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project-rosewood-476 · 3 years

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Every Rose Has Its Thorns Chapter 1

So I’ve finally decided to post the first chapter of my creepypasta fanfic Every Rose Has It’s Thorns. This is based on an RP that I’m doing with @creepypasta-shtick so this takes place in their universe that they created so a lot of this were their ideas too just as much as mine. You should go check them out!. Maplehood creek, Rosewood Prep, and Tabby Anderson belongs to me.

Every Rose Has Its Thorn

Chapter 1

Tabby Anderson laid awake staring blankly up at the ceiling. She was replaying the last months worth of events that happened in her life over and over again in her head. Like a broken record. Over the course of a month she watched the ones she held close all jump to their deaths one by one while everyone’s cheering drowned out her own screams of terror. She could still hear the breaking of the glass window as Horatio, the guy who made all of her friends jump to their deaths, forcefully shoved her fist through the window. It was an unforgettable sound as it would be one that would haunt the rest of her life. She let out a silent gasp as she clenched her bandaged left hand from the phantom pain. She no longer had any use of her left hand as that was gone forever now. Living as a constant reminder of what she failed to do.

She winced from the fresh bruises and scars that never healed as she turned over to her side as she looked at the alarm clock. It read 2am in big red numbers. She let out an audible sigh and she squeezed her eyes shut as she banged her head over and over again on her pillow. Insomnias a bitch as it was but it was even more of a bitch to deal with when your stomach is empty and your mind is full. She realized that she had school in a couple of hours with the strict regimen that her stepdad had her on.

“On top of no sleep for tonight I also have to deal with another day of hell at Rosewood Prep and another day of hell at home too. All by myself”, She said in thought.

Tabby flopped back onto her pillow as her eyes made their way back up to the ceiling. She wasn’t sure just how long she could make it at Rosewood and at home since it was just her now. I mean her only motivation for living was taken from her and Rosewood wasn’t a place you could survive on your own. She didn’t know if she could make it to graduation. She then came up with the dawning realization. One that made her bolt up straight in her bed with her unnaturally wide eyes growing wider. If she stayed any longer she would be killed for sure, whether it was by Horatio, her step dad or herself. Either way one of those three would get her it was only a matter of time. Tabby couldn’t die not yet at least. Not until she fulfilled her promises of avenging her friends and killing Horatio once and for all. She got up and winced at her bruises that were still tender. She got dressed in a white tee shirt and black jeans with faded dirty pink converse. She got her black bag and began to pack. She packed a couple of photos, one of her mom, stepdad, herself, her older and younger brothers, one class photo in the 8th grade that was just her and her now deceased friends, a picture of her little brother, and a couple of sketches of her that her best friend Autumn made. She then packed some clothes, hair brush and toothbrush. She was about to sneak out when she realized she forgot the most important thing. Tabby ran back to her dresser and took out the money she’s been saving for the last two years from her job at the This or That restaurant and her red plaid jacket that shes had since the 6th grade. It was enough money to buy a bus ticket and have a little leftover to live until she found a job and got a stable income. After she pocketed the money safely away and tied her jacket around her waist, she snuck out through her window.

Tabby landed with a soft thud on to the ground she laid there for a bit and groaned. She got back up and brushed herself off and picked up her bag and slung it over her shoulders. Tabby took a few moments to appreciate the peacefulness of the night. For it being in the middle of November it was surprisingly warm. Must be one of those freak mother nature weeks or something. She could hear the few cars going by occasionally and there was no sound of people. She could hear the wind rustling through the trees that were the woods surrounding her town. Tabby knew that there were shortcuts in her section of the woods that led to the next town of HolyAnn. That was where the bus stop was and where she could buy a bus ticket and get out of Maplehood Creek for good. Tabby kept her back to her apartment complex and ran straight into the woods and never looked back. Ever.

Meanwhile deep in the heart of the woods, the whimpering of the woman before them was not stirring Hoodie’s sympathies. She could shake and cry all she wanted, about how she needed to get home to her children and husband. Hoodie didn’t particularly care all that much. Masky turned to look at Hoodie.

“Hm, do you think we should let her go?”, he asked in a taunting voice clearly mocking the poor woman’s pleads.

Hoodie and Masky loved to toy with their victims. In Toby’s opinion, it made them take too long to get the job done. However, the creativity and cruelty the two of them displayed were why they were some of the Slenderman’s favorites. Toby noted that they were only violent with victims around each other. Solo missions and missions with only one or the other resulted in the two being much less brutal. Though, Toby noted, Jeff was much more crazed and violent than these two. Toby’s head snapped up when he heard the woman scream in pain. He did not turn to see what one of the men had done to her. Someone in the woman’s family was trying to get information about the Slenderman. Killing her would be sending a message. Toby continued to stare off into the woods, knowing the direction he was staring into was where several houses were.

Tabby continued to curse herself as she got deeper and deeper into the woods. She was clearly lost but she refused to admit it to herself. She then heard a woman’s scream. Tabby’s fight or flight instinct kicked in and she was on high alert as always. She thought she was running away from the danger only to stumble upon a masked man, a man with a frowning mask, and a man with orange goggles and the corpse of the dead woman. She locked eyes with the orange goggled man. She unfortunately has the freeze response so she couldn’t run or fight even if she wanted to at this minute. Tabby was a pitiful sight to see. All covered in various bruises and scars of different colors and sizes, unnaturally wide, haunted hazel eyes that were colored underneath from lack of sleep and were slightly sunken back due to malnourishment. Her cheeks were slightly hollow also due to malnourishment and she stood in a potential fighting stance that exposed her bandaged left hand. She quickly realized that running would ensure her getting killed. If she was going to die she was going to die with what little dignity she had left and face death face on, She wasn’t going down without a fight.

“Oh fuck…”, she let out quietly.

Like with everything else in her life she had the misfortune of being at the wrong place at the wrong time. She was having a flashback to when she was 12 with a similar situation with her step dad happened. Death was not new to her; she was the least fazed by that. She was more worried about her own survival at the moment. She shook her head to get rid of the flashbacks and to focus more on the situation at hand. Should she go with the situation or fight?

It did not matter how quiet the girl was. Hoodie and Masky have been doing this line of work for a long time. They were also blessed by the Slenderman with practically supernatural senses. Hoodie stared coldly at the girl. Masky chuckled.

“Well, well, well what do we have here?”, he said looking at the frail stranger in front of them.

Toby continued to make eye contact with the girl. He recognized the signs of abuse and neglect and had a flashback of his own. He had been hiding in a closet with his older sister. He couldn’t have been more than eight or so at the time. He remembered his father yelling and screeching at his mother. The sounds of a fight and his mother screaming. He remembered footsteps stomping up the stairs and his father calling for his sister and him to come out. He remembered his sister covering him in towels and blankets to hide him just before his father opened the closet. His sister had saved him from a beating that night.

He snapped back to the present when he heard Hoodie speak, in his raspy quiet voice.

“Let’s just kill her there’s no point in leaving her alive”

Masky seemed to be considering that.

“Alright, Hoodie, you-”

“No”, stated Toby abruptly.

“I’m sorry what?”, asked Tabby surprised.

The two men stopped and stared at the newer proxy.

“Don’t be ridiculous”, Tim began to lecture Toby.

Toby, however, stood his ground.

“No let’s just let her go”, he stated

“Are you fucking stupid”, Masky stated coldly, “That is a major breech of conduct”

Toby shook his head, ”There’s really no point in killing her”.

Hoodie just listened as the two men began to debate. He personally figured that killing the girl was unnecessary as they were not ordered to do so. However, he realized that they just couldn’t let her go either.

Tabby rolled her eyes and crossed her arms in defense. Although she looked like a mixture of ready to either bolt or fight.

“Oh please killing me would be a sweet blessing compared to the 17 years that I had and specifically with this month in general”. She stated.

She didn’t dare look at Toby for too long as she quickly learned growing up that if she looked at someone directly in the eyes for too long, it meant a challenge and resulted in a sure beating.

“If I do get let go I’m going back to where I live, clearly I picked a bad night for this and didn’t think this through enough. I’m going to find that bottle of whiskey in the cabinets that I know damn well my parents have hidden somewhere and I’m going to drink myself to oblivion and forget this encounter ever happened”, Tabby added out loud talking more to herself than to the others. She hasn’t been killed yet so staying and going with the situation was her best option.

Hoodie spoke up.

“Are you sure you’d go back home?”, he asked bluntly.

Masky glanced at him. It was like he could sense that Hoodie was analyzing the kid.

“I mean you’ve just gotten away from em, hm?”, Hoodie prodded as he gestured to her black backpack.

Hoodie was known for being scarily perceptive. Even Masky was staring at him.

Tabby huffed and pushed her hair back.

“I…have nowhere else to go but if I stayed I would be dead in the very near future. So I was running away. But obviously this is a bad night to do so, clearly I didn’t think this through enough and I have one other to protect…”, she said defensively.

Masky hummed.

“I think that if living is such a hassle to you then-”, he was cleaning the bloody blade off his jacket.

“No! Lets not kill her-!”, Toby intervened again.

“Why?”, asked Tabby quietly.

Toby looked at the girl and then looked down.

“Because I understand what you’re going through”, Toby whispered.

Hoodie pretended that he hadn’t heard what he said while Masky scoffed and was about to argue again when Hoodie spoke up.

“Let’s take her to our boss. Let him decide”

“Hoodie! He has to ask to see a human. Just simply bringing one to him-”, Toby protested.

“It’s better than letting her go”, said Hoodie with a shrug.

Everyone looked back at Tabby for her decision. It was either this or death. Her options were limited.

“Alrighty lets see here….I can’t run….That would ensure my death and I’d be hunted down for sure…I can’t fight all three of you at once….I really have nothing to lose anymore….so going with you guys seems like the best course of options to ensure my survival for now…I really don’t have much of a choice now do I?”, she took a deep breath, stood up straight and looked at them with an emotionless expression, “Lead the way I guess. The sooner I know me fate the sooner I can carry on with my life dead or alive”

Hoodie nodded, ”You’re right. Even if you ran or even if we let you go our boss would have us hunt you down”

Masky nodded and perked up.

“I’m impressed with your ability to make a rational decision in a life or death situation”, he mused, “Toby. You walk with her and make sure that she doesn’t try anything”

They were going to break the rules just this once. Maybe the boss would take pity on the girl. After all, he’d done the same with Toby. Toby went to stand next to the girl as Masky and Hoodie led the way deeper into the woods.

Tabby moved a couple of steps from Toby to give him space. She just looked at the ground praying that he wouldn’t beat her or kill her. Not yet. She walked with Toby not daring to speak. Being used to sneaking around she was quite stealthy. She made very little noise to where you would almost forget that she was walking with you. She was fidgeting with the hem of her white shirt like she was wringing someone’s neck. Even though she showed no emotion. She was anxious. Her anxiety was skyrocketing. She had to fight the urge to run every time she heard a noise. Her eye twitches occasionally. That was due to her being taken off meds that she didn’t need because doctors refused to do diagnosis correctly.

Toby had no intention of harming her. He could tell that she wasn’t doing too well, and he couldn’t really blame her. They passed the corpse of the dead woman as he followed the two older proxies. Hoodie and Masky were having their own conversation ahead of them. Toby decided to try to chat.

“Er..I’m Toby”, he stated, “What’s your name?”

He really didn’t expect a positive response from her. Why should he? He knew that she was probably freaking out. He did too when he was put in this situation.

“My name is Tabby”, she replied looking at Toby for a quick moment.

She looked wary and cautious but decided to show no fear. Hoodie and Masky paused in front of a haggard old tree with the boss’ symbol carved into it. Masky pulled off his glove and pressed the symbol with his bare hand. It began to glow faintly. It seemed like the woods grew darker, as if shadows were melting and joining together in some kind of macabre dance. Toby remembered being absolutely terrified of the opening of a portal when he was new. Especially a portal that led right into the heart of the Slenderman’s domain.

Tabby kinda looked up and around her in a mixture of awe and mortification. She stopped fidgeting slightly occasionally wringing her shirt before catching herself and smoothening out. She was desperately trying to show no signs of weakness despite how she looked.

Toby understood. Hoodie went through the shadows first and just seemed to vanish. Masky nodded to Toby and Tabby.

“You two are next Toby will lead the way”, he said.

Toby smiled at Tabby reassuringly.

"It-It’s just cold”, He assured her. His face twitched a bit. Damn it he had been doing so well so far, "It won’t hurt or anything.”

Tabby gave him a hint of a small smile although she was still suspicious and didn’t trust him or any of them for that matter one bit. Her eye twitched again. But she didn’t raise herself to be a little bitch so she jumped through the portal after Toby. She hid her left arm behind her back to avoid any questions about her hand.

It was cold and dark. Toby felt his feet hit something soft and cold. The ground always felt off. He heard the sound of a lighter clicking, and turned and saw Masky behind them with a lit lighter. The small flame wasn’t nearly enough to fully illuminate the entrance, but it was enough. Hoodie was waiting for them near what looked like a thick wall of foliage. Hoodie had his arms crossed and looked a little impatient. They had to take a walk through the Pocket to even get to the boss’ place, which would be dangerous for the human, as she was, well, a human that wasn’t a pet in a haven of killers.

“We don’t have all day.” Hoodie said firmly.

“I’m here” she said rather defensively.

“Good”, Hoodie stated.

Now he took off his glove. Masky protested a bit.

“I can do it, my glove is already off-”

Hoodie ignored him and sliced his palm slightly. He waved his hand in a way that would splatter the blood on the plants. Just like that, they slithered back, creating a doorway that seemed to lead into a huge town. Hoodie walked resolutely forward. Masky sighed and put his glove back on.

"You two go after him.” He said.

Tabby nodded not looking at him. She quickly walked a little ahead of Toby but she wasn’t more than an arms length away from him. She looked around at her surroundings. It was very different from her hometown where the only sinister thing was Rosewood Prep where she goes to school. She was used to the feeling of darkness making observations to herself.

Toby offered her a small smile.

“Make sure you stay close…” he warned her quietly.

Tabby nodded slowly, slowing down her pace to be evenly matched with Toby. She was careful to avoid eye contact with everyone.

The town was bustling. Toby saw some people he knew outside. Clockwork’s bar was bustling with activity. He could see EJ perched on a bench, eating…something. Judging from the blood splatters on his hands and clothes, Toby figured he knew what it was. The sky was clear and very dark. There were a bunch of plants and trees that Toby knew no human would have ever seen before. It was a very colorful place surprisingly, save for the pitch black sky and dark ground. But it was always cold. And it always felt a little off. Lights floated against the sky, giving the illusion of some sort of stars. The town was also illuminated by lamps and the lights from the buildings.

"It’s…different….definitely not like Rosewood Prep" she said quietly more to herself.

Toby nodded.

“Yeah. That’s the school in the town right?” He asked.

He was homeschooled so he wasn’t too sure. Masky walked behind them and Hoodie walked in front. A woman in a tight black dress and a wig stopped Masky temporarily and handed him a file. He seemed to thank her and continued to follow them.

Tabby nodded politely as she walked by the woman.

“it’s one of them unfortunately. There’s also Maplehood Creek elementary school. I went there for the first 4 years then I got transferred over Rosewood” she gave him a bitter smile and a bitter laugh “In Rosewood you’d either have to be very rich, mentally disturbed or very intelligent to get in. And I’m two out of the three” her eyes showed a dark, pained haunted expression.

Toby nodded. He understood.

“Yeah, I’ve heard that about that school.”

He looked around, then whispered.

"That woman that gave Masky the file used to go there too. You probably didn’t know her or anything but she did go there.“ He stated earnestly.

It was true. Jane had gone there. Toby knew several others who had gone there too.

"I never went to school so…well I did for elementary but that didn’t go too well for me.” Toby said.

Masky was glancing through the files.

She showed an expression of understanding and relief, “so they’ve probably have horror stories of their own about that place”.

She looked at Toby “don’t worry it didn’t go too well for me either that’s why I got transferred”

She remembered her first day at that sinister place. Meeting her first real friend and making her first sworn enemy and accidentally witnessed Horacio physically torture some poor kid. All at the ripe old age of 9 years old.

Toby nodded.

“Yeah. That school is absolutely ripe for producing people like, well…” He gestured around at the people in the town, “It’s why where you live is such a hotspot for, well, paranormal activity as well as people like me.” He explained.

He didn’t want to go into detail about his hellish elementary school days. He knew proxies who would watch that school day in and day out because of all the people that would just snap there.

She looked at him. “I now see why you guys didn’t decide to kill me… Makes sense I’ve always been able to see paranormal shit all my life from the time I could remember…I guess that I’ve always had some sort of potential”

she gave a bitter laugh.

“Who knew that my step dad would be proven wrong about me. The shit I saw and went through made me the survivor that I am today and I don’t mean to undermine your hellish experience but to me that sounds like heaven compared to Rosewood. I wish I had your elementary experience”

She hesitated for a minute before her expression turned dark, fearful and pained.

“Are you aware of anyone named Horatio Galloway?” She asked quietly

She held her bandaged left hand close to her.

“Ha, well I mean if you define "heaven” as being relentlessly tormented by all your peers, having a hate club made about you, and being put in the hospital twice by kids older then you then I suppose so.“ Toby smiled.

"Also, usually we kill people who are sensitive to the paranormal. Well, the people who work for my boss do.”

Toby was silent after being asked about the stranger.

“I’m not, I’m sorry. Though someone else here might be aware of who he is.”

“I had all of that and more. I’ve been put in the hospital more times then I care to remember”, she physically flinched as she felt the phantom pain of her hand and the beatings of her step dad.

"At least you didn’t watch the only people who were the closest thing you had to a real family jump to their deaths one by one at the hands of Horatio. And there was nothing I could do about it”, she went quiet.

“I-I said too much. It’s not really anyone else’s business”, she tilted her head to the side thoughtfully, “hm…if I die I at least will be with my friends again…hopefully” she sighed “that’s fine…I’ll get my revenge eventually…if I live long enough…”

Toby nodded. He understood. He spoke.

“My father liked to say that my sister died in a car crash. She was in one, that was true, but the reason it killed her was because of a head wound my father had given her. The car cr-a-ash-”, he stopped and cleared his throat, “was simply just an excuse.”

“Dads aren’t shit”, she said as she playfully punched his arm gently with her right hand with a small smile.

Toby understood what it was like to lose people. So did a lot of the folks here. They soon were heading up a steep hill towards a monolith of a mansion. It was beautiful, with sprawling gardens and marble columns. All three of the men quickened their steps towards the metal gate, which swung open to let the group in. It seemed that whoever or whatever was inside was expecting him. Toby figured Masky had let the boss know. All proxies could communicate telepathically with their boss. But only their boss.

She almost forgot about her anxiety as she was talking to Toby. Her anxiety spiked up as she was about to receive her fate. She went back to wringing her shirt.

“Its so strange…I might die at any minute now and I’m strangely okay with this. You know death was very real to be growing up. I knew I’ll die any day now whether I’ll do it myself or someone else would”, she shook her head, “I just never expected my death to be like this. This turned out to be a longer night then expected”

Toby patted her shoulder.

She dodged his touch and then offered him an apologetic smile.

“Sorry instincts”

“I’ll vouch for you.” He said simply.

“What if that’s not enough? What if I have to die anyways regardless?”, stated Tabby.

Hoodie led them up the stairs to a huge door, that also creaked open invitingly. The inside of the mansion was beautiful, with golden curtails, matching rugs, and wooden floors. Two people in matching masks and uniforms closed the door when Masky had stepped through. Without a word, they both gestured, at the same time, for the group to follow them.

Tabby whistled and was impressed at her surroundings.

“This is so much better than my apartment…”

Toby glanced at Tabby.

“Disgraced proxies.” He explained, then mentioned he would explain everything later to her after the conversation with his boss.

“Oh…”, she nodded an okay as he said that he’ll explain later. She sincerely hoped that she would be alive for the explanation.

She made the sign of the cross and put her hands together in a silent prayer and followed them. She stood up straight with her hands to her sides and kept a neutral emotionless expression for first impressions.

Toby understood. There wasn’t much he could do for her except put in a good word for her. Masky looked like he had a bit of a headache. The two people in the pearly colored masks eventually led them to a heavy door. One of them pushed it open. This room was darker than the rest of the mansion. It was cold. Painting of landscapes hung on the walls. It seemed to be some sort of sitting room. In the corner, on a plush armchair, rested a tall imposing figure. As soon as Hoodie, Masky, and Toby entered the room, they approached the chair and kneeled. The proxies in the pearly masks kneeled right next to the door, allowing Tabby to go in. Tabby entered the room cautiously and looked around. Tabby didn’t know what to do. She saw everyone else kneeling so she did the same too. Wincing at her bruises as she did. She looked down, not daring to speak or look up until she was spoken too.

The room seemed to rumble as the figure in the chair spoke.

“Masky…why have you brought this human here?”, It was a smooth, but chilling voice.

Masky remained kneeling, and addressed his creator.

“Conflict in the group as to what to do with her, sir.”, Masky said.

The being chuckled coldly.

“How silly. Why did you not just do away with her?” The being asked.

Masky sighed, and responded.

“Some in the group believe there is no purpose in killing her.” He stated firmly.

Toby was muttering something under his breath, over and over. “Cruel but fair, cruel but fair, cruel but fair-”

There was only one thought in her mind, "is this really going to be the end of me?”

That was when Toby stepped in.

“Sir! Don’t punish my teammates for what I did. They both wanted to kill her but I suggested bringing her to you! I figured she…that she could be useful, maybe. Even if you just let her go, sir.”

That’s when Tabby stepped in.

“Now wait a minute! If anyone should be killed it’s me!”

She quickly turned to the being.

“Sir with all due respect, I should be killed. I was the one who made the stupid decision to run away from home. I was stupid enough to stumble upon them doing their job. I never should have ran away in the first place. I was stupid enough to not run away from what I stumbled upon when I had the chance”

she said more quietly, “sir please don’t punish them for my own stupidity. It should be me and me alone. I’ll take the full blow if I must and even if it includes death”, she looked down.

Toby looked at her in shock, hoodie sucked in a breath, and Masky sighed, facepalmed and shook his head.

She realized her mistake but it was too late to take it back. The damage was done. She was sure for certain now that she’ll definitely be killed now. She waited for the consequence.

“Silence.”, The figure said, waving his tentacles threateningly.

"I hold these men to a higher standard than mere humans. However…“, The being cocked his head. "I’ll admit that usually the humans brought before me simply beg for their life. You did not, which…amuses me.”

“Oh…yeah I forgot about my own life for a minute there…uh….spare me? Please?”, she said awkwardly not really putting much effort into it.

Toby perked up. She might just be spared.

“You simply were at the wrong place at the wrong time. Normally, I would have you slaughtered anyways.”, the being paused.

The proxies remained kneeling. The Slenderman seemed to settle.

“Since you have amused me, I’ll put your fate in your own hands. You can choose to die, in which case I shall send you out with either Knot or Paene.”, he gestured to the two proxies in the pearly masks, “Or, you could stay here, and see what we can make of you.”

“You mean if I choose to stay I can live and eventually get my revenge and a new life?”, she asked in disbelief.

She thought about it, “but if I stay I’ll never see my mother or little brother again…” she then remembered that her mother and little brother were treated better than her. He would never beat them, only her.

"They don’t really need me…and I have nothing else to lose… and I have been asking for a second chance at life since I was 12…“

She looked at the being making her final decision. As she said something that she didn’t believe, "I want to stay”. Meaning that she wants to live.

"Very well.“, the powerful being said, and offered her his hand to shake. He could sense something in her that was…darker.

Tabby gave him a firm handshake with her right hand to seal the deal.

"You may stay with either Masky, Hoodie, or Toby.”, the being said.

"I’ll stay with Toby", she quickly looked down. Her chances of surviving would greatly increase if she stuck to him for now. Besides he was nice to her and spared her life so she kinda owes him.

Once she proved herself useful, she could have her own home. Until then, she needed a mentor and someone who could explain the new life she was given. The being nodded to Knot and Paene to show the group out. He actually had some business to attend to with Masky and Masky only, and it involved the files he had brought to him. The Slenderman nodded, and sent her, Hoodie, and Toby out while he spoke with Masky privately. Toby was happy to at least be able to help her adjust. He hoped she’d be able to make the cut. Even though he was new, he was still a decent proxy meaning the apartment he had had two rooms and enough space for them to live comfortably. Jane was their neighbor along with a few others Toby had never met. Tabby followed Toby closely; she was careful not to stare as she was Generally polite for the most part. She saw a doctor with stitches going across her. She made damn sure to avoid her since she didn’t like doctors. She saw an eccentric child playing with LJ, the Doll maker and Jason the toy maker. She saw two boys arguing with each other that reminded her of an old married couple.

Toby was thinking.

“We can get Jane to make you a mask.”, he said, “I think you might like her."

Tabby looked offended, "what’s wrong with my face? Is it because of my eyes?”.

She did have unnaturally wide eyes. She often got picked on for them. People called her wide-eyed, bugsy, googly eyes ect…

“No, no it’s nothing to do with your face!”, Toby assured her, “It’s just that people like us wear masks. It’s kind of like our new identity. But any face covering works, really.”

They passed a haggard, tall, skeletal thing with long tangled black hair. The creature’s limbs were covered with dirt, mud, blood, and other…things. It watched Toby and Tabby continue on, mouth ripped open and hanging near its collar bone. It stared with its yellow blank stare. They passed a tall man with broad shoulders, very attractive and charming-looking. He was holding a cat in his arms. He looked relatively normal. They finally made it to Toby’s apartment building.

She looked at the apartment complex, “it’s a lot nicer than my old apartment…”

She didn’t look at the other people as she didn’t want others to kill her. He led her into the lobby. The lobby was empty, save for a lady at the front desk. She looked normal, save for the fact she had no eyes and her mouth was stitched shut. She was doing paperwork. Toby didn’t seem to mind.

“Come on!”, He said, a little excited to show her where she’d be staying.

Tabby gave him a small smile and let him lead the way. Toby let her into his apartment. It was oddly clean despite being lived in by an 18 year old boy. The blinds were open. There were a few dishes on the sink but nothing too unclean. The walls were a light green with dark brown trim. It was a decent place. A little cat slept peacefully on the couch. It was quiet besides the humming.

“Your room will be the door right next to the hall closet.”, he stated, “My room is locked, so don’t worry about getting into the wrong room.”

She nodded in understanding as she took in her surroundings. She dropped her backpack in a corner and slowly walked up to the cat cooing at it. Not daring to touch it until she gained its trust but it’s evident that she has a soft spot for cats.

“Your apartment is nice and it’s relatively clean…I always had to play Cinderella at my old apartment”, said Tabby.

Toby smiled.

“I just like being in clean spaces.”, he said, not wanting to get into the reasons for that.

He introduced the cat to her. The cat’s name was Nugget.

“She was a stray. I found her beating the crap out of some raccoon so I took her in. She’s a real big baby.”

Nugget remained asleep, obviously unbothered by Tabby’s presence.

She nodded, “so do I. I have Bad OCD”, she left it at that not wanting to get into the reasons for that.

"Nugget is really cute. I love cats"

“Well, lucky for you, Nugget loves sleeping in your room so you may wake up and find her next to you.”, Toby said with a smile, “I’ll give you some time to settle in.”.

“Okay” she picked her back pack up and went to her room.

It looked the same as the rest of the place with the same colors just smaller. There was already another bed with a small bedside table and a small dresser with a mirror on it. She unpacked. She only had a week’s worth of clothes for summer and winter and like 3 pairs of pjs. She put socks and underwear in one drawer, shirts in the next, pants in the next and then pjs in the next. She hung up the plain pale blue long sleeved dress that she had in the closet. She put her hygiene products and feminine products in her closet. Lastly she took out the two pictures that she had and put them on the nightstand. And she took out a couple of sketches that her best friend Autumn made for her. They were both of Tabby in different poses. She laid them on the bed. The bed was bare as there was no bedding on it. She’ll buy frames for her pictures and bedding for her bed once she got money. She’ll ask later if she could hang stuff up on the wall.

Toby busied himself while she got settled into her new room. He had done the dishes from what he had managed to eat that day and checked on the food he had. He was running low, but thankfully he’d soon be paid for the mission with a bonus, as he was now training someone. Proxies got paid per mission, though it was always possible to get money on the side. The longer and more complex the mission, the more pay you’d get for it. Toby had finished cleaning up his mess in the kitchen and was looking over his mission schedule for that week. He had given Jane a call to let her know her services would soon be needed. He figured that a friendly female presence would help Tabby adjust to this place, and he knew the moment she had her mask was the moment she could go around The Pocket safely. Jane would make it to her liking. Toby knew that while he’d be the primary mentor, there were things he could not teach her and would need help with. He also knew that he needed to explain the rules.

She sat on the bed and looked into the mirror and took a good long look at her reflection and took the time to process tonight’s events. How fucking quickly her life changed from running away to becoming a proxy.

“Wtf actually happened? How did I survive this?”, she said out loud to herself.

Toby knew his schedule was clear the next day. That would be good. He figured that they soon would need to get something to eat but Toby didn’t feel it was a good idea for Tabby to go out too far without a mask. Not wearing a mask made you a target for the malus population, or even sometimes higher ranked monsters or other proxies. It was deemed unacceptable to not wear one unless on a stealth mission. Thankfully Tabby has bad social anxiety so it’s unlikely that she’ll ever venture out by herself. If anything she’ll venture out if she had too only with another person with her. Toby knew that she would have to make friends to survive for long here. It was always best to have someone in your corner unless things went to crap. Thankfully Toby knew some decent people who could definitely help her out of her shell a tad and also would be loyal. She decided to leave Toby alone for now since she didn’t want to get in his way and bother him. He knew where to get her if he needed her. She just flopped on the bed staring up at the ceiling. It’s insomnia week so she’s not going to sleep for a couple of days. Her anxiety died down and the adrenaline wore off.

She talked quietly out loud to herself, “Alrighty ground rules. Don’t speak unless spoken too. Only make eye contact for a little bit when someone is talking to you. Always be polite and respectful, fight if you have too, just keep your head low, stay out of the way and if someone asks you to do something quickly, quietly and efficiently”.

She nodded as she agreed with the rules that she made for herself. She gave herself a little pep talk.

