funeral bell

Send me an ask with a location and I’ll write a starter based in said location for your muse.

CAFE

CAMPGROUND

CHURCH

CLUB

DINER

FLORIST

GYM

HOME (YOURS)

HOME (MINE)

LAKE

LAUNDROMAT

LIBRARY

MOTEL/HOTEL

PARK

POOL

A rivaling and over-embellished expression drew itself onto his friendly features. Hah! He could almost laugh at the doubt that laced her tone. Almost was a futile word, in this case, seeing that the not-so-humble being laughed in the most comical way. It could only be described as ‘Mandark-ian’ could that have been a definition. Nevertheless, it was humorous and all too nostalgic to those that watched the Cartoon Network religiously as he did as a child— Child being yet another inexact word.

Benny nonchalantly tossed the juice box in his hand, catching it and tossing it in the air once more. Eyes dissecting the air that weakly shielded his target. Just as the pitcher twisted his arm for the toss, he halted mid-throw and turned to face the stranger. “I feel like I should be getting something out of this, if I do get it, don’t you? A kiss, a kiss would totally suffice.”

Interesting. Is all Eden could think of the boy opposite of them. They couldn’t help but beam on the inside at the humorous sound of his laugh. Not nearly often enough did they find someone like this. Someone’s face they could see instead of focusing on their time left. 

Their eyes watched as Benny readied himself, tossing the carton back and forth before winding it up and... Pausing to speak. His proposal took Eden by surprise, to say the least. Their mouth fell slightly agape, but the curve at the corner of their lip showed a bit of amusement. “You want a kiss from me?” The reaper asked, a bit of skepticism in the tone of their voice. 

The fluorescent lights left the ever present white noise drowning out the existence of an outside world, and an artificial replacement for the sun that no longer held high in the sky. But in a supermarket designed for the residents who stayed up until all hours of the night, there was little to no grasp of the outside world regardless. A design of a white space. Artificially made nothing. And in that nothing, Sabrina stayed focused on the person in front of her. It was easier than one might have thought in a space that seemed to fizzle everything else out. She was left with her words clinging to the air that hummed.

Was she to know them? 

It was a question she hoped she knew the answer to as she stood there, expressionless. Sabrina asked the universe, but she knew that wasn’t how it worked. She couldn’t ask the questions. The answers instead, she would just know. But this, she was unaware of. “I don’t know your name,” She finally said breaking the expressionless layer she held.

Eden turned their hand in the other, rubbing their thumb idly into their palm as their eyes stayed on the other. There was something about introductions that didn’t quite settle well with them. Should humans have to meet death twice? That seems a bit unfair-  They didn’t finish that thought before their own words interrupted. “My name is Eden.” 

There was something about this girl that set her apart from others. Eden could tell she was different, but what set her apart was a mystery to the reaper. Did they want to know or was it better to stay in the dark? It would figure itself out. Things always did. “-and you are?” 

Benny Till was an anxious character by nature, but with the case of a certain Milage-Davidson arising, it was difficult for him to recall when he last had a good night’s rest. With his father’s late shifts at the station, it seemed that sleep no longer wished to be acquainted with him. Due to the discord, the raven-haired boy spent more nights at the edge of a bed than actually in it.

The disrupted sleeping pattern lead to the boy visiting the supermarket in odd hours of the night, seeing that it was the only open place near the hospital at that time. Like now, for instance, he was exhaustedly stacking one yogurt container upon another; forming a pyramid before he would step back and toss a juice box at it. Trying to get them to fall into his basket.

Too busy aiming at the two remaining containers, he had not expected to be a part of his own collision. Losing his balance, Benny missed the yogurt by a long-shot. “That was a foul. Definitely.” He eyed them with a competitive intensity. “I demand a rematch.”

Eden’s eyes widened at the fervor of the one standing in front of them. The reaction distracted the reaper from the things they were hiding from. From the whispers in her ear of other’s inevitable oblivion or something even stranger. When they finally spoke, their thoughts were scattered. “A fo... I, umm-. A rematch...?” Eden’s eyes searched the scene for a clue and their eyes landed on the remaining targets, then the juice box that had bounced back and landed a few feet from their chelsea boots. “I see.” They nodded, picking up the ammunition and tossing it in the dark haired boy’s direction. 

“Well, go on. With no clumsy person to slam into, let’s see if you make it...” 

