#// for the animal potw :)

[notstinky]

TIMING: August 29th, 2014, 2017, 2023 LOCATION: Toronto, Ontario (2014, 2017) & Wicked's Rest, Maine (2023) SUMMARY: It's Thea's birthday and she's hungry. (POTW: Once in a Blue Moon) CONTENT WARNINGS: Vomit tw, teeth trauma tw, child death tw, some implicit fatphobia

2014

Cynthia had never seen so much junk food piled up in one place. There were family sized bags of Lay’s chips, plates full of cookies, a tray of brownies, two boxes of garlic bread from the pizza place Cynthia’s dad liked accompanied by a pepperoni pizza from the same place. Someone brought char siu bao, Cynthia’s favourite--probably her aunt. Plates and plates of noodles and fried rice weighed their poor, plastic picnic table down, bending it worryingly in centerfold. She’d happily, though politely, filled her first plate; taking a small assortment of everything offered and doing her best not to dribble saliva everywhere when she asked who brought what so she could remember to thank her family accordingly. The first plate was always strategy; sampling the waters to see what was good before the full, filling second plate and if she was daring, a third. It was her birthday, after all. Maybe it was a third plate kind of day. 

Cynthia reached down to pull a plump pork bun into her plate when she heard someone grumble from behind her. Instantly, she recognised the sound: it was a deep rumble that summoned itself from the dark pits of the lungs, an animal sound that no one else could recreate. “Nainai.” Cynthia twisted, smiling at her grandmother. 

Her grandmother, her father’s mother, was a thin woman with pale skin that stretched over her face in thick folds. Age had turned her spine down, forcing her into a hunch she resented and  twisted her clear voice into a growling like an angry dog. She wasn’t often a pleasant woman, but her love for her children and their children wasn’t a topic that ever needed to be debated; birthday and Chinese New Year envelopes of cash were always stuffed full. She reached down and took the skin around Cynthia’s hip and squeezed. 

Cynthia’s smile faltered. “Nainai,” she said, continuing in broken Mandarin; a child’s voice even though she was certifiably a teenager now, “are you having fun?” 

“You are,” her grandmother responded, turning her pinch into a poke. “You’re too old for this now.” 

Cynthia frowned, the used plate in her hand wobbled as pain erupted from her grandmother’s prodding fingers. The bun slipped from her hand and joined its friends on the plate. “Too old?”

Her grandmother pulled the plate from her hands. “Once is enough.” And then she was gone, dissolved into the bodies of her family and their friends. 

Cynthia didn’t know what to do, her stomach wasn’t satisfied. During the night, she thought it was eating her from the inside, trying to feed itself on her paltry flesh.

—

2023

Thea had a system, a technique. There was a method to wrapping hardware-store-chain around a tree, slipping inside, and then pulling it tight around her. Most of the time, it worked. Sometimes, she didn’t do it right. One time she ripped the tree out from the ground, roots and all. Bit by bit, she was perfecting her strategy. Having her body snap into a new shape every month wasn’t something she could get used to and it would never be something she liked, but there was peace to be found in the mundane actions of a practiced routine.

She’d tried everything: crates, rooms, basements, handcuffs, gorging herself on meats prior to the turn, sleeping pills, a cave, a roof, asking really nicely, crying, prayer, looking up cures online, cages, making herself look like an idiot by asking for cures in person, some restraints that definitely seemed like they were for kinky sex stuff. Nothing worked but her technique made it easier. If she went deep into the woods, found the thickest tree, kept a bag with a change of clothes nearby (scented strongly with oranges so she could find it through the stench of leaves and dirt) she could manage something. She’d still eat something, she’d still hope that something wasn’t human, she’d still hurt, but she could go home and crawl into bed and forget about it. 

“Happy birthday to me.” Thea pulled her dirty green backpack closer, unzipping the top pocket and pulling out a single cupcake contained in a plastic box. At the store, she thought a candle would have been overkill but now she missed the drama of blowing one out and she could certainly use the wish. Sugar filled her nose, followed by the punch of strawberry jam; her sense of smell turned even the greatest delicacies into a nightmare of sensations. Sugar was too sweet, it made her teeth ache just thinking about it; fruits were tart; spice was a fire shoved into her nostrils. If it wasn’t her birthday, she wouldn’t have gotten it but traditions were traditions and nothing brough Thea more peace. 

Her tongue darted out, lapping up the whipped cream and pulling it into her drooling mouth. The fat melted against her tongue as sugar coated her teeth. All the delicate air that had been whipped into it disappeared as it went down her throat, cooling her esophagus. She unclenched her jaw, eager for another bite when she heard it. 

Snap.

Probably just an animal.

Crunch. Heartbeats that went quickly: thump-thump-thump. Laughter. 

Thea paled and from the row of trunks in front of her, three heads popped out, each of their gazes snapping on to her. Laughter died from their lips and smiles turned thin. Thea thought she might laugh instead, the three of them looked like something out of an outdoor equipment catalogue: a handsome, tall man with the sort of square jaw that seemed to only exist in fiction; a more attractive, tastefully not-as-tall-as-the-man woman with her blonde hair tied up into a ponytail that betrayed none of the effort of hiking; and a child with soft blonde hair that fell around his head in tiny waves and big, watery brown eyes; each of them wore blue hiking gear, and both of the adults carried big bags while the man wheeled around a cooler. The child ran at the woman’s legs, clutching her calf tightly. They looked like the sort of people that people missed; the sort of people that made sensational headlines, tacky true crime documentaries, conspiracy theory youtube videos. 

Thea hadn’t smelled anyone on her way up but it was hard to pick scents out from the cacophony of them that she got constantly. She hadn’t heard them either, not until they were right here, and she wasn’t very good at picking sounds out from the barrage of little nature noises. 

Thea balked. “I--um…”

The man spoke up first: “Hello,” he said. “Can we help you?”

“It’s uh…” Thea wasn’t a good liar on the best of her days, on the worst of them she could give a puddle a run for its money. Instantly, cool sweat pooled in the small of her back and her palms felt sticky. “I’m, uh…” She remembered an episode of The Simpsons where Lisa lived in a tree so they wouldn’t cut it down. “Environment conservation,” she said. 

The man nodded slowly. “Are they going to cut that tree down?” He didn’t seem to believe her, Thea could tell because she heard his heartbeat quicken and she smelled sharp sweat--though, that could have just been her. 

“Yes,” she said quickly. “That’s exactly it!”

“Okay.” The woman pushed the man forward, stabbing her hiking stick into the dirt as she moved along. 

Above, the sky darkened. The sweat that concentrated on her back now pushed out from every pore, running down her body in thick rivulets. “Uh,” she called out, “wait.”

The woman didn’t want to stop but the man turned to her, using his body to block the child and the woman.  

“It, uh, It isn’t safe here,” she said, “bears.” 

The man tapped a can on his belt: “bear mace” it read. Of course, they seemed like they had all the bells and whistles of a responsible camper. 

“N-no, I’m serious.” Thea tried again. “Like, super serious! It’s really dangerous! You have to go back. You have to go the other way.” 

The man nodded slowly again, his eyes narrowed. “Why are you here then?” 

She didn’t have a good answer for that.

They turned to leave once more and Thea jerked against her chain, her cupcake slipped from her hands and sunk into the dirt. “No!” she shrieked, wincing at the shrillness of her voice. The family continued to move. Above, the burning edge of the sunset was dissolving into blue. Thea lurched against the chain again and the metal gouged into her flesh, slicing her clothes and pinching her muscles. “No! I’m serious! Go the other way! Go back!”

They continued to push through the trees. Above the crackle of leaves under their perfect hiking boots and the pulse raging in Thea’s ears, she heard the woman say: “we should pitch the tent before it gets dark.”

And the man: “I don’t want to be anywhere near the girl.”

The woman: “It’s getting dark, we don’t have a choice.” 

“No!” Thea howled, twisting and pulling on the chains; her technique was too good, she couldn’t get out. She writhed against the tree, bark scraped her back, digging in like the claws of an animal. The chains seem to tighten with each motion; they squeezed against her bones and her body erupted with aches and sharp stabbing pains. “Go back!” 

Above, the sky turned black and the moon hung above, bright and beautiful and demanding. 

—

2017

“Fuck.” 

Cynthia’s life was thoroughly ruined and it had been her own, stupid, hands that had done it. She’d been talking to Leslie about the recent total solar eclipse, which she could tell Leslie wasn’t really interested in hearing about—she did that thing where she absently picked dirt under her nails and flicked it away, the same thing she did in math class—but Thea couldn’t stop the excited drool of words that spilled from her mouth. She’d ordered only one pizza when she’d meant to order two. One pizza for four people wasn’t so bad until you remember that this was a pack of ravenous teenage girls; the sort that deliberately packed and ate dainty lunches at school so they wouldn’t get comments. Leslie ate a bag of chips for lunch. Zainab had water and an apple. Jalisa had leftovers from last night’s dinner but she only ate half of it. 

Due to an ill timed volleyball meet, Cynthia hadn’t eaten anything at all. 

One pizza wasn’t enough. To make matters worse, she’d tipped the pizza delivery man ten cents when she thought the machine was doing percentages. Fuck. He probably thought she was an asshole. She was an asshole. Fuck. 

The pizza box trembled with the earthquake that was Cynthia’s body. She thought about throwing herself down on the floor, subjecting herself to the mercy of her friends, who were crowded around the tiny coffee table trying to play Catan. 

“You can’t do that,” Jalisa said, gesturing at the hex-tile board. 

“Why not?” Zainab blinked. “I think that’s a legal move.” 

“Nuh-uh, ‘cause I was gonna go there. So, you can’t.”

“What are you talking about? This is a competitive game, we’re competing.”

“I thought it was cooperative.” Jalisa grinned sharply; trap set.

“You’re so dumb.” Leslie piped in now. She was, as per usual, winning. “Why would you think that? We literally have our own pieces. There’s only one winner.” 

Jalisa's trap snapped shut; her joke executed: “So,” she said, grinning like a hyena. “...we’re not cooperating to let me win?” 

“Where did the gray man go?” Zainab asked. “There’s supposed to be a gray man.” 

“Why do we play these?” Jalisa nudged the table with her knee, undoing the delicate work of Leslie’s road, which she would, as per usual, be awarded ‘the longest road’ for. “No one’s good at them ‘cept Leslie and you and Cindy argue about rules for like two hours.” 

“Because,” Zainab sighed, “Cindy likes them, and it’s her birthday so just—“

“Cindy!” Leslie rose, holding her hands out to help with the pizza and the jostling cups of garlic dip and box of brownies. 

Cynthia set everything down on the table, right on top of the Catan pieces, knocking them out of place. “Pizza!” she exclaimed, anxiety tying her stomach up like roller skates, which her skin coincidentally felt like it was being trampled with. She flicked open the box, sending more game pieces to the ground, and let the aroma of cheese and the only topping they could all agree on, green bell peppers, waft into the air. Half was done up with chilli flakes while the other was speckled with mushrooms. Zainab fetched plates while Jalisa carefully peeled open the containers of garlic sauce. 

The twenty dollars her dad had given her to order food for today, which she had deposited into her bank account on the way to school so she wouldn’t have to carry cash, wasn’t really enough for the grand idea of cheap pizza and brownies that Cynthia had. But now that she was sixteen she could get a job, and she’d have real money to order better, bigger pizzas instead of the allowance her dad gave her and the odd burst of money her mother did when she remembered that she existed and then felt guilty about forgetting her but only for as long as it took her to transfer money. 

Each of her friends took a polite and sensible singular slice except Cynthia, who took the plate Zainab offered her and walked it back into the cabinet where it belonged. 

“You’re not going to eat, Cindy?” Leslie called out, picking at the bell peppers even though she said they were okay and she liked them. Cynthia’s stomach churned; she knew Leslie was a picky eater, she could eat more hot sauce than any normal human but she didn’t like vegetables. She’d fucked up and people who fucked up needed to be the ones who made sacrifices. 

“I’m not hungry.” Cynthia’s stomach scraped against her body, howling. “I ate a lot when I came home.” 

—

2023

Thea heaved, a cold, pale, naked and sweaty lump on the ground. She groaned, clawing at her bloated abdomen. Thea twisted, pushing herself up to a sitting position. Once her body sensed a state of up-rightness, Thea curled into herself as bloody globs of saliva dripped from her open mouth. Something twisted up her throat and she gagged, spilling two small, hard circles into the mud below. She gagged again, reaching a filthy, blood-crusted finger down her gullet. She pulled and tugged and felt something slither out of her mouth. Tendrils still hung from her lips as she looked down.

Two tiny molars and a long string of blonde hair. 

Her stomach growled and the desire to have a burger flooded her mind.

