#started walking through a forest using the phone as a flashlight

[ellethespaceunicorn]

The Howling in Claw Creek Forest, Chapter Two

Chapter Two: The Cabin in the Woods

Rating: Mature, 18+, Minors - DNI

Pairing: Werewolf!Walter Marshall x Reader

Word Count: 3K

Series Summary: You live in a small town called Claw Creek, surrounded by a deep, dark forest. Since you were a kid, an urban legend of the creature in the woods has been told. If the distant howls at night and mutilated livestock are anything to go by, you fear the stories to be true.

Chapter Summary: You search the woods for the house you were taken to that night. It’s been hours and you’re lost. Your phone has no service, it is getting dark, and your dumbass didn’t tell anyone you were going on an adventure.

Warnings: mutual pining

A/N: A special thank you to @peyton-warren for being my lovely beta and soundboard for this. I really hope y’all enjoy this one. It was a tough one to write, Walter was so feisty!

Dividers by me

Support/Reblog banner by me

Cover Art by me

Series Masterlist

My Masterlist

When you arrived at the hospital, you had another nurse and colleague check out your head injury on your next shift. Armed with a clean bill of health and a brain bursting with unanswered questions, you try to go about your day. 

The entirety of your workday was spent having coworkers break you out of a trance. Every few minutes, you’d gaze off into nothingness until those around you noticed and snapped their fingers in front of your face. You kept thinking about the wolf and Walter, trying to piece the two together. 

After work, you change your clothes and put on your hiking boots. Even though the drive from the cabin to Liv’s house was short, that was in a vehicle. On foot, you will need to cover a lot of ground. You decided against driving your car down the road that splits the forest. 

If you parked at the entrance to the forest near the park grounds, you could easily sneak back to your car and bypass the curfew checkpoint at the tree line. Not that you planned on being out until nightfall. 

Parking your car in the gravel-filled lot, you tighten your scarf around your neck and start your journey into the woods. Walking takes you about ten minutes to get to the clearing where you and Olivia enjoyed wine coolers. It didn’t seem like it took you this long to get to the clearing a couple of days ago, but you don’t stay long enough to dwell on it.

Retracing your steps, you walk for another few minutes in search of the tree with the giant roots jutting out from the forest floor. After ten minutes of wandering, you think about giving up because daylight is in short supply. Looking down at your phone, you curse when you see the battery percentage looking back at you. Eleven percent wouldn’t get you far should you need to make an urgent call or use the flashlight since you forgot to bring one.

After another few minutes of traipsing through the forest, you trip over a large root and accidentally find your tree. Following the roots, you find the little alcove that you had planned to hide in during your game with Liv. You notice the setting sun as you turn to sit on the higher roots. 

Taking out your phone, you realize that it had shut off due to low power. Shoving it back in your pocket, you stand up and wipe a hand down your face. You’re pissed off, cold, and now have no way to contact anyone should you need to. Anger boils your blood as you stand in the now-dark forest.

Pacing for a few seconds doesn’t calm you down. You start to hear all the little nocturnal animals coming alive and usually, you would find this peaceful. However, you would give anything to hear a certain howl. But it’s just crickets, frogs, and owls out tonight.

You don’t know what else to do but…

“Fuck. Fuck! Fuuuuuuuuuck!” You scream out into the void, it would seem.

Until you hear a response in the form of a huff behind you. 

When you turn around, you're only a little surprised to see the same wolf from before walking toward you. You stand still until it stops about a foot from you. You look down and study its paws, large enough to rip your throat out. But the wolf just sits down as a dog would and looks up at you before yawning, showing off its sharp teeth and long dusty-mauve tongue. 

If this were a dog, you would have reached out a hand to pet it. But the sheer size of it was enough to keep your hands to yourself. You didn't have to think about that for long before the wolf was back on all fours walking around you and nudging at your leg as it started to walk away. It doesn't make it far before it turns around to look at you.

"Oh, am I supposed to follow you or something?" You feel silly asking the wolf a question, but only less so when it huffs in response, "Okay. Following a wolf wasn't on the itinerary. But it isn't attacking me so whatever," You finish, mostly to yourself.

Following the wolf, you notice you are going in a completely different direction through the forest. Of course, the last time you were here was an inebriated adventure but you could've sworn you would go right instead of left. Either way, you're putting your faith in a four-legged carnivore so you stop thinking about what should or shouldn't be happening.

A light in the distance can be seen through the trees and once you reach it, you find yourself in front of a medium-sized cabin. There is a light at the little fence encircling the property. The black Ford F-150 that Walter drove is parked to the side in the driveway. You have to admit you didn't expect to see this place look so...normal. It almost looks quaint.

You shuffle on your feet and are suddenly too nervous to propel you forward. Whining at your side reminds you that you aren't alone. You absentmindedly reach your hand out to stroke the wolf's fur. Thick, coarse fur slides through your fingers. Glowing, yellow eyes look into yours and your fear starts to dissipate. The wolf licks at your hand and then takes off around the back of the cabin.

You think about shouting after it or running after it, but instead, you walk up to the fencing. You could swear you hear a door being closed in the back of the cabin, but you can't be sure and you don't want to snoop. Opening the latch to the gate, you walk through the front yard dragging your feet. Your fight or flight response makes an appearance when you hear movement in the house. 

'It's now or never,' you think, raising your hand to knock on the door. 

Three sharp knocks and you shove your hands in your pockets, waiting for the door to be opened. You jump at the sound of something crashing to the ground and soon the light above the door is turned on. You hold up a hand over your eyes as the harsh fluorescent beams down on you in the dark of night. The door is opened and you take your hand down to see Walter standing there. You’re once again under the spell of him.

He stands tall at about 6’1", and his hair is a disheveled mess but it only adds to the sex appeal. His brows are scrunched together and it doesn’t look like he needs you at his doorstep right now by the scowl across his pretty pink lips. He’s shirtless, sweaty, breathing hard, and smells like a wet dog. The denim shorts he wears are tattered at the ends and his defined calves are on display. His bare feet are a bit dirty as if he’s been running barefoot.

Your eyes shoot back up to his, a faint glow makes his blue eyes look almost golden. He blinks a few times and the glow is gone, aquamarine replaces gold. 

You run through a mental checklist. Wet dog smell, check. Frayed shorts that were probably thrown on in a hurry, check. Golden eyes, check. You feel so stupid thinking about the last item. Walter’s hair color is the same as the wolf that brought you here. 

“Are you going to come in or are you going to just stare at me like I’m a–”

“Werewolf?” You blurt out, cutting off Walter’s sentence.

“Just come in, and I can explain everything,” He opens the door and steps aside to let you in, but you don’t move, “I won’t hurt you, I promise. Please come in?” 

His sincere tone and pleading eyes get the better of you. You sigh, chewing the inside of your cheek. Walking in, you step just inside the living room, giving Walter enough space to close the door behind you. You notice a side table knocked over, a lamp, and small knickknacks on the floor next to it. You turn back to look at him and his face is that of a kicked puppy.

Of course, it is.

“Look, I didn’t–”

“As much as I want to have this conversation right now, I can’t get over how much you smell. I’m gonna need you to take care of that ASAP. Go get clean and I’ll tidy up. And where is the kitchen? I need coffee if I’m gonna have this conversation sober.” You say, taking off your coat and laying on the back of the couch.

Walter walks you to the kitchen and watches as you busy yourself with the coffee maker. You tell him politely to get out of his kitchen and go shower. He opens his mouth to talk but closes it when he sees your eyebrows raise and your hand go to your hip. He simply nods and walks away. You hear him walk up the stairs and soon the faint sound of a shower being turned on before a door is closed.

You fill the coffee maker with grounds and water, setting it then make your way to the living room. Picking up the end table, you turn it right side up and set it on its legs. You bend down to pick up the figurines from the floor. You’re not surprised when they turn out to be two wolves, the larger one made of light wood and the smaller wolf a dark mahogany.

You hear the coffee maker sputtering and go in to check on it. Pulling out two mugs from their spot in the corner cabinet, you fill one and leave one for Walter, not sure if he even wants coffee so late at night. Did werewolves even drink coffee?

So, that’s it. You’re just entertaining the idea that werewolves not only exist but that you’re in a cabin with one. In the back of your mind, your grandfather’s tale of the Claw Creek creature demands attention. You were going over it when you heard footsteps coming down the stairs.

You bring your mug to your mouth to take a sip when Walter appears in the doorway, just as beautiful as when you saw him for the first time. His wet hair curls around his ears. He’s wearing a tighter-than-necessary heather gray henley, the front of it holding onto his pecs for dear life while the sleeves are pulled up to show off muscular forearms. A pair of jeans hug his meaty legs and boots cover his feet.

“You stare a lot.” His words break you out of your ogling and you finally pull down the mug from your lips.

“Don’t flatter yourself, Wolfie,” you comment, suddenly hyperaware that you may have just said something rude.

Walter’s chuckle surprises you, and you’re put at ease, “Wolfie?” He challenges, walking toward you.

You shrug your shoulders and stand your ground, looking up at him as he stops in front of you. He nods to the coffee maker and you step back to let him make a cup for himself. He takes a sip and hums at the flavor. He turns to ask you about it and you answer before he can open his mouth.

“Cinnamon. Just a few shakes and it takes away the sharp bitterness. Now, if you’re done talking about coffee, can we talk about how you can turn into a wolf?” Your frustration peeks through and Walter nods, leading you back into the living room.

Once you get to the couch, you set down your coffee on the table in front of you and turn to face Walter. He takes the cue and starts to speak.

“So, what do you want to know? Do you want me to go through my entire lifetime? It’s quite long, so far. Or start where I was attacked and bitten by someone I thought was a friend? Should I dispel werewolf myths about uncontrollable shifting during the full moon?” He rambles on, probably trying to confuse you or overwhelm you. 

Luckily, you’re already overwhelmed so his attempt is in vain.

“I have a couple of questions. The first one is: Do you eat people? The second one is: Could you follow my scent to find me?” you offer, pulling your leg up to sit on it while leaning against the back of the couch.

“I don’t eat people. I don’t think Werewolves as a whole, ever eat people. Attack? Sure. But no, I don’t crave human flesh,” he pauses, looking down at his hands, “How’d you know about the scent thing?” He’s suddenly super interested in his fingernails.

“I didn’t know about the scent thing. You just confirmed a hunch, is all,” You reach for your mug, bringing it closer to your lips before taking a sip, “One more question and I’ll release you from the hot seat. Are you safe out here? Like, I mean, with the animal mutilations in the town, they were talking about sending hunters out to look for whatever was doing it.”

“That wasn’t me, just so you know. I’m safe out here. I actually live in town, I just come here to shift and get some time away. No one comes out this way. This used to be an abandoned shack, but I fixed it up over the past years. Got electricity going and made it...wait. You care if I’m safe out here?” he presses, a toothy grin showing off his sharp canines.

