? I had to sleep with the door closed, I remember that. I still do that. I think I was okay by myself cause I had a TV. What was your favorite subject in elementary school? English. Or Language Arts as it was called. How often did you go to the park? Not that often. We had some family get togethers/BBQs at parks when I was younger. I could also go on the playground then cause I had someone to help me. What was your favorite kind of cake as a kid? White cake with buttercream frosting. Yum. Did you ever want to grow up? Nooo. I wasn’t the kid who couldn’t wait to grow up, I very much enjoyed being a kid. Waaaah, take me back. D:

#personal #text #survey #surveys #this made me sad I miss these days

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midnight-watch-committee · 4 years

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Story 5: the devil and Ms. Vallen

Big Horn Memorial County Hospital, February, 2:03 pm 16th, 2019.

You get kind of used to hospital beds after a while, they’re comfy honestly. Well, comfy is subjective so just take my word that it isn’t horrible. They bring you three meals a day, which was already more than I’m used to when compared to my two, one during school lunch and one in the early morning, a light snack as I leave the house to hold me over. People think that’s weird; one nurse was actually surprised when I told her that and asked why my parents were “so irresponsible.” I never had the heart to tell her, nor anyone else who worked here. They were god sends compared to the people I deal with all the time. I’m a black sheep at school at this point, my fascination with horror and the rush it gives me has always made people question my sanity, their questions often echoed in my mind when I was alone. Maybe it was the never being alone here that really helped me more than anything. Beth, Chuck, my roommates who rotated more than a wheel, the nurses and doctors who came in to check on me. It was nice. It was Chuck’s turn with me now, but Beth was never willing to leave the room when he was here. He had cuffed me to the bed, as was normal for someone to do to a suspect in a hospital, even though I wasn’t. “Can never be too safe” he says every time he slapped them on me. It was bizarre but strangely normal for me at this point. Beth would always complain about it, at one point even calling the FBI office in Big Horn and insisting he be charged with police brutality after he accidentally cuffed me too tight one time. I laughed way louder than I should’ve when I heard “police brutality” come out of her mouth. Chuck threw some pictures down for me to look at. They still only had Earth Eater evidence, “We’re working on getting more” he’d say if I ever mentioned that they were all from the same day. I was surprised I took so many pictures of the scenes, and how few of them actually mattered. Thank god I had the only picture that mattered back at my place, the one that could tie Beth and eventually all of us back to this. Browsing photos was oddly the best part of my day, besides spending time with Beth when I could. “There really isn’t anything more here than there was last time.” I said, trying to be as gentle yet direct as possible. Chuck let out a sigh “I’m aware of that, Ms. Vallen.” Ms. Vallen... that made me sound like a professional or something. I never bothered to correct him on it, it felt nice to finally have someone actually look at me as a superior. I figured I would try and lighten the mood a little. “So, I think I’m getting discharged today! Maybe I can finally get to see that office you talk so much about hating?” He laughed, his laugh was low and soft and sent a feeling of joy gently rippling through my body. “Maybe you will,” he said, “and maybe you’ll finally get to spend a night in your own bed, whenever she” he gestured towards Beth “feels like leaving you alone long enough to.” I giggled, Beth on the other hand wasn’t such a fan of it. I just think she didn’t like him, but eventually she caved and laughed a little too. He left the pictures, handed me his card like he had a hundred times, shook my hand and left, wishing me and Beth well. Beth sat down next to me and took my hand in hers, sighing. “Juni, do you think he’s on to us?” I... had honestly never thought of that before. I still really don’t, no point in it now a days. I shook my head reassuringly, but I had no real clue, like I said before. She smiled softly, calming down a little bit more, her body going from tensed up to practically melting in the chair. Can’t blame her, it was hot in here. The only time I really got chills in this room is if she asked questions like that. I asked for her to hand me my phone and started checking for things nearby for when I got out. As nice as this place was, I was still the same girl who broke into an abandoned house and found the girl sitting next to me doing the same.

Big Horn Memorial County Hospital, February, 11:55 pm 16th, 2019.

