#(( yes all the paranormal muses come to me yes ;w; | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

krizaland · 4 years

Note

Sometimes I think about that one episode where dib threw the muffin at zim so he put him into a fake reality to get the truth and wonder how that would play out with the reader in it

I think about that too! In fact, you’ve given me a little inspiration!

After being blessed by those strange alien shoes, Dib had been feeling amazing!

He had been gifted with abilities he had never even dreamed of!

He even received an apology from Gaz that morning!

Just when he thought things couldn’t get any better for him, Dib had finally managed to do what he had been wanting to do for ages:

He finally exposed Zim.

All it took was a long, well thought out lecture and Zim turned himself into the Urth a authorities without question!

The next thing he knew, he was on the news being praised for exposing Zim and opening the world’s eyes to the existence of aliens!

Dib had everything he could’ve asked for! He was finally getting the recognition he so rightfully deserved!

Even Professor Membrane finally believed him for once!

Dib couldn’t have been more happy! He felt like he was walking on air! Literally! He even floated around instead of walking whenever his legs grew tired.

Despite all of his newfound fame and powers, nothing made him more happy than finally winning your love!

You had been dating Zim for months! You were glued to Zim’s side 24/7!

No matter what he did, Dib could never get you away from that vile alien monster!

Until now that is.

He could never forget the moment you approached him after one of his interviews.

“Hey Dib…”

The sound of your voice almost made Dib’s eyes burst out of his glasses!

“What the- Y/N?! What are you doing here?”

“Well I wanted to congratulate you on all your success and stuff.” You rubbed your arm and looked down at your feet.

“Well, thanks I guess. Hey, are you ok?” Dib asked as he noticed your nervous behavior.

“Y-Yeah…It’s just. Well, I realized that I..I..” You fumbled over your words as a few beads of sweat dripped down your forehead.

“You what?”

“I have feelings for you! I think I’ve always had feelings for you but Zim brainwashed me or something!” You blurted out as your eyes remained glued to your feet.

Dib’s jaw hit the ground! He couldn’t believe what he just heard! In fact, he wasn’t even sure he even heard your correctly!

“W-What?”

“I know. I know. This sounds totally crazy…But I mean it! I love you, Dib! But…I understand if you don’t feel the same. I was pretty harsh to you. So if you don’t want to date me… I understand. I just thought you should know how I felt. That’s all.” You confessed as you shuffled your feet.

“Are you kidding me?! I knew you’d come around some day! Wait…You’re not trying to pull some kind of prank on me right?” Dib’s eyes narrowed as he put his hands on his hips.

“Nope! I’m dead serious!” You confirmed as you slowly looked up at him.

Dib’s eyes lit up as he took your hands in his.

“Y/N, you have no idea how long I’ve wanted you! No idea! This is amazing! We can finally live the rest of our lives together and expose more paranormal creatures!” Dib announced dramatically as he eagerly shook your hands.

“Oh, Dib! I’m so glad you feel the same!”

After kissing his cheek, you and Dib spent the rest of your days exposing paranormal pests and dodging paparazzi.

Dib felt like he was in heaven! It felt like nothing could ruin his newfound successes!

Not even Zim’s ominous threats!

You and Dib decided to visit Zim in his containment chambers to review a few notes.

The moment the metallic doors opened, Zim let out a low groan.

His body was hooked up to countless wires and a tube was jammed into one of his eyes.

Zim struggled to look up and you and Dib as he blinked his visible eye.

“Dib!”

“It’s been years, Zim!” Dib growled dramatically as he picked up a few notes.

“Ugh. You’re even uglier than I remember.” You grimaced as you tried to look away.

“20 of your years to be precise! Enduring the indignities! Watching you prance around with what was once my sweet Y/N! The only reason I haven’t tried to escape and reclaim my Y/N is because it amuses me! ” Zim lied as he raised his arms.

“Amuses you to what?” Dib asked as he looked up from his notes.

“Yeah! What are you going on about?” You demanded as you put your hands on your hips.

“Ah yes, the invasion.” Zim mused dramatically.

“I didn’t ask about the invasion.” Dib huffed as he raised a brow.

“Oh you didn’t? Well you were supposed to. Eh…Well, THEY’LL BE HERE! The Armada will come and there’s nothing you can do about it!” Zim snarled as one of his arms snapped off.

“We’ll see, Zim. We’ll see!” Dib growled as he stormed out of the room.

You let out a squeak as Dib almost threw you to the ground.

“Oops! Sorry, Y/N.” Dib chuckled as he helped you to your feet.

“Don’t worry, I’m ok.” You giggled as you held your head.

From that moment on, You and Dib worked together to prepare for the coming invasion!

“To better study the coming alien menace-” -Dib blasted away a random projectile with his laser eyes- “I’m proud to open the Dib and Y/N institute of paranormal studies/ school of paranormal tolerance/ museum/ snack bar!”

Dib let out a war cry as he fired a large lightning blast from his fingertips.

PEW!

Dib shot down a large tree, opening up the snack bar.

The crowd eagerly ran to the snack bar as the tree fell back to the ground.

Fireworks sparkled as planes spelled out both your and Dib’s names in the sky!

Dib wrapped his arm around your waist and pulled you into a passionate kiss.

A few weeks flew by, things seemed to be going well until-

BREEP! BREEP! BREEP!

A loud alarm rung out as a frantic guard came zooming down the hall and burst into the men’s bathroom!

“Sir! Sir! They’re coming!” The guard panted as he rested his hands on his knees.

With a loud flush and a thorough hand washing, Dib emerged from the bathroom and made his way to the United World Association Of Fighting Enemies room.

“The Massive! The Armada’s capital ship-” -Dib drew a crude drawing of The Massive on a large chalkboard and pointed to it with a metal pointer, “The side storage pods are filled with snacks! It’s their weak spot! Alpha! You’ll be taking down, The Massive!”

“But, Dib- Sir! Who will lead Alpha Squadron?!” Alpha squeaked.

Dib dramatically broke his pointer in half.

The next day, Dib prepared to battle The armada.

“Dib! Are you sure you can handle this?” You asked as you watched Dib get ready.

“Don’t worry about me, Y/N! I’ve been preparing for this all my life! You just stay here and look after the institute! Got it?” Dib commanded as he took your hands in his.

“Got it. Just one more thing before you go.”

Dib opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by you pulling him into a passionate kiss.

Once you both parted for air you gave Dib a warm smile.

“Good luck, Dib.”

And with that, Dib lead Alpha Squadron into the depths of space and begun the battle against the Armada.

PEW!

BLAM!

BANG!

Blue and pink lasers collided as Alpha Squadron plowed through the Armada and blew up ship after ship!

It wasn’t long before Dib noticed The Massive looming in closer.

Dib leapt out of his ship and charged up a large lighting blast.

He let out a loud war cry as he zoomed straight towards The Massive’s window.

Dib glared at The Tallest as they prepared to blast him back to Urth!

Luckily, Dib dodged their blasts and ran on top of The Massive’s roof!

BLAM!

ZAP!

PEW!

Dib blasted away more ships as he made his way towards the side storage pods!

ZZZAP!!

With one massive blast, Dip burst a hole through the side storage pods!

Snacks poured out of the ship as The Tallest screeched in agony

“OUR SNACKS! IT’S OVER! RETREAT!” Red wailed as he rushed off in a panic.

And with that, The Massive plummeted towards the Urth.

BOOOOOM!!

The Massive sunk into the ground as Dib landed right by your side!

“Dib you did it!” You cheered as you held him close.

However, the crowd gasped as a large chunk of debris headed straight for you!

POW!

Dib kicked away the debris before it landed anywhere near you.

“I love you, Dib!” You cheered as you kissed his cheek.

More years passed by and you and Dib had grown old together.

Dib was being interviewed on a talk show while you cheered from the audience.

“And that’s how I was awarded the greatest person ever to live award!” Dib explained as he gestured to the large medal pinned to his shirt.

“You’ve lived quite a full life haven’t you, Sir Dib?” The host asked.

“Yes, Alan. It was all I could ever hope for and more! I even got to ride a moose!” Dib chirped as he gave a warm smile.

The room erupted into applause as you wiped away a tear.

“And who could forget that day? Yes, well thank you for sharing your incredible life with us and allowing the human race to survive.” Alan beamed as he gestured for the audience to quiet down.

“Oh yes! You’re welcome!”

“Oh and if I may say, there’s one question that would settle the curiosity of your many fans. Did you throw the muffin at Zim’s head?” Alan asked as he clasped his hands together.

“Wow. Heh. That’s going back a long ways. As a matter of fact, I did.” Dib chuckled as he rubbed the back of his head.

“AH HA!”

Alan’s face morphed into Zim’s as Zim’s laughter echoed through out the audience.

Everywhere Dib looked all he could see was Zim’s face mocking him! Even your face had been replaced by Zims!

Soon the world fizzled away and Dib had returned to his younger self and was sitting in a large room with blank, white walls.

“I knew it! I knew it was you!” Zim snarled as he sat from a distance.

“What?! There aren’t shoe aliens?” Dib asked sadly as he looked up at the ceiling.

“Get out.”

Dib got off the chair he was sitting in and somberly walked out of the room.

“Oh just one more thing.”

Dib was stopped by a large cannon aimed right for his head!

Dib braced himself as the canon charged up.

PAF!

A small muffin popped out of the cannon and beaned Dib square in the face.

Zim cackled as Dib stumbled his way out the door.

“You stink Zim!”

#invader zim #invader zim x reader #dib x reader #the-monochrome-jester

68 notes · View notes

sunwoork · 4 years

Text

mila & sunwoo reporting for duty !! okay so true story i’m writing this as my acceptance is getting posted ... and you guys’ welcome messages are popping in like crazy ?? you guys are fast ... i’m shook ! anyways, it’s so nice to meet you all ! i am mila, and i was here for a v v short time before w another muse but it was so uneventful we’re gonna skip over it lmao ? anywho !

the star of the show is mr. kim sunwoo, our film student at k-arts who eats food and gets scared in his free time ! if i’m being honest he .... doesn’t know what he’s doing at all, literally at all, but that’s what character development’s for !! i’m gonna put some info about him down below, and click for his profile, bio, socials, and the saddest plots page i have ever seen in life ( i had 5 minutes ok it’s a wip .... more is coming i promise >.< ) but anywho i’m excited to meet all of you and i will stop talking all of your ears off !! oh yeah ... and like this to plot with me !

i’m gonna quite literally skip over all his backstory because it sums it all up in the bio and if i start then i’ll never stop !!

but as a VERY short summary, sunwoo’s mom gave him up almost immediately after he was born because she was young & didn’t think she could care for him, sunwoo bounced through the system before eventually being placed with his permanent home & now adoptive mother, kim hyejin !!

and him being left as a kid & getting bounced from foster home to foster home really left a toll on him, and now he really craves clear acceptance and affection ?

sidenote kim hyejin is actually quite older, in her mid-60′s, so she looks more like his grandma than mom ?? which is ... confusing to a lot of people a lot of the time, and he gets tired of the questions but loves her to death ! i’m also so making it canon she looks like moon sook the actress because .... a BEAUTY ?? we stan aging gracefully !!!

he’s also hesitant to call her mom bc he has this undying faith he’ll reunite w his mother, even now so you’ll see him bounce between calling her mom & ms. kim !!

but not to spoil anything sunwoo will discover later but uh ... his relationship w his mom won’t be restored, at least not in the way he wants :((

but onto general sunwoo things !!