“You saved my life, I can’t care about your wellbeing? I’m being nice, don’t push it, Wolfie,” you snap, a little harsher than you meant to. You did feel lied to, but he was being honest with you. You shake your head before insisting, “I’m sorry, I just...this is a lot. And I need you to know that I was really pissed off with you in the beginning, but I know why you didn’t tell me. Safety and all that. Maybe you can drive me back to my car so I can start the drive back home?” You were cut off by an intense yawn that came out of nowhere.

“Speaking of safety, you look like you’re ready to fall over. You’ve had all of about two sips of coffee and that yawn almost unhinged your jaw a bit there. Just, I won’t be able to sleep if I know you’re tired behind the wheel,” he admits, turning concerned eyes on you.

“You know, as a wolf, using puppy dog eyes on me should be considered unfair. And how do I know this is not some elaborate excuse to get me into your bed so you can have your way with me, huh?” you huff, squinting at him as his eyes glimmer in the low light of the room.

“Do you want me to have my way with you?” he leans back, head over his shoulder, and crosses his arms over his broad chest.

Your hand flies out to slap his bicep. You figure that was easier than giving him the answer that was on the tip of your tongue.

He rolls his eyes and gets up from the couch, pointing to your coffee cup in your hand and motioning for you to give it to him. He takes both of your unfinished cups to the kitchen and when he comes back, he heads for the stairs. “You coming, pup?”

“Pup? Is that because I called you Wolfie?” You stand up from the couch, tilting your head at him before walking to follow him up the steps.

“I don’t know, give me time and I’ll think of something better.” He winks at you and smiles when you duck your head.

Once Walter shows you to his bedroom, you don’t hide your urge to look over everything in the room while he leans against the open door. You almost get upset when you see that his bedspread isn’t a large picture of a wolf’s face. Somehow you thought it would just fit in with his vibe. But the midnight blue damask comforter that covers the bed is actually way more fitting.

“Wait, where are you gonna sleep if I sleep in here?” You question as you sit on the bed and take off your boots.

“I figured I would sleep on the couch. I don’t need much sleep anyway. Unless that was an invitation…?” he smirks and is surprised when you look to be thinking it over.

“Can you stay in here ‘til I fall asleep? I don’t want to be alone.” you confess, looking everywhere but who you were talking to. You can’t believe the words coming out of your mouth, but you also know you won’t sleep in a bed that’s not yours all by your lonesome.

“Are you alright? I mean, of course, you’re not. What am I saying?” he rambles, coming into the room fully and hunching his shoulders so he can seem less intimidating.

Walter walks over to the bed, pulls back the bedspread, and motions for you to crawl under the covers. Once you are comfortable, he turns on a low light on his dresser and turns off the overhead light of the room. Coming back to the bed, he sits at the edge and toes off his boots before you pull him to lie down next to you.

Turning to face him as he lays on his back, you stare at his face as he looks up at the ceiling. You’re interlacing your fingers so that you don’t reach out and trace his jawline when a thought pops into your head.

“When’s the last time you had a woman in your bed?” You breathe, mentally kicking yourself for not thinking longer before you voice your thoughts.

“It’s been a while. Years. I don’t really...mingle much.” He murmurs, eyes never moving from one particular spot.

You refuse to acknowledge the “lone wolf” analogy, instead, you steady yourself before putting a hand on his. “Thank you for saving me, Walter. Goodnight.” Taking your hand back, you close your eyes and let tiredness take its course.

“You’re welcome.” His soft voice is barely above a whisper, but it’s the last thing you hear before you’re fully asleep.

To be continued…

A/N:  Wow, you mean to tell me I got these two folks in bed together and they’re both dressed still? What?! Don’t hate me!

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[dragonsdomain]

Monster in the Woods

"The more people tell Danny he is a monster the more monsterous he becomes. Things that seem innocuous turn into physical manifestations as he starts to believe what people say about him."

A Phic Phight prompt by @burning-clutch

...

Jazz walked through the forest, decaying leaves crunching under her feet. Her phone rang hollowly. "You've reached... please leave a message." Jazz dialed Danny's number again, the action mechanical at this point.

She almost didn't notice when someone started calling her. "Hello? Oh, Mom? No... Yeah, I'll call you. I will, I promise."

Then the call was over. There were bugs or other creatures making sounds in the forest. She still wasn't sure if she should be grateful for how they disguised her footsteps or if she should be cursing their noise, calling out for her brother. He could be lost, repentant from his earlier rashness, more than ready to go home. With his phone out of power, and that's why he wasn't answering her calls. Or... he could still be hiding from her. And that uncertainty was what was keeping Jazz from calling out into the forest.

A Fenton Thermos was at her belt. It had already been there since before Danny had run off, but it haunted Jazz with how its purpose might have changed. Would it be wrong to use it on Danny if she had to, if he tried to run away? Was it more important that she give him the freedom to choose what he wanted, or to get him home safe? She wanted to get him home, to dismiss everything as him being not in his right mind, but that wasn't fair, she should have been better at this point at valuing his feelings.

But if the conclusion was that she shouldn't use the thermos, should she even be looking for Danny at all?

Jazz drew to a stop, then wondered if that'd been a mistake. Starting to walk again would be difficult. Her body was calling her to drop to the ground and curl up in the dirt. Maybe she'd wake up and it'd all be a bad dream.

A childish thought. She kept walking.

As it got darker, Jazz had to turn on the flashlight of her phone, sacrificing any attempt at stealth. She started calling out Danny's name. The trees, taller here and thicker, felt like they were eating up her voice, preventing it from travelling more than a few feet.

Her phone was running out of battery. She'd need to go home now or risk becoming lost in the woods herself.

She turned on the navigator app on her phone to guide her back to town, wondering if it counted as giving up if you hardly felt like you had a choice, or if it even mattered if you kept going.

The leaves kept crunching on her feet. Her flashlight made a column of reality in the deepening darkness.

A sound. Something about it caught her attention, and Jazz looked out to the left towards it, not sure exactly what it was she'd heard, hoping to hear it again. There it was, a shifting in leaves, a whistling breath with some hollow quality.

On a hunch, Jazz clicked off her flashlight. She waited a minute for her eyes to adjust, then peered into that darkness again and saw a slight glow. Strange, why was it so dim? It would be sharper if it was just a matter of distance.

Jazz crept carefully towards the hollow glow, holding her hands out in front of her in the dark. The leaf rot didn't help her stealth; Danny, if that's who she was drawing close to, would know she was there. That was probably a good thing. She didn't hear the sound retreating.

More and more of something grew visible as she passed each tree, vague shapes in the shadows. An arm? A wing? She rounded the last one and saw him, limbs stretched tall and long and donned with sharp claws and chimeric feathers and scales. She couldn't tell if Danny's face was unchanged atop his neck; he was curled up as low as he could get. His aura was dim, possibly on purpose, possibly because he was feeling unwell.

Jazz walked up to him, letting the leaves shuffle underfoot, and put a hand on his back. "Danny. Hey. I'm here."

A sorrowful, crooning noise came from him and he tried to curl farther in on himself.

Jazz leaned into him and started stroking a hand down his back. "It'll be okay. You'll be okay."

Danny let out a shaky breath, his muscles loosening a little under Jazz's arms. He started drooping. It was getting late, and she knew he hadn't been getting good sleep lately; after such a rough day, he was probably tired.

Jazz stayed hugging him. It was slow at first, such that she hardly noticed it, but Danny's body started to shrink down to something closer to its natural size. After some dozen minutes, he turned around to hug her back. Hugging her brother didn't usually feel like this, lukewarm as a corpse, slick feathers fluffed with emotion tickling her cheeks, but Jazz couldn't say it was uncomfortable. She liked how his chest was still rising and falling, how she could hear his heart beating sluggishly within it if she listened closely enough.

"Can you talk?" Jazz asked at length, not yet looking at Danny's face.

He breathed a little sigh, which Jazz was about to assume meant no, before he managed, "Gnnuh-a li'l."

Danny's neck was now within reach, and Jazz curled her arms around it to run her hands through his hair--or feathers in this case, interspersed with a few reptilian ridges. "I know you had a hard day. Do you want to talk about any of it?"

Danny gave a pained whine, then winced at how loud it was. "N-no."

"Okay."

The sounds of the forest were friendlier now, keeping the silence from becoming pervasive. Jazz sat quietly with her oversized brother, glad to no longer have to worry about where he was.

Jazz's phone buzzed with a phone call, and she and Danny both jumped. Jazz fumbled for the phone. "H-hi, Mom. I'm still looking.... Yeah, I'm going to stay out longer, my phone still has battery. ...Uh-huh. ...Yeah, I hope so too. ...He's probably okay, Mom, he'll be back. ...I will. You too. Love you."

Jazz hung up the phone. Danny was hanging his head like he was ashamed of something. Jazz looked at his face without thinking, and he flinched nervously even though he looked pretty normal at that point. Maybe it was the uncanny valley he was worried about. He did look a little strange at this point, but Jazz had seen worse.

"You really don't look that bad, you know. I'm not just saying that."

"Ugh..." A clawed hand buried Danny's face. "I'm making her worry... I made you all worry."

"Come on, no shaming, we've talking about this. That's not constructive." Jazz ruffled the feathers atop Danny's head. They felt thinner now, closer to hair.

"Ssorry," Danny muttered.

Jazz rolled her eyes, pulling Danny to her side for a hug again and some pats on the back. "It's okay. I know you're doing your best.

Danny was getting better. He was pretty close to normal size. Jazz glanced over him and was pleased to see much of his skin now visible, ghostly simulacrum of his hazmat suit returning in place of feathers and scales. "You feel almost ready to change back you think?"

"Yeah..." Danny's shoulders drooped. "What am I gonna tell Mom?"

"What are we gonna tell Mom, you mean." Jazz gave Danny's shoulder a squeeze. "I've got your back. You're not alone in this, okay?"

Danny took a deep breath, the last of his feathers disappearing. "Okay."

Jazz stood up, then offered Danny a hand. "Let's start walking. We can figure out a story as we go, then I'll call Mom when we're ready."

Danny took her hand and followed as Jazz started walking. "Is there maybe some normal-ish explanation for all this? I'd rather not stick with the story that I ran away. Maybe me and Sam were on a walk or something and my phone died and I lost track of her?"

"That's a good start. I could message Sam about the excuse. Is youre phone actually dead?"

"Well, yeah."

"That makes me feel better about you ignoring my calls."

"Sorry."

"Y'know, Danny?"

"Yeah?"

Jazz pulled him in for another quick hug as they walked. "I'm really glad you're coming home."

"Aww man, don't make it weirder than it has to be."

"Emotions aren't weird, little brother."

"You're weird."

"My sincerest apologies for being the weirdest member of the family. I hope you'll all still be able to love me."

"Aww man, Jazz."

[mars101]

Haunted To Meet You

☆ PAIRING/S = burglar!hyunjae x spirit!reader

☆ GENRE = angst, absolutely ZERO romance, uhm spooky (not but the setting is ig)

☆ WARNINGS = hyunjae breaks into a manor, and steals, and doesn't get caught. you're already dead, uhm reader gets played kinda?? (sorry..)

☆ WORD COUNT = 1.6k

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★ SYNOPSIS = after a successful break in at the empty manor in the forest, hyunjae not only steals precious valuables but also the heart of a lost spirit

★ RELEASE DATE = 11.01.24 (idc if its a day late from halloween.)

