hvneysuckled

The longer she listened to the woman, the wider her eyes grew but she couldn’t bring herself to make a face. Seeing how violent that woman could be at first glance, Dee figured it best to not add on to their already sour meet by displaying her revulsion. “  What - uuh-  ” before she could form proper words the lady was back on the move. This time, heading away from Dilara along with the dog. When no invitation was offered, she figured it was best this way. “  I think it’s best that I stay here.  ”

Tessa spent just another moment or two glancing around at their surroundings and searching for another answer. "I'd rather not sit around waiting to find out, would you?" She asked, her brows lifting as if in challenge. "There were like, I dunno, a dozen or something - on the heels of some guy --" She gestures back the way she'd come. "Maybe we can lose 'em around the block?" She was dancing on her feet, itching to keep moving - but uncertain now of what way to go. "While you wait around thinkin' about it, I think I'm gunna hedge my bets -- that way...You in or out?" She starts moving the way she'd indicated, feeling reassured in that at least she wasn't just sitting around waiting for death to come - and she wasn't about to spend her time worrying about this stranger if she wanted to wait, herself.

“  Wait! Hold on.  ” Dee reached out to grab the girl, “ Our best bet is to find one of the cabins.  ” Whichever way that was. She glanced all around them, squinting her eyes to hopefully get a better view of their surroundings. There were voices all around, some crying while others moaned in a guttural unnatural rhythm. A mimic, it seemed, of the grunts humans make. “  Jesus. I think - maybe - no. Let’s just go as you were and hope to find it.  ” So long as they stayed within the trees they could side step them. As far as she had heard They did not run. Dilara swallowed hard, focusing on staying close to the girl all the while thanking her personal trainer for forcing her back and back again on those lengthy hikes every summer despite her constant protest. For once she could outrun her problems. 

Talking became almost trivial as she focused on getting somewhere. It wasn’t until a loud scream brought her to a stand still that Dee noticed how close to the clinic they now were. “  Up ahead!  ” she called, just as another scream rang from their immediate left. 

Dee brought her knees up to her chest, stuffing her cold fingers behind her knees for additional warmth and comfort. As much as she missed her sweet Emre, Dilara could only thank the heavens for the distance placed between them. Though it hurt her like hell to be away from him, she could be confident that he wouldn’t miss her too much. A few months perhaps, given his age, but then he’d easily forget about her. Alana had barely been a few weeks old when Dee arrived here. Soon enough none of them would remember a life with mom. “  Not even the innocent get spared here.  ” she commented, shaking her head with distaste. The things in the woods were bad enough for them to process - hell, the nightmares that took over them had felt more vivid than being awake. In the midst of all her brain rot, Dilara hadn’t put much thought onto what the little ones in Arcadia felt. “  We’ll figure something out.  ”

THE END

Logan’s shoulders sagged slightly as she leant over to set down her book down on the desk in front of her, realising only then how tense she had grown from hours spent in one rigid position. “I hope you’re having better luck with yours,” she spoke, arms stretching out ahead of her in an attempt to relieve the tension radiating down the stiffened muscles. Abandoning the long silence which had previously cushioned the space between two engrossed readers, she perched her elbows on the desktop and raised her eyebrows suggestively as a new thought struck: “Is the plan to read the afternoon away, or are you up for playing party girl tonight?” 

“  A party, you say?  ” she asked, though she had heard plenty about it over the last few days. Dilara didn’t know many people in the settlement so initially there hadn’t been much thought of going, but if Logan was going… “  I mean, I could be persuaded with a fun little dress up session beforehand? Do we have enough time?  ” There was no way she’d show up wearing the same scrubs she’s worn the last few months. Granted they were washed, but she really wanted to take advantage of the occasion Dilara wanted to go all out. Find a dress in the mess of clothes she was able to select and those old fashioned heels she dug out from the attic. “  I could do your hair.  ”

The darkness that had settled upon the town was...unsettling, if one was to put it lightly. But time didn't stop. It just kept on moving, and Bastian had stopped trying to make sense of any of it long ago. They had to keep on keeping on - and one way they would do that is to make sure they all got at least a somewhat satisfying meal in their bellies.

Bastian had made it his own personal mission to try and keep the survivors of the town fed with healthy and tasty meals, even if what he was working with was limited. He was working on a stew on this particular evening when someone stepped into the diner and closed the door firmly behind them. Yeah, life still went on and people still needed to eat, even if there were creatures looking to kill you beyond those doors.

He shook away the thought and slapped a smile onto his face, grabbing a spoon and a bowl to fill with a serving, soon approaching the newcomer and extending the bowl in their direction. "Here - please. You've got to try this and let me know what you think."

“  Um,  ” she had taken two steps within when he spoke, which didn’t leave her much of a choice but to accept in his excitement. “  Sure, what is it?  ” Dilara eyed the soup, questioning its content, but hoping his answer was relatively normal. In the few months she’s been around, there’d been more than a few questionable meals placed before her. Some she couldn’t fathom yet still closed her eyes and accepted the rations. “  Hopefully just beef, right? Lie to me, if not.  ”

Her vein-work pops from its supple brisket-flesh,   betraying the tight gilt of a body’s need to exist alone.     The emerge is bleatingly soft,   far from overt,   and knots glimpses along the length of her arm.     Lace atop blood.     Frayed ends sewn,   unbeknownst,   to a mordant fibre.     Your desire is nascent,   here,   in the sweet grapevine scent of your joining.     Her hand-print on his skin,   prickled-pink,   to remember this wound after each moonturn.     Bark-bare indulge.     A tear duct salted with rice seed.     To root and enflame.     Corruption from within,   carving that in from a without.     This is your cavity,   look upon the whiteout eclipse:   a dewdrop star embossed,   somehow,   before the mortal moon.     How could you shirk her,   now that you’ve seen her?     And how could she retreat with a nail-brushed peel,   open and out before its bloom is due.     Raw and damp.     Like a chewed wad of cheek spat into wet grass.