When they said “later today,” apparently hospitals mean more of the later and less of the today part of that statement. The once nice staff were somehow taking their sweet time and tripping over themselves rushing to get me out of there at the same time. I gave Beth a call to let her know I was out and got an annoyed groan and a “give me five minutes.” Lazy as she is, she really did mean five minutes, even though going the speed limit and staying on the road the fastest her and Mickey, my other personal Uber, could’ve gotten here was fifteen minutes. I wasn’t complaining, it was too late for me to do so anyways. I hopped in and hoped there weren’t any approaching sirens. My plans to get ice cream were still on, even if we had to go somewhere a little out of the way. We must’ve looked like drunk college kids, the three of us rolling up to an ice cream place late at night, the only real clothes I had being Micky’s jacket and my hospital gown. While the others browsed the flavors, I snuck off to the bathroom to put on real clothes. The stalls were small, but they were stalls nonetheless so I went in one and locked the door, making sure it was locked a few times before undressing. A scream echoed through the bathroom, sounding like it had come from the stall next to me. I quickly peaked under, half dressed, to see what was going on. I was completely alone in here, my search told me as such. My skin started to crawl, not because I was afraid but quite literally it felt like my skin was... crawling. Imagine the feeling of worms in your arms, that’s what I was feeling. I quickly reached into my bag trying to find my clothes but magically only being able to find the book. “Nope, nope nope nope NOPE! Not this time! Leave me out of your magic fairy war or whatever the hell it is! My life was normal before I found you!” I screamed at it. I didn’t really mean most of those nopes, but the book didn’t care. It threw itself at my face, as if shushing me and flung open to a page. Reading it, I suddenly noticed I haven’t had my camera for a while. I dug through my bag. Nope. I threw on my clothes and read the page over again aloud. “Mr. Yuki, an artifact hunter who was formerly a warlock who became so corrupted by his own dark magic that in 1982 he turned into the beast Native tribes called a wendigo. Yuki doesn’t survive off of just human flesh, in fact Yuki doesn’t truly need anything to survive as some hunters have noticed. It uses its dark powers and high intelligence to isolate Artifact Bearers and drain their artifacts. Yuki has also been known to steal artifacts from their Bearers for other monsters with dark intentions.” I bolted out of the bathroom, panting. Despite the bathroom being so small it felt like I had been running miles. I grabbed my camera from off Mickey’s neck and put it around mine. He looked at me confused, “Juniper, are you ok?” I nodded before realizing I kinda forgot pants. I made my way back to the bathroom, the feeling slowly subsiding. I sighed and wiggled back into my pants, rolling my eyes at how stupid I was being. I came back out, with pants this time, and came up to the counter, hoping everyone would drop it. Judging from their face though, I wouldn’t be off the hook that easy. At least they still let me get ice cream. I got a double scoop of strawberry and threw whatever money I had in my pockets down on the counter. “Isn’t that a little much for ice cream?” Beth asked, literally counting what I threw down and checking the prices on the board behind the counter, giving him the proper amount of the fifty dollars in varying coins and bills that I had thrown down. I hugged her, shaking. “Why is this my life?” I asked in her shoulder, barely standing from how weak I was feeling. She hugged me tight, not really knowing what to say but still trying anyway. “Juni, you aren’t doing this alone, I know this is hard but we’re doing this together.” She held me out so I could look in her eyes. “I love you.” She said softly, reaching for the camera and slowly lifting it up from around my neck. I grabbed it, whispering “How do I know I can trust you with this?” She sighed and kissed my cheek, and I let go, seeing Mickey's reaction out of the corner of my eye. “Mickey, I don’t want to hear it. Whatever you think of us you-” He held up a hand and cut her off “I’m not mad, I just wish you told me sooner is all. I’m happy for you guys.” That made me feel good. Beth passed it off to Mickey, “I’m not gonna do that but you just got to trust me” he joked, getting a sad yet genuine laugh from me. The cashier handed me my ice cream and we took it with us to go.

The Vallen residence 7:15 am, February 17th,2019.

The sound of the alarm clock beside me filled the room like the cacophony of annoyance it is. I slammed on the broken snooze button a couple hundred times before finally just giving up and letting it beep its heart out. I tiredly rolled out of bed, hitting the floor with a loud thud, a thud loud enough to wake Beth, who was asleep downstairs out of concern for me. The only thing louder than my sudden escape from sleep that morning was the girl who loved me, storming up there before I could even get used to being on the ground for a second. She kneeled down beside me, and asked me the normal stuff you’d expect for someone who just fell out of bed, but with a lot more concern. You could hear her voice shake as she asked me, afraid that I was truly hurt again. I wasn’t but the sentiment was nice, it was new to have someone check up on me, so it definitely caught me off guard. I slowly picked myself up and walked out, the carrot top, who hates when I call her that but in the funny kind of way, stalking closely behind. Her gaze was always on me that morning, whether it was love or fear, it was kind of odd. What was even weirder was I could’ve sworn someone...pushed me out of bed, but I was alone in the room so how was that even possible?

