FernStone

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Lihn Phan

Interactions: Tayla @silvermist1116, Clancy @Zombiedude101
The Halloween Festival, Kids Section

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“Lucky for you then, getting to avoid the play,” Lihn said. “Colouring sounds like much more fun! And you get something to remember it by, rather than just a headache from bad acting…”

She shook her head and laughed. Tayla seemed to be getting more comfortable with her - which Lihn was glad about. It was a slow process she was used to at her job, but for once this was something she wanted to comfortably talk to as opposed to just a client. “You’re right, I am quite glad she didn’t want me to sit there. It might look worse than just her sitting by herself…” She shrugged. "It's hard to imagine how they'll grow up, but it happens much faster than you expect. I feel like it was just yesterday that I could easily carry her about everywhere, and now I can barely pick her up. Time really flies.”

Lihn considered Tayla’s question for a moment, thinking back. Where did she even begin? Well, with the truth, she supposed.

“I won’t sugarcoat it, it’s been tough,” Lihn replied honestly. “It’s just me, with a bit of help from my younger brother. The first few years were the hardest. I had no idea what I was doing, and was trying to take care of her and my younger brother while trying to make a living. I neglected myself a lot then. Still do. It's tough being a single mom. You never really get a break."

She laughed, gesturing to the dark bags under her eyes. "She's always been my priority over everything else, but there have been times when I almost regretted it. Sometimes I just felt like giving up. When she was three she went through a horribly fussy phase. She wouldn't sleep unless it was in my bed, she threw a tantrum whenever I took her to nursery and she wouldn't eat much. Those few months were the hardest. I felt like I'd failed as a parent. But we got through them. It does get easier as they get older, even if there's always new challenges. You get more used to it, they grow slightly more independent. I can't say it's ever actually been easy, though… and I've made loads of mistakes because I didn't know any better. I still don't know if I'm doing the right thing… but it's worth it to see her healthy and happy. I've really learned to cherish the time I have with her. Just seeing her smile makes all the difficulties worth it.” Lihn glanced over at her daughter again, still fervently listening to the story telling.

"Sorry, I got carried away," Lihn said. "I rarely have a chance to talk about myself. Most other parents judge me because of my age, and I don't have time to talk with-"

At that point a lone child walked past, completely distracting her because of his costume. Her eyes widened and her lips parted slightly in shock. It was... inappropriate, to say the least. It told Lihn he had parents that didn’t care at best. His height suggested maybe eleven or twelve - not old enough to be going around alone. She glanced around for any adult that was watching him. None. A parent could be nearby, or there could be none at all. With him acting strange, and dressed like that, she couldn’t just ignore it.

“Excuse me a moment, I’m just going to make sure that kid’s ok,” Lihn said to Tayla, gesturing to Clancy. She stood up and quickly approached the boy. It didn’t take her empathy to notice that he was agitated. Off. Not a child having fun at a festival.

“Hello, are you alright? You look a little lost.” Lihn said to Clancy with a reassuring smile. She didn’t ask where his parents were. If the boy had neglectful parents he’d either say they weren’t here, or in the worst case run away when faced with the question. It was better to be careful, and gentle. “Is something bothering you? Perhaps I can help.”

She then gestured to his outfit. “I take it you're a sheet ghost? It looks a little, hmm, like something else. People might take it the wrong way. I’d recommend taking off the hood at least.”

Lihn radiated a light, calming aura with her empathy. A precaution, just in case - she tried not to use her empathy too much on others without their consent. To those without emotional fields it would help them feel less agitated and make her appear more approachable and safe. It was like a warm blanket of comforting emotion. But to those with emotional fields, there would be no effect unless they allowed it - it was just a light, unobtrusive tap against them.

---

Interactions: Stormy @Blizz, Jasper @NoriWasHere
The Halloween Festival

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Pain seared through the Rot as Luca was pulled against Stormy, body too weak to struggle. The Phantombane ate away at it just like it ate away at Luca. The wounds across Luca’s body stopped opening, the decay of his organs slowing down.

”You can’t stop what’s already started,” Rot-Luca’s lips pulled up into a weak smile. Clouded, rotten yellow eyes met Stormy’s calmly. ”Try your hardest. Eventually everything will decay...”

It pulled back as it's power began to weaken, retreating from actively using Luca's body. What nice friends you have. It will be a shame when they lose you.

What. Luca’s fading consciousness started to wake back up, pushing back the rotten roots digging into his mind. His body was limp in Stormy’s arms as he fought off the Rot internally. Its physical decay weakened first, discarded in favour of the continued erosion of Luca’s mind. But Luca was pushing back now, regaining more and more control. No. I won’t let that happen.

You already know it’s too late. It's easier to accept it.

Luca gasped for air as his body started to recover, his rotting touch continually reducing until it completely stopped. His fingers curled into Stormy’s shirt, clinging to it weakly, and his other hand shot out to blindly find Jasper. It landed limp against his arm. He could hear his words, pushing their way through the prison the Rot had tried to form around his soul. He couldn’t let Jasper down. He had to come back. He had to. It wasn't so difficult now to push the Rot back out of the cracks, back to where it had been merely residing in his body as a passenger.

I do accept it. But I won’t let you take me like this. This is my body. It will never be yours, even when I die.

We’ll see.

I'll make sure of it.

The Rot just laughed lightly, as the Phantombane began to weaken the last of its power. The Rot wasn't stupid. It knew this wasn't a fight it could win. But that was fine. In such a short time it had made plenty of progress towards its goal. It was willing to retreat without much of a fight. Why expend so much energy on something so pointless? It was patient. It had already waited ten years, what was another one or two? It had been fun to take control of the body, but it ultimately wasn't needed. It would be the Rot's eventually. The body's days were numbered. Enjoy a brief reprieve.

Luca shuddered at the whisper in his mind, before its presence disappeared. Rotting green tendrils fled from his eyes, emotion spilling back across them. Relief flooded across his face, even as his lips twisted down in pain. His vision was blurry, slowly coming back - he could just about make out the shapes of Stormy holding him and Jasper beside them.

He turned his head slightly towards Jasper, previously limp hand finding Jasper’s and curling his fingers around it. Luca gave it a weak, but comforting, squeeze. For the first time in ten years his touch didn’t damage what it touched, effortlessly.

Everything still hurt. His whole body felt heavy. His arms burned and his insides felt as if nails were constantly raking across them. But the pain wasn’t as active. For once he was stable. Each breath became easier than the last. His vision cleared, and he could see Jasper’s worry- then he turned his head to see Stormy’s determination.

He could feel the damage that had been done by letting the rot take over. It was something he was always aware of, the deteriorating state of his body. Each day it got a little worse. Today it got a lot worse. He was never, ever going to let that happen again.

Luca didn’t want to lose anymore of the few years he had left.

”I'm so sorry,” Luca whispered, finally seeing Stormy’s rotting skin. Then Jasper’s. His heart sank, and guilt stabbed at him. The Rot was not there right now to take advantage of it, at least. ”Sorry. Normally I can keep it under control. It’s gone now.”

Though he felt incredibly bad about hurting them, it was nice coming back to himself in Stormy’s arms while holding Jasper’s hand. Really nice. Comforting after so many years without any physical contact.