#i meant to post this sooner but sadkjfhaksdjfh #pretend i did this on her birthday #writing #s1 #solo #hunger #vomit tw #teeth trauma tw #the last paragraph was hard to write but i powered through for the art askdjhaskdjfskdjfh #child death tw

[vanoincidence]

Zoo Blues || Van & Regan

TIMING: a few weeks ago, before the current potw. LOCATION: the zoo. PARTIES: @kadavernagh & @vanoincidence SUMMARY: van and regan go to the zoo :) CONTENT WARNINGS: n/a.

Van stood next to the sign, hands beneath her chin, presenting herself as if a flower. It’d been a long time since she’d come to the zoo, and though she hadn’t anticipated going with Dr. Kavanagh of all people, she decided she would do anything for the bit. She couldn’t back down now. What if it had been a test? As much as Van would have rather stayed home and burrowed beneath her blankets some more, she’d told somebody she was going to do something, so now she had to do it. She walked over to the woman who had agreed to take hers and Regan’s photo on her phone and grabbed her phone gratefully. She turned to Dr. Kavanagh with a big smile, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Do you want to see?” Dr. Kavanagh had just sort of… stood there, but that didn’t matter. She wanted this to be like a real trip to the zoo, no matter how unhinged the decision to go had truly been. She’d only met Dr. Kavanagh once, but she’d been nice enough, and she was a doctor! Knew animals! She could probably tell Van about everything she pointed out. That was what…. doctors did, right?

The bottom of the ocean would have been preferable to the zoo. At least there might be some interesting bones or remains down there. Maybe a whale fall. But Regan had not inadvertently agreed to go to the bottom of the ocean. And now, standing in front of a stranger snapping a photo of her and Van, her grin so wide it took up half her face, Regan decided that being one of her own patients at the morgue would have also been preferable. “No.” Regan said in response. She didn’t want to see the photo of her standing stiffly there in her coat, scowling, while children with balloons traipsed through the background. “Just tell me where you would like to go, what you would like to see, and we will make that our first and last stop.” 

There were so many people here. So many ticking timebombs, marching closer toward death with each step, and they didn’t even know it. She studied the elderly, the sneezing children, and shied away from getting too close. Her grandmother had forced her into places like this in the name of training, and while Regan had managed to swallow back the occasional scream, she didn’t have a batting rate of one hundred. The hospital was too much. The hospice, far too much. The zoo in a town with a skyrocketing death rate? Well, that remained to be seen. They wouldn’t be here long, she told herself.

As an ostrich poked its head through the nearby chain link enclosure, Regan shivered. She wasn’t fond of animals, not while they were alive. Or maybe she just didn’t trust herself near them. Whatever the case, it was easier to think of them as objects, denying them their ability to feel pain or emotion, much like herself. Van, though, seemed to like them. Maybe she had been visiting Aneurysm in her spare time. Regan shifted uneasily in her coat and pointed in the other direction, away from the ostrich. “There are fewer people in that direction, over by the…” What animal was it? She saw a sign. “...Worms.” Okay, she had some questions. But the thin crowd was appealing.  

Dr. Kavanagh didn’t seem too pleased to be at the zoo, but if she didn’t want to go, she wouldn’t have said yes. Van didn’t typically care what adults thought about her, anyway. This was like Emilio, only to a different degree. Dr. Kavanagh had at least helped her with her hay problem! All Emilio had done was slap cheese out of her hand and make her drink out of his pot of coffee. She frowned slightly at the memory before looking over to Dr. Kavanagh who waved away the offer to see the photo. She gave it one more look before shoving her phone into her pocket. 

It probably wasn’t a great idea to go somewhere crowded, but she couldn’t back down from an invitation, not when it was with an adult who Van knew would want to be doing literally anything else. She could bet that if it were Gael, he would have jumped at the chance. But then that’d make her efforts useless; this was to test boundaries and limits to see what an adult might do for her. Gael would probably do anything, if she asked nice enough. Because he was nice. She didn’t like that he was so nice. She liked it better when adults were mean and weren’t trying to take care of her. Dr. Kavanagh probably didn’t care about her at all. It was better that way. 

“I’d like to see some tigers, if there are any here.” She looked around before her gaze fell on the ostrich that was snapping its beak through the fence. At Dr. Kavanagh’s suggestion, Van’s gaze followed her outstretched finger. “You want to see the worms?” Maybe she should photoshop Dr. Kavanagh’s face onto the Alaskan Bullworm photo like she had Owen and Emilio. That would be funny. But something told her that the woman wouldn’t really appreciate it. “Sure, we can go and see the worms.” Even if the worms that were dropping out of trees across the common were terrifying. “What kinds of worms do you think they have?” She folded her hands together, looking up at Dr. Kavanagh as they walked. Just before the exhibit, there was a stall selling cotton candy. “Should we get some?” She looked over at Dr. Kavanagh briefly before deciding for herself. She pulled out her duct tape wallet and forked over the cash before coming away with a bright blue and pink mount of whipped sugar. “Do you want any?” 

Regan squinted into the enclosure, unable to see anything at first. But there, in the center, were a few earthworms wriggling through the dirt. A child pulled down on his mother’s arm and pointed excitedly at the worms. “Yes, I see dear,” the mother said, seemingly trying to concentrate on the animals herself without the distraction of the child. Regan shook her head in annoyance and turned to Van, but she was gone. “Van?” Regan called out. “Where did you –oh.” There she was. And with cotton candy? “Um, no, no, that’s alright. You know those are all sugar, right? With some food coloring. And who knows where the vendor’s hands have been.” It was a bit hypocritical seeing as she had somewhat of a sweet tooth herself, but Van didn’t need to know that. She inhaled a deep breath, letting it sit in her lungs for a moment, and then slowly drew it out. No urge to scream. And getting away from the crowd had helped. But everyone wanted to see the tigers. She had to be ready.

She slipped her hands inside of the thick pockets of her coat to obscure the fact her nails had dug pits into her palms. “They just have regular earthworms in here, I think. I don’t understand why. They have plenty of animals people would pay to see. Maybe they’re trying to pad out their inventory.” She gave the worms another glance and still didn’t get it. But then, she didn’t really get the appeal of zoos in the first place. Why go to a zoo when there are natural history museums with the same beasts after death had done its part? “But, uh, let’s go see the tigers. And then we can leave, right? Is that the only reason you wanted to come here? The tigers?” She allowed herself a glimmer of hope. One animal and they’d be done. A sign offered some helpful guidance, with an arrow pointed down the main pathway and images of animals floating around it: tigers, elephants, flamingos, and what looked like a mole.

“Yeah, I know. But the blue always tastes like blue even if it doesn’t taste like blue. You know?” This was something that Van was adamant about. Red flavor usually sucked, no matter what it was supposed to taste like, and blue flavor always ruled. Pink was … somewhere in the middle. But the comment about the vendor’s hands made Van frown. She looked at her sugary snack and then looked back up to Dr. Kavanagh before shrugging, breaking off a wad of the cotton candy and shoving it into her mouth. She had eaten worse things. 

“Just earthworms…” Those were the ones people kept talking about helped decay dead things. She wondered if they’d visited– No. She wouldn’t think about a family of earthworms visiting her parents six feet under. She refused, actually. Van inhaled sharply, not realizing she had slightly mirrored Dr. Kavanagh in doing so. She looked over her cotton candy to the worm exhibit, gaze traveling over the glass terrariums. All she could see from where she stood was dirt. That wasn’t very fun. Dr. Kavanagh had asked her a question. She pulled her attention away from the worms and looked at the white haired woman expectantly, as if hoping she would repeat what she had said. She had drank two red bulls before coming out today, it should have been enough, but she still found exhaustion had its hold on her. 

She ran through the possibilities of what the doctor had asked her and she nodded, figuring that might be the safest bet. Shit. What if Dr. Kavanagh had asked her to go on one of the kiddie coasters they had across the zoo? But after observing her company for a moment, something deep down told her that was not the case. Van took another wad of the cotton candy and shoved it into her mouth, wiping her sticky fingers off on the napkin that was wrapped around the paper cone. As they walked, Van found her attention stretching thin– it jumped from one animal to the next, all the while sight set on the sign that advised tigers were ahead. Excitement burrowed itself into her, and for a moment, she felt a bit like a kid again. It was weird, considering how awkward this encounter was. But it felt like a regular zoo trip. “I think they’re over there!” She pointed at the farside of the walkway where a giant plastic tiger was on its hind legs, paws outstretched and mouth open. “I think if I were an animal I’d want to be a tiger, but really I think that I’d just be…” She didn’t know what she’d be. “What would I be? And what would you be, Dr. Kavanagh?” Maybe conversation would erase some of the unease the other wore on her features– and it was a nice distraction for herself, too. 

“An animal in the zoo?” Regan’s lips sank at the thought of being gawked at all day, every day. She preferred being a wallflower, unnoticed by all except those engaging her in intelligent conversation. Unfortunately, the screaming and the wings scoffed at her desire to be invisible. She also, for unrelated reasons, didn’t care to spare much thought to live animals. It was easiest that way. She nudged the thought away. “We are what we are,” she explained, finding Van’s desire to be a tiger both childish and distasteful. “What makes you so discontent?” Cliodhna would have agreed that humans were inferior to tigers, but she also knew that humans weren’t aware of their inferiority. So shouldn’t Van have been content and stupid? Or perhaps that wasn’t even the point of this mental exercise. Regan pushed the thought away and let herself be tugged along by Van, whose attention snapped from one animal to the next. One enclosure up ahead had throngs of people around it, little children leaning against the glass and adults snapping their cameras at whatever was inside. Regan tilted her head in curiosity, and the nearby sign answered her question. “The tigers are over here,” she pointed, “though I don’t know how much of a view you’ll get with all of these people around.” So many people…

Something lurched inside her, a shadow creeping through her gut, making her pause. She stood, staring at the crowd. It was nothing. Nerves. Regan shook her head and looked at Van. Just in case. “Let’s be quick about it, alright?”

“Oh, you like Kesha too?” Van wasn’t sure if Dr. Kavanagh actually liked Kesha, or if she’d come up with the explanation on her own. Maybe she would take a test later, and take it for her companion, too. She could probably DM the results, right? She looked around their surroundings, gaze searching for the stripes of the tiger. At Dr. Kavanagh’s question, Van shrugged. “Not discontented, just think that being a tiger would be like, super cool.” She’d be big, and people would be afraid of her. Then again, people were already afraid of her. Those who knew, at least. There were a lot of people and it made Van’s skin itch. She didn’t particularly like the idea of pushing into a crowd of people to get a good look. Maybe they could swing around later. She wasn’t sure if Dr. Kavanagh would last that long. 

She tossed a glance over her shoulder at her puffer coated companion and nodded. Wasn’t she a little warm in that? Van tried to crane her neck to get a view of the tiger, but it seemed to be laying against the glass based off of the shrieks of delight from the guests ahead of them. Disappointment shrouded her and she turned around to look at Dr. Kavanagh. “I don’t think we’ll see it, we can go see the…” She squinted at the sign with the arrow pointing out of the small caved exhibit. “It looks like anteaters are that way. I thought they did this regionally?” She shrugged, slightly miffed by the lack of tiger sighting, before making the decision to head forth into the next exhibit, only looking slightly over her shoulder to see if Dr. Kavanagh had changed her mind about the cotton candy she offered once again. 

She was giving up. Van was giving up. Something snapped to life inside Regan. “No. You were excited to see the tigers. As inconsequential as that is, you paid money to come here and you are entitled to see them.” She wasn’t sure why she cared. There weren’t many things she cared about, really. But this seemed an injustice, and Van had really wanted to go here, hadn’t she? Her lifespan was short. She should have tigers. And then they could leave. Regan wrapped her hand around Van’s shoulder to anchor her so she didn’t run off to see the anteaters just yet. “Follow me. I will get us closer.” She wasn’t even sure what she intended to do; she wasn’t about to push children out of the way. But maybe the crowd would part in response to the oddity of her coat.

As they got closer to the crowd, she had a flush of lightheadedness. She waved it away as weak nerves. Shameful. Not to be dwelled upon now. She would answer for it later. Regan tried to wedge the two of them closer to the glass. “Excuse me. This child must see the tigers.” People were, indeed, giving her a strange look and wide berth. And as something twisted deep within her gut and brought a chill to her skin, those confused eyes on her started growing mixed with… something that resembled concern. It was the fierce pressure that whipped up in her lungs that forced her recognition. Regan froze and tried to hide her need to bowl over.

She knew, instinctively, that this was the pivotal moment. Stay, and let the force inside her swell into an explosive wail, or back away and let it sizzle out in her lungs before it could even ignite. If she got far enough away, and quickly enough, she wouldn’t need to endure swallowing the scream back. But she was also rapidly losing her ability to focus on anything other than clamping her mouth shut. She turned to Van, humiliating desperation in her eyes. She muttered between the flaring of her lungs. “I need to get out of here right now.” She could only hope Van had enough of the tigers by now.