( and as a general note, if i refer to his “mom”, i’m referring to his adoptive mom, hyejin kim, unless stated otherwise ! i don’t want to confuse you guys ! )

creator of the channel “scream cuisine”, where he eats food while telling scary stories / conspiracy theories, and gives commentary !! definitely a paranormal enthusiast, with the unbothered energy of shane from buzzfeed unsolved w the hyperactivity of ryan ?? starting his channel def got him into making videos & he’s loved it ever since !

but more than anything, his biggest love is writing ! has a little personal blog where he writes random things spanning from poems to kpop album reviews lmao !! he wanted to be a journalist, but got into k-arts on the biggest whim ever after they apparently liked his video submission ?? so was like ok ... for now we’ll go with that !!

so currently he’s attending k-arts, and honestly finds it quite weird because he doesn’t really fit in w the passion a lot of the other students have for film ?? some of them are like v intense about it while he just sort of does it bc it’s fun ??

inherited a variety of skills from his mom ! these include painting, gardening, cooking, and a love for music ! so he can dabble a bit in all of them ! he’s honestly an overgrown grandma if we’re being honest, it’s what he gets for being raised a generation behind everyone else his age

he actually does love to sing !! ballads more than anything in terms of things he sings himself, but loves jamming to upbeat pop songs more than most things in this world !! he has a softer / higher voice, and though he has a really nice tone he has no professional training so he’s sort of just ... out here doing him ??

and see !!! this is the problem ! if you couldn’t tell already sunwoo literally has a thousand interests, and small talents, but none that really are screaming out at him ?? so his lack of intense passion for something is really frustrating ! he hasn’t been able to find himself yet and is constantly upset at himself for it.

if he knows you, sunwoo KNOWS you - he’ll be super friendly, always talking, etc !! though surprisingly, if sunwoo doesn’t know you he can become super introverted ? not because he doesn’t want to talk, but he is just more conscious of how he presents himself to you !

sunwoo def has chaotic tik tok boy energy ... he has been left with his phone for too long and his brand deteriorated bc of it ... i apologize if he just starts doing tik tok dances or makes weird references in the middle of serious convos it’s his coping mechanism

he does have a rbf but it’s so misleading ?? like this man is SUCH a soft boy and yet when he is zoning out he’s like 😡 but then u talk to him and he’s like 😊

also romance wise, he loves tsundere boys and strong-minded girls that are older than him ?? do i know why ?? i do not !! it just happened this way

he’s honestly so supportive, will stan everyone ?? and when i mean everyone, i mean yes even your random muse who walks past him one time without saying anything ?? he just has developed a v empathetic and loving personality despite his circumstance, and honestly kinda because of it ??

he loves video games, but unfortunately, he’s literally terrible on them ?? tried being a twitch gaming streamer before being gifted $1 by someone, only to have them send a message being like “u suck” so he was like ok wrong choice !!!

if i had to say the chance of sunwoo realizing his potential to be an idol, i would say 3.21%!!!! lmAO listen as much as he likes singing, and he likes attention, he just ... hasn’t really connected the dots ? he’d be the type to audition for fun but like ? he also does a lot of other things for fun he’s really not considering it as a thing for real yet ??

but !! he is about to start taking dance classes because he’s trying to lose this college weight so if anyone wants to help him or join him on this journey be our guest !!

oh !!! right he has a pomeranian named banana, but he calls her nana, and when i tell you this dog is his pride and joy he will never be prouder of anything more than he will be the day he adopted her ??? she’s 2, a diva, and bites him at least a few times a day but if you ask him he’ll say that’s her love language !!!

speaking of love ... phew this man is a lovebug !! goes though crushes like the flu - it comes fast, it hits him hard, and then goes away just like that. chances are if you know him he’s had a crush on you at some point of time or still do ? don’t worry i promise he won’t make it awkward !

anyway i feel like this was an overload of very chaotic information but sunwoo’s an incredibly chaotic overload of energy so !! very in character of me if i do say so myself ... i’m gonna let sunwoo speak for himself and hopefully we can get something going !! i’ve been so excited to bring him here & have been doing a lot of work so i hope he’s taken to well here !! i can’t wait to meet your muses :’))

10 notes · View notes

holy-honeybees · 4 years

Text

Snowdrift

AO3

Rating: T+ (for swearing)

Summary: Three friends and their dog get lost in a snowstorm while investigating the paranormal. Amidst swirling flurries of white, some lose their way and get lost in their memories, others lose sight of their friends and loved ones, and an unforgiving winter quickly fills in the footprints one would follow to get back home.

A/N: I started this back in November but sadly never finished the work. I was thinking of holding off till it started to snow again, but figured now was as good a time as any to try and finish this.The title is taken from Snail's House song "[snowdrift]" which you can check out here!

The last bit of fluff before the storm!

Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Chapter One

Chapter Four

Mystery woke slowly the next morning to the sounds of hushed conversation, wriggling out from under Vivi’s arm as the heaviest sleeper of the group continued to snore away. He stretched out his hind legs, giving himself a good shake before blearily regarding the two young men deep in conversation. It would figure that the ghost, who technically didn’t need sleep, and the insomniac, who pretended that he didn’t need sleep, would be the first two up. The disguised kitsune mused momentarily over who had been the first to rise before discarding the train of thought as largely pointless at this ungodly hour of the morning. Instead, he trotted over to the rear doors of the van and, having long ago discarded all pretense of being a semi-normal dog, gripped the handle in his teeth and opened the door to the outside world.

“Mystery, wait—” The warning came too late however, and a sudden gust of wind wrenched the door out of his grip, tumbling him headfirst into a snowdrift as he lost his balance. The kitsune struggled for a moment to right himself, only to find he was buried almost up to his haunches in the snow. It would quickly be approaching Vivi’s knees, a height that Mystery was quite familiar with, having spent most of the human’s lifespan at the same level. The cold didn’t bother him much, with his thick fur coat providing protection from the freezing temperatures, but the prospect of having to hop through the snow was simply embarrassing. He had been just about to shift to his natural state when a large hand grasped him by his scruff and hoisted him back into the van, pulling the door shut behind him. Back on solid ground, Mystery quickly shook the loose snow from his pelt. He could see Arthur shivering in the corner, the icy blast of air he’d unintentionally let inside severe enough to even wake Vivi from her slumber. The girl mumbled sleepily and rubbed at her eyes.

“Good morning,” the kitsune deadpanned. Vivi glared at him, though the expression lost some of its heat by the way she was squinting as her eyes adjusted to daylight.

“Arthur and I were just talking about the situation outside,” Lewis said.

“The situation?” Vivi mumbled, putting forth a valiant effort to stay awake.

“The snow hasn’t let up at all,” the ghost said, “In fact, the van’s almost buried up to its wheel wells.”

“According to the radar, it doesn’t look like it’s going to be stopping anytime soon either,” the mechanic explained, gesturing to his laptop screen as he turned it to face the others. There was a large patch of icy blue stationary in the middle of the screen.

“Unless the satellite image froze again…I think the weather is starting to mess with the van’s internet connection,” Arthur muttered.

“So we’re snowed in?” Mystery surmised. Lewis and Arthur shared a look before nodding their heads.

“We were discussing possible solutions before you guys got up. With the snow so deep, the van won’t budge.”

“I could make the van ‘go ghost’ to see if we can get past the snow that way, but, well…” Lewis spared a glance to the mechanic who’d paled at the reminder of the monstrous purple semi-truck.

“It’s not the best idea,” the ghost concluded, “And the nearest town is still miles away, too far to walk,”

“Why don’t we just stay here?” Vivi suggested, already settling back into the blankets on the floor.

“We can’t stay here forever,” Arthur frowned.

“Not for forever, just until we figure out a solution we can all agree on or until we become unstuck. We’ve got plenty of supplies,” Vivi yawned. Mystery thought it must be exhausting being so optimistic and loved the young woman all the more for it.

“I’m not sure hot cocoa counts as ‘supplies’,” Arthur said, “but we do have enough food for at least a couple more days.”

“What about your ghost hunt though? You were so excited to go,” Lewis said.

“I’m excited to spend time with you dorks,” Vivi snorted, “Besides, yesterday was fun. We can teach you how to make a snowman now that you’ve mastered snow angels.” The specter huffed a fond-sounding laugh.

“I suppose that settles it then,” he said, Arthur nodding in agreement. The three turned to look at Mystery for his acquiescence.

“I have missed the snow,” the dog conceded.

“Good,” Vivi mumbled sleepily, her eyes already drifting shut again, “We’ll try to head out later today if the snow melts some. Otherwise, we stay until tomorrow. Just think of it…as a…snow day…” And the blue-haired girl was asleep once more, snoring away as if she’d never been disturbed.

“I better let my parents know about the delay. As if my dad wasn’t already worried enough …” Lewis sighed, shaking his head, “Would it be okay if I borrowed your laptop again, Arthur?”

“Sure, for as much good as it will do you with this crappy internet connection,” the mechanic shrugged, “The radar image either keeps freezing up or there’s a particularly stubborn snow cloud that’s decided to park itself right over top of us. I’ll check to see if I can get a better signal after another cup of coffee.” Lewis narrowed his eyes at his friend.

“What? The instant stuff isn’t that bad,” Arthur joked weakly.

“Yes it is,” Lewis replied, “And it’s not so much the quality of it that I’m worried about but rather the quantity of how much you drink.”

“Oh, come on! This will just be my—”

“Fourth cup,” Lewis interrupted, giving the mechanic a withering look, “I’ve been counting.” Arthur squawked in indignation, and Mystery barked out a brief laugh before turning back to the rear doors, leaving the two young men to squabble over what an acceptable caffeine intake should be for the jittery mechanic.

“Uh, Mystery? Looking to do a repeat performance from earlier?” Lewis said.

“I have to go outside,” the kitsune replied.

“W-Why, is there some-something out there?” Arthur asked in alarm.

“No, I just have to…” Mystery put his ears back in embarrassment, “Go.” There was a moment of silence in the van before the ghost and the mechanic broke into a fit of laughter. Vivi mumbled in her sleep and turned to her other side.

“Oh man,” Arthur said, wiping at his eyes, “Sometimes I forget you’re still kind of a dog.”

“Here, let me get the door for you,” Lewis offered. The kitsune grumbled in annoyance at the two young men’s antics. It appeared they weren’t just children in Mystery’s eyes after all. With Lewis propping the door open, the dog leapt from the van gracefully, landing in the snow in his kitsune-form so as to not get stuck again, his six tails lashing about in the wind. To his dismay, he saw that the indentation from where he’d landed minutes earlier had already begun to fill in, quickly losing its definition as the snow continued to pile on the ground. He would be very surprised if the Mystery Skulls managed to leave their temporary resting spot today.

“Just let us know when you’re ready to come inside, okay?” Lewis said. Mystery gave him a curt nod before trotting away through the snow to find some privacy, hearing the door of the van click shut behind him as he made for the tree line in the distance.

The kitsune truly had missed the snow, and it had been decades since he’d had a proper winter that reminded him of home. He admired the way his breath fogged around his snout in short bursts, thinking of centuries worth of winters spent in Japan. He wondered if he was growing old and senile, reminiscing the way he was, or if it was just his softer side showing. Oh, how the other yōkai would laugh if they could see you now, Mystery mused, passing between barren trees with snow-laden branches. A lot had changed since he’d first met Vivi’s ancestor and been subsequently defeated by her. He was no longer the feared and respected fox spirit he once was. But it was a change for the better, if for the company alone, the three young humans he’d come to think of as his pups. Mystery knew he would go to great lengths to protect them, having failed to do so before. The world was a dangerous place, something Mystery, as one of the dangerous things in it, was well aware of. He had thought that by playing the role of the unassuming mascot he’d been protecting them, but it had nearly cost him everything. The kitsune had chosen to keep silent when he knew they were walking into danger. He thought he’d had everything under control, that if it became absolutely necessary to intervene, he would be fast enough.

He was wrong.

Mystery had wondered if the cave would be the end of his little pack. By some miracle, fate had brought them back together though and allowed for reconciliation, which was more than he could have hoped for. Now, he would give his six tails just to keep his pups safe. As far away as he was, the kitsune could still sense them clearly, would be able to sniff out their souls from miles away if he had to. The burning, electric purple scent of Lewis, so different now from his once muted yet strong mulberry color. The familiar blue that was comfort, love, home, Vivi, the ephemeral sparks of her magic potential flickering through the blue like frost on a window pane. Arthur’s sunshiny yellow pulsing like a beacon. Even as the mechanic had healed in body and mind after being possessed, the damage done would leave Arthur vulnerable for the rest of his life, unaware that his soul was broadcasting an enticing signal to the supernatural.

Mystery thought back to the day before uneasily. Arthur had been so sure he’d seen…something in the road. Mystery had checked then to see if there was anything out there that could pose a threat to his pups and had come up empty, but perhaps the jumpy mechanic’s worried nature was beginning to rub off on him. Over-confidence had cost him dearly in the past, and it was a lesson the kitsune had taken to heart. Mystery pushed the boundaries of his senses to their limits, concentrating hard until he was confident he had encompassed a wide enough radius around their present location for his extrasensory search. Like last time though, he came up empty. There was the purple, yellow, and blue, his own strong red scent, but not another living thing for miles, and no supernatural entity he could detect waiting in the shadows. Besides the colors he was so familiar with, everything was as tasteless, scentless, and colorless as the snow Mystery waded through. Satisfied with his thorough search, the kitsune shook himself free of his troubled thoughts along with the fine layer of snow that had gathered on his pelt. He took care of his business before heading back towards the van and the blended colors of the souls he loved so well. They’re safe this time, he told himself, even as the feeling of being watched prickled at his skin and caused the fur along his back to stand on end.