★ AUTHOR’S WELCOME = happy halloween season ! (NOT) who's ready to watch mars disappear for months again??? ok have fun i love yall

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Hyunjae was rich. Not in the conventional way, though, as he robbed people. Rich or poor, it didn't matter to him as long as he could make a profit. And he wasn't the only one in his friend group to hurt innocent people, too. Crypto scams, conning, fraud, cyber crimes, and even flat-out identity theft were an easy way for the friends to live the life they always wanted.

But even if you're in a group of intelligent people, you're still with a group of men. Which is why Hyunjae found himself at the abandoned manor in the woods during late October. A bet caused Hyunjae and Eric to compete on who can bring the most valuable objects out without getting spooked.

“Get ready to watch the footage of you losing later, Hyunjae~” Eric says, pointing a finger in front of the other male’s face as his other hand connects his stolen Meta Ray-Ban glasses to his phone. “Alright boys, you’re watching the winners' pov right now, it’s me, Eric! Ready to—”

“We can all hear you Eric…” A voice comes through an earpiece the two have in to hear the others and the rules for the bet. “Anyways.. you’ve got an hour and a half. No running off, no stealing what the other had already claimed, and yeah. 1,2,3 go-” At the sudden countdown, the two men quickly bolted to the manor’s entrance. Hyunjae deciding to open the front doors by giving it a few hard kicks while Eric uses a random rock to break the fragile windows.

When the door was forced open, it was like a cool gust of air engulfed Hyunjae's body as he took in the sight of the dark and grand interior. “You have a flashlight, right?” Hyunjae asks the man jumping through the window before taking out his own flashlight. Eric doesn’t reply, but instead, he pulls out a flashlight and quickly flashes the bright light in Hyunjae’s eyes. “See you around.. or not!” he grins before running off to a random corridor.

Opposite to Eric’s instincts to explore everything, Hyunjae takes his time to look around the entrance, taking notice of the many paintings that lead to the staircase in the middle of the place. But a few old paintings wasn’t going to satisfy his need to find a more valuable object. This is why he found himself following the wind blowing through the front door (and Eric’s window) heading up the grand staircase.

A creak on each step made Hyunjae more aware of his surroundings, the flashlight in his hands now being moved from side to side quickly than before. The closer he got to the second floor, the more uneased he felt. There was a chill running through his back, the hair on his arms were starting to stick up, and a faint whisper was heard in his ear. Usual factors when walking through an abandoned building but it’s different as Hyunjae has never experienced this, but also, there’s a visible silhouette among the shadows beckoning him down the never-ending hallway.

“Holy shit- Hello??” Hyunjae calls out to the figure as he blinks his eyes open and close again and again, hoping that it's just a figure of his imagination. In response to his hello, Hyunjae watches as the figure walks towards a room in the empty hall. The slightly ajar door starts to slowly creak open as the figure floats past it. “Oh my god, are you kidding me? Why does it have to be me?” he mumbles as the voices in his ear (the guys) get louder.

‘follow it!’

‘say hi’

‘this guy thinks he's the main character.. ’

The buzzing of the constant voices coming through makes Hyunjae irritated. To the point where he pulls out the earpiece in frustration and shoves the tiny electronic in his pocket. Grumbles of mumbles leave his mouth as he walks down the hallway. His eyes try not to look into the room the figure went into, but when he walks by the door opens wider, as if it's welcoming him in.

With the sight of the dark curtains draped over the grand windows and numerous white cloths covering furniture, his head is saying not to go in. But his heart is pounding against his chest at the idea of what he’ll find. Hyunjae steps closer to the doorway, his feet having a mind of their own as they lead him into the room.

Once both of his feet are planted inside of the room, he freezes. Instantly, he feels the chill run down his back again. As if a hand was trailing down his spine. His eyes dart around the room, he's too anxious to look behind him so he tries to find comfort in what's in front of him, and he does.

All of the nerves on his body leave him as soon as he takes sight of the pendants and jewels by the window. His shoulders that felt like they had the weight of a hundred men are now as light as a feather as he ignores everything else around him and makes his way torwards the windowsill.

A breathy ‘holy shit’ leaves his mouth as Hyunjae's eyes look over the gems. Some pieces are broken off from each other or cracked. But the value of them are still there. Out of all the pieces, one pendant stands out from the rest. A red oval-cut ruby that shines with the moonlight seeping through the window's curtains.

“Beautiful, isn't it?”

Hyunjae looks beside him and jumps as the ghastly figure takes form beside him. The slightly misty air slowly conjures itself into the shape of a person. The figure takes no mind to Hyunjae's reaction as their fingers ghost over the pendant's gem.

“When I was alive, it was a gift from my father.. He said it's as beautiful as the heart inside of me.” The figure whispers out into the atmosphere. With the sign of no malicious intent from the ghost, Hyunjae comes closer to the windowsill, his hands hovering over the many jewels and stopping above the ghost's ‘heart’.

“So you're dead.? Why are you still here? In this.. dark and scary manor..” Hyunjae asks, his eyes never leaving the ‘heart’.

“I'm trapped.”

“Trapped?”

Hyunjae finally takes one look at the ghost and notices the sad look that fills the apparition's eyes. “Trapped in the manor?”

“Not only that.. But my soul's in there.” The ghost softly points a finger to the pendant. Hyunjae's finger gets cold as the spirit's own finger gets closer. “All of the other pendants are broken because everyone else was able to escape. I'm the only one left..”

“Ohh..” His hands pick up the pendant, playing with it in his hand. “So, how would you be able to escape?”

“The other's dissappeared when their pendant was either cracked or broken. So maybe if!-”

“I would have to break this?” The spirit nods at Hyunjae's words. “Me? Break this beautiful, expensive jewel..?” His hand pockets the pendant before moving to grab all of the other broken gems on the windowsill.

“If I break it the full value would be lost, wouldn't it? I'd definitely win a million with a Jewel like this.”

“What?!-”

“Hyunjae!! Put the ear piece on!! Times up-” Eric yells out from the bottom floor, interrupting the ghost.

The male taps a finger on his ear to tease the ghost, “Sounds like I've got to go. Maybe next time.” All fear that Hyunjae felt when he stepped in was lost as he realized how harmless the manor’s spirit was. The usual confidence that he has fills the man's body as he walks out the room backwards, winking at the spirit fading away in anger.

As he walks back down the stairs, hands grab and pull at the bag on his arm but he doesn't care. “Eric!” Hyunjae hops off the last two steps, he quickly reaches the younger male who's holding three of the big paintings.

Eric does a little spin with the paintings on him, “Like my finds? You look like you're missing a few things”

Hyunjae taps on his bag, the movement of the jewels making a rattling sound, before his hands start to ruffle Eric’s hair, “All in this bag, let's go and see what the guys think.” He leads the way out of the manor, despite the october weather the outside is warm compared to the building.

“Dude- I'm so disappointed.. I didn't see any spirits at all.”

“I did. It was very, disappointing though..”

☆★☆ AUTHOR’S GOODBYE = IDC IF IT SUCKS I HAVE NO YIME NO FREE TIME I HAVE TOO MUCH AP LITERATURE WORK TOO MUCH HTML WORK TOO MUCH STATS WORK TOO MUCH STUFF TO DO AHHHHHHHHHH I HATE IT I HATE IT I HATE IT I HAVE NO TIME AND I TOLD SOMEONE I THINK THEYRE ATTRACTIVE YESTERDAY AND IM STILL LEFT WITH NO ANSWER WTFFFFFFFFFFFFD AHHHHHHHHHQHSHJAJAJABDHAJAHA GET OUT GET OUT GET OUTTTTTTT

☆★☆ TAGLIST = @sanasour, @boomhoon, @loonaluvz, @deoboyznet

[quartz-crow]

The Ranger (Reader x Halsin)

Modern AU! Reader x Halsin (BG3) Stranded in the middle of a dark, icy forest with nothing but a broken-down car and a dwindling phone battery, you find yourself fighting off panic and the biting cold. Just when you begin to lose hope, a giant, rugged stranger offers unexpected help. Updates to come soon! Added notes: Sorry I've been absent for way too long... Life stuff - but hey, I'm back into writing and I've got so much planned 🌿

Chapter 1

“Fuck.”. You grit your teeth as you feel your car slowly come to a trudging stop. The wind howls around you, battering the already loose car windows, creating a dreadful noise beside your head. Thankfully, your headlights remain on, but you know all too well they won’t last long with your car’s faulty battery. "Fucking piece of shit." You grumble as you reach for your coat in the passenger seat and wrap it tightly around your body. Of course—of course, this happens to me.

The stress of the day lingers, refusing to let you find peace. You had spent the last few hours walking around the forest—your chosen escape after a stressful day at work. The smell of pine and the sight of the sunset had certainly helped ease your worries… for a while. But now, as the forest's tranquillity turned into an icy, dark nightmare, you feel the blood rising to your ears once more.

As you opened the car door, the howling wind slapped you across the face. You could feel the temperature dropping rapidly. “This is dangerous” you murmured as you looked up at the last bit of light as it disappeared behind the skyline. The tall pine trees surrounding you seemed to scream as the wind whisked through their sharp branches. The darkness was almost palpable, and gods - you could feel its oppressive weight pressing down on you. After fighting against your frozen fingers, you fumbled with your phone for a few seconds, before finally managing to turn on the flashlight. To your annoyance, the weak beam of light did little to cut through the darkness…. but it was all you had. You trudged towards your car’s bonnet, every step a struggle against the biting wind.

Mechanics were never your strong suit. Hell, they weren't even your weak suit - whatever that meant… you swear the cold was making you go delirious. Racking your brain, you tried to remember a single piece of useful information from your last MOT. The frustration builds, each second feeling like an eternity as it dawns on you… Almost choking back tears, you realised just how ill-prepared you were for this situation.

Your breath shot out in quick, visible puffs, mingling with the cold air. Popping the hood open, you peered inside - but it was hard to make out anything with the flashlight's beam wavering with your shaking hand. Everything looked like a tangled mess of metal and wires to you. They may as well have been organs, or wet spaghetti for that matter. Despite trying to remain hopeful, you truly had no idea what you were looking at, let alone how to fix it. The sense of helplessness grows, feeding your frustration. The cold seeps quickly into your bones now, and you couldn’t help but curse under your breath. Your phone’s battery was draining alarmingly fast, the flashlight dimming slightly. Panic started to rise in your throat. There’s no one around, no help in sight, just you and your broken car in the middle of nowhere.

In a moment of blind range - you kicked the tyre, but it only caused pain to shoot up your leg… which only added to your aggravation of course. “Fuck!” you yell into the night, the wind swallowing your voice. Taking a deep breath, you tried to calm yourself. You knew that you needed to think clearly if you had any chance of getting help - but the cold and the dark grew relentless, gnawing at your resolve. You closed the bonnet, resigning yourself to the fact that there’s no way that you’re going to fix the car here and now. Where you stood with your broken car, deep in the forest, you quickly decided that your only option was to get back in your car… and just hope you didn’t freeze to death.