Van did not bother to hide the disappointment of Dr. Kavanagh not asking her who Kesha was, or verifying that she was a fan. Instead, her zoo companion must have mistaken her discontentment over that for the tigers, though if Van were being honest, that was only a little bit of it. She blinked at the pale-haired woman and allowed herself to be directed into the throng of people, keeping her elbows tucked in so that she didn’t accidentally jab anyone in the process. 

Dr. Kavanagh was speaking, something about a child– OH, she was the child. Van waved at the woman that gave them both a look. The urge to explain that she was twenty died at the back of her throat because as soon as she opened her mouth to squawk it out, a tiger’s tail slapped against the glass. Van’s eyes grew wide and she shoved forward, her cotton candy pressed as closely against her chest to avoid hitting anyone (or the glass) with it. Van pressed her face against the glass, pointing at the tigers, only to look behind her at Dr. Kavanagh who looked like she was about to blow chunks. Gross. Oh god, was she afraid of people, too? She’d forgotten her own discomfort by Dr. Kavangh’s insistence that she needed to see the tigers. 

She wasn’t sure what to do. She wasn’t childish enough to insist that they stay. This was just a zoo and it would always be here. She didn’t know Dr. Kavanagh well, but she figured that when a doctor said she needed to leave, she needed to leave. Maybe she had a burrito for lunch and was afraid of farting in front of everyone, Van didn’t know. But she’d been there. “Okay.” Van shoved a woman out of the way– the same one who looked at her with the knowledge of her not being a child. “She’s a doctor and you need to move.” Van forced herself (and her anxiety) down, knocking into somebody else. The cotton candy went abandoned, being trampled on by toddlers as they mimicked the way Van had been pressed against the glass only moments before. 

Van followed Dr. Kavanagh out of the exhibit– cave no more, and adjusted the strap of her backpack as she leaned against a fence that was a decent enough distance from any other patrons. Dr. Kavanagh was still a few feet away from her now. She didn’t look any better. Concern twisted Van’s expression. “Are you…?” She was a doctor, so if something was wrong, obviously she’d know it, right? “Do you need water?” 

Van somehow cleared the way, tiny though she was. And it helped. Regan only needed to focus on not screaming. She didn’t need to weave through an uncooperative crowd. But even as they moved away from the epicenter, there were still so many people. Walking past. Pushing up against exhibits. Every one of them felt like they could light the fuse to her bomb. Whoever had spurred this, she couldn’t tell. She gave up the right to know when she’d scrambled away, and slowly, the sensation of knowing doom slid between her fingers like the last grains in a fistful of sand.

Regan shook her head vigorously. No water. Well, she didn’t need it. But it probably would have been nice. No one had ever offered her water like that before. Her hands were sweaty and it was so hot under the coat, and she still didn’t trust herself to open her mouth, not here. Regan tugged at Van’s arm and pointed toward the exit gate. Only once they started heading in that direction and the crowd thinned around them did Regan open her mouth and take a series of fast, shallow breaths. “Sorry. I’m so sorry. I get – sometimes, the crowds – it’s difficult to explain. It’s a medical condition. It is not anxiety. I don’t get anxious. I have no anxiety.” Her stomach complained at the bold lie. She wanted to kick herself. But even Cliodhna would have called this a success. She went somewhere teeming with people and prevented a scream. The failure, then, was her feeling any way about it at all. Relief was no better than guilt, and a strange mix of both flooded her. She looked at Van, who had done an admirable job helping, but Regan never should have needed assistance from a child. From anyone. “At least tell me you saw the tiger.”

Dr. Kavanagh said she didn’t want water and Van felt the helplessness roll over her. She wasn’t sure what else to do. For once, it was nice being on the other side of this– the side of things where somebody was trying to hold it together, where she wasn’t the one trying to hold it together. It was different than normal, she wasn’t sure how to approach it. And then Dr. Kavanagh explained it wasn’t anxiety. Maybe the heat, then? Or maybe Dr. Kavanagh didn’t want her to know she had anxiety. Van couldn’t really understand that, anxiety was a normal thing. Loads of people had it, but who was she to say that a doctor definitely had it if she was saying she didn’t? 

Van focused her attention on Dr. Kavanagh, noticing that the coat was tightly snug against her neck, zipped all the way up. It was possible that it was heat exhaustion, even if it wasn’t all that warm to begin with. All of the people did make it a little sweatier. At least Dr. Kavanagh hadn’t ripped ass in front of a crowd. At her question, Van nodded. “Yeah, I saw it.” She stuck her hands into her front pockets, thumbs sticking awkwardly out as the rest of her fingers dug into the fabric and old paperclips. “Are you actually okay?” She noticed now, the lack of cotton candy. Dammit. “We can go if you want. You don’t…. look great.” She untucked one hand, motioning towards herself, “I say that as someone who’s like, always crying and always anxious. It’s okay to be those things, even if you’re like, not.” She eased into a smile and looked back towards the crowds. She’d been so distracted by the impromptu trip that she hadn’t managed to focus on her own anxieties. It was a weird thing, to be concerned with something else that took precedence. “We can definitely go, we can get water. You look like you need water, so let’s go get water.” Before Dr. Kavanagh could object, she motioned in the direction of one of the carts outside of the zoo. Even though it’d been a short trip to the zoo, at least she’d gone at all, and for the most part, she had a good time, even if a little odd. 

At least one thing had gone right today: Van had seen the tiger. Though it seemed like the girl barely even cared. Her eyes were on Regan. And even though they’d made their way out of the crowd and the scream had been snipped before it could bloom, the way Van was looking at her made her feel as though the world was closing in on her all over again. She felt small and out of control. It was an insult, and Van could never understand that. A banshee should never be looked at with such pity. Cliodhna would have given Van a demonstration on why. Regan, however, was too weak-willed. She wasn’t going to passively accept the insult, though. “I am not anxious and I do not cry,” she stated, trying to keep it from coming out as a hiss as her eyes narrowed. “This is completely unrelated to whatever repellant things are felt by –” She gestured vaguely to the people sightseeing at the zoo. Van was included in that. “Them.” She gave Van a clear-eyed look. “I am better.” Whether she meant better than everyone else, or feeling better, would be left to Van’s interpretation.

Regan's pride still refused to allow her to accept the water. She waved off Van's offer with a dismissive gesture. "I don't need it," she muttered, her voice tinged with stubbornness. She was determined to maintain her facade of self-reliance, even if it meant denying herself something as basic as water. And especially when coming from the hands of a human child. "You have seen the tigers. We saw the worms. Let's just go," she said, her tone curt. She turned to head towards the exit, her coat snug around her like a sweaty but protective barrier, keeping any hint of vulnerability buried underneath.

It was like that time at the stables when Dr. Kavanagh snapped beneath the weight of something that she could not see. Whatever demons this doctor was fighting, Van was pretty sure she wanted no part. She had offered comfort in her own way– asking if she was okay, telling her they could get water, and both were denied. The look in Dr. Kavanagh’s eye was a confusing one, but not one that she didn’t understand at its core. She’d done something wrong, something annoying as she always had. It wasn’t a big deal. Couldn’t be. This was a doctor who took her to the zoo to make sure she saw some tigers, nothing else. 

“I’m glad you’re feeling better already. That was quick.” Whether it was that or something else, she didn’t know, and she wasn’t sure if she wanted to ask more questions on the matter. It looked like Dr. Kavanagh was becoming passively annoyed with her, even if it didn’t actually show in her expression. She watched as the older woman turned on her heel, stalking the rest of the way out of the zoo. Van’s frown deepened and she shrugged, despite the doctor not being able to see her. “Hey, do you think an apple would make you feel better? You know, ‘cause an apple a day keeps the doctor away, but you’re a doctor and so that–” She cut herself off, clearing her throat. “The worms and the tigers were cool, so yeah, we can go.” And she followed Dr. Kavanagh out, her own anxieties left behind her, for at least one day. 

#para: zoo blues #para: regan #wickedswriting

[wickedsrest-rp]

Welcome to our weekly round-up! We do these every week to provide plot drops, highlight starters posted that week, and share other information about the setting. Anyone is welcome to use these bullet points in starters, plots, anons etc. Also let us know if you want us to include one of your setting-related plots in here for next week by sending us a bullet point!

What’s new in town?:

Strange crystals have overtaken the town, and touching them creates a "link" to the doomed people of Bleak Point. Some may find they have a stranger influencing their actions, while others might find their emotions amplified. The least fortunate may transform into creatures from the mines and terrorize the town. Come join the chaos of our latest POTW!

A young squonk has been seen scurrying around downtown wearing a garbage bag over itself to hide the wrinkles. At least... it's suspected to be a squonk. Others have started calling the creature the "Trash Dribbler" and have announced it as a new cryptid.

An ornamental silver bow and matching arrows are out in the middle of Silver Lake in Nightfall Grove, just waiting for someone to claim them...

Lost another one. The Hungry Sand has claimed an entire family of tourists who laid their towel where they weren't supposed to. Investigators realized the danger signs were taken down by someone. If you know anything about the removal, contact the authorities. And in the meantime, maybe someone can make a new sign and check that it's in the right spot.

Starters:

Have you seen Wesley's horse?

Van wants hay. Don't ask why.

The baguettes are punching holes in the walls, and Andy is aware and confused.

Cassius wants to know when Wicked's Rest is getting its own reality show.

Leila was chased by a horse. Probably not Wesley's horse... right?

Jonas has got some free cake for y'all.

Someone locked Teagan in the pantry and she didn't take it very well.

Ren prefers warm, melted ice cream. Ew.

Nora can't stop talking about this French guy's ding dong. What's up with that?

Monty wants to know why people keep trying to steal his hay??

Conor has become a surprise lamb-dad. Help.

Rhett is having a problem with... something. Hard to tell what. But he's taking blacksmithing commissions!

Sofie is mad about how much the town stinks. Us, too.

Marcus is looking for some relationship advice that definitely isn't about him. It's for a friend!

Alan is donating his fancy clothes to those in need... or want. This is weird, right?

Elias got chased by an animal he couldn't identify. Anyone know what it might've been?

#wrw #wicked's rest weekly

[wickedsrest-rp-archive]

Welcome to this week’s roundup! We do these every week to provide plot drops, highlight starters posted that week, and share other information about the setting. Anyone is welcome to use these bullet points in starters, plots, anons etc. Also let us know if you want us to include one of your setting-related plots in here for next week by sending us a bullet point!

What’s new in town?:

In the current POTW, ghosts of the past are returning to White Crest, and they may present a haunting problem to just about everyone in town. Who doesn’t have a ghost?

Local mischief maker and Quarter employee Jimothy McMahon has decided to have some fun with the prizes by putting some fun spells. Got a Chinese finger trap? You may end up stuck to someone else. Got one of the giant stuffed animals? You may find they lead interesting night lives. 

That weird looking shar-pei in the woods seems to have a brother available for adoption at the local animal rescue. Please give this poor, sad pup a home!

Every mime who has ever died in White Crest has been congregating toward one place, the Sauce. What was once dried up, is now oozing the same black goo once again. 

Starters: 

Guess who’s back back back? Back again. Sam is back! Tell a friend!

Teagan and that awkward moment when you’re literally murdered and still have to pay to pick up your vehicle that was towed.

Leah has (1) free deer skull up for grabs! Duke it out amongst yourself bone enthusiasts.

Costia wants to clear up just what constitutes an emergency.

When you’re as cool as Nora, you don’t need many words. But like, what’s your greatest fear, babe? 

Is it sketch to take free cookies that were given away? How many cookies is too many cookies? Sloane needs answers.

Jonas needs some home remedies for headaches, stat! It definitely has nothing to do with all the ghostie voices, that’s for sure. 

#town rp #lsrp #lsrpg #skeleton rp #spn rp #horror rp #established rp #literate rp

[laylacooke]

The Carous-Hell Waltz || Orion & Layla

timing: during the weeks the carnival was in town parties: @3starsquinn & @laylacooke summary: rio and layla take a ride on a cursed merry-go-round. warnings: animal abuse tw????

She had already ventured to the carnival once. However, it had been on her own, and after playing one game, Layla had decided it had been enough for the night. But when the offer came up to go back, she jumped on the chance to hang out with someone who was easily becoming one of her best friends in White Crest. As she sat on a nearby bench, she watched for Rio to arrive, wondering what kind of trouble they would get into tonight, hoping that her head wouldn’t give her any issues from the bright lights and constant noise.

Orion knew that he couldn’t trust the carnival. Even though his experience with the carnival had been overwhelmingly positive, he wasn’t completely blind to the fact that some darker was lurking beneath the surface. The Ferris Wheel lasting longer than possible, the trick mirrors that Blanche had told him about. The amount of Fae that seemed to show up yearly. But it didn’t matter. For the first time Rio got to explore the place himself, without his family leading the charge. He had gotten the chance to explore with the group earlier and the week, and now he was excited to explore with Layla. He didn’t even care that his ribs still stung, and that people kept staring at his black eye and bruised cheek. It probably wasn’t a pretty sight, but at least the swelling in his face had gone down by now. He spotted her at their meetup spot, waiting for him on the bench and jumped up and waved his arms around to grab her attention. “Hey!” Rio said once he had jogged over to her, “Have you been here yet? Because it’s a weird place.”