---

As Mystery had predicted, the Mystery Skulls were not to depart that day, everyone preparing to spend another night on the floor of the van instead. The snow continued to fall, adding further inches to the foot or so already on the ground. The wind had picked up as well, now violently swirling outside. As the snowstorm increased in intensity, so too did Mystery’s feelings of unease. He couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched despite knowing that they were the only ones out here. The dog eyed the door to the van warily, and though nothing had passed beyond the rear windows except for more falling snow, Mystery still couldn’t force himself to relax. Had he any less self-control, he might have even let out a whine.

An unexpected, hesitant touch to the back of his head startled the dog badly, causing him to leap to his feet. The hand quickly withdrew as Mystery whipped around to look at the source of the touch, only to see Arthur staring back, eyes wide with panic. The kitsune couldn’t fault the young man for being afraid of him, particularly when Mystery had been the source of the mechanic’s impromptu amputation, but it still hurt whenever Arthur jumped at his presence or eyed him warily. This had all been so much easier before he’d come clean about the truth of his existence, when he could just ignore what he’d done, what he was. The kitsune wondered if he had kept his secrets to protect himself from their fear and rejection as much as he’d done so to protect the Mystery Skulls themselves. Arthur still raised his hand though and, extending it slowly, bridged the gap between them. The mechanic patted his head and Mystery did his best to ignore the tremors he felt running through the young man’s hand as he leaned into the touch.

“Y-You okay, pal?” Arthur asked in a quiet voice, “You seem kind of tense.”

“Just eager to get going again,” the fox spirit reassured as the mechanic continued to pet him, “Tired of being cooped up in the back of the van for so long.” It wasn’t exactly a lie, but Mystery didn’t want to reveal the true cause of his unease, certain it would further unnerve Arthur. Vivi and Lewis were in the opposite corner of the van, chatting amicably as Vivi composed an email to send off to her parents while they visited her Granny Yukino in Japan. The ghost and the girl were blissfully ignorant of the troubled conversation he and Arthur were having. Vivi’s enthusiasm for their so-called “snow day” had yet to wane, and Lewis was more than happy to just go along for the ride. Mystery would prefer to keep it that way rather than worrying his pups any more than he already had. Arthur continued to stroke his fur as Vivi concluded her email and got up to pass the laptop back to the mechanic. He paused to give a final scratch behind Mystery’s ears, just the way the dog liked, before receiving his laptop with both hands. Mystery would have loved for the petting to continue, childish comfort as it may have been, it had helped settle him significantly. There was no one out there, no danger to his family. Just the wicked winds of winter howling outside. Accepting that, he contented himself to just lay down and listen as his humans talked.

“Any word on how your Granny is doing?” Arthur asked.

“She’s still recovering from her fall, but she’s tough as nails,” Vivi replied proudly, “Mom and dad are just there to make sure she doesn’t overdo it on her own. She has a hard time just taking it easy.”

“Still, I’m sorry about the timing, it’s not fun being on your own for the holidays.”

“It’s alright, I’ve got you guys to keep me company!” Vivi said, unwaveringly cheerful, “Besides, me and Mystery are this close to cracking the secret to my mom’s fried chicken recipe. It has to be in the dredging. I think we’ll have it perfected just in time for dinner on Christmas Eve! It won’t be so different from any other year that way, I just won’t have to fight my dad for the last drumstick.”

“I’m looking forwards to being able to cook Christmas dinner for my family again,” Lewis said, “It’s one of the few days the restaurant is closed, so it’s nice to see mom and dad relax and put their feet up for once. Plus, I make a mean lasagna.”

“Heh, I think Uncle Lance gave up on cooking for Christmas after that year he tried to do one of those beer can turkey recipes. Hell, the fire chief might’ve expressly forbidden it. I think we’re doing Chinese takeout again this year.”

“At least orange chicken is something normal to eat…” Vivi teased.

“Hey, don’t bring Surf’s Up Pizza into this!”

“It’s so nice to be able to see the restaurant decorated with poinsettias again,” Lewis said distractedly. He had a wistful expression on his skull, seemingly unaware that he’d even spoken aloud until he noticed Vivi and Arthur staring at him intently, their playful argument abandoned.

“Mom always decorates the restaurant with poinsettias around Christmas. I…I never thought I’d get to see it like that again,” Lewis confessed. Vivi smiled at the ghost warmly, giving his arm a little squeeze before she turned her attention to their other friend.

“What about you, Artie? Lance do much decorating at home?” She asked.

“I don’t think Uncle Lance is real big on Christmas. The only Christmas movie he’ll even watch is Die Hard. I think he only decorates ‘cause he knows I like it,” Arthur began, “Growing up with my dad though…we were on the road pretty often and spent a lot of nights in the car, even on Christmas. Not a whole lot of room for a tree in there, but he’d always make sure to get one of those little tree-shaped air fresheners to hang from the rearview mirror. We’d set our presents up on the dashboard under it.”

“You don’t talk about him a whole lot,” Lewis said.

“Y-Yeah, I try not to think about it too much,” Arthur replied, making an attempt at a casual shrug, “But…ever since it started snowing, it’s been hard not to think about it. I haven’t seen snow since I came to live with Uncle Lance, so I guess it’s just bringing up old memories.” The mechanic rubbed at the back of his neck awkwardly, seemingly caught off-guard by his own admission. Mystery nosed tentatively at Arthur’s hand and was rewarded with a few more pats to the head and a small smile from the young man. Over the tops of his glasses, the kitsune could see Vivi and Lewis exchange concerned glances.

“Well, I don’t have Die Hard with me, but how about a movie?” Vivi suggested, eager to offer a distraction to try and lift their spirits. Without waiting for a response, she pulled the bag she’d packed for the trip into her lap, digging through it fervently.

“Duet’s not real big on commercial, non-secular holidays. So far, The Tome Tomb has remained unspoiled by those tacky Christmas stations you hear in most stores this time of year. I’m actually not sick of Christmas yet,” Vivi said as she rummaged, “Aha! Here it is, the best Christmas movie of all time!” She displayed the DVD case to the others with a flourish. Mystery perked up as he saw the familiar title.

“A Nightmare Before Christmas?” Arthur said, his smile now returning in earnest, “That would be your favorite.”

“I watch it every year with Mystery! Things have been so hectic lately, I haven’t had a chance yet though. What do you guys think?”

“So long as I don’t have to listen to ‘Feliz Navidad’ for the rest of our road trip, I’m happy,” Lewis replied.

“We should still have enough charge left for a movie,” Arthur said, handing his laptop back to Vivi. It was all the encouragement she needed, and with a whoop of excitement, the young woman quickly popped open the CD drive and inserted the disc. They all crowded in front of the small screen, glum mood from moments earlier all but forgotten. Vivi wasted no time in piling the blankets on top of her friends, making sure they were all sufficiently cozy before finally pressing play. Mystery curled up on Vivi’s lap as the movie began, his chin resting on Arthur’s knee as the mechanic resumed stroking his fur. The four of them chattered happily about plans for the holidays and the upcoming year, joking and laughing as the DVD played. Eventually they lapsed into a comfortable silence and began to doze before the movie even finished. As usual, Vivi was the first to nod off, though she was quickly followed by Arthur to Mystery’s surprise. Lewis, seeing them fast asleep, bade the kitsune a quiet good night as the black coffin he rested in materialized in the back of the van, disappearing just as quickly once its occupant was inside. With all of his pups resting for the night, Mystery surveyed the warm scene he’d found himself a part of. Arthur finally looked relaxed, a bit of drool dotting the corner of his mouth, and Vivi had cocooned herself entirely in blankets, except for an arm that had been flung around the mechanic’s waist in her sleep. Mystery chuckled fondly before he spared a final glance out the window, still seeing nothing but snowflakes flicker past the glass. Just as the credits began to roll, he finally curled up in the blankets at Vivi’s side and joined the others in sleep.

Outside, something colorless as snow stood poised to strike.

#mystery skulls animated #msa #msa fanfic #mystery skulls animated fanfic #arthur #lewis #vivi #mystery #arthur kingsmen #lewis pepper #vivi yukino #Snowdrift #christmas mentions

2 notes · View notes

distractedhistotech · 4 years

Text

Before MSA + 1: Halloween

Arthur had managed to put together something that acted like a diaper but which fitted into his pocket instead of around the hamster. “It takes a little bit to put them together though…”

Cadence seemed happy with the pocket diaper considering how much time she was spending in Arthur’s shirt and coat pockets.

“I wonder if you could incorporate it into your Halloween costume,” mused Vivi.

“Uh…What’s Halloween?” asked Arthur.

Sydney and Lewis gave Arthur startled looks. “You don’t know what Halloween is?!”

Arthur panicked a bit as he realized this was something everyone was supposed to know about. “My parents were super religious,” he said quickly. Sydney and Lewis seemed to accept it.

“Halloween evolved from the Celtic celebration of Samhain,” explained Vivi. “It was the ending of the year at sun down, but the new year didn’t start until the sun rose. Being outside of time as it were meant that ghosts and the like had an easier time manifesting. It probably makes magic easier and stronger too. At some point, people started wearing scary outfits to try and blend in or scare away the spirits. That ritual eventually became putting on costumes for fun and, in the case of kids, going around to houses and asking for treats.”

The other kids were staring at her in surprise at the info dump, while Arthur was wondering if this meant Halloween was technically a pagan holiday.

“Actually, the Catholic church took a lot of pagan holidays and incorporated them into their religion. Christmas takes place in December because that’s when a big festival called Saturnalia took place in the Roman empire. Evidence suggests that Jesus was actually born in Spring,” continued Vivi as if she’d predicted Arthur’s thoughts.

The more Arthur learned the more he wondered if the adults in his early life knew what they were doing.

“Anyway…My dad makes cosplay as a side job so if you want he can make you guys costumes too,” said Sydney.

Lewis nodded. “He always makes costumes for us.”

Vivi perked up. “Really?”

Sydney nodded. “But nothing super complicated, okay? He’s gotta budget.”

“What’s cosplay?” asked Arthur.

“Costume play,” explained Lewis. “People dress up like characters from anime or videogames that they love. Some of the outfits are really complicated or accurate.”

“We usually do a theme for Halloween,” continued Sydney.

“We did Sailor Moon for a couple of years,” said Lewis.

“Another time we were Ed and Al Elric,” said Sydney. “I’m not sure what we could do with four people.”

“Power Rangers?” suggested Vivi.

“There’s usually five of ‘em though,” said Sydney.

“Is that a big deal?” asked Arthur.

“Not really,” said Lewis. “It would just seem a little weird to be short a ranger.”

“So, we need a group of four people,” muttered Sydney. “All I can think of are Transformers, but that might be too complicated.”

“All I can think of is the Scooby Doo gang,” said Vivi.

Silence. The kids turned to stare at Ben. “Would Ben let us dye his fur?” asked Lewis.

“I have no idea,” admitted Vivi. “Would the dye be safe?”

“I have no idea,” repeated Sydney. “Dad knows a bit about hair dye…”

“I think you could get away with leaving him white and black,” said Arthur.

“So, who would be who?” asked Lewis.

Vivi and Sydney promptly pointed at Lewis. “Fred.” Then they pointed towards Arthur. “Shaggy.”

“You do have the muscle tone going on,” agreed Arthur.

And Lewis blushed because he was somehow the biggest one there despite (probably) being the youngest. “W-well, who’s gonna be Velma and Daphne?”

Sydney and Vivi exchanged looks. That was…less obvious. Both wore glasses, had relatively short statures, and were fairly tomboyish.

“You’re shorter,” said Vivi.

Sydney pouted. “Yeah, I am. Guess that makes me Velma…What kind of name is Velma?”

“I dunno.”

“Will we need a van?”

“None of us can drive,” pointed out Arthur.

“Maybe a toy or something,” suggested Lewis.

“Oh, yeah, that makes more sense,” admitted Arthur.

The four kids (and dog and hamster) just lay there for several minutes. It hadn’t been a particularly odd conversation, but something in the air seemed heavy, as if something life changing had just happened.

Then Ben started licking Arthur’s face, ending the moment. Arthur let out a laugh. “H-hey! Stop! Stop!”