“I survived Rosewood for the last 8 years. I can survive here. This is no different from Rosewood only the steaks are higher. I can live with that. I’m sure there’s a weapon store somewhere here. I can buy some weapons to defend myself with when I absolutely have to go alone”. She took a deep breath “I’m finally going to do it Autumn…I’m going to avenge you and the others….just hold on”

Toby knocked on her door, and let her know he was going out for groceries. He told her Jane would be over in about fifteen minutes to start working on a mask with her and asked her if she needed anything. He was planning on just making some simple food for dinner. Jane was a very talented mask maker, and Toby knew that she would do a good job with Tabby’s. Toby had a bit of a flashback. When he was new, still slightly burned and bruised from the fire, he was sitting down on some stone steps outside a building and he was crying. He remembered feeling a tap on his shoulder and seeing Jane sitting next to him. She was ranked lower than he was, she had explained, so he could feel assured she wouldn’t hurt him. He remembered her taking him back to her apartment and making him some food before showing him where he was supposed to go. Jane was an incredibly sweet person and was able to make people just open up to her. She did a lot of espionage missions and did a lot of work with stealth.

Tabby opened up the door and nodded.

“Do you think you can buy my two frames? About an 8 x 9? And at least two knives for me to defend myself when I absolutely have to go alone? And some bedding too?”, she added quickly, “if you don’t want too that’s fine! I can wait until I get my own money! I don’t need anything fancy! Just something sturdy and simple. And something warm. I don’t want to be a burden on you. I can take care of myself! I don’t want you to think I’m trying to take advantage of you! I’m actually really grateful!”, she babbled on as she fidgeted with the bottom of her shirt and looked down prepared for the harsh comeback.

“It’s okay! I can get that for you. Any specific colors you want for the bedding and the frames or should I just get stuff that matches the room?”, Toby asked.

He had no problem providing her with stuff. She was a guest in his home and he would be a bad host if he didn’t help her out. Plus she was in a new world with new rules that probably seemed a bit hellish. If he could help in any way he would be happy to.

“Oh, and I’m grilling some chicken and making some salad for dinner. Is that okay or do you want me to bring you back something?”, he asked.

“Teal…I like the color teal…it’s my favorite… as for the frames just simple black ones will do. No need to be fancy.”, she added quietly.

She listened to him when he said what he was making for dinner, “That’s fine I’m not a picky eater. but I have to watch you make it because I don’t trust anyone to make my food unless I’m watching or if I’m making it myself. It could be poisoned. No offense to you".

It was common knowledge at Rosewood that you don’t eat the school food as everyone’s caught Horatio poisoning the food more times than not. So everyone brought their own lunch and the kitchen shut down.

“Okay, that’s fine with me.”, Toby assured her, “You can even help me cook it if you want.”.

He understood. When he first got to the Pocket he was given to an older proxy to be trained to who called himself Demitrius. Toby had been training with a girl named Farrah. Demitrius despised them. He was so awful to them, which they both had to take as they were new. Then they had both started getting sicker and sicker. Farrah had found out that they were slowly being poisoned so they were both moved to different mentors. He didn’t feel like explaining that however.

“I’ll make sure I’ll get you what you need, okay?”, said Toby.

She nodded as she sounded relieved, "Okay. I’m pretty good in the kitchen myself”.

As she’s always had to cook dinner for the 5 of them, the people she lived with. On top of her working at the This or That restaurant.

“Okay thank you”, she ventured out to the living room as she sat down on the edge of the couch since he mentioned that a girl named Jane was coming over soon.

“Okay, I’ll see you.”, Toby said with a smile. He turned and left the apartment with a list.

Soon enough, the door slid open. The woman from earlier came into the apartment. She was tall, and wearing a very pretty painted mask and a wig. She had changed from the dress from earlier into a long sleeved t shirt and jeans.

“Hey hon! I’m Jane.”, the woman said with a kind voice.

She quickly looked up at her, “hello my name is Tabby”, she quickly looked back down again as she was fidgeting with her shirt again. She was covered in bruises and scars old and new. And her bandaged left hand was obvious.

She stood up trying to be a good hostess, “would you like anything to drink? I’m sure we only have water here for now”.

Jane smiled and shook her head.

“No thank you, I’m good.”, she said.

Jane noted her bruises, scars, and her hand. She gave her a smile.

“I was asked to come here to discuss the type of mask you would like.”, she said tentatively.

“Hmm…I don’t want anything too fancy as I don’t want to drag attention to myself more than I already will since I’m fresh meat…and something of a teal color”, she was thinking as she made room for Jane to sit if she wanted to.

Jane sat next to her with a smile, “Hm, teal, that would look nice. You won’t be fresh meat for long, but I understand wanting a plain mask. Maybe a golden design over the teal? That could look very pretty.”

Tabby nodded excitedly, “yeah! Like golden spirals in different directions”

Jane nodded, “That could be pretty.”, she sketched out a tentative design and showed it to her.

“Yeah…”, she just stared for a couple of minutes as she was having a flashback to when Autumn was alive. She was the artistic one in the group. And was also her best friend/big sister. She was always showing Tabby her sketches.

She shook her head to clear away the memories.

“Like that”, she confirmed.

“Okay! Anything else? Would you like me to paint the lips, add any engravings, stuff like that?”, Jane asked.

She remembered one older proxy, about 40, who had lost his entire group in one mission. He had come to her and had her engrave their names on one side of his mask.

She hesitated for a minute, “could you engrave 14 names in the inside of the mask? And paint the lips black please?”.

“Okay, lips black. Can you write out the names please?”, Jane asked, handing her the sketchbook and a pencil. She would be more than happy to.

Tabby took her sketch book and wrote down the names ‘autumn, ora, Emma, heath, Gavin, Donny, Rebecca, Mitchell, Morgan, jewel, Julie, Caleb, Riley, Emmy, and Daniel’. She handed back the sketch book.

“Okay. I’ll carve them on the inside of the mask.”, She said.

She figured those names carried sentimental value to Tabby.

Tabby looked up, “thank you”, and she looked down.

Jane nodded, “I’ll have it done by either tomorrow or the next day, okay?”.

Tabby nodded, “yes that’s fine. Take all the time you need. I don’t plan on going out anytime soon”.

“Of course. I’ll get it ready.”.

“Okay then”, Tabby wasn’t really good at holding up conversations as she never really got too much socializing. Especially if it’s a stranger.

Jane smiled.

“Would you like me to leave, or would you feel more comfortable with someone else in the apartment?”, Jane asked with a smile.

“Oh you can stay if you want if you’re not busy”, she won’t admit it but she didn’t want to be alone in this strange new world just yet.

"I’m not all that busy. If I could bring some of my mask making stuff over here that would be great.“, Jane said. She understood

"Yeah that’s fine. I’m sure Toby won’t mind as long as there’s no mess afterwards”.

"Oh I won’t make a mess.“, Jane said peacefully. She said she would be very fast.

”Unbelievable“, she said in thought, ”I’m talking to a killer…I’m having an ally ship with two of them so far“, she shook her head, "my life really did take a drastic change”

Jane went to her apartment and soon came back with all her supplies. She could get three of her orders done if she worked fast. Jane began to chat with Tabby as she set up.

“So Tabby, you’re very new, hm?”.

“Yeah my life turned into this in one night. I was honestly not expecting this to happen. Originally I was running away”, admitted Tabby.

Jane nodded. She understood. She began making the mold for one of the masks.

“I understand. But this will be a pleasant change, you’ll see.”, Jane promised, “Revenge and whatnot is quite exhilarating”.

She shook her head slowly, "I hope so. I’m just doing it because I know I can’t die and go with my friends without avenging them while he is still out on the streets and in school. Someone else will suffer at his hands and I’ll be damned if someone else has to suffer by the hands of him like I did”, she said quietly.

“I think I know who you’re talking about.”, Jane said, “And…if it’s any consolation at all, ghosts do exist and several of them have contact with other dead folks. There may be a way to talk to your friends, albeit temporarily.”, She set the mask cast to dry and made another one.

“There’s only one I would like to talk to one last time. I owe her everything after all she did for me”, she said quietly. She then changed the subject.

“Toby said that you also went to Rosewood Prep”.

“He’s right. I used to. I still have human contacts in there.”, Jane said. She set a fan on the first mask as she finished the second one.

“So how long ago was that? What was it like? Was it still the same students who were just as corrupt as the teachers? Was it like the hunger games where you had to be on guard and fight every day to survive only with more rules and regulations? What horror stories do you have of that place?”, she asked excitedly. She never met anyone who lived long enough to get out of Rosewood. Normally the people who do got the fuck out the first chance they got and were never really heard from ever again.

“I was there two years ago, actually. I’m still pretty new here myself. I…I have a lot of stories.”, Jane said.

She shifted anxiously, “I once got caught stealing food from the kitchen, and they locked me in the sports shed for almost a week. They poured water on the ground for me every day and I had to lick it up from the ground. Teachers would have favorite kids and that would keep them out of trouble. Rich kids were treated much better. Anyone who made lower than a C on anything was punished. Sometimes they would lock kids who were hallucinating in the upstairs bathroom and just leave them there. I have so many.”

“Horatio Galloway” Tabby’s face paled and her eyes were wide in fear, “most of my horror stories had to do with him” “rarely did I ever get into trouble with the teachers. I was always a straight A student. It’s only when I got into trouble for skipping classes because of Horatio”.

“I think I remember him.”, Jane said, “I didn’t get in as much trouble with him ever. I did okay in my schooling but I was rebellious.”. Jane set the second mask to the side, and started on another.

“It was probably a good thing that you’ve gotten punished for stealing the food. It was probably poisoned by him. I’d rather be locked in the sports shed than have a slow death”, pointed out Tabby.

“It was before the food was prepared. I wasn’t stupid. I took fruits and veggies and unopened pre packaged things. They were denying a friend of mine food. I got caught after she got to eat.”, Jane spoke with some pride.

“Good for you”, Tabby said proudly.

Tabby then looked down and her voice quivered, “then you must be aware of the Rosewood massacre that happened a month back”, She rubbed her left hand.

Jane’s eyes darkened, “I heard rumors about the massacre but don’t know the details. Several of my friends are still there…”.

“I can tell you the real full story. The massacre as they called it really did happen. I saw it with my own eyes but being the person that Horatio is he made damn sure that I couldn’t do a damn thing about it”, she gave a bitter laugh, ”always had it out for me since day 1".

Jane looked sadly at her.

“I’m so sorry you had to be there.”, Jane said softly she began to paint the first mask, a pretty lavender mask, “Talk about it only if you would like to.”

She sighed and thought about it for a while. She’s never talked to anyone about this.

“It…was homecoming…you know at Rosewood how each homecoming is a different theme every year. This year was carnival themed. Which I don’t like as it is because I have a severe distrust of clowns. Too many horror movies growing up you know? Anyways my mom decided to let me go to the event and she and my grandmother came with me. That was the catch. Horacio was standing at the entrance dressed as the ringleader handing out pink candies that were laced with LSD to everyone. You should know at Rosewood it is common knowledge that you do not take anything that Horacio gives you. Whatever it may be. I didn’t take the candy because I knew better. I tried warning my mom and grandmother about it but they wouldn’t listen. I was too smart for his bullshit but not smart enough. I couldn’t find my friend group anywhere. But I knew that they were here so I didn’t worry about it too much and I’ll find them later. So I got to the seats and watched the show which was quite boring since I wasn’t hallucinating from the candy. But the last act though. It was outside. I saw all my friends lined up on the rooftop of the school and it’s a fucking tall building. while everyone was thinking that they were doing some acrobatic tricks i watched them jump to their deaths one by one….i was screaming and crying begging someone to help but all ignored me and i couldn’t shout because they were too far up hear me and I couldn’t break into the school either. i couldn’t do anything. later on the LSD wore off and they were mortified to find the 14 dead bodies. all confused on how it happened. So they deemed it the Rosewood Massacre. After the show was over I confronted Horacio about what he did. I attacked him to strangle him. My goal was to kill him. but the problem was that we’re too evenly matched with each other. in strength and intelligence so it turned out to be a fist fight. we did a good amount of damage to each other. until he caught one of my punches and shoved my fist through a closed window shattering the window and every bone in my hand. i had to get the glass surgically removed as it was deep in the tissue so i can’t feel a thing in my hand anymore and they had to set my hand for the broken bones to heal. But since doctors refused to do their jobs correctly they set it wrong so it healed wrong and now my hand is paralyzed. he took everything away from me! My family! My home! My motivation to live then! and my hand!”, she was more hurt than angry.

Tabby quickly looked away to recompose herself, “I’m sorry for the sudden outburst. I never talked about that day since to anyone before”.

“I understand.” ,Jane said softly. She had been letting the lavender mask dry so she could paint flowers on it and had been working on the second one, listening to the subject.

“I’m so sorry.”, Jane said softly, “I understand what it’s like to lose everyone. A lot of the teachers at that school were just plain cruel, and I still don’t know how and why the human government hasn’t shut down that institution or why parents won’t stop sending their children there. No one deserves to lose people the way you did."

"That’s because the shit they do there is unbelievable. No one would believe them if others heard their stories. I don’t know about your parents but mine didn’t believe me either and neither did my therapists”, explained Tabby.

The second mask was a half white and half black one.

“We can get you an appointment with the Puppeteer perhaps. He can just drain your sadness away.” The Puppeteer was highly sought after for his empath abilities. It comes back after a while unless he numbs your memory, but it’s nice to feel peace just for a little while.“

She shook her no.

"No thank you. I don’t like my mind being tampered with. I’ve been through 7 psychologists. I don’t need anyone else. My sadness, anger and grief is my motivation to put Horacio Down once and for all. I can have peace of mind after that”, said Tabby.

“I understand. He doesn’t tamper with your mind though. He feeds in negative emotions so you can at least get a bit of sleep and have a moment where everything feels okay. And you’re right. My parents didn’t believe me either. All my letters were monitored as I lived in the boarding section.”, Jane said, “My parents didn’t believe in therapy, so.”

She finished up the first mask. It looked lovely and glossy.

“As much as that sounds nice. I can’t sleep even if I wanted too. I have insomnia and narcolepsy. So it’s a hit or miss”, explained Tabby. “I’ve heard horror stories about the boarding section. I guess I was considered lucky enough to be able to go back to the place where I lived”.

“Oh, he can deal with that too.”, Jane said, “He’s honestly a blessing. And yeah. The boarding rooms were awful.”, She didn’t want to go into too much detail.

"Maybe I’ll think about it" , she nodded in understanding. She learned in order to keep a friend you don’t push boundaries and you don’t ask too many questions.

“So Tabby. What do you do for fun?”, asked Jane, changing the subject.

“Fun?” she asked, confused. She had to sneak around after school or at night in order to have some fun as her step dad was a cruel and strict man.

“I normally like to read and write, have time to myself to philosophize. I liked to hang out with my friends whenever I could. Listen to music”, Tabby finally said.

"Ah, I see.” Jane said. “Those are fun hobbies. What do you like to write?” She asked. She had stenciled out a white design for the black side of the mask and mirrored that design in black for the white side. The third mask was hardening.

“I like to write fiction. Darkly realistic fiction. Sometimes free verse poetry”, Tabby said.

“Oh, that seems fun.” Jane said, continuing her work on the masks. She checked the little black clock up on the wall. “Toby will be home soon.”

“Yeah. Although I left all my written works back at Rosewood. I didn’t think to bring them back to the place where I lived. I didn’t exactly plan on running away. It was a spur of the moment type thing you know?”, she nodded, “I’m not too worried about him. He seems like he’s the type that can handle himself”

“Ah, I understand. Maybe you could get Toby to get you some notebooks or something to write in.” Jane said. “And you’re right, he most definitely can. He’s pretty strong.”

“Maybe and that’s good I guess”

Jane finished up the second mask and began working on the third. She looked like she was thinking.

“Has Toby told you the rules yet?”, Jane asked.

She shook her head no, “I know that there are rules and guidelines. I figured I would ask him later when he got back”

"Ah. Well, if you’d like, I could start filling you in.” Jane offered.

“That would help out a lot. The more I know the less of a chance I have of being killed”, said Tabby.

“Okay. I’ll tell you a few of the official rules then.” Jane said, adjusting her position and making sure her mask was secure. “First of all, there is a hierarchy here that is absolutely set in stone. Since you’re a proxy, you’re lower in the hierarchy, but you are not the lowest of the low.”

“Sounds like my position in any life in general but okay what else?” She asked.

“It’s best to try to consort with your rank and above. So for you, that would be other proxies and monsters. The higher beings are not likely to befriend you so I wouldn’t bother.” Jane explained.

“So like you and Toby for example?”, asked Tabby.

"Not me, actually. Toby flaunts a few of the rules because he’s popular. I am actually one of the lowest in the hierarchy.” Jane said with an awkward nod. “It’s not like you’d be punished for speaking with me or anything like that. People would just look down their noses a bit at you.”

“That’s nothing new to me. I can live with that. Who would be my best chance to make an ally with, the higher proxies I mean?”

“Hm. If you want high-ranking proxies that are pretty friendly, then believe it or not, Masky would be your go to guy. If he’s not trying to kill you, he’s very pleasant. Clockwork is another proxy I would chat with if I were you. She runs that little bar a couple minutes from here. Kate’s not high ranking, but she can pull you a lot of favors because she knows people. There are a few monsters who don’t care too much about the hierarchy either.”

"He was trying to earlier. If it wasn’t for Toby I would mostly likely be dead in the woods. I’m avoiding him for a while. I could give Clockwork and Kate a chance once my social anxiety dies down and when I get the courage to go out on my own willingly. Anything else that I need to know?”

Jane nodded. “Yes. Relationships with humans that aren’t mission-related or cleared by your boss as allies is VERY against the rules. It will get you put down to my level.”

Tabby nodded slowly “well I’m too fucked up for a relationship. I’m sure no one would want me anyways…The man I loved is dead now. No one will replace him. So I can have allies but it has to be cleared by the boss first?”

“Yes. By allies I mean humans who are aware of our world and have chosen to side with us.” She was painting what looked like a galaxy on the third mask. And I would be careful. You may find someone and it may shock you. I didn’t expect-“ Jane stopped then continued painting in silence.

"You don’t have to say anything if you don’t want to. I’m not the one to push boundaries. And that makes sense. What else do I need to know?”, asked Tabby.

"Treat all gifts with suspicion. Even if they’re from people you know. There are a lot of backstabbers here.”

“I’m highly intuitive and I have serious trust issues. I don’t trust anybody or anything. Unless I see them making it or doing something with my own eyes. I’ve already came up with the conclusion that this is no different from Rosewood. Except the stakes are higher and I have more freedom for the most part. If we survived Rosewood for that long we can survive here”. What else?“

"You’ll find that this may be a bit tougher than Rosewood, mainly due to the missions. This is a very high stakes job. Many proxies die young. But it is also so rewarding too, really. Cause once you root yourself here, you’ve got some people that have your back.”

"Well then I guess I’ll have to do my best not to die. I’ll try to keep myself alive for as long as possible. Is there anyone I I shook steer clear away from? Like a red flag warning?”

“Jeff.” Jane said firmly. “Ignore him. Don’t do favors for him and don’t let him do favors for you. Ever.” Her hands remained steady even if she was freaking out.

“Is Jeff to you like Horacio was for me?” She asked quietly. “I’m good at ignoring people. I ignore people like they are the plague. I’m antisocial af”

“Well, he set me on fire and murdered my family in front of me, so yeah, I’d say so.” Jane said. She said it in a way to make it seem like it didn’t hurt her but it was easy to tell that it did.

“Horatio can’t get me here…can he?” Her voice quivered and her eyes were wide with fear.

“Horatio is just a measly little human.” Jane said. “After you’re trained and fully transformed, he won’t really be able to harm you on his own. You could absolutely humiliate him.

"But he’s always been 10 steps ahead of me…I couldn’t even get close enough to kill him and believe me I’ve tried countless times…what if he’s still 10 steps ahead of me after I transformed? All my efforts would be in vain”

“He won’t be. Like I said. He’s just a stupid human. You will be able to get rid of him with no sweat.”

She sighed the problem with Horatio was that she and him were too evenly matched. In intelligence and strength. She just uses her intelligence differently than he did.

“I’m sorry for what you went through…including the stuff with Rosewood. I really am. What else do I need to know?”, asked Tabby, changing the subject.

“It’s fine. I’m coping okay. You should probably know that the ghost community is a great community to be friends with.“ Jane admitted. "They’re everywhere and they can get into places for you.”

She nodded “I’ll try talking to them at some point”

"I can easily introduce you to almost anyone you’ll need to know. When you finish training, you’ll be put into a group.”

“What do you mean?”

“Proxies work in groups. Usually. You’ll be given missions to do either solo, with some members of your group, or your whole group. They will be the people you can trust most.”

She nodded in understanding “Toby said something earlier about disgraced proxies. What are those?”

"People like me. Other people call us honorary humans, or just disgraces. They are proxies or monsters who have broken some of the cardinal rules and were caught and punished for them.”

She nodded in understanding, taking in the information “is there anything else I should know?”

. “Not really much that I can think of right now.”

“Okay thank you for taking the time and effort to explain things to me. I’ll take your advice. I’ll ask Toby if there’s anything else I should know when he gets here and see what advice he has. I’d like to hear what he has to say”

"You should. I’m just telling you things I know from experience.“ Jane said. She heard footsteps outside the room.

Tabby froze as her ears picked up on the noise. She got defensive ready to attack or bolt. Toby, carrying everything he had bought at the grocery store in his arms and a basket. Jane got up to help him unload it all. Tabby sighed in relief and she got up to help too. Her mom made her carry 4-5 heavy bags in each hand every time they went grocery shopping. She may be small but she definitely has some lean muscle to her. She’s still useful despite her left hand. Toby thanked both of them. He set down the bags of food on the counter and handed the things that Tabby had specifically requested to her. Jane had gone to start packing up her stuff after putting some things away. She knew that she probably needed to go now. Tabby went to her room to put down the bags. She’ll take them out later once everything settles down. She went back out to help.

Jane pack up.

Jane pretty much had everything packed up and ready to go.

"I’ll swing by tomorrow with your mask.” She assured Tabby

“Okay. It was nice meeting you and having you here. It’s nice to know I’m not alone with Rosewood”

“You’re definitely not alone. If you need someone to talk with who’s not, well, a man-” Jane smiled a bit. “Then just give me a call or drop by. I literally live next door.”

She laughed. She gave herself a weird look. It was a sound that she hadn’t heard in a long time. She only reserved it for Adam or her friends. “Well that’s convenient then!”

Jane nodded and smiled. It was nice to hear her laugh. Toby’s voice came from the kitchen.

“Thanks for coming, Jane!” Jane smiled at Tabby and waved goodbye

Tabby gave a small wave goodbye. Jane left the apartment. Toby poked his head in and let Tabby know he was going to start cooking now if she felt she needed to make sure her food was safe. Tabby nodded and she went in to help cook the food while keeping a close eye on Toby to make sure he didn’t try anything with the food. Despite her hand she was actually very handy with a knife (cooking wise and also fighting wise). She was very fast and efficient in the kitchen. She was using her wrist to hold some of the vegetables in place as she cut them. On top of always cooking dinner at home for 5 people she also worked in a kitchen at a small restaurant afterschool. It got her out of the house for a while since she never wanted to go home. She only quit last month due to her hand. Honestly she would have become a chef if she never made the choice to come here. Toby made sure she saw and knew what was going on with the chicken he was cooking. If he added a spice, he told her what it was. He admired how skilled she was with a knife even though one of her hands was essentially crippled. He could tell she had experience. That was good to know. Most of the killers couldn’t cook. Jane always ended up burning everything so he always offered her food. The neighbors next door, however, were excellent cooks but since they were literally a family unit, Toby never really spoke to them. He knew that monsters and proxies would sometimes settle down and start families but he never really met them. Most families got moved to another part of town. But she was the type of person to go through with her choice when she made one whether it was good or bad. She would see it through to the bitter end crash and burn. That was the most dangerous thing about Tabby.

She liked how Toby respected her wishes and went out of his way to tell her what the spices were. She never really had a lot of respect in her life so it was a nice change. She liked how the moved well together in the kitchen. It almost reminded her of those types of families she saw on tv that the husband and wife would help each other in the kitchen. The thought made her look down and blush a little.

Moving on. She was thinking about the irony of her situation. She hated all adults she didn’t know in general specifically males in particular. And here she was living with an adult serial killer and a Male nevertheless. The situation made her burst out laughing out of nowhere.

"Jesus…unbelievable…“, she said, wheezing for breath.

Toby glanced over at her.

"Hey, you okay?” He asked.

He had ticked a bit in the middle of the “okay” but it hadn’t really affected his speech. He figured she might have gotten herself with the knife a bit. But then why would she be laughing? Hm. The chicken was almost done. After dinner he would go out to check his mail to make absolutely sure he had no bills to pay or no missions he had neglected to see. He could hear faintly next door a baby crying. He heard footsteps, a small creaking sound, and some shushing. Soon the baby quieted. Toby smiled to himself. The people next door never let their baby cry for too long. They were very considerate neighbors.

She calmed down a little bit, wiping her tears away from laughing as she was still giggling.

“I’m fine. I’m not hurt. Even if I did get myself with the knife I wouldn’t feel it because I used to work in a kitchen so my hands are pretty calloused”.

She showed him her left arm that had a crescent shaped burn mark on her bicep.

“That’s from work. I didn’t realize it until two hours later when my arm was feeling irritated. So I looked down and saw a burn mark about 2 inches and a half in diameter. It eventually died down and became this. I was laughing because I realized the irony of my situation. You see I never really trusted adults in general. They don’t do their jobs protecting their own kids. But if you’re male you have a higher chance of me not trusting you. And here I am living with a technical adult male serial killer! I don’t think you understand. I went against everything I knew and believed in one night. I took a leap of faith and I don’t do that for just anyone so you better feel special”, Tabby explained.

She smiled and shook her head, "my life really did take a drastic turn of events”.

Toby nodded. He understood. He offered her a small smile.

“Well, I’m glad you did decide to take a leap of faith.” He said earnestly.

He plated up the chicken, then asked if she needed help with finishing up the salads. He heard faint music from Jane’s apartment. The baby next door didn’t start crying again. It was, for once, pretty peaceful. It was impossible to hear outside while the windows were closed, but if they were open it would be highly probable they would hear screaming.

She shook her head no, “the salad will be done in a few minutes. I just needed to put the vegetables in and toss it” she did that and tossed it using a chef’s flip without utensils mixing it good. The salad is done”.

She plated the salad on both of their plates. She sat down and waited for him to sit to begin eating. Toby sat across from her with his plate. He was starving. He had gotten himself a knife and fork, and had gotten some for Tabby as well. He asked her if she wanted anything to drink. He had water, soda, and juice. No milk. He was lactose intolerant.

“I would like some water please”

Her expression changed to a more serious one as she was going to get down to serious business.

“So Jane told me the basics of the rules. Like how there is a hierarchy. We’re proxies so we’re low but not the lowest of the low. How ally ships between us and humans and humans not from here are strictly prohibited. It’s best to have a few higher up proxies as allies. And that I should stay away from Jeff” “but I want to hear what you have to say. Like anything else I should really know? Anyone I should stay clear away from?”

Toby went up to get them both some water.

“She’s right. She covered almost everything. Especially about Jeff, though if you get on his good side he can teach you some pretty cool stuff. I think it’s important to know higher being politics as well. Proxies have a specific boss. Monsters can serve whoever they want and do jobs for whoever. But it’s important to know which higher being hates who, because sometimes they will act out against the proxies that serve that higher being.”

She nodded slowly in understanding “I’m fairly observant so I’m sure I’ll pick up a few things on higher being politics here”.

“Is there anyone who you think I should stay away from personally?” She said in between bites. She was scarfing down her food like she wouldn’t see food again. She didn’t eat much in general for the last 8 years due to Rosewood. You had to bring your own lunch and her family was too poor to buy extra food. So she ate dinner at home and that was the only meal she would eat. They barely had enough food for the month while struggling for rent. Although when she was very young she could eat like a champ. For the last 3 months when her step dad came up with the cruel and unusual punishment for her to eat nothing but rice. But she got sick of it and she either stole a little bit of food from the stores when her mom used to send her out or Autumn was very generous and brought her some food for her own house.

"I’m also not too fond of Jeff. But I also wouldn’t trust LJ either. But he’s friends with BEN and The Puppeteer so you can’t really avoid him.“ The ghost community was super tight.

"Is there enough for seconds?”, she asked.

"Yeah. There’s enough for seconds if you’d like.“

"I don’t trust clowns either. I watched too many horror movies as a child you know? But I’ll be wary and cautious like I usually am with everyone and everything else” she got up for seconds and scarfed down her second and third plate. It wasn’t until her fourth plate when she stopped.

By then the entire thing of food Toby had cooked was gone. He didn’t mind one bit however. He got up to do the dishes.

“Yeah, don’t trust clowns. They aren’t…they aren’t all that great. Especially here.”

“They’re never in general”. She went to help with the dishes while drying them.

“Thank you” she said quietly after a period of silence.

“No problem.” Toby said with a smile. He helped put the dishes away after they were finished. He heard a meow and saw Nugget plodding towards them.

Tabby’s face lit up as she started cooing at the cat and kneeled down to pet Nugget. She sucked in a breath at the pain of her bruises. She started petting the cat affectionately.

Nugget purred and pressed her body up against Tabby, her tail indicating that she was pleased with this. Toby smiled.

“I think there’s a scrap of chicken on the table. Hold on.”

“I mean if you give it food you have a higher chance of befriending the animal. It works with me”

Toby laughed and picked up some scraps of chicken from the counter. He offered them to Tabby so she could feed the cat. Tabby took some. She ate a piece herself and feed the rest of the scraps to Nugget one by one. Nugget seemed to enjoy the chicken. Her purring was very loud as she ate it. Toby watched from afar with a smile.

"Is there a library around here?”

“Yeah, there is. I could take you there.” Toby offered.

“Good. If you’re not busy tomorrow that is. I would much rather have someone to come with me to show me around and I’m not taking the chance of dying on my first day out since I’m fresh meat as it is so curious about the new girl that it is inevitable to say the least. Two is better than one. "I would also like to get books on this place and plants and stuff so I can have a lesser chance of dying and not being afraid. A wise man once told me that you can’t be afraid of something that you understand. Like being afraid of the dark for example” she babbled.

“Sure thing.” Toby said, “I don’t have any missions tomorrow and your training schedule hasn’t been sent yet. Books will be good and all but talking to other people about stuff here will make it much easier to learn. Like, you can read all you’d like about the poison daisy, but field experience with someone who knows much more about it will be helpful. Also, we still have to teach you how to fight properly and other things that will make you more successful. It will come much easier to you once you fully transform though.”

"Okay. And I know that there’s only something you can learn from experience. I just want to learn all I can from books first. The rest I’ll ask around and experience for myself and what do you mean “properly”? Are you saying I can’t fight. I may be crippled but that doesn’t mean I can’t kick some ass one handedly! I’ll have you know I’ve gotten into a lot of fights and I’ve won the majority of them. Well despite getting my ass kicked many times before…“

"I understand.” Toby said to her first comment. He wanted her to learn as much as she could from books first too, it would keep her from being gullible and from getting hurt badly.