When Layla spotted Rio jumping around, a smile came over her face. Slowly getting up off the bench, she limped over to him. Noticing his face, she moved a little faster, “Rio! What happened?” She inspected his eye and cheek. Quite the pair they were. Every time they hung out, one of them or both of them were either hurt or got hurt, “I would say wonder twin powers activate…” She motioned to her head, “But I think I met your sister once, so I’m guessing she has that covered. If you don’t have a sister, just ignore I ever said anything.” She grinned. “But really what happened?” She glanced back over to the bench, and was thinking about going back over to it, but before she could, someone snatched it up, “I have. Once. Don’t play Hanyo.”

Layla was limping. The two of them were clearly bad luck charms. They attracted danger to themselves and possibly each other. It didn’t exactly bode well for the carnival, but Orion was dead set on having a good time tonight. Despite the pain he was still in. “Long story.” Rio sighed, scratching the back of his head and trying to explain, “I have bad luck in forests. And lots of things there like to attack people, apparently.” The troll that Rio had killed still rested in the back of his mind, forcing him to relive the moment over and over again. “You met my sister?” Rio froze. That was enough to get him to stop thinking about the troll for a minute. First Ariana and now Layla? Athena wouldn’t leave his werewolf friends alone. “How’d that go?” He wasn’t keen on the idea of Athena knowing Layla. She had enough trouble in her life already. But he also couldn’t bring himself to warn them about her either. Athena would only be more dangerous if she got backed into a corner. “Yeah, don’t worry about me, I had no intentions of playing that. Better question is, why would you?”

“You know, I wouldn’t say forests are all bad luck. That’s where we met.” A smile spread across her face. Yes, he had an excellent point about forests. She had killed a man in a forest. She had been attacked by a vampire in a forest. And she was bitten by a werewolf in a forest. But she was trying to start a new path in her life, and dwelling on the negative was something the teenager so desperately wanted to put behind her, “Uh, yeah. And no offense, but I’m not too fond of her. The circumstances weren’t the best.” She wasn’t sure she could tell Rio exactly why she had met Athena or that she had threatened Layla’s life if she didn’t cooperate during the ritual that helped save the town. In her mind, it had been one of the worst moments, considering she had hurt Frankie. But in the end, everything was okay, and that’s what mattered. She was just glad he brought the carnival up, “Good. And don’t laugh, but they had a plush I wanted. And I sacrificed a good pair of jeans and my hands for that thing. Wanna smell?” She stuck her hand towards his face. The smell had nearly worn off, but her extra sensitive nose still picked up on hits of it every now and then that made her want to gag.

Orion laughed, but nodded, “Yeah that was probably like... the one good thing about that day. Considering the other circumstances weren’t ideal.” He could still vividly remember the vampire that had attacked them. The details were etched in his brain. Seeing her coated in blood, screaming at Rio as she tried to choke the life out of him. But Layla and Rio had survived the night, by some miracle. And a great friendship had come out of it. So, it felt like it had been worth it all along. So, Layla hadn’t been a fan of his sister either? No surprise there, “Can’t say I blame you. She’s an acquired taste. Definitely not everybody’s cup of tea.” He shrugged it off. He didn’t need to get into too much detail about his relationship with his sister, or lack thereof. “No laughing here. I support whatever prize it was.” When Layla waved her hand towards his face and laughed and tried ducking away from it, “Oh god, no! Please spare me I hate that smell I hate it” Rio wanted to side stepped away to put some distance between the two, laughing the entire time. This was what he had needed. To get his mind off the week he had. “So, what should we do? I wouldn’t suggest the Ferris Wheel.”

Layla was grateful for Orion’s friendship. Yes, it had come out of chaos, but it was worth it. As for his sister, she had preferred to keep avoiding her until she physically couldn’t, “I don’t think she’ll ever be my cup of tea, and vice versa. But you, on the other hand, are amazeballs. My hand…” She pulled it back. “Not so much. Try living with this thing with a werewolf nose. It’s awful.” She shuddered. But back to the task at hand. Glancing into the large area filled with rides, games, and food, she let her eyes scan the carnival. But she quickly looked back at her friend at the mention of the Ferris Wheel, “Wait. What’s wrong with the Ferris Wheel?” She was curious. Hanyo had been simple. No tricks. Just a huge container full of grossness, so her curiosity peaked at his words. If not the Ferris Wheel, then she would suggest something else, and then she saw it. The Merry-Go-Round. “How about that?” While they were still just outside the gates, she let her finger point to the animals bobbing up and down to carnival music.

Orion shrugged her statement off. For all parties involved, Rio didn’t want to dwell too much on Athena tonight. “Well, thanks. We are two very different people. But people usually like her. So it’s uh- weird. Having people that like me now. Not to get too sappy or anything.” Rio’s nose curled at the thought. Rio’s sense of smell was heightened, though not to the same level as a werewolf’s. “The mayonnaise does a great job of ruining any sappy moment, so thank you.” Ah, so Layla hadn’t seen how weird the place could be. He supposed that a vat of mayo wasn’t exactly supernatural, even if it was still pretty freaking weird. “Well when the five of us got on in it was like… midday. And then Winston and I- who were alone in a cart which is a long story- talked for like maybe ten minutes and then got off, it was nighttime. Over five hours had passed.” He could only guess that they had been drugged or the Ferris Wheel was some weird time hole or something. “That seems innocent enough. Let’s do it!”

Layla could tell that talking about Athena had made him uncomfortable, and that was the last thing she had wanted to do, “Enough about family and hanyo. Although my hands have been really soft…Sorry. We’re here to make new memories, and hopefully not come out anymore wounded than we already are.” She wanted to say what’s the worst that could happen but refrained. “Oh, I know Winston. How are they?” She hadn’t seen them in quite some time (Next person on her list to make it a point to hang out with). “And you don’t have to explain anything to me, Rio.” She smiled softly at him, before she started to limp towards the entrance, “But that sounds pretty weird about the Ferris Wheel, so we can avoid that, too.” Pulling out some money, she waited in line at the front gate. “Merry-Go-Rounds always seem like a safe bet. And afterwards maybe some carnival games?”

Orion nodded profusely at Layla’s insistence that they drop the family and the hanyo subject, “Good idea. Great idea actually.” Anything to stop talking about Athena. Especially where Winston was involved in the conversation. Rio really didn’t like talking about them together. “They’re good! Well… I think. It’s been a long few weeks. For a lot of people honestly, but I think they’re holding up okay.” At least Rio hoped so. He tried to make sure that Winston was doing okay. He was a pretty bad… whatever he was if Winston wasn’t doing okay. “Oh it’s- no it’s definitely not that I don’t want to explain it.” Rio laughed. Layla and he had gotten pretty close since being attacked by that vampire. Rio didn’t want to keep things from her. But even he didn’t really know exactly what to say. “I don’t really know how to? I think Winston and I sort of have like… a thing? Maybe. I don’t know, I've never dated anyone before. I don’t know what to call it.” Rio stood beside Layla in line, hands stuffed into his pockets. “Sounds good! I’m horrible at carnival games.” 

“I’m glad to hear they’re doing okay. And, honestly, Frankie’s the only person I’ve ever dated. I don’t think it needs labels as long as you're both happy.” She gave Orion a soft pat on the shoulder. With Frankie, Layla just knew. Yes, she had kissed Ariana in a drugged induced haze, but it was at a moment when she thought she had done the right thing in giving her girlfriend an out. Little did she know, the woman was going to show up a few weeks later. But she was grateful she had. “And just know you can ask me stuff anytime you want. Me and Frankie have been together since Sophomore year, and we’ve known each other since we were like super little.” Stepping closer to the ticket booth, she recounted her money rather quickly, “I’m a pretty good aim, but maybe we just get through the Merry-Go-Round then.” She laughed, “If we’ve both already had weird experiences here, there’s no telling what this is going to be like.”

Orion had only briefly known Frankie, but had enjoyed his time chatting with her in the diner. He had seen her again briefly at Layla and Lucas’ party before being conned into humiliating himself playing Twister. Still, it was obvious how much Frankie cared about Layla. She had come to White Crest for her after all. Rio hoped to hang out with the two of them together soon. “I will take you up at the offer. Because I bet you’re super cute together. I’m glad you two are still together after this long.” He followed behind Layla, passing by the ticket booth and climbing onto the Merry-Go-Round. He moved slowly, carefully. He had to admit he was a bit nervous. He didn’t trust this place, no matter how normal a Merry Go-Round seemed. Rio made sure to grab one right next to Layla and climbed on top of it. So far so good. Now they just had to make it through the ride. This was fine. This seemed fine. “Okay. So far so good, yeah?”

Layla blushed at Orion’s comment about her and Frankie, “Thanks, Rio. I’m glad we are, too, even after I kinda up and left her, but all with good reason.” She still felt horrible for everything she had put her girlfriend through. Frankie hadn’t deserved any of it, even if Layla had thought it had been for the best. But that was in the past, and if it’s one thing Layla had learned recently, it was that Frankie could take care of herself.

Once she had paid and they were inside, Layla found a spot on a wolf. It was only fitting considering what she was. Climbing onto its back, she grabbed onto the pole and grabbed it tightly. From the things she had already heard about the carnival, she was curious what this ride would bring. Looking to Rio, she laughed nervously, “Yeah. I mean it’s a Merry-Go-Round. What’s the worst that could happen?” Every part of Layla was screaming internally at such an ignorant comment. It was a cursed carnival. Everything could happen.

What’s the worst that could happen? What a loaded sentence. One that Orion wished Layla hadn’t mentioned into existence. While Rio couldn’t think of anything about a merry-go-round that could go wrong, clearly, he just wasn’t being imaginative enough. This was the same place with a freaky hall of mirrors and time defying ferris wheel. Clearly something could be wrong with this ride. Something probably was wrong with this ride. But Rio didn’t want to curse them any further, so he just let out a single, albeit nervous, laugh and gave Layla a thumbs up. Appropriately, Layla had chosen the wolf to ride on. The music started before the actual ride, but eventually with a jerk, the machine roared to life.

It wasn’t bad at first. Things started off pretty normally. The animals rose along with the music, falling rhythmically. It was faster than Rio had been anticipating, but other than that all seemed okay. At least… until something started to feel a little off. It was around the fourth spin. Rio had been judging their time by focusing on the tent selling cotton candy, focusing on the bright weaving colors every time the two completed a spin. The fourth time, just as a kid ran off with a massive collection of sugar, the animal began to rise again. Only this time, Rio could tell that he was not changing height. No, it was like the thing was breathing. The split moment of carefree that Rio had allowed himself abandoned him in an instant, panic taking his place as he feared for a second that the plastic beast, he was sitting on top of may not be so plastic after all.

Layla looked to Rio with a nervous smile gripping the pole she was hanging onto a little tighter once the ride started. Feeling the animal beneath her move up and down, as plastic critters normally did on Merry-Go-Rounds, she felt fine. So far, so good. But the spinning of the ride felt as if it was gradually getting faster and faster, until her heightened wolf senses alerted her to danger. Danger in the form of an alpha wolf threatening a lower level wolf to get off its back. And before she could say anything else, she felt a violent motion as she looked down to see a living, breathing animal trying to take a bite out of her leg.

With wide eyes, Layla quickly looked to Rio, “Um, maybe...Maybe I spoke too soon!?” Her claws dug into the metal pole for extra grip as she tried to avoid once again losing her leg to a wolf bite. But instead of fear, which had been the redhead’s go-to emotion for so long, she tried something new. Retaliation. Glancing around first to make sure no one was near them, the teenager let out a low growl to match that of the animal beneath her. Never had she been one for attacking an animal, but this was no ordinary creature, and she wasn’t going to let either one of them end up as wolf chow or the meal of any other animal that now found life on this ride.

Digging her heels into its side, Layla let go of the pole and shifted her grip to that of the wolf’s neck. Claws going into flesh, she could feel blood seeping out its neck and through anger, fear, and sadness for the actions she was having to take, tears began rolling down her cheeks. It wasn’t long before the violent thrashing beneath her had stopped; blood pooled on the spinning ride flinging out onto bypassers watching the ridiculous ride move on. But she had stopped the animal from attacking, and somehow, instead of it going limp, it had returned to its hard-plastic form waiting for the next unsuspecting victim as the Merry-Go-Round continued to spin on.

Confusion filled Layla’s face, but she had figured it out, and with tears lingering in her eyes, she turned to her friend, “Rio, you have to kill it!” It sounded ridiculous, but it had been her only hope, and she wasn’t sure what would happen if the animal he was on remained alive, “I know it sounds crazy, but look!” She motioned to the plastic beast that now sat perfectly still and poised beneath her, once again rising and falling with the music.