Vivi grinned. “You’re saying ‘stop’, but you’re laughing.” Ben decided to switch targets and started licking Vivi instead. She giggled. “Ben!”

“We should teach him how to talk!” Ben turned his attention to Sydney. “Hey! Ew! Your breath smells like fish! Why does it smell like fish? You’re not a cat!”

“Ben’ll eat anything if you give him the chance,” said Vivi.

Lewis pulled a bag of chips out from somewhere and grinned. “Like this?” He popped the bag open. He was immediately tackled by the dog. “Ack!” Ben quickly stuck his head in the bag and quickly snapped up the contents before transferring his ministrations to Lewis. “Oh yuck! Your breath really does smell like fish!”

“Hold him for me,” said Vivi. “I’ll brush his teeth!”

The whole thing devolved into a wrestling match. No teeth were cleaned. Everyone needed a bath afterwards.

Sydney had been right about the Scooby Doo costumes being fairly simple to make. She hadn’t stopped to think about make-up and hairstyling though.

“Are you almost done?” asked Sydney Jr.

“Almost…Just one more pin…and done!” Sydney Sr stepped back to admire how Sydney looked with the brown bob wig in addition to the rest of her costume. “The shape of the glasses aren’t the same, but I don’t think anyone will care.”

Sydney Jr. twirled and did a hop-skip over to Vivi, who was messing with her noticeably longer orange wig. “How ‘bout you?”

“I prefer shorter hair. Hair this long just…gets in the way,” said Vivi as she glared distastefully at a lock of orange hair.

Sydney nodded. “I hear ya. I just want it long enough to ponytail it.” She glanced at the boys. “How ‘bout you two?”

Unlike the girls, the boys weren’t wearing wigs. They’d just had their hair styled into a close approximation of their chosen characters. Sydney Sr claimed this was because the wigs would look too bulky unless the boys were willing to shave their hair. They weren’t.

Arthur fingered his hair. “This doesn’t feel too different from usual besides the colors.” He was wearing green and red. He was coming to prefer bright colors like orange and yellow.

Lewis was happily studying his reflection. “I kind of like this hairstyle.” He turned to Sydney Sr. “Will you teach me how to do this?”

Sydney Sr gave him a grin. “Sure! I’ll get you some decent hair mousse. Now, if you’ll excuse me I’m gonna go change into my costume.” On his way out, he ran into Hiro. “So, how’d Ben like the vegetable dye?”

“He tolerated it.” That was a lie. Ben had taken one look at the dye, snorted, and changed his fur color to the proper brown color.

“I’m leaving you alone with Noelle and the kids for a bit. Behave now.” And Sydney Sr hurried down the hallway.

Hiro raised an eyebrow. The Sydneys were pretty darn odd. Still, they got along with the rest of the family and friends, and Hiro did like them…in reasonable amounts.

He walked Ben over to the kids, who all started petting him. “Wow, this dye is really realistic,” said Lewis.

Sydney nodded. “My dad knows what he’s doing.”

“How you holding up boy?” asked Vivi. Ben licked her in response. “Good to know.”

“Oh, you kids look so cute like that,” said Noelle. “Let me get my camera!”

Hiro let the kids pose for the camera for several moments before clearing his throat. “Now, I don’t know how much you know about the holiday, but it is easier to come into contact with the supernatural starting tonight and lasting until November 2. It’s most intense on Halloween though. So, Mr. Scoville and I will be escorting you tonight. I have tools prepared to chase off anything that may take an untoward interest in your group, and you will all be spending the night here. Mr. Scoville also has some sort of repelling ability, so I’d imagine this is one of the safest places in the county.”

Arthur let out a sigh of relief. “That’s a relief.”

“Had some bad experiences?” asked Vivi.

Arthur nodded. “I just knew they were at the end of October. I didn’t know about the Halloween thing. Why does it get so much worse anyway?”

“That’s not something with a simple answer,” said Hiro. “Something makes…magic for lack of a better word more potent during these days, which makes it easier for people to see ghosts and for ghosts, along with other normally invisible entities, to become visible to people. It’s a good time for them to be heard if there’s something they want to get across to the mundane, living population.” Hiro glowered. “Although I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a tradition among the supernatural to have fun and try to scare humans. It’s what people are expecting to happen after all.”

Ben gave a barely noticeable shrug. Hiro wasn’t wrong, but it was more of a ‘teenagers messing around and doing things their parents won’t necessarily approve of’ sort of thing.

Arthur crossed his arms. “Well, I don’t like it, whatever it is…”

Vivi turned to Sydney and Lewis. “Have you guys ever noticed anything weird around this time of year?”

“I haven’t ever noticed anything,” said Sydney. “Lewis says there are ghosts all over the place though.”

Lewis nodded. “Yeah, some are pretty scary. It’s a lot more active in the cemetery and house. Sydney always spends the night since some of them look pretty scary.” Lewis made a face as something suddenly occurred to him. “Uh, this is the first Halloween we haven’t slept over at my house. Do you think Mom and Dad and Belle will be okay?”

“I put some ofudas up at your house that should keep away most dangerous entities,” reassured Hiro. “Honestly, you probably attract half of the activity so just spending time away from them will put a stop to a portion of the paranormal activity.”

“Huh, really? I had no idea,” said Lewis.

“Oh, yes, once ghosts figure out someone can see them word spreads very quickly.”

“Wait. I can’t see ghosts, so why do they keep following me around?” asked Arthur.

Hiro shrugged. “I’m not entirely sure why, but you…leak energy. Being around you is like it being Halloween all the time,” said Hiro. “You also have an aura that the supernatural find pleasing, like how kids will gravitate to a kitchen where cookies have just been cooked.”

“I could go for some cookies,” said Vivi.

“You’re going to be getting plenty of candy tonight,” said Noelle. “You can see about having cookies after you finish off the candy.”

Vivi grinned. “Challenge accepted.”

“No,” said Hiro.

“Aw…but-”

“No, you remember what happened last time,” said Hiro.

“Ooh, what happened last time?” asked Sydney.

“When she was five she ate all of her Halloween candy at once and didn’t sleep for three days,” explained Hiro. “She tried to feed Ben chocolate. Dogs can’t eat chocolate.”

Ben huffed because he could eat chocolate, thank you very much. Stupid need to hold up the illusion all the time. He couldn’t wait until Vivi was mature enough to know what he really was so he could relax at home. Not to mention it would be easier to snatch some of whatever that was Noelle was cooking.

Lewis must have noticed how Ben was staring longingly towards the kitchen because he grabbed a treat out of his pocket. “Would you like a Scooby Snack?”

Eh, it’ll do. Ben snapped it up and gave Lewis a lick of thanks.

“What’s taking your dad so long?” asked Vivi. “He said he was going to be a zombie. It can’t take that long to put on some torn clothing and fake blood.”

Sydney grinned. “Dad put in way more effort than that. There’s latex and make-up and contact lenses…”

“Mr. Scoville’s costumes are really complicated,” agreed Lewis.

Any further conversation was interrupted by a groaning sound. Everyone turned to see…a zombie. It was covered in bite marks, half rotten, had clouded over eyes, and dirty, torn clothing. It was completely unrecognizable as Sydney Sr.

“…Okay, that is a convincing zombie costume,” admitted Vivi.

“Thank you,” said Sydney Sr, briefly breaking character before going back to groaning.

“You look like a dead body!” said Arthur. “Which I guess is the point, but it’s creepy.”

Sydney Scoville groaned again. He sure was taking the zombie thing seriously.

“So…” Sydney Jr held up her treat bag. “Can we go trick-or-treating now?”

“Unnngh!”

“Taking that as a yes!”

Thankfully, the other adults decided to agree with the translation so the kids were able to head out. “There are a lot of costumes,” commented Arthur.

Vivi nodded. “Yep, it’s a popular holiday.”

“What a cute baby!” cooed Lewis at a young couple and their baby, all of them dressed like dinosaurs.

“Thank you!”

“But most of them seem to be younger than us,” continued Arthur.

“That guy’s older than us,” pointing at a guy dressed like a robot.

“People just prefer to go to parties once they get older. I don’t know why. They’re sooo boring,” complained Vivi. “Where’s the darkness? Where’s the creepy shadows? Where’s the questioning of if there’s a ghost around the corner or if that’s a really good werewolf costume or some werewolf decided to go to the store to pick up milk?”

“There are some ghosts following us,” commented Lewis.

Arthur tensed up. “Why?”

Lewis glanced towards the ghosts. “Are you sure he’s not a zombie? He looks pretty dead.”

“It’s Halloween. It’s obviously a very good costume.”

“He smells like a zombie though.”

“We’re ghosts! We can’t smell!”

“Oh yeah.”

“Besides, wasn’t there a Scooby-Doo movie with zombies?”

“Since when are there Scooby-Doo movies?”

“Mr. Scoville’s costume is really convincing,” said Lewis.

“Unngh!”

“Are zombies real?” asked Sydney.

“Yes,” said Hiro. “Under very specific circumstances. It takes one of a few specific rituals. It’s very dangerous and is not something that should ever be done unless you have prior permission from the subject of interest. Even then, it’s not recommended because of the possible side effects.” He paused. “Actually, this is a very complicated subject. Let’s talk about it when we have more time.”

“I don’t wanna talk about it at all,” muttered Arthur as they walked up to a house.

They took a moment to ring the doorbell, ask for treats, and thank the woman handing out the treats. Ben tried to beg for treats. This wasn’t allowed, and the group went on their way.

“Do ghost hunters have a lot of work on Halloween?” asked Sydney.

“Paranormal investigators,” corrected Hiro. “While we do look for ghosts, calling us ‘hunters’ suggests we intend to hurt ghosts in some way. That’s a last resort in cases where the ghosts in question seek to harm the living and cannot be convinced otherwise. And whether an investigator works on Halloween or not varies. Most will take the time off because they might get false positives. Some like working on Halloween though since they might get results they wouldn’t usually come by.”

“That doesn’t sound very professional,” muttered Arthur.

“I agree,” said Hiro. “Personally, I feel that circumstances that modify magical strengths can be dangerous, even if it’s something to your advantage.”

“Wouldn’t that make things easier?” asked Sydney.

“Yes, which might be good in an emergency, but it can make you under or overestimate a situation.”

“How is overestimating bad?” questioned Arthur.

Hiro took a minute to think about how to describe what he was thinking. “It’s like using a hand grenade to make a hole when a drill will suffice.”

Vivi, Lewis, both Sydneys, and even Arthur laughed. Hiro had to admit it wasn’t the best analogy, but it’s what he came up with on short notice.

“It’s like you thought the corn was sweet so you put in the wrong amount of salt,” said Lewis.

“That’s a better analogy,” admitted Hiro. “Anyway, once you outgrow trick-or-treating, you should find some way to spend Halloween that doesn’t involve the supernatural. Maybe go to a party or stay home and watch movies.”

“Watching movies would be nice,” said Arthur.

“Ooh! We could watch the Nightmare Before Christmas again!” said Vivi.

“You will not. It’s a school night,” said Hiro. “As it is the only reason you’re spending the night together is for safety’s sake.” He looked to Sydney Sr. “I’m trusting you and Mrs. Scoville to get the children to sleep and awake on time.”

“Nggggh!”

“That means yes,” said Sydney Jr.

“I still wish we could spend the night at Lewis’ house,” said Vivi. “There’s a lot more space, and it seems more fitting to spend Halloween in a haunted house.”

“Belle sometimes cries at night. She might wake you up,” said Lewis.

“Or we might wake her up,” countered Arthur.

“I don’t wanna wake Baby Belle up!” agreed Sydney Jr. “She’s cute when she’s sleeping.”

The subject of conversation rapidly changed to siblings and sleepovers. Hiro watched them absentmindedly before feeling something brush against his side.

It was just Ben, who gave him a smile unseen by anyone else. Hiro found himself smiling back. It was nice…seeing the children all so happy like this.

It would be nice if it would last forever.

#Arthur Kingsman #Lewis Pepper #Vivi Yukino #Sydney Scoville Jr.#Sydney Scoville Sr.#Hiro Yukino #Mystery the not-Dog #Brief Noelle sighting #Halloween episode #The gang dresses up as the gang #And talk about ghosts and stuff #While getting free candy #Then they get to have a sleepover

4 notes · View notes

yrpspiritsintheshadows · 5 years

Text

Escape to Neverland

“Mom and Dad were murdered.”

That… was what they had been afraid of.