“I’m not saying you can’t fight, I’m saying that you’re living with people who fight and hurt for a living. You’ve won fights, sure, but that’s against humans.” Toby finished cleaning up the rest of the kitchen. “It isn’t a smart idea to overestimate your own abilities here. Really. The people here are stronger than humans, are faster than humans, can take more damage than humans, some have literal magic powers, or extra limbs, or whatever. ”

She sighed in defeat.

“That’s true. This isn’t Rosewood. I’m not up against people my own age who are equal in intelligence and strength and skills. This isn’t my territory. But I’ll adapt and overcome like everything else in my life so far. I’m a quick learner. Just one day at a time that’s all”, said Tabby tiredly.

“I know. That will help you live.” Toby said. He sighed, then smiled.

"Don’t worry. We can train you. We can also get the WPA to train you so you’re specialized if you want.“ Toby said.

"What’s WPA?” She asked, tilting her head to the side.

"The Women’s Proxy Association.“ Toby said. "They’re a group of specialized fighters that ensure the training of female proxies. They’re bad asses. They’re kind of like Amazons, if you want the human equivalent.”

"Oh…that sounds like something I’d be interested in…” she was still tilting her head but smiled up at him.

“Oh and another thing. If we’re going to be living together for a while we need to establish ground rules. I only have two. One, please don’t lie to me. I give you the common courtesy to give honest information. I would also like to be hurt with the truth instead of living a lie. If we’re going to be working together in some way we’re going to need some form of honest communication. Two, please don’t fight my battles for me. I don’t like other people suffering from my own stupidity and I know in this society that’s just the way shit goes around here but I’ll do my best to minimize that when someone’s with me. I can and will take care of myself. If someone has a problem with me it’s with me alone and nobody else okay? Does that sound reasonable to you?”.

Toby nodded. “Yeah. That sounds good. I don’t really have any ground rules for myself at the moment, but I’ll let you know.

He was pretty honest for a proxy, and while he wasn’t the type to let people he cared for get beat up, he understood how she would want to stand up for herself. It was good she had that drive to stick up for herself. Proxies who didn’t have that usually ended up dead.

"So what do you want to do now?”, Tabby asked.

"Well, seeing is it’s kinda late, we should probably get some sleep.“ Toby said. "Well, you should. I have another small mission tonight but it shouldn’t take too long.”

"Ah well you see I have insomnia…and narcolepsy so I don’t ever get enough sleep. This is a week and a half of no sleep. But I’ll be here when you get back. Try not to die okay?“ She gave him a small smile. Which was code for 'be careful I care somewhat’.

"I won’t, it’s a fairly riskless mission.” Toby assured her. It really wasn’t too bad of a mission. “It’s just a delivery.” Toby got up to leave. “There’s sleeping pills in the hall closet if you’d like. They’ve got the power of like, horse tranquilizers.”

“Alright I’ll think about it and I’ll see you later”

“Alright, I’ll see you.” Toby soon left.

Tabby went to her room to unpack the bags that Toby had bought her. She took out the frames and gently slid both pictures into their frames and set them on her night stand. She took out the two knives and positioned them like she was about to get into a fight. They were good for defense. Tabby took out the bedding; it was a soft patchwork blanket with a teal color scheme and pillows to match. She positioned them just how she liked them. She decided to not hang up Autumn’s artwork so she put them in her nightstand and deemed that it would be private and personal.

Toby slipped through the shadows, the package in hand. He realized the quickest route would be through monster’s only territory, but as long as he wasn’t caught he would be fine. He darted through the trees, paying close attention to any noise he would hear. He eventually managed to pass through it unharmed, which made the bulk of his journey a lot easier.

She stepped back until she was near the door to take a look at her room. It was simple and basic but you could tell that it was her room. Then she came across the dawning realization “like it or not this is home now”. Home. That was a place she hasn’t had in a long time. Sure she lived with her mother and two brothers and her step dad. But it wasn’t considered home or a family. Tabby knew that a home is where you feel safe and you belong and a family accepts you for you broken or not. Tabby shook her head.

“This isn’t home. I mean I’m living in this world now so I guess this world is my home now but this place isn’t. It’s not my territory and I barely even know him” she talked out loud to herself.

Toby walked down streets that were covered in multicolor slick, which was essentially the water in this dimension. He carried the package in his gloved hands. Even through his mask, he could smell something cooking. He knocked on a heavy dark door. It swung open almost immediately. He gritted his teeth as cigarette smoke permeated the air. It reeked. The man standing before him was tall, and horrendously burned. The tales told about him said that his skin had been bleached, and that was partially the case. However most of his skin was mottled and scarred with varying shades of red. His face was barely distinguishable as a face. The eyes were sunken and shriveled. The nose was covered in scars. His mouth was clumsily cut into a wide, oozing grin. The man seemed to sniff the air. He clicked his tongue.

“Ah. Twinkle Toes. Nice to…hehe… see you."

"Hey Jeff.” Toby said uncomfortably. “Is Barb here? She told me to bring her this.” He held up the small package. Jeff clicked his tongue again. He felt the package with his marred hand while seeming to stare directly at Toby.

“Yeah, Barb’s here. You can come in.”

Her eyes widened in paranoia as that was kicking in now ”how much did I tell him really? He isn’t stupid so I’m sure he picked up on more than what I told him…wait let’s see…I told him about my insomnia, narcolepsy, anxiety and OCD, I told him about Rosewood, I told him about Horacio, he already figured out I came from an abusive home…“, she counted on her fingers. Several things. Not bad. Nothing too personal, just observations and bare basic surface. She sighed in relief. But her paranoia was still there ”why did he spare my life? Me out of everyone else that could have stumbled across tonight? On top of that, why is he so nice? I mean I appreciate it but No one is this nice for free. Accept for Autumn but we were kids then and we didn’t really know anything. What if he’s trying to gain my trust just to catch me off guard to kill me later? Especially in my sleep…what if he has other motives? I can’t trust him nor am I going too. I’ll work well with him and I’ll be nice and kind back because it’s right. But trust seems to be a long shot…“, she rubbed the bridge of her nose like she had a headache. She hated when her paranoia showed up. "Goddamn Rosewood” she muttered to herself. She got out of her room to pace around the apartment to think out loud.

“However he did save my life…if it wasn’t for him I would have probably gotten my death wish early…and he did take me in for now…so like with Autumn I kinda owe him everything"

She shook her head "I am thankful for all he’s done for me so far…but I can not and will not care too much. It’s like Jane said a proxies life isn’t that long on average….I don’t want to hurt him and have his efforts of keeping me alive to be in vain…that’s not fair to him. I’ll have allies but no friends. All my friends are dead and they can not and will not be replaced. Moving on means forgetting and I promised myself that I wouldn’t forget them” but she knew that deep down inside that wasn’t the real reason.

“I can’t have what happened at Rosewood happen to anyone else that I’ve become allies with…I don’t want to get attached and go through that heartache again…while I’m still going through it…” she admitted quietly to herself.

Toby didn’t have much of a choice as Jeff pulled him into the building. The cigarette smoke only got stronger. But thankfully, he heard Barb’s laugh from the upstairs, so he made his way up the creaky staircase. That’s where he found her. Barb was around eight feet tall, and had four muscular arms. She had a sharp jaw and broad shoulders as well as long dark blue hair. She had fur the same shade as her hair coating her arms and legs. She had a tattoo gun, and was tattooing another monster. It was a pretty large and complex tattoo, but Barb had a lot of the skill to make it look nice. She turned when she heard Toby.

“Hey Tobes!” She said in her loud, booming voice. She extended a hand that wasn’t being used. “You brought the pills?”

“Yeah, EJ gave them to me earlier.” Toby said, passing them to her. Barb smiled, showing sharp teeth.

“Thank you!” She boomed jovially. The monster getting tattooed, a tiny wisp of a woman with eyes all over her face and arms had all her eyes trained on Toby. It made him very uncomfortable.

“Well, I should probably go-” Toby said.

She looked around and it was too quiet to her liking.

“On second thought those sleeping pills sound nice right about now” she mused to herself.

After she was done she could feel the pill kicking in. So she went back to her room. She locked her door and was debating on whether or not to move her dresser to barricade the door just in case he or someone else were to break in and attempt to kill her in her sleep. Since when she actually goes to sleep she’s a deep sleeper. But she decided against it since she was too lazy and it would be a hassle to move it out of the way if she needed to escape immediately. She took her two knives and curled up laying down on her bed with her back facing the corner. She normally didn’t sleep with covers on as they were a hassle to get off is someone were to attack her. She had her knees pulled up to her stomach for protection and her arms crossed to protect her chest and neck. She had both knives in each hand that laid against the back of her neck too for protection. No one was going to attack her easily. It was the only way she could feel safe while sleeping. And pretty soon she was out like a light.

Toby eventually got back to the apartment. Jeff had wanted to show him something, which he knew wouldn’t have ended well. He made sure to lock the apartment door behind him. It was quiet. Nugget was probably in Tabby’s room. Toby peeked in her room to check on her and saw that she was asleep. Nugget was on her bed. After making sure she was okay, he closed the door and went to go take a shower and get ready for bed. He was pretty tired. He had run into Masky on his way back who managed to get him to share a drink and talk for a bit, which Toby found nice. Masky was in a much better mood today than other days. His shower and clothes change was quick. He put his dirty clothes into the hamper. He took it down to wash his clothes twice a week. The apartment had a shared laundromat.

Tabby stirred awake as Toby closed the door

“son of a bitch” she thought to herself.

She wasn’t protected enough. But even in her sleepy state she could recognize that it’s Toby so she had nothing to worry about that much but for once in her life she was just too damn tired to do or say anything about it.

“I’ll deal with it in the morning” she grumbled to herself and went back to being dead asleep in her protective position.

Toby was in his pjs. He went to the kitchen and got a glass of ice water before heading back into his room. He closed his door behind him. He sat on his own bed and turned on a fan. He liked it cold in his room. He had a small little radio next to his bed that he used to play soothing music or sometimes just audiobooks or things like that. Soon he managed to sink off into a deep sleep.

#every rose has its thorn #erhit au #creepypasta #creepypasta fandom #original character #tabbyanderson #tabby #masky marble hornets #tim wright #hoody marble hornets #brian thomas #ticci toby #toby rogers #slenderman #jeffery woods #jeff the killer #jane arkensaw #jane the killer #rosewood prep

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mrsdobrik · 4 years

Text

CHAPTER 2:

warnings: Idk. But be warned. Y/n’s boss is an ass

It had been about a week since David met Vardan’s teacher and he couldn’t get her smile out of his head. He had actually thought about picking Vardan up from school just so he could see her again, but it would have been difficult to explain. So instead he just spent hours thinking about the way her hair fell on her shoulders, the little shadow her lashes cast on her cheeks, the way her lips moved when she talked. It was amazing how much time he could spend thinking about a fifteen minute meeting...

“David! Are you even listening?”Natalie was frowning at him.

“No, sorry, I drifted off”

“What is wrong with you lately? You are even more distracted than normal, and for you that is definitely impressive”

“Ha ha, so funny” He retorted sarcastically.

“Just turn left at the next intersection and try not to “drift off” while driving, I don’t know about you but I would like to live a couple more years.”

They were going to meet some of the guys at a burger place before going clubbing. It was Jonah’s idea, obviously, he said they had even better burgers than In-n-Out, and if Jonah said so that meant something.

After a few more turns they arrived at a 50’s diner. Zane, Heath, Mariah, Jeff and Jonah were already seated at one of the tables. The place looked awesome on the inside, the walls were pink and had old posters, photographs and neon signs on them. The floor had the classic black and white tiles and all the booths were red. It even had a jukebox that still worked and you could go and choose the song you wanted. David could tell he would be able to get great disposable pics in there.

They all looked at the menu and decided what they wanted to eat, then while everyone else waited to place the order, David went up to the jukebox. He wanted to play “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” by Queen.

By the time he went back to the table they had already ordered the food. The girls were not at the table and the guys were discussing how hot the waitress was.

“Did you see the way she looked at me? She is obviously into me, I am so getting her number” Jonah said

“Baby, are you delusional? She didn’t even look your way!” Zane replied

“Yeah, besides I am sitting right here so…” Jeff said, running his hand through his hair.

“Nah dude, I am telling you, she is totally into me” Jonah went on.

David was checking his instagram as the guys kept bantering and then he heard Heath tell Jonah to shut it since the girl was coming. David looked up and couldn’t believe his eyes, it was Vardan’s teacher. She was wearing a pink uniform with a little white apron and had her hair in a ponytail. She was carrying a tray full of drinks in one hand and was talking to another waitress as she approached their table.

David could see her cheeks blush when she met his eyes. He found it adorable. She started giving everyone their drinks as the girls returned from the ladies room. When she finally got to David she said hi in a soft voice, kind of like a whisper. He stood up to say hi to her

“Hey! How are you doing?”

“I’m great, and you?” she said blushing even more.

“Cool, just going out with the guys” At that point everyone in the table was very obviously staring at them. “These are Zane, Heath, Mariah, Jeff, Jonah and Natalie” he said even though she had admitted to watching the vlogs so she probably already knew. “She is Y/n, she is Vardan’s teacher.”

Everyone said hi to Y/n but Natalie who, after living with David for a couple years, could read him like a book and was giving him an inquisitive stare. David just ignored her. Y/n’s eyes were gleaming and David could see how excited she was to meet everyone. They had been talking for about two minutes when David noticed that from across the room a bald guy standing by the wall was giving Y/n an angry stare.

“Hey princess! Do you want a cup of coffee too? Move that ass! Your tables aren’t going to serve themselves!” He yelled and the entire table went completely silent.

Y/n’s face went completely red with a mixture of anger and embarrassment.

“I should go.” she said softly before grabbing her tray and heading for the kitchen. David’s blood was boiling and from the looks of everyone else at the table he wasn’t the only one.

“Who the fuck is that?”David said whilst clenching his jaw as he saw the bald guy follow Y/n. “What is his fucking problem?”

“That is the owner of the restaurant” Jonah said “I’ve seen him here a couple times.”

“He’s disgusting.” Natalie said. She wasn’t wrong, David was ready to punch him in the face right then and there.

As they waited for their food David kept his eyes on the kitchen doors waiting to see Y/n come out. About fifteen minutes later she finally did and she was carrying two trays filled with food. He watched her wait on a few more tables before she came up to theirs.

“I am so sorry for the delay” Y/n said while giving everyone at the table their plate.

“It’s okay,” said Natalie “I just hope we didn’t get you in trouble.”

“Not at all” Y/n said looking down, she was a terrible liar and David could see right through that. “Will you be needing anything else?” she said as the bald guy exited the kitchen doors and stuck his eyes to her.

“No, that is it! Thank you!” David said locking eyes with her for a short second.

They ate their food and brainstormed bits to film the next day. David kept eyeing the manager every once in a while and kept checking on Y/n during the rest of the meal.

Y/n’s POV

It was Friday, most people look forward to Fridays: the end of the week, hanging out with friends, possibly going out for drinks. But for Y/n it was a really long day of teaching and then rushing to the dinner for the night shift, which ended really late, and then barely making it home with enough energy to get out of her uniform. She was exhausted and overworked, even though she would never complain about it.

However, that Friday turned out to be just a bit different because as she was serving tables at the dinner she saw some of the people from the vlog squad come in. Suddenly her heart skipped a beat when she considered the possibility of David being there too. Since she had met him at the school he was popping into her head a lot more frequently.

As she approached their table to greet them and take their orders she noticed David was nowhere to be found, a knot of disappointment formed in her stomach. As she went into the kitchen to serve the group’s drinks Bob, her boss and owner of the place came in. He had a reputation for going after employees and was extremely rude towards most of the girls working there, he was a chauvinistic ass.Y/n tried to avoid contact with him as much as possible.

“Hey princess! Looking good tonight!” Bob said, staring a little too intently at the hem of Y/n’s skirt. He smelled like alcohol and grease which made him even more unbearable than he already was.

“Hey Bob!” Y/n said looking down and quickly exiting the kitchen. “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” by Queen was playing and she couldn’t help by humming, she loved Queen. She went over to the table where the vs was sitting to serve them their drinks only to find David now sitting at the table. He introduced her to everyone, which Y/n loved. She wasn’t going to fangirl in front of everyone but she was extremely excited to be meeting them. She had been chatting with them for about a minute when Bob’s voice filled the air.

“Hey princess! Do you want a cup of coffee too? Move that ass! Your tables aren’t going to serve themselves!” He yelled and the entire table went completely silent.

No, please don’t

Her entire face went red and started heating up. That was so embarrassing she wanted the earth to swallow her whole. How could he yell at her like that in front of the customers? If it weren’t because of how badly she needed the money she would have quit a long time ago, but bills needed to be paid.

She told everyone at the table she’d better leave and headed straight for the kitchen, Bob’s heavy steps following close behind. As soon as they were out of sight he grabbed her arm tightly.

“Don’t forget why you are here princess, this isn’t Cinderella, you are here to work” he said before letting her go. Y/n could feel her eyes itching, tears starting to form, but she reminded herself that she couldn’t cry, crying would only make things worse.

Jazmine, her roommate, best friend and coworker rushed to her side as soon as Bob went into his office. She was the only close friend, one might even say family, that Y/n had in L.A. They had hit it off immediately after their first shift together when Y/n first moved to the city and had been inseparable ever since.

“Girl, calm down, it's going to be okay. You just need to get through this shift and tomorrow you can sleep till noon and watch movies on the couch. Okay?” She always knew how to calm Y/n down.

“Okay.” Y/n said. She took a moment to collect her thoughts and resumed her work.

She served all her other tables before she inevitably had to make her way back to the vs. She could feel both David’s and her boss’ eyes on her while she ran around the diner. When she started handing them their food her eyes crossed David’s just for a moment but it was enough to make her stomach feel funny.

God, he is so cute. Quit dreaming girl, you’ve got work to do. Besides it's just a childish fantasy, he is rich and famous and you are just delusional if you think he’d ever lay eyes on you.

Sometimes your mind can be your worst enemy, and for Y/n it was. All the reasons why it was impossible would keep popping in her mind through the night, even long after he had left.

#david dobrik #david dobrik x you #david dobrik x reader #david dobrik x y/n #david dobrik imagine

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jeffletstalkaboutit · 3 years

Text

Hi there, this is part one of a series I’m working on featuring Jeff wittek and the female lead Avery. Still working on full story...

Full story will go up on Wattpad when it’s finished.

AVERYS POV

UNKNOWN LOCATION

My eyes violently flashed open, my body following the sudden shock of oxygen invading my lungs. I remained in place by straps, anchoring down each limb of my body to the seat beneath me. A dim light flickered, opposite of me, pushing my attention to the circle of heads surrounding me.

5 men, 5 women including me, all tied down to their seats, unconscious.

where am I?

All I could remember was waking up, here. My own name whipped from my memory.

Just as I started pushing against my restraints I noticed the man beside me start to wake up. One by one their eyes flashed open and the sudden fear of not knowing where we were or who they were was evident in each of them, but no one said anything. The room went dark, with not even a flash of light to be seen, Until a tv just above the red flashing light from before, turns on exhibiting a woman with short black hair in a black suit top. She was in a lab of some sort, behind her was a group of people in lab coats, and a glass wall separating them. A loud static noise pierces through the air before the woman spoke up.

"Hello, My name President Aries, You all are probably wondering where you are, why you're here, and who you are." as the lady spoke I couldn't help but notice the people behind her, they walked around urgently, scared. Yet, Aries was so calm a smile on her face.

"Each of you, hand-picked for certain skills and unique brain patterns you hold, You were picked and put together to form a team that could survive just about any situation."

She paused for a second, displaying deceit covered by pain and discomfort.

Flashes of people dressed in fancy clothing danced across the screen. Tall Buildings with large glass windows, Fields of grass and animals, and lastly a globe covered in mixes of blue, brown, and green.

"300 years ago, the Earth was our home. The technology was thriving and taking the world by storm, but little did we know it would come to destroy us. The earth soon became uninhabitable, after the human instinct of destruction overcame our planet." Pictures of firey red explosions covered the screen, leaving me with one memory.

I was on a plane, when the bombs went off, 300 years ago? My eyes drifted to the people around me as they watched the screens intently, none of their faces bringing back any memories.

"Those who made it onto the exodus ship survived and were put into cryosleep, to be woken up when we reached our destination of the planet Larz. Fast forward 300 years into the future, sadly we never arrived. The exodus was sent back on route to earth. Around 52 hours ago 15 doctors and I, were brought awake for a code white. Emergency evac of the special alliance, That's where you all come in. The 10 of you make up the special alliance. The protocol reads that I set out an order for each of you to be removed from cryosleep and evaluated for the evacuation of the exodus to Earth. To put it simply, The exodus failed and we hope that this beautiful gift of life we have given you, can, in turn, save the human race." I watched in shock as the men and women behind her were shot down by men in black uniforms.

"Underneath each of you are backpacks filled with supplies all of you will need, Once you are released from your seats you are permitted to remain in your pod until the doors open by themselves then you are to make your way to Washington DC where you will be met by the last standing 'home' base, They will lead you from there. your names are on the back of your tags on your jackets, be grateful, for they are the only knowledge of your past life you will have. always stay together, and survive. You are the last of the exodus." President Aries ends her speech walking out where the gunmen were before the screen goes black. In that second all of our restraints are released and a dim light above us flickers on.

I Immediately, stand and rip my jacket off. Just as she said The name 'AVERY' was stitched into the inside of the collar of my jacket.

"Avery," I say lightly looking up at the group around me. Some of them began to slip their jackets off and relay their names out loud.

Xavier, Andy, dillion, lacey, Aubri, jeff, Luca, Abey, and Sam.

"she said we were handpicked for certain skills we each have? what skills do we have that normal people don't?" Xavier says as he slides his jacket over his tall stature. His hair was a dark mop of hair that almost covered his dark brown eyes.

"Dude they erased our memories and put us on a ship to a toxic, explosive planet and you worried about these stupid so-called skills we all possess?" Aubri speaks up next, she was a little taller than me but with raven black hair and bright blue eyes.

As they all went back and forth, I found myself wandering back to my chair. I slid the black backpack out from underneath it before plopping it down onto the seat.

What happened on the exodus? and why was Aries lying?

I unzip each part, searching around for any trace of my identity other than my name. I had to agree, the thought of never knowing who I really am scares me more than what's waiting outside of this ship. My fingers clutch a slip of paper in the front of the bag, I pulled it out quickly. It read,

"AVERY KANE

LEADER/STEALTHY"

I turn slightly so I'm facing the rest of the group before I speak up,

"Hey, There's a card in the bags, with your name on it...and I'm guessing our skill," I say loudly so everyone would listen. I rubbed my forehead, slightly paranoid about my card.

"Dillion harris. Medical?" each of them read of their titles, dillion being our medic, lacey nature guide, andy communication, Luca hand to hand combat, Abey sharpshooter, Xavier building/construction, jeff strength, sam human map, and Aubri being stealthy.

"Avery?" Andy questions, making everyone glance at me, ready for me to read my great strength.

"Leader, stealthy," I say making Aubri laugh.

"so you're in charge? we're screwed." Aubri says, Before rolling her eyes and plopping down on the ground. Everyone stayed quiet, at loss for words at this moment.

the room stayed quiet for what felt like days but was only minutes, we all sat on the floor, rummaging through the things in our bags or just staring off into oblivion, trying to escape the lingering feeling of a complete and utter void of our lives. The feeling of fear, of not knowing what's beyond these thick metal walls, The feeling of distrust and not knowing each other.

The feeling of the unknown. I didn't want to lead? I'm the smallest person here.

That night I didn't sleep, waiting anxiously for the door to open.

Everything president Aries said replayed in my head, dissecting every word.

She said that the earth was destroyed by humans 300 years ago, I was in a plane when the bombs went off, we were put into cryosleep along with the other survivors, something happened, code white was announced, the president was woken up and we were ordered to be sent to earth. She said we were the last of the exodus.

What happened on the ship that caused the code white? And where is president Aries? who were those people, gunning down the scientists?

Why would they erase our memories? what I did know is Aries's emotions weren't true in the video, so why should we believe anything she says?

So many questions bounced around my head, leaving my emotions swirling.

How was I supposed to be a leader? These people wouldn't listen to me even if I tried. Maybe Lacey but the rest of them either seem like a bitch or could be way smarter than me, bigger than me.

And if everyone in the exodus is dead why would it matter if we stuck to what these dumb cards say?

The sudden sound of crackling filled my ears, my breath hitched in my throat as the door of the ship started to fold open.

The light flooding in. Burning my eyes, making me block it with my hand.

Within seconds everyone was awake, staring hopelessly at the door revealing millions of colors of green and blue. We all slowly advanced the exit with caution.

The trees outside were thick and tall almost completely shading the ground, green moss and grass covering every inch of brown from the dirt and the tree bark.

It was beautiful. Breathtaking. The air felt moist and hot, so I'm guessing rainforest?

"well, Avery since you're the 'leader' you go first," Luca says, my eyes drift over to his dark chocolate hair. The newfound light, illuminating his bright green eyes.

"yeah, sure ill die first," I say as I step down off the ship and onto the green grass, just standing there for a second.

"what? you waiting to kill over?" Xavier says with a light laugh.

"if the air was toxic, we would have all died when the door opened," I say as I step further out just to turn around and look at the ship. It was a tall circular junk of metal with a pointy tip.

My eyes drifted back to the others, who were all staring at me with questioning looks.

"well?" just as the word flowed out of my mouth, Jeff jumps down, holding out his hand to Aubri. Which she took with a smile before hopping down.

"So where do we start? we have no idea where we are or how to get where we are going." dillion says, he seemed very nervous. His blonde hair was short and styled back in a way that suited his face beautifully.

"Anyone have a map?" Abey says. She had dark skin and beautiful, strong facial features. Her voice sounded like butter. My eyes drifted to sam, she is Koren, quiet and very pretty, with long brown hair.

"sam, You're the guide, right? Check your bag for a map." I say, making her start making her way back in the ship. a few seconds later she returns with a piece of paper in her hands.

She hands me the paper, making me sigh before I open it and lay it out so everyone can see. It was a map of the united states with a circle on one end and an x on the other. under the circle read 'Washington DC'

"so I'm guessing we are the X?" Andy asks. I nodded slowly before glancing up at the sky, The sun was just on the horizon in the east.

"It's 6 am, so we should probably get going, we need to find water," I say before handing the map back to sam and making my way to the ship before Luca speaks up.

"I say, Fuck 'president Aries' we are alive and on earth, free-range. why should we listen to some dead president anyway?" he says making me roll my eyes, he assumes she's dead, does everything think that? why would they kill her, if she was the president...

Even if she's lying, we have to go. well find out if she's lying when we get there. Staying in the jungle isn't going to find us any answers.

"so stay," I say before making my way into the ship to gather my supplies. I pulled the compass out of my bag along with the pocket knife. After a few seconds Abey, lacey and sam come in.

"We are with you, I don't know about the rest of them but That president lady put you in charge for a reason, and I'm not so happy with the idea of staying here with those idiots," Abey says as she gathers her stuff.

"They won't survive on their own, we were sent here as a group for a reason, the special alliance," Lacey says, looking up to me. "and the rainforest can be very dangerous..."

"They'll come," I say, making my way out with Abey, lacey, and sam behind me. I glanced over at lacey, "what kind of animals live here?"

"Oh, just tigers, monkeys, elephants, gorillas..." Lacey says, getting quieter as she kept talking. we made our way out of the ship,

my eyes followed Luca until I passed him, making my way into the woods.

"You guys are just gonna leave?"Aubri asks dramatically.

I tilted my head slightly with a shrug, before walking through the thick trees.

#lets-talk-about-jeff-baby #jeff wittek #jeff wittek x reader #vlog squad #davids vlogs

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the-ship-maker-2 · 3 years

Text

Every Rose Has its Thorn

Every Rose Has Its Thorn

Chapter 1

“On top of no sleep for tonight I also have to deal with another day of hell at Rosewood Prep and another day of hell at home too. All by myself”, She said in thought.

She looked around at her surroundings in her room. It was pretty minimalist for the most part. She looked at her dresser with the lopsided mirror that made the shadows in the room dance. She had her Rosewood Prep uniform laid out for the next day. She had her stack of unfinished homework that she didn’t finish on top of the school textbooks. She would scramble at breakfast tomorrow before she went to class to finish the homework. Laid on the side of her school books and homework was her black bag that she’s had since forever. She then looked at her closet door that was slightly ajar. There was nothing in it except for a few nice shirts and a lacey pale blue flower dress that hung up in there. Tabby flopped back onto her pillow as her eyes made their way back up to the ceiling. She wasn’t sure just how long she could make it at Rosewood and at home since it was just her now. I mean her only motivation for living was taken from her and Rosewood wasn’t a place you could survive on your own. She didn’t know if she could make it to graduation. She then came up with the dawning realization. One that made her bolt up straight in her bed with her unnaturally wide eyes growing wider. If she stayed any longer she would be killed for sure, whether it was by Horatio, her step dad or herself. Either way one of those three would get her it was only a matter of time. Tabby couldn’t die not yet at least. Not until she fulfilled her promises of avenging her friends and killing Horatio once and for all. She got up and winced at her bruises that were still tender. She got dressed in a white tee shirt and black jeans with faded dirty pink converse. She got her black bag and began to pack. She packed a couple of photos, one of her mom, stepdad, herself, her older and younger brothers, one class photo in the 8th grade that was just her and her now deceased friends, a picture of her little brother, and a couple of sketches of her that her best friend Autumn made. She then packed some clothes, hair brush and toothbrush. She was about to sneak out when she realized she forgot the most important thing. Tabby ran back to her dresser and took out the money she’s been saving for the last two years from her job at the This or That restaurant and her red plaid jacket that shes had since the 6th grade. It was enough money to buy a bus ticket and have a little leftover to live until she found a job and got a stable income. After she pocketed the money safely away and tied her jacket around her waist, she snuck out through her window.

“Hm, do you think we should let her go?”, he asked in a taunting voice clearly mocking the poor woman’s pleads.

“Oh fuck…”, she let out quietly.

“Well, well, well what do we have here?”, he said looking at the frail stranger in front of them.

Toby continued to make eye contact with the girl. He recognized the signs of abuse and neglect and had a flashback of his own. He had been hiding in a closet with his older sister. He couldn't have been more than eight or so at the time. He remembered his father yelling and screeching at his mother. The sounds of a fight and his mother screaming. He remembered footsteps stomping up the stairs and his father calling for his sister and him to come out. He remembered his sister covering him in towels and blankets to hide him just before his father opened the closet. His sister had saved him from a beating that night.