”Thank you.” His voice was rough, but much brighter than before. He moved slightly to be more upright, still leaning heavily against Stormy. His limbs didn’t have the strength to hold himself up right now. It was slowly returning, and eventually he’d be fine. He’d gotten like this before where he was temporarily too weak to move. He always got better after a short while… Though he might need some support for the rest of the night while walking. ”I’ll be able to move in a bit. Might need a bit of help, though. I’m mostly fine just… a bit weak. It’ll improve with time, don’t worry!”

He winced as he tried to lean on one of his legs instead of Stormy, sharp pain shooting through them as it instantly buckled underneath him. Thankfully with Stormy’s arms still around him he didn’t fall, just leaning back against him. Deep, gnawing pain worked its way up his leg.

”I've got some painkillers in my backpack, do you mind getting them for me?” Luca grimaced, not caring whether it was Jasper or Stormy who did it. He wasn’t quite able to move enough to get to it and open it himself. ”The, uh, Codeine bottle.”

He didn’t like being so open about all of the painkillers he had, taking his long acting ones in his room so Jasper didn’t see. But he needed to take something extra to deal with the pain, so he could be alright enough to enjoy the rest of the evening. He really didn’t want to have to go home.

”Oh man,” Luca finally looked at his arms and saw the festering wounds they were riddled with. He smiled, tone turning more joking. ”I guess I'm a zombified manly Powerpuff girl now. Extra spooky.”

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Lihn & Tayla just tryna have a nice mom talk and then kid kkk walks past

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Interactions: Edict @AtomicEmperor, Britney @Punished GN, Vashti @Atrophy
The Halloween Festival

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Linqian really regretted accepting getting Edicts family boat rather than just biting the bullet that was another possible Sloane encounter and getting the ferry. The whole journey was just fucking uncomfortable. Between the slight racism (overt in one case), the many introductions she really hadn’t been prepared for (discovering a hilarious nickname she'd save for later) and just the general feeling incredibly out of place for multiple reasons… Yeah. Never again. It was the drive by meet the family of her boss slash friend (?) that she hadn’t wanted. At least he’d very swiftly used his abstraction to deal with the worst offender, which left her just having to sit uncomfortably with him and his Uncle (who’d seemed pretty alright).

But once they got on the island, Linqian had been in a good mood! She was three cans of beer in, having knocked back another two to cope with the boat journey, and a little bit high. It had all gone a bit to her head since she’d last eaten before going to work... Once again drinking on an empty stomach, which was becoming a bad habit. She’d planned to eat on the ferry, but she wasn’t exactly going to pull out tupperwares of home cooked food on a mob boat.

The tipsiness wasn’t so good when faced with this situation. Her rare good mood instantly plummeted.

She wasn’t going to get her night of fun, was she?

The crocodile, who Linqian recognised as Vashti after squinting a bit, was all up in Britney’s face. She hadn’t heard any of what had been said, but it was pretty obvious why Vashti would be coming after her. Just, could she not have done it on another day?

She glanced over at Edict. His energy was noticeably different after spotting Britney. Calmer, less exaggerated. She’d already known this from the first meeting, but he was so not over her. It was even easier to see for her with the whole… Also not being over her ex thing. Which was delightful. But seriously, tonight?

There went the possibility of getting laid too. Not that it had been her main goal, would’ve just been a nice thing to round everything off. Well, actually, no need to write it off. It wouldn’t be too hard to find someone if she still felt like it later.

That wasn’t important. It was difficult to stay focused after the three beers on a near empty stomach, her thoughts flying to all sorts of unimportant places. Snap out of it. Edict was clearly planning to get involved - and already verbally doing so. She was sure Vashti would totally fuck off after being told to.

The thing was, Vashti was crazy. Linqian really didn’t want to get involved. It wasn’t like she was a target, why should she put her neck on the line… But Britney had helped her a week ago. She’d been close to Jinhai. And if she walked away right now she’d probably at best lose her second job, at worst be thrown into the sea by a vengeful Edict after she didn’t help protect the ex he clearly wasn’t over.

Weighing up the risks quickly, she decided to go with taking on a pissed off crocodile over a possible bullet to the head and less money.

”This is not how I wanted to spend my fucking night,” Linqian complained, mostly directed at Edict as if it was his fault (kind of was). Her hand went to her bag, before very quickly dropping. She was not going to pull out a gun in this situation. She didn’t even really know how to use a gun! She’d just do things the way she was used to. ”You owe me so much booze after this.”

The temperature in the area dropped to just below freezing. The rain turned into snow around Linqian. Everyone would feel the cold - Edict, Britney, Sabrina, Layla and Vashti. It didn’t discriminate. It wasn’t low enough to be dangerous, but it was uncomfortable. Especially if you were cold-blooded.

”Hey Britney, we keep meeting in these shitty situations when we should be having fun, huh?” Linqian’s words were drawn out as she closed the distance between her and the other group. She completely ignored Layla and got right up close to Britney and Vashti. Her body temperature plummeted to deadly levels, her warm brown skin paling. The tips of her fingers turned a more purplish tone. She suppressed a shiver herself, the combination of her own body temperature and the air temperature dropping not something she could completely resist.

Britney and Vashti would be able to feel the cold radiating off her close as she was to them, water droplets on her outfit turning to ice.

”Fucking back off, Vashti,” Linqian reached out to try and grab Vashti’s wrist. If she managed to, Vashti would first feel an intense pain and freezing cold. The longer Linqian holds on the more damage her freezing cold would do to Vashti's wrist. ”You try fuck with one of us, you gotta fuck all of us.”

Wait, that wasn’t quite right. Whatever.

”Fuck right off before I shove my knee up your fucking crocodile ass.”

---

Interactions: Emily @Punished GN, Lila / The Maiden / Jasper @NoriWasHere
The Halloween Festival

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Luca winced as Emily misgendered Lila, which explained the whole situation. He’d totally understood punching someone over that.

And Lila started becoming more herself again. It helped him calm down, positivity creeping back in and starting to patch up the cracks in his mental walls. It would be fine. They could still have a good night. He only half paid attention to what Babylon was saying. They could still have a lovely night! They could-

"... They do as I say of their own accord! YOU are proof of that!"

Queen Bitch

Just like that, Emily’s words ripped off the tape that had barely covered the fractured barrier between his mind and the rot.

She was right. He’d left because of what she was doing, and the rest had stayed. They could have left like him. They had that choice. If he could do it, when he was literally dying with no other options to save him, they could too. They chose to stay. They chose to help Emily. No, no. They had no choice, people like Carol had no choice, she was stuck in that body- of course she’d go along with it. He’d accepted he was dying, but why should anyone else? And maybe what Emily said was right too - it was justified because there were others doing worse! They were just trying to protect everyone. But no, how did that work… He couldn’t…

Oh, poor Luca. You’re just a coward that can’t see beyond your clouded judgement. You give excuses for people so that you can pretend that they have no choice, so you can feel better about caring for them. You lie to yourself so that you can pretend everything you do is good… that you’re oh so moral...

No, shut up. I’m not lying to myself. I don’t think that way. I don’t. I just want everyone to be safe and happy. That’s all.

Ah, imposing yourself on them all, how valiant. Always has to be positive, doesn’t it, Luca? But you can’t hide yourself from me. You can hide all those feelings from everyone else, even yourself, but not me.

I’m not hiding anything-

You’re resentful. You don’t want to die. You hurt everyone around you, yet expect them to not. Ah, so hypocritical.

I’m not-

But Luca, Luca, you can’t ignore what you really are… deep down… you’re…

I’m not.