Wrapping your coat tighter around yourself, you quickly climbed back in your car. Although the car itself wasn’t warm at all, the break from the relentless winds made you sigh in relief. You checked your phone again and what you saw on the screen made your heart drop - your phone only had 2% left. With a slight whelp, you threw your phone into the glove box and slammed it shut. You promised yourself then that, even though you had no signal, your phone was strictly for emergency use only.

The darkness outside was thick, oppressive, and the usual comfort you found in the wild was replaced by an uneasy feeling that crawled up your spine. The forest that night felt different, sinister almost, and the thought of stepping back out into the cold, black void was terrifying. You tried to calm your racing heart, reminding yourself that you loved nature, that you had come here to relax… But the rational part of your mind was losing the battle against the primal fear of the dark. You shakily reclined the seat, hoping to get some rest until morning. The wind howled around you, making the car creak and groan as if it were alive. You wrapped your coat tighter and closed your eyes, trying to block out the eerie sounds of the night. Sleep, however, escaped you. Every rustle of the leaves, every snap of a twig, made your heart jump.

Minutes felt like hours as you lay there, eyes shut tight, trying to will yourself into a state of calm. The cold seeped through your coat, making you shiver uncontrollably. Your breath came in short, shallow bursts, and you could feel the beginnings of a panic attack creeping in. The darkness seemed to press down on you, making it hard to breathe… and to think. Then, in the distance, you saw it. Headlights, faint at first but growing steadily brighter, cutting through the blackness like a knife. Your heart skipped a beat and then began to race. Someone was coming. Someone or something. The forest, which had felt deserted and empty, now seemed to close in on you, each shadow hiding unknown threats.

You sat up quickly, your breath coming in ragged gasps. The headlights grew closer, the beam illuminating the trees and casting long, sinister shadows. Panic surged through you. What if it wasn’t someone here to help? What if it was someone dangerous? Your mind raced with possibilities, each more terrifying than the last. You fumbled in the glove box for your phone, hands shaking - but you stopped yourself. If this wasn’t an emergency, you didn’t know what was, but you couldn’t waste the battery now. Not yet. You needed to see who it was first, you needed to be sure.

You could barely breathe. You felt trapped, the dark, cold forest on one side and an unknown threat on the other. The panic clawed at your chest, your vision narrowing as you struggled to stay calm. The car slowed as it neared yours, its headlights glaring, blinding you momentarily. You shielded your eyes, heart hammering in your chest. This was it. The moment of truth. You watched as a large, no, huge figure climbed out of the 4x4’s driver door. The man walked slowly towards you… And then you realised - he had an axe, or at least something axe-like, in his hand.

You screamed as your whole body shook violently. Despite the howling wind, you heard his heavy footsteps come closer and closer. Your vision began to close in on you - and before you knew it, everything went quiet.

[gra93fruit-blog]

Introductions Pt. 2

You continue your introductions to the stuck Dark Angel.

Warnings: drug use, Some one being stuck in a pit caused by shoddy construction.

Summary: You try to help the Dark Angel that seems to be stuck in the pit.

You took another drag, it was a big one. The cheery red glow of the joint flared, and then spent an embarrassingly long time, coughing your lungs up. Joints were always a crap shoot. The two red lenses you could see from the pit kept locked on you. Whoever, or whatever, was down there, called out again, id unnerving deep voice sound more like gravel then words. It made you feel a bit floaty. Then you started again. 

“ Okay, okay, I’m good. Let's try to get a better look at what going on.” You  manage to gasp as you fight to get your coughing under control. Slow clumsy hands searched through your inner pockets for your cell phone and then got the flashlight going. You edged to the side and a little forward to get a better angle and then shone the light down into the pit. There was a light feel-good atmosphere that beckoned you towards the edge, but you very carefully kept back. The last thing you needed was the two of you stuck in the pit. 

It was definitely taller than you had expected it to be, the pit was also deeper. Looking down you noticed that the bottom of the pit seemed to be the concrete foundations and mechanical greebily bits, that presumably made something work, you also noticed that the dark green metal boots had broken though the concrete below him, which explained why the dude was so much lower than you expected him to be. 

You have a better look at the… Marine? It had to be one, you had never seen one in person before, but this was not one of the blue ones with gold trim that you saw on TV. it had to be a marine though, nothing else that you could think of really had that refrigerator shape. He was a dark forest green, and he looked like the embodiment of the phrase ‘visual noise’. The light of the flashlight shone off of chains, small bits of paper with red seals, and some almost monk-like robes. Watching the armour lean back in an attempt to look up was almost adorable. Your high mind could not help but think of a medieval beetle. Smirking a little you started looking around, it looked like his boots had only cracked through to the calves, and given the way he shuffled a little he had some movement. 

“I don’t suppose you can move your feet can you?” You asked it rhetorically, the Marine seemed to whine a bit before grumbling some sort of comment of his own. You resorted to charades, pointing to his feet and then lifting your feet up exaggeratedly before flashing a thumbs up with a smile or a thumbs down with an exaggerated frown. 

Obligingly he flashed the world’s most awkward thumbs up, seemingly confused at the motion before lifting up one foot as demonstration. As soon as he placed it on top of the cheap prefabricated concrete, the concrete started to crack under his foot, and then it broke through again, with a nasty sounding crunch. 

“Okay, bub. You just hang tight there I guess, not much we can do just the two of us.” You looked down at your cell again, no service, of course. “We’ll have to figure something out.” Which was unfortunate for him because you were definitely more than a little high and a quick gaze around confirmed that no one else was around to be the responsible one. 

“Just a second.” You tell the Marine, signing for them to wait, in the forlorn hope that they possibly know ASL, given the grumbling in ever increasing volume you assumed they did not. Your book clad feet crisply walked towards Russ’s house. It was where you were going anyway and where you knew people would be gathering. Kristy would be there, and Kristy was organized and responsible enough to deal with this. You had just made it to the road when you heard what sounded like a chainsaw kick up and the pop and snap of buckling concrete behind you. 

Do you turn around to check in on the Marine, or do you  continue to Russ’s house to get help?

Part 3

[romihearts]

HAPPY HAPPY HALLOWEEN ! ┊halloween piece

halloween scenarios with them ?!

FEATURING. jshk & twst characters (not all the characters are here)

CONTENT. gn reader, slight swearing

HER NOTES. happy halloween <3

01. HAUNTED MANSION !

the alluring moon shined brightly over two bodies preparing to enter a run-down house which was supposedly "haunted".

"well.. uh would you like to go first?" you ask with the apparent fear in you voice. the house was filled with dust and cobwebs around, not to mention that this was located in an obscure forest!

"sure, i promise no matter what i'll protect you!" they said with a gleaming smile on their face. that really eased you.

locking hands, you both went into the house with hearts full of courage.

* ˚ ✦

as you entered, the darkness and dust became more discernable. spotting some insects aswell. you both walked forward, using your phones as flashlights to view the hallways clearly.

creaking floorboards and slight whispers were all heard throughout the house, regardless, you continued on. "ahaha.. uh this is really really creepy." you commented, attempting to make small talk to distract yourself from the interior of the house.

until—

"who are you to enter my abode, you are unwelcome here!"

whatthefuck— you both quickly ran out, still hand in hand.

both of you, panting after running quickly from whatever the both of you just heard. "could we not do this again." you said, "definitely, never again." as he replied.

"though, i wasn't able to protect you.." they said, scratching their head. you placed your hand on his cheek, quickly giving him a small kiss.

"i don't care about that, i was able to be with you and that's enough" you said with a smile, leaving them red and flustered.

both of you left once more hand in hand, laughing and promising to never do that again.

with, DEUCE SPADE, jack howl, kalim al-asim, epel felmier, KOU MINAMOTO, natsuhiko hyuuhga, akane aoi

02. TRICK OR TREATING !

a childish tradition most would say, but you don't care. as you were able to have fun and spend time with your lover!

asking fellow peers if they had candy while in costume just lit up your face, while also asking on doors for candy.

while walking home after trick or treating, you've been eating some of your favorite candy you've gotten until you sadly ran out.

"hey, do you still have [candy name]? i ran out, if you don't mind giving me some..?" you asked with your most innocent face, hoping they'd give you some.

they sighed and laughed, "of course i do, i'd be willing to give some if it's for you." they replied with the most charming smile. "just don't eat too much, it might make you sick." pouting, you replied, "im not a child! of course i'd know not to eat too much."

both of you laughed, you really admired their smiling face. they were simply perfect.

with, riddle rosehearts, ruggie bucchi, AZUL ASHENGROTTO, jamil viper, sakura nanamine, TERU MINAMOTO, tsuchigomori

03. MATCHING COSTUMES !

4:37 pm, the sun had started to set and it seeped through the windows of your room. you tried on your [costume of choice], and it fit perfectly!

you and your beloved were invited to a costume party, and you both decided on matching costumes. you were [desired costume] and they were [desired costume], it was really cute!

once you were done fixing yourself up, you headed onto your beloved's place.

* ˚ ✦

knocking on their door, you see them open it and, oh my god— they look so bewitching, and amazing, and perfect! you couldn't keep your eyes off them, they were just too much for your heart! but, your staring has gotten noticeable, raising questions.

"you look amazed, how do you think?" they asked. while you were just enthralled with how they looked! "you look really good!" as you responded with a smile on their face.

they stepped out and both of you headed to the party. "you look really nice too, y'know. you've just captured my heart once more." they hummed, while you were startled a bit. "ah, really?" you questioned as they reaffirmed what they said.

"yes you do! now let's go, i want them to see how you look!" they said while dragging you faster. you were really lucky to have such a loving partner.

with, CATER DIAMOND, ace trappola, floyd leech, sebek zigvolt, YASHIRO NENE, aoi akane, hanako-kun, shijima mei

[winter-dayz]

Old Wives' Tales

Pairing: Choi Yeonjun x Reader Werewolf AU Genre: Fluff Words: 1963 Warnings: strong language

Masterlist | Fictober Masterpost

Taglist:  @soobin-chois

You’d heard the stories. ‘Little Liam never made it home after he wandered in after dark… The Donnelsons’ cat was found shredded to bits at the treeline… Old Man Ben tried to expand his fields only for his entire harvest to end up withering…’

You’d heard the old wives’ tales. ‘Children and pets end up dead, eaten up by something much larger… Women go missing, taken as the devils’ brides…’

You’d heard the warnings. ‘Don’t go in the woods… It’s cursed… Monsters.’

You had never listened very well.

The tales and stories were generations old, superstitious nonsense that had wormed its way into the town’s history and become “fact”. But, personally, you didn’t believe in superstitions. The warnings were just a way for parents to scare their kids away from getting lost in the national forest.

You should have listened better; you should’ve heeded their warnings; and you definitely shouldn’t have entered the woods after dark.

It’s well past when you expected to be home. After going for drinks with a coworker at the dive bar on the outskirts of town, you should’ve just called a cab.