He snapped back to the present when he heard Hoodie speak, in his raspy quiet voice.

“Let’s just kill her there’s no point in leaving her alive”

Masky seemed to be considering that.

“Alright, Hoodie, you-”

“No”, stated Toby abruptly.

“I’m sorry what?”, asked Tabby surprised.

The two men stopped and stared at the newer proxy.

“Don’t be ridiculous”, Tim began to lecture Toby.

Toby, however, stood his ground.

“No let’s just let her go”, he stated

“Are you fucking stupid”, Masky stated coldly, “That is a major breech of conduct”

Toby shook his head, ”There’s really no point in killing her”.

Tabby rolled her eyes and crossed her arms in defense. Although she looked like a mixture of ready to either bolt or fight.

“Oh please killing me would be a sweet blessing compared to the 17 years that I had and specifically with this month in general”. She stated.

She didn’t dare look at Toby for too long as she quickly learned growing up that if she looked at someone directly in the eyes for too long, it meant a challenge and resulted in a sure beating.

Hoodie spoke up.

“Are you sure you’d go back home?”, he asked bluntly.

Masky glanced at him. It was like he could sense that Hoodie was analyzing the kid.

“I mean you’ve just gotten away from em, hm?”, Hoodie prodded as he gestured to her black backpack.

Hoodie was known for being scarily perceptive. Even Masky was staring at him.

Tabby huffed and pushed her hair back.

“I...have nowhere else to go but if I stayed I would be dead in the very near future. So I was running away. But obviously this is a bad night to do so, clearly I didn’t think this through enough and I have one other to protect…”, she said defensively.

Masky hummed.

“I think that if living is such a hassle to you then-”, he was cleaning the bloody blade off his jacket.

“No! Lets not kill her-!”, Toby intervened again.

“Why?”, asked Tabby quietly.

Toby looked at the girl and then looked down.

“Because I understand what you’re going through”, Toby whispered.

Hoodie pretended that he hadn’t heard what he said while Masky scoffed and was about to argue again when Hoodie spoke up.

“Let’s take her to our boss. Let him decide”

“Hoodie! He has to ask to see a human. Just simply bringing one to him-”, Toby protested.

“It’s better than letting her go”, said Hoodie with a shrug.

Everyone looked back at Tabby for her decision. It was either this or death. Her options were limited.

“Alrighty lets see here….I can’t run….That would ensure my death and I’d be hunted down for sure...I can’t fight all three of you at once….I really have nothing to lose anymore….so going with you guys seems like the best course of options to ensure my survival for now…I really don’t have much of a choice now do I?”, she took a deep breath, stood up straight and looked at them with an emotionless expression, “Lead the way I guess. The sooner I know me fate the sooner I can carry on with my life dead or alive”

Hoodie nodded, ”You’re right. Even if you ran or even if we let you go our boss would have us hunt you down”

Masky nodded and perked up.

“I’m impressed with your ability to make a rational decision in a life or death situation”, he mused, "Toby. You walk with her and make sure that she doesn’t try anything”

Tabby moved a couple of steps from Toby to give him space. She just looked at the ground praying that he wouldn't beat her or kill her. Not yet. She walked with Toby not daring to speak. Being used to sneaking around she was quite stealthy. She made very little noise to where you would almost forget that she was walking with you. She was fidgeting with the hem of her white shirt like she was wringing someone's neck. Even though she showed no emotion. She was anxious. Her anxiety was skyrocketing. She had to fight the urge to run every time she heard a noise. Her eye twitches occasionally. That was due to her being taken off meds that she didn't need because doctors refused to do diagnosis correctly.

Toby had no intention of harming her. He could tell that she wasn't doing too well, and he couldn't really blame her. They passed the corpse of the dead woman as he followed the two older proxies. Hoodie and Masky were having their own conversation ahead of them. Toby decided to try to chat.

“Er..I’m Toby”, he stated, “What’s your name?”

He really didn’t expect a positive response from her. Why should he? He knew that she was probably freaking out. He did too when he was put in this situation.

“My name is Tabby”, she replied looking at Toby for a quick moment.

She looked wary and cautious but decided to show no fear. Hoodie and Masky paused in front of a haggard old tree with the boss' symbol carved into it. Masky pulled off his glove and pressed the symbol with his bare hand. It began to glow faintly. It seemed like the woods grew darker, as if shadows were melting and joining together in some kind of macabre dance. Toby remembered being absolutely terrified of the opening of a portal when he was new. Especially a portal that led right into the heart of the Slenderman's domain.

Toby understood. Hoodie went through the shadows first and just seemed to vanish. Masky nodded to Toby and Tabby.

“You two are next Toby will lead the way”, he said.

Toby smiled at Tabby reassuringly.

"It-It's just cold”, He assured her. His face twitched a bit. Damn it he had been doing so well so far, "It won't hurt or anything."

Tabby gave him a hint of a small smile although she was still suspicious and didn't trust him or any of them for that matter one bit. Her eye twitched again. But she didn't raise herself to be a little bitch so she jumped through the portal after Toby. She hid her left arm behind her back to avoid any questions about her hand.

It was cold and dark. Toby felt his feet hit something soft and cold. The ground always felt off. He heard the sound of a lighter clicking, and turned and saw Masky behind them with a lit lighter. The small flame wasn't nearly enough to fully illuminate the entrance, but it was enough. Hoodie was waiting for them near what looked like a thick wall of foliage. Hoodie had his arms crossed and looked a little impatient. They had to take a walk through the Pocket to even get to the boss' place, which would be dangerous for the human, as she was, well, a human that wasn't a pet in a haven of killers.

"We don't have all day." Hoodie said firmly.

"I'm here" she said rather defensively.

“Good”, Hoodie stated.

Now he took off his glove. Masky protested a bit.

"I can do it, my glove is already off-”

"You two go after him." He said.

Tabby nodded not looking at him. She quickly walked a little ahead of Toby but she wasn't more than an arms length away from him. She looked around at her surroundings. It was very different from her hometown where the only sinister thing was Rosewood Prep where she goes to school. She was used to the feeling of darkness making observations to herself.

Toby offered her a small smile.

"Make sure you stay close..." he warned her quietly.

Tabby nodded slowly, slowing down her pace to be evenly matched with Toby. She was careful to avoid eye contact with everyone.

The town was bustling. Toby saw some people he knew outside. Clockwork's bar was bustling with activity. He could see EJ perched on a bench, eating...something. Judging from the blood splatters on his hands and clothes, Toby figured he knew what it was. The sky was clear and very dark. There were a bunch of plants and trees that Toby knew no human would have ever seen before. It was a very colorful place surprisingly, save for the pitch black sky and dark ground. But it was always cold. And it always felt a little off. Lights floated against the sky, giving the illusion of some sort of stars. The town was also illuminated by lamps and the lights from the buildings.

"It's...different....definitely not like Rosewood Prep" she said quietly more to herself.

Toby nodded.

"Yeah. That's the school in the town right?" He asked.

He was homeschooled so he wasn't too sure. Masky walked behind them and Hoodie walked in front. A woman in a tight black dress and a wig stopped Masky temporarily and handed him a file. He seemed to thank her and continued to follow them.

Tabby nodded politely as she walked by the woman.

"it's one of them unfortunately. There's also Maplehood Creek elementary school. I went there for the first 4 years then I got transferred over Rosewood" she gave him a bitter smile and a bitter laugh "In Rosewood you'd either have to be very rich, mentally disturbed or very intelligent to get in. And I'm two out of the three" her eyes showed a dark, pained haunted expression.

Toby nodded. He understood.

"Yeah, I've heard that about that school."

He looked around, then whispered.

"That woman that gave Masky the file used to go there too. You probably didn't know her or anything but she did go there." He stated earnestly.

It was true. Jane had gone there. Toby knew several others who had gone there too.

"I never went to school so...well I did for elementary but that didn't go too well for me." Toby said.

Masky was glancing through the files.

She showed an expression of understanding and relief, "so they've probably have horror stories of their own about that place".

She looked at Toby "don't worry it didn't go too well for me either that's why I got transferred"

Toby nodded.

"Yeah. That school is absolutely ripe for producing people like, well..." He gestured around at the people in the town, "It's why where you live is such a hotspot for, well, paranormal activity as well as people like me." He explained. He didn't want to go into detail about his hellish elementary school days. He knew proxies who would watch that school day in and day out because of all the people that would just snap there.

She looked at him. "I now see why you guys didn't decide to kill me... Makes sense I've always been able to see paranormal shit all my life from the time I could remember...I guess that I've always had some sort of potential" she gave a bitter laugh.

"Who knew that my step dad would be proven wrong about me. The shit I saw and went through made me the survivor that I am today and I don't mean to undermine your hellish experience but to me that sounds like heaven compared to Rosewood. I wish I had your elementary experience"

She hesitated for a minute before her expression turned dark, fearful and pained.

"Are you aware of anyone named Horatio Galloway?" She asked quietly She held her bandaged left hand close to her.

"Ha, well I mean if you define "heaven" as being relentlessly tormented by all your peers, having a hate club made about you, and being put in the hospital twice by kids older then you then I suppose so." Toby smiled.

"Also, usually we kill people who are sensitive to the paranormal. Well, the people who work for my boss do."

Toby was silent after being asked about the stranger.

"I'm not, I'm sorry. Though someone else here might be aware of who he is."

"I had all of that and more. I've been put in the hospital more times then I care to remember”, she physically flinched as she felt the phantom pain of her hand and the beatings of her step dad.

"At least you didn't watch the only people who were the closest thing you had to a real family jump to their deaths one by one at the hands of Horatio. And there was nothing I could do about it", she went quiet.

"I-I said too much. It's not really anyone else's business", she tilted her head to the side thoughtfully, "hm...if I die I at least will be with my friends again...hopefully" she sighed "that's fine...I'll get my revenge eventually...if I live long enough..."

Toby nodded. He understood. He spoke.

"My father liked to say that my sister died in a car crash. She was in one, that was true, but the reason it killed her was because of a head wound my father had given her. The car cr-a-ash-", he stopped and cleared his throat, "was simply just an excuse."

“Dads aren’t shit”, she said as she playfully punched his arm gently with her right hand with a small smile.

She almost forgot about her anxiety as she was talking to Toby. Her anxiety spiked up as she was about to receive her fate. She went back to wringing her shirt.

"Its so strange...I might die at any minute now and I'm strangely okay with this. You know death was very real to be growing up. I knew I'll die any day now whether I'll do it myself or someone else would", she shook her head, "I just never expected my death to be like this. This turned out to be a longer night then expected"

Toby patted her shoulder.

She dodged his touch and then offered him an apologetic smile.

“Sorry instincts”

"I'll vouch for you." He said simply.

“What if that’s not enough? What if I have to die anyways regardless?”, stated Tabby.

Tabby whistled and was impressed at her surroundings.

"This is so much better than my apartment..."

Toby glanced at Tabby.

"Disgraced proxies." He explained, then mentioned he would explain everything later to her after the conversation with his boss.

"Oh...", she nodded an okay as he said that he'll explain later. She sincerely hoped that she would be alive for the explanation.

Toby understood. There wasn't much he could do for her except put in a good word for her. Masky looked like he had a bit of a headache. The two people in the pearly colored masks eventually led them to a heavy door. One of them pushed it open. This room was darker than the rest of the mansion. It was cold. Painting of landscapes hung on the walls. It seemed to be some sort of sitting room. In the corner, on a plush armchair, rested a tall imposing figure. As soon as Hoodie, Masky, and Toby entered the room, they approached the chair and kneeled. The proxies in the pearly masks kneeled right next to the door, allowing Tabby to go in. Tabby entered the room cautiously and looked around. Tabby didn't know what to do. She saw everyone else kneeling so she did the same too. Wincing at her bruises as she did. She looked down, not daring to speak or look up until she was spoken too.

The room seemed to rumble as the figure in the chair spoke.

"Masky...why have you brought this human here?", It was a smooth, but chilling voice.

Masky remained kneeling, and addressed his creator.

"Conflict in the group as to what to do with her, sir.", Masky said. The being chuckled coldly.

"How silly. Why did you not just do away with her?" The being asked. Masky sighed, and responded.

"Some in the group believe there is no purpose in killing her." He stated firmly.

Toby was muttering something under his breath, over and over. "Cruel but fair, cruel but fair, cruel but fair-”

There was only one thought in her mind, "is this really going to be the end of me?"

That was when Toby stepped in.

"Sir! Don't punish my teammates for what I did. They both wanted to kill her but I suggested bringing her to you! I figured she...that she could be useful, maybe. Even if you just let her go, sir."

That’s when Tabby stepped in.

"Now wait a minute! If anyone should be killed it's me!"

She quickly turned to the being.

"Sir with all due respect, I should be killed. I was the one who made the stupid decision to run away from home. I was stupid enough to stumble upon them doing their job. I never should have ran away in the first place. I was stupid enough to not run away from what I stumbled upon when I had the chance" she said more quietly, "sir please don't punish them for my own stupidity. It should be me and me alone. I'll take the full blow if I must and even if it includes death", she looked down.

Toby looked at her in shock, hoodie sucked in a breath, and Masky sighed, facepalmed and shook his head.

She realized her mistake but it was too late to take it back. The damage was done. She was sure for certain now that she'll definitely be killed now. She waited for the consequence.

"Silence.", The figure said, waving his tentacles threateningly.

"I hold these men to a higher standard than mere humans. However...", The being cocked his head. "I'll admit that usually the humans brought before me simply beg for their life. You did not, which...amuses me."

“Oh...yeah I forgot about my own life for a minute there...uh….spare me? Please?”, she said awkwardly not really putting much effort into it.

Toby perked up. She might just be spared.

"You simply were at the wrong place at the wrong time. Normally, I would have you slaughtered anyways.", the being paused.

The proxies remained kneeling. The Slenderman seemed to settle.

"Since you have amused me, I'll put your fate in your own hands. You can choose to die, in which case I shall send you out with either Knot or Paene.", he gestured to the two proxies in the pearly masks, "Or, you could stay here, and see what we can make of you."

"You mean if I choose to stay I can live and eventually get my revenge and a new life?", she asked in disbelief.

She thought about it, "but if I stay I'll never see my mother or little brother again..." she then remembered that her mother and little brother were treated better than her. He would never beat them, only her.

"They don't really need me...and I have nothing else to lose… and I have been asking for a second chance at life since I was 12..."

She looked at the being making her final decision. As she said something that she didn’t believe, "I want to stay". Meaning that she wants to live.

"Very well.", the powerful being said, and offered her his hand to shake. He could sense something in her that was...darker.

Tabby gave him a firm handshake with her right hand to seal the deal.

"You may stay with either Masky, Hoodie, or Toby.", the being said.

"I'll stay with Toby", she quickly looked down. Her chances of surviving would greatly increase if she stuck to him for now. Besides he was nice to her and spared her life so she kinda owes him.

Once she proved herself useful, she could have her own home. Until then, she needed a mentor and someone who could explain the new life she was given. The being nodded to Knot and Paene to show the group out. He actually had some business to attend to with Masky and Masky only, and it involved the files he had brought to him. The Slenderman nodded, and sent her, Hoodie, and Toby out while he spoke with Masky privately. Toby was happy to at least be able to help her adjust. He hoped she'd be able to make the cut. Even though he was new, he was still a decent proxy meaning the apartment he had had two rooms and enough space for them to live comfortably. Jane was their neighbor along with a few others Toby had never met. Tabby followed Toby closely; she was careful not to stare as she was Generally polite for the most part. She saw a doctor with stitches going across her. She made damn sure to avoid her since she didn't like doctors. She saw an eccentric child playing with LJ, the Doll maker and Jason the toy maker. She saw two boys arguing with each other that reminded her of an old married couple.

Toby was thinking.

"We can get Jane to make you a mask.", he said, "I think you might like her."

Tabby looked offended, "what's wrong with my face? Is it because of my eyes?".

She did have unnaturally wide eyes. She often got picked on for them. People called her wide-eyed, bugsy, googly eyes ect...

"No, no it's nothing to do with your face!", Toby assured her, "It's just that people like us wear masks. It's kind of like our new identity. But any face covering works, really."

They passed a haggard, tall, skeletal thing with long tangled black hair. The creature's limbs were covered with dirt, mud, blood, and other...things. It watched Toby and Tabby continue on, mouth ripped open and hanging near its collar bone. It stared with its yellow blank stare. They passed a tall man with broad shoulders, very attractive and charming-looking. He was holding a cat in his arms. He looked relatively normal. They finally made it to Toby's apartment building.

She looked at the apartment complex, "it's a lot nicer than my old apartment..." She didn't look at the other people as she didn't want others to kill her. He led her into the lobby. The lobby was empty, save for a lady at the front desk. She looked normal, save for the fact she had no eyes and her mouth was stitched shut. She was doing paperwork. Toby didn't seem to mind.

"Come on!", He said, a little excited to show her where she'd be staying.

"Your room will be the door right next to the hall closet.", he stated, "My room is locked, so don't worry about getting into the wrong room."

"Your apartment is nice and it's relatively clean...I always had to play Cinderella at my old apartment", said Tabby.

Toby smiled.

"I just like being in clean spaces.", he said, not wanting to get into the reasons for that.

He introduced the cat to her. The cat's name was Nugget.

"She was a stray. I found her beating the crap out of some raccoon so I took her in. She's a real big baby."

Nugget remained asleep, obviously unbothered by Tabby's presence.

She nodded, "so do I. I have Bad OCD", she left it at that not wanting to get into the reasons for that.

"Nugget is really cute. I love cats"

"Well, lucky for you, Nugget loves sleeping in your room so you may wake up and find her next to you.", Toby said with a smile, "I'll give you some time to settle in.".

"Okay" she picked her back pack up and went to her room.

It looked the same as the rest of the place with the same colors just smaller. There was already another bed with a small bedside table and a small dresser with a mirror on it. She unpacked. She only had a week's worth of clothes for summer and winter and like 3 pairs of pjs. She put socks and underwear in one drawer, shirts in the next, pants in the next and then pjs in the next. She hung up the plain pale blue long sleeved dress that she had in the closet. She put her hygiene products and feminine products in her closet. Lastly she took out the two pictures that she had and put them on the nightstand. And she took out a couple of sketches that her best friend Autumn made for her. They were both of Tabby in different poses. She laid them on the bed. The bed was bare as there was no bedding on it. She'll buy frames for her pictures and bedding for her bed once she got money. She'll ask later if she could hang stuff up on the wall.

Toby busied himself while she got settled into her new room. He had done the dishes from what he had managed to eat that day and checked on the food he had. He was running low, but thankfully he'd soon be paid for the mission with a bonus, as he was now training someone. Proxies got paid per mission, though it was always possible to get money on the side. The longer and more complex the mission, the more pay you'd get for it. Toby had finished cleaning up his mess in the kitchen and was looking over his mission schedule for that week. He had given Jane a call to let her know her services would soon be needed. He figured that a friendly female presence would help Tabby adjust to this place, and he knew the moment she had her mask was the moment she could go around The Pocket safely. Jane would make it to her liking. Toby knew that while he'd be the primary mentor, there were things he could not teach her and would need help with. He also knew that he needed to explain the rules.

She sat on the bed and looked into the mirror and took a good long look at her reflection and took the time to process tonight's events. How fucking quickly her life changed from running away to becoming a proxy.

"Wtf actually happened? How did I survive this?", she said out loud to herself.

Toby knew his schedule was clear the next day. That would be good. He figured that they soon would need to get something to eat but Toby didn't feel it was a good idea for Tabby to go out too far without a mask. Not wearing a mask made you a target for the malus population, or even sometimes higher ranked monsters or other proxies. It was deemed unacceptable to not wear one unless on a stealth mission. Thankfully Tabby has bad social anxiety so it's unlikely that she'll ever venture out by herself. If anything she'll venture out if she had too only with another person with her. Toby knew that she would have to make friends to survive for long here. It was always best to have someone in your corner unless things went to crap. Thankfully Toby knew some decent people who could definitely help her out of her shell a tad and also would be loyal. She decided to leave Toby alone for now since she didn't want to get in his way and bother him. He knew where to get her if he needed her. She just flopped on the bed staring up at the ceiling. It's insomnia week so she's not going to sleep for a couple of days. Her anxiety died down and the adrenaline wore off.

She talked quietly out loud to herself, "Alrighty ground rules. Don't speak unless spoken too. Only make eye contact for a little bit when someone is talking to you. Always be polite and respectful, fight if you have too, just keep your head low, stay out of the way and if someone asks you to do something quickly, quietly and efficiently".

She nodded as she agreed with the rules that she made for herself. She gave herself a little pep talk.

"I survived Rosewood for the last 8 years. I can survive here. This is no different from Rosewood only the steaks are higher. I can live with that. I'm sure there's a weapon store somewhere here. I can buy some weapons to defend myself with when I absolutely have to go alone". She took a deep breath "I'm finally going to do it Autumn...I'm going to avenge you and the others....just hold on"

Toby knocked on her door, and let her know he was going out for groceries. He told her Jane would be over in about fifteen minutes to start working on a mask with her and asked her if she needed anything. He was planning on just making some simple food for dinner. Jane was a very talented mask maker, and Toby knew that she would do a good job with Tabby's. Toby had a bit of a flashback. When he was new, still slightly burned and bruised from the fire, he was sitting down on some stone steps outside a building and he was crying. He remembered feeling a tap on his shoulder and seeing Jane sitting next to him. She was ranked lower than he was, she had explained, so he could feel assured she wouldn't hurt him. He remembered her taking him back to her apartment and making him some food before showing him where he was supposed to go. Jane was an incredibly sweet person and was able to make people just open up to her. She did a lot of espionage missions and did a lot of work with stealth.

Tabby opened up the door and nodded.

"Do you think you can buy my two frames? About an 8 x 9? And at least two knives for me to defend myself when I absolutely have to go alone? And some bedding too?", she added quickly, "if you don't want too that's fine! I can wait until I get my own money! I don't need anything fancy! Just something sturdy and simple. And something warm. I don't want to be a burden on you. I can take care of myself! I don't want you to think I'm trying to take advantage of you! I'm actually really grateful!", she babbled on as she fidgeted with the bottom of her shirt and looked down prepared for the harsh comeback.

"It's okay! I can get that for you. Any specific colors you want for the bedding and the frames or should I just get stuff that matches the room?", Toby asked. He had no problem providing her with stuff. She was a guest in his home and he would be a bad host if he didn't help her out. Plus she was in a new world with new rules that probably seemed a bit hellish. If he could help in any way he would be happy to.

"Oh, and I'm grilling some chicken and making some salad for dinner. Is that okay or do you want me to bring you back something?", he asked.

"Teal...I like the color teal...it's my favorite... as for the frames just simple black ones will do. No need to be fancy.", she added quietly.

She listened to him when he said what he was making for dinner, “That's fine I'm not a picky eater. but I have to watch you make it because I don't trust anyone to make my food unless I'm watching or if I'm making it myself. It could be poisoned. No offense to you".

It was common knowledge at Rosewood that you don't eat the school food as everyone's caught Horatio poisoning the food more times than not. So everyone brought their own lunch and the kitchen shut down.

"Okay, that's fine with me.", Toby assured her, "You can even help me cook it if you want.".

"I'll make sure I'll get you what you need, okay?”, said Toby.

She nodded as she sounded relieved, "Okay. I'm pretty good in the kitchen myself".

As she's always had to cook dinner for the 5 of them, the people she lived with. On top of her working at the This or That restaurant.

"Okay thank you", she ventured out to the living room as she sat down on the edge of the couch since he mentioned that a girl named Jane was coming over soon.

"Okay, I'll see you.", Toby said with a smile. He turned and left the apartment with a list.

"Hey hon! I'm Jane.", the woman said with a kind voice.

She quickly looked up at her, "hello my name is Tabby", she quickly looked back down again as she was fidgeting with her shirt again. She was covered in bruises and scars old and new. And her bandaged left hand was obvious.

She stood up trying to be a good hostess, "would you like anything to drink? I'm sure we only have water here for now".

Jane smiled and shook her head.

"No thank you, I'm good.", she said.

Jane noted her bruises, scars, and her hand. She gave her a smile.

"I was asked to come here to discuss the type of mask you would like.", she said tentatively.

"Hmm...I don't want anything too fancy as I don't want to drag attention to myself more than I already will since I'm fresh meat...and something of a teal color", she was thinking as she made room for Jane to sit if she wanted to. Jane sat next to her with a smile, "Hm, teal, that would look nice. You won't be fresh meat for long, but I understand wanting a plain mask. Maybe a golden design over the teal? That could look very pretty."

Tabby nodded excitedly, "yeah! Like golden spirals in different directions"

Jane nodded, "That could be pretty.", she sketched out a tentative design and showed it to her.

"Yeah...", she just stared for a couple of minutes as she was having a flashback to when Autumn was alive. She was the artistic one in the group. And was also her best friend/big sister. She was always showing Tabby her sketches.

She shook her head to clear away the memories.

"Like that", she confirmed.

"Okay! Anything else? Would you like me to paint the lips, add any engravings, stuff like that?", Jane asked.

She remembered one older proxy, about 40, who had lost his entire group in one mission. He had come to her and had her engrave their names on one side of his mask.

She hesitated for a minute, "could you engrave 14 names in the inside of the mask? And paint the lips black please?".

"Okay, lips black. Can you write out the names please?", Jane asked, handing her the sketchbook and a pencil. She would be more than happy to.

Tabby took her sketch book and wrote down the names 'autumn, ora, Emma, heath, Gavin, Donny, Rebecca, Mitchell, Morgan, jewel, Julie, Caleb, Riley, Emmy, and Daniel'. She handed back the sketch book.

"Okay. I'll carve them on the inside of the mask.", She said.

She figured those names carried sentimental value to Tabby.

Tabby looked up, "thank you", and she looked down.

Jane nodded, "I'll have it done by either tomorrow or the next day, okay?".

Tabby nodded, "yes that's fine. Take all the time you need. I don't plan on going out anytime soon".

"Of course. I'll get it ready.".

"Okay then", Tabby wasn't really good at holding up conversations as she never really got too much socializing. Especially if it's a stranger.

Jane smiled.

"Would you like me to leave, or would you feel more comfortable with someone else in the apartment?", Jane asked with a smile.

"Oh you can stay if you want if you're not busy", she won't admit it but she didn't want to be alone in this strange new world just yet.

"I'm not all that busy. If I could bring some of my mask making stuff over here that would be great.", Jane said. She understood

"Yeah that's fine. I'm sure Toby won't mind as long as there's no mess afterwards".

"Oh I won't make a mess.", Jane said peacefully. She said she would be very fast.

"Unbelievable", she said in thought, "I'm talking to a killer...I'm having an ally ship with two of them so far", she shook her head, "my life really did take a drastic change"

Jane went to her apartment and soon came back with all her supplies. She could get three of her orders done if she worked fast. Jane began to chat with Tabby as she set up.

"So Tabby, you're very new, hm?".

"Yeah my life turned into this in one night. I was honestly not expecting this to happen. Originally I was running away", admitted Tabby.

Jane nodded. She understood. She began making the mold for one of the masks.

"I understand. But this will be a pleasant change, you'll see.", Jane promised, "Revenge and whatnot is quite exhilarating”.

She shook her head slowly, "I hope so. I'm just doing it because I know I can't die and go with my friends without avenging them while he is still out on the streets and in school. Someone else will suffer at his hands and I'll be damned if someone else has to suffer by the hands of him like I did", she said quietly.

"I think I know who you're talking about.", Jane said, "And...if it's any consolation at all, ghosts do exist and several of them have contact with other dead folks. There may be a way to talk to your friends, albeit temporarily.", She set the mask cast to dry and made another one.

"There's only one I would like to talk to one last time. I owe her everything after all she did for me", she said quietly. She then changed the subject.

"Toby said that you also went to Rosewood Prep".

"He's right. I used to. I still have human contacts in there.", Jane said. She set a fan on the first mask as she finished the second one.

"So how long ago was that? What was it like? Was it still the same students who were just as corrupt as the teachers? Was it like the hunger games where you had to be on guard and fight every day to survive only with more rules and regulations? What horror stories do you have of that place?", she asked excitedly. She never met anyone who lived long enough to get out of Rosewood. Normally the people who do got the fuck out the first chance they got and were never really heard from ever again.

"I was there two years ago, actually. I'm still pretty new here myself. I...I have a lot of stories.", Jane said.

She shifted anxiously, "I once got caught stealing food from the kitchen, and they locked me in the sports shed for almost a week. They poured water on the ground for me every day and I had to lick it up from the ground. Teachers would have favorite kids and that would keep them out of trouble. Rich kids were treated much better. Anyone who made lower than a C on anything was punished. Sometimes they would lock kids who were hallucinating in the upstairs bathroom and just leave them there. I have so many."

"Horatio Galloway" Tabby’s face paled and her eyes were wide in fear, "most of my horror stories had to do with him" "rarely did I ever get into trouble with the teachers. I was always a straight A student. It's only when I got into trouble for skipping classes because of Horatio".

"I think I remember him.", Jane said, "I didn't get in as much trouble with him ever. I did okay in my schooling but I was rebellious.". Jane set the second mask to the side, and started on another.

"It was probably a good thing that you've gotten punished for stealing the food. It was probably poisoned by him. I'd rather be locked in the sports shed than have a slow death", pointed out Tabby.

"It was before the food was prepared. I wasn't stupid. I took fruits and veggies and unopened pre packaged things. They were denying a friend of mine food. I got caught after she got to eat.", Jane spoke with some pride.

"Good for you", Tabby said proudly.

Tabby then looked down and her voice quivered, "then you must be aware of the Rosewood massacre that happened a month back", She rubbed her left hand.

Jane's eyes darkened, "I heard rumors about the massacre but don't know the details. Several of my friends are still there...".

"I can tell you the real full story. The massacre as they called it really did happen. I saw it with my own eyes but being the person that Horatio is he made damn sure that I couldn't do a damn thing about it", she gave a bitter laugh, ”always had it out for me since day 1".

Jane looked sadly at her.

"I'm so sorry you had to be there.", Jane said softly she began to paint the first mask, a pretty lavender mask, "Talk about it only if you would like to." She sighed and thought about it for a while. She's never talked to anyone about this.