...truly rotten

---

Dust to Dust

_{Dust to dust our bones will rust / And we shall start again}

---

Luca’s emotional protection shattered, and the Rot pushed itself into his mind. It had always been inside of him, lurking and waiting and occasionally surfacing, but it had never been able to share control like this. Luca had been to mentally strong, too positive to give in to its constant prodding. But after ten years of corroding his mind, it had managed.

Intense pain seized Luca as the rotting of his body intensified. It was like his skin was being peeled off bit by bit as burning torches were pressed into his sensitive flesh. His heartbeat slowed, thudding loudly in his ears as it struggled to function. Each breath felt like glass scraping down his throat. Spots of skin started to peel across his arms, blood sluggishly dripping down towards his hands. The edges of the wounds were a rotting yellow, slowly increasing in size. He felt so weak, but like he could take on anything. Destroy before he was destroyed. There was a freedom in actively dying, pain and decay so blinding he became almost numb.

Luca’s knees buckled underneath him as he struggled to keep control of his own body. He caught himself on one knee before he completely collapsed, fingers curling into the ground underneath him. Any plants that hadn’t already been trodden on disintegrated away.

”Stay away, I’m fine,” Luca gasped, holding up the hand he wasn’t supporting. It was directed towards everyone, but his gaze was on Jasper. Rotten yellow and green spilled into his eyes, writhing across it like mycelium. He struggled to stop the agony he was feeling from being written all across his face. But he- nobody could come near. If they tried to touch him... He couldn't control it. ”I’m fine. Don’t worry.”

Ah, but you should be worried.

Luca winced, head twisting round to meet Lila’s pitch black eyes. His left iris turned completely yellow-green, blood red veins surrounding it. He was in agony, the pressure to his head intensifying. His expression grew more and more pained, yet more and more devoid of emotion. Both Luca and the Rot coexisted, and it hurt him much more than he did it.

"Ahhhh, how nice." Luca slowly, steadily stood up. He expressionlessly turned to Lila. "Yes, let's. It's been too long, Maiden, you're looking especially lovely- We need to remind them who's in control."

Luca’s hand shot out, grabbing a table for support. It instantly began to rot away beneath his fingers, cheap wood darkening and flaking away. The wood splintered into his fingers before it turned to dust. He struggled to regain a semblance of control before the Rot decided to use his body to destroy everything. He didn't want to hurt anyone. He wasn't going to destroy everything like the rot wanted to. It was still his body, this was still him. It would be fine, it would be fine, he wouldn't hurt anyone who hadn't already hurt him-

Like Emily. There was one thing they were aligned on. Emily was the source of the problems.

"You take George. We'll take her."

Luca unsteadily lunged towards Emily and Babylon, trying to get around the twin to grab either one of them with rotting hands.

---

Trisha Vanburen

Interactions: Adora @Punished GN
The Halloween Festival

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So far the Halloween Festival had been an absolute drag for Trisha so far.

She didn’t exactly have many friends in St Portwell. Most of her actual friends were from college, and they lived all over the country now. She’d invited them to the festival but no one had been able to come… Which fucking sucked. She wasn’t exactly going to go with anyone in her family either. She’d rather die.

So she was skulking around near the exit hoping to find someone she knew - it didn’t particularly matter how close they were, or whether it was someone she disliked. She just needed some entertainment. Ah. Wasn’t Sycamore Tree back in town? Perhaps she’d bump into a couple of them… that could be fun. Trisha had essentially burnt all bridges when it ended, lashing out when the thing closest to a home was destroyed. It still stung and she certainly wasn’t rejoining after Auri put out the call. After all, her brother’s money would be better at keeping her safe than any shitty coven.

Her narrowed eyes spotted a familiar face - shockingly. Dressed up in a cute little blue dress. Trisha had thought Adora had shut herself in a room and died there! Hah! Now this would be fun.

“Hey! Adora!” Trisha pushed her way through the crowd, shouting loud enough to be heard. She was wearing a somewhat stupid looking bee onesie, with the hood down and her hair tied back into a messy bun. A faint buzzing could be heard from underneath it to anyone who listened hard enough. “It’s been so long- wow! I did not expect to see you here. I can’t believe you’d come to something like this… You seemed like a complete loser ten years ago. Glad you’ve gotten better, really.”

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Interactions: Edict @AtomicEmperor, also her brother
The Harbour, Ferry Docks

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With Sloane out of sight, Linqian pulled the cigarette butt out of her mouth and dropped it on the ground. She stomped on it much more aggressively than normal. As she finished destroying what little remained of her cigarette she caught sight of Edict, immediately regretting it when her eyes were assaulted by some of the flashiest clothing she’d ever seen. Very funny, dressing up as an exaggerated gangster. She almost regretted suggesting they go together. Doubly so when she was assaulted by the most grating accent. Fuck.

”Huh?” Linqian narrowed her eyes and shifted right into Edict's personal space, practically leaning against him to look at his phone... And was assaulted by the image of Leon dressed like a fucking grandma werewolf. Had her eyes not suffered enough?! She wished she'd worn another outfit. Maybe she should just rip up her cloak, tie it around her head and pretend she’d been dressed as a pirate all along.

Unfortunately she didn’t get a chance to say she wasn’t purposefully matching Leon, because Edict noticed that something was up. Of course. She knew he hadn't poked, because she would've felt it, and she hadn't had enough time to collect herself after Sloane left. It wasn't like after an argument when she could just brush it aside, anger forgotten nearly as quickly as it had appeared.

”Had to talk to fucking Sloane,” Linqian scowled. She was tempted to snatch his cigar, just for a drag or two before giving it back. No, she was going to quit, and smoking something fancier wouldn't help with that. Her gaze lingered on his cigar (or it could have been his lips, it would be difficult to tell) for a few moments before sliding away and towards the harbour. There was also the temptation to suggest they just skip the festival and have a repeat of last week- but no. She'd gone through all this effort, and she was going to have a good fucking time. ”She was a condescending bitch like normal, and said some shitty stuff about my little brother.”

It was partly the truth - what Sloane had said about Henri having nobody left if Linqian was killed still played on her mind. She wasn't going to get into how she'd accepted money from Sloane for a funeral she couldn't afford herself. All the feelings that came with it were too much. Would it be nice to offload some of it onto Edict? Sure. Did she actually want to talk about this with anyone? No. She'd already shared the fact Jinhai wasn't buried yet it with too many people.

”She talked a whole bunch of shit about taking responsibility as if I haven't been doing that my entire life. Yeah I get it, Jinhai was perfect and everyone liked him, I'm not, as if he could've made it through his fucking degree without me working my ass off to keep a roof over his head. My lack of money is all my fault. I'd like to see her try to support a family of three without a high school degree.”

Just ranting about the surface level irritations that covered the deeply buried issues helped to clear her mind. The emotionless veil across her eyes faded, fiery spark that was typical of her returning. The strange, numb state she'd gone into to deal with Sloane and everything to do with Jinhai's funeral was gone. She really didn't want to dwell on it.

”I'm fine. Not gonna let it ruin my night... It's just started, after all. I heard things get a lot more exciting after dark.” One corner of her lips twitched up towards a half smile, and her eyebrows rose up and down a couple of times. She hadn't actually been since she was younger, but the rumours were abundant. It was exactly what she needed. Hopefully Sully was around so she didn't have to buy any booze after she got through the cans she'd taken from work. Thinking about it, might as well crack open one now. She twisted round to access her bag, pulling out two random cans from inside.