Your “friend” decided to head back to her place with some guy she’d been flirting with the whole night, and you were not in the mood to accept a ride from his creepy friend, so you were left to find your own way home. With money as tight as it was, and your house not being that far of a walk, you figured it would be fine. You just thought you could shorten your stumbling if you cut through the forest… You really should’ve just called a cab.

“Fuck!” You whined, tripping over another fallen branch. It hadn’t seemed so dark when you’d left the bar. Then again, you didn’t know how long you’d been wandering… Every direction seemed the same, and your drinks had started to catch up to you. You slumped back against a tree with a huff. Maybe you should just rest for a bit, sober up some, and try again.

But then you heard the first low snarl off to your left. Your eyes popped open, desperately trying to see through the brush and shadows, but you couldn’t make anything out. You slowly, carefully, made it back to your feet and backed away from the direction of the sound.

You walked backwards for a while until you deemed it safe to take another rest. And, again, a growl sounded, this time a little closer from your right. Fear gripping that an animal was stalking you as its prey, you decided the best course of action was to bolt in a single direction and pray that you popped out of the forest.

That isn’t exactly how it went though, as you started walking swiftly away, you could just make out the sound of leaves rustling while the animal followed. You’d speed up to a jog, and the sound of movement increased along with you; you’d make a sudden turn and a snarl would have you whip around the other way. Eventually, as you felt yourself near passing out, from the full sprint you were running and the terror of being chased, you broke through the tree line… Right in your own neighborhood.

You stumbled a few more yards away from the trees before scanning once again for any sign of what had been chasing you. And found… nothing. Whatever had stalked you, decided leaving the cover of the woods to pounce wasn’t worth it. And for that you were thankful.

🎃

You really were an idiot.

One test of the validity of the old stories wasn’t enough to keep you from entering the dark woods. No… you needed to be taught a lesson twice apparently.

In your drunken stupor the night prior, you’d lost your phone in the woods. You remembered having it at the bar, pretending to text but secretly playing a puzzle to keep the creeps from talking to you. And, you remembered still having it when you entered the woods, using it as a flashlight for a while. So during one of your stumbles or falls, you must’ve dropped it.

You can’t, for the life of you, remember why you wouldn’t have picked it up immediately. If it was so dark, surely you would’ve needed it. You vaguely remember feeling panicked, but you brushed that off as needing to get home before your dinner came back up.

So, you’d entered the forest once more, this time at least with enough mind to go while the sun was bright in the sky. Although, you didn’t have much choice, since you needed to find your phone, and you’d never be able to see in the pitch of night. And yet, as you wandered further into the trees, the sun dimmed and a twilight-esque darkness surrounded with only the faintest hints of light breaking the foliage.

Which is how you found yourself, once again, being chased through the woods. Every time you swerved, you swore the animal switched sides behind you to snarl and keep you running in a straight direction; you didn’t tempt fate to turn and check though, and instead practically allowed the beast to control your movements.

Spotting a break in the trees ahead, you felt yourself pick up speed and hoped it wouldn’t follow you out. Instead, as you reached the clearing, you tripped.

Like the girl who dies first in a fucking horror movie, you tripped.

You crawled away from the clearing edge, listening for the telltale growls of the animal or even a branch snap to indicate where it was. But you heard nothing, just the eerie silence of the forest.

As you continued to shuffle backwards slowly, your hand slid over something cool and metallic. Tearing your eyes away from the treeline, you glanced down to find your phone in perfect condition and… fully charged? Shouldn’t it be dead by now, having been used all day and then at the bar and then left in the woods with the flashlight on?

Your thoughts were broken as the animal stepped through the treeline. A massive wolf, fur so dark it seemed to absorb all light around it with onyx eyes to match, inched towards you. You froze in fear, hand clutched around your phone but all thoughts, and hopes, of escape long gone.

You were certain the wolf would kill you. Tear into you and enjoy you for dinner. But it stopped just inside the clearing.

The wolf dipped its head to the ground and nudged something towards you.

A… ball? A bright orange, rubber ball rolled to your feet.

Your gaze slowly traveled between the ball and back to the wolf, whose head remained low to the ground, backside in the air, and tail… wagging leisurely.

The wolf wanted to play. A giant, black wolf wanted to play with you? That’s why it had been chasing you?!

You were hysterical.

You fell backwards and curled into the fetal position, laughter ripping through your chest and adrenaline plummeting so drastically that you began to sob.

The wolf whined.

You sat up suddenly, surprising yourself and the wolf, who had inched even closer and held a tilted head to inspect you. “Do you want to play?” You whispered into the quiet.

You were still hysterical. Wide-eyed, red-rimmed and glistening. Unbelieving. But if playing fetch with a wolf—one way too big to be normal—would save your life, then you were definitely going to do it.

The wolf’s tail wagged harder, and it huffed.

“Alright then… Let’s do this.” You shook your head, making your way to your feet and grabbing the ball. You tossed it out of the clearing, the wolf immediately sprinting away to chase it. In record time, the wolf had leapt back towards you, toppling you over to the ground and dropping the ball onto your lap.

“This is…” You laughed to yourself, “by far, the weirdest thing I’ve ever done…”

🎃

It kept happening.

Like a magnetic pull, you felt drawn to keep entering those woods.

And so easily you trusted a wild animal, and it trusted you.

So for the following weeks, every Friday night you’d walk through as a “shortcut” on your way home, and every Friday night, you’d be accompanied by a massive wolf to guard you. Then on Saturdays, if the weather was nice, you’d meet your wolf friend at the tree line once more and spend the day together.

One of the early Saturdays you’d spent in the clearing, you had brought your laptop to get some work done but was distracted by an Overwatch match with some friends. The way the wolf had perked up at your favorite character had helped you decide what to call him.

Reaper never left your side when you were within the trees. He would stay close to you when you were simply walking, and if you were settled in the clearing, he would curl up against your side, while you ran your hands over his head and neck, occasionally scratching his ears or belly.

Most Saturdays, Reaper would bring the ball along, and the two of you would play fetch or run and chase one another through the trees until it was too dark for you to safely adventure. Some days, he would even bring you little gifts.

You’d arrive at your clearing, him by your side to protect you as usual, where you’d find flowers or pretty rocks in a pile where you’d first rediscovered your phone. Reaper always pranced in and jumped around the presents to you, so proud of himself for the smile on your face.

You had stopped questioning the strange behavior of the wolf. It was obvious he was no normal animal. Too intelligent, too attached, and too large to be a regular wolf.

You had your suspicions, but you didn’t want to express anything… It would just confirm that you were insane… But maybe the old wives’ tales held a bit more reality in them than everyone realized.

🎃

Today was different from your normal Saturdays… Today, Reaper didn’t greet you at the tree line, and when you arrived at the clearing, he was nowhere in sight.

You sighed, glad for the large blanket you had wrapped around you, as snow began to fall.

It was magical.

The first snow of the year. Untainted by cars and muddy footprints. Shimmering on the tree branches and floating softly around you like glitter.

You spun around like a kid, forgetting momentarily about your missing wolf friend, and fell backwards onto the ground that was now dusted with a thin layer.

Just as you finished making a snow angel, barely visible because of the lack of coverage, you heard the telltale twigs snap from the clearing entrance.

“Reaper, is that you?” You giggled, doodling in the fresh powder. “You didn’t walk with me, I was worried…”

It wasn’t Reaper.

Your eyes met a man’s instead. Dark strands fell into even darker eyes, skin pale but with plump, pink lips. He was handsome. So handsome.

Your eyes widened, and your gaze followed his movements as he bent down, setting an orange rubber ball on the ground.

The man leaned back up, holding your curious stare. “My name is Yeonjun, actually…” You continued to stare, only a little bewildered. He looked away, cleared his throat, and promptly thrust his palm out for you to shake. “…And, I’d really like it if I could know yours too?” 

A light pink blush dusted his cheeks, causing your eyes to widen. The sight so beautiful it rivaled the snow you had marveled at. Slowly, you lifted your hand to meet his, soft and warm, and his eyes met yours with a pleased gleam. “Y/N.”

[ur-boyfiend]

will o' the wisp

-> fae!felix x m!reader -> a walk in the woods ends up going down a path you didn't expect -> a/n : another one w/ a kinda rushed / incomplete ending i don't super love , might continue it if people want me to tho :3

you shake your flashlight, groaning when you only get a brief moment of light from it. you'd just put new batteries in but of course something in it still isn't working properly. you give it one more harsh smack against your palm, hearing it rattle and getting a slightly more sustained beam. you could use the light on your phone, but you don't want it to die.

you consider your situation, you're half-lost in the woods, your flashlight is in the process of breaking, your phone doesn't have enough charge for you to use it for long, and you're not in quite enough trouble to justify using it. you're good at making bad decisions, but this one might just take the cake.

just as your light flickers out again, there's a floating ball of light that appears a little further down the trail. you hesitate for a second, but you figure if you've made it this far, what's one more bad decision?

you head in the direction of the light, and it blinks out just as you reach it. a second later, another light flickers into existence a bit further on. again, you follow it.

after a few cycles of this, you start to feel like you're playing some sort of hide-and-seek mixed with tag, but there's not much else for you to do except keep going.

eventually, the light flickers out and stays out. you sigh, a bit disappointed. it'd gotten fun after a bit.

when you look around, you notice that you don't know where you are anymore, and it's gotten even darker than it had been. you take the cap off your flashlight, switch which side the batteries are in, and screw the cap back on, making it as tight as you can.

this time, when you click your light on, it stays on. it's not much help, you still don't know where you are, but at least now you can see where you are. as the beam of light cuts through the trees, it catches on something bright white, sticking out like a beacon in the dark foliage you'd been seeing.

you train the light on the spot of brightness, feeling thorns and bushes whipping at your legs as you make your way through the forest. a particularly nasty thorn bush hits your thigh and you hiss, feeling a sharp pain.

there's not much you can do about it, so you continue further into the trees. the spot of light gets brighter and brighter, the trees making way for a small clearing.

you squint slightly, your eyes taking a moment to focus in on, a person? there's a boy, you think about your age, sleeping on a tree branch, one leg hanging off the edge of it. the brightness you'd been following reveals itself to be fluffy white hair.

you're entranced, the boy looks unearthly, and you mentally thank the lights for leading you here. you take a cautious step into the clearing, then another, then another. you're a foot or two past the tree line when you hear a branch snap under your foot.

you're not sure who's more surprised by it, yourself, or the boy in the tree, since you both jump at the sudden noise. the boy whips his head towards you, and you hold your hands up, one palm facing him, the other still gripping your light.

"who are you, how did you get here?" the boy's voice is shockingly deep, but still manages to remind you of tinkling bells.

you open and close your mouth a few times, not sure how, or even if, you should answer.

thinking back to old folktales your dad would read to you as a child, you answer, "i'm a traveler. and i followed the wisps."

the boy cocks his head, "the will o wisps brought you here?"

"most of the way, after they left my light caught your hair and i just followed that the rest."

instead of responding, the boy squints slightly at you.