"It...was homecoming...you know at Rosewood how each homecoming is a different theme every year. This year was carnival themed. Which I don't like as it is because I have a severe distrust of clowns. Too many horror movies growing up you know? Anyways my mom decided to let me go to the event and she and my grandmother came with me. That was the catch. Horacio was standing at the entrance dressed as the ringleader handing out pink candies that were laced with LSD to everyone. You should know at Rosewood it is common knowledge that you do not take anything that Horacio gives you. Whatever it may be. I didn't take the candy because I knew better. I tried warning my mom and grandmother about it but they wouldn't listen. I was too smart for his bullshit but not smart enough. I couldn't find my friend group anywhere. But I knew that they were here so I didn't worry about it too much and I'll find them later. So I got to the seats and watched the show which was quite boring since I wasn't hallucinating from the candy. But the last act though. It was outside. I saw all my friends lined up on the rooftop of the school and it's a fucking tall building. while everyone was thinking that they were doing some acrobatic tricks i watched them jump to their deaths one by one....i was screaming and crying begging someone to help but all ignored me and i couldn't shout because they were too far up hear me and I couldn't break into the school either. i couldn't do anything. later on the LSD wore off and they were mortified to find the 14 dead bodies. all confused on how it happened. So they deemed it the Rosewood Massacre. After the show was over I confronted Horacio about what he did. I attacked him to strangle him. My goal was to kill him. but the problem was that we're too evenly matched with each other. in strength and intelligence so it turned out to be a fist fight. we did a good amount of damage to each other. until he caught one of my punches and shoved my fist through a closed window shattering the window and every bone in my hand. i had to get the glass surgically removed as it was deep in the tissue so i can't feel a thing in my hand anymore and they had to set my hand for the broken bones to heal. But since doctors refused to do their jobs correctly they set it wrong so it healed wrong and now my hand is paralyzed. he took everything away from me! My family! My home! My motivation to live then! and my hand!", she was more hurt than angry.

Tabby quickly looked away to recompose herself, "I'm sorry for the sudden outburst. I never talked about that day since to anyone before".

"I understand." ,Jane said softly. She had been letting the lavender mask dry so she could paint flowers on it and had been working on the second one, listening to the subject.

"I'm so sorry.", Jane said softly, "I understand what it's like to lose everyone. A lot of the teachers at that school were just plain cruel, and I still don't know how and why the human government hasn't shut down that institution or why parents won't stop sending their children there. No one deserves to lose people the way you did."

"That's because the shit they do there is unbelievable. No one would believe them if others heard their stories. I don't know about your parents but mine didn't believe me either and neither did my therapists", explained Tabby.

The second mask was a half white and half black one.

"We can get you an appointment with the Puppeteer perhaps. He can just drain your sadness away." The Puppeteer was highly sought after for his empath abilities. It comes back after a while unless he numbs your memory, but it's nice to feel peace just for a little while."

She shook her no.

"No thank you. I don't like my mind being tampered with. I've been through 7 psychologists. I don't need anyone else. My sadness, anger and grief is my motivation to put Horacio Down once and for all. I can have peace of mind after that", said Tabby.

"I understand. He doesn't tamper with your mind though. He feeds in negative emotions so you can at least get a bit of sleep and have a moment where everything feels okay. And you're right. My parents didn't believe me either. All my letters were monitored as I lived in the boarding section.", Jane said, "My parents didn't believe in therapy, so."

She finished up the first mask. It looked lovely and glossy.

"As much as that sounds nice. I can't sleep even if I wanted too. I have insomnia and narcolepsy. So it's a hit or miss", explained Tabby. "I've heard horror stories about the boarding section. I guess I was considered lucky enough to be able to go back to the place where I lived".

"Oh, he can deal with that too.", Jane said, "He's honestly a blessing. And yeah. The boarding rooms were awful.", She didn't want to go into too much detail.

"Maybe I'll think about it" , she nodded in understanding. She learned in order to keep a friend you don't push boundaries and you don't ask too many questions.

"So Tabby. What do you do for fun?", asked Jane, changing the subject.

"Fun?" she asked, confused. She had to sneak around after school or at night in order to have some fun as her step dad was a cruel and strict man.

"I normally like to read and write, have time to myself to philosophize. I liked to hang out with my friends whenever I could. Listen to music”, Tabby finally said.

"Ah, I see." Jane said. "Those are fun hobbies. What do you like to write?" She asked. She had stenciled out a white design for the black side of the mask and mirrored that design in black for the white side. The third mask was hardening.

"I like to write fiction. Darkly realistic fiction. Sometimes free verse poetry", Tabby said.

"Oh, that seems fun." Jane said, continuing her work on the masks. She checked the little black clock up on the wall. "Toby will be home soon."

"Yeah. Although I left all my written works back at Rosewood. I didn't think to bring them back to the place where I lived. I didn't exactly plan on running away. It was a spur of the moment type thing you know?", she nodded, "I'm not too worried about him. He seems like he's the type that can handle himself"

"Ah, I understand. Maybe you could get Toby to get you some notebooks or something to write in." Jane said. "And you're right, he most definitely can. He's pretty strong."

"Maybe and that's good I guess"

Jane finished up the second mask and began working on the third. She looked like she was thinking.

"Has Toby told you the rules yet?", Jane asked.

She shook her head no, "I know that there are rules and guidelines. I figured I would ask him later when he got back”

"Ah. Well, if you'd like, I could start filling you in." Jane offered.

"That would help out a lot. The more I know the less of a chance I have of being killed", said Tabby.

"Okay. I'll tell you a few of the official rules then." Jane said, adjusting her position and making sure her mask was secure. "First of all, there is a hierarchy here that is absolutely set in stone. Since you're a proxy, you're lower in the hierarchy, but you are not the lowest of the low."

"Sounds like my position in any life in general but okay what else?" She asked.

"It's best to try to consort with your rank and above. So for you, that would be other proxies and monsters. The higher beings are not likely to befriend you so I wouldn't bother." Jane explained.

"So like you and Toby for example?”, asked Tabby.

"Not me, actually. Toby flaunts a few of the rules because he's popular. I am actually one of the lowest in the hierarchy." Jane said with an awkward nod. "It's not like you'd be punished for speaking with me or anything like that. People would just look down their noses a bit at you."

"That's nothing new to me. I can live with that. Who would be my best chance to make an ally with, the higher proxies I mean?"

"Hm. If you want high-ranking proxies that are pretty friendly, then believe it or not, Masky would be your go to guy. If he's not trying to kill you, he's very pleasant. Clockwork is another proxy I would chat with if I were you. She runs that little bar a couple minutes from here. Kate's not high ranking, but she can pull you a lot of favors because she knows people. There are a few monsters who don't care too much about the hierarchy either.”

"He was trying to earlier. If it wasn't for Toby I would mostly likely be dead in the woods. I'm avoiding him for a while. I could give Clockwork and Kate a chance once my social anxiety dies down and when I get the courage to go out on my own willingly. Anything else that I need to know?"

Jane nodded. "Yes. Relationships with humans that aren't mission-related or cleared by your boss as allies is VERY against the rules. It will get you put down to my level."

Tabby nodded slowly "well I'm too fucked up for a relationship. I'm sure no one would want me anyways...The man I loved is dead now. No one will replace him. So I can have allies but it has to be cleared by the boss first?"

"Yes. By allies I mean humans who are aware of our world and have chosen to side with us." She was painting what looked like a galaxy on the third mask. And I would be careful. You may find someone and it may shock you. I didn't expect-" Jane stopped then continued painting in silence.

"You don't have to say anything if you don't want to. I'm not the one to push boundaries. And that makes sense. What else do I need to know?”, asked Tabby.

"Treat all gifts with suspicion. Even if they're from people you know. There are a lot of backstabbers here."

"I'm highly intuitive and I have serious trust issues. I don't trust anybody or anything. Unless I see them making it or doing something with my own eyes. I've already came up with the conclusion that this is no different from Rosewood. Except the stakes are higher and I have more freedom for the most part. If we survived Rosewood for that long we can survive here". What else?"

"You'll find that this may be a bit tougher than Rosewood, mainly due to the missions. This is a very high stakes job. Many proxies die young. But it is also so rewarding too, really. Cause once you root yourself here, you've got some people that have your back."

"Well then I guess I'll have to do my best not to die. I'll try to keep myself alive for as long as possible. Is there anyone I I shook steer clear away from? Like a red flag warning?”

"Jeff." Jane said firmly. "Ignore him. Don't do favors for him and don't let him do favors for you. Ever." Her hands remained steady even if she was freaking out.

"Is Jeff to you like Horacio was for me?" She asked quietly. "I'm good at ignoring people. I ignore people like they are the plague. I'm antisocial af"

"Well, he set me on fire and murdered my family in front of me, so yeah, I'd say so." Jane said. She said it in a way to make it seem like it didn't hurt her but it was easy to tell that it did.

"Horatio can't get me here...can he?" Her voice quivered and her eyes were wide with fear.

"Horatio is just a measly little human." Jane said. "After you're trained and fully transformed, he won't really be able to harm you on his own. You could absolutely humiliate him.

"But he's always been 10 steps ahead of me...I couldn't even get close enough to kill him and believe me I've tried countless times...what if he's still 10 steps ahead of me after I transformed? All my efforts would be in vain"

"He won't be. Like I said. He's just a stupid human. You will be able to get rid of him with no sweat."

She sighed the problem with Horatio was that she and him were too evenly matched. In intelligence and strength. She just uses her intelligence differently than he did.

"I'm sorry for what you went through...including the stuff with Rosewood. I really am. What else do I need to know?", asked Tabby, changing the subject.

“It's fine. I'm coping okay. You should probably know that the ghost community is a great community to be friends with." Jane admitted. "They're everywhere and they can get into places for you."

She nodded "I'll try talking to them at some point”

"I can easily introduce you to almost anyone you'll need to know. When you finish training, you'll be put into a group."

"What do you mean?"

"Proxies work in groups. Usually. You'll be given missions to do either solo, with some members of your group, or your whole group. They will be the people you can trust most."

She nodded in understanding "Toby said something earlier about disgraced proxies. What are those?”

"People like me. Other people call us honorary humans, or just disgraces. They are proxies or monsters who have broken some of the cardinal rules and were caught and punished for them."

She nodded in understanding, taking in the information "is there anything else I should know?"

. "Not really much that I can think of right now."

"Okay thank you for taking the time and effort to explain things to me. I'll take your advice. I'll ask Toby if there's anything else I should know when he gets here and see what advice he has. I'd like to hear what he has to say"

"You should. I'm just telling you things I know from experience." Jane said. She heard footsteps outside the room.

Tabby froze as her ears picked up on the noise. She got defensive ready to attack or bolt. Toby, carrying everything he had bought at the grocery store in his arms and a basket. Jane got up to help him unload it all. Tabby sighed in relief and she got up to help too. Her mom made her carry 4-5 heavy bags in each hand every time they went grocery shopping. She may be small but she definitely has some lean muscle to her. She's still useful despite her left hand. Toby thanked both of them. He set down the bags of food on the counter and handed the things that Tabby had specifically requested to her. Jane had gone to start packing up her stuff after putting some things away. She knew that she probably needed to go now. Tabby went to her room to put down the bags. She'll take them out later once everything settles down. She went back out to help.

Jane pack up.

Jane pretty much had everything packed up and ready to go.

"I'll swing by tomorrow with your mask." She assured Tabby

"Okay. It was nice meeting you and having you here. It's nice to know I'm not alone with Rosewood"

"You're definitely not alone. If you need someone to talk with who's not, well, a man-" Jane smiled a bit. "Then just give me a call or drop by. I literally live next door."

She laughed. She gave herself a weird look. It was a sound that she hadn't heard in a long time. She only reserved it for Adam or her friends. "Well that's convenient then!"

Jane nodded and smiled. It was nice to hear her laugh. Toby's voice came from the kitchen.

"Thanks for coming, Jane!" Jane smiled at Tabby and waved goodbye Tabby gave a small wave goodbye. Jane left the apartment. Toby poked his head in and let Tabby know he was going to start cooking now if she felt she needed to make sure her food was safe. Tabby nodded and she went in to help cook the food while keeping a close eye on Toby to make sure he didn't try anything with the food. Despite her hand she was actually very handy with a knife (cooking wise and also fighting wise). She was very fast and efficient in the kitchen. She was using her wrist to hold some of the vegetables in place as she cut them. On top of always cooking dinner at home for 5 people she also worked in a kitchen at a small restaurant afterschool. It got her out of the house for a while since she never wanted to go home. She only quit last month due to her hand. Honestly she would have become a chef if she never made the choice to come here. Toby made sure she saw and knew what was going on with the chicken he was cooking. If he added a spice, he told her what it was. He admired how skilled she was with a knife even though one of her hands was essentially crippled. He could tell she had experience. That was good to know. Most of the killers couldn't cook. Jane always ended up burning everything so he always offered her food. The neighbors next door, however, were excellent cooks but since they were literally a family unit, Toby never really spoke to them. He knew that monsters and proxies would sometimes settle down and start families but he never really met them. Most families got moved to another part of town. But she was the type of person to go through with her choice when she made one whether it was good or bad. She would see it through to the bitter end crash and burn. That was the most dangerous thing about Tabby.

Moving on. She was thinking about the irony of her situation. She hated all adults she didn't know in general specifically males in particular. And here she was living with an adult serial killer and a Male nevertheless. The situation made her burst out laughing out of nowhere.

"Jesus...unbelievable...", she said, wheezing for breath.

Toby glanced over at her.

"Hey, you okay?" He asked.

He had ticked a bit in the middle of the "okay" but it hadn't really affected his speech. He figured she might have gotten herself with the knife a bit. But then why would she be laughing? Hm. The chicken was almost done. After dinner he would go out to check his mail to make absolutely sure he had no bills to pay or no missions he had neglected to see. He could hear faintly next door a baby crying. He heard footsteps, a small creaking sound, and some shushing. Soon the baby quieted. Toby smiled to himself. The people next door never let their baby cry for too long. They were very considerate neighbors.

She calmed down a little bit, wiping her tears away from laughing as she was still giggling.

"I'm fine. I'm not hurt. Even if I did get myself with the knife I wouldn't feel it because I used to work in a kitchen so my hands are pretty calloused".

She showed him her left arm that had a crescent shaped burn mark on her bicep.

"That's from work. I didn't realize it until two hours later when my arm was feeling irritated. So I looked down and saw a burn mark about 2 inches and a half in diameter. It eventually died down and became this. I was laughing because I realized the irony of my situation. You see I never really trusted adults in general. They don't do their jobs protecting their own kids. But if you're male you have a higher chance of me not trusting you. And here I am living with a technical adult male serial killer! I don't think you understand. I went against everything I knew and believed in one night. I took a leap of faith and I don't do that for just anyone so you better feel special”, Tabby explained.

She smiled and shook her head, "my life really did take a drastic turn of events".

Toby nodded. He understood. He offered her a small smile.

"Well, I'm glad you did decide to take a leap of faith." He said earnestly. He plated up the chicken, then asked if she needed help with finishing up the salads. He heard faint music from Jane's apartment. The baby next door didn't start crying again. It was, for once, pretty peaceful. It was impossible to hear outside while the windows were closed, but if they were open it would be highly probable they would hear screaming.

She shook her head no, "the salad will be done in a few minutes. I just needed to put the vegetables in and toss it" she did that and tossed it using a chef's flip without utensils mixing it good. The salad is done”.

"I would like some water please"

Her expression changed to a more serious one as she was going to get down to serious business.

"So Jane told me the basics of the rules. Like how there is a hierarchy. We're proxies so we're low but not the lowest of the low. How ally ships between us and humans and humans not from here are strictly prohibited. It's best to have a few higher up proxies as allies. And that I should stay away from Jeff" "but I want to hear what you have to say. Like anything else I should really know? Anyone I should stay clear away from?"

Toby went up to get them both some water.

"She's right. She covered almost everything. Especially about Jeff, though if you get on his good side he can teach you some pretty cool stuff. I think it's important to know higher being politics as well. Proxies have a specific boss. Monsters can serve whoever they want and do jobs for whoever. But it's important to know which higher being hates who, because sometimes they will act out against the proxies that serve that higher being."

She nodded slowly in understanding "I'm fairly observant so I'm sure I'll pick up a few things on higher being politics here".

"Is there anyone who you think I should stay away from personally?" She said in between bites. She was scarfing down her food like she wouldn't see food again. She didn't eat much in general for the last 8 years due to Rosewood. You had to bring your own lunch and her family was too poor to buy extra food. So she ate dinner at home and that was the only meal she would eat. They barely had enough food for the month while struggling for rent. Although when she was very young she could eat like a champ. For the last 3 months when her step dad came up with the cruel and unusual punishment for her to eat nothing but rice. But she got sick of it and she either stole a little bit of food from the stores when her mom used to send her out or Autumn was very generous and brought her some food for her own house.

"I'm also not too fond of Jeff. But I also wouldn't trust LJ either. But he's friends with BEN and The Puppeteer so you can't really avoid him." The ghost community was super tight.

"Is there enough for seconds?", she asked.

"Yeah. There's enough for seconds if you'd like."

"I don't trust clowns either. I watched too many horror movies as a child you know? But I'll be wary and cautious like I usually am with everyone and everything else" she got up for seconds and scarfed down her second and third plate. It wasn't until her fourth plate when she stopped.

By then the entire thing of food Toby had cooked was gone. He didn't mind one bit however. He got up to do the dishes.

"Yeah, don't trust clowns. They aren't...they aren't all that great. Especially here."

"They're never in general". She went to help with the dishes while drying them.

"Thank you" she said quietly after a period of silence.

"No problem." Toby said with a smile. He helped put the dishes away after they were finished. He heard a meow and saw Nugget plodding towards them. Tabby's face lit up as she started cooing at the cat and kneeled down to pet Nugget. She sucked in a breath at the pain of her bruises. She started petting the cat affectionately.

Nugget purred and pressed her body up against Tabby, her tail indicating that she was pleased with this. Toby smiled.

"I think there's a scrap of chicken on the table. Hold on."

"I mean if you give it food you have a higher chance of befriending the animal. It works with me”

"Is there a library around here?"

"Yeah, there is. I could take you there." Toby offered.

"Good. If you're not busy tomorrow that is. I would much rather have someone to come with me to show me around and I'm not taking the chance of dying on my first day out since I'm fresh meat as it is so curious about the new girl that it is inevitable to say the least. Two is better than one. "I would also like to get books on this place and plants and stuff so I can have a lesser chance of dying and not being afraid. A wise man once told me that you can't be afraid of something that you understand. Like being afraid of the dark for example" she babbled.

"Sure thing." Toby said, "I don't have any missions tomorrow and your training schedule hasn't been sent yet. Books will be good and all but talking to other people about stuff here will make it much easier to learn. Like, you can read all you'd like about the poison daisy, but field experience with someone who knows much more about it will be helpful. Also, we still have to teach you how to fight properly and other things that will make you more successful. It will come much easier to you once you fully transform though."

"Okay. And I know that there's only something you can learn from experience. I just want to learn all I can from books first. The rest I'll ask around and experience for myself and what do you mean "properly"? Are you saying I can't fight. I may be crippled but that doesn't mean I can't kick some ass one handedly! I'll have you know I've gotten into a lot of fights and I've won the majority of them. Well despite getting my ass kicked many times before..."

"I understand." Toby said to her first comment. He wanted her to learn as much as she could from books first too, it would keep her from being gullible and from getting hurt badly.

"I'm not saying you can't fight, I'm saying that you're living with people who fight and hurt for a living. You've won fights, sure, but that's against humans." Toby finished cleaning up the rest of the kitchen. "It isn't a smart idea to overestimate your own abilities here. Really. The people here are stronger than humans, are faster than humans, can take more damage than humans, some have literal magic powers, or extra limbs, or whatever. "

She sighed in defeat.

"That's true. This isn't Rosewood. I'm not up against people my own age who are equal in intelligence and strength and skills. This isn't my territory. But I'll adapt and overcome like everything else in my life so far. I'm a quick learner. Just one day at a time that's all", said Tabby tiredly.

"I know. That will help you live." Toby said. He sighed, then smiled.

"Don't worry. We can train you. We can also get the WPA to train you so you're specialized if you want." Toby said.

"What's WPA?" She asked, tilting her head to the side.

"The Women's Proxy Association." Toby said. "They're a group of specialized fighters that ensure the training of female proxies. They're bad asses. They're kind of like Amazons, if you want the human equivalent.”

"Oh...that sounds like something I'd be interested in..." she was still tilting her head but smiled up at him.

"Oh and another thing. If we're going to be living together for a while we need to establish ground rules. I only have two. One, please don't lie to me. I give you the common courtesy to give honest information. I would also like to be hurt with the truth instead of living a lie. If we're going to be working together in some way we're going to need some form of honest communication. Two, please don't fight my battles for me. I don't like other people suffering from my own stupidity and I know in this society that's just the way shit goes around here but I'll do my best to minimize that when someone's with me. I can and will take care of myself. If someone has a problem with me it's with me alone and nobody else okay? Does that sound reasonable to you?".

Toby nodded. "Yeah. That sounds good. I don't really have any ground rules for myself at the moment, but I'll let you know.

He was pretty honest for a proxy, and while he wasn't the type to let people he cared for get beat up, he understood how she would want to stand up for herself. It was good she had that drive to stick up for herself. Proxies who didn't have that usually ended up dead.

"So what do you want to do now?", Tabby asked.

"Well, seeing is it's kinda late, we should probably get some sleep." Toby said. "Well, you should. I have another small mission tonight but it shouldn't take too long."

"Ah well you see I have insomnia...and narcolepsy so I don't ever get enough sleep. This is a week and a half of no sleep. But I'll be here when you get back. Try not to die okay?" She gave him a small smile. Which was code for 'be careful I care somewhat’.

"I won't, it's a fairly riskless mission." Toby assured her. It really wasn't too bad of a mission. "It's just a delivery." Toby got up to leave. "There's sleeping pills in the hall closet if you'd like. They've got the power of like, horse tranquilizers."

"Alright I'll think about it and I'll see you later"

"Alright, I'll see you." Toby soon left.

Tabby went to her room to unpack the bags that Toby had bought her. She took out the frames and gently slid both pictures into their frames and set them on her night stand. She took out the two knives and positioned them like she was about to get into a fight. They were good for defense. Tabby took out the bedding; it was a soft patchwork blanket with a teal color scheme and pillows to match. She positioned them just how she liked them. She decided to not hang up Autumn's artwork so she put them in her nightstand and deemed that it would be private and personal.

Toby slipped through the shadows, the package in hand. He realized the quickest route would be through monster's only territory, but as long as he wasn't caught he would be fine. He darted through the trees, paying close attention to any noise he would hear. He eventually managed to pass through it unharmed, which made the bulk of his journey a lot easier.

She stepped back until she was near the door to take a look at her room. It was simple and basic but you could tell that it was her room. Then she came across the dawning realization "like it or not this is home now". Home. That was a place she hasn't had in a long time. Sure she lived with her mother and two brothers and her step dad. But it wasn't considered home or a family. Tabby knew that a home is where you feel safe and you belong and a family accepts you for you broken or not. Tabby shook her head.

"This isn't home. I mean I'm living in this world now so I guess this world is my home now but this place isn't. It's not my territory and I barely even know him" she talked out loud to herself.

"Ah. Twinkle Toes. Nice to...hehe... see you."

"Hey Jeff." Toby said uncomfortably. "Is Barb here? She told me to bring her this." He held up the small package. Jeff clicked his tongue again. He felt the package with his marred hand while seeming to stare directly at Toby.

"Yeah, Barb's here. You can come in.”

Her eyes widened in paranoia as that was kicking in now "how much did I tell him really? He isn't stupid so I'm sure he picked up on more than what I told him...wait let's see...I told him about my insomnia, narcolepsy, anxiety and OCD, I told him about Rosewood, I told him about Horacio, he already figured out I came from an abusive home...", she counted on her fingers. Several things. Not bad. Nothing too personal, just observations and bare basic surface. She sighed in relief. But her paranoia was still there "why did he spare my life? Me out of everyone else that could have stumbled across tonight? On top of that, why is he so nice? I mean I appreciate it but No one is this nice for free. Accept for Autumn but we were kids then and we didn't really know anything. What if he's trying to gain my trust just to catch me off guard to kill me later? Especially in my sleep...what if he has other motives? I can't trust him nor am I going too. I'll work well with him and I'll be nice and kind back because it's right. But trust seems to be a long shot...", she rubbed the bridge of her nose like she had a headache. She hated when her paranoia showed up. "Goddamn Rosewood" she muttered to herself. She got out of her room to pace around the apartment to think out loud.

"However he did save my life...if it wasn't for him I would have probably gotten my death wish early...and he did take me in for now...so like with Autumn I kinda owe him everything"

She shook her head "I am thankful for all he's done for me so far...but I can not and will not care too much. It's like Jane said a proxies life isn't that long on average....I don't want to hurt him and have his efforts of keeping me alive to be in vain...that's not fair to him. I'll have allies but no friends. All my friends are dead and they can not and will not be replaced. Moving on means forgetting and I promised myself that I wouldn't forget them" but she knew that deep down inside that wasn't the real reason.

"I can't have what happened at Rosewood happen to anyone else that I've become allies with...I don't want to get attached and go through that heartache again...while I'm still going through it..." she admitted quietly to herself.

Toby didn't have much of a choice as Jeff pulled him into the building. The cigarette smoke only got stronger. But thankfully, he heard Barb's laugh from the upstairs, so he made his way up the creaky staircase. That's where he found her. Barb was around eight feet tall, and had four muscular arms. She had a sharp jaw and broad shoulders as well as long dark blue hair. She had fur the same shade as her hair coating her arms and legs. She had a tattoo gun, and was tattooing another monster. It was a pretty large and complex tattoo, but Barb had a lot of the skill to make it look nice. She turned when she heard Toby.

"Hey Tobes!" She said in her loud, booming voice. She extended a hand that wasn't being used. "You brought the pills?"

"Yeah, EJ gave them to me earlier." Toby said, passing them to her. Barb smiled, showing sharp teeth.

"Thank you!" She boomed jovially. The monster getting tattooed, a tiny wisp of a woman with eyes all over her face and arms had all her eyes trained on Toby. It made him very uncomfortable.

"Well, I should probably go-" Toby said.

She looked around and it was too quiet to her liking.

"On second thought those sleeping pills sound nice right about now" she mused to herself.

She went to the closet and grabbed the bottle and read it carefully to make sure they were sleeping pills. She opened up the bottle and only took one since Toby said that they have the power of a horse tranquilizer and she's...well...small. She popped the pill dry and took some clean bandages that she found and a hand towel. She would clean her crippled hand and dress it in new bandages so it doesn't get infected since the surgical incisions were still fairly new. She went to the bathroom to wash her hands with soap and water and patted her crippled hand dry and wrapped it in new bandages. After she was done she could feel the pill kicking in. So she went back to her room. She locked her door and was debating on whether or not to move her dresser to barricade the door just in case he or someone else were to break in and attempt to kill her in her sleep. Since when she actually goes to sleep she's a deep sleeper. But she decided against it since she was too lazy and it would be a hassle to move it out of the way if she needed to escape immediately. She took her two knives and curled up laying down on her bed with her back facing the corner. She normally didn't sleep with covers on as they were a hassle to get off is someone were to attack her. She had her knees pulled up to her stomach for protection and her arms crossed to protect her chest and neck. She had both knives in each hand that laid against the back of her neck too for protection. No one was going to attack her easily. It was the only way she could feel safe while sleeping. And pretty soon she was out like a light.

Toby eventually got back to the apartment. Jeff had wanted to show him something, which he knew wouldn't have ended well. He made sure to lock the apartment door behind him. It was quiet. Nugget was probably in Tabby's room. Toby peeked in her room to check on her and saw that she was asleep. Nugget was on her bed. After making sure she was okay, he closed the door and went to go take a shower and get ready for bed. He was pretty tired. He had run into Masky on his way back who managed to get him to share a drink and talk for a bit, which Toby found nice. Masky was in a much better mood today than other days. His shower and clothes change was quick. He put his dirty clothes into the hamper. He took it down to wash his clothes twice a week. The apartment had a shared laundromat.

Tabby stirred awake as Toby closed the door

"son of a bitch" she thought to herself.

She wasn't protected enough. But even in her sleepy state she could recognize that it's Toby so she had nothing to worry about that much but for once in her life she was just too damn tired to do or say anything about it.

"I'll deal with it in the morning" she grumbled to herself and went back to being dead asleep in her protective position.

#creepypasta #fanfic #original character #tabbyanderson #ticci toby #Toby Rogers #Masky #Tim Wright #hoody marble hornets #Brian Thomas #jane the killer #jane arkensaw #jeff the killer #jeffery woods #original characters #every rose has its thorn #rosewood prep #maplehood creek

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akfanficlove · 4 years

Text

“What if I remember?” - #SeblaineWeek2020

Written for Seblaine Week 2020 – Hurt/ comfort

Sebastian had proposed. A week later, he was in an accident, Blaine not knowing if he’d make it and remembering the day he went back to Dalton, met Sebastian again and – in the end – fell in love. This hurt so much when I was even just writing it but I love how it turned out.

He remembers. He knows it happened, yet he can barely believe it. Why is he silently sitting in an uncomfortable chair next to beeping machines when he wants to scream at Sebastian to finally wake up? The hand that’s holding his boyfriend’s for dear life is sweaty. No, wait, not his boyfriend’s – his fiancé’s. It can’t be, it’s only been a week since Sebastian went down on one knee during their vacation in Paris.

Paris, where Sebastian had lived as a child and where he spent six months as an intern in college. Paris, where they wanted to go together after graduation, then after getting their first jobs, then after Blaine’s first show closed on Broadway.

Finally, 2 years after Sebastian had returned home to San Francisco, they finally went there and it was everything Blaine had dreamed about. They were strolling down the Seine late at night, eating crêpes and kissing under the Eiffel Tower, just like Sebastian had promised. And then, on their last night, Sebastian had insisted they’d go to this little restaurant in Montmartre that’s a cute café by day and a funky bar by night, even though they were both tired, so why exactly couldn’t they just order room service and go to bed?

Blaine knew why when Sebastian took his hand, his palms sweaty and shaking a little. “Blaine Anderson”, he said, “you are the most ridiculous person and a pain in my ass. But every day I wake up next to you and for a moment I am so in awe that you are still with me.”

His voice trembled a little and Blaine’s eyes started to fill with tears because, no, he couldn’t mean that, this couldn’t be… “You are stubborn and you drive me insane when I know there’s something bothering you but you brush me off like it’s fine. I hate it when you sing in the shower before I had my morning coffee and hate even more how I could never ever hate it when you’re singing because it’s beautiful. You have this smug smile when you know my arguments are better but your puppy eyes will make me give in anyways and we really need to talk about you not using them for evil purposes like having dinner with your strange public school friends you insist you like.”

Blaine gasps half-mockingly, half self-conscious (Sebastian might have a point about him using that method to get his way).

“All of this should have me running for my life as fast as I can, yet, you are in every way said puppy – one look, one smile and I’m done, Anderson. Actually, thinking about leaving you kind of leaves me shaking with fear because I might be able to survive without you but I would hardly call that living, so I’d really rather not.” Sebastian actually blushed and Blaine was about to yell “yes, I do!” before he even heard the question.