”Want one?” she held out the Stella she’d luckily pulled out, remembering it was what he’d ordered at the bar last night. If he didn’t take it she’d put it back in her bag before opening her own can of bud light. ”I stole them from work.”

Her phone buzzed in her skirt pocket and she fished it out with one hand to check. She didn't seem all that bothered that she was close enough to Edict for him to see her phone screen if he so much as glanced over - she didn't have much to hide, and her phone language was set to Chinese anyway. Her lock screen revealed a picture of her and her brothers - Henri standing in the middle in a highschool graduation gown, laughing while Linqian rolled her eyes at him and Jinhai smirked over at her. The buzz was just a text from her brother asking if he could have one drink before he left, cause Andre wouldn't allow it unless she gave permission. She snorted, typing a quick yes in English. Then she swiped to her Chinese keyboard and typed out a bit more. As she replied another notification popped up on her phone - the guy she'd hooked up with on Saturday asking if she was going to the festival with an obnoxious winking emoji. She rolled her eyes and just straight up blocked him.

Her general rule was to never see the people she slept with again... With very few exceptions.

She shoved her phone back in her pocket, returning her attention to Edict. She pretended that she was only just getting a chance to properly look at his outfit, stepping back and looking him up and down. Once again she felt assaulted by... Everything. The fedora was the worst. It was a literal crime against humanity, and most importantly her eyes. Hopefully a gust of wind would mysteriously blow it off his head. And she didn't even want to consider what was in the guitar case. She highly doubted it was actually a guitar. She'd just ignore it.

"You look… incredibly gaudy. What the fuck? What made you think this was a good costume? Fuck, I thought with all your money you might dress up as something classier! You could’ve bought some kinda brand name costume or something, I don’t know.” Linqian said mockingly, lips curving up into a teasing smile. The clothes he was wearing probably were brand name, but that didn’t make it look any better. Let's get going so we look less fucking out of place."

She gestured towards the now docked ferry. As much as she didn't want to bump into Sloane on it, it was stupid to wait around another half an hour or so for the next one. ”We can probably make this one if we cut the queue.”

---

Interactions: Emily @Punished GN, Lila@NoriWasHere
Drink Line, The Halloween Festival

---

Emily started crying, and it was shocking enough for Luca to lose sight of the situation and just stare in shock for a moment. In that time Lila moved around him and... Shit. He had to get in between them again. He didn't have time to acknowledge Stormy with more than a nod.

Wincing, he pushed his way back in between Lila and Emily. He was close enough to them both now to feel the rotting aura, a lightly prickling pain that would grow the longer he was near them. He couldn’t keep the decaying touch of his skin under control, either, gloves on his hands starting to fray along with his socks where they touched his knees. Where he stood Lila would have to push him out of the way to get to Emily - he hoped she wouldn’t do that.

Emily wasn’t entirely lying. Lila had hit her. Was it unjustified? Probably not. Luca didn’t know what had led to this but he trusted Lila. And he couldn’t just ignore what Emily was saying.

”Do you think I can just forget?” Luca asked. Emily knew what the rot was doing to him. If she'd cared, she wouldn't have changed their direction from learning to plundering. At the start they'd been making progress, then it all stopped. ”I destroy everything I touch. Britney made my life a living hell. You know exactly what happened. I told you when I left.”

He grimaced. Every word she said stabbed into him, deeper and deeper, twisting guilt and anger into his heart. He did feel bad about leaving 8th Street. He’d cared about them. He still cared about them. But he was also angry that Emily had taken that away from him. 8th Street had been his home for years. He just couldn’t hurt people like that. His own twistedly positive morality had caused him to abandon them.

”People like us?” Luca's voice shook, growing hoarser. Flecks of rotting green swirling around his eyes as they focused on Emily. The normal Luca wouldn't react like this - he'd brush it off with a laugh, and say that it wasn't so bad for him. But the Rot had pushed its festering tendrils through the cracks, burrowing in and corroding his thoughts. His sanity was unravelling and he struggled to gather the loose strings held together by his crumbling optimism. ”You chose to stay attached to Babylon. Vashti sealed hers. Only Carol and I are still living with the consequences of it, and what have you done to help either of us? Why is Carol still living with that after ten years?! Why the fuck are you spending more time plundering than helping her?!”

If only you would stop being such a coward. Kill her, then the other one that hurt you. It would be easier.

”We were in this together! I didn't want to leave 8th Street! But you wouldn't listen when I asked you to stop making everyone go around stealing and hurting people.” Luca shook his head, arms trembling at his side. It was like all the rottenness inside of him was threatening to burst out and he could barely suppress it. Everything Emily said increased the guilt he’d pretended wasn’t there. He didn’t care about her, he couldn’t give less of a fuck about her, but the others? Carol, who he still saw as a friend? She was right. After everything Britney had done, why was he in a group that had allowed her back? Why? ”I loved 8th Street, and I'd still help most of them in a heartbeat. But not you- fuck, Lila’s my friend. She’s not Britney… And honestly, Emily? You’re just as bad as her.”

There was something unnatural in his eyes when he narrowed them at her, putrid yellow almost equal to dark brown. Emily had unknowingly struck his weak point, forming a crack in his already fragile walls. "I'm only holding back because of Carol and your sisters."

Over Emily’s shoulder he caught sight of Jasper, who’d caught up and pulled out his paintbrush. His heart jolted. It was enough to shake him out of whatever that had been and bring him a little bit closer to being himself. He turned back to look at Lila, yellow and green retreating from his eyes as tears pooled in the corner of them. His lips pulling up into a pleading smile. ”Please don’t hit her again, Lila. Let’s not take this any further.”

---

Interactions: Jack @Blizz & Sloane @Atrophy
Cracker Island, Halloween Festival

---

Anya wasn’t too bothered by having to wait. In the time she’d been standing around she managed to sell good dream stones to unwitting tourists who seemed terrified at the most basic of ghost costumes. She’d talked up the local legends to them before selling her wares and business. Another few cards had been given out to people more into the whole halloween thing - blinds with a bit too much of an interest in the occult. It would only end badly for them, but Anya didn’t care as long as she made some money from it.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she checked it. A text from Jack. She gave it a cursory scan and didn’t bother replying. He would be back in a few minutes anyway.

Just like he said, he was back after doing the rounds to make sure no one was killing each other or themselves.

”They are? Colour me surprised.” Anya raised an eyebrow, surprised that Sloane and Linqian could be near each other without devolving into attempted murder, nevermind a conversation. Of course, Jinhai’s parasite often came for her too but Anya rarely gave her the pleasure of a response. She wondered what they could be talking about to not be fighting. Were her talks with Sloane about how cold politeness was another weapon working?

She quite frankly didn't care if Emily and Lila were fighting. It was on them if they caused a mess and she wasn't inclined to clean it up. But she had to keep up the pretence that she did, in fact, care. Her lips twitching up into a pretend smile as if she too was pleased with what Jack had done. She actually didn’t think it was all that impressive, in fact she thought it was incredibly childish, but she did a very good job at faking it. Jack would have to be a pink lux user to know otherwise. ”If you think the situation is under control, I’m sure it will be fine. If there’s one thing Emily dislikes, it’s looking bad in front of other people.”

She was about to say they should wait for Sloane when the woman herself appeared - in an incredible rush. It didn’t take a Sloane expression reading genius like Anya to tell that she’d been upset by something. Linqian? Someone else she’d seen? Anya wasn’t going to press until they were a safe distance away from whatever it was.