An accident with a boat, a car wreck that lead them into the water, any of that, would’ve been preferable to what just left the teenager’s mouth.

“They were killed by freaks who wanted to study us.” Hideki spat, rage filling his eyes. “They wanted us to get away, to protect us… But…”

The boat was unnaturally white. It reminded him of when he had looked into the maw of a larger shark when it had a rather fierce fishing hook lodged in its maw.

He could trust the shark to not consume him or his loved ones though. The water was churning, bubbles forming all around them as they rushed all sides of the nets.

The net was clever, he would give the humans credit. It lodged in all the right places, preventing much movement from the four trapped within.

“W-What’s gonna happen to us, Mom?”

The mermaid beside him had a pained look in her eyes. Aika was scared but her fear for her children, outweighed the fear for her life.

“We’re going to be fine, Hideki… I promise.”

“Mom…”

The water disappeared, as the family of four were suspended over a hold tank, holding desperately to one another.

“It appears there is one adult male, one adult female and two juveniles, ma’am.”

“Excellent. Plenty of specimens for study then.”

“We were trying so hard to get away. Nothing was cutting it. Mom even was trying to bite it. The head scientist… she’s a psychopath.” Hideki sniffled, shaking like a leaf. “She… She wanted four. Just four…”

“Hideki…”

“... She wanted two to autopsy… and two to track their growth. When they went to drop us into the tank… Mom paid the price.” Hideki gripped at his arms, his nails carving crescents into the sleeves of his shirt.

The tank was rapidly approaching them as they fell. Aika acted on pure instinct, grabbing Hideki.

The tank was close enough to the side. Before the young man knew what had happened, she threw him over the side as her body hit the floor of the boat.

“RUN! JUST RUN!!!!”

He hit the water just as she was pulled out of sight.

“I know they died that night. They appeared before me. I don’t know what she did to them but it messed them up…” Hideki sighed heavily. “All I know is, that they’re gone… and now my brother is some lab rat for them. I don’t know what they’re gonna do to Hikaru now… or to others of my kind…”

“She’s going to jail for murder, that’s what she is.” Skyler narrowed her eyes. “I promise you that.”

“And we’re going to get Hikaru back. I promise.” Eiji gave him a gentle look. “You are so brave kiddo. So brave.”

“No I’m not… If I had just fought harder… or didn’t let Mom throw me over the edge…”

“Hey, hey, no…” He tilted the boy’s chin up. “Take it from another parent. She made that choice because she had to choose. She chose her children over her own life because she loved you both so much. I’m sure if they hadn’t caught her, your brother would’ve been next over the side.”

“You think so…?”

“I know so. Because if it was between Ken or my own life, I’d choose him every time.” Eiji stroked his arm. “And I’d choose you too if you were my kid. You’ve been through literal Hell and look at you…”

“A scared, shaking mess.”

“A survivor.”

Hideki’s eyes stung with tears as he threw his arms around Eiji.

“I didn’t wanna be…”

“I know…” He hugged him tightly, stroking his back. “I know, Kiddo…”

We’re gonna get you help.

Hideki curled up in his chair, trying to keep close.

“Shh… I got you…”

“You promise?”

“I promise.”

oooooo

It didn’t take long for Eiji to get ahold of the rest of the team. It was just a matter of planning now. For this was far different than a paranormal investigation.

They arrived with a rough idea of the situation, until Skyler filled the other two in on it. Now, they were in the garage, using an old card table to draw out a map of the area.

“The kid doesn’t remember the name of the ship and quite frankly I don’t blame him. He saw his life get torn apart in front of him.” Skyler narrowed her eyes. “So, we’ll have to go by the one thing we can guarantee… The parents’ ghosts.”

Chase looked up from his laptop screen.

“Still figuring out who these nuts are. Once I get a name, we can keep going.”

Eiji nodded to him.

“Thank you. Seriously, thank all of you for this.”

Lucian smirked a little.

“We go where you tell us to go. That’s how this works, Eiji. How’s the kid doing right now?”

Eiji frowned, sighing.

“Badly. Carmen managed to convince him to go to bed since he’s already done enough with giving us the statement. She managed to get him to sleep.”

“The Carmen Sonata?”

“Basically. The kid was out like a light after a few songs.”

He nodded.

“So, let me be the one to ask this… What are we gonna do IF we stumble across the corpses? It’s not like if they’re still changed that can be easily reported.”

“I know some people in Geistville PD.” Skyler spoke up. “They work with my branch of social services.”

“There we go… And if the kid is with us?”

“Keep him from seeing it if we can.” Eiji looked at the map of the city, circling the pier. “But, they’re not stupid. I doubt they’d be doing autopsies and holding the kid captive for further tests on the boat still. That’d just be stupid on their part. And Hideki didn’t say it was a huge boat either.”

Chase cleared his throat, gaining their attention.

“I think… I have an idea.” He turned his screen so the others could see. “These guys, are a supposed research team to prove the existence of mermaids and the like. They call themselves PROTEOME.”

“Proteome…”

He nodded.

“They’ve been running for at least twenty five years, going through their staff but their head scientist has apparently been out for mermaid blood for years. Apparently got accused of kidnapping a young woman back in the 80’s who was just out in her costume for an aquarium performance.”

Great. They’re all nuts.

“Got a campus or something?”

“Yeah, they don’t even try to hide it.” He zoomed in on the site, showing a large concrete building.

“... Isn’t that…?”

“The old Geistville Aquarium before they moved to the new building? Yep. Still out in the sticks.”

“... Great.” Eiji clapped his hands. “We got us an invasion to do then.”

“I’ll contact my friends at the department.”

“I’ll get us the next few days off.” Chase volunteered. “Who do you wanna potentially jinx this time with “chronic illness, have to take personal days”?”

“Hm…. I guess Oba-san.” He mused.

Lucian rolled his eyes.

“Your grandma is like what, 85? Isn’t that a little harsh?”

Eiji grinned.

“Hey, Oba-san is awesome. She gets me. Besides… Who do you think is gonna help curse these guys?”

“... Eiji, sometimes you scare me. But I’m not gonna disagree.”

They all looked at the image on the screen.

“We’re gonna get that kid back… and we’re sending those scientists to jail, no matter what.” Eiji narrowed his eyes. “With the Divine as my witness…”

We WILL win.

oooooo

“I should go with you.”

Eiji looked up from trying to decide his “disguise”, giving Hideki a firm look.

“No.”

The boy was leaning on the door to the master bedroom, a look of determination in his eyes.

“They killed my parents. My brother might be next. I should be there for him. C’mon…”

Eiji shook his head.

“It’s gonna be dangerous. We won’t do the crossing of your parents before we get Hikaru back to you. You both deserve the chance to say goodbye.”

“It’s not…” His voice cracked. “... Okay. Maybe it is about that. We’re gonna get shipped off to a foster home when this is over right?”

“Nope.”

“... Huh?”

Eiji moved to him, laying a hand on his shoulder, warmth coming to his eyes.

“We wanted to tell you boys when we got Hikaru back but… my wife and I talked last night. We always did want more kids… and Ken would love two big brothers…”

Hideki covered his mouth, stunned.

“You… guys want us?”

“Why not? We have plenty of room… More than enough rooms honestly and this is a bit more personal. If something happened to us… we’d want someone to find our son and help him. So, if it’s okay with you…”

“It… It is…” Hideki wiped at his eyes. “I don’t have to leave?”

“Never. And you two can go at whatever pace you want, okay? We just want to give you guys a home.”

Hideki hugged him again, his shoulders relaxing.

“Thank you…”

Eiji hugged him, stroking his hair.

“Anything for you… Now, Carmen has her own job for ya today if you’re okay with that.”

“Hm?”

Eiji gave him a playful look.

“You know your twin best. He’s gonna need a room to call his own.”

Hideki’s eyes lit up.

“I can handle that!” He grinned.

“Atta boy. Now, go ask her about that. I gotta go “Science Intern E. Fumio.””

“That is such a lame name!”

“Yeah, yeah, go!”

Before long, Eiji was meeting the others outside. Instead of one car, however, they had two.

Eiji’s van… and a black humvee.

“... Lucian, the heck?”

Lucian looked up from where he was leaning on it.

“I called in a favor from my uncle alright? It’s for insurance.”

“You’re… not gonna run anyone down, right?”

“Me? Noooo.” He grinned. “Never.”

“... I’m not even gonna ask.” He cleared his throat, adjusting his glasses. “Alright, let’s roll!”

They were off after that, in their own ragtag caravan, with two members per car.

We have as much supplies as we can get… Skyler has the cops ready to go at any moment…

Are we really gonna do this?

He took a deep breath.

Heck yes.

oooooo

They knew they weren’t alone when the paranormal gear in the back started going off.

“Murderers.” The automated voice of the ghost box rang out. “Murdered us. Murdered.”

“We know. We know. But you guys can’t set this off.”

The equipment settled down but it suddenly felt very crowded in the car.

The stark white building of the old aquarium soon came into view. While it was in the “sticks”, as Chase put it, it still had a runoff to the sea.

The team parked about 20 feet from the building, their cars nestled in the brush. Due to how long it had been since the building had actually been the aquarium of old, the forest had begun to engulf it somewhat.

However, unlike the forest that Eiji’s home was built in, that seemed to welcome and cradle the small family and shelter them from harm…

This forest, was hollow… the trees twisting in gnarled forms, as if ready to come down and strike.

“Alright, the plan is, we go in where the flow to the sea is coming out.” Eiji whispered, pulling out a schematic of the building. It was old, an image from ages ago but the skeleton of the building on the inside should still be the same. He pointed to an area he circled. “Looking up old pictures, this area had a ledge to walk on because some employees would leave that way or do maintenance.”

“Then…” Skyler used her fingertip to circle another area. “If we're lucky, Hikaru should be around where the sharks initially were kept. If he’s being kept in his changed form then he’d get sick in a tiny space. They can’t keep him in shallows. He HAS to move or he’ll die.”

“And they wanted him alive.” Lucian hefted his bag of supplies over his shoulder. “Which means, the kid should at least still be somewhat stable psychically.”

“Right.” Chase narrowed his eyes. “Lucian, you should go with Eiji. Skyler and I can take out security cameras.”

“With what?”

Chase pulled out of the back, a rather intimidating looking weapon. At Eiji’s glare of disapproval, he scoffed.

“It’s a BB gun. I checked, it’s legal. Albeit this is definitely NOT a legal version.”

“And Sky-”

Skyler pulled out from her car a large aluminum baseball bat. She gave an experimental swing as it whistled through the air.

“Like I said, I got this. It’ll be risky if we all go in at once. Chase and I will follow after you guys.” She held up her cellphone. “But, we should all turn on tracking so we can keep tabs on each other.”

They all nodded, setting down their devices, before turning to the building.

“Let’s go.”

They ran towards the building, keeping low when they noted the cameras. They quickly got out of the range, moving between them.

“One… two…”

POP!

One camera was taken out. Chase aimed his BB gun at another, firing again as it was broken.

Skyler climbed up onto a ledge, swinging her bat as hard as she could, crumpling them in place, knocking them loose.

While they were dispatching the cameras, Eiji and Lucian slipped into the tunnel that the runoff came out of. As suspected, there was a ledge to walk along, albeit very small.

With backs pressed to the wall, they pressed onward, sliding along carefully.

Eiji had muted the ghost box’s voice but still kept it on to see the text that would pop up.

“Dark tank, room of death.”

Room of death, huh?

“Eiji.” Lucian hissed, pointing above them.

A camera was slowly swiveling towards them. The men jumped across the stream of water, pressing against the opposite wall.

There was a spark as the camera was torn right out of the wall and dropped into the water. An orb flew by their heads at that moment as another camera further down was thrown against the wall.

“Thank you.” Eiji whispered.

They kept moving onward, huddled against the wall. Every now and then there was an orb that would move near them, almost beckoning them.

Chase and Skyler should be heading down this way any minute.

Eiji and Lucian soon made it to the end of the runoff, finding an “EMPLOYEES ONLY” door.

“So, how bad you think it’s gonna be in there?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. “I mean, it’s not gonna be THAT easy right?”

“Let’s not even speculate that.”

Eiji went to open the door, only for it to be wrenched open for him.

“I guess it’s that easy.” Lucian remarked, not even phased.

A gust of wind rushed them, a faint hiss in the air. The hallway before them was illuminated as a shadowy image formed on the floor…

The image of a woman with long hair that flowed in the wind created by her spirit.

Aika….