Eddie couldn’t sleep so he decided to go to the supermarket and grab some chips. Afterall, chips were the only thing that didn’t turn into maggots due to him hallucinating. He set down his empty basket and began looking at the vegan popcorn. “Gross.” He grabbed a bag of Takis and Hot Cheetos and threw them in the basket on the floor. He has then approached by another cold body. 

“Oh it’s oka- Eden? Hey! Fancy seeing you here at this hour.“ Eddie wasn’t one for touching but Eden was like his best friend so a hug wasn’t a big deal. He opened his arms, offering one. He smiled wide causing another set of bags under his eyes to appear.

“Oh- Eddie.” They shook their head, forcing a smile forward as they half-heartedly hugged him, their basket, barely filled with sweets, still held in the bend of their arm. Grey eyes finally lifted to Eddie’s face as their voice came again, louder this time. “Funny we always meet about this time, huh? How are you?”

The way that Eden said Ray’s name was nice. They said it in a way they would say something they cared about. In a way that Ray couldn’t quite put their finger on. In a way that only a few people did and never how their parents had. It easily pulled a smile from them. “It’s good to see you too.”

At the question, Ray nodded, chuckling a bit. “A little bit. Do you have a favorite?” They lifted the cans in question up so Eden could see the labels. It seemed like a bit of a stupid situation to be stuck in but here they found themselves. Maybe they’d just toss one in their handbasket. 

Eden’s eyes dropped from their face to the items they held in their hands. A few silent moments passed before their lips pursed and their brow furrowed. “Ray, I…” A breathy chuckle escaped them. and they shook their head. “I can’t remember the last time I had any of that. It’s been so long.” Food wasn’t a necessity for this undead. The only reason they even touched any of it was to blend in or for a little slice of comfort in some cheesecake to make them feel human again.

They placed a single slender finger on a more familiar can with the red and white label. “I’d go with this one if you’ve got the extra dollar.” With that, they slid their hand back in the pocket of their long, funeral grade peacoat. “Is the soup for you? You’re not sick, are you?”

Christopher couldn’t help but grin slightly. The person – the creature? – before him was willing to play his sort of games. It was subtle enough that if anyone was listening to them, they wouldn’t have noticed. In fact, it was so subtle that if for some reason, he wasn’t what he was and he was still human, then he wouldn’t have even caught on. It may have even been construed as flirting rather than mildly threatening.

What fun. Christopher chuckled. “Oh, to be perfectly honest, fate has had it out for me since before I was born,” he answered, feeling every bit of it. He had been damned before he was born. Damned after. It moved past being unlucky. “I can handle myself though. Much like yourself, I’m sure.” Christopher couldn’t help but wonder how long they would dance around the truth of it all.

“Yes. Fate has had its way with me too:” Eden’s colorless eyes lost the focus on Christopher’s face, though they stayed the same direction. Like he was suddenly transparent and they could see through him. The corner of their pale lips turned upward. “But here I am and here you are... In a standoff in the supermarket.” Only the slightest laugh escaped them before they quieted it. 

Dancing around the reality of their being was usually where Eden liked to keep it, a mysterious limbo because not even they had answers to give, but they had kept themselves in this position for too long and they were far too curious to walk away now. “Eden Harlow.” They extended their hand toward the man, their cold, uneasy fingers anticipating his touch. 

Sabrina’s sleep was best described as scattered, not because she couldn’t sleep. If it was necessary, the girl’s sleep patter could have been something other than naps during the day and night. But as it so happened,  sometimes there were just better things to be doing. Or maybe it just felt right to be awake at that exact time. And so it left the girl surviving not with a solid few hours of sleep, but more so a series of naps.  Which surprisingly wasn’t the worst thing in a town like Coolsville, it seemed like half the residents had insomnia, and the shops all seemed aware. With gas stations and corner stores staying open for much longer than any should have. 

She didn’t say too much the moment she found herself face to face with another, rather she drew in a slight breath with the careful look she always had pursed across her face. The kind of look that never once lost control. But in this moment, she felt anything but in control. It was a heavy weight, the kind that made her take a step back from the other without excusing their proximity.

The other’s reaction took Eden by surprise. Normally in a situation like this, an apology would be made, they’d step aside and that would be the end of it, but the way this girl looked into their blue eyes like they were windows put the reaper off guard. A million thoughts ran through their head before they spoke. Why did she shutter? What does she see in me? 

“Do you know me?” Eden asked, their voice filling the silence of the supermarket a bit more this time. Their memory was nearly faultless. The privilege of forgetting a face, a name, anything about anyone at all relevant was not something they were graced with. There was no reason they should know this girl, so the question made more sense.