”Yes, let’s get a drink,” Anya smiled, quickly glancing over Sloane’s face to make sure there was no burn mark on it. Thankfully not. ”Somewhere with higher quality alcohol sounds perfect. We won’t have to risk running into our peers while discussing anything we might not want them to know.”

And there were things she wanted to discuss with them both after her meeting with the worst PRA agent to ever exist. Though tonight might not be the right time, and she certainly couldn’t do it sober. A few drinks were in order before she considered sharing a single detail of that harrowing night.

”Well, if you’re offering to get the first round, I won’t decline.” Anya’s lips curved up into a more genuine smile, though there was a hint of concern in her gaze as she glanced over Sloane. Still, no sense asking now. Sloane would tell them if she wanted to when they got to the private party. Anya turned to Jack. ”Let’s get somewhere more hidden, and you can teleport us there. It’s easier than making our way through the crowd.”

Anya didn’t wait for Jack’s response, assuming he would be happy to offer his teleportation services again, before leading them both over to a slightly more secluded, shadowed spot.

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Lihn Phan

Interactions: Tayla @silvermist1116
The Halloween Festival, Kids Section

---

"Nice to meet you, Tayla." Lihn followed Tayla's finger to the older man and the young child who looked much less out of place during the storytime. It was cute how engrossed he was, and the involvement of Tayla's father brought Lihn joy. There was a hint of jealousy in her heart too, but something she could easily suppress nowadays. She smiled brightly. An unconventional family it seemed, unless the child's father was just busy with work. Lihn wasn't one to make assumptions either way. "His first time? Well he's in for a treat. It's nice your dad came with you both, must be fun for your little boy getting time with you both. Good of you to make sure he can still have a nice time without being exposed to all the late night problems... I do wish it could stay kid friendly later, but you can't control adults that want to go wild."

She sighed, offering Tayla rueful smile. That had been her once, when she lost her parents and almost lost herself to alcohol and all sorts she didn't remember taking. It had led to the blessing that was her daughter, but it didn't mean she found it comfortable to be around. Just sad. She was a therapist now to help people who felt the need to turn to things like that to help. "I'm lucky my brother can come pick up the kiddo before it gets too late, since I'm on call for a few clients at the festival. Precautionary measures. Wish I could just go home with her and avoid all that."

Tayla asked about the play, and Lihn shrugged. "Probably, but last year she came away complaining about how bad it was. I don't understand her taste sometimes. We'll go if she wants to and if not, there's plenty else to do." She gestured to all the activities. "I imagine she'll want to watch it even if it's just to criticise how it's written and tell me how she'd do it. Can't blame her, I'd rather not sit through it for the seventh year in a row... But it's her day, so if she wants to I will. That's how it is as a mom, right?"

There was no bitterness in her voice at that, a soft smile still on her face. She loved her daughter more than anything, and already didn't spend enough time with her because of work. Sitting through an hour of an awful kids play was a small sacrifice to make for her.

"What about you three? Will your son want to watch the play, or are you going to enjoy some of the more hands on activities? When Thanh- my daughter- was that age she could barely sit through anything longer than fifteen minutes. It was cute, though, how much she wanted to run around." Lihn laughed. "Enjoy it while it lasts, before he gets older and more rebellious. Suddenly they don't want you to sit with them for toddler story time."

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

---

Interactions: Emily/Miranda/Jacqueline @Punished GN, Lila/Lynn/Jasper @NoriWasHere
Food Line -> Drink Line

---

They were getting closer to the front of the queue for pierogies.

Luca was practically vibrating in excitement about trying something new, nibbling away at his candy apple. He wasn't talking much thanks to it - he had to eat slowly so as not to hurt his teeth, and chew it up a lot so it didn't scrape his throat. But it was good! And he couldn't wait for some proper food-

Thunderous caws filled Luca's ears, interrupting something he was about to say to Jasper.

It was loud and distressed. He froze, head snapping towards wherever it had come from. He couldn't see the source but the crows... He could see plenty of them. They were almost at the front of the line now, but there was only one person that many crows would gather for.

Lila.

Shit.

Was she in danger? Was she hurt? It didn't matter. Crows didn't just get aggressive like that. Food wasn't important compared to his friend. His breathing quickened, uncomfortable fluttering clutching his chest.

”Jasper, we need to go!”

He didn't actually wait for Jasper's response, and just assumed he'd follow. Luca darted his way through the crowds, weaving through small gaps that he could fit in without touching people. At his size it was much easier to slip through the throngs of people. He left a trail of pain behind him, quick enough to not be damaging, and a candy apple that slipped out of his fingers and dropped to the floor, ignored. All he was thinking about was getting to his friends and making sure they were alright.

He arrived as Emily fell on her ass, thankful the drinks stands were close to the food ones. There were crows everywhere, Lila looked more pissed than he'd ever seen him - he could guess what had happened, just about. He didn't stop moving, sprinting towards them.

”Lila!” Luca jumped in between the two, physically putting his body in the way of Emily's kick. Thankfully for her it hit the long, white socks covering his calf rather than any bare skin, sending pain shooting through his leg. He winced but stayed standing, holding out a hand towards both of them as if he was fending off two wild beasts. His chest heaved up and down in heavy pants as he struggled to breath. He struggled to get enough air into his lungs, completely winded, but ignored it in favour of stopping whatever was happening here.

He twisted his head to look pleadingly at Lila - only to be met by a bottomless black gaze that wasn't quite hers. There was a familiarity, like the flickers of rot that he caught in his own eyes every time he looked in a mirror. The maiden, whatever she was, wasn't gone. Luca's heart jolted in his chest, breathing running even more ragged. What did he do? He didn't know how to handle this. He'd spent the last ten years barely retaining his sanity, pushing down his own apparition, how did he help someone else suppress theirs? The Rot's laughter rang in his ears, the apparition stirring from its slumber within him to press up tauntingly against his mind. He ignored it.

First, he needed to de-escalate the situation.

”Miranda, Jacqueline, lovely to see you again, can you please take Emily away?!” he looked over to the twins with a forced smile. A cursory scan told him there were no other 8th Street members there right now... Thankfully. The situation would only be made worse if someone like Vashti was there too. He then looked down at Emily, eyes narrowing. There was a swirling chaos in his gaze unlike the pure joy that normally filled them, anger at his friend being possibly hurt and wrestling with the eroding of his own mind as he was thrown into a stressful situation. ”Try to touch her again and I'll rot your hand off."

Luca turned to face Lila, showing Emily his back in the hope her sisters would stop her from doing anything... And if not, he'd follow through on his threat. He could take a hit. It would only hurt her more. While he didn't trust her, he trusted them. He reached out to try and grab Lila's hands. He suppressed the rotting of his skin as he did, even with his gloves offering a protective layer between them. Just turning it off hurt him, his arms beginning to shake and his mind filling with static as the rot started to slither through the forming cracks. But he didn't want her to touch any of his bare skin and begin to rot. His aura filled the air around them, slowly but surely stabbing against Lila's skin in an invisible attack he couldn't control. But he couldn't risk moving further away and having her attack Emily again, or vice versa. He needed to calm her down somehow.

She's let her in now. It's too late. It isn't. She can force her out. Do you think it'll be that easy? Let me take over and I'll talk to her. No. I won't fall for that. I'm not that stupid... I can do it myself. Can you really reject my help? To make things worse? I won't listen to you. I know what you want to do. Oh but wouldn't it be so nice to let go? Let me out, rot away the one that hurt her, protect your friends. I just want her to be alright. I don't want to hurt anyone. You will. I won't.