Eiji swallowed hard as the shadow began to move down the hall, a tendril like arm beckoning them.

“No… wait-”

“We’re here.”

Lucian and Eiji had to clamp their hands over their mouths to keep from crying out. Lucian whirled around, lightly smacking Chase on the shoulder.

“Idiot!” He hissed. “Don’t scare us like that!”

Chase grimaced.

“Well, sorry! We didn’t wanna get left behind!” He hissed back.

Eiji held up a hand, signaling for silence. The shadow was still moving, beckoning them.

Another gust of wind behind the team sealed the door shut. Sealing them in for now.

This is where it gets real.

Just please, be alive.

The hallway was dimly lit by flickering bulbs above them as they moved. Twisting and turning until the shadow lead them to another door.

Eiji took a deep breath before pushing it open. The team braced themselves to be mobbed by guards or what have you…

Instead, they found themselves in another hallway.

Bracing themselves, they made their way down. Old posters from the past hung on the walls, faded from age, almost like ghosts themselves.

Eiji nodded towards an entrance where light was coming from as they kept close to the wall.

He peered around the corner, taking note that they must have been near what used to be the infirmary for the animals that used to live here…

Instead, it resembled a morgue now, complete with lockers.

Room of death huh?

Two shadows appeared this time, on either side of the room, twitching and shifting in shape. Their forms taking on a more fish like appearance, long tails curling along the walls.

… This is where it happened.

“This is where they were killed. It has to be.” He whispered.

Lucian snapped a picture with his phone, knowing they’d have to give this to the police later.

“Let’s make sure we keep up recording what we can eh?”

“Right.”

Click, clack.

The four jumped, looking down the hall. They could hear footsteps, slowly coming their way.

“...Frick.”

There was no choice was there? Even if they didn’t want to, they had to scramble. Skyler and Eiji ducked into a supply closet in the morgue, while Chase and Lucian darted back to behind a wall near the entrance they had come in.

It was foolish but they didn’t want to set off any alarms yet.

The footsteps were growing closer to the morgue, the shadows disappearing as they did.

Please, don’t need anything from here. Please.

My circle of protection, only that which is in the light can enter. You cannot see us, you cannot see us.

Skyler lifted up her cellphone, turning on the camera, setting it to record once the footsteps reached the room. They could hear whoever it was moving around.

“Let’s see… Ah, the samples from the female. Perfect. Ah, pity we couldn’t observe her more, but the autopsy was very telling.”

Skyler and Eiji exchanged a disgusted look. He opened the door, just a crack to see who they were dealing with.

They were a woman, in their 40’s if he had to guess, wearing a smock to cover them as they jotted down notes on a clipboard. Their dark, hair was tied back in a bun, red nails catching the overhead light.

She moved across the room to the morgue locker.

“Let’s see… Today, we’re doing the male. Comparing his cells, to the juvenile.”

Skyler held up her bat, Eiji shook his head.

Let me smash. She mouthed.

Eiji turned his attention back to her as Skyler held her up her phone to capture what was happening.

They both had to turn away as the morgue locker was opened. Skyler may have been recording, but neither wanted to see Daisuke’s corpse.

She’s sick… This is sick…. We gotta get outta here.

It was closed after a few minutes. Skyler and Eiji pulled back before they could be spotted as Skyler turned off the camera.

She narrowed her eyes, holding up the bat one more time.

“Wait.” He whispered so faintly that only she could hear. “We can’t.”

Even if he really wanted to. Oh, he was very tempted to let her go ham on this person.

But, we can’t go to jail either for assault.

He watched, noting her back was to them. He slowly slid the door open as they made their way out, back to the hall.

“Eiji.” Chase hissed as they spotted their teammates standing near another doorway.

“How much did you get?” Lucian whispered as they huddled against the wall.

“... Stuff we shouldn’t have on camera but it’s enough damning evidence.” Skyler whispered.

Lucian shook his head.

We’re all either gonna need therapy or booze after this. Probably both.

“Let’s keep moving.”

There were no more concrete hallways with one off rooms from here. They entered what used to be the largest room in the aquarium.

They all remembered the signs and advertisements from back then.

I remember way back when it was Geistville’s hidden secret that they had a Great White on display here with no issues.

No one questioned when coven members worked here. Especially Predator Born like the twins…

The tank itself stretched across a 50 foot radius, taking up the majority of the room. Once upon a time, it held one of the most majestic predators of the sea.

It didn��t appear to be in use… At least, at this time. They noted it was set up more inside like an enrichment area for something to learn from… or someone.

Hikaru.

Taking note of it, Eiji took another look, pressing his forehead against the glass.

“Are you here? Aika? Daisuke?” He whispered.

No movement…. at least, of shadows. He could see a faint movement far against the wall. He could barely see. It wasn’t an issue when the Great White was the only thing in the tank. Everyone saw it clear as day, swimming about…

That’s him.

“We gotta get access to that tank.” Eiji pointed to where he was looking, the others following suit.

There was no mistaking it. The small form huddled against the wall… was a predator born merfolk.

For a brief moment he was alone… then they saw them.

The shadowy forms of his parents, huddling around him in a protective ball.

“Hikaru…” He frowned, his heart breaking. “Please hang in there… Da-....I’m coming.”

Lucian squeezed his shoulder.

“C’mon, let’s find the stairwell. They have to have a means to get in there.”

“Right. Skyler?”

“Already calling my buds at the department and filming.”

He grinned. So far, they had avoided detection, even found who they were looking for.

But it can’t be that easy, can it?

He moved away from the tank, ready to find more… only to nearly ram into a person.

“Oof!”

“Hey! Watch it you dumb intern!”

Eiji growled a bit as the man before him got up in his face. He was made very aware that they were not alone here.

“How about you watch your step, huh?”

The scientist narrowed his eyes, looking him over. Eiji froze up a little, adjusting his glasses.

“... Which department do you work under?”

Eiji swallowed hard.

“My colleagues and I are…”

Lucian clapped him on the shoulder.

“Oi, Tadashi, you dummy, remember?” He laughed. “We’re with pathology!”

Tadashi? I thought I was… Oh, Lucian you are clever.

“Oh yeah? What are you doing here then?”

Lucian shoved Eiji aside a little.

“Don’t mind Tadashi, we’re all here for the same glorious purpose aren’t we? To prove to the world that we’ve finally made the discovery?”

The scientist studied him for a second before grinning.

“Very true.”

“Yes.” Lucian cleared his throat. “One of your associates sent me to get samples from the juvenile to compare to the deceased male.”

The scientist smirked.

“Being thorough. Of course Susan would send a full team to get a bit of flesh from the dorsal.”

Skyler hurried forward.

“That’s right! Do you know where we can get the sling to keep him still?”

… You all can’t be this smooth. They’re not gonna just let us get near him right?

“Hm… I’d have to get it from medical… Are you sure four of you can handle him? He’s a biter.”

“How hard would it be? He’s 14.”

“You should’ve been on the boat.” He laughed. “We lost one but we had the three.”

Skyler had her bat behind her back, sliding it into her jacket, keeping behind Chase. The man had his back to them.

“I see… Shall we walk and talk? You three wait here.” Lucian gave Eiji a look as if asking permission.

He nodded.

“Yes… We’ll go over the goals for the biopsy.”

“Good, good.”

Once they were out of sight, they kept close to each other.

“Seriously, something is wrong with these people.” Chase whispered.

Eiji looked around. There were only a few scientists milling about, heading to their respective departments.

“We’re not seeing the full picture. And I doubt we want to. We need to just play along.”

“And then I smash?”

“Then you do whatever the heck you want.”

#spirits in the shadows #eiji miyamoto #Skyler Nicks #Chase Armati #Lucian Anameches #Hideki Kishimoto #Hikaru Kishimoto #spirits #merfolk #paranormal #supernatural #literary webseries #literature #Original Work #original writing #original characters #writeblr #storm arashi #yellow rose productions

5 notes · View notes

svbcritic · 5 years

Text

chances are i’m still working on my boy prince’s intro bc i got bust at work and the world was against me writing up so imma post my fave boy charlie’s info here. but yes !! hello all !! it’s ur friendly neighborhood admin kristina ( the choi san mascot on the main !! ) so if u ever find urself having any issues or concerns then u can catch me here or on the main !!

⌈ wong yukhei, cismale, he/him ⌋ hey, is it CHARLIE JIN that you’re looking for? you know, the TWENTY-ONE year old PODCASTER. typically i see them hanging around GRISTOL POINT so you could try there! i hear they’ve been in living in SAUGATUCK for FIVE YEARS. gristol wouldn’t be the same without them, right? anyway, whenever i see them they make me think of UNAPOLOGETIC LAUGHTER, A COLLECTION OF PASTEL COLORED DENIM JACKETS, HEADPHONES HUNG AROUND HIS NECK, & THE SMELL OF STRAWBERRIES.

STATS

full chinese name: jin ximen / americanized name: charlie jin / nicknames: charlie / ethnicity: chinese & thai / sexuality: bisexual / occupation: true crime podcaster / spoken languages: cantonese, thai, english, korean, spanish, & ( conversational ) mandarin / hogwarts house: slytherin

BIOGRAPHY

okie dokie so charlie ( born ximen ) is the youngest of the four kids between his parents born and riased in shanghai and their wedding was some big event bc both families were heavily affluent and prominent in their home countries

charlie’s dad hailed from shanghai, china where his family had a long lineage of old money and a 5 star international hotel chain that’s comparable to the four seasons .. meanwhile charlie’s mom is from thailand where her family has ties to the oil industry which is how they built their wealth .. their marriage was more political than anything and wanting to combine their wealth in industries the other was lacking in

as the youngest kid and the only boy with three older sisters, charlie never lacked a caregiver bc he was an adorable little boy who charmed whoever he met and though he was a little shit, his sisters loved him and helped raise him alongside a clan of nannies that his parents hired when they were busy off on different continents running their respective businesses

charlie definitely was more of a mommy’s boy in the sense that his mom made more of an effort to spend time with him bc as her only son, she held him on a pedestal and since she was a well known fashion designer, she often brought charlie to her studio and let him run wild in some of the garments and clothing that was in storage and whatnot

from this charlie had a lil mini modeling career ( lmao not really )where he would do mock photoshoots with some of the models in his mom’s bridal collections and eventually bc he was adorable and everyone loved him, they dressed him in some mini tuxes and he appeared in some campaigns for his mom’s bridal collection

generally though charlie was an exuberant kid who often had more energy than he knew what to do with and that often had him getting in trouble at the expensive prep school his parents had him enrolled in . which he frequently was scolded by his dad for his hellion behavior jdsklafjd

so it was a constant push and pull between charlie and his dad in trying to calm down his son .. which wyd he;s just a happy go lucky boy hsalkjf but anyway charlie was eventually enrolled in a soccer club so he could wear himself out by running all the time and tbh it kinda worked .. but also charlie actually enjoyed soccer so it worked out

his dad really thought he did something by keeping his teenage son out of trouble and letting him build teamwork skills ig … mainly bc he wanted his only son to take over the jin empire of their hotel chain even though charlie was like :/ .. and his mom was a bit :/ bc she knew charlie wasn’t the type who would want the weight of this empire on his shoulders even though his oldest sister was more experienced

but fun times for dad bc lit it’s w his soccer friends that charlie realizes that whatever heterosexuality is .. that ain’t him sdjldkjs but yeah he finds out that he’s into guys just as much as he’s into girls and he has a crush on one of his best friends on the soccer team w him

charlie was able to disguise his crush as a solid bro friendship around his dad meanwhile him and his friend were leaning on the scale of more than friends and 10/10 were making out whenever they were alone so yeah … things were swaggy for the first three months until charlie’s dad came home early from his trip from new york and walked into charlie’s room to see him fooling around with his friend

so yeah … things didn’t go great after that and the jin household was so painfully tense where his dad refused to go on any international trips and kept a strong grip on charlie and pulled him out of his school’s soccer team .. it was a tough time and definitely miserable for charlie despite his mom’s best efforts to help soothe him

nearly a month following The Incident ( as he dad refers to it as )he announced that 16 year old charlie was going to live with his aunt over in america and it was an absolute shit show at the house when his dad broke the news but the next day charlie found himself on a direct flight from shanghai to brindle bay where his aunt lives with her american husband and son

the move was a big adjustment for charlie and it was here that he started going by charlie bc the kids at his new school couldn’t pronounce ximen . originally he was a bit standoffish and reclusive bc his english was still shaky and he had an accent so this combination of things made him a target of some shitty xenophobic bullies and it put him down for a bit

it was a dark period that charlie doesn’t like to think back on and relied on the friendship he established with his cousin and it was through him that charlie began to blossom in brindle bay and make his own connections and realized that his dad is a dumbass bc he essentially sent him away for being into men but lmao !! sike dad !! bc now he gets to kiss boys if he wants without the rope around his neck from his dad

it’s been five years since charlie has been shipped to brindle bay and he keeps in contact with his sisters and mother and has visited shanghai a few times for some holidays and lets his dad think him being in america has helped him become more sensible and learn responsibility

when he graduated high school his mom offered to have him come home but charlie decided he wanted to stay more away from his dad for the time beginning and enrolled in college and got his degree in communication studies

it’s when he’s in school that he starts up his own podcast where he just discusses true crime and paranormal stories and such just bc it’s always been an interest of his .. he started it with his close friend that was his first Official friend in brindle bay and they’re two years into and it’s growing a strong listening base on spotify and apple music .. for comparison sake it’s a mix of buzzfeed unsolved and my favorite murder

but yeah overall charlie is an easy going guy who is usually seen with a smile on his face and just v fun loving , charismatic and loves talking to ppl ?? comes off v flirty but that’s just who he is bc he has that kinda vibe .. sometimes he doesn’t even realize he’s flirting bc it comes like breathing . he means well and is a soft boy who misses his family but is scared to go back home to china officially