However, Sebastian got down on one knee, holding out a small velvet box with a beautiful simple silver ring with a row of very small black diamonds and asked Blaine to marry him right there in a little restaurant in Paris. It sounds cliché and cheesy but Blaine likes cheesy and he likes Paris and he likes the ring and, hell, yes, he wants to marry Sebastian! For a fraction of a second there’s an image in his head of the boy he used to love, the boy he thought he would marry one day and in another lifetime or universe maybe he would, would have proposed with a big romantic gesture and a moving speech, but here and now, he kissed Sebastian as he slid his finger through the ring.

At home, they threw a little get-together a few days later to break the news to their families and closest friends, both of them still basking in actually doing this, taking this next step together. They wanted to officially tell their fellow ex-Warblers, Blaine’s public school friends Sebastian pretends to dislike (although he knows Sebastian has a soft spot for Marley, likes playing video games with Sam and Sebastian’s relationship with Santana, founded on a deep respect for each other’s wit and snarky banter, Blaine will never understand) and a few other friends on a bigger party next saturday.

Next saturday seems so far away right now. He doesn’t really know what happened, couldn’t listen to what the doctor told him a few hours ago when he stormed into the hospital after a call that began with “Mr. Blaine Anderson? You are the emergency contact for a Mr. Sebastian Smythe. I’m sorry to inform you that there was an accident…”

Everything is a blur now. He went where they told him to go. He moved when the nurses needed some space to change Sebastian’s IV-drip. He laid his head in the crook between Sebastian’s head and his shoulder, held his hand carefully, unable to say anything but “Please don’t leave me…”. He’s been like that for hours.

It’s getting late and visiting hours are long over, one of the nurses obviously feels sorry for him, that’s the only explanation he has why he’s still allowed to be here. He really must look as awful as he feels. His whole body hurts when he moves to get up, not wanting to go but not wanting to cause any trouble for the lovely nurse who let him sit with Sebastian a little longer. He kisses Sebastian’s forehead. He knows, Sebastian doesn’t like this, feels like a little kid when he does it, and maybe Blaine does it on purpose to make Sebastian finally wake up. He remembers fragments now, that the doctor said something about “potential brain damage” and “we just need to give him a few hours, maybe a day or two” and Sebastian “being lucky”. He really wants to believe her, has a deep respect for doctors after seeing some of his friends like Wes and Jeff suffer through med school. So, he hopes she’s right and reluctantly let’s go off Sebastian’s hand.

Turns out, going back to their apartment was not a good idea. Everything around him is Sebastian and when he’s finally in bed, the only thing he can think about is What if?

What if Sebastian doesn’t wake up tomorrow?

What if he wakes up at night, now knowing where he is, what happened and looking for Blaine?

Or what if he wakes up not even knowing who Blaine is? What if what they had is gone now?

Something in Blaine’s stomach doesn’t feel right and he needs to get it out one way or the other. He runs towards the bathroom and makes it just in time before he throws up his breakfast and some of the shitty coffee he had at the hospital. For the first time since the call, he allows himself to break down into tears. He sits on the cold tiles of their bathroom floor, grabbing his curls when the sob’s ripple through his body.

What if Blaine goes back tomorrow and they tell him, Seb will never wake up?

What if they ask him to decide to turn off the machines or believe in wonders?

Oh dear god, what if he actually dies?

Usually, when Blaine is upset, he finds comfort in Seb’s arms and a solution for whatever problem in his analyzing way of thinking. Blaine gets up, washes out his mouth to get rid of the sour taste and makes his way back to the bedroom. He falls down on the mattress and curls up into a ball. He reaches for Sebastian’s pillow and hugs it tight, smelling the faint smell of the cologne he knows Blaine likes, and why? Why did it have to be Seb? Why now? Why doesn’t he wake up already?

Silent tears stream down Blaine’s face, memories flooding his brain: Sebastian laughing because Blaine’s very small mom was hugging him so tight when they told her about the engagement. Sebastian in Paris, the Eiffel Tower, the parks, the ring and his smile. Tears he tries to hide every time they watch “Moulin Rouge” or a Disney classic. Date nights in the park for the 4th July, sitting on a blanket watching the fire works explode over the Golden Gate Bridge. Little moments like them holding hands all the way back to the hotel with their National’s trophy. Their first kiss a few days later when Blaine burned his tongue on scalding hot coffee, Sebastian being there to soothe the ache. All the way back, Blaine’s first day back at Dalton, not officially attending classes yet but in his uniform anyway to try how it would feel. He remembers. He remembers Sebastian starstruck-expression and the hand on his back. He remembers the warmth that was partly because he was so excited to be back and partly because something stirred in his belly he didn’t dare name yet, not back then.

It’s that warmth he craves now. That warmth he wishes he could give Sebastian. He falls asleep with tears drying on his lashes, his body on Sebastian’s side of the bed. He sleeps restlessly but when he does, he dreams about that day at Dalton that changed everything.

It’s 7 a.m. when he slowly wakes up, feeling even more exhausted than when he fell asleep. He just wants to shower and go back to the hospital. Before getting up, he looks at his phone, a little anxious to see a message from the hospital there telling him bad news although it’s a ridiculous thought. They would’ve called if something was wrong, right? Yeah. But they would’ve also called if Seb had woken up, a bitter voice in his head tells him.

After the shower and getting dressed he dials the hospitals number where they tell him visitors were not allowed sooner than 8:30 which leaves Blaine with one more hour to ki– to spend. What he wanted to say is a bad, bad word. A bad, bad word he purposely doesn’t use, afraid he might jinx something. Blaine huffs. Sebastian would so make fun of this, of how Blaine behaves when the doctor’s prognosis was that he would be fine and Blaine wishes more than anything for Sebastian to come home and make fun of him. He’d gladly take a life full of rolling eyes, half-smiles and shaking heads if it meant that Sebastian would just be fine. He loves this man and no God would be cruel enough to take him from him, right?

Blaine sits down on the couch, completely ready with his shoes on and watches to clock on the wall on the left side of their TV tick. He unlocks his phone and scrolls through his pictures.

There are a lot from Paris, one of them in front of the Louvre – it didn’t stop raining this whole day. One of Sebastian in a small café with a French newspaper and an espresso. One of him kissing Sebastian’s cheek out of a sudden and Sebastian’s eyes wide in surprise from when they finally made it up the hill to Sacré-Cœur and enjoyed the view.

Then there are other pictures. Sebastian with his arms slung over Hunter’s and Beat’s shoulder on the night of their housewarming party for their offices of the advertisement agency the founded together. Sebastian, Kitty and Marley dancing on Sam’s birthday party last year, his boyfr– his fiancé’s tie undone and probably too many buttons of his shirt open to be appropriate. Yet, they seemed like they didn’t have a care in the world. A picture of Sebastian and him hugging in front of a huge poster of Blaine’s face on Blaine’s opening night on Broadway. It’s the look in Seb’s face, so proud, so in love, so excited that has Blaine’s heart breaking a little and makes tears sting in his eyes. His thumb brushes over their faces. “Seb, you can’t leave me now…”, he whispers although no one’s there that could hear him.

How he made it to the hospital, he has no idea. His whole body aches and it’s getting worse the closer he gets to the room door. When Blaine opens it, he actually stops breathing, only to let it out in a deep sigh when he finds Sebastian in exactly the same position as he was yesterday. “He looks so fragile”, Blaine thinks and he wants to do nothing but hold his boy in his arms. Maybe that’s why he dismisses the chair and lays down next to Sebastian, curled into his body, careful not to accidently pull out the IV-drip. How often he had found himself in almost exactly this position when they were cuddling in bed after an orgasm or when Blaine’s had this awful cold last winter. Blaine cups Sebastian’s cheek and stroked lightly. During the 5 days of the cold when he thought he might actually die, Sebastian kept him company in bed when he could, took a few days off of work to take care of him, brought him soup and water and tea and advil. And he sang to him, Blaine remembers, the memory might be a little fuzzy but he remembers his soft voice in his ear grounding him. So Blaine starts singing softly, if only to help Sebastian ground himself:

“I still love you

I still want you

I still need you

After all.

For better or worse

Sickness and health

Till death do us part

After all.

Please don’t leave me…”

It must be hours since Blaine has arrived. His voice is starting to get hoarse, his face is wet from tears Blaine couldn’t stop from falling and he feels exhausted. When the song is over, he burries his face in Sebastian’s neck and breathes in before getting up. He needs to go to the bathroom and even though he’s not hungry, he knows he should get something to eat. Before he turns to leave the room he leaves a lingering kiss against Sebastian’s forehead and mumbles “I’ll be right back…”. He walks towards the door.

“You know I hate it when you do that, B.”

Blaine stops in his tracks. He’s afraid to turn back around. What if his brain is playing tricks on him? What if he’s sleep-deprieved and going crazy?

“Makes me feel like a child.”

Blaine turns. Deep green is looking at him. There’s a crocked smile on a beautiful face and Blaine rushes back to the bed and grabs this handsome face. He doesn’t feel the tears of relief but he feels the chains that suffocated him burst in his chest, suddenly it’s easier to breath again. He doesn’t hear himself whisper his name again and again in awe. But he does feel it when Sebastian turns his head a little and winces but kisses his palms.

“Hey…”

Blaine blinks. “Hi… oh my god, Seb, you scared me so much!” He launches himself into his fiancé’s arms with an “I love you” but scrambles to his feet when he hears him groan in pain. “Shit, I’m sorry, Seb, I’m so, so sorry. Wait, let me get a nurse or a doctor, fuck, you must be in so much pain and I– I’m just so glad, you’re awake…” He wipes tears and snot away with the back of his right hand. Sebastian is awake. He’s awake.

Sebastian just smiles at him. “It’s okay, B, I’m okay, I’m fine. I don’t need a doctor, not right now.” He grab’s Blaine’s hand. “Why don’t you lay down again?” He scoots over and Blaine obliges, raveling in the feeling of Seb’s finger’s lacing through his curls. He’s awake.

“Oh, Blaine?” – “Mhm?” – “We have to postpone the party. I am so not giving Hunter the satisfaction of showing up with bruises on this usually perfect mark of beauty…”

Blaine just rolls his eyes and hugs Sebastian tighter even though he hears him hissing in obvious discomfort. Good. That’ll teach Sebastian to never, ever scare Blaine like that again. “I swear to God, Seb, if you ever scare me like that again, I’ll burn your French vintage-writing desk without batting an eye.”

#seblaine week 2020 #seblaine #2020 #blaine anderson #sebastian smythe #sebastian x blaine #hurt #hurt/ comfort

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eirabach · 4 years

Text

For @gumnut-logic 's FabFiveFeb Challenge

Prompt Two - Gordon

[Can't / No clothes]

Also inspired by Nutty's TAG ages meta, because it gave me *emotions*. I'm super sorry. Added Vance Joy because it’s Gordon.

---

Under the surface you don't know what you'll find,

Until it's your time.

---

The night that Jeff Tracy took humanity's first step on the surface of Mars, he had three little boys watching at home. Gordon, he liked to say, was born of the fall out. A child created in a whirlwind of press tours and ticker tape and eventually brought home to that quiet little homestead that would never be truly quiet or homely again.

By the time Gordon became a Tracy being a Tracy mattered. And sure money's great and influence is better, but Gordon's sixteen years old with sunlight in his hair and his eyes and his soul, and for him, for him the best part of being a Tracy is that no one ever tells you you can't.

Not that Gordon would listen if they did.

Because the other important thing to know about being a Tracy, is that Gordon isn't very good at it.

He's uninterested in physics or engineering or math. He has minimal desire to blow things up or shoot people or study space dust. He likes a party and he loves people, but he's miserable in a cummerbund and he kinda never understood capitalism.

When you're fourth, you gotta find your own way to be first. And all right Scott's a fighter pilot and John's a genius and Virgil's some sort of goddamn savant, but at least Alan can't even tie his shoelaces yet so Gordon's got one up on him. Gordon doesn't even wear shoes. Doesn't wear much of anything at all except teeny weeny trunks splattered red, white and blue.

Gordon won't be a hero, won't have a theory named after him, but what Gordon will have will be his.

Gordon's going for gold.

His muscles burn and his hair turns green and he sweats chlorine into his sheets every night, but that doesn't matter. Nothing matters but the next millisecond, the turn, the cleanness of his touch. He can't care about anything but his coach's thumb hovering over the stopwatch and the crest of his fly because it's coming. Gold. It's coming, and it's everything.

Everything.

---

Dad calls on Wednesdays at three. Alan calls at midnight just to hear him swear. He gets weekly updates on daring-do from Scott and a monthly serving of sarcasm and space babble from John.

Virgil calls because they tend to forget.

"You gonna come home, you think? Before?"

Virgil looks different, his floppy black hair cropped short, band shirts exchanged for some weird quasi military uniform. He's still watching Gordon shovel food down his throat with an expression of disgusted awe, though, so some things never change.

"Dunno." Gordon shrugs, mouth full. "Gotta keep training. Four months to go, can't lose form now."

"You should come, there's -- there's a lot changed around here," says Virgil, like that's a reason. Then, when Gordon just chews at him in reply, "Dad built you a pool."

And maybe that's a reason, after all.

Cause sure, his dad's never told him he can't, but Gordon's been gone a long time, and he's not sure he remembers the last time his dad told him he could.

---

Home's not the farm anymore, or the ranch, or the townhouse in Manhattan. Home is some island a billion miles from anywhere, where huge portraits of his older brothers stare expressionlessly down at him and his shoes squeak on the super shiny floor, humidity making his tracksuit stick to his back.

Gordon has only really spent a few weeks here, his training all taking place under the eagle eye of Uncle Sam and sponsored entirely by Old Glory, but he doesn't remember it like this.

The decor is still retro spy movie meets crazy billionaire with paranoia problems, and his bedroom is pretty much as he left it, but nothing else seems familiar at all. He'd left Tracy Two in a great cavernous hanger that would have been overkill even for one of dad's crazy projects, Kyrano had rushed him past huge shadowy behemoths that suggested, pretty damn strongly, that Jeff Tracy is in the midst of another too easily financed midlife crisis.

"Please tell me he isn't planning world domination," Gordon had only half joked as they’d emerged into the brightness of the villa proper. "He'd look awful in lycra."

Kyrano had glared at him, swirled back into the bowels of the island, and left him with Scott.

Scott is wearing lycra.

He's sitting behind their dad's desk, two high points of colour in his cheeks and his eyes bright with something Gordon can't name as he pours over datasets. All he's missing to complete the look is a fluffy white cat and a maniacal laugh.

"Hey. Hey." Nothing. Scott mutters to himself as he sweeps his fingers through warning signs. "Scotty, hey!"

Scott looks up. Blinks. Blinks again.

"Gordon?"

"The one and only."

Scott stands, still grossly tall, and moves to ruffle Gordon's hair. It's not as easy as it used to be, there's an actual lift of his hand, and Gordon can't help but feel satisfaction creep into his bones.

"You grew."

"Hear it happens."

"Got a girlfriend?"

"Got a pillow."

"Tragic."

"That's me." Gordon throws his arm across his eyes and flops backwards onto the sofa. "Sacrificing everything in pursuit of a noble goal. Hold tight, beautiful people. Only three more months and I'm yours."

He peeks out from behalf of his elbow to see Scott standing over him, arms folded, lips twisted into something a bit like a fond smile. A bit.

Something unpleasant settles in Gordon's stomach.

"What are you doing desk work for? I thought you were out there --" He gestures to the cloudless sky beyond the glass wall. "Y'know. Saving the world."

Scott opens his mouth, but then there's a chime from the desk and Alan hollering from the staircase and Grandma crushing him to her chest, and Gordon is left to wonder.

---

Scott isn't the only thing that's strange.

There's a fish tank in the corner, empty but for a little model sub from that docudrama he and John used to love to watch with Mom, but when he lays his hand on the glass it hums beneath his fingers and makes his teeth ache.

John's not here, replaced as resident super nerd by some guy they call Brains who makes John look dumb. Dad isn't there, either, but that's okay. Nor is Gordon, really.

He's lived apart from his family for the best part of two years, he shouldn't be surprised that they've changed. That's he's changed. But somehow, it doesn't feel like he has.

Alan's finally learned to tie his laces but still never bothers, Virgil's taken out his piercing, Grandma is being followed by a robot dog, but Gordon is still the same kid with the same dreams and he isn't sure what anybody else's dreams are anymore. Virgil's in a uniform and Scott's out of his and John is gone and Alan's looking at him like he knows stuff.

This is impossible, of course. Alan is an infant. This is the abiding certainty of Gordon's life and he intends to prove it this evening with three rubber spiders and a trapeze but whatever.

It's just that Gordon isn't quite sure where he fits, just like he doesn't know where to sit when holograms of the great and the good appear in his living room. Doesn't quite know what to make of the way their eyes skip over him to rest on Scott, or Virgil, and where the hell is John, anyway?

"Top secret," Alan says, all pre-teen smugness, "can't tell you."

"Dad'll be home soon," Virgil adds, ever the peacekeeper, "I'm sure he'll tell you everything."

Gordon's not so sure and Scott says nothing at all except a vehement 'no!' when Gordon dares to suggest going for a swim.

So much for the pool, then.

---

Night is falling and Gordon's already ready for bed when the roar of engines fills the air and the whole family dart for the window, faces pressed against the glass. Gordon hovers behind them, unsure of his place, until Scott grabs him bodily by the elbow and drags him downstairs to where the deck leads down to the pool.

"Come on! You got to see this!"

It's a thing to see, all right. The pool withdraws beneath the villa itself, leaving a great gaping hole in the earth into which a great silver plane descends, jets first. And Gordon remembers the TV-21 and his father's fascination with speed and grace and more speed -- it's the one thing they have in common after all -- but this, this is something else.

She disappears into the ground, and the pool sweeps over her, only the sway of the water left as evidence. Scott turns to him with an almost hysterical glee.

"Did you see that!?"

Gordon would have pointed out that he'd have to have been dead blind and comatose not to have seen it, but Scott's practically bouncing on his toes, his expression full of what Gordon recognises as real, true love.

"Isn't she beautiful? Come on, come on, Dad's gotta debrief and then --"

"Scott!" They both snap to attention, immediately turning to where their father stands, towering over both of them from the top of the stairs. "Debrief can wait. Let me see your brother."

Scott darts off, probably to hump the shiny thing, and Dad approaches Gordon, his eyes shining, dirt on his cheek.

"What do you think of her, son?"

"I think you've safely guaranteed Scotty won't be bringing you home any surprise grandbabies."

Dad snorts, clapping Gordon on the shoulder and turning him back toward the pool. They head out across the deck together, Gordon barefoot in only his sleep shorts, Jeff in a uniform like Scott's only gently singed.

"I've missed you. How's training?"

Gordon half shrugs. "Wet. Good. Pretty tiring."

Jeff looks him up and down with a critical eye "So I imagine. It looks good on you."

Gordon stretches and grins. "No more noodle arms, right?"

Jeff blinks, and for a moment Gordon almost thinks he sees something like sadness in his eyes, but it's soon gone and his dad's turning him to face the pool again.

"Will it do? I know it's not Olympic standard but we needed some room for the house and --"

"Dad," he says, because his dad is rambling and his dad never rambles. "Dad what's going on?"

Jeff looks down into the pool. The stars flicker into being in his reflection.

"Forest fire. Family home was cut off."

"Your rescue thing. You saved them."

Jeff looks at him, Gordon watches in the water as he schools his features, tightens his jaw. "This time.

"Scott and Virgil?"

"Are involved, yes."

"And John?"

Jeff looks up then, up to the darkening sky, and points. "We built a satellite. It monitors distress calls from all over the world - and beyond."

"Makes sense. Space case."

"Play to your strengths, isn't that what they say?"

"What about Alan?"

"Alan's eleven, Gordon. Even my insanity has its limits."

"And you built me a pool?"

"And I built you a pool. Is it -- " a breath where Gordon wouldn't expect to hear one "is it all right?"

"All right?" Gordon turns to him and grins. "It's perfect."

Because okay, so it's only a short course, and it occasionally has a supersonic plane blasting through it, but it's a pool and it's for him, and that's better than Scotty's super special plane.

His dad's clapping him on the back again and smiling and that's better than any top secret technology.

It makes a strange island full of strange things feel a little bit more like home.

Jeff's off again already though, gesturing to the round building above the villa and going on about blast radius and Gordon's content to just watch for a moment, to bask in that feeling for as long as it lasts. Then the subject changes.

"We'll be in Cape Town for the opening ceremony, of course, and I've made arrangements to ensure we can all make your races. I'm sure it won't shock you to hear Alan's made t shirts and John's bringing a banner. I hope it's safe for television."

His eyes snap to his dad's.

"John's coming?"

His dad's eyebrows twitch. "You think he'd miss it? Gordon, none of us will miss this. Not for the world. And as you now know, I mean that quite literally."

Gordon nods, mutely. There's a build up of something in his chest. Lactic acid squeezing his heart. His dad takes pity.

"What about September? Are you still planning on marine biology?"

Gordon scuffs at the tile with his bare heel. This is a conversation he's been avoiding for a long time, now. The after.

"Yeah. UCLA."

"California?"

Gordon shrugs.

"You don't seem keen? Sydney have an excellent program, do you --" Gordon feels more than hears the shudder in his dad's exhale. "No, no Jeff stop it. You tell me, Gordy. What do you want to do?"

Gordon's voice is never small, but it's as close as it's ever been. "Was thinking WASP."

Both of his dad's eyebrows disappear into his hairline. "The military? You?"

It's not an unexpected reaction. Gordon scoffs. "You wound me, Dad. Maybe I have hidden depths."

"I don't doubt that for a moment," his dad says, then he looks up, right up, to where the milky way swirls and John sits. “You’re not old enough.”

“Yeah, I know, I thought, college first - couple of years of credits and I can join as an officer.”

“You’re my son, you can join as whatever you damn well please.”

“Dad--”

"Sorry, sorry.” And his Dad’s looking into space and Gordon’s looking down at the water and it’s kinda always been like this, between them. Gordon suspects his dad hates it even more than he does.”You know I'll support you, if that's what you really want."

Gordon finally follows his gaze, imagines John in the vacuum of space, alone with his books and his stars. He wonders if Dad had had this conversation with him, before sending him up there. "That sounds kinda like a don't do it, Dad, I'm not gonna lie."

"Can I be honest?" Gordon nods, because saying no seems kinda harsh, but his heart is thundering faster than after a sprint. "Gordon, when I designed International Rescue, I designed it for you boys. A legacy, I suppose. I wanted --" he shakes his head. "I'm getting to be a selfish old man."

Gordon scowls. "You're the least selfish man I've ever met. Pretty sure those people whose lives you saved today would agree."

Jeff shakes his head.

"I want you to know," he says, "that there will always be a place for you, here, with us, if you want it. But only if you want it." A twitch of Jeff’s lips. “God knows, I could never make you anyway.”

"Thanks, Dad." Then, a wicked grin pulling at the corner of his mouth, "Race you?"

A splash, a shout, laughter rings out into the night and hell it's cheesy but it's true; for a moment Gordon kinda feels like he's already won.

---

The Olympics are due to start in June.

May, and his father dies.

Gordon flies home immediately, thirty thousand feet over Cape Town without even looking down.

He can't.

He has a place in a legacy.

---

#fabfivefeb #fabfivefeb2020 #thunderbirds are go #gordon tracy #jeff tracy #oh look its angsty #theres a wild shock #idek #there might be a part 2

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foreveralwaysanauthor · 4 years

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Hell in Handcuffs

October 1, 2020

Prompt - Use a line from the last movie you watched.

Movies Used - Jeff Dunham’s “Arguing With Myself”

Characters - Mick, Miles, Butchy

Notes - I’m so glad I got the other one posted on Tuesday, it took me forever to do, but I’m happy I got it done and posted. For something that was only over 3,000 words by a little bit, it sure took a while, but it was one that I’d wanted to write for a while, so I kinda went a bit wild with it. Now, I’m onto my October prompts! I hope you enjoy these as much as I do when I write them.

“Well, this is a nice change of scenery,” Mick mumbled as she sat up from her spot on the metal bench.

“It’s a prison cell, Mickie,” Miles said, a sense of disbelief in his voice.

Mick sighed, running a hand over her hair to smooth it out. “I was being sarcastic, idiot. Where even are we?”

“Jail, stupid,” Miles shot back.

How they’d ended up in the jail cell itself was still a question for both of them. The prison cell they were currently waiting in was nice enough, all things considered; three long, metal benches lined the room’s walls in a wide U shape, a water bubbler hung on the wall in one corner of the room, and a set of three payphones that were only separated by thin plates of white plastic were set on on the wall next to one end of the U benches.

Mick kicked Miles in the shin, sending him an evil look. “I meant what town are we in?”

“You don’t remember what town we’re in?” Miles questioned, slouching into his seat with a grumble. He was getting a headache from being forced to listen to the other people in the cell with them yelling in their sleep

“I fell asleep during the cab ride here.” Mick took an elastic from her wrist and pulled her hair into a floppy bun as that was the best she could manage, due to the circumstances. “So, do you know where we are, or not?”

Miles scoffed, “You really don’t know?”

Mick glanced at him skeptically. “I’m starting to think that you don’t know.”

“I forgot,” Miles muttered so softly that Mick nearly didn’t hear him.

“You what?”

“I forgot, okay!” Miles huffed loudly. “I mean, damn it, how many places have we been today?”

After a pause of silence in the concrete room, Mick spoke up. “Why don’t we try to think about it for a second?”

“Alright.” Miles leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

“The drive from St. Pete?” Mick offered.

“Was bad as hell,” Miles answered.

“Traffic?” Mick gave.

“Sucked like hell,” Miles replied.

“Drivers?”

“Angry as hell,”

“And we-”

“-were scared as hell.”

“So,” Mick began, leaning her chin on her palm with a huff as one of the police officers on duty walked by the cell they were in.

“We’re in hell!” Miles finished emphatically. “And these,” Miles gestured to three drunk people that had fallen asleep on the bench across from them, “are our hell-mates.”

“Miles,” Mick insisted firmly, a lack of sleep making her easily agitated with her best friend. “We are not in hell. The sleeve on that cop’s shirt says we’re in San Antonio.”

Miles sat up straight, giving Mick a shocked look. “How the fuck did we end up in Texas?! I thought we were in Florida!”

“You’re an idiot.” Mick rubbed at her temples. “We are in Florida, Miles. You know, San Ann? That town we went trick-or-treating in before that big costume party Lugnut’s family was throwing?”

Miles let out a giggle that Mick was almost sure couldn’t have come from the macho biker. “I remember the party. We got handcuffed together by that guy that I can’t fucking stand.”

“Speaking of Dallas, we should really call him and see where he went. He was supposed to come back and unlock us,” Mick sighed, pulling a quarter from her pocket to use for the payphone. “You know, you sure do cuss a lot when you’re drunk. How many beers did you have?”

“I only had one and I’m not drunk,” Miles stated firmly. He’d refused multiple offers of vodka and whiskey that night, only sipping lightly at the bottle of light beer he’d taken at the beginning of the party. “I had a few cups of that punch though. It was so good!”

Rum fruit punch. Of course. Miles had told Mick from the beginning of their friendship that he never touched anything stronger than beer. The only other time she had seen Miles anything like this, had been at a Christmas party where both Butchy and Miles had gotten absolutely wasted on some tequila eggnog and the two of them ended up draining almost a full bottle of Jose Cuervo.

“That punch was spiked, Miles,” Mick said simply, tugging at the cuffs that attached her to the tipsy Miles. “No wonder Dallas cuffed us together. He didn’t want you to go off galivanting on me.”

“They’re real cuffs, huh?” a voice asked from beyond the bars. Mick and Miles turned to see Butchy standing there on the other side of the prison bars. Mick was pulled to her feet from her seat, getting yanked to the bars of the jail cell by the attachment she had to Miles.

“Yeah,” Mick sighed in relief, tugging subconsciously at the hem of the fake police uniform she’d been wearing. “We borrowed them from your friend, Dallas, for our costumes. He said they didn’t need a key and then he snapped them on our wrists. How did you know where we were?”

Butchy sent Mick a smile, taking her hand through the bars of the cell. “Dallas called me, saying that he left you two here in the lobby and, when he got back from doing intake on a couple of people, you had been put in a cell.”

“Can we leave yet?” Miles asked, tugging at the metal cuff on his wrist. His costume, a bright orange prison jumpsuit that he’d chosen to contrast Mick’s police outfit, was only making his head hurt more every time he glanced down at it’s bright, offensive shade. He let out a groan, “I need to take a bunch of aspirins when we get home, my head’s pounding.”

After seeing the curious look Butchy was giving both her and Miles, Mick gave Butchy a reason for Miles’ comment, “He’s drunk and the high from it is wearing off.”

“Cuervo?” Butchy asked, remembering the last time they’d had an encounter with alcohol.

“Nope, my guess would be Bacardi,” Mick replied with a small smile.

Dallas Johnson, one of Butchy’s long-term friends and an officer in San Antonio, approached the holding cell with a smirk, leaning against the metal bars and holding a set of keys in his hands. “The cuffs I put on you were my cuffs from work, not the toy metal ones I’d brought from the store. Found out the hard way when I tried to arrest those idiots a few minutes ago and they snapped right out of my cuffs.”

“Are we allowed to leave?” Mick asked softly. “Please say we are.”

“I think I’m gonna be sick,” Miles groaned, leaning heavily on the bars of their holding cell and pressing his throbbing forehead to the cool metal.

Mick shot Miles a horrified look before sending Butchy and Dallas the most dirty glare she could manage. “I swear, if you two leave me handcuffed to him and he throws up on me, I will kill all three of you and ditch your bodies in the ocean.”

Butchy raised his arms in surrender and stepped back, allowing Dallas to unlock and open the door of the holding cell. Mick stepped from the cell with purpose, pulling a stumbling Miles along until he slouched into one of the seats across from the cell. Dallas switched keys and unlocked Mick’s side of the cuffs, allowing her to move away from Miles as Butchy kicked a trash bin toward the sick biker. After taking the cuffs off of Miles, Dallas led the group out of the jail, apologizing for the mishap. Miles cradled the trash bin to his chest as they left, heading straight for the car Butchy had borrowed in order to retrieve Mick and Miles.

Once in the car, Mick settled into the passenger seat with a sigh. “I don’t like jail, Butchy.”

Miles laughed from the seat behind Butchy, making Mick look to him curiously. He let out a soft giggle before locking eyes with her and giving her a playful grin. “I told you it was hell.”

#ForeverAlwaysPrompts #writing #writing prompt

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let-it-raines · 5 years

Text

Catch Me If You Can (15/?)