The animal was alive. Orion had racked his brain trying to think of what could come from a merry go round that was dangerous or supernatural. Of all the theories he had come up with, this had not been one of them. It just… how? This shouldn’t even be possible. Even though nothing should surprise Rio anymore, this seemed to shake him. His body jerked, a desperate plea to get away from the beast he had been riding on. Unfortunately, as his body fell backwards, his leg bent, hooking onto the metal pole used for stability. He was flailing back now, half of his body hanging off the horse that he had been riding while his right leg was latched onto the beast. It was going crazy, trying its best to kick Rio the rest of the way off. For what it was worth, Rio was trying the same thing to get free. Their combined motion seemed to work against each other, with Rio’s foot ending up jammed against the horse’s body and blocking him from pulling his leg free. 

It wasn’t until Orion heard Layla’s voice that he realized what she had done. “Kill it” Rung over and over again in his head. All he could do was picture the troll. Was that what he was now? What he was capable of? The smell of blood came and went quickly. Was it a memory? Or Layla’s beast being slain? With little time to think and less to act, Rio bent his body forward, grabbing both hands onto the horse’s neck and tightening. The feeling made him sick to his stomach, but in one swift motion he twisted. At first, there was a sudden crack until Rio blinked to hide himself from the sight. When he finally braved a peak, Rio found himself riding the normal plastic animal again. 

With nothing keeping him locked into place, his leg easily slid from the smooth plastic body of the horse and Rio’s leg fell loose, Rio dropping the rest of the way and landing on his neck on the ground. The ride was still spinning, and now Rio’s head had joined. He groaned in pain, lying there for a moment longer before slowly climbing up to his feet. That wasn’t real. It couldn’t have been real. Just some weird illusion. He hadn’t killed anything. “So that is the worst that could happen, apparently.”

Layla watched as Rio flailed with the animal, but when she noticed he was taking her suggestion, she turned her head. Even though she knew what the outcome of the horse would be, she still couldn’t bear to see the boy snap its neck. But when it was done, and she heard the thud, Layla quickly turned her head to see her friend on the ground. Quickly hopping off of the plastic wolf that continued to move up and down, Layla maneuvered her way over to the boy, “Are you okay?” She watched as he climbed to his feet and spoke, “And you know, I don’t want to wait around to confirm that theory, so I say we call it a night.”

With the ride still spinning, Layla made her way to the edge, and without much hesitation, jumped landing with a hard thud and a momentous roll into a nearby barricade separating the ride from people waiting in line. Slowly climbing to her feet, scrapped and bruises forming, she watched hoping Orion would follow, “I wouldn’t ride that thing if I were you…” She sent a cautious glance in the direction of the group standing next to her as she waited on her friend.

Despite Orion’s better judgement, he figured that leaping from the machine was safer than staying on it. He followed Layla’s lead and jumped off it, leading on his feet for a moment before the momentum threw him off balance and he collapsed onto the ground, rolling forward. He peaked an eye open, staring at the plastic animals still bounding upward and downward as they spun around the merry go round. Had that actually just happened? Or had it been some weird illusion that both Layla and Rio had seen? He glanced over at Layla, already on her feet and advising people not to ride the thing. Unsurprisingly, only a couple of people seemed to acknowledge her, while most stared at her as if she had been insane for jumping from the ride. Which- okay, it did look bad. But for good reason. Rio picked himself up from the ground and made his way to Layla, beelining it to get farther away from the ride. “You know, growing up in this town has taught me that most people are always going to think that things are normal here. But it was worth a try.” He laughed, pointing back at the group that was now getting ready to climb onto animals of their own. For their sake, Rio hoped things were normal. He considered their conversation earlier, “You know… I know we talked about doing some of the carnival games. But maybe instead we uh- don’t?” He offered, hoping he didn’t sound too desperate. He had had enough of the carnival for today, “Maybe we can just grab dinner instead?”

Layla watched as Rio followed her lead. Having him off the ride and safe was a relief, “If they only knew, Rio...If they only knew.” She watched as more people boarded the ride. It wasn’t a surprise that they had looked at Layla like she was insane. She had gotten used to those types of stares since coming to town, but the more she was learning about White Crest, the more she questioned why she had decided to stay here in the first place, “You know what? Food sounds so much better than carnival games. And you know what sounds even better? Food far away from this place.” It wasn’t like there was much Layla could eat anyways, and even if there was, she didn’t want to remain at the carnival any longer, “Al’s? I hear they’re serving sweet potato fries now.” An uneasy smile settled on her face as she watched the machine start up again hoping for the best for those who hadn’t heeded her warning and grateful that her and Rio had escaped when they did.

#para: the carous-hell waltz #3starsquinn #wickedswriting #animal cruelty tw #potw: something wicked carnival

[lilbit-of-kizzy]

Oh crap I forgot PotW (like...a lot oops)

Anyways let's see!

My goodness! Please click on them for better quality and details!

Puzzles: New ones mom and I have done! The animals one was pretty hard, but the Disney Kinkade ones are only 500 pieces so they were fairly easy (but not too easy which is my favorite kind!)

Critters:

1) A regular at the shop I volunteer at! She's a sweetheart :3 (sorry I never can remember her name! I call her french fry because the first time we saw her a year ago she'd been sick because she got ahold of a garlic fry ¯\_(ツ)_/¯)

2) this squirrel sat there for a good 15 minutes just.... contemplating life?? Idk he didn't look worried or cold just...content (I was too afraid I'd scare him to step outside for a picture)

3) ok so no critter in this one BUT see the trash? I asked the nurse when she came out "got a raccoon?" "Oh nope bear 😄" great cool yep bye!!! (I haven't scurried back to my car so fast in my life! For anyone asking why or why not clean it up? Because bears like to hang around where they find food, it would just knock it over again!)

The rest:

1) no one judge my split plates, but this was our Thanksgiving meal :3 dad made everything and was so considerate the whole time making sure it was stuff I liked/wanted! (Usually everyone in the family makes things and I eat turkey and bread ¯\_(ツ)_/¯)

2) I took one of @beyondpennedart 's painting classes! Not bad I guess 😆 she was a great teacher though!!

3) Pharmacy snowman!! He has acquired a scarf made of a bag since I took this! (Also had to censor out some stuff lol) But he's made of coolers, a syringe, a med bottle, the holes that punch out of bags, zip ties, and an old bucket!

Hope you enjoy!! (Hopefully I'll keep up with these eventually 😅)

#lizzy's potw #puzzle #disney #aladdín #little mermaid #animals #mini sheltie #mini shetland #dog #squirrel #bear #NC #North Carolina #North Carolina Mountains #Thanksgiving #food #acrylic painting #amateur painting #diy snowman #sooo many tags #so many pictures lol

[kaktus-11]

☁️🌧️Día nublado 🌧️☁️

#gardening #succulents #blumen #kakt?s #lol #kaktus #animals #succulentgarden #it sucks #succulent #succulove #succuholic #propagating succulents #succulents and cacti #kaktuz #kaktüs #potw #potential #pothos #instant pot #floral #flores #florence #flowers #flor de la vida #natürlich #natural #nature

[natgeoyourshot]

Photos of the Week Series: July 6, 2018

Associate Photo Editor Kristen McNicholas has been responsible for looking at daily uploads so she has the first set of eyes on every image that the Your Shot community shares. She starts each day looking through thousands of photographs and this series will be a selection of her favorites from the past week. Each Friday she will be sharing her favorites here!

"This past week was filled with unexpected delight (and a little terror looking down on rock climbers and wasps blowing bubbles) while I was going through the daily edits. This week was a great week for vertical landscapes which I always get really excited about because it is simply a different way to see a familiar scene.

The Your Shot community is always taking creative risks. Sharing visual stories can be difficult when we have seen the same moment over and over. However, I always trust that the community is going to show me a perspective I've never seen before. Keep taking the creative risks and I look forward to seeing what you all share next."

Join the Your Shot community to begin sharing your stories with us.

Photographs by Karl Mesquita, Juan Osorio, Md Rafayat Haque Khan, Candice Brophy, Cailey Fletcher, Carrot Lim Choo How, Ethan Hoffman-Sadka, Dylan Taylor, Ivan Lesica and Piotrek Deska.

#natgeo #national geographic #natgeoyourshot #yourshot #photosoftheweek #potw #bestoftheweek #rock climbing #beach #popcorn #portrait #landscape #worship #palm tree #sand #mountain #animal #animals #bubbles #color #black and white #fasting #YSPhotosoftheWeek

[bogg-dogg-blog]

Pupdate #1

Hey guys! I currently have the best job ever: writing for a local newspaper about adoptable animals at our nearby shelter. I just wrote an update (or as I call it, Pupdate) on all of the animals I’ve featured so far. The article is below, followed by some more pictures of animals still up for adoption. I’ve blanked my name and newspaper name in the article, but please DM me here if you’re interested in adopting and need more information. All of these critters are sweethearts, and it would make me so happy for them to get their forever homes. 

Here’s Socks (whose manz is this? Absolute stunner): 

And Petey and Callie (look at those eyes!):

And Quinn (will cuddle you like it’s her job):

I promise these are legit. I’m just a concerned citizen who loves animals and wants all these beautiful kiddos to get adopted. Please signal boost this!

#dogs #cats #pets #up for adoption #looking for forever homes #bully breed #collie mix #animal shelter #newspaper article #adoptdontshop #kent county md #potw

[history-rover]

The long-awaited and promised third chapter of POTW is here! I’m sorry for the long wait, so please accept my apology of 7,000 words of new content?

#bnha #mha #my hero academia #tododeku #todomido #potw #fanfic #my writing #anime

[blythewonder]

Half the World Away || Solo

Discoveries, with the help of an unlikely source.

Research was crucial to solving any problem.

It had been, back when she’d been up late at night (even when her fathers had thought she was asleep) researching everything there was to find about Beatrice’s OCD.

It had been, when she’d discovered the reality of dragons and had held steadfast onto that belief, not allowing herself to waver.

It had been, with the Herculean Labours.

It was, now. No matter what the reasoning behind so many animals disappearing, she needed to figure it out. Maybe, as with the Herculean Labours, this had all happened before. It has all happened before and will all happen again. Because history did repeat itself, even when it came to the supernatural.

But thus far there was nothing. Bridget paged through a book, yawning against the back of her hand. Maybe, she thought, maybe this is just normal absurd levels of pet-napping. But another (far greater) part of her told her that it was ridiculous. This wasn’t some normal town. A mass exodus of animals not on their own volition was too much (even on their own volition), unless it was the work of a large group of criminals. But that idea seemed off - even though it was undoubtedly the one passed around by the majority of the town’s residents.

Pet-nappers extraordinaire, who stole animals right out from their owners’ noses, right out from impossible locations with never-before-seen speed. She scoffed internally.

The majority of this town who managed to remain blind to what should have been right in front of them. Bridget huffed, flipping a page in one of her notebooks with too much energy - and it tore out. “Shoot.” She muttered, rubbing her fingers against the page as she glanced down at it. A partial listing of missing pets signs she’d found around town - with an occasional sketch of the poor cat or dog or fish, even. A fish didn’t just get up and run away. Especially not if its tank was left behind. A dog or cat could get out (even if the cat was normally indoor), but a fish? Or turtle, or ferret, or other seemingly endless list of creatures? Highly improbable that it was anything but supernatural.

Bridget adjusted herself in the plush chair of the Scribe Library and glanced up from the books that surrounded her, before jumping and letting out a yelp that was far above proper ‘library voice level’.

For all that she’d looked at the oddly-behaving mirrors any number of times, she’d never seen herself on the other end. Herself, in clothing unlike Bridget would ever dare wear, looking at her nails in apparent boredom.

(A look she’d likely exhibited before -

but never, not once in a library, the Scribe Library, of all places.)

Other-her looked up, then - perhaps just by some stroke of luck. In the same place at the same time. She rolled her eyes and Bridget took a few steps backwards. She’d rolled her eyes in the mirror any number of times - but somehow seeing it done when she wasn’t the one physically doing it was bizarre. Even though, in all technical terms, she was sort of doing it.

Bridget shook her head, and waved her hand in an attempt to gain the attention of her other self.

‘Hello.’ She signed. Had to hope that other-her knew at least passable signing - and that other-her was willing to talk to her. ‘A-S-H-F-O-R-D R-I-V-E-R, yes?’ She signed, receiving a flippant ‘yes’ in response. One that was surely followed by an unspoken ‘duh’.

Don’t get into a fight with yourself, for the love of all that is good. She reminded herself, taking a deep breath. Bridget looked around - but luckily the library was relatively empty. Small blessings.

‘Question.’ She signed. ‘But can write if easier.’