"you're bleeding."

you'd forgotten about that, and when you look down at your leg you see that the gash is worse than you thought.

you just offer a shrug, "yeah y'all got some nasty bushes here."

the boy laughs, and once again you're reminded of the ocean and bells.

the boy hops out of the tree, seeming to float to the ground. this time he reminds you of dandelion fluff. he walks over to you, crouching down slightly to look at your leg.

he holds up a hand, almost touching the gash, but not quite. "may i?"

your brain isn't doing its best work right now, and all you can do is nod. the boy's fingertips graze the gash on your thigh, and you feel an immediate cooling where there'd previously been a sharp ache.

you sigh, grateful that you won't be in as much pain now. the boy stands back up and you grin at him.

"thank you!!"

the boy smiles back and laughs, his eyes crinkling at the corners. now that you're standing almost level with him, you notice freckles scattered across his tan skin.

you blink a couple times, before finally being certain, "faerie."

he simply tilts his head at you, and you repeat yourself.

"faerie, you're a faerie." it's not a question, and you both know it.

"i thought you realized that already, after all you didn't tell me your name."

you shrug, "i thought you might be but i wasn't entirely sure, now i am."

he smiles, "you're fascinating."

"i could say the same for you, faerie boy."

[moonlight0934]

Abandoned

Akutagawa twists his fingers together, looking out of the window. Dazai, who is the one driving, completely ignores him. Akutagawa has half a mind to ask where they’re going, but the other half doesn’t want to risk upsetting Dazai even more. So, he stays quiet. It’s dark enough outside that there isn’t anything to look at, but he keeps his eyes glued to the window.

Dazai’s driving far too fast for Akutagawa to keep up with where they are. He only knows that they’re in the car for roughly half an hour before Dazai slams down on the breaks. Akutagawa’s hands shoot out to stop his head from slamming into the dashboard. His eyes are wide and focused entirely on Dazai. Dazai turns to glare at him, looking angrier than he has in a while. Akutagawa maintains eye contact until Dazai reaches out to smack him. He flinches.

“Get out of the damn car.”

Akutagawa climbs out, looking around. They’re surrounded by trees, and it wasn’t even an actual road that they were driving on.

“What’s going on? Where is this?”

Dazai doesn’t answer, he just throws a backpack out of the car, then backs up. Akutagawa frowns, and leans down to pick up the bag. Dazai drives away, and Akutagawa opens the bag. There’s a file in there along with a flashlight, a thumb drive, and a lock picking set. Akutagawa uses the flashlight to read the file which details a mission. It requires someone to sneak into a facility and download all of the stuff on the servers in the facility. The main issue comes in with the fact that they don’t know where the facility is, only that it’s in…

“The woods. Of course he got mad at his assignment, and dumped me with it in the woods. Ok, so I need to find this place, download what I need, and then try to call someone?”

Akutagawa pulls his phone out of his pocket, but he has no bars.

“Wonderful, abandoned in the woods with no service. I guess I’ll have to walk until I get service to call someone. Dazai isn’t likely to come back before someone comes looking for the data that I’m supposed to collect, so it would be easier to get myself out of the forest.”

Akutagawa sighs, and starts walking further into the forest. He looks for any sign of people that can potentially point him in the direction of the base. It takes a few hours of searching in the dark, but he manages to find tire tracks, and he follows them even further into the forest. His body is sore and tired by the time the sun has started to come up. Though it is easier to see, and he’s able to see the building before he’s right on top of it.

There isn’t a lot of light getting through the trees, just enough to see, so Akutagawa has no problem sticking to the shadows. People are milling around outside of the building, doing different tasks. Akutagawa watches for a while, also giving himself a chance to rest. The people outside are mostly just unloading the truck that made the tire tracks Akutagawa was following. They’re all dressed in casual clothes, and they don’t look like they’re unloading anything nefarious. It mostly just looks like food, and the building itself looks suspiciously like a compound.

What are they doing, preparing for the apocalypse? What could we possibly need from these people? They don’t even look like they’d have computers here.

Akutagawa darts forward once they’re all surrounding the truck again, or waiting their turn to grab something. He slips through the first door he sees as quietly as he can, and looks around. The room itself is lit with floodlights. Akutagawa blinks, trying to clear the spots from his vision from the sudden and obtrusive lights. He managed to open the door without it making any noise, so no one noticed him coming in.

He slips behind a stack of boxes to get a better look at the room without being spotted. This room looks like a normal warehouse. It even has heavy lifting equipment dotted around the room. Ones big enough to pick up the crates with ease, and without having to unload them. None of the people there look like they have abilities either.

Who are these people? Is Dazai messing with me again?

There are a few doors he can go through, but he decides to go through the vents instead. He’s going in blind, so it’s a lot slower, but eventually he finds a room with two computers. There’s no one in there, so Akutagawa just climbs out of the vent once he’s sure that there aren’t any cameras dotted around. The computer looks incredibly old.

“Wow, this thing is a dinosaur. I don’t even know if I’m going to be able to download the information off this thing. I’ve checked everywhere else though, and there are no other computers. So I’m going to do what I can.”

Akutagawa ends up working on it for at least half an hour before he climbs back into the vent. Someone comes in less than a minute after Akutagawa is out of the room. She takes one look at the room before reaching for a radio on her belt.

“Someone is here. I bet the government is on to us. Lock the building down. We can’t let them take this compound!”

Akutagawa freezes, more confused than he already was. He climbs through the vents back into the main room that he came in through. There are people guarding every exit now, and they’re all armed. It’s still just with guns, and if any of them do have abilities, they don’t look like they’re planning on using them. Akutagawa grabs a stray nail off of the floor, and throws it. It attracts most of the guards’ attention.

So, he smashes the last two guards’ heads together before starting to pick the lock. The other guards start to come back over right as Akutagawa gets the door open. They all start shooting, and Akutagawa slams the door shut as fast as he can. He hisses through his teeth, looking down at the blood seeping out of the bullet wound near his knee.

“Shit.”

Seriously, my leg? How am I supposed to walk out of this forest with a wound like this? Though my first priority should be getting out of this clearing without leaving a blood trail.

Akutagawa wraps Rashomon around his leg, biting his lip as Rashomon starts to take off the outer layer of skin. Even he’s not immune to the destructive effects of his ability if he wraps it too tightly around him. Though it is enough to stop the bleeding, he gets to the treeline as quickly as he can. He keeps going as far as he can until his leg collapses underneath him.

Sweat pours down his face, and his vision whites out as soon as his knee bends and collapses. Once he can see again, he pulls himself into a sitting position, and brushes the dirt off of his face. He pulls his phone out of his pocket, but he still has no signal though it does look like he’s close to where he started following the tire tracks.

So, he pulls himself up using a nearby tree, and limps along, trying to keep as much weight off of his leg as possible. He follows the tracks in the opposite direction for at least two more hours. Then his phone finally has enough signal to call someone. So, he just hits the button for the last person he called, and puts it up to his ear. Gin’s voice comes through the phone.

“Hey, Ryuu, what’s going on? I thought you’d be at work by now.”

“I am. Can you get someone to pick me up if I send you my rough location? I’m not completely sure of where I am.”

“Yeah, of course I can do that. Are you alright? You sound like you’re in pain.”

“I’m fine, Gin. I’m going to text you where I am, and then just get someone out here as fast as you can. It’s not too big of a deal though.”

“Ok, well, I guess I’ll see you when you get home. Love you, Ryuu.”

“Love you too.”

Akutagawa hangs up. He barely manages to send her all of the information that he has before he passes out. He wakes up in the mafia’s clinic. Gin is sitting beside his bed, holding his hand.

“Hey, how are you feeling?”

Akutagawa takes stock of his body, then hums.

“Fine, I guess. What happened?”

“Well, they found you passed out in the woods. I got filled in on some of the mission details.”

“Do you know who those people were? My file didn’t say, and the whole thing was really weird.”

“Apparently they were conspiracy theorists, and they’re convinced that they’re going to need a fully stocked compound in the near future. They’re also hoarding information though so Mori wanted to see what they had.”

“Nice.”

“Yeah, I thought so too. However, Mori has what he wants, and you have some time off of work until your leg heals.”

“Great, I have to take time off.”

Gin sighs, but pulls his hand up so she can kiss the back of it.

“You’re ridiculous.”

[rabbitcruiser]

Read An Ebook Day 

Get lost in the world of a book, whether new or an old favorite, without the hassle of lugging it around, holding it up, or damaging it. That’s right, read an eBook!

Years ago there was a giant push to encourage reading among youth and adults alike, and that push has entered the modern age with International read an eBook day.

No more are we tied to reading books in the old format with two covers and hundreds of pages, no more do hundreds of trees have to die each year to bring literature to people from every walk of life.

With the invention of the eBook, we have reached the point where the wonder of reading is available to anyone with the computer or portable electronic device.

It’s become a huge industry, with devices like Kindle, Nooks, and apps available on many types of devices like cell phones and tablets.

Learn about Read An eBook Day

Read An eBook Day is a day that encourages you to do exactly that. eBooks can easily be accessed within a few seconds. You don’t need to head to your local book store or a library. By the time it takes you to finish reading this page, you could have your eBook chosen and you could be getting stuck right into it! But don’t dash off just yet!

eBooks give you the ability to take the authors and stories you love with you anywhere and enjoy them at any time. Whether you are 30,000 feet in the air or you are curled up on your sofa, you can tuck into a great book.

If you have never tried reading an eBook before, this is definitely the perfect day for you to read your very first one. If you are a big eBook fan already, not only is Read An eBook Day a great day for you to start a new book, but you can also use this day to raise awareness and encourage other people to start reading eBooks as well. You can post messages on social media so that your friends, family members, and followers know that it is Read An eBook Day and the importance of participating.

History of Read an eBook day

The first major celebration of International read an eBook day was in 2014, and was put together by a major eBook distributor OverDrive. This company provides eBooks through many major locations but is best known for being the biggest provider of eBooks to libraries all over the country.

Its eBooks are supplied by thousands of publishers, including the best known of Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, Harlequin, Pursues, Wiley, and others. Chances are if you’ve read an eBook from a library, it was supplied by OverDrive.

How to celebrate Read an eBook day

The most obvious way to celebrate is by, you guessed it, reading an eBook. But you can go so much further than that, take a bike ride with your tablet out to your favorite place and sit in the park, on the docks, in the forest, or wherever your favorite reading hideaway is and enjoy the lightweight convenience of reading your book on an electronic device.

That’s just one of the joys of an eBook, you can carry dozens or even hundreds of them around on a single compact electronic mobile device, which ways less than even the smallest of paperbacks.

Get together with your friends and talk about your favorite eBooks and where you discovered them, and even talk about what your first eBook was. In today’s modern world it’s even possible that your first book outside of school and the library was read in an electronic format.

Reading an eBook allows you options totally unlike those of reading a normal book, wherewith a physical book you’d have to bring a light and a magnifying glass if the print was too small, with the mobile device you can just increase the font size and brighten the background.

You can even read an eBook in circumstances you couldn’t read a normal book like tucked away under your blankets in the dark, no flashlight required. Internation read an eBook day is a tribute to the growing future of electronics in our lives, and they’re now serving as the foundation of supplying educational, technical, and even entertainment-oriented books in every day and every format.