Luca shook his head, ignoring the rot, even as it continued to laugh in his head. He had to concentrate on Lila. He stepped closer to her.

”Lila, please, you have to calm down.” He hoped that she'd recognise him even like this - and if not, perhaps the maiden would recognise the Rot where it lingered at the edge of his consciousness. He tried to take up her entire vision, difficult when he was so slight, and hold her gaze with his own. Erratic energy danced across his eyes while flecks of rotten green and yellow infected their normal dark brown. ”Emily isn't worth it. Force the maiden out of your head.”

He glanced over at Lynn, mouthing at her, 'stay back.' He also signalled behind his back towards Miranda and Jacqueline for them to leave, if they hadn't dragged Emily away already.

Luca didn't know how unstable Lila was right now - how much she'd let the maiden in, how much of this was her. He'd never fully let the rot in but there had been times when it hadn't entirely been him, or when they'd shared his body for a short period of time before Luca had been able to suppress it again. Each time the rot pushed itself in longer and decayed his mind further. It was always dangerous, and no matter how much of the maiden was in control, this situation was too. He could take it - maybe not physically, but his body was already so damaged what was a little more? But Lynn with her bad luck should keep a safe distance away.

”Hey, come on, Lila. Let's just ignore her and go have some fun, yeah?”

---

Lihn Phan

Interactions: Tayla @silvermist1116
The Halloween Festival, Kids Section

---

Just under half an hour into storytime, an unassuming, Asian woman sat down at the other end of the bench Tayla was on. She was dressed up as a low effort witch, with an oversized black hat, a layered black dress and her dark hair tied up in a low bun. She couldn't be much older than thirty, with a youthful face but a tired, gentle gaze that moved from all the children gathered for story time to Tayla. The empathy she was automatically spreading around her lightly brushed up against Tayla's emotional field. Her eyes widened slightly and her eyebrows raised, raising further when a hint of emotion was read upon Tayla lowering the headphones over her ears. The emotion reading was subtle enough that Tayla wouldn't necessarily notice it unless she paid attention, and Lihn pulled it back once she realised she'd been doing it in the first place.

It was difficult to turn off sometimes. She naturally read the emotions of those around her like it was a sixth sense.

"Sorry," she turned to Tayla with an apologetic smile, gesturing to the bench they were both sitting on. She was apologising for the accidental emotion reading as well, if Tayla had noticed it. "I should have asked before sitting here."

She sat in silence for a short while, fingers gently tapping against her thighs. After a few minutes she shifted in her seat so she was angled slightly more towards Tayla.

"Do you have a kid here?" Lihn asked. She wasn't normally so social outside of work, using all of her energy on her clients during long hours, but something about Tayla drew her in. Her therapist's intuition was telling her this was some with... Issues. And assuming she had a child, which she must do to be at the Halloween festival during the children's events, then that was another reason for Lihn to want to talk to her. She looked young, and Lihn knew what it was like to be a young mom. She'd had Thanh when she was only twenty three, after all. "Silly question, you wouldn't be here this early if you didn't... That's mine over there."

She pointed to a nine year old girl sitting among all of the toddlers and parents at the story time. The young girl was short with her long black hair tied back into two cute pigtails. On her head were a pair of cat ears and she was in all black, completing the outfit with a tail and full painted face with a cat nose and whiskers. She was animatedly listening along, leaning forward as if she couldn't get enough of it.

"She pretended to be sick to get out of school and come here earlier. Almost had me cancel all of my appointments... She wants to be a writer when she's older so supposedly this story time is 'imperative' to attend. I think if she knows the word imperative at nine she shouldn't be going along to toddlers events, but who am I to ruin her fun? She also insisted it wasn't cool to sit with her mum during toddler storytime."

Lihn laughed lightly. She looked back over at her daughter, who seemed to feel her gaze. Thanh turned around and grinned, before seeming to wave her away. Lihn laughed again and waved back.

"Ah, I should introduce myself. My name's Lihn," she smiled gently as she turned back to Tayla, eyes curving up to make it look soft and genuine - though it also highlighted the dark circles beneath her eyes that she could never seem to get rid of. The price of working long days while having a child. "Don't feel you have to tell me your name if you don't want to, I understand, I'm just a stranger. I don't get a chance to talk to other moms often because of work so I got a bit ahead of myself."

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

With @Atrophy

Harbour

---

Linqian could feel someone’s gaze on her.

It was probably just some guy who’d walked past and was checking her out, understandably. She took another drag of her cigarette, smoke blowing away with the sea breeze, and looked up to tell whoever it was to fuck off-

The words died on her lips as she caught sight of Sloane… actually dressed for halloween. For a moment she was speechless. It was completely (discordant) with her image of Sloane. Who even was she? Linqian squinted. It wasn’t some kind of spooky, generic costume… Something from a show or book? Linqian hadn’t watched television properly since she was a kid.

Wait, why did she even care?

Linqian’s lips twisted down into a scowl, and her dark eyes narrowed into a glare.

”What the fuck do you want, Sloane?”

Sloane had already begun to turn away, anticipating the outcome of any conversation with Linqian, yet she couldn’t stop herself from rearing back towards the woman as Linqian called out to her. Sloane glared at Linqian, the harbor becoming nothing more than a backdrop as the boardwalk shifted and became a fencing strip with Linqian squaring off across the piste from her en garde. A phantom referee called for the match to start and as predicted Linqian had opened the attack with a lunge of vulgarity. Sloane was quick to answer with a harsh parry and a wry riposte.

“With you? Absolutely nothing. Ever,” said Sloane, her eyes vacant and dull like those of a fish from this morning’s catch. Her tongue flicked out a puff of air—a scoff, maybe, or perhaps Sloane’s best attempt at scathing laugh. “I was just checking to make sure that I wasn’t about to be blindsided by the Quran or a copy of Dianetics. This area is rampant with violent nutjobs assaulting people with scripture.”

She coughed into her glove as if Linqian’s cigarette was bothering her despite being upwind and moved, ready to score her point and abandon her imaginary epee in the water as it once again became part of a harbor. However, Sloane’s feet wouldn’t budge as if they were encased in concrete, and nowhere near were they as heavy as the thing that was weighing upon her heart. She shifted the tilt of her head ever so slightly, her chin lowering by a handful of millimeters. Perhaps Anya would’ve been able to determine what the look meant, but to Linqian it might as well have been an imperceptible shift in demeanor.

“No, there is one more thing,” said Sloane, sounding like a courtroom stenographer reading back the record over a heated property line dispute between two neighbors who happened to be insurance agents. She slipped her hands into her coat pockets. The ink must’ve not dried on the transcript and gotten blurred as her words became staccato. “She’s wrong. Lynn is, I mean. You don’t deserve it. Nobody does.”

How earnest Sloane was could only be guessed, but Linqian would know immediately that she was talking about Jinhai.

Linqian rolled her eyes, preparing to deflect Sloane's riposte and lunge back in for a vicious strike of her own- when Sloane completely shocked her. Her eyes widened, her jaw went slack and her eyebrows shot up towards her hairline. Was Sloane dying? Had she finally seen a doctor about the massive stick stuck up her ass?