‘Don’t bother.’ Other-her replied. ‘I’ve been fluent in sign since I was twelve.’ One-upping her, but that didn’t matter. Not when she had someone from Ashford who she could just ask about animals. Research with all the Scribe literature had brought her seemingly nowhere, and Reed and she had hypothesized that the disappearing act could have had something to do with Ashford River. Those turtle-rat-pidjean-whatever-they-were-called had come over from Ashford, which meant... other animals could, too? Buildings had, other individuals had, why not animals? Only Bridget didn’t know quite as much about animals appearing. Only that the number of missing signs on telephone polls had risen exponentially recently.

‘O-K,’ Bridget began, before her gaze zeroed-in on something behind other-her. Small, otherwise likely to go without notice. But she’d seen a missing poster just a few hours ago. It was a chinchilla, and if Bridget’s eyes weren’t deceiving her, it had a white spot on its back, and a darker grey covering one of its eyes. ‘Can I see?’ Bridget asked, pointing to the chinchilla. Other-her must have let out a sigh (not that she could hear it), and got up to go and get the animal. Bridget took the time to take in what other-her was wearing. Nothing at all - or at least not properly at all - like what she would have chosen. But that was far from the point. Other-her returned and held up the creature to the mirror, and Bridget ran her tongue over her teeth and gave a small nod. Unless there was a twin of it over in Ashford, it was the same one she’d found a missing poster for just before arriving at work. It belonged to an eight-year-old in her and Beatrice’s building.

Which meant -

- that yes, animals had, for some reason, all (or not all, she corrected herself) poofed into Ashford? Suddenly, too. Not like the other individuals who seemed to have shown up over the course of some months. Shaking herself out of her thoughts, Bridget glanced back up to see other-her staring at her with a raised eyebrow. ‘The animal there,’ ‘C-H-I-N-C-H-I-L-L-A?’ ‘Yes.’ Bridget rolled her eyes. ‘Missing from A-S-H-K-E-N-T - not too long ago.’

‘Showed up in H-Q not too long ago.’ Other-her rolled her eyes again and plopped the chinchilla on her lap. At least, Bridget thought, at least other-her wasn’t cruel to animals.

Or could truly put on a good act. But she soon shook the thought from her mind.

But if the chinchilla had end up there, was it too much to assume that all the animals had somehow ended up over in Ashford? If the Ashkent residents - like Roger, for example - were unable to come back, would it be the very same for the Ashkent pets? It was just as unsettling a thought. Animals and other beings trapped in another world, away and unable to return. At least so it seemed.

It was not as though other-her could hand the chinchilla through solid glass, when they couldn’t even hear one another. Bridget felt a twinge of pain for everyone who’d lost an animal - for some it was as close as they must have had to family - which meant that this revelation could cause a lot of pain. But maybe some small sense of comfort. At least they seemed safe.

‘Just showed up?’ She repeated to other-her. Other-her, who she had so many questions for, but she held back. Grilling her about why she sold information, why she loathed the Scribes - Bridget was not in the mood to deal with the answers, and so it was best not to have any further confirmation than what Margo had already given her.

‘Yes.’ Other-her replied. ‘Others too. Including some I have never seen.’

It was confirmation enough - or, at least - the best she was likely going to get.

Now only to get others to believe her discovery.

That was always the hardest part.

#touchofsolo #touchofpotw #half the world away #solo #// for the animal potw :) #i hope this is okay!! #it feels a bit weird but yay for discovering things about the animals?

[wickedsrest-rp]

Welcome to our weekly round-up! We do these every week to provide plot drops, highlight starters posted that week, and share other information about the setting. Anyone is welcome to use these bullet points in starters, plots, anons etc. Also let us know if you want us to include one of your setting-related plots in here for next week by sending us a bullet point!

What’s new in town?:

Strange crystals have overtaken the town, and touching them creates a “link” to the doomed people of Bleak Point. Some may find they have a stranger influencing their actions, while others might find their emotions amplified. The least fortunate may transform into creatures from the mines and terrorize the town. Come join the chaos of our latest POTW!

It's summertime and Mistwood Park is in full swing with its Friday night events. This month's lego-building contest is becoming particularly interesting as a bored spellcaster decide to enchant the legos in various ways. From miniature flying spaceships and participants thinking they are in the era or universe of their creation, the contest has had some interesting side effects. The director thinks the crowd is just especially enthusiastic this year.

A mysterious cloud of red mist has settled over parts of Oldtown. A number of people have also been reported missing in the area, but that is likely coincidental.

Nothing is immune to the summer heat, not even your local pit of primordial ooze. La Sauce seems to be boiling and the surrounding area is becoming pretty quiet. This boiling over may have released a few friends.

Starters:

There are worms and Van wants to know why

Anita is looking for a new roomie who wants to live with a hot professor and do all of the cleaning

Jo wants to know why we don't just eat the massive mushroom to get rid of it

Mack has got her name back and would like us all to just briefly overlook her stint as Llama

Not at all concerning, but Thea is wondering how to tell if you're being haunted

Elora is new to town and looking for a job

There's been a brand change and Nora is directing people to not go to the mines

If you're a little old lady looking for your chair, reach out to Felix

If you have any tips on how to deal with an animated sweater terrorizing your shop, hit Leila up

#wrw #wicked's rest weekly

[wickedsrest-rp-archive]

Welcome to this week’s roundup! We do these every week to provide plot drops, highlight starters posted that week, and share other information about the setting. Anyone is welcome to use these bullet points in starters, plots, anons etc. Also let us know if you want us to include one of your setting-related plots in here for next week by sending us a bullet point!

What’s new in town?:

While the tree is currently split in half after a giant iguana from the sky fell on it, our finale POTW is still ongoing with pollen, fruit, and roots aplenty.

Local student radio host has since changed his channel name to Joe Schmoe Talk. He once had a different name, but after ordering a coffee from Coffee Plus’ new barista, he can’t seem to remember it. Every so often, other coffee goers will find they forget their name too. 

Mr. Green is running a huge sale at Petal Pushers after a number of his plants started nipping his fingers. Everything in the store is currently up to 50% off. You’ll either find your green thumb or lose your thumb. 

White Crest residents should be ready to start their spring cleaning early. With dust bunnies rampantly taking over the spaces under couches and between nooks and crannies, residents will want to clean quickly unless they’d like to turn to dust too.  

Starters: 

Tepin is looking for some environmentally friendly pest control.

Since Ariana recently inherited a farm, she could use some animal care tips. 

Teagan is selling cartoon style portraits. Get yours done at a great price today!

#white crest weekly #lsrp #lsrpg #established rp #horror rp #town rp #skeleton rp #spn rp #horror rpg #literate rp

[inspirationdivine]

Perchance To Dream || Lydia and Jared

Timing: During the POTW Parties: @themidnightfarmer @inspirationdivine Summary: When Jared’s glamour fails, he seeks out a safe place to hide and reflect

He’d never had so much trouble keeping himself in check. Jared was usually very disciplined with his glamour, it was firm even while he was asleep most nights even. But it seemed exhaustion was unlike any other external factor, and he found himself actually having to concentrate hard on keeping his appearance ‘normal’ as he went about his shopping. He was slipping, he felt himself slipping before he caught his reflection in a window as he passed by, he was losing control and his skin was fading out of it’s fake hue. It was only a matter of minutes before he’d lost it, and with how brutal his natural appearance could be, he needed to get home fast. He cursed having walked into town. Of all days to have decided not to have the safety of a closed vehicle. There was a bubbling panic in his stomach as he passed yet another dark window, able to see his eyes shifting from blue to purple. “Fuck.” and he took off running. He didn't think about where he was going, but when he arrived at the gates of Lydia's home he felt saved. He sprint into the gate and around the garden out of sight of any prying eyes. Or he would have had he not been tackled to the ground.

Lydia was completely unaware of the situation happening just outside her garden. She had a backlog of emails as long as her that she was busy with, and a kitten toying with her left hand, keeping her distracted as she tried to type. “Hey! Gentle,” she scolded the tabby cat when she was bitten a little too hard. Just then, O walked in urgently, speaking fast. “We have neutralised a threat in the garden. Tall male individual with grey skin, purple eyes, please advise.” They were watching her carefully, in case she began to panic. Lydia started at the zombie for a long moment, before putting the pieces together. “Oh! That’s Jared! Tell Jeremiah to let him go!” She told O, standing up and picking up Niamh as she followed O out to the garden, where Jeremiah did indeed have Jared in a head lock and pinned to the ground. “It’s alright! He is a friend!”

He was still trying so incredibly hard to get his glamour under check that his skin rippled like an awfully colour blind chameleon. Jared, despite this, sat completely still. He hardly even moved his chest to breathe as he was locked and held into the grass. As soon as he was released however, he rolled backwards and out of the reach of his captor to look up and find Lydia with his eyes. Grass stained and dirty now, but he still managed an exhausted smile when he found her. “I uh...didn’t call again I guess?” he said quietly hoping for a joke but really just regretting forgetting that she might have taken steps far beyond anything he’d known about before the mushrooming had happened. In fact it felt silly now that he had insisted Cap stay with her considering the small animal yawned as he emerged from a hedge to greet him only now. 

“No, you didn’t. Fortunately, I like you anyway,” Lydia laughed, giving him a careful, warm hug, careful to avoid the grass stains as she did so. “It’s good to see you.” Lydia turned to smile at the little distant Raiju that she had grown rather fond of seeing loitering in the corners. Jared had been right, she had appreciated its companionship, and had barely noticed it was there. “Someone, at least, has been anxious for a visit. Why don’t you come inside? It’s been a while, and I’ve missed you. It also looks like your glamour is having some issues.”

Jared accepted the hug with as much enthusiasm as his tired and slightly sore form could muster, he kept the smile on his face just for her as well. The nymph spared the security team a glance and then looked down to offer Cap a scratch behind the ear for all his good work guarding, even if Lydia had much more qualified people on hand now. He was happy to move away from the very intimidating team that were slowly dispersing around them from the threat he’d posed moments ago. He definitely didn’t want to not have Lydia's favour coming over unannounced; he decided in that moment, from now on he’d text (or he’d try to remember to call but there were never any promises). Following her inside he informed her “That’s why I sprinted over, I was planning on coming to visit this week, and then I sort of got trapped and I figured….you were the safest place to go since I was having so much trouble.” He waved a hand however and added “But it’s uh...no big deal I guess...how have you been. Feeling good with all your new security in place?”

“I completely understand. Jared, you are eternally welcome, and I shall ensure that everyone is quite aware of this in the future, regardless of what face you decide to wear next time.” Lydia walked over into her kitchen. “Can I get you anything to drink, or to eat?” The busywork of getting out her glasses made it easier to answer the question. The last few days and the blood weighed heavy on her mind. Her back had healed in a week with as many ups as downs. “I adopted a cat! Niamh, who is floating around in the garden somewhere. My wing has healed. Not everything is quite as it should be, but I can hardly complain. Things are good.”

She was so wonderful, Jared was so pleased to have met someone who was so kind to him even when he’d potentially scared her. What with the breaking and entering of her proprietary after she’d had a VERY bad experience and all. “Uh yeah sure I’ll have some water or something.” he smiled, as he listened to her update him on how she was getting on he let the rest of his glamour fall away. Lydia wouldn’t mind, and it’d help him concentrate on her words more than his exhaustion. “You’re all healed up!! I was really hoping for you to recover, I was telling my kids about you the other night. Can’t wait to tell them you’re doing well.” he grinned. He wanted to give her a hug in delight but wasn’t sure the reception he’d get so instead bounced on the balls of his feet. “And a cat is a great companion, Niamh is a great name.” 

Lydia busied herself with picking out a nice crystal glass for him, getting a lemon from the fridge and cutting a slice of lemon to drop in beside the ice before pouring him the water. When she turned back, he looked as he should, beautiful in his abject inhumanity. “You were telling your kids? What, like bedtime stories for the puppy bonedoggles? Jared, you are the most adorable vicious creatures nymph I’ve ever met,” Lydia laughed, enthused by juist his presence. It washed away the blood and guilt on her conscience as she turned to hand him his glass. “She’s wonderful. Not quite as colourful as your kids, but great all the same. So, what’s up with your glamour?”

“They like to hear stories, they respond well to names they can put faces to, so yeah...I told the bonedoggle pups about you last night.” Jared maybe would have been a little defensive if she hadn’t laughed along with her words. Instead he beamed at her. “Not that they’re pups anymore, they’re young but growing fast.” He took the glass and immediately took a long drink. His hand catching the drips that had escaped the edges of his lips before he spoke again. “I’m real tired I guess? Not being doing too well the last few weeks, but it’ll get better. As soon as I can get some good sleep I’m sure it’ll get better… hopefully.”