Even the instruction manuals that come with many of our new devices are PDF eBooks, and most video games no longer provide a physical book, it’s all online.

Another way to celebrate Read An eBook Day is to finally publish your own eBook so that other people can read it on this day! eBook publishing can appear somewhat of a mystery for those new to online publishing. There are lots of subtle complexities to making your novel launch a success, and professional book publishers are the main way to ensure that none of these procedures is missed. It can be easy to overlook the strategies and layout elements that must be implemented to make your work a best seller.

Finishing your novel is not the end of the story – literally. It’s only the start of a book’s journey from manuscript to book store. Have you decided on a book cover? Have you thought about your marketing schedule? Are you aware of your audience? These are the sort of things to consider on this day to help you take your content from hobbyist to professional, from your office drawer to the highest part of the eBook best-sellers list.

If you’re an aspiring author looking for a little guidance, why not take a creative writing course on Read An eBook Day? This will help you with all facets of composing a fictional work; you’ll soon learn how to master your plot and develop your characters with various tutorials. How about the final draft of your book?

You may be surprised to understand how few publications online have had professional editing skills applied to them. Having your literature carefully proofread and adapted by a team of expert editors is an amazing way to make your work stand out of the crowds. These are all the sorts of steps you can take on this date, depending on where you are right now in the process.

Source

[coffeeismysavior]

The day was drab and dull, just how things always had been.

This was something he loathed so- this mundaneness, it annoyed him. But what can he do? He was just a guy who was cursed with a boring desk job and coworkers that never spoke to him. Not like he cared, as they never made much for good conversation, plus they always called him crazy and a fanatic for his interests. Regardless he was lonely, as much as he hated to admit it.

When he was finally done with his job, Parker went back home just as he always had done. He checked his phone as saw the vast amount of missed called from his mother. Poor thing, she has always been so anxious ever since the disappearance of his father. He didn't like how smothering she could be ever after he moved out, but they understood why she was like that.

They may grumble, but he'll still call her like he always does.

"Hey mom."

~~

After a phone call same as always with his mother, he finally got to his true work. The one he's spent more than a decade on.

Taking a big sip of his coffee he cut out and wrote on several of the papers he printed out. While at his desk job he managed to find more articles for his research, so they used that as more notes.

These notes, this research, it is his flesh and blood, he always became a different person when this subject is at play. Hyper, fanatic, and obsessive. These notes, they may look like a crazy person wrote it; that is doesn't make sense. No, not to Parker. To Parker, every placement has a purpose, every word has a point.

This? This is what gives him that drive. The drive to keep going after years of the same thing over and over again.

Parker continued into the night to do his research, which eventually led to him going into the woods to do some hunting.

Bringing his phone, flashlight, and a backpack with other supplies he ventured into the dark.

Darkness used to scare him as that is what happened with his father, but because of what he pursues as a hunter, the darkness is something he had to grow used to.

Eventually after nothing of use, only scared animals and the sound of a crow cawing into the night, Parker finally came across something odd.

A door. Just a door in the middle of the forest.

Parker wasn't stupid, he knew random doors were a sign of something bad lest he were to go through it.

However he was curious, so he ventured around the door, making sure there really wasn't anything else.

He decided to take a picture of this door, hoping to put it on his corkboard of crazed notes so see of it's any way connected.

When he was done and took a look at the photo he noticed something odd.

The door opened to place that didn't match the surroundings. An interdimensional door. Of course when he looked up the the door with his flashlight it was the same as it had been before.

"The fuck...?"

He walked closer. Did he dare? What if nothing changed? What if this was all in his head? Yeah, he was definitely going crazy over this.

Crazy or not Parker wouldn't be able to sleep in the morning if he didn't explore this.

And so...With a cautious step, then another Parker stepped through the door. He squinted, thinking he was going to see something unbelievable.

And when he opened his eyes.....

..

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing changed.

"Damn..This was a waste of my fucking time," he muttered to himself, kicking the dirt beneath him.

With unsatisfied determination he walked back into the direction of his home.

Only.. He thought it was the direction of his house. But for some reason he didn't see house lights on.

Did he go in the wrong direction? No surely not, he's not the type to loose direction in a forest.

He checked his phone.

..no signal??

"Okay, this is fuckin' weird." He muttered once again.

Parker started to walk more, chills crawling down his spine as he took note of the eerie silence. No crows, no crickets..

Silence.

It really made them more anxious which cause Parker to start frantically running in the direction he thought was his home. And when he finally saw buildings relief swelled in his chest.

Only to sink to his stomach once again.

This wasn't his home.. In fact, this wasn't even his neighborhood. Something was off..No... Everything is off.

"No...Nonononono!"

Parker didn't know where he was, this had to be some sick dream. Yeah, a dream that he somehow manifested by being so bored with his average life.

He checked his phone again. No signal.

"What.

The.

FUUUUUUUUCK!"

[Welcome to Uncanny Valley]

[banesberry-anomoly]

Thinking about Allen. Hes such a guy. A goober if you will. And also a bit of a god complex, but its part of a mask she puts up.

They had a really bad falling out with a group of friends in high school. Knew them for years, and the group was really fuckin close too, which is a shame, because the reason the group crumbled wasnt even Allens fault, but the group blamed them anyways.

CW: Moderate angst, little bit of blood (but no gore beyond that)

Imagine youre out and its 1, 2am maybe. Pitch dark except for the glow of phone flashlights, and for some reason youre in the woods. The group splits up to fuck around and youre left alone. And then theres a scream and you hear a thud because some dumbass decided it would be a smart idea to climb a tree in the dark.

You go to find the idiot that climbed the tree, but theres silence. You can see where they fell, because the dirt is all messed up. And theres blood. But they arent there.

And then you see the jacket, lying there. Dirty and blood stained, with- with a hole through it. And you know this jacket, because its the one you got a matching set of for you and your best friend of the time.

So you start frantically looking around for them, only to realise that the whole forest is completely silent. Which normally would be fine, because you love liminal spaces, but there should be other voices right now. The voices of the people that found your best friend before you could and rushed him to the hospital.

The voices of people that would stare at you as you walked into the hospital lobby because you were worried. The voices of people that would blame you for not being there sooner, because they all thought you two were together. They didnt know. They didnt know that you two had been split up in the forest.

And youre standing there, dumbstruck, still clutching the ruined jacket as they yell.

You cant hear them, not really anyways. Their words kind of just float around you as your staring at the blood that coats your hands. The blood of your best friend. And you think to yourself 'maybe hell believe me, maybe hell tell them that it wasnt my fault.'

So you go home. And you wait, counting the days until you can visit him.

And he was angry at you.

Because for some reason, he thought that you were there, right behind him. You had no one on your side.

So you decided you were better off without them all. That, if they couldnt use some fucking logic, they werent worth it. You knew what actually happened.

You were better than them.

So, you buried the ruined jacket of your former best friend in the back of your closet– because despite it all, you didnt think you could just throw it away– and continued attending the rest of your senior year of high school. And you used that time in between getting classwork done to listen to all the rumors, to all the secrets that they accidentally let slip about themself. And you were close with them before, so you knew quite a lot about them already.

Then you used your grad party speech (because the host of the party wasnt part of that group and still one of your friends) to rip them to shreds. Because you knew all the little things about them that would break them. Because people just dont know how to keep their mouths shut.

You didnt spread highly over personal things, but you did plant the seeds for rumors about them to start that would haunt them for years. You knew how to fabricate stuff that would follow them around, because you wanted to be an author, so youd had a bit of practice. And it worked.

You moved away after that. Cut basically all contact with all except a few people from your hometown.

Because that wasnt the only thing that haunted you. You dont want to think about it right now though.

Youd have plenty of time too once the timeloop gets triggered, though.

[weishenbwi]

“I can’t believe I’m lost.” One unfortunate bump in the road because Mark just had to have his tea. Green tea of all things, he chides himself! And now he’s walking through the leaves in a dimly lit forest, lost, looking like a lumberjack thanks to Johnny’s insistence that he wear flannel, and that just makes him hate green tea even more. A bump in the road, no signal, and lost. Isn’t that how all horror movies start out? Mark thinks to himself with a shudder.

Something off in the distance grabs his attention. It’s bright. A fire? A UFO? He chuckles to himself halfheartedly, the shiver still present.  

It's too far away to distinguish.

He walks closer.  An hour passes. 

It’s getting darker but the object is more visible. A ring of fire in the shape of a circle, something tall and erect standing in the middle. Unmoving.

He walks closer.

How long has it been? 15 minutes? 30 minutes? Another hour? He’s already so tired. Why did you get off the main road? Because the local map said this was a shortcut. Why didn’t you just use your phone, Mark? Because I’m trying to conserve battery. His legs keep moving because that's all there’s left to do and he can’t remember what time it said when he looked at his phone last or what time it is now, but it doesn’t matter because something’s tied to a piece of wood in the center of the fire. It takes a few moments for it to register... “Something is tied to a piece of wood. Someone tied… Someone lit the fire.” 

He wasn’t alone.

“No Mark. Keep your calm. Keep cool. You’re fine. It’s fine.” Mark wasn’t known for being illogical. He’s an INFJ after all, something he secretly took pride in. The rare type, he thought, without allowing too much pride to take root in his heart. After all, he was a good Christian. And something-something Jesus’ example.

Now don’t be a fool, Mark. This is the middle of nowhere. NOTHING should be out here and you know it. The cold gripped him more closely, caressing his fear with a void and amplifying it.

“Unless… unless we’re much closer to civilization than I thought.” Mark attempts to calm himself. That’s all, he thinks positively. He tries to think back on the map, the sky not providing enough light to see it clearly and his flashlight having gone dead. It was unbelievable, really. He knows he’d charged it before he left AND packed a spare but nothing was working here.

“Isn’t that odd?” A voice quips.

Ignoring whatever he thought he heard, Mark walks closer. It could be onset delirium. Stay calm.

“Delirium? It’s only been a few hours. DON'T ignore me.”

Just stay calm, Mark. If there’s someone out here, he needs to be quiet. And actually, it’s a blessing that his flashlight stopped working because he would have used it and alerted anyone lurking of his presence.

He walks closer. More timidly now.

You shouldn't go further. Turn back now. An inner voice urges. Turn back before it's too late.

He walks closer, more quietly now, peering deeply as he hides behind a tree. To Mark’s horror, the piece of wood isn’t just a piece of wood erected. It’s a cross. Massive in height and heinously thick. Someone or some ones… because how could one person manage to construct a thing so freakishly large alone? No, not a thing. A cross burning in the middle of the woods and oh God, what is that?! “Oh God. Oh no…”

Mark’s careful whispers trail off. It wasn’t just a cross. There, burning in the middle of that abhorrent monstrosity, was a body. Its outstretched limbs strapped down, the creature thrashing against the wood and heat of the fire.

The smell of searing flesh reaching his senses. He feels like he's going to be sick.

“No…” He covers his ears and turns away. He’s not hearing anything. It’s no one. It’s no one. I’m just tired, only tired. He tries to breathe calmly. Don’t panic. He pinches himself. He can feel it. No, not a dream. Just tired.