”Wow, I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me,” Linqian laughed in disbelief. She was going to take it as being genuine - not because she thought Sloane had stopped being an uptight bitch, but because she hoped the relationship Jinhai had built with her was worth enough for Sloane to believe it wasn't deserved. She took another drag of her cigarette just to cope with Sloane being 'nice', turning her head away from her to blow out the smoke. She wasn't so much of an asshole to force second hand smoke on a non smoker. ”You're right, for once. I don't deserve it, and nor did he. As if he deserved to die just to make my life shit… Fuck, people are quick to forget what Jinhai did for everyone here- at least you haven't. Nice to know some of his friends don't forget him as soon as he's gone.”

It was obvious Linqian was being genuine with what she said, with a completely neutral expression - compared to the harsh scowl that never left her lips around Sloane. She may hate her, but she could also appreciate that she hadn't just abandoned Jinhai like most of his other friends had… friends that hadn't had the same problems with her. It was a single point in Sloane's favour.

“I never will. Jinhai was special,” said Sloane, looking out across the harbor. Linqian was right: people were quick to forget about everything you did for them. When Sloane had been kicked out of the Coven, Jinhai was one of the few people who had treated her like she wasn’t dead. Even before all of that he had seen that she wanted only to help and had appreciated her dedication. Jinhai had made Sloane feel accepted. It didn’t matter now what people thought of her, or at least that’s what she told herself, but when she was a teenage girl it was the only thing. She had wanted nothing more than to be around someone like that, but Linqian had made that impossible.

“He was my friend. One of my few friends. I cared more about him then you would ever know,” she said, turning back towards Linqian and closing the distance between the two by just a couple of steps. The air was still chilly, but Sloane felt uncomfortably warm in her jacket. “So I am sorry for your loss.”

After Jinhai had been murdered there had been no phone call, no funeral invitation, not even a publicly listed gravesite to visit. Sloane didn’t need any proof when she had a decade of circumstantial evidence that said it was Linqian’s fault Sloane never had a chance to mourn.

“But you say that Jinhai’s death made your life shit and I just can’t agree with that,” said Sloane. “Jinhai’s death was a tragedy. Your life is a comedy of errors. Start taking some responsibility.”

”Are you fucking with me?” Linqian's lips twisted back down into a harsh smile, eyes glinting with cold rage. There was the Sloane she knew and hated. All the good words she'd said about Jinhai were blown away just like that. How dare she? ”Do you think you fucking know me? All you have is a twisted idea of what I'm like based of your initial fucking judgement. Do you have any idea what I've been doing for the last ten years?”

Linqian pushed herself off the wall and closed the remaining distance between them, smoldering cigarette hanging at her side. She didn't push into Sloane's personal space, but she was close - glaring down at her with a near murderous gaze.

”I dropped out of highschool to support my family. I've worked non stop for ten years, paying to keep a roof over our fucking heads, to keep my brothers fed, and for Jinhai's education. I sacrificed everything for him. I would do it every single fucking time, no matter what, but don't fucking come at me about taking responsibility! I've been responsible my whole fucking life. All I wanted was someone to share the bills. A fucking break.” She bared her teeth, suppressing the hot tears that formed in the corners of her eyes. Fuck. She was not going to cry, even out of anger. She wanted to punch her, but suppressed it by dropping her hand to a trembling fist at her side. "You don't fucking know me or what I've had to do for my brothers, and continue to do for the one left to have the fucking life I'd hoped he would without Jinhai's help.”

“You’re right, I don’t understand what it was like.” Sloane didn’t step back as Linqian approached, her hands still buried in her pockets. “I don’t know what it’s like to have a family worth sacrificing my life for or to have brothers I want to protect and choose to take care of. I wish my life was so simple. It sounds nice. All I have are obligations. You think I want to spend every single hour of my life worried about what’s happening to this city? You think I want to invest all of my energy in protecting you people from a serial killer when you people wouldn’t give a shit if something bad happened to me? I don’t want to. I have to. I have to because nobody else will.”

“But when I say you need to start taking responsibility, I’m not talking about taking responsibility for other people. I’m talking about you. I’m talking about your behavior. I’m talking about that.” Sloane’s eyes flicked down to Linqian’s shaking fist. “What? You want to hit me like you did Lynn? To what end? Because you missed your chance in the church? Because it’ll make you feel better? Because I can’t relate to your tragic history? Or is it just because you’re selfish and violent and pointlessly bitter?”

“Take your best swing, but before you do it ask yourself: when everyone in this Coven is wiped out because people like you made it impossible to work together, will you take responsibility for your brother having nobody left?” asked Sloane, her lips parting in a sneer.

Linqian wanted to. She wanted to slap Sloane so badly. Her fist clenched in a ball so tight her nail started to dig painfully into her palm, her temperature slowly ticking downwards. It radiated out from her, a creeping chill that would have Sloane shivering as close together as they were. She thought Linqian's life was simple? That hers was so much harder because of her ridiculous want to be the city's saviour? Fuck.

”I won't give you the satisfaction,” Linqian spat, keeping her shaking hands at her side. What would happen after she hit Sloane? She'd just be proving her right. Fuck, she wanted to prove her right. And what would Henri think if he somehow found out? ”Nobody needs your protection. Nobody's making you worry about the city when you could live a great fucking life, sad and alone. Fuck off.”

Linqian took a step back, chest heaving up and down. Sloane had taken a knife and stabbed it right in her weak point before twisting it viciously. She didn't want to die. Not because she cares for her own life, but because she didn't want Henri to be left with no one. ”Fine. I won't have my brother lose someone else just because you're a stuck up bitch who can't keep her mouth fucking shut. But you think I'm pointlessly bitter? I have plenty to be fucking bitter about. Jinhai died fucking three weeks ago and I'm saddled with fucking debts,” shit stop talking, ”while dealing with bitches like you so I don't fucking die, while barely sleeping in a house with,” no, no, shut the fuck up, ”Jinhai's ashes in a fucking cupboard because I can't afford to fucking bury him! But I'm just selfish, violent and pointlessly bitter.”

“What?” The sneer wiped itself from Sloane’s face as her eyes widened, a light of real emotion flickering in their darkness. In that moment Sloane realized that there existed a reality where Linqian had been correct in her accusation and that Sloane had profoundly misjudged Linqian. Her voice shook as she spoke, “I thought you just didn’t invite me to his funeral. I didn’t know.”

Sloane’s eyes broke away from Linqian in a panic, darting to and fro like a frightened rabbit as she felt her pulse quicken. The thought of Jinhai being stashed away in a cupboard with the tupperware because Linqian couldn’t afford a burial service shot a wind of reality through Sloane that was so strong it was able to momentarily lift the veil of privilege that often blinded her. Desperately a part of her jumped out and tried to pull the veil back down, saying that it was a lie put on by Linqian for some pathetic angle that was beneath Sloane’s understanding, but Sloane knew it wasn’t. A strange thing happened at that moment: Linqian’s behavior suddenly became understandable. Sloane still didn’t believe that it was right—driving the already divided Coven further apart had its repercussions—but it was understandable. The idea of Jinhai being in a cabinet was unbearable and Sloane hadn’t even dealt with it for more than a couple of seconds. Linqian had to carry that for weeks.

“Linqian, I…I…” Nothing Sloane said would matter. Her words had no value to Linqian and she knew it, having been the one running her mouth as their stock tanked. Her vision blurred, tears threatening at the border of her eyes. She felt powerless. Useless. She made up her mind and blinked away the tears.