Unnamed forest near the Vallen residence, 10:20 am, February 17th,2019.

There’s only so much of the same four walls you can see before it becomes annoying, and since our ride was probably going to be asleep for a while, I grab my camera and asked Beth if she wanted to go down the nature trail I always go down when things get too much. She agreed and we were off. My normal trail was easy to find, always is when you’ve done it a hundred times. There’re three trails, one for hikers, one for park staff to get back to the watch station, and one no one knows about. For those of you who know me and Beth, it should be no surprise that the old, abandoned trail that no one knows about is the one we took. There, you could see it all, everything nature had to offer. Deer, birds, hell even a bear’s den if you got the balls for it. On the trail was this abandoned mine shaft, covered by boards with stuff like “DO NOT ENTER” horribly spray painted on. Any other day this would’ve flown well with me, but for some reason I wanted nothing more than to go in there. I tried tugging against the boards but they wouldn’t move. “When did you plan on telling me it opened?” Beth asked. “What are you talking about?” I asked, the gentle, cold tap of the “Children’s survival guide” against my arm answering my question. “I came out here because we need to talk about yesterday. And the 14th. And about you.” I turned away, refusing to look at her. “Juni, I understand your need to do this stuff, I really do, but... you need to learn to relax. Let me hold onto... the ‘Artifact’ for a week, trust me, nothing will happen.” I didn’t want to, but the pain in her voice didn’t make me feel like I had much of a choice. She seemed scared, like at any point I could become the most dangerous thing in the world, and I was tired of being on edge all the time. She adjusted the strap to fit her a little better and smiled as she put the camera around her neck. I finally felt like a normal person, for once in a long time.

The Vallen residence 11:25 am, February 17th, 2019.

“God, she makes this look so easy.” was what had crossed my mind as soon as I took the camera from Juniper. The rush that had filled me then and had still filled me now was... otherworldly. Whether good or bad was beyond me, all I knew was I left the realm of normal long ago, this was just another step further in. I sighed as I sank down into the couch, stress from the constant reminders of what I’d joined had followed me everywhere, but I never expected a monster to actively get that close to us. I looked briefly at the scar on my arm from the last time one got that close, “yep, still there” I mumbled to myself as Juniper went upstairs, finally feeling like she could sleep again. I was happy to see her go, not because I didn’t love her but because she clearly needed a me day, she never bothered to take one since this all began. “Do you really think she’s gonna be ok? After all she’s been through?” I knew who it was, I didn’t even have to check. “I’m not doing this; you’ve done enough already anyways” I muttered angerly to the voice. “Really? You keep bringing hell to her doorstep and then have the nerve to get mad at me?!” It said, pissed at her for letting her do what she does and me for letting her, which is fair. I ignored it, turning on some music to try and drown it out. It wasn’t much use but I had to do something. The phone rang, and just like that it was gone, replaced with the voice of Mickey when I picked up. Except...It wasn’t him, it sounded like someone trying to be him. The pain in my arm telling me whatever it was, it’s other worldly. “Have you seen Juniper?” He said to me, I tried to ignore it but it’s an overwhelming amount of “this is bad” screeching, searing pain. “Who are you? Why are you fucking pretending to be my friend?” I was pissed, but not as pissed as the beast on the other end which had started growling. “I don’t know if you’re smart or an idiot for calling me out, either way I don’t have time for this...” A ringing sound filled my ears as I slowly saw myself turn into a monster, grey skin and sharp teeth, thinned black hair and pale eyes...I didn’t really know what to do, Juniper came down, yawning. Yawn turned to scream when she saw me, and I did the only thing my body would let me do, tear her throat out, a flash and suddenly everyone I loved was there...dead in front of me. “STOP IT” I tried to scream, but the words were drowned by the ringing noise. Suddenly I was normal again, and everything was gone. Everything except the monster on the other end. “Bring me the artifact, or else.” I didn’t even know where to start with my questions; Where’s Mickey, who even was this, WHAT was this, but I didn’t have the chance to ask as I was cut off by the sound of him hanging up. The once protective weapon around my neck had started to burn just from holding it, but something was...drawing me back to the woods. I didn’t know if Juni would’ve been angrier if I lost the camera or Mickey, and at this point I didn’t care, I had a friend to go save.