298 days. That’s how long Killian Jones was away from a baseball field. It’s less than a year, only part of a season for him, but it might as well have lasted a decade as he alternated between physical therapy and spending an excessive amount of time sitting on his couch.

But then he came back and won the World Series.

It’s something no one saw coming, and it’s certainly not something anyone who knows about his arm would predict. Now it’s a new season with new possibilities, and anything could happen. On-field reporter Emma Swan will be there to cover it all even if she is not his biggest fan right now.

Asking her out live on-air will do that.

Rating: Mature

A/n: I’m currently writing the last official chapter of this story. How weird is that? I can’t believe it either...which is probably why it’s taking me forever to figure out the perfect way to end this story. Thanks to @resident-of-storybrooke for killing her eyes to read all of the words in this story 🥰

Found on AO3: Beginning | Current

Tumblr: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 |15 |

Tag list: @xellewoods @galaxyzxstark @eala-captian @mariakov81 @ultraluckycatnd @royalswan @shey-starsfury @sals86 @iam2307 @ashley-knightingale @karenfrommisthaven @scientificapricot @captswanis4vr @ultimiflos @jamif @idristardis @nikkiemms @resident-of-storybrooke @tiganasummertree @bmbbcs4evr @onceuponaprincessworld @jennjenn615 @mayquita @captainsjedi @teamhook @notoriouscs @kmomof4 @ekr032-blog-blog @cs-forlife @andiirivera @jonirobinson64 @qualitycoffeethings @thejollyroger-writer

-/-

When Emma wakes up, she rolls over on her mattress and buries her face further into her pillow, kicking some of the extra throw pillows off the bed and wondering why the hell she has so many things that look cute but cannot be comfortably slept with.

Seriously.

This is all TJ Maxx’s fault, and she’d like to damn whoever decided to put a store in seven blocks from her apartment. She shouldn’t even go inside, but she does. Every. Single. Time.

(So maybe it’s a little bit her fault too.)

Finally, she finds a spot that’s comfortable, her eyes shutting and her body calming down into the softness of the mattress so that she can fall back asleep when her phone starts blaring, her alarm vibrating across the top of her bedside table, and for a moment, she considers throwing her phone out the window so that she never has to get up from bed.

She’ll get fired from her job. And probably die from bed sores or something else equally as dramatic.

It’s the first thought that has her rolling over and turning the alarm off, the shrill blaring sound going away, and her eyes have to squint at the bright light to recognize that it’s seven in the morning and she does actually have to get up for work right now.

Her job is great, but she doesn’t get weekends off like normal people. And noon games are her actual worst nightmare.

Today is a noon game. She’s also got that dinner with David, Mary Margaret, and Ruth, and she’s unnaturally nervous about it as she almost always is when it comes to Ruth.

Like a zombie, she rises from her bed and shuffles into the bathroom before making her way out to the kitchen, adjusting her shorts and the sweatshirt that she’s wearing as she stumbles into the kitchen, the smell of coffee already filling her nostrils.

“Bless you,” she mumbles to Ruby who is sitting at their kitchen table with a mug already in hand before she fixes herself her own cup, not even bothering for it to cool down much more before she takes a large sip. If only caffeine worked right away. That would be the dream. “Why do you already look so put together?”

“I always look put together.”

“Liar.”

“I couldn’t sleep last night, and when I woke up, I just kind of got up, I guess. And now I’m sitting here dying inside. At least I don’t look like I’m dying. A family of birds could live in your hair.”

“That is not true.”

“It is. Have you looked at yourself this morning?”

“Yes,” Emma lies, taking another sip of her coffee. She most definitely didn’t when she was in the bathroom, but as long as her tits aren’t showing, she doesn’t really care what she looks like at home. “And I haven’t gotten ready yet. I’ll look nicer for the game.”

“I would hope so. I don’t think that they let reporters not brush their hair and roll out onto the field in sweatshirts. Where’d you get that, by the way? I don’t recognize it.”

And while she may be half asleep and her coffee might not have an instantaneous effect, she knows that she fucked up.

She’s wearing Killian’s Vanderbilt sweatshirt. The one she keeps stealing. She’s had it in her possession for two weeks now, ever since Toronto and the morning after they slept together, and she’s been sleeping in it because it’s comfortable and kind of smells like Killian.

It definitely smells like Killian.

And Ruby can see her wearing it.

Shit.

Shit, shit, shit, no, no, no.

It’s instinct to cross her arms over her chest in an attempt to cover up the faded words all the while she tries to come up with some kind of excuse. She’s not sure that she’s ready for their friends to know about the relationship yet. A part of her definitely wants to say something, but she and Killian probably need to talk about it first.

But what if it somehow gets out past that?

What if someone besides their friends and family know? It’s too soon. It’s all too soon for that, and she just can’t right now. It’s the middle of the season, so much time left in front of them, and she can’t let anything jeopardize her career.

Emma has no idea what to do, and she’s terrified of everything crumbling beneath her.

This is the happiest she’s ever been in a relationship, and the repercussions…she doesn’t even want to imagine them.

“Uh, um,” she stutters to Ruby, making sure that her face isn’t giving away her lie, “I’m not sure. I must have swiped it from David’s house one day. You know how he’s always got sweatshirts from all over the place.”

Ruby’s eyes squint at her from over her coffee mug, and it takes everything in Emma not to bounce off the balls of her feet. All in all, it was a pretty good lie because David most definitely does have all kinds of sweatshirts from different professional teams and colleges, but this is not David’s sweatshirt.

How could she have been so careless?

Ruby is so damn observant, but there’s no way she can make the connection over a sweatshirt, right?

“I need to steal some stuff from him,” she finally sighs, going back to her coffee. “It looks so much comfier than the things Graham has. I swear, if it’s a scratchy material, he buys it.”

“At least it looks nice on him.”

“This is true, my friend. His clothes do fit him well, but you know I much prefer him without any.”

There’s a knock on the wall that’s connected to Ruby and Graham’s bedroom. “I can hear the two of you, and sweetheart, it’s too early for you to be making sex jokes about me to Emma.”

Emma has to put her coffee mug down on the countertop as she laughs, the giggles stemming from deep in her stomach. Graham is the best and usually goes along for Ruby’s antics, but sometimes it’s too damn funny when he’s asking her to stop talking.

Definitely an opposites attract pair, but they work. Really well, actually. Emma keeps waiting for Graham to tell her that he’s going to propose to Ruby, but it hasn’t happened yet.

She should probably get her own place if it does. How weird is it to live with a married couple? Like, an eight on a scale of ten? Maybe a little less when rent is so high. But definitely at least a five.

“I love you,” Ruby shouts back, knocking on the wall three times.

Graham simply knocks three times in response.

“You two are ridiculous.”

“I know, but I like to think that I bring out the ridiculous in everyone.”

“You do. What time do you want to leave for work?”

Ruby hums as she taps her chin with her perfectly manicured nail. “In an hour and a half?”

“Perfect.”

-/-

Late June in the Bronx is basically a blazing hellfire, and Emma keeps sneaking into the air-conditioned press box every chance she gets only to be sent back outside to do an interview with a player or a coach or even a kid who caught a foul ball. It’s a little ridiculous, but it’s her job so she sucks it up.

At least she’s not wearing a full-blown uniform and exercising like all of the guys are. Most of them are soaked in sweat, even the ones simply sitting in the dugout, and she does not envy them at all.

All she really envies right now are people taking a cold shower.

It’s late June. She doesn’t even want to imagine what it’s going to be like in August or September.

Killian throws another ball, and then there’s a smack of bat against ball and a white and red blur that shoots out into right field only for John Little to catch it, ending the top of the third inning and Killian’s time on the mound today. They’re all leaving for London in five days, and Al has expressly stated that they are not screwing up Killian’s arm for a game where so many people are going to be watching.

She knows that it’s more because they’re playing the Red Sox than anything else, but she doesn’t mind preserving Killian’s arm when they can. His pitches haven’t been averaging quite as fast as they usually are, but she figures it’s probably a tactical change. She’ll have to ask him about that in the locker room later.

The next two hours seem to idle by, nothing too exciting happening, and when the game is over, she moves from her press spot, flashing her ID to the guard in front of the entrance to the tunnels, and makes her way through the hallways she knows like the back of her hand until she’s in the clubhouse with Jeff following right behind her. It’s loud in there, cheers and yelling and celebrations over their win, and it takes her ten minutes before she can even get someone to talk to her, other reporters pretty much taking up everyone’s time as all of the players move into various states of undress.

“Don’t you ever get tired of talking to us?” Will asks with a cheeky grin as he brushes sweat off of his buzzed hair. “I mean, damn. I get tired of talking to us, and I actually think you may be around more than me.”

She chuckles, unable to help herself. She’s always loved Scarlet’s dry sense of humor, and he’s nearly as easy to talk to as Killian or Robin or even Eric. “To you, most definitely. But I have my favorites on the team that I like.”

“Doc? King? Locksley? Fisher? Jones? Whale? I could go all day.”

“I can’t tell you,” she teases, messing with her microphone in her hand. “You want to answer some questions for me today?”

“As long as it’s not about me getting engaged, I’m perfectly fine with that.”

“You’re engaged?” Emma gasps, covering her mouth with her hand. “That’s so exciting! How did I miss that?”

“I have no idea since you talk to my girlfriend on Instagram.”

“Technically she’s your fiancée now.”

Will smiles at that a soft little thing that’s so unlike him and yet entirely him, and it makes her smile to herself. Will and Belle are getting married. That’s wonderful, but she did tell him she wasn’t going to ask about any of it, so she doesn’t, sticking to game stats and assessments and asking how he feels about their upcoming series in London. It’s the same with everyone she talks to, and after twenty minutes in there talking and chatting, she’s finished with her work and starts undoing all of the cords attached to her as Jeff turns off his camera and walks ahead of her as they leave the room.

But then there’s a strong grip around her wrist, and she’s being pulled away and down the hallway to what is a storage locker. If she didn’t know that it was Killian tugging her along, she’d assume she was being murdered.

She still could be and boy would that be a plot twist.

“What the hell?” she gasps out on a broken breath as the door closes behind her and all she can see is Killian’s face and shower-damp hair and a shelf full of cleaning supplies that make the entire room smell like bleach. “Why are you pulling me off into storage closets?”

He smiles, this really bright and cheesy thing, before strong hands are cupping her cheeks and soft lips and prickly scruff are brushing against her mouth and her chin in a slow, pleasant burn. This is how it’s been ever since Toronto two weeks ago. They slept together, and it was like this flip switched where they absolutely could not get enough of each other.

Not that she minds.

It’s electric. Honestly and truly. If they had easier access to each other, she knows that it would be even more intense, that they would be staying overnight and moving under the sheets until she couldn’t walk the next day. That actually almost happened last week, her body so sore afterwards, and as amazing as it was, that cannot be a frequent thing.

A girl has got to be able to walk.

She really, really likes Killian, is so close to loving him that it terrifies her, and sometimes she looks into his eyes and swears that if someone told her he hung the stars in the sky, she’d believe them.

This was never how any of this was supposed to go.

“Hi,” he growls, pulling at her upper lip before he pulls back so that their foreheads rest together.

“Hi,” she sighs as she wraps her arms around his neck, pulling him closer to her and feeling the softness of his hair. “You played well today.”

“I was okay.”

“But in the second, you – ”

“I know.”

“Do you?”

“I do,” he promises, quickly brushing his lips over hers. “Have I mentioned how much I love that my girlfriend is an expert in my job?”

“Maybe a time or two, but this time it sounds slightly less macho man-ish.”

“That’s my goal.”

“Good.” Her stomach swoops at the smirk on his face, and she really wishes they were back at his apartment instead of in this stupid supply closet. “Why didn’t you tell me Will and Belle got engaged?”

“Because I legitimately didn’t know until right before the game. It apparently leaked or something, and he was all pissed about it. I think Belle posted the ring after it all to kind of beat out tabloids from making money off of them. They’re happy.”

“I would hope so. They’re getting married. People are usually pretty happy for that.”

“Eh, sometimes there’s those people who aren’t actually happy and think a new title and diamond ring will make them happy.”

“True.” Emma leans back against the door, the wood hitting the back of her skull, as she runs her fingers through Killian’s hair. It’s all long and messy again, and she honestly can’t decide which way she likes it best. “I do not want to deal with the crowd on the train getting out of here on the way to David’s.”

“I could drive you,” he offers with a shrug.

“Oh yeah, because that won’t at all be obvious. Also, I think we need to talk.”

“I’ve found that I’m rarely in for a pleasant conversation when a woman tells me that.”

“Shut up, you ass.” She slaps the back of his head, but all he does is give her another cocky grin. So dumb. So, so dumb. “Okay, so, like, hear me out.”

“I have my listening ears on.”

“Yeah, little pointy ones.”

“Swan.”

“Okay, okay,” she mumbles, bringing her bottom lip between her teeth as she bounces on her toes. “I’m not – I’m not one hundred percent sure on this, especially with what I just found out about Will and Belle, but I think it might be time we told my friends and your family about us. Just a few people, the ones we trust the most, because I’m starting to slip up on where I’ve been or who I’m talking to when they ask. Also, I feel really shitty every time I lie to Ruby or David or Mary Margaret or someone else who is my friend.”

His lips are parted, mouth gaping open, and he’s blinking at her like she’s a crazy person. She might actually be.

“W-what? Are you serious?”

“I’m serious about us thinking about it. I’m still not completely sure on the entire thing. I think, maybe when we get back from London, we can have another conversation about it. I like to think this is going pretty well, and while I don’t want our relationship to escape us or our families, I don’t think we can keep doing this without telling the people we love.”

Killian’s brows furrow, his eyes thin lines beneath them, and his hands finally dip from her cheeks down to her shoulders with his nails digging into her skin over her freckles. “Let’s think on it, yeah? Don’t get me wrong, I’m more than thrilled that you feel confident and happy in us enough that you want to tell people, but I don’t want to expose you even more to the world. Because in our circles of people, love, it’s going to be a big deal that we’re dating.”

He’s right. She knows that he is. She’s had the same thoughts.

“I know. We’ll figure it out though, right?”

“Absolutely.” Killian squeezes her shoulders once more before dipping his head down and gently slanting his lips over hers in quick succession. “Now, as much fun as I’m having inhaling all of these chemical fumes, I think you have somewhere to be.”

“Don’t remind me.”

“Emma, love,” he says tenderly, thumbing at the indent in her chin as he smiles that reassuring smile at her, “you’re going to be fine. It’s your family. You love them. I know you do. And you’re going to be reminded of that the moment you get comfortable sitting on David’s couch and relax into dinner.”

Right once more.

“Okay, okay,” she exhales, pulling in Killian for a hug so that she can bury her face in his shoulder and breathe him in instead of the chemical fumes for a moment, “I can do this.”

-/-

Killian was exactly right like she knew he was but didn’t like to admit outside of her head. She was building up the awkwardness, building up the strained relationship with Ruth like she always does, and while it wasn’t the best thing at first, now that she’s sitting crisscrossed on David’s couch with a glass of wine in her hand, she can think of few other places she’d rather be.

This is her family, even when she doesn’t admit it, and for a girl who never really got to have a family until she was too messed up to truly accept one, this is absolutely everything.

Just…everything.

“And then, Grandma,” Leo continues, walking back and forth through the room, “Captain America holds his shield up while the bad guys try to attack him, but he’s too fast for them.”

“This Captain America sounds like a cool guy,” Ruth laughs, very obviously confused about the whole thing. She has not caught onto the Marvel bug, which is pretty much a sin when Leo has been obsessed with Captain America for months. Mary Margaret and David say it’s the longest he’s ever been interested in one thing, and when Emma thinks about it, she believes it. “Do you think you’re going to be as strong as him?”

“Probably not,” Leo shrugs, “but he started off really small like I am so maybe if I’m tall like Dad and not short like Mom.”

“Hey,” Mary Margaret protests, her eyes cutting at her son while Emma and David snicker underneath their breaths, “I am not that short.”

“Mom, I’m ten, and I’m almost taller than you when you’re, like, seventy years old.”

“Leo David Nolan, I am not seventy years old. I’m thirty-nine. Don’t age me like that.”

“What’s wrong with being nearly seventy years old?” Ruth teases, and Mary Margaret’s pale cheeks immediately flush red.

“Nothing, nothing. I – ”

“I’m nearly teasing you, sweetheart,” Ruth sighs before turning her attention to Emma. “I watched your game today. You looked so beautiful, but why are they still showing you eating every time?”

Well, damn, she didn’t know that was still happening, so she takes another sip of her wine and rolls her eyes as she laughs. “I have no idea. Like, it’s a running joke at this point. You can literally google ‘Emma Swan eating’ and all of these videos pop up. Leo told me that they even add songs to them now.”

“They do,” David chuckles. “I showed him those.”

“You’re awful.”

“I actually think I’m pretty awesome.”

“That’s debatable.”

“Look, Grandma,” Leo laughs, taking Mary Margaret’s iPad over to Ruth, “here’s one of the ones with music. It’s so funny!”

“You guys are the worst,” Emma groans as she places her glass down and sinks into the couch. “The absolute worst.”

“You just seem to have a face for funny moments,” Mary Margaret says sympathetically, reaching over to pat her thigh. “It’s because you do a little dance when you’re eating good food, I think.”

That makes her smile. It’s always what Killian is saying about her when he’s teasing her over her eating habits, and that’s when she suddenly remembers that hat that she still hasn’t given to Leo. It’s been sitting in the bag she carries with her to and from games for weeks now, and she keeps forgetting to give it to the kid. He may still like Captain America, but he’s probably moved on to another favorite player.

Quickly, she gets up from the couch and walks to the entryway where she left the bag, shuffling through it until she pulls out the signed hat, and then holds it behind her back, a genuine smile curling on her lips.

“Leo,” she sing-songs, immediately getting his attention as his brown hair falls across his forehead, “if you stop showing Grandma weird videos of me online, I have a surprise for you.”

“Way to bribe my kid,” David whines without much conviction.

“It’s not a bribe. Not technically.”

“What do you have?” Leo gasps, taking the iPad away from Ruth. “What is it? What is it?”

God, to have the enthusiasm of kids. Life would be so much simpler. And happier probably.

She’s pretty happy now anyways.

Slowly, she pulls the hat around from behind her back, and Leo’s brows furrow in confusion. Of course they do. To him, it probably just looks like a random hat since the autograph can’t really be seen.

“A Yankees hat? I have a couple of those already.”

“Leo,” Mary Margaret and David say at the same time.

“It’s fine, guys,” she laughs, stepping a little closer. “Remember when you asked me if I could get you a hat signed by Killian Jones?”

Now Leo’s face lights up, a bright smile practically taking up all of it, and he runs to her and immediately wraps his arms around her waist in a hug so tight that she loses all of the air in her lungs.

“Thank you,” he sighs before releasing her and taking the hat out of her hands, staring down at for a moment only to put it on top of his head. It’s too big for him without being adjusted, but he doesn’t even care.

She feels like the coolest aunt in the world right now.

“You’re the coolest aunt in the world.”

Ah, so confirmation then.

“Killian Jones is the man who asked you out, right?” Ruth questions, and Emma has to bite her tongue as she moves to resume her place back on the couch. She wishes she had more wine, but she’s got to be up early again tomorrow and doesn’t need more to drink. “You’re still talking to him?”

“I mean, only for my job,” she lies. “He’s a nice guy, so he was really happy to sign something for Leo.”

Ruth nods her head, and Emma thinks that it’s the end of the conversation when it’s most definitely not. “So, are you dating anyone, dear? I don’t mean to pry, but I do like to know about your life and you’re much more difficult to get information about than David.”

“That’s because Mary Margaret can’t keep a secret.”

“Why am I feeling so attacked right now?” Mary Margaret laughs.

“Well, you can’t, honey,” David says to his wife. “You are the worst at keeping secrets, and you overshare all the time.”

“That seems like a bit of an exaggeration.”

“It’s really not, Marg,” Emma tells her before turning back to Ruth. “I’m not dating anyone right now,” she lies again, more guilt building up in her stomach, but she and Killian are going to talk about it after London when they’re not in a storage closet, “but I’m really happy. Things at work are going well, even if I’m busy, and I love all of my friends and family and how much time I’m getting to spend with them. But if something on the dating front seriously changes, I’ll let you know.”

Ruth winks at her, a smile on her face. “Well, I don’t believe that for a second.”

Emma stays there for the rest of the night, all five of them eating and watching movies with talking in between. Leo insists that Ruth get caught up on anything and everything Captain America, and even though she falls asleep during several of the movies, she does learn a little bit more, making sure to ask all of the right questions. She’s so good with Leo, with everyone really, and it reminds Emma of when she was a terrified fifteen-year-old moving into a new foster home not knowing what was going to be awaiting her.

For someone who was so unloved and never thought she’d find love, living with Ruth Nolan was a shock to her system. She hates that her own walls and issues kept her – keep her – from always accepting that love and genuine kindness, and she hates that she let Neal influence her to not believe that Ruth was her family.

She is.

Most definitely in every way, and this is going to be something that Emma works on. She’s very much determined to do so.

Her life is a good one, and despite how complicated it is sometimes, she deserves to be happy in as many ways as possible.

When the movies are finished and Emma is ready to go home and go to bed, she whispers words of goodbye to everyone, promising to come over again for dinner tomorrow and to bring Ruby and Graham with her since they are always itching for an invitation.

“It’s so good to see you, darling,” Ruth sighs into her hair as they hug goodbye. “I love you.”

Emma nods her head against Ruth’s neck, a smile on her lips. “I love you too.”

#catch me if you can #cs ff #cs fic #captain swan fic #captain swan

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discotreque · 4 years

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Picard 1.10: Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 2

I don't really do predictions or theories when I'm watching something. Partly because I prefer to go along for the ride while it's happening and wait to judge with the benefit of hindsight, but mainly because I'm very bad at it.

Anyway, let's discuss Episode 10 of Picard, in which a bunch of things happen that I would have sworn up and down were never going to happen, and a bunch of things I thought would for sure happen did not.

Spoilers for the season finale:

I think I feel about Picard S1 the same way I feel about Discovery so far: I like every single thing about it more than the writing. The casting is great, the actors are pretty much all superb, I'm horny as hell for the production design, the VFX are the best I've ever seen on television, I absolutely love Jeff Russo's music...

...and the scripts are, you know, fine. Mostly fine. Moments of excellence, no doubt, especially at the level of individual lines and scenes, but overall? New TV Trek has yet to pull off a complete season-story that really impressed me. (I have reasons for extremely high hopes re: Disco S3, but I will save them for another post.)

With all of that said: I didn't come here for the writing. I wanted to spend time with my old friend Jean-Luc Picard at the end of the 24th century, and I got it. The rest is gravy. Not, like, the awesome gravy my sister makes at Thanksgiving; decent B+ restaurant gravy. I'm still gonna dip my fries in it.

"To say you have no choice is a failure of imagination." The first great Picard line of the episode, but not the last.

Blah blah Romulan incest siblings blah blah blah. They couldn't have mentioned sooner that Narek was the family fuck-up or whatever? He would have been like 6% less boring.

Raffi and Rios constantly, lovingly dunking on each other is one of my favourite dynamics on this show.

Okay I was just joking last week about Saga's whole brain being in her eyeball but the fact that the damage to her eye fucked up her memories...

Why are they sitting outside the ship having a campfire? Isn't the ship basically fine? Why not hang out inside?

"The Thousand Days of Pain" is the name of my metal band.

Agnes using Saga's ripped-out eye to bypass the scanner had big Minority Report energy. Thank god she didn't have to chase it down a ramp while it rolled away from her.

"The way that children learn most things: by example."

RSVP Sutra, the only interestingly-written villain in this entire season. Tamlyn Tomita is super duper watchable as Commodore Oh/General Nedar (and looking fiiiine in that black uniform), but she has no personality or motivation beyond "grr, robots bad." Sutra lives in a society that's mostly twins, but her twin sister was fucking murdered. Obviously I don't agree with her actions, but I understood and cared about her motivations, which is more than I can say for any of the Romulans.

All those exterior shots of La Sirena wobbling through space with Picard at the helm were adorable.

We literally never see Narek again after the androids take him away. I hope they just threw him in a dumpster. Bye bitch.

Seven didn't do a ton of hand-to-hand combat on VOY, and she sure didn't fight like this. Jeri Ryan moves like she's heavy, like her bones are made of metal, like she's still full of dense Borg technology. She practically lumbers around, using her limbs like clubs; Peyton List bounces off her like she's hitting a solid steel wall. It's excellent choreography and so well executed by both women (and presumably their stunt doubles).

GET FUCKED, RIZZO. You were barely interesting enough to hate, but I did hate you.

"'The Picard Maneuver.' Wait, that's actually a thing, isn't it?" Ell oh ell.

Loved the way the Romulan ships' disruptors sizzled and crackled when they were powering up.

What was wrong with Planetary Sterilization Patterns 1 through 4?

That motherfucking fanfare when the Starfleet ships came in. Awwww yeah.

ACTING CAPTAIN WILL RIKER. Still kinda wish it had been Worf on the Entrepreneur, though, because I'm greedy: we already saw Riker!

I do have my problems with the writing, but I loved the way they resolved the three-way standoff between the Romulans, Starfleet, and the ch'khalagu: not with an epic space battle, but with diplomacy and self-sacrifice and trust in the essential goodness of each other. (Plus, I guess, the threat of an epic space battle.) It was so perfectly TNG in so many ways.

All the Riker stuff was so fan-servicey. Which I'm mostly fine with: I'm a fan, after all, and I like to be serviced from time to time. But it felt a little like one slice too many of chocolate cake.

I wish the tips of the tentacles had got cut off when the portal closed. That would have been cooler, right?

What can I say about watching Jean-Luc Picard die. He's been my captain for 30 years. I physically fucking felt it. And making an android copy of him, while awesome, did not really diminish the emotional impact.

On a lighter note, I need to know what Jeri and Santiago were actually drinking in that scene, because it straight-up looked like soap. Yuck.

I also really like the dynamic between Rios and Seven. They both act a little harder than they are, and I think they see through each other's acts, but there's enough mutual respect (and self-interest) there to let each other get away with it. And no romantic tension whatsoever. Delightful.

I want to hug all of them so much :(

The blank grey surface of everything in the simulation was very creepy.

Oh Data. Oh, Data. My heart was already aching and then...

Listen. Like a fucking idiot, I went and saw Nemesis on opening night. I don't even remember what I was expecting, but I do remember walking out of the theatre with my friend and agreeing never to speak of it again. Data died, but the movie was so shitty I could barely feel anything about it. This episode gave me the emotional closure I've been waiting for since December 13, 2002.

It's also, if you think about it, a pretty hilarious "fuck you" to Nemesis in general: "You guys did such a bad job of killing Data we had to bring him back to life just so we could kill him properly."

They've been slightly aging-up Patrick Stewart all season. I stopped noticing it after a while, so seeing him without it at the end was quite a shock.

"You... you haven't made me immortal?!" "Relax, man. Everyone was paying attention." Okay, Altan can stay.

Speaking of ol’ A.I., can't he just make another golem for himself? Was there something unique about the one they put Picard in?

I thought I recognized the voice of the woman singing "Blue Skies" on my first watch, but I couldn't place her. Turns out that was Isa Briones herself, which meant I cried even harder the second time through.

"And our little life is rounded with a sleep." Goodbye, Data.

Seven and Raffi???????

SEVEN AND RAFFI?????????????

And once again, Jeff Russo ends the season with a mash-up of the old theme and the new one. Give my man another Emmy! Give him two!

God damn. What a ride. Let me climb into my clown shoes for one last shitty prediction. I think next season is going to be what I wanted from this season: Picard and his motley crew of rogues bopping around the galaxy having roguish adventures. Fingers crossed!

And thanks for reading. Star Trek is always more fun with friends.

#star trek picard #star trek picard spoilers #picard spoilers #amy's episode notes

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pixiealtaira · 6 years

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To Find Your Peace

Authors Note: This is number one of the not posted Hummel Holidays fics....this had been stuck for well over a year and 9 months or so because I couldn’t find the right mood to describe tacky Christmas decorations. Obviously, I should have just waited until July, when I find most Christmas decorations tacky...due to the fact I shouldn’t have to see them in stores yet...(here’s looking at you Hobby Lobby!)

Anyway, on to the story

To Find Your Peace

rated:PG

Pairing: None.

Prompt 5: Decorations

Kurt should have known something was up the day after Thanksgiving...but he had believed his dad when he’d said that they were going to blend family traditions for holidays just like they’d blended families and no single family was going to be given precedence. They all insisted…well his dad and Carole…that the first Thanksgiving wasn’t going to count at all because it was all about introducing families to each other for a longer period of time than the wedding and just making sure no one killed anyone else. Therefore no one’s traditions were being used.

However…he should have realized something was up when he asked his dad what time to be home from shopping so they could put up the outdoor lights and his dad had answered he didn’t need to worry about it, especially since his dad then handed over five hundred bucks and hadn’t even told Kurt to get something nice for the Mildreds and whoever else was usually on his dad’s Christmas shopping list from the mall and then to use whatever extra Kurt ended up with on something fun, like he usually did if he gave Kurt money for Black Friday shopping. (Kurt did his dad’s shopping anyway; he even bought a few base gifts for Carole and Finn. It hadn’t been worth it…although his dad approved of the gifts he’d picked, he complained the whole time that now he had to find somewhere to hide them all until Christmas, because apparently Finn was a snooper, go figure. Kurt ended up needing to wrap everything up and take everything with him to school. And since he had the stuff at school he had to spend the money to send off the gifts to everyone on his dad’s list who was out of town and had to finish up shopping for the guys his dad worked for since his dad couldn’t remember what Kurt had already bought and his dad didn’t send extra money for any of that.)

His second clue that something was amiss should have been that he distinctly remembered Puck talking about the Hudson’s house being all light up by Thanksgiving time every year. So, if they were combining traditions, shouldn’t putting up lights outside the day after thanksgiving have been within the realms of combining tradition?

But he didn’t notice anything was off and he trusted his dad, and so his requests to hang lights were put off for the rest of the weekend and then it was Monday and he was back off to Dalton and he was well aware he wasn’t getting home until school let out for break unless he was extremely lucky…which he hadn’t been. He may not have been at Dalton for long, but he still had to take finals with the rest of the bunch. Kurt figured he’d averaged about three hours of sleep a night from the time he got back from Thanksgiving to the last of day finals…the 16th… which was the last day of regular classes, although he wasn’t allowed to go home until the 22nd, unless his parent came and checked him out…which his parent hadn’t. His parent hadn’t even shown up for the Dalton Parent’s day on the 17th, let alone checked him out early. That was embarrassing. He still has no idea if anyone bought his emergency at the shop story.