“That’s… disarmingly cute. If I hadn’t met them, I wouldn’t believe they were even the littlest bit dangerous, you know,” Lydia smiled right back at him. “Really? How big are they now?” He drank so fast Lydia raised her eyebrows, pouring herself a glass of whiskey to go with his glass of water, before turning her attention back to him. “Has something happened?” Lydia asked gently, leading him over to the sitting room couch, so that they could sit side by side, her wings tucked away at her side. “Do you want to talk about it?” He could tell her anything, but Lydia wasn’t about to pry. That said, maybe if he was so tired by it all so much so that he was losing control of his glamour, maybe it was time to start talking about it.

“Oh well they are cute Lydia come on, they’re little faces are to die for….although they’re definitely not as cuddly as normal puppies I’ll give you that.” Jared joked lightly. He gulped down the water and then excitedly put the glass down so that he could hold his hands out to show her how big the pups had gotten. “Almost ready for their second trip for bones.” The words held pride he knew she might not understand, but he felt he could be himself about his kids with her, even if she didn’t fully agree she wouldn’t shoot him down. SItting down heavily on the couch he leaned back and fought off a yawn and the ache in his bones settled in. “Oh I just… didn’t have a very good time with the mushrooms this year, and then...sleepwalking, I can’t seem to get any rest...nightmares you know in amongst it all.” He shrugged at her and smiled despite his words. “I’m sure it’ll work itself out, I have hope at least right? Can’t be bad all the time can it?”

“The first time we met they were going to eat me!” Lydia protested with a laugh, her eyes widening with surprise as he gestured how big they were. “They’ve grown so fast! I assume that’s wonderful news!” Lydia smiled as he lit up with pride, his eyes bright and wonderful. “Sleepwalking? Is that new?” Lydia asked, her brows knitted as he talked. “Do you still feel bad about the human you killed?” Lydia asked softly, without any judgement. He had seemed cut up about it, in the same way Deirdre had been about Emma, in the same way Lydia’s stomach churned when she thought about what had happened a few days ago with Dot.

“They were not!” He protested in return but focused more firmly on the warm feeling in his gut as she enthused with him. It’d been a while since he’d been able to gush about his kids, just through sheer circumstance, and it was refreshing to have someone to allow him to indulge. Jared nodded slowly, he’d been trying to think of Ronald less and less, but it hadn’t been going exactly to plan. “I never meant to see him again, but I guess I fudged the words when I made him promise not to tell anyone. Forgot to add that he shouldn’t come back either… I… I fed him to the kids… I wish… I hadn’t had to and he’d just stayed away from us like I’d hoped. I wasn’t even in the right mind. It was like a bad trip and all of a sudden I was awake and it was all too apparent that I’d done something irreversible you know?” He wasn’t looking for sympathy, he wasn’t even sure if he was making sense. But the nymph knew that Lydia wouldn’t mind, or at least he hoped. She was so wonderful but he’d understand if she didn’t want to hear it all. He looked up at her from where he’d slouched in the cushions, like she’d have the answers, but he knew that was a lot to ask someone. “I’ve always been a bad shot too, the mushrooms gave me focus where I didn’t want it.”

Lydia shifted where she sat so she could touch his shoulder. There wasn’t more she could offer him really, other than the comfort of just being heard. Sometimes, that was enough. Sometimes, it was impossible to help in any other way.  “You did do something irreversible, but so did he,” Lydia began softly, trying to listen carefully. Well, if she had known he fed human corpses to his kids, that would have been useful a couple days ago. Not that that was the point now. “Even if he wasn’t promise bound to stay away, he wasn’t welcome and he knew it. Humans are far from my favourite, but they have basic modicums of intelligence no less than ours. He came irregardless, to take something from you. Or do you think it was something else that brought him there?”

Jared let his head droop to the side and his body lean into her comforting touch. “I don’t really know why he was there, but I can’t imagine it was with good intentions. I know people got all muddled up while they were there, the stray sod got a little bit out of control and all while I wasn’t really focused. But he’d have had to get there first.” he hadn’t really considered Ronalds intent on the farm, he’d been too shaken by having shot him. But now that he thought about it, he’d do anything for his kids...and if Ronald really had come back for them and not just shown up by accident like he’d feared, then he was a little less regretful. “I suppose if it was him or one of my kids I’d glad it was him…” he allows the words to escape his lips and then he grimaces. “Preferably no shots would have been fired while I wasn’t awake but I guess that’ how it was, can’t really do much now you know?” He spared her a pained smile, trying to mask the ill feeling swirling behind his eyes. “I feel like I should feel worse? But also I’m too tired to really think all that deep anyway, sleepwalking takes it outta you apparently.” he chuckled weakly. 

As he leant into her touch, Lydia wrapped her arm around his shoulders sideways. It was hardly the most comfortable of positions considering their egregious height difference, but it was comforting to have him so close. “So he was confused once he was there, but that doesn’t mean he hadn’t had nefarious intentions before, whatever that looked like,” Lydia spoke quietly, gently. Clearly, obviously feeding him a biased world view, but sometimes that was what was needed, especially when Jared was so painfully biased against himself. He saw himself as the automatic villain, the cruel creature of the night, who had lost his way on the mushrooms. In Lydia’s humble opinion, it was as if the mushrooms had shown him the way, had made his aim true. The mushrooms had allowed him to react decisively, rather than risking any of Jared’s kids. “No, you can’t do much, but you are still permitted to feel. There is no should when it comes to emotion, only what is.” She gently traced patterns back and forth on his arm. “Sleepwalking? How long has that been going on?”

He felt a little touch deprived at that moment. Jared hadn’t realized how much he’d withdrawn these last few weeks and he hadn’t really felt he would be allowed to reach out considering what he’d done. He’d even stopped himself from giving Lydia a hug earlier. And yet here she was offering him comfort despite what the mushrooms had done to him. He shifted to lean into her, fully letting her ease his mind without question. He wanted to be told he wasn’t terrible, so he was willing to believe her blindly. “Yeah, he couldn’t have shown up by accident.” he decided. “I’m not sure, it could have been going on for ages and I wouldn’t have noticed at first.” he said, “I didn’t realize for far too long that Things had been moved, chores had already been done. But then it got worse, I woke up walking into the lake the other day...that wasn’t so fun. I heard other people are also sleepwalking so… it’s not mushrooms, I thought at first it was but I don’t think it is now.”

He melted into her arms like giraffe shaped putty, and Lydia shifted to accommodate him, so that he had as much space and warmth as he needed. “No, he intended to be there,” Lydia agreed encouragingly, hoping that the guilt would slowly melt away. “He was only human.” She reminded him. But as Jared explained more deeply about his sleepwalking, Lydia’s brows bent in a frown. “You were doing chores in your sleep? That’s almost helpful.” Lydia joked lightly, but she could see that he was entirely shaken by the entire situation, so she held him closer. “Other people? People you know or strangers? That’s… seriously disconcerting. I wish I knew how to help. Do you need anything?”

The nymph stifled a yawn, feeling incredibly safe and warm by Lydia's side, especially with the stress of keeping his glamour steady not buzzing on his skin. “Only human.” Jared repeated back to her, her outlook on species didn’t fully compute with his own ideology, but he supposed if it had to have been anyone, a human like Ron deserved to go the most. “Almost.” he chuckled in agreement. “Except I’d been doing things twice and I don’t really have the cash for extra of anything at the moment. Also the kids didn’t really enjoy whatever they could feel over our connection, got a few bites for being unresponsive.” he waved a hand dismissively at the bites however, he got nibbled all the time it didn’t mean much, he was just more upset that his kids had felt unrest at his state. “A few strangers, but some people I know as well. There doesn’t seem to be a system to it, it’s all just random. Oh god no Lydia it’s okay, it’s just a bit...unsettling I guess? You’re not sleepwalking or anything?”

Only human, Lydia echoed in her mind, because he wasn’t the only one reassuring himself of such things. She pushed that thought aside, unable to bear it right now, not when Jared needed her here. “Oh, Jared, if you ever need money, you need but ask.” She offered gently, but her eyes widened sharply as he described his kids’ reactions. “They bit you? Jared, are you alright?” Sure, he described them as sweet little things, but Lydia remembered the teeth on those Bonedoggles. A nibble was not just a nibble, no matter what Jared said. “That is disturbing,” Lydia agreed softly, making a mental note to ask about it to others, who might know more about dream disturbances. “No, I still haven’t been sleeping too well generally, since the attack, but I haven’t been sleepwalking.” Lydia dropped her cheek against the top of his head, taking his hand with the one not wrapped around his shoulders and squeezing his hand. “If there’s anything I can do for you, you can always ask. I am here for you.” 

“Don’t offer me money. I'm not a very good investment, I don’t tend to ever have enough to pay it back in anywhere near a timely manner.” Jared mumbled in response. He waved a hand, less enthusiastically than before stifling yet another yawn. “They have teeth, anything with teeth can bite, it's normal.” he hummed. At that point his eyes started to close, he was fighting a losing battle. He heard nothing else she’d said, missing her comment of not being able to sleep herself completely. His own selfish exhaustion had decided to flaunt it’s willingness for rest in her face. He’d fallen asleep in her arms.

“That doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt,” Lydia replied. “But if you insist-” She looked down at him, and he didn’t look back up at her. His eyelashes were pressed closed, casting spidery shadows on his cheeks. He breathed quietly and slowly. Here, in her arms, he would not wander anywhere. He could rest safely here. His weight too, was the first weight pressing down on her all week that soothed rather than suffocated. Lydia’s eyes stretched to the raiju, lurking in the corner of the room, Cap watching Jared curiously. “Come here then,” she murmured, and the pile of two became three. 

#wickedswriting #para #chatzy #jared

[laylacooke]

Back To The Future || Mina & Layla

timing: during the weeks the carnival was in town  parties: @drowningisinevitable & @laylacooke summary: Mina and Layla decide to visit the Hall of Mirrors at the carnival. warnings: death mention, domestic abuse, emotional abuse, self harm, & animal cruelty [proceed with caution!]

Why Layla had wanted to go back to the carnival after the past three experiences was beyond her, but there was just something that continued to pull her in. Something about the mysteriousness of it all, and instead of making anyone else experience her own twisted curiosity, she opted to go alone yet again. However, this trip she would be avoiding Hanyo, the Merry-Go-Round, and the Mime Fun House, as it seemed time spent at the hellish carnival didn’t offer much in the way of fun. At least not on those last three goes, but there had to be at least one thing, and she was determined to find it.

Paying to get in, Layla stepped past the gate and began scanning the area. It was, once again, filled with many townsfolk both human and non-human as her nose alerted her to, but they all seemed to be having a good time, which was making it hard for her to register where not to go. Seeing someone walk by, she spoke up hoping for some advice of what to try, “I’ve been here three times already, but I always seem to choose the wrong thing. Any ideas on what could actually be fun around here?”

In hindsight, if Mina were to look back on it all, coming to the carnival was a terrible idea. She’d only barely made it through the gate before she was filled with the overwhelming desire to turn around and leave. For one, it was far too crowded. Several people bumped into her in a matter of seconds, causing her to call out a rapid, “Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!” as they walked away. Second, there were Fae around. She could feel them, though she didn’t know where or who. If there were Fae, then there were probably other supernatural creatures, peoples. She was trying to do better about thinking of them as people, not monsters. It was a work in progress. Still, she was reminded of her father, her promise, and the fact that she hadn’t brought any sort of weapon with her into the carnival. She should leave.

Instead, Mina walked further in. The smell of strange, fried foods filled her nose, causing her to wrinkle it a bit. Everywhere she looked, there were families with laughing children, friends playing games. People looked happy. Perhaps that was why she kept walking in; Mina wanted, just for a moment, to feel that joyous and free. She just walked for a bit, taking everything in, when she heard a voice. Mina turned to face a redheaded girl. She rubbed the back of her neck a bit, looking sheepish. “Ah, well, I’ve actually never been to a carnival before. I wouldn’t even know where to begin.”

The sounds surrounding her had made her ears perk. The first night she had gone, Layla was on edge. The noises of people screaming for various reasons and bb guns being fired at tin cans had left her nervous. It’s partly why Hanyo had been the only thing she had stuck around for. The next time she had Rio with her, but even then, it seemed as though chaos just couldn’t leave them alone, even on a Merry-Go-Round. And if the Mime Fun House, ironically with Nell, hadn’t been enough, she was back one last time to see if this carnival was as cursed as it had seemed from the beginning (aside from winning her beloved Catfish Monster plush, of course).

“Really? Well, I can tell you three places you don’t want to go.” She eyed every single one of them suspiciously, before looking back to the girl in front of her. “I thought I’d give this place one final try if you want a buddy. Otherwise, I’m thinking I might turn around and go home. Which is probably the smartest move to make.” Layla laughed, but a hint of nervousness was apparent in her voice.

