starters.

There was beauty in chaos. Whomever had set so many animals loose on the unsuspecting population of Asphodel, especially during a town-wide celebration, deserved his compliments. Very well done. 

He could not hold back a smile as he watched the destruction and the rattled civilians. Sure such tiny creatures were not that much of a terror to the safety of the community. Yet the very fact that it was, made him even more certain that Asphodel was a good place to be. He cocked an eyebrow when a tiny goat walked towards him, a plastic bag in its mouth. Shaking his head, Max picked up the goat and pulled the bag from its teeth. “That’s not very good for you,” he noted, “you should be eating leafs.” 

Max turned to the person next to him. “Interested in a pet goat?” 

With the Solstice’s second day inching toward its closure with every passing minute, there was indeed a part of Seven that had tired of the frivolities; one could only smile so much without her face beginning to ache ( without the facade threatening to slip with each second of unceasing maintenance ) and being able to let her mouth drop into ‘neutrality’ — read: resting bitch face — was a wholly attractive notion indeed.  

It wasn’t that she didn’t enjoy it; she had laughed with children genuinely, helped them win prizes, but she only had so much energy for such things before all that she wanted was to curl up in bed and bid everyone goodnight. And she could have, were the former member of House Oleander and current official in the Magistrate less conscientious.  But the Houses had chosen to see the Solstice through — stubborn as they were — and thus she would have to as well before she got her rest. 

It was mostly little children with little ouchies who made their way to the first aid tent. It was a field that they rarely got to train in. Most children did not get surgery, and while they’d interned at a few places during vacations for extra credit, Pediatrics had not been one of them. He found the experience rather enjoyable, although surgery really was where his heart lay. Kids were funny though, they would come in crying, and walk out as if they could take on the world. None of them were actually very hurt, just scratches or painful joints from walking into something. Most commonly though: stomach aches. They would ask the kids to list everything they had eaten and try not to laugh. They would have to hunt down some food during their break. 

The latest happy toddler walked out of the tent with his mom in tow, and Ulysses gestured for the next individual to sit down on the bed, taking down a few last notes about their previous patient. The hospital liked to know how many people had been in and out of the tent at the end of the event. But Uly had never been the kind to write down too many details. They looked up at the patient. “My name is Ulysses Goode,” they said, holding out their hand in a kindly gesture. “What seems to be the problem?” 

His parents decided to have a booth during the Solstice, one done up in lurid pink and white stripes, with a couple of rainbow-sprinkled cupcakes dancing on the sign. They decided to keep the menu limited to their best-sellers - crisp, savory pastries, bite-sized cookies, and their renowned, award-winning corn muffins. Teasers to lure people to purchasing regularly from their shop. 

Not wanting to subject his parents to the crowds and the chaos, Levi and his siblings had volunteered to man the booth in shifts, and Levi made the most of his by avid people-watching and simultaneously munching on a couple of baked goods. 

“Hey, what’ll you have?” 

One good thing about being quiet and more of a shadow than a real pillar of House Endine, was that he could slip away without a real fuss being made. Athena, Dom, Irene – they were all making their rounds, more people talking to them than anyone else and it gave Didi the opportunity to head into the more crowded areas. The street fair, where he found a booth selling elephant ears and decided it was going to be his escape for the night. 

He’d just sat down at one of the tables, starting to eat at the sugary snack, when someone took the seat across from him. A simple glance up and a small smile in their direction, he tried to speak over the roar of the games, rides and music. “Having fun tonight?” 

a coin rolls easily between his fingers.  a fluid motion performed with the effortless absence of decades of practice.  it’s something evan barely notices - a habit formed - but now and then he catches other people glancing at the coin as it moves, glinting in the light.  

it’s almost tempting - a wink of a promise - toss the coin and guess, i’m sure you’ll get it right.  it’s a lie of course.  in most peoples hands, those odds are even.  you truly have a chance at winning.  in evans hands… less so.  you call heads and nine times out of ten, it’ll land tails in his favour.  you call tails - and the man quietly drinking his coffee just says ‘edge’ and there’s suddenly a physics defying moment when that spun disc falls to land - improbably upright - balanced perfectly.

…what are the odds?

not today though.  there are no games. just a seat in the diner with the smell of pancakes and sweet syrup.  a solitary coffee cooling in front of him - immersing himself in the sounds of busyness from the kitchen, the casual chatter of a few other early risers as he browses the menu - that coin still turning between his fingers.

“don’t suppose you have any recommendations?”  

just an offhand voice to the nearest ear.  a voice with an accent clearly not local - not anywhere close to it.

“been here nigh on a decade and i still don’t have a clue what ‘grits’ are.”

Osun practically skipped outside to their favourite spot, unhindered by someone having taken one seat of their favourite table out front. “Someone sitting here?” No matter the answer, Osun makes themselves comfortable.

The moment their unwitting morning companion begins to speak, Osun assumes it’ll be something negative, they’re not giving up their favourite spot, “You’re welcome, I’m excellent company. So, g’morning, how are you?”

It has him distracted as he reaches for his Styrofoam carry out cup of soda and he knocks it over, straight into the path of someone coming up the sidewalk. “Oh shit, sorry my dude,” he says before even looking up to see who he’d almost spilled it on. “If you’d been a fast walker, I’d owe you a pair of shoes, huh?” 

Although many people called her heartless, no one had ever used the term emotionless to describe Liliane, and it was likely that no one ever would ─ her anger was like dry ice in boiling water ; uncontrollable, churning, only growing in volume as time passed. And at the moment, every facet of that anger was channeled into finding out who dared invade her home.

When the dead around the grounds had offered nothing more than inane statements of concern and apology, she had turned to those she could call using her second gift. This, too, had not yet been successful, a dismaying precedent only reinforced by her latest attempt.

Liliane huffed in disgust as the spirit disappeared, hand moving back and forth to wave away the black smoke that remained. “Useless bird, utterly useless. I hope your descendants end up as breakfast for coyotes, and that their abandoned young are eaten by snakes moments after they hatch.” Poised to begin yet another summoning, she paused, a decidedly human noise breaking the quietness of the clearing she’d chosen. Arms crossed and eyes narrowed, she turned toward the sound. “Why are you interrupting me?”

Running her hands through someone else's hair was, by far, one of Emmie's favorite sensations in the world. Whether it was silky and straight or coarse and kinky, the woman found a great pleasure in feeling the strands around her fingers.

The head in front of her was almost done, just a little touch up here and some hairspray there, and the client in her chair was good to go. " And... With that... We are finished!" The stylist put down the comb at the same time she picked the bright pink hand mirror from the little cart besides her. Aligning the mirror so that her client could see the back of their head, Emmie quickly undid the knot of the black cape around their shoulder's.

"Well darling, I do hope you like it. Must be an important occasion, for hair so fancy"

She settled into one of the wooden benches, letting her senses flow into the earth the moment she sat down, finding solace in the scent of life around her. She was both detached from the world and aware of it all at once. 

Which is why she sensed her visitor even with her eyes closed, felt them take the empty seat next to her, silent but their mind filled with words that seemed ready to brim over. 

“Before you begin, it seems we have an eavesdropper-” Another presence dinged at the edges of her consciousness and she unerringly sought out their hiding place, a smile curving over her lips.