Unnamed forest near the Vallen residence 1:00 pm, February 17th,2019.

I sprinted down the path as fast as my legs would possibly take me. I knew I was running into something I wasn’t ready for, something this powerful and malicious was certainly willing to kill and I had no way of knowing what I was going into but I didn’t have a choice, after all I’ve done I had to at least save Mickey, that’s all I could really tell myself as I got closer and closer to the mine, each step bringing me further from reality and into this monster’s new reality, where I would be alone and powerless to defend myself. The burning pain of the camera got less and less, step by step I could feel it crawling into my brain, a single thought: “I lived a good life, right?” The boards came off with loud snaps, each board louder and easier than the last, like each one had been there longer than the last. With a final snap, the boards had been cleared, and a sudden rush of what I could only guess was the smell of rotting corpses flooded the air, forcing me to nearly hack up a lung just from the smell alone. The sight inside was even worse than the smell, from the outside, dust that filled the door way made it impossible to know what it was for sure but once inside a pile of corpses was clear in the middle of the room. On the walls you could see names written in blood, like whoever or whatever had been here was showing of its kills. In the pile I could distinguish a few police officers, telling me that what I was walking into was bound to be awful. I grabbed a gun from one of the corpses, a revolver with a few shots loaded into it, and slowly made my way through a small opening in the right most wall. Despite how natural this place is, the shaping and damage and hell even furniture made it all feel...like someone’s home, a table and oil lamp that hasn’t worked for a while had been the only things to really look at. The hole was tight, barely enough room for me, and long enough to make it trigger claustrophobia in even the bravest of people. It felt like I had been going for hours before I finally saw anything, but soon a light in a hole on the other end signaled hope for me...or death. At this point, either was better than the hole. As I got closer towards the light, the hole opened more until there was enough room for me to stand. Once on my feet, I saw what the light was: an oil lamp hanging on a doorway, this one as old as the last but somehow working. The door was a dark oak, the handle a bright steel yet covered in rust. Opening the door an office that had a familiar feeling but I couldn’t quite pick it out. The familiarity, however weird, was comforting enough for me to go in, the door slamming shut behind me. Trying to turn the knob was pointless, but I tried anyway. As if on cue, a man came in, a suit and tie. He set his hat down on his desk and sat by the fire place, puffing a cigar. “oh...now I remember.” I thought to myself, seeing the markings on his arm, an old symbol from a cult that disappeared long ago. A young girl ran in, jumping into her dad’s lap. He stroked her hair gently, telling her about their plans for today. I checked the date on the paper next to him. April 16th, 1922. The day Ania Barnes went missing and her family turned up dead at a cult sacrifice. Conveniently, Mr. Barnes leaves out the whole “join the rest of the cult to go sacrifice someone” bit of his plans for the day. As nice as all this was, I had somewhere to be. I flung open the door the girl came in through and kept walking until I made it back to the mine. Looking back to make sure I didn’t miss anything, I saw a gap in the wall that lead back to the entrance, big enough for a semitruck to slide right through. “Damn, how did I miss that?” I muttered to myself, realizing how insane I sounded but not caring. A deep, growly voice called my name from the darkness. “Give it to me!” The creature screamed, lunging forward enough for me to see it. Dark fur covered most of its body, exposed bone being the only real injury I could find, and a dear skull for a head. “I need to know he’s alive, first.” I said, my voice shaking. “You’re in no place to negotiate here, Beth” It said, a mocking tone in its voice as it said my name. I knew it was right, it knew it was right, I’m sure Hellen Keller knew it was right, and yet it still did it anyways. It reached into the darkness and threw down my friend, clawed, beaten and bruised but alive. He sat up slowly, groaning. Slowly pulling him away from this thing, I set the camera down for it to do whatever it wanted with. The creature took it and chuckled, “this will be nice.” I didn’t care for it too much; I dragged my now unconscious friend back to the house to lick our wounds and get ready to die another day.

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