And that’s when he hears them. Sounds coming from the fire. Chanting of some kind. But it’s no language he's ever heard. The sound… guttural rasping like something long since dead awakened, unable to use its voice. Learning how to use its voice. The unknown language and sinister whispers surrounding him, penetrating his mind and soul. This isn’t a dream. It’s a nightmare.

He looks back, toward the scene, like someone who keeps watching a horror movie when every instinct is telling them to look away, turn away. He tries to move but he can’t. Something is holding him in place. It knows, he thinks. It knows I’m here.

And that’s when he sees them. Someone is taking a vessel to each… person? Oh god… he’s not even sure they’re people. No, they CAN’T be people. They’re too tall, too thin. Wisps of fleshy tendrils under cloaks. Some as tall as the cross. Their lengths reaching nearly to the trees. Fleshly and yet... as if they're made of smoke devoured and expelled from the fire. They're all suspended above the circle, quiet and seemingly unaware of his presence. Thank you, Lord, he prays to anyone and no one at all.

Don't forget the body. Mark, open your eyes. It’s still burning. Are you going to leave it to die alone?

It’s not possible, Mark thinks, body dropping against the length of an aged red pine. He drops his head between his knees and shivers, praying more earnestly than he’d ever prayed in his life. Without a word. Without a whisper. No whisper in case they hear him. Can they hear? Do they sense vibrations? Can they hear my heart beating? It sounds so loud. W-what if they can hear my thoughts… He tries not to think of anything but his mind is racing as fast as his heart is beating.

He rocks his body to wake up from this hellish nightmare but it’s no use. And it's as if they do hear this thought because the next assault to his senses is the sound of weeping and groaning. It’s not from the forms at the fire or the burning body somehow still thrashing against its binds but a quiet echo at his ear. Mark buries his face into his legs, lips pressed to knees. He doesn’t want to look, doesn’t want to open his eyes.

The weeping comes closer. It’s no longer at his ear. It’s seeped inside him, sweet and sickly, bleeding out like maple from a tree. Mark shakes his head no as his eyes are forced open and his body is made to move forward, to the site where they gather.

They drink it willingly. You’ll drink too.

Mark sees the body still struggling, arms still stretched to the brink. But it isn’t making noise and he doesn’t question how. "It's only a silent struggle." Mark thinks, his legs carrying him further. Closer. His mind barely whispering for him to turn back.

He takes his place in the fire not questioning why it doesn’t hurt.

The vessel bearer finishes serving each of the forms before finally stopping at Mark. It bends low, low to the ground. It’s presence, cold and eerie. 

The creature struggles less now. Its body barely jerking in intervals giving up or out of energy. It doesn't matter, Mark reasons. The vessel bearer doesn't say anything, only motions for Mark to drink and Mark understands without a word to drink what's left.

As he drinks, Mark doesn't wonder what kind of substance it is. Water, tea, blood, or something else entirely. It doesn’t matter. He doesn't wonder anything at all. His mind has long ceased its chatter, withdrawing to distant recesses within.

Mark notices a strangely metallic taste as the creature struggles in its final moments, tethered to the wooden cross, flesh charred and reeking. The vessel bearer stands before Mark, its appendage reaching out to the now motionless creature, cutting off a piece of its flesh, and offering it as a gift to all in the circle.

Mark swallows everything he's given.

[lostintheloom]

An amateur urban explorer records his first and only expedition... and my very similar story at Wolfskuhlen

I actually had a similar experience. There is a big house called Wolfskuhlen in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. I lived not too far away from it back then. Less than one hour by bicycle… if you know the right way.

Back in 2007, I visited Wolfskuhlen for the first time, being only 15 years old, looking like a small Avril Lavigne. I had an enormous curiosity for horror, mysteries, but also for morbid and disturbing things. (I still have it but not that intense). So, I decided to go there all alone. In 2007, I didn't have a smartphone available, only an old Nokia phone for emergencies. I wrote down some directions and street names and even drew a little map. Equipped with a cheap digital camera and a flashlight, I embarked on a little journey into the unknown.

I completely lost my way amidst all the fields and ended up investigating the wrong forested area where I found the ruins of what seemed to be a small chapel or something like it. It had a big round table, a very small tower, and a well. Very unusual for Germany, especially that area. The atmosphere was somewhat melancholic but beautiful, and I listened to some music there while taking photos. Sadly, I no longer have those photos.

Later, I decided to find Wolfskuhlen. It was getting dark, and it started to get a bit eerie as I rode between the fields. It got darker and darker as the streetlights disappeared when I entered some dirt roads. The light from my bike was very weak, and I started to worry about getting completely lost in the dark. Somehow, I managed to find the house. It was a bit more intact than when I visited it a few years later.

I entered the house and found a strange room in the cellar with upside-down cruciform alcoves in the walls. There were things like candles and all sorts of junk lying around, as well as some creepy-looking metal gear, like big chains and a machine I couldn't recognize.

By now, the moon was shining down. I went behind the house because I had heard about a small graveyard and a bridge being there. There was indeed a bridge, but most of the area was inaccessible due to overgrown vegetation. Wolfskuhlen is surrounded by many legends and mysteries. As far as I know, it was the residence of a count or something like that. It burned down and became an orphanage where terrible things are said to have happened. There are stories about children being buried and walled in while still alive. Later, it burned down again. Some Devil worshippers held rituals or masses there in the 90s.

While returning to my bike, I wanted to go through the house again because it was easier than going around it. The ground was a muddy mess, and the vegetation had been left untended by humans for many years.

Then, I heard something in the house. It sounded like whispering. I took a few steps back, and the sounds disappeared. After a moment of silence, I heard loud footsteps in the house. It sounded like someone was walking around in there. It really gave me the chills. I was too afraid to use my flashlight and tried to run away through the area behind the house. I managed to find a small "passage" through the bushes and trees. It seemed like I could reach the road by taking that route. Eventually, I reached the road. I had to go back to the house to get my bike. While unlocking it, I looked back at the house and saw two figures that looked like women carrying some… large ropes? I was almost terrified and drove back to the streets of Budberg (the small town near the house) as fast as I could.

I visited the house two more times, in 2008 and 2009, I believe. But I brought friends with me then. I'm not going to do something like that alone again. It really taught me a lesson.

Sadly, the house had almost completely collapsed during our later visits. I wouldn't dare to enter that ruin now. It's too dangerous. I'm not sure how it looks today.

Here is a photograph I took back in 2007:

My reddit-post, containing the photograph: https://www.reddit.com/r/creepy/comments/3u2rko/i_wandered_this_forsaken_place_a_few_years_ago/

Fun fact: There is a German black metal band that used an old drawing of the house as the cover for one of their demo tapes. I can't remember the band's name right now, but I'm sure it's Wolfskuhlen.

This is what Wolfskuhlen looked like a long time ago:

[thewholecrew]

@headstrongblake said:  (🐺) Our muses hear howling in the distance. / nick &  rev

    rev loved the fact that there was a huge vast amount of forested land between the beach and the city. they’d been about to go out to meet hunter, knowing his transformations were always painful but had caught the eye of nick. you going somewhere? rev rolled their eyes at that, “duh, aren’t we always going somewhere?” they answered back most unhelpfully before giving him an actual answer, lips turning upwards into a smirk. “i’m going for a late night walk through the forest, you wanna come?” 

    honestly his answer had surprised rev which nick had seen and returned their smirk with his own, what? didn’t think an old fella like me would be up for the trip? he managed to get a laugh from rev who gave him a playful nudge, “alright, you might have surprised me but we’ll see how far you get before your back starts aching, might need to find you a walking stick.” they teased, smirk turning into a taunting grin.

     they’d been walking a while now, a little slower than rev would have liked but they couldn’t blame nick, he didn’t have night vision like rev did. all the same they listened for hunter. the forest was large but so were they when they changed and could cross a huge amount of ground with a few large strides. “watch your step,” they said for nick in a bored tone as they stepped over a root sticking out of the ground without really looking down. “how you doing back there?” they then asked, stopping and turning back. they hadn’t brought a light -- rev hadn’t needed it, but nick had taken out his phone to use as a flashlight. 

     “tired yet?” rev teased before the two of them stilled hearing a deep howl within the woods. it sounded fairly far away and rev was thankful. they did not want to explain or save nick from their brother who didn’t have complete control of his inner wolf. they had both turned towards the noise, a small smile tugging at rev’s lips. they had wanted to go join him. go run around and wrestle him but the old man decided to come along. it was rev’s fault for inviting him but..

     their gaze returned to nick and they grinned, wiggling their brows, raising their hands to look like monster claws. “you’re not scared of the big bad wolf are you, gramps?”

[coughbloodonthemoonsoon]

560 words creative writing assignment to "take a risk", I chose writing in an "unusual point of view" (second person)

Your car breaks down on the side of the road well after nightfall. There’s dense forest on either side of the narrow road, the branches of the trees heavy with snow. You try to call for help but there’s no service, so you sit in your car and wait for someone to drive by. After over an hour with no sign of life besides yourself you decide to get out of your car and walk until you reach civilization. The moment you open the car door the wind whips across your face, a gust of snow blowing into your car. Nevertheless, you exit the vehicle and begin your trek down the road, the way you were heading. When the light from your headlights doesn’t reach you anymore you use your cellphone flashlight to guide your way. 

Even with the light you can barely see five feet in front of you. The falling snowflakes are fat and wet, sticking to your hair, your eyelashes, your clothes. The wind cuts through you, making your teeth chatter. You’re not dressed for the weather; you didn’t expect to have to walk in it. You’re thankful you’re wearing gloves, at least. You’ve been walking for so long you’re starting to forget where you were going. A birthday party, you think, or maybe a baby shower. The only sounds you can hear are the crunching of the snow underfoot and the wind howling through the bare tree branches. 

It’s becoming hard for you to hold your phone in your numb, trembling hands. The gnarled branches of the trees stretch towards the sky. You can’t be sure, but they seem to be getting taller and leaning in as you walk, making you feel claustrophobic. You don’t know how long you’ve been walking but you get the notification that your phone is at twenty percent. You stop walking. The last thing you want is to be stranded in the woods during a blizzard with no light. After a minute of thinking, you turn around, walking back in the direction of your car. Your tracks have been completely covered by the snow. 

Something isn’t right. You’ve been walking for long enough to reach your car, you’re sure of it, but there’s no sign of it. The road is straight with no turns or side streets so you couldn’t have gone the wrong way. Your phone’s battery percentage is in the single digits and the snowfall has gotten so heavy you can barely see your hand in front of your face. Your flashlight probably isn’t doing anything to help your sight, but it’s making you feel a little safer. You can’t feel your legs and with every step it’s more and more difficult to lift your feet out of the dense snow to take a step. Finally, you can’t, and instead of stepping forward you trip on the snow and stumble, sending your phone a few feet in front of you as you fall on your hands and knees. 

You pull yourself into a sitting position with your knees against your chest, not finding the strength to stand up. The sky is beginning to streak with orange. You’re sure someone will find you soon, now that the sun is rising. You close your eyes and rest your head on your knees, the thought comforting you as you drift to sleep.