HONEY STAINED.

Elliott always loved to take his mother to the antique shop. It was her favourite place in all of Holy Cross and both she and Elliott held fond memories of it from their younger years. He remembered going before moving to Atlanta and buying himself an old brooch that looked like a badge of an army soldier’s cap. He still had that brooch, in fact, tucked in with other miscellaneous items he’d collected.

But he snorted at Leona’s valiant attempt at trying to sell him a ring. “Do I look like the kind of guy who has a use for an emerald ring? I’d rather pay full price for the watch instead of being twenty dollars richer and having that thing hanging around collecting dust. Not that it’s already doing that anyway.”

“I don’t know what type of guy you are.” leona allows her lips to curl before an eyebrow raises. “hey there, no need to be rude to the antiques.” she places the dusty ring back in it’s place. to leona ; the antique shop lived and breathed on it’s own. she could sense and communicate with the spirits that came with various objects. “it will find a home soon. didn’t mean to offend. just the spirits request.”

she holds out her soft hand. “i can wrap that up for you.” 

they stand in front of one of her best finds. surely, she had found some great treasures in her younger years. her mother often called it a hobby, if only she was still alive to see it become a paycheck. 

“so, i’m sure you can see what this is.” she’s beyond excited. this was a rare one. three investigators, a bribe and a easy purchase off of ebay. “seller says it comes from an  appalachian witch. she apparently inherited it from her family. they’ve long since left. i’m sure you can add this to your collection.” 

she stares at the old and withered quilt. patched up over the years by the obvious stitching. the uniqueness of each square pattern speaking of old folklore tales. 

“it’s on me.”  

leona peeks over the counter. cat-eyes stare for a moment before the blonde ducks beneath a old chandelier. “hey there.” her voice is soft. she was never the type to force a sale out of a potential customer. her eyes drop to the object. a rare piece. “emerald stone pocket watch.”

she allows the silence between them to build for a moment. “great choice. rare as they come. discounted because of the tiny chip of course.” 

her head tilts for a moment towards the individual. she can hear the voices of their past. ancestors and all. she had become good at avoiding her gift.  “i’ll take an extra twenty off if you’ll take this...” she pauses before reaching for a matching emerald ring. something that resembles the roaring twenties. “with it.”  

"hey sugar.” she mentions towards birdie. a face she’s happy to see towards the end of the day. taking a few steps down from her porch she gently wraps the light blanket around her form. the sunset offers light between the two. it was her favorite time of the day. time to unwind and settle before silence of the night. birdie was anything but sugar and she had every right to be.

the two women were cursed by this place. it had robbed them greatly and in the end it was the only thing that could possibly unite them. this was the usual meeting place. outside of the cohle estate. such a lonely place. 

leona offers a soft smile. “your mama decided she wanted to go to sleep early. I saved a slice of pecan pie for you in the fridge.” a soft breeze moves a blonde lock from her face. “she had a bad day today.. just thought you should know.”