“How much?” asked Sloane after she system rebooted. “For a funeral, for a tombstone, whatever. How much do you need?”

”I'm not such a terrible person that I wouldn't invite people who cared about Jinhai to his funeral, even you,” Linqian snorted, looking away. There was no satisfaction in seeing Sloane show some true emotion. Like always her explosive rage left as quickly as it arrived, and she was just left feeling defeated. This was something she was ashamed of and it ate away at her every day. Her brother deserved better in death and she couldn't give it to him. She kept failing him over and over again. She'd already let it slip to Leon and Britney, and now she'd let it slip to Sloane too. Fuck. ”I don't want-”

She cut herself off with a frustrated groan. Her hands were still shaking, cigarette ash dropping to the floor from the almost burnt out stub, but it was no longer because she wanted to punch Sloane. For the first time she was considering taking the money. Why shouldn't she? But then she'd be in Sloane's debt. She hated the thought, and had been too stubborn to accept any help up until this point. She still didn't want to. But she thought about Jinhai, in a cupboard she couldn't bear to open, and Henri, who kept asking when they'd be able to bury him.

She'd do it for Jinhai. It wasn't like everything else. Sloane, and other coven members, had known him. It was fair to accept contributions. She wasn't going to do it for anything else. Just the funeral and burial. It wasn't the same as getting a handout, it was a donation for someone they'd cared about. Yes, she could tell herself that and ignore that disgust twisting deep in her gut.

”Around five thousand for everything. Just burying is one thousand five hundred. But I'm not just going to accept your money.” She finally looked back over at Sloane, but there was very little emotion in her gaze. No anger, no sadness, just emptiness. She hated herself for this, and she was still pissed about everything Sloane had said, but above it all she just felt numb. None of those emotions would bring Jinhai back. Her stubbornness wouldn't see him buried. ”I'll let everyone else know, and anyone that wants to can contribute. With my new job I can cover some. Britney already knows, anyway. It's only fair to everyone, so they can attend something for him. Otherwise I would just have him buried with family present.”

Sloane had fully anticipated Linqian to just outright refuse her and had readied herself to explain to the woman that it wasn’t an offer. She showed no hint of satisfaction as she nodded her head at the price point. It was less than what she imagined. Perhaps Linqian was lowballing her, but she wasn’t going to push. Sloane was less happy about the idea of getting the others involved. She could just imagine someone calling for a vote regarding what kind of food would be served at Jinhai’s wake. What she couldn’t imagine was Linqian going around asking for contributions to a funeral fund, although it was quite clear to Sloane now that she couldn’t imagine much of anything about Linqian accurately.

“Don’t be stu—” Sloane stopped herself and shook her head.

“Are you sure? I can just take care of it.” Sloane knew Linqian was sure. She had never seen the woman act so clinical and objective before. It was clear that she was only even toying with the idea out of love for her brother. “I mean, let me help. Are you sure you want to talk to everyone about this? I can let them know. I can take care of setting up the collection.”

Linqian really didn't want to talk to everyone. She didn't want to talk to anyone about it. But she'd already told the worst person she could… no, second worst. The worst would hear it from Sloane no matter what. The more she thought about it the more she wanted to take it all back… but she couldn't. For Jinhai. He deserved the funeral she couldn't afford.

”You know what, sure. You let them know. Doesn't even need to be everyone. Britney, Jack, Stormy, Anya.” It was difficult to hide the disdain in her voice when she said that name. But she was part of the list that had been friendly to Jinhai, and Linqian had already forced him to cut her off in life. It wasn't fair to do the same in death. ”I can't see anyone else contributing. Definitely don't tell Leon, or his cult might get involved.”

She took another step back, head turning to the side and laughing bitterly. She couldn't believe she was having such a civil conversation with Sloane. Jinhai would be amazed. Was this maturing? No, it was just a necessity for him. ”If you take care of the collection nobody can accuse me of using my brother's death for money.”

Because she was sure people would.

“Oh, I’m sure they’ll fabricate some horrible ulterior motive to be the reason why I’m doing it,” said Sloane with a huff.

Sloane allowed her hand in her pocket to finally release her Channeler that she had been holding since the start of a conversation. Sloane wasn’t naive enough to believe that having one conversation with Linqian that didn’t end in a violent eruption meant they would suddenly resolve any of their past problems. At the end of the day, Sloane was bleach and Linqian was ammonia—on their own neither were very palatable and when forced to mix together they could wipe out an entire room with their toxicity. However, Sloane hoped that the next time that Jinhai’s recycled pile of recessive traits went to beat her outside the head with a book she’d pass by King James and grab a brochure instead.

She caught sight of the ferry approaching out of her periphery. As illuminating as speaking with Linqian had been, Sloane had come to the Halloween festival with the intention of enjoying it, which required being around someone who at the very least had a GED.

“Don’t go hunting the Big Bad Wolf without the rest of us, Red. There are plenty of other people who want him to pay for what he did to Jinhai. Try and enjoy the festival,” said Sloane, turning away and heading towards the dock. She had gotten to the spot she had originally stopped upon and paused again to look back at Linqian. There was something else extremely important that she had to say and she had nearly forgotten.

“Also, you should really quit smoking,” said Sloane, waving her hand in front of her face. “It’s awful for you.”

Linqian was so close to being the nicest she'd ever been to Sloane and telling her to enjoy the festival too, however someone without the ability to have fun enjoyed it. She choked on her words when Sloane went and completely ruined the civil moment they'd had. Linqian didn't have the energy to get back up to aggressively pissed again - instead she just wanted Sloane out of her sight as quickly as possible.

”Oh fuck right off.” Linqian flipped Sloane off, half wasted cigarette held beside her middle finger. If she had another packet on her she would have lit another purely out of spite. She fucking needed it. ”I don't need your approval to smoke myself into an early grave.”

Rolling her eyes, Linqian stepped back to the wall she'd been beside before. She twisted her body to lean her shoulder against it so that she didn't have to look at Sloane, effectively cutting off any further conversation. One hand agitatedly went to her lips, shoving her remaining cigarette in between them - as if there was anything more than the butt left. She sucked on it aggressively, lips twisted back into a scowl but dark eyes still devoid of much emotion. She was making it clear that she wasn't willing to listen to anything else Sloane had to say, beyond the conversation they'd just had about Jinhai. Hopefully she'd quickly fuck off so Linqian could have a moment to collect herself before Edict appeared… which would hopefully be too late to catch this ferry, so they didn't have to get the same one as Sloane.

Sloane held her gaze steady on Linqian, her hand slowly rising to her mouth as if to cover another fake cough. Beyond her fingertips the corners of her lips turned up and were pulled tight by rarely exercised muscles as Linqian made Sloane not only smile but laugh, the sound like the sudden loud screech of untuned violin strings used to provoke a cheap jumpscare. It was drowned out by the sounding of the ferry’s horn as it pulled into port. She called out to Linqian over her shoulder as she turned away, “Fine, but I’m not going to pass around a second collection plate.”

Sloane gingerly raised her hand in a half-hearted farewell as she walked away, her fingers dropping until there was just one left.

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Trisha's an ex-Sycamore Tree member so I'm sure she definitly isn't gonna pop up and be a dick at some point

Shes using Ezras money on a security detail rn

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

@Punished GN Y'all really gonna make me pull Georgie out of retirement.

@silvermist1116

YES THEN TRISHA CAN SET THE BEES ON HER!!!

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Why is everyone fucking called Malik this is the third