WANTED CONNECTIONS

someone who helped show charlie around when he first came to brindle bay and maybe they built a friendship from it

someone who maybe helped him improve on his english when he first came to town and charlie is forever grateful to them and feels indebted to them for being there for him when he was self conscious and needed help

his first relationship .. p self explanatory but charlie and your muse dated for a bit and it was nice and sweet but things ended amicably between the two and they still remain friends

maybe one or two fwb’s that charlie respects their friendship and somehow their arrangement happened and things are going good and having someone on call when he’s feeling needy is a+ .. whether or not smth angsty can stem from this can be debated

his first friend that he made when coming to town and charlie’s podcast buddy !!

maybe someone who has a crush on charlie but he’s stupid and oblivious and his flirting that comes as easy as breathing doesn’t help the situation

a good influence ... helps charlie be a lil bit of a demon

a bad influence who is helping charlie embrace more of his hellion ways hfskd

or even someone who knows of his family’s wealth back in china and is trying to finagle their way into charlie’s good graces and hopefully try to get a cut of it

#gristolintro #boy 2 prince is on the way bc today was a bummer and a half

6 notes · View notes

sassybrit · 6 years

Text

What’s on your desk, Wednesday? Weekly Spotlight Feature!

From the desk of : : Kelli A. Wilkins

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

My Writing Routine :

Kelli A. Wilkins www.KelliWilkins.com

Greetings! My computer desk is in my guest room. We don’t have many guests, so I’m free to use the whole room as a makeshift office. The window closest to the desk overlooks the street, the neighbour’s house, and trees. Sometimes one of my cats will leap on the desk and walk across the keyboard to jump into the window. (He’s a birdwatcher.)

An antique dresser sits next to the desk and I have a bed behind me. It’s not for naps – it’s usually cluttered with papers, folders, notebooks, and my CD player. When I’m working, I always have music playing in the background. It’s one of my writing rituals.

People often ask me if music plays a part in my writing – yes, definitely. I even used music as an important plot element in my contemporary romance Trust with Hearts. (The hero is a country music singer.) I listen to everything from A to Z – all genres, all styles. Depeche Mode one minute, Elvis the next, then Dwight Yoakam, or disco…

The type of writing project I’m working on influences what music I listen to. For example, if I’m doing marketing (blogs, promos, review requests) I’ll listen to anything as background. (Right now Don Henley is on.) If I’m typing up a new book, I’ll listen to something loud and fast (the faster the music, the faster I can type). If I’m editing or proofreading and really have to focus and concentrate, I’ll put on something instrumental or New Age (like Loreena McKennitt or Enya).

Many people are surprised at how and when I write. Although I have my computer desk, I don’t actually use it to write. Believe it or not, I write everything out in longhand on paper using a real pen. It’s another of my writing rituals.

Before I start writing, I make a rough outline of the scenes in the book. This way I have a map of where the book (or short story) is going. Of course, the outline changes as I actually write, and I end up adding or deleting scenes, or completely rearranging things, but that’s okay.

I can (and do) write anywhere at any time. When the weather is nice I sit in my backyard and write. During the winter I’ll sit in the living room and write in a comfy chair. (With soft music playing in the background, of course. Silence is too oppressive.) For me, writing longhand lets me get deeper into the story and connect with the characters.

When I have the rough draft of the book (or short story) written, I take it to the desk and type it up. As I type, I make edits and revise each chapter, then I print it out. By the time I’m looking at a printed version, the book is already a second draft. From there, I take those printed pages anywhere and edit/revise again. (Usually that happens outside.) After that, I go back to the desk and type my changes, give it a final proofread, and I’m done.

Most days, I write for two hours at a time, then take a break and come back later for another hour or so. Of course, when I’m deep into the story I never realize how much time has passed. And I don’t aim to complete a certain word count or page count each day. Instead, I decide to write the next two or three scenes and see where I end up.

After I finish a book, I spend time doing guest blogs, interviews, and marketing, then it’s on to the next thing. Sometimes I try to do too much and my brain goes on strike and refuses to write, edit, or read another word. When that happens, I take some time off. I’ll read books I didn’t write, watch way too much TV, or do nothing. Within a week, my muse is refreshed and I’m back to writing.

But all work and no play can get dull, so I go on holiday with my husband every year. During that time I do no writing and I don’t even check my email. (When I’m away, I’m away!) However, I do keep a notebook handy for story ideas that pop up based on the places we travel.

My writing routine is a bit unusual compared to other authors, but it works for me. To date, I’ve written 19 romance novels (in all genres: historical, gay, contemporary, and paranormal), and published more than 100 short stories. I never know where my writing will take me, but I enjoy the journey!

I hope you’ll check out some of my books and tell me what you think. I enjoy getting feedback from readers and welcome questions and comments. You can contact me via the email address on the News page of my site, or visit me on social media.

Happy Reading!

Kelli A. Wilkins

About the Book : :

Kelli’s historical/fantasy novella, A Most Unusual Princess is the first book in the “Royal Desires” series. The other two books are A Most Intriguing Temptation and A Most Unfortunate Prince. Although the stories are connected, each stands alone as an individual read.

A Most Unusual Princess

Princess Elara needs to find a royal husband, but claims that no man can satisfy her. Her father hires Dalton, a special guard, to watch over her while she’s courting suitors. Dalton finds her unusual behaviors charming—and enthralling.

Dalton’s aloof manner intrigues Elara, and despite their differences, they share tender moments and intimate nighttime encounters. Elara is heartbroken when her father chooses a “proper” husband for her—until she meets the mystery man.

Bonus! This e-book includes a sneak peek at the second book in the “Royal Desires” series: A Most Intriguing Temptation.

Order your copy here:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Most-Unusual-Princess-Historical-Fantasy-ebook/dp/B01CBX43D8

Apple: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1135216413

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1017485724;jsessionid=6540685BC6B5D5C5C6B56564F6EAD5B0.prodny_store02-atgap10?ean=2940153348230#productInfoTabs

Scribd: https://www.scribd.com/book/317882471/A-Most-Unusual-Princess-Royal-Desires-Series-1

Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/a-most-unusual-princess-historical-fantasy-romance

Page Foundry: http://www.inktera.com/store/title/0a506ade-183c-49be-b36d-2fe4c1b9e92d

About the Author : :

Kelli A. Wilkins is an award-winning author who has published more than 100 short stories, 19 romance novels, and 5 non-fiction books. Her romances span many genres and heat levels.

Her paranormal-comedy, Beauty & the Bigfoot, was published in September 2017.

Kelli released Trust with Hearts, a contemporary romance, in July 2017. Her third gay romance, Four Days with Jack, was released in June 2017. Kelli’s trilogy of erotic romance novellas, Midsummer Night’s Delights, Midwinter Night’s Delights, and Ultimate Night’s Delights was published in spring 2017.

Loving a Wild Stranger was published in January 2017. This historical/pioneer romance is set in the wilds of the Michigan Territory and blends tender romance with adventure.

Kelli’s third Medallion Press romance, Lies, Love & Redemption was released in September 2016. This spicy historical western is set on the Nebraska prairie in 1877.

Her writing book, You Can Write—Really! A Beginner’s Guide to Writing Fiction is a fun and informative guide filled with writing exercises and helpful tips all authors can use.

Kelli posts on her Facebook author page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorKelliWilkins and Twitter: www.Twitter.com/KWilkinsauthor.

She also writes a weekly blog: http://kelliwilkinsauthor.blogspot.com/.

Visit her website, www.KelliWilkins.com to learn more about all of her writings, read book excerpts, reviews, and more. Readers can sign up for her newsletter here: http://eepurl.com/HVQqb.

Here are a few links to find Kelli & her writings on the web

Amazon Author Page: www.amazon.com/author/kelliwilkins

Website: http://www.KelliWilkins.com

Blog: http://kelliwilkinsauthor.blogspot.com/

Newsletter sign-up: http://eepurl.com/HVQqb

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorKelliWilkins

Facebook Contemporary Romances: https://www.facebook.com/Contemporary-Romances-by-Kelli-A-Wilkins-1965702023664339/

Facebook Gay Romances: https://www.facebook.com/GayRomancesbyKelliAWilkins/

Facebook Historical Romances: https://www.facebook.com/Historical-Romances-by-Kelli-A-Wilkins-1703805359922371/

Twitter: www.Twitter.com/KWilkinsauthor

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/KWilkinsAuthor/

Medallion Press Author Page: http://medallionpress.com/author/kelli-wilkins/

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1123678.Kelli_A_Wilkins

Authors Den: http://www.authorsden.com/visit/author.asp?authorid=61801

Join in!

Want to take part in this weekly author spotlight?

Just fill in this quick form here and send me your details! Open to anyone with a desk, a writing routine, and a book, product or website to promote. That means book bloggers, authors, freelance writers… you get the gist!

I regularly tweet past guest posts…

Check out my NEW Patreon Site : : https://www.patreon.com/SassyBrit

What’s on your desk, Wednesday? #AuthorSpotlight Kelli A. Wilkins @KWilkinsauthor What’s on your desk, Wednesday? Weekly Spotlight Feature! From the desk of : : Kelli A. Wilkins…

#Featured

2 notes · View notes

avtrose-blog · 7 years

Text

plot call no.2 // ooc

PLOTCALL bc i’m BACK my hiatus is over whew !!!!!! ^^;;;; also some random starter prompts ish? if none of them tickle your muse but you’d like to plot too just hit that like and i’ll come bearing cookies hehe /showers confetti and hugs these are bribes yes

i. closed

she chances upon them entirely by accident when they’re practicing and thinks she can help them with control because god knows she’s had to scrape control together from nothing. she’s going to be a bit blustery because she learnt all of it through trial and error and she might be inaccurate but you can be sure she’ll try. joy mentors this person!

ii. open, no preference

they’re already friends, but joy plays a prank too cruel on them, and she doesn’t know what to do with the fallout. (there is much plotting to do about this ack it rlly depends on ur muse)

iii. kiko

she learns quickly that strength and speed are not all there is to fighting. she’d picked up a bit from the wild fights she’d watched, but her skills are basic. this person is pretty darn good at fighting, so she corners them one day after watching them fend of a bunch of other people she definitely didn’t send, asking them to teach her. (this is questionable ethics honestly ur muse can refuse/i expect they won’t take too well to finding out she made people angry just to see how well they fight??? so er could also be a possible thread where they find out and shit goes down instead lol)

iv. sanghyuk

i just want a fun plot where they go to the arcade and joy’s like !!!! wow FUN and she has fun and she laughs and enjoys herself ok just FLUFFY LIL THINGS GOOD THINGS THAT’S ALL I WANT

v. open, no preference

she texts herself reminders bc she hasn’t figured out the use of a phone proper (and she doesn’t have that many friends that a phone is actually useful), she gets a secondhand phone with a whole bunch of numbers still saved on it and doesn’t know how to delete them. this person’s number is kinda similar to her’s so she texts them consistently without realising it and one day her phone reminds her all of it’s own volition to remember to buy flour and eggs and good luck on her cake.

vi. jongsuk

it’s pitch black and her arms are tied, there’s whimpering from all around her, and she gets knocked out the moment she starts to struggle. when she wakes up she’s bound to the bed and there’s someone else beside her, in stark white hospital gowns. there’s a number above her bed and she knows what’s going to go down and she’s leaving, but she needs someone else’s help and it’s fortunate there’s someone available. (basically got kidnapped together and now they gotta ESCAPE action thread!!)

sentence prompts

“Don’t call me girlie, you old fart. You shouldn’t be here.”