Kurt had had a miserable December. No one helped brighten it at all. (Blaine might have brightened it briefly with the song they sang together; however he promptly went on to dis Kurt’s festive accessories and tell him to stop singing Christmas carols in the halls, so no…) There was no advent of daily activities. And although his dad did make it to the Nutcracker to see it with him, like he’d promised right after his heart attack, he missed half of it because a ball game he was watching with Finn went into overtime. It wasn’t even a game that involved either of the two’s favorite teams. And Burt left immediately afterwards because Carole wanted Burt to go out to eat with her and had made reservations for them and Burt didn’t want her upset if he didn’t make it. Kurt was given house demerit points for his string of lights and the electric candle in his window and the holly and ivy garland he’d hung in his room (and for the sprig of Holly he attached to his uniform and the hot chocolate maker he had in his room.) The only one who appreciated the card he’d given them was Jeff, at least as far as he could tell. He even got in trouble for baking, because he was distracting too many boys from their studying. And he found out the last day of class that he probably couldn’t board the next semester unless they could fork over at least another three thousand bucks on top of tuition….which they’d only managed to pay for the quarter, not the full semester…by the end of December (and that wasn’t even the full boarding amount, since they hadn’t been informed they needed to fill out paperwork to keep Kurt’s emergency student status past the end of the semester). (Apparently the Headmaster had emailed his father about it early in December, but his dad hadn’t responded at all.) Kurt had packed everything in his dorm room that he wasn’t using and moved it to his SUV that night. There was no way they could come up with that much on top of tuition in less than two weeks, not In December. Then he got reprimanded for watching unapproved videos over the weekend after most the other boys had left, except those staying the whole vacation period. The last few days were spent working off his demerit points by cleaning classrooms for teachers who were as unhappy to still be at the school as he was. He was looking forward to going home and putting up the Christmas tree and relaxing by a fire in the fireplace while he sipped hot chocolate. He was going to play Christmas Music and sing to it as loud as he wanted and watch Christmas Movies, maybe even all night long! He was finally freed to head home at what would have been then end of the school day of the 22nd. Kurt finished packing the SUV with the rest of his stuff and left Dalton. It was past 3pm when he finally got out of there.

It snowed the whole drive home -blizzard conditions- so the two hour drive took nearly twice as long. He’d nearly been run off the road three times and each time he later saw the idiot drivers in the ditch. He’d been stuck as emergency vehicles struggled to get through for twenty minutes behind a diesel truck which wasn’t burning its fuel properly. His head hurt and he was cold and tense. By the time Kurt pulled onto the street the house was on all he wanted was to go home and hopefully be able to get things together for Christmas with some semblance of sanity surviving to maybe even enjoy something about the season. He figured the outside lights would be up, but he looked forward to decorating inside. Surely his dad had left the garlands for him to do and the tree for him to help with. He dreamed all the way home of putting the garland up the banisters on the stair cases, and over the mantle of the fireplace. He thought about what cute things they could do with a wreath for the front door, because surely Carole and Finn would enjoy one and so his dad would finally allow one. Maybe his dad would even agree to a garland along the tops of the china cabinets and the bookshelves this year. Kurt had been trying for years (since the year after his mom died) to get his dad to agree to more than just the tree and a garland on the fire place mantle, finally winning the banisters when he was 14. His dad always said that more than that was just not necessary, a waste of money, and too much in a tasteless manner, not a good one. Kurt had found some plaid ribbon though, and some woodland critters which would be sedate and not too loud, so maybe that could convince his dad. He thought about what ornaments needed to be on the tree, and which could be left off so Finn and Carole could have space for theirs. He wondered what stories he’d learn as they put up the tree and talked about what the ornaments meant or when they were bought or made.

He was debating inside his head whether or not to include the Elvis Bear on the tree when he realized he’d driven past his house…because that monstrosity of tasteless inflatables and obnoxious outdoor illumination could not possibly be his house. His dad wouldn’t even allow Kurt to string lights around the small pine in the front yard or exchange the regular walkway light for candy canes or Christmas shaped lights. The inflatables up in their yard weren’t even tasteful inflatables. There was Sponge Bob and Simpsons and Mario and Mr.Potato Head inflatables…and was that Santa in an outhouse with half his rear end showing? There was a Santa in a hot tub…and a Santa waving from a camper…and some sort of superhero group. On the top of the house were wooden Reindeer cutouts, lit up and a fake chimney with Santa’s butt showing…again…lit up so no one could miss it. The house was dripping with lights, in no orderly fashion what so ever…lights of multi colored lights went into white blinking lights or icicle lights then back to colored, no pattern or reason to them. The colored lights didn’t match each other and even the white lights didn’t match each other. There were even pink and turquoise lights and purple lights. There were lit stars and snowflakes, which Kurt would have liked had they been hanging from the eves like they were meant to be and not attached to the side of the house, literally…to the siding...at least a foot under the window sills. Everything was covered in lights, but not well…light nets weren’t put on correctly and left huge sections blank, only half of things were strung with lights, or if the full item was cover, it wasn’t covered with anything that matched. There were dozens of animatronic lit critters…bears, deer, reindeer, penguins…that didn’t match...as some were again colored and some were white (different whites as well), and dozens of those spiral trees his father had forbidden Kurt from having (Kurt had wanted two… a tall one and a shorter one.)…several of which actually clashed with each other even though they sat right next to each other. There were large plastic candy canes and plastic choir boys and plastic carolers and plastic Santas and plastics elves and plastic snowmen and plastic candles and Kurt thought he might even see plastic aliens in the yard, and possibly a plastic camel. They were scattered throughout the yard like someone had shaken a dice cup and let loose. The walkways to the house were lined with Red and Green and blue and white and orange and black rope lights, in no manner that made any sense. Kurt pulled into the drive way and stared.

When he opened the car door, he was blasted with four different Christmas songs being piped out from somewhere in the mess. The cacophony was nearly painful. Kurt wasn’t even allowed to play Christmas Music loud enough to be heard throughout the house, let alone outside it.

Kurt sat in his SUV and stared. The front porch not only had a wreath on the front door, one of those huge ones made of garishly colored mesh…it was bright pink and lime green and teal for goodness sake and the only thing that made it look Christmas like was that it was covered in glass balls of the same garish colors…but it had wreathes on both the pillars of the porch and they didn’t match. One was a huge evergreen wreath that would have been lovely without the batman themed ribbon and decorations and the other was made of the type of bows you buy in bulk to put on presents, with the sticky square backs, in the worst color assortment ever.

Strands of gold, silver, green and red tinsel garlands hung on each side of the door…just hung down, the slight breeze was making them sway to and fro. Across the top of the door was a baby blue fake pine garland trimmed with pink lights. The blue of the garland clashed with the teal of the wreath, let alone everything hanging to the sides of the door. The porch was littered with wood cutouts that were poorly painted. One of the elves looked positively demonic and seemed to have pointed buck teeth painted on it.

Even the normal tasteful sconces that generally served as the covers to the porch lights had been replaced by hideous Santa faces from which the glow of the porch lights made Santa look like his eyes were glowing.

Kurt took a deep breath; grabbed two suitcases filled with his stuff from Dalton in them, and braved the front door. The moment he stepped on the porch a new set of Christmas Music blasted through speakers. It didn’t mesh with any of the other blaring songs at all. He scrunched up his face and plotted the closest way to the nearest pain meds to ease his head ache and then the fastest way to his bedroom. Then he opened the door.

It looked like a five year old had hung streamers for a birthday party, except with tacky tinsel garlands and crepe paper in every color sold. There was no pattern to the mess, just tinsel garland and crepe paper tacked into the ceiling, hanging down to far, criss-crossing willy nilly and clashing often. The entry way walls were plastered in holiday pictures and cutouts and even window clings that had been taped to the wall with packing tape. There were tacky singing fish wearing Santa and Elf hats that sang as you walked in the door. Somewhere else in the other room other singing things started up, ones that were noise activated. Christmas music blasted through the house, loud and annoying.

There was nowhere to hang his coat or put his shoes because the coat rack and shoe cubbies were filled with horrid Christmas sweaters hung where they could be seen and bins of pine cones and wooden blocks painted like gifts…poorly painted….and the most horrid mixed colors of…plastic balls…and sticks? Ribbon bows were tied to everything they could be tied to, often with jingle bells hanging from them…but there wasn’t any cohesive color scheme. There were purple and pink and red and green and lilac and neon yellow and lime green and orange and brown and black and a red that was either brick or blood bows scattered throughout the entryway and hall. The floor itself was covered in Christmas themed welcome mats….dozens laid out on the floor in a odd type of runner. The entry ways to the living room and dining room were framed by stringy tinsel like the front door, which seemed to reach out to him as he walked by due to the mass amount of static generated by the sheer amount of tinsel.

He walked by the arched opening to the dining room first and looked in. And immediately wished he hadn’t. There were four Christmas trees on the dining room table. They weren’t small, really, each was about three feet to three and a half feet tall. They were mashed together due to the fact the dining room table lacked the space for them all. One was bright pink and one was lime green, the other two were pine colored, and at least one was real judging by the amount of pine needles on the table. The pink tree was covered with cupcakes and the most hideously scary looking gingerbread ornaments and baby blue beads and ribbons and purple topical scary looking birds with huge feathered tails and flamingos and cocktail glasses and donuts and then Victorian looking lace and cones…that weren’t the same nearly neon pink as the tree and so looked bad on it. The lights were bright red and blinked.

The lime green one wasn’t any better. There were red and lime green balls and ribbons and lots of candy ornaments in various colors and patterns, shoved in with feathery birds in extremely bright pinks and teals and purples and yellows and oranges, neon colored swim suits and goggles and snorkels and swim fins, and loads of very bright fake extremely glittered citrus fruit. The birds didn’t even match the other tree. The tree was topped with peacock feathers….the colors of which matched maybe one freaking feathered bird. The lime green tree’s lights were bright pink and chased through some strangely timed pattern.

The real pine tree was covered in small kitchen ware and bake ware type items, and could have been fine if not also mixed with seashells and sand dollars and beach items and a ribbon that went around it that encouraged all to have a Bloody Merry Christmas and looked like it was splattered with blood. It also had bright red lights, a shade darker and adding to the blood feel.

The final tree was completely stuffed with religious ornaments. He’d been to Aunt Mildred’s during Christmas season. Aunt Mildred was very…evangelical. She did a Jesse tree and Nativity tree. Everything was wrapped in Jesus Loves You paper and Jesus is the Reason for the Season paper. It only lasted a few years, but Kurt was there for them. He thought it more tasteless than not even back then, but now he was thinking his Aunt Mildred did it tastefully. The first problem was that it was just packed so full and nothing matched. The bright crayon colored circles proclaiming Jesus’s love and purpose would have been fine, alone or with the white nativity pieces. They didn’t look good with the neon stars that had different names of Christ or the nativity pieces that looked like they belonged in a circus (which were horrid anyway). The Jesse ornaments on it were just…not tastefully done. Perhaps if they had just been white ceramic they would have been fine, but these were white ceramic that had been poorly gold leafed…which made them tacky to start off with even if the gold leaf had been applied well. To top it all of…there were close to a dozen Christ on a Cross ornaments that had I’m Saved written on them…across Jesus’s chest. The lights on this three were neon colored…pink, green, yellow, blue…and flashed at such a high speed Kurt was worried for people visiting. His house now needed seizure warnings inside as well as out.

Kurt closed his eyes, hoping again that upon opening them his dining room would look normal.

It didn’t.

Having taken in the Christmas Trees on the table, he saw everything else. The table had runners on it under the tree…over a hideous Christmas table cloth. Runners…plural. None matched the ugly elf table cloth…some of which looked demonic…and none matched each other. The chairs were dressed up in those stupid slip covers that only look good done well…and at things like weddings. These weren’t done well and didn’t match at all. The stupid reindeer chair cover had antlers that Kurt assumed were supposed to stick up but which flopped backwards, the snowman looked half melted and like something out of a horror film and the less said about the two Santas, the better. Suffice to say, they clashed with each other and if Kurt never saw another Santa again, he’d be happy. The thought of a Santa looking like either was enough to keep Kurt from even wanting Santa gifts at all….no Santa gift means Santa didn’t come to his house. He couldn’t understand why anyone would buy them…and since they all had tags that were sticking out, someone had.

The walls were plastered with Christmas Prints…that again didn’t match or make sense together. The tacky Tinsel garlands criss-crossed the ceiling in the dining room as well, shedding down onto the floor and all over the table.

Kurt was terrified to look at the rest of the house. And depressed. Utterly depressed. He couldn’t believe he dad had told HIM no all these years and then let THIS happen. Unless maybe the reason his dad hadn’t answered anything was because they’d killed him…or tied him up somewhere.

He turned and walked further down the hall, pausing to look into the living. And concluded his thought that they had actually killed his dad and stuffed the body somewhere wasn’t as unlikely as it seemed.

The tree was in the middle of the room. The TV was blocked. The tree touched the ceiling and was quite wide as well. It was real, Kurt could tell by the mass amount of pine needles on the floor. And it was heavily flocked. The white powder stuff sat on many of the branches in piles. It was flocked so badly Kurt could see flocking on the furniture and when the heater kicked on the air movement made flocking dust float into the air. It was also covered in silver tinsel strands….the individual ones that got EVERYWHERE. And Kurt meant covered…every branch was draped with strands at least five inches in, it looked like it was melting. The air lifted those as well, and made them sway on the tree in a very nauseating manner. The only things on the tree were huge fake poinsettia flowers in every color imaginable and so heavily glittered the glitter they shed could be seen on every surface and the type of feathers that really only worked on Pirate hats, Victorian hats, and as pens at weddings, also dipped in glitter. The lights were all chasers, set on super speed, and the strands did not match…not bulb shape or color.

There were about twenty stockings hung on the mantle, all with Finn’s name on them…except two, labeled MOM and DAD. And they were all tacky…and huge. There were piles of gifts under the tree, most quite large and all, even from afar, clearly labeled FINN. Kurt was strongly reminded of Harry Potter and Dudley Dursley. There were hundreds of animated stuffed things in the room and so many throw pillows that one couldn’t actually sit in a chair anyway. And none matched. The shelves were overflowing with Christmas items stuffed on them…most ugly or just odd. His tasteful nativity wasn’t up anywhere in the room, nor were his candles or the angels they always had out. Even his dad’s display of antique toys wasn’t to be seen. Those had been put up at Christmas time in his dad’s family since his dad was four and his dad’s great-grandmother had given them to him to display for Christmas.

Kurt clenched his jaw and walked to the door to the basement. There was so much static that a bolt of electricity shot four inches to zap him from the handle.

Kurt closed his eyes and hoped that wasn’t an omen. He wondered where his dad was…or Carole or Finn for that matter.

Christmas music different than what was playing on the main floor blasted from down stairs. There were tinsel garlands hanging off the ceiling and handrail. And there were stands of jingle bells hanging down from the hand rail as well, so every step jingled.

“I told you I’m not going to some stupid party at the Fire Department. I refuse!” Finn shouted.

Kurt could hear the sounds from his video games blasting loudly enough to be heard over the Christmas Music.

Kurt stopped at the bottom of the stairs.

Nothing in the basement was as he left it. In fact nothing of his seemed to be there at all.

“Where’s my stuff?” Kurt asked.

“Why are you here?” Finn yelled back. “I’m calling your dad! I’m telling!”

“Ok. Where’s my stuff?”

“We got rid of it. Except from the closet, because it was locked and Burt wouldn’t let us break in. I wanted to just throw it all out because you know…you don’t live here…but Burt made us keep it all so mom rented a storage unit and we put it all there. She’s trying to convince Burt that it doesn’t belong here at all anymore and we need access to the closet too.”

“Of course I live here.”

“No you don’t, your dad moved you to the school and so you live there and aren’t supposed to return any more.”

“Do neither of you understand how boarding schools work? Not to mention, I only was boarding as full time as I was the last few weeks because of my work load the last several weeks was so huge. I’m all caught up now and unless your mom is forking over 10,000 bucks, I won’t be boarding.”

“You can’t live here. Mom promised it was all mine now. Even if your dad wouldn’t let me have the stuff of yours I want, she is supposed to make him give it to me by Christmas…so you can’t be here and you have to give me all your good stuff…like your computer and TV and shit. Mom promised. I’m calling Mom! I’m telling Burt….I’m telling him right now, how you are sneaking in here and harassing me! I will.”

“So, Dad and your mother are at the party at the fire department?” Kurt asked, glaring at Finn.

“Probably. It sounded dumb. I don’t see why I should go and help out stupid little kids. No, go back where you came from.”

Kurt turned and marched back up the stairs. Not without noticing that there was five Christmas trees filled with various forms of sports paraphernalia and hunting stuff scattered around the basement, all live and half nearly bare due to the lack of needles, which littered the floor and all bone dry. The floor was also covered with dirty clothes and towels, food in various forms of rot and empty food boxes, empty soda cans and… empty beer and wine bottles… and other smelly things.

He marched out past the horrid decorations to his SUV. He put his suitcases back into the vehicle and drove to the fire station. He got out and stomped into the party…over to the adult games area, which his father was usually in charge of. Carole wasn’t there. Fire Chief Michaels was though.

“Burt Hummel.” Kurt snapped.

Burt dropped the bowling ball he was retrieving to hand to the next person playing Bowling For Pop.

“Kurt…when did you get home?” Burt asked.

“Today. AFTER YOU DID NOT COME GET ME ON THE 17TH WHEN YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE THERE FOR PARENT’S DAY! I spent the days from the 17th to leaving time today working off demerit points for you missing it. Furthermore you have NOT answered any email or message left, or answered any calls from me and NOW you will be very sorry. I will not be able to board next semester. Because YOU couldn’t be bothered. I hope you have fun explaining that to your wife and new son, who shall be calling because I harassed him apparently by a) coming home and b) asking where all MY STUFF IS!”

Chief Michaels looked at Burt. “You forgot to go to Parent’s day at your kid’s school and forgot to check him out?”

“You got rid of all YOUR child’s stuff? Like what kind of stuff are we talking here?” Deputy Jones from the police department asked.

“All of it that I hadn’t locked in my closet. I have no bed, no dresser, my mother’s old vanity is gone, my TV and computer are missing, my sewing machine and everything!” Kurt said.

“I thought they left things be down there. Carole said she set Finn straight when he demanded the room cleared for his use.” Burt said.

“Yeah, well apparently not. Finn says they put it in a storage unit after you wouldn’t let them throw it out!” Kurt snapped. “Fix this! Fix this now, Dad. If it is NOT fixed by tomorrow, I will call YOUR Aunt Mildred. And fix the atrocity that our house has become. I am not kidding. I am taking photos, I am sending them to Aunt Mildred…I am sending them to Uncle Lou.”

“But Kurt, you don’t understand…”

“What? What don’t I understand?”

“Don’t you want Finn and Carole to be happy and feel welcome?” Burt asked.

“Finn and Carole can be happy and feel welcome without turning the house into a monstrosity and creating the biggest FIRE HAZAARD IN LIMA! Not to mention the biohazard that is now the basement! Things spark in there due to the static. And I’m surprised you haven’t been fined due to violation of any number of city ordinances…you know, the ones you always quoted to me when I asked for more lights than the strands along the roof.”

“But Carole said they always decorate big.” Burt said. “She said she would be crushed if she couldn’t decorate as much as she dreamed and that if she couldn’t decorate properly here then she’d have to go to her folks were it was properly decorated for the holidays. She so wanted to spend the holiday as a family, it would have upset her to have to leave to a properly decorated home.”

“And you bought that?” Kurt asked.

“She cried Kurt. She cried when I told her just one tree.”

“Yeah…I’m sure she did. I think you should check the accounting. I bet most is brand new. Except those horrid and tacky stockings…where is mine by the way?”

“Well. It upset Finn to have it, you know. And your gifts from me are at the garage because Finn only wants his under the tree…I told him yours would be under the tree for Christmas. Carole insisted she’d get him agree to it. He screamed and stomped off when I told him that.”

Fire Chief Michaels put his arm over Kurt’s shoulder. “Come on Kurt. I bet Santa has a treat for you, and I’ll set you up with a gift for the white elephant exchange and an ornament for the ornament exchange. There are playing bingo by the pole and we’re supposed to start a new round of name that tune in a few minutes. You always win at that. We’ve got some great prizes this year, too.”

He turned to Burt. “Burt, I’m with your kid on this. Fix it.”

“But Hal, you had a new wife. Surely you know how it is.” Burt said.

“I would have NEVER let Janice remove my kids’ stuff from our home. It is always home to ALL of us. And Cami had been off to college when I married Janice. Still wouldn’t let her get rid of Cami’s stuff until she’d moved into a place of her own and wasn’t living in dorms anymore. And then we asked. He’s your kid, Burt. He’s not all grown-up yet, he should still matter most.”

He turned Kurt away and started walking with him towards Santa.

“So tell me about the biohazard.” The chief said.

“Oh My God. Finn is so nasty. There is rotting food in my basement! On the floor! And stinky socks and underwear and loads of trash. I had it spotless over Thanksgiving. I thoroughly cleaned it after I got home from black Friday shopping and all Finn’s cousins were finally gone….”

Kurt watched his dad as he continued telling the Chief about the disaster that the house was in.

His dad was looking confused.

As Kurt was seeing Santa, the Chief headed back towards his dad and Deputy Jones.

Santa, otherwise known as Mr. Morrison, the owner of M&S grocers and farmers market, slipped Kurt an extra gift and told him to come back over when the night was over and he might slip Kurt more. He asked if Kurt was going to the old folks’ home, his dear mother would hate to miss him this year if he wasn’t. Kurt promised to be over the next day…minus cookies because he was certain his kitchen was not useable due to the amount of tinsel in the house. Kurt beamed when Mr. Morrison offered use of the store’s bakery and the company of Mrs. Morrison to help bake cookies for the old folks’ home.

Mrs. Michaels set Kurt up with items for the exchanges that would be happening soon and allowed Kurt to snatch up the set of wooden birds, one of which looked just like Pavarotti, in exchange for last minute mending to the nativity costumes. When he managed not just the hole in Joseph’s side seam and the tear in the shepherd’s robe where he stepped in it as his stood up, but also sufficient enough hemming on all the angels costumes so that no one tripped on them and ripped them, she also added the set of angel ornaments he looked at.

He won a Christmas candle, an old Reader’s Digest Christmas Treasury sheet music book that was still in near mint condition even though it was dated 1950, and a word puzzle book while playing name that tune, before he bowed out and let others have a chance to win. He won four bingos and picked out some fabulous snowflake cookies cutters, a stocking filled with crafting supplies (nice color pencils and drawing pencils, watercolor pencils, blenders and erasers, paint brushes, and a cute set of watercolors), a set of little tea lights that were battery powered, and an awesome winter themed throw that was very soft.

He won a set of cards that were Scooby-doo themed in the white elephant exchange and an owl ornament in the ornament exchange.

He also called around to find someplace to stay over that night. Jeff’s family lived near Liberty Hill Golf Club in Bellefontaine. It wasn’t quit an hour away and Jeff’s dad promised the snow had eased up and traffic would be fine. Their road was already plowed and clear. His mom would love to have Kurt for a day or two. Kurt told her it would be for the night at least, and maybe tomorrow night as well, but during the day he had a few commitments in Lima he needed to attend to, namely baking for the old folks’ home and a trip to the old folks’ home. After hearing Jeff’s mom go on about how sweet he was, Kurt thought he might even have company the next day…and wondered just how many siblings Jeff had.

Kurt told them he’d be there in about an hour and half. Then he went to find his dad again.

Burt was sitting at the table with the fire chief and Deputy Jones and Hank from the shop.

“Dad, I’m going to go stay at Jeff’s for the night. If things aren’t somewhat fixed by tomorrow afternoon when I am finished at the old folks’ home, I will stay there tomorrow night as well. Things will be fixed by then, as I will be at my home for Christmas. The basement will be cleaned and those trees removed, all the tinsel will be gone, the trees on the dining room table will be gone, and the tree in the living room will be removed of its tinsel, de-flocked as much as possible, and gone if it is too dry. Carole and Finn will be informed that they will be paying to fix the damage to the house since I know you were not stupid enough to do that. The music will not be there anymore…if any is there it will be ONE single song playing at a time. The music in the house will be quieter and tasteful, like you always made me play it when you relented and let me play anything, and something will be done with the Santa butts that are hanging out everywhere! I will also give you until tomorrow afternoon before I call Aunt Mildred. I’m going to stop by the house and grab a few things before heading out. So, yes, I was back at the house if Finn calls…no I will not be harassing him.”

“You saw the tree in the bathroom?” Burt asked.

“What tree in what bathroom?” Kurt said.

“Umm nevermind.”

“Dad….what tree?”

“The main floor bathroom has a tall thin tree in it that is covered with hot tub Santas and bathtub Santas and outhouse ornaments. They collect them. They have them from many states and all sorts open to show them being used by everything from Santa to moose to one that even had Jesus in it.”

“Excuse me?” Kurt said. “And they had the nerve to comment on my lack of religion.”

“Finn’s vacation bible sleep-away camp sold them.”

Kurt just shook his head.

“See you tomorrow Dad. I do love you, you know…but this is not OK.”

Kurt stopped by Santa to solidify his plans for the next day, and came away with two books he’d wanted to read and two more puzzles books and three heatable rice packs, two small scent candles, four Christmas scented lotions, and two textures washcloths…and a basket. Jeff’s mother would get a nice little spa basket as a thank you gift for letting him invade.

Kurt hit the house on his way out of town. He left his goodies in the car. He used his phone camera to take pictures of everything that horrified him. He even went in the bathroom and found the Jesus in the outhouse ornament and took special care to take a photo of that. He realized his dad hadn’t mentioned that there was also various naked Santa ornaments, with different type of hats placed so his privates wouldn’t be seen.

Several hundred photos later, Kurt decided enough was documented. He had gone downstairs and photographed the carnage that was his basement. Finn hadn’t even noticed as he had huge headphone on and the TV blasted enough louder than before. He was singing to something other than the Christmas song that was blaring away, so Kurt knew music was playing through his headphones as well. It was a wonder the idiot wasn’t deaf.

Kurt grabbed the old recipe books with the cookie recipes he always took to the old folks’ home in them and the emergency sleep kit from the garage, just in case he needed a sleeping bag or something. He stopped and bought himself fast food on the way out of town.

The snow was just slightly falling and the roads, though icy, were free of snow. The plows had been out. The drive was peaceful and nice. Kurt found a public radio station that was reading The Christmas Carol over the radio. He made great time and was to Jeff’s house within an hour.

Jeff’s house was huge. There were lit deer in the front, looking like they were eating at the base of one tall spiral light tree and a few smaller ones…all the same bright white lights. The house’s trim was lined with white lights, except the door, which was lined in green light. Several trees in the yard were light as well, properly lit and covered by the same lights. There was a single evergreen wreath on the front door. It had a large red bow on it.

Kurt took a moment to put together a small overnight pack, gathering the items he’d need from his luggage and putting them into his school bag. When he looked up again, Jeff was on his way down the front path to the drive to help him with anything. Jeff assured Kurt he didn’t need his emergency sleep kit, but his dad would love to hear about it when they got in. Kurt handed Jeff his bag when Jeff insisted on carrying something and carried in the gift basket for Jeff’s mom.

Jeff’s mom was as vivacious as Jeff and Jeff’s dad was delightful as well. His mom handed a hot cup of cocoa to Kurt nearly as soon as he stepped into the foyer.

Their Christmas tree…single… was huge as well, but it was against the wall and set off nearly in a corner of the room. It was covered with white lights that were steady and had a ribbon that wound from the top to the bottom…red and white candy cane striped. There were red and white balls…not glass yet because Jeff had little siblings who touched too much still…but mostly scattered tastefully about the tree were more random type ornaments that represented Jeff’s family. Jeff found his baby’s 1st Christmas ornament and then showed Kurt all seven others…with the triplets having the same ornament in different colors.

Kurt met the triplets, who were almost four, Joanne, who was 11 months older than Jeff and James who was 11 months younger. He found out that the other two, Kim and Karen, were significantly older than Joanne…and that Jeff’s dad was their step-dad. Both were married with kids of their own and would be descending upon the family on the 24th.

There was soft Christmas music playing in the background as the family talked and watched a movie. A scented candle burned in the kitchen, filling the air with a light evergreen scent.

Kurt looked around. There was a fireplace with stockings hung along the mantle, but these stockings were all denim with different colored plaid cuffs and heels and toes. Jeff told Kurt his grandmother made them for each kid…Karen’s kids were a darker denim and Kim’s kids were a very light denim, but they still matched. Each stocking had a pocket, like the back pocket of a pair of pants on the front and a letter sticking out of it.

They looked good against the mantle, and the evergreen garland that trimmed it. The evergreen garland had little plaid bows decorating it and pinecones and woodland critters.

A garland trimmed the top of the bookshelves as well.

There were Christmas throw pillows, that matched and were cute…and that matched the Christmas fleece blankets that draped over the back of the couch and chairs when not in use by people.

There were candles on the window sill, fake. However having watched one of the small ones tip them over no less then five times, well Kurt thought fake was probably the safest bet for maybe the next ten years.

Jeff’s house was blessedly free of tinsel.

After the movie Jeff’s parents sent everyone off to bed and Jeff showed Kurt the guestroom he could use.

It was decorated by Christmas’s bedding and a bow over the mirror on the dresser. There was a small Christmas Bear sitting on the dresser as well. It didn’t do anything.

“The other guestroom is more pink and had dolls on the dresser. I thought this might be better. There is one of those play and pack baby bed things under the bed, though, so be careful not to stub your toe. There is a bathroom through the door with the lever type handle. The door with the knob goes to the closet.”

“Thanks Jeff, you and your family are life savers. You’ve salvaged my whole day.”

“It’s been fun and I’m glad I could help. I can’t believe your family forgot you were coming home today.”

Kurt shrugged. “I guess maybe things have been busy at the garage…I don’t know. I didn’t ask.”

They chatted a bit longer, mostly about the garage and things Kurt did there and what types of cars they worked on. Jeff loved cars and motors of all sorts, so was thrilled to have someone with any interest in them as well to talk to. Before too long, though, Jeff’s mom came and hustled him off to his own room so Kurt could get some sleep.

Jeff’s mom ruffled his hair as she left, like she did Jeff’s. It was nice.

As Kurt crawled into bed, he couldn’t decide if he hoped his dad had fixed things by the next afternoon or if he hoped to be able to spend one more evening at Jeff’s, where he was more welcome than he was in his own house.

When he turned off the light he discovered one more holiday item in the room…a candle nightlight lit the room with a soft glow. He texted his Dad’s Aunt Mildred and asked if she knew a way to keep at Dalton past the quarter.

#glee fanfic #Kurt Hummel #hummelholidays

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