Following the other girl’s eyes, Mina made note of the places she seemed to linger on. None of them seemed like her cup of tea, anyway. She hated the kind of motions that merry go rounds went through, mimes just reminded her of her doppelganger that had tried to kill her, and the people gathered around… was that a jar of mayonnaise? How strange. It was a bit too crowded for her taste, though. Instead, she gave the girl a smile. “I wouldn’t mind a friend to help at all. I’m afraid I’d get a bit lost on my own.” She was already incredibly turned around just from walking into the carnival. Knowing this town, as well as herself, she’d likely get herself lost and in trouble if she was left on her own. At least with another person around, she would have back up. And, Mina was learning, she always seemed to do better with other people around. Whether they were pulling her out of danger, or she was doing the same for them, it helped to have another person. “My name is Mina, by the way. It’s very nice to have a carnival buddy.”

Layla nodded in agreement, “You know, at this rate, I would be afraid to venture any farther into this place by myself as well.” She had been lucky the last few times she had come, if you wanted to call it that, but even having a stranger by her side was better than no one. However, when the girl mentioned her name, Layla’s eyes grew wide, “Mina...Like Broadway/West End loving Mina that has never listened to Lady Gaga?” A smile spread across her face, “It’s me. Layla. We’ve talked on the internet a few times!” White Crest really was a small town and knowing that she remotely knew her carnival buddy had eased some of the worry that was in her mind. At least if something bad happened the pair had already built somewhat of a trust between one another. “It really is a small world.”

“I don’t blame you”, Mina mused. “Are all carnivals like this? It seems… odd.” Maybe it was just her. Too many people always tended to break Mina out, scales forming on her arms under her sleeves. She was alright, now, though, especially when the other girl told her that she was Layla. Mina smiled brightly, pleased with her luck. “That would be me! And you’re Layla who loves Lady Gaga and wants to travel one day!” This was good. It couldn’t have turned out better, really. Layla seemed so nice online that she had to be similar in person. “It is a small world, a small town, really, but I think I’m quite thankful for it, this time around.” There were perks, she was realizing, to getting to know people. She was basking in the feeling of relief at being at the carnival with someone that wasn’t a total stranger when something caught the corner of her eye. Sunlight glinted off the sign for the hall of mirrors, drawing Mina in. She’d never really liked mirrors, not really, always picking apart her flaws, especially the more monstrous aspects of herself after a long swim, but… it could be fun? In any case, it certainly couldn’t be dangerous. “Would you like to try that out,” she asked Layla, motioning towards the entrance with the carnival worker waiting with a patient smile.

She thought for a moment, “Carnivals are a mixed bag, but nothing like this one. I mean there’s usually creepers at carnivals, but this place is just creepy.” She gave it a once over, before turning her attention back to Mina, “That is totes me! Oh, thank goodness you’re here, because honestly I was having second thoughts.” The minute Layla stepped through the gate, she had thought about turning around and leaving. Why did she keep doing this to herself? Why did any of these people, unless the residents of the town just liked pain. But humans who were unknowing about the supernatural had to have seen the world differently. She did when she was little, until she had found out about things that went bump in the night. She could remember the day her parents told her that werewolves and things were real. And it became solidified in her brain when she became one. “I think the fates were watching out for us this time.” She laughed nervously, until she noticed what Mina was suggesting. The Hall of Mirrors. While looking at herself in passing, unless she was getting ready, what would it hurt seeing herself in all different shapes. It could be fun, and she had needed a good laugh, “And okay, yeah. Let’s do it. Lead the way, Friend.” She had already had the crap scared out of her twice by moving animals and mimes. Call her skeptical, but she was going to approach this little adventure differently, instead of just diving in headfirst.

“It does suit the town, though,” Mina murmured. Of course, it made sense that things in White Crest wouldn’t be similar to things in the rest of the world. It could be such an awful place, she thought, remembering the mime version of herself that tried to kill her. But she’d also met a lot of nice people, Layla included, it seemed. So, Mina smiled at the redheaded girl and agreed. “I think you’re right. Fate seems to be kind today.” She decided to lead them into the Hall of Mirrors, avoiding the way the worker watched them all the way in. Truthfully, and she tried to always be truthful, Mina had never been in a hall of mirrors. She had no idea what to expect. But, as they stepped into the area, she startled a bit at seeing her reflection before she started laughing. Her body was stretched and twisted in ways that were silly to look at. Most of the mirrors were like that; silly in appearance, strange but amusing to look at. But when she looked in one… Mina had to peer in closer. The version of herself in the mirror was much younger, maybe eight, her hair pulled back tightly. There was an iron wound on her arm, both bloody and burning, and in her hands were claws. She was trying not to cry. Training exercise. She looked away, only to see herself a few years older, leading a glaistig woman into an alley while her father was lying in wait. “No,” Mina said quietly, eyes darting around wildly, as she realized the mirrors no longer seemed silly but sinister. She looked over to Layla, hoping the other girl wouldn’t notice the scenes playing on repeat.

“It really does.” With Mina leading the way, Layla followed her inside. Eyes narrowed at the worker watching them go in, the redhead couldn’t help, but turn back to get one last look at him, before they had entered. As she stepped into the deceiving room, she found a mirror that had made her look super tall and really skinny causing her to laugh, before moving to one that made her look short and round. So far things were going well. You mean there’s actually a normal carnival attraction to participate in around here? The thought settled in her mind, but before long, she had come across a mirror, except she wasn’t tall and skinny or short and squatty. She was a little older than she was now. Maybe late twenties, early thirties. There was a smile on her face as she held someone’s hand, but she couldn’t quite see who it was. Suddenly, running around behind her, Layla noticed a little boy. Out of reaction, she turned around to see if he was behind her, but when she realized he wasn’t, she looked back into the mirror. It wasn’t long, however, that the images in the mirror started to fade into something sinister. With nightfall lingering in the reflective glass, Layla noticed a full moon in the top corner, but it was the screams following it that caused her breath to hitch in her throat. And when the image shifted again, she noticed a woman...Frankie, maybe? Standing over a motionless animal with red fur. Layla. The unknown woman was sobbing; blood on her hands.

Tears coming to the teenager’s eyes, she gasped and stepped back. Was this her future?

Eyes shifting to Mina, she noticed the girl, too, had a shocked look on her face, but was it for some other reason? “Uh, maybe we should move onto the next room?” She quickly wiped the tears from her eyes hoping her new friend hadn’t noticed.

This was no longer fun. Mina was no longer enjoying the hall of mirrors, and all she wanted to do was get her and Layla out of there. The other girl was crying, clearly distressed by whatever was going on in the awful space, and Mina hated seeing other people upset. “Yeah, let’s, ah, let’s get out of here.” She led them away, only to encounter more mirrors. Lovely. Mina saw herself, years older, eyes bright and teeth sharp, looking at her in the window. A nix, not a girl. The nix winked, and the next thing Mina knew, she was drowning someone, their short, curly hair disappearing beneath the water. She looked away from the monster that she feared she would be, the creature she knew her mother and her kind and herself to be. Glancing at another mirror, she saw another, older Mina, this one with a knife in her hand, iron burns bubbling on her skin. A fae, one that seemed both impossibly old and you, trembled before the mirror version of herself. Mirror Mina raised the knife, and Mina snapped her eyes shut, unable to watch anymore. Scales broke out on her hands, nails extending into claws. She balled them into fists, skin breaking on her palms as she threw a solid punch at the mirror in front of her. It shattered. It didn’t stop the pounding in her ears, the tightness in her chest. She refused to let herself become that. Either of those things. She turned to Layla, a bit dizzy, realizing that she probably looked a bit crazed. Hopefully, her nose wasn’t bleeding. “See an exit?” she asked, her voice higher and a bit out of breath.

Following Mina to the next room, Layla wanted so badly to avoid the mirrors, but something caught the corner of her eye. Something she hadn’t seen in quite some time and left her heart racing. Moving forward to another mirror she saw the reflection again and quickly checked behind and around her, only to find an empty room aside from Mina. But the image, the person, was still there. In fact, when she finally looked at the mirror, she noticed two very familiar people staring back at her; her parents. By now Layla was on the verge of having a panic attack, and then her eyes went to a smaller version of herself. Her mother had a tight grip on her hand, one that felt like the bone was being crushed. The small child was screaming with tears fiercely rolling down her cheeks as she was pulled outside and into the backyard. “Kill it.” The words echoed in her mind as she refused and continued to cry, “I said kill it, Layla.” The words were firm and scary and as little Layla tried to pull away, she soon felt her mother pressing her down closer to the animal, “I swear to God, Layla Elizabeth, if you don’t do as you're told…”

Slowly, and with shaky hands, picking up a nearby knife laying near a cage that held a small rabbit, the redheaded child crawled forwards, but as she went to do as her mother was telling her, something deep inside stopped her. “Dammit, Child. Why are you so difficult?” Snatching the little girl up, she laid a firm hand on Layla’s cheek, before pushing her back to the ground. Taking the knife herself, Eliza opened the cage up and grabbed the rabbit. As both child Layla and the present version of herself watched in horror, a cry slipped from her lips leaving her sinking to the floor as suppressed memories seemed to come flooding back.

It was the shattering of glass and Mina’s voice that pulled Layla out of the place she was in. Wiping her eyes with her arm and remaining quiet, she got up off the floor. Through hazy hues, she scanned the room finally seeing an exit sign, and without saying much, began moving towards freedom, “This way.”

Claws retracting, webbing fading, scales nothing more than a few errant patches on the backs of her hands, Mina follows after Layla carefully, concern casting shadows over her features. The other girl seems even more shell shocked than Mina is, whatever she saw in her own mirrors just as if not worse than Mina’s visions. Mina reached out to touch Layla’s shoulder before she noticed her hands were covered blood and decided against it. Instead, she waited until they finally exited that hell of a hall of mirrors, her eyes blinking in the bright sunlight, before she turned to Layla. “Are you alright?” Layla didn’t look alright, and Mina was highly aware that it was a stupid question, but she had to ask it anyway because she certainly wasn’t alright, either. This furthered Mina’s dislike of mirrors, and it was likely that she’d managed to get herself cursed after breaking a magic one. What was the saying? Seven years of bad luck for breaking a mirror? Was it doubled if the mirror was a sinister creation designed to torment the minds of those that looked in it? Tripled? Quadrupled? At least other mirrors just showed her present flaws, not past or future ones. “This, ah, isn’t quite what I expected from a hall of mirrors.”

As the bright lights of the carnival overtook her sight, Layla found little relief in being outside. The visions of both the past and future had haunted her greatly. Mina’s question went through one ear and out the other, before she could fully process it, but when she finally did, she forced out a small lie not wanting to worry the girl next to her. But it was evident by the smell of blood coming from Mina’s hand, that her new friend wasn’t okay, “Uh, yeah. I’m fine. You might want to go get that looked at though.” She scanned the area for a first aid tent, before giving one last glance to the hall of mirrors, “I don’t know what kind of sick fucking joke that was, but whoever cursed those mirrors...let’s just say karma’s a bitch.” She forced back the anguish she was feeling as she spotted a tent with a cross on it, “Looks like medical is over there.” She pointed in the direction, “Do you want me to go with you?” Layla looked back to Mina waiting on an answer. 

“Medical?” Mina asked. Honestly, she hadn’t even been thinking about getting her hands treated. She’d planned on just wrapping them up until the next time she went swimming, which, most likely, would be after she left. But she was in public. “Ah, right, probably.” She willed the remainder of the scales to sink below her skin. She looked completely human, even if she wasn’t. “That was cruel and incredibly uncalled for, those mirrors.” She had no idea what the other girl might have seen, but it clearly affected her more than she was willing to say. Mina didn’t want to leave her alone. “You can come with me, if you’d like. And then perhaps we could grab some food here? The food can’t be bad, right?” 

The images from the mirrors had dredged up memories she thought she had repressed. The only thing holding her together was the fact that she was standing in front of Mina in a public place. Glancing around the carnival, Layla’s appetite and mood had gone out the door. Instead, she had just wanted to be home snuggled up with Indy. She looked back to the brunette and spoke, “I, uh…” She didn’t want to be rude, and she knew she hadn’t been the only one to experience whatever heartache the mirrors had revealed to Mina, “Sure.” With a soft, sad smile, she began walking further into the carnival. At least she wouldn’t be there alone and while the night had been horrific, so far, at least she had made a new friend. Nothing like bonding over traumatizing experiences brought on by cursed mirrors to get a friendship going, right?

#para: back to the future #drowningisinevitable #potw: something wicked carnival #domestic abuse tw #emotional abuse tw #animal cruelty tw #self harm tw

[hawaiianhalfwolf]

SOOOO in light of recent events. If you or someone you know needs help removing or treating an injured animal from your home or yard, please message me or call the Animal Sciences Department at UMAC. We’ve been working with the local Animal Control services all night and because of the heavy influx of animals we’ve deiced to also open the department to animal related inquires and request. 

So if you need help please call [phone]. There will be local control officers along with vet tech students and staff on call to assist with capturing, treating and housing these animals. 

Thank you. 

#touchofstarter #touchofpotw #//if you;ve got an animal problem hit a sleep deprived highly caffinated Noah up #potw: infuriating incident