“What do you know about death, tell me.”

“You cat stealer the cat met me first!” (cat cafe omg)

“Hi, you’re cute, wanna hang out-” Joy misses her seat and smoothly falls right to the floor mid-wink.

“stop smoking, can’t you see the sign?”

“Hi, neighbour! The last couple that lived there said there were weird things happening in the flat, like, paranormal activity weird, so, good luck!”

these r but tiny things that could be just taken as they are or plotted out in more detail if u wanna! yes yes

also this is the ooc part of the deal I’M BACK FROM HIATUS so if u have lost muse for any thread pls let me know??? it is def fine donut worry uou there r so many NEW PEOPLE welcome welcome to all of y’all <3 <3 <3 i’ll be getting back to plotting etc in a bit but yES pls come hmu plot w me be my friend i love u

#plots #[[more plot bunnies oh yes #[[back from (the dead) my hiatus pls come plot w me

6 notes · View notes

shsmpulse-blog · 7 years

Text

The Anthelion Chronicles, Chapter Three: The Mystery Blogger

By: Maria Pantazopoulos, Sec V

“Reuben you won’t believe this,” Adelaide shouted as she walked into his house early one Saturday morning.

Hearing her shout, Reuben looked up from his vacuuming and removed his Walkman headphones. Knowing that she probably had a long story to tell, he watched his friend walk in and make herself comfortable in the large armchair in the living room before asking, “Believe what?”

Adelaide leaned forward in her chair, holding out her hands to stress what she was about to say. “My house,” she said, pausing for even more emphasis, “is haunted.” Adelaide leaned back in her chair as she said this, as if the statement was so shocking it knocked her backwards.

Reuben raised an incredulous eyebrow at her.

“I’m serious, Rube,” she pleaded with him. “I know it sounds crazy, but I’m telling you. I woke up at 12:30 last night and my laptop was open on my desk and my chair was pulled out as if someone was sitting there. I never leave my chair pulled out.”

At this, Reuben crossed his long arms across his chest. “Adelaide, that is literally the lamest proof you could have ever come up with. This sounds like a bogus story.”

Now it was Adelaide’s turn to cross her arms. “It’s not bogus, Marty McFly,” she mocked. “The computer was open to a blog that definitely wasn’t mine and the keyboard was clicking on its own. It was like something invisible was sitting there typing, and then as soon as I got up, poof,” she made a disappearing motion with her fingers. “The screen went dark and the chair was tucked in as if nothing had happened.”

“And how do you know that you didn’t just dream all this up?” Reuben asked.

“Reuben, I know what I saw,” she retorted. “Don’t you believe me?”

“I’ll believe it when I see it,” the vampire sighed, eager to continue with his vacuuming.

Adelaide smiled slyly. “I was hoping you would say that.”

Realizing that it was going to be a while before be could get back to his cleaning, Reuben sat down on the floor in front of his part-spider best friend. “You have a plan, don’t you?” he asked.

Adelaide nodded exaggeratedly. “You’re gonna come over to my house and we’re gonna have a seance. Tonight. We’re gonna lure this demon out and find out what it wants from me.”

Once again, Reuben sighed. “Okay, I’ve got two problems with this plan,” he said. “First off, when did you decide that this thing was a demon? And secondly, seriously. A seance. Like in those ghost shows we make fun of. Do you really think that this is gonna work? Also - okay, third point here - what are your parents going to say about this? They’re never going to believe that you have an actual ghost-slash-demon thing living in your house are they?”

“I understand your concern and I have answers for all your questions,” Adelaide said as if she were reciting from a well-rehearsed script. “First of all, I have no clue what this thing is apart from the fact that it’s invisible. It might be a ghost, it might be a poltergeist, it might be anything, I don’t know. Maybe it’s a demon trying to slowly consume my soul, we really don’t know and for that reason alone you should be prepared to help me with this.”

“Second of all,” she continued, “Yes, a seance. How else do you expect to be able to contact this thing? Plus, I’ve been dying to use the ouija board my uncle got me for my birthday. Lastly, it was my dad’s idea to invite you over for this, and my mom said it was fine as long as my brothers were out of the house. They’re gonna have a sleepover at my cousin’s tonight so it’s all set.”

Reuben smiled slightly to himself, secretly excited by the prospect of investigating a paranormal occurrence, but not wanting to give her that satisfaction. “Sure, whatever,” he grumbled aloud.

Adelaide jumped out of the armchair with excitement. “Great!” she exclaimed. “Let’s get going then.”

***

As soon as they walked into the house, they were greeted by the sound of screaming children and the sight of a young boy jumping down from the ceiling.

“Hi Ada,” he called to his sister, followed by “you’re really big,” a comment clearly directed at the tall stranger standing in the doorway. The young boy then ran away from the pair and began climbing up the living room wall, then crawling across the ceiling.

“That’s Isaac, he can crawl across walls,” Adelaide explained to Reuben. “And that over there,” she said, gesturing to another boy sitting on the carpet surrounded by Legos, “is my other brother, Cecil.” Reuben noticed that Cecil had another set of arms sprouting from his rib cage, a trait he no doubt inherited from his arachnid ancestors.

Before Reuben knew what was happening, a tall man with a shaved head was shaking his hand.

“You must be Reuben,” the man said to him. “I’m Frederick, Adelaide’s dad. So glad you’ve volunteered to take care of this little demon problem we seem to have. Of course, we don’t know exactly whether or not it’s a demon. Maybe it’s a ghost or a poltergeist or some other kind of spirit. In any case, it shouldn’t be too difficult for you to make contact with it, I mean you are undead, after all. Oh wait, that’s a touchy subject isn’t it? So sorry if that came across as insensitive.”

“I - er - uh -” Reuben stammered, taken aback by how fast Frederick spoke.

“Fred, you’re scaring the boy,” called a woman with eight violet eyes from the top of the stairs. “It’s so nice to see you again, Reuben,” she said as she walked down.

“You too - um - Michelle,” Reuben replied hesitantly.

Adelaide’s mother smiled, and turning to her daughter, said “Adelaide, your father is going to drive your brothers to your cousins now. You kids can watch TV or something for a bit. It’s only about noon now and I’d imagine that you’ll want to wait until sundown to start your ghost hunting. Oh! Before I forget, Reuben, I got some coconut water pouches in case you get hungry, Adelaide told me you liked those.” She then walked away from the two teenagers and into her office just off from the living room.

Once Frederick had left with Cecil and Isaac, Adelaide and Reuben sat down on the carpet in the living room and watched reruns of The X Files on TV. At about 5:30 the sun went down, and it was time to start ghost hunting.

Adelaide gathered some flashlights from a hall closet and led Reuben to “the scene of the crime,” her bedroom.

“Ok, so according to a Buzzfeed video I watched at two in the morning, flashlights are a great way to communicate with spirits. You have to, like, balance the switch between off and on and then not touch it. Then you can ask them yes or no questions and if the answer is yes, they’ll flip the switch to ‘on,’ got it?” Adelaide said to Reuben, who began arranging the flashlights on her bed while she was talking.

“Yeah, um, that's great but what if the flashlights just go off on their own for whatever reason? Also, don't you have a ouija board? Wouldn't that be much more effective?” Reuben asked, always the skeptic.

Adelaide frowned at him, “It’s a process, Rube, and we're only on the first step, alright? The next step is the ouija board, and after that it's full-on exorcism mode.”

Still unconvinced, Reuben said “Alright, let's get this over with,” and then, addressing the possible entity in the room in a very loud, showy voice said, “Spirit, if you can hear us, we’d just like to say ‘hi.’ Welcome to Adelaide's room. From what she's told me, you've made yourself quite at home. Turn on one of the five flashlights we have placed here for your convenience if you can hear me right now.” There was silence for a beat, then one of the flashlights turned on and back off again.

“Dammit,” Reuben complained. “Spirit, I owe Adelaide five bucks now because that worked, I hope you're happy.” Once again, the flashlight flicked on and off. “I'll take that as a ‘yes,’” he sighed.

Adelaide lit up some scented candles and pulled a box out from under the bed, beginning to set up the ouija board. “I think it's time for a more sophisticated form of communication, now that we've made contact.” She and Reuben placed their hands on top of the metallic circle that was supposed to indicate the letter the spirit was trying to show them.

“Spirit,” Adelaide called into the dark, “you can use this board now to talk to us. You just have to move our hands over the letters and you can spell things out for us, alright?” A moment passed, then their hands began moving without notice. “S-U-R-E,” Adelaide spelled aloud.

After this first message, Reuben jumped back and stood up, wiping his hands on his jeans as if they were dirty. “Nope, nope big bag of nope. I don't want little demon hands moving my hands around, nope,” he said disgustedly. “I'll ask it questions for you if you want, but I'm not touching that thing anymore.”

“Fine then,” Adelaide conceded. “I want you to ask about its name, what exactly it is and what it wants. Not all at once, obviously.”

“Okay, that I can do,” Reuben said nervously, his voice cracking a little. He cleared his throat and asked “Spirit, what is your name? Or is there, like, something that we can call you?”

Adelaide's hands began to move again. “L-E-S-L-I-E. Really? Your name is Leslie?” She asked incredulously. Her hands moved again, this time only spelling Y-E-S.

Reuben continued with his interview. “Okay then, Leslie. Can you tell us what exactly you are? Like are you a ghost or a poltergeist or-”

“I-D-K-M-A-N,” Adelaide spelled out before he could even finish his thought. “I'm getting the feeling that it doesn't want to tell us. That's not exactly reassuring but okay,” she said.

“I only have one more question for you, Leslie,” Reuben said. “What do you want from Adelaide?”

There was a slight pause, then Adelaide's hands moved. “W-I-F-I. Leslie wants wifi?” she mused aloud.

Suddenly Adelaide’s laptop flew open on the desk, and a shadowy figure began to materialize sitting in her chair. It was hard for them to make out features, almost like they were looking at a blurred photograph.

“So - uh, I'm Leslie. Hello,” the shadowy figure said dryly. “I got kinda bored with your little letter game so I figured that it was a lot easier to manifest before you kids and just speak like normal.” Leslie said this casually as if it were the most usual thing in the world for mysterious figures to appear before teenagers.

“To answer your questions, I’m a shadow person, and I don’t really know how to explain that but, um, yeah I’ve been stealing your wifi for months. I don’t know what your family is doing, Adelaide, but you’ve got the fastest wifi in Anthelion and I need it to keep my blog up to date. Oh, and I’ve also been using your laptop in case you haven’t noticed. Sorry if that inconvenienced you in any way.”

Adelaide stared at Leslie for a moment, trying to make sense of what was going on. It was Reuben who broke the silence first. “Okay then,” he said, trying to hide his confusion and slight fear. “That is more than enough weirdness for one night. I’m gonna go downstairs and keep watching the X Files. Goodnight everyone.”

Once Reuben was out of earshot, Leslie spoke again. “He’s a weird one. Does it really bother you if I stick around and use your computer once in awhile?” he asked Adelaide.

“Not really, I mean you’ve already made yourself pretty comfy in here anyway. As long as you don’t bother me during the day, or the rest of my family ever. Especially not my brothers,” Adelaide stressed.

Leslie shrugged. “I don’t have any interest in you or your family. I just really need a place to blog from. I’m not really into eating souls or anything, I’m on a paleo diet and making people upset is some serious bad karma that I do not need in my afterlife.”

Adelaide could not decide what was weirder, the fact that she had a shadow person living in her home, or that the shadow person was using her wifi to run an aesthetic blog.

“Okay, then I guess I’ll just leave you to it,” she said hesitantly as she backed out of her room, still trying to process what was going on. She walked downstairs and into the living room to see Reuben sitting on the carpet with a coconut water pouch, watching the X Files on the lowest possible volume to not bother her parents. Being a vampire, Reuben did not sleep, but Adelaide was exhausted after all that had happened that night. Without saying a word, she collapsed face first onto the couch and fell asleep.

#anthelion #creative writing #shsm

0 notes