He was handsome, she noted. In that - relatively - tall , dark, and mysterious way she often read about in her books. Someone who spoke more with their silence than they did with their lips. More connected to the echoes in empty halls than the living traveling amongst them. Denying her curiosity - and therefore interest - should be foolish. Or it would have been, if his words didn’t spark her need to redress the conversation. With a huff, Dilara retrieved her hand to her side, brushing her hair forward as she took a few steps back. Dismissing him without words so she could pretend to go back to work like normal. “  You should be more careful out there. You don’t wanna anger the wrong beast. There’s not much I - or you know, a doctor of your choosing - can do about rabies while we're still here.  ” 

In a different vignette,   there would be a balcony.     Her silk nightgown would trail with the cobwebbed curtains.     Bleached hide,   drying in the wind.     Potted milkwood bushes would sit on either end,   sticky as untouched doll-skin,   or maybe it would reach from the soil below,   to estrange her from cold stone.     She would be blue,   that night,   when you stare at her back,  and just as enthralled by her petal-picked interest.     Pulling at have-nots and will-nots.     And you:   the wish-fors,   the forget-nots.     Svelte in her ivory pinch.     Pillowed burial.     This image tapers flatly into nothing.     Evanescent.     Interrupted by the din of a cramped dance.     Landlocked,   here where none should live,   by virtue of your meet.     You were destined for dead earth.     For you are here,   awaiting her pained soles in the heel of your hand.     Lotus-sick.

The pollen-blister marbles her skin and scent and taste and—   and she doesn’t offer her shoe.

Pursing her lips, she nodded. As she mumbled, she reached for the wall at her back -securing herself against it and sighing with content. The slight shift of her weight as she rid herself of all her weight instantly eased the ache and she offered her foot. “  I could do it on my own.  ” Not that he asked, but she said it just the same. Ensuring he knew she could handle herself just fine. That help was not needed. There were just too many people around - always. Too many eyes to watch her unsettled. But she was delighted despite herself. Thrilled by his mere interest, let alone his intent in providing her with a guiding hand. 

She couldn’t help but compare. An act as simple and chivalrous as this would have gone untouched by her husband. Their focus always set on business and mingling. Handling the world around them from two separate corners as though their bed went unshared. Disinterest lining her every step where he was concerned. Or so it felt. After a while Dilara became complaisant. Used to it all so she’d no longer notice. 

Her hand reached forward, absentmindedly digging into the strands of Nicolas’ hair with more comfort than she should have allowed. The strands of his hair were thick and shimmered with the oils of his scalp. Soft as they slid through her fingers.

But who was she kidding; it was only dormant, never truly gone.

“Condolences are just fine, thank you,” Valentina said, generosity dripping from her tone, the only thing to focus on instead of the woman’s words. Regardless of what she said, Valentina didn’t believe that if she didn’t walk in on her tugging at the curtains, she wouldn’t have let whatever was out there in. It was a very specific, very unique approach They had, one that had that delightful personal touch of hell with it. Still, after all these years, she saw Robbie, and had long since stopped seeing her family members after she began to wonder how they looked as they aged - their faces were faded with memory, and it’s not as if she had pictures with her to remind herself. Those remained on a phone that no longer worked, that was cracked from the accident anyway. “Are you done?” she asked, picking at the split ends in her hair while the woman complained. “Onto things that matter - someone hopefully gave you a rundown of how this place was? Or did you just not pay attention? Otherwise, I'll fill in the blanks.”

Taking a seat, she replied, “ I have. I know - it was all just… ” Unexpected? Too real? Dilara didn’t know how to explain any of it. While she hadn’t seen the creature on the other side of the window, Dilara had pictured it all. Her son, or whatever thing was pretending to be her sweet Emre waiting patiently on the other side. Would it look like him? Would she recognize it or would she immediately know it wasn’t him? “ I hadn't encountered one before... it? Those things - I just- ” Her gaze found the girl once more and she pressed her lips. “ It sounded like my son. Which is crazy, I know, he’s not even here, but it sounded so much like… like his voice - like… It doesn’t matter. I um- I’m sorry I scared you. I’ll be out of here as soon as I can. ”

Dee wasn’t someone who spent too much time fostering new friendships seeing as she barely ever had time for her own family - children aside - but being stuck in this town was suffocating with nothing to do. The clinic had more than enough abled medical professionals so her skills weren’t often used unless the damage was grave. It was easy enough to keep herself distracted for a couple of hours, and while making new friends came with the horrific realization that they could die at any given time, she didn’t want to stop living due to those fears. As time passed by, Dilara found herself gravitating towards more and more people. Looking for some light in the darkness that enclosed them. “  I do hope those words come with more than just lip.  ” Dee teased, turning to find the first place to lay her cup before she reached for the blonde’s hand and pulled her towards the music box currently playing. She wasn’t a dancer beyond the basic sense of the word, but that never stopped her from letting the music consume her. “  Show me what you’ve got.  ”

“  I’m so sorry.  ” Dilara apologized, wishing she could reach over to offer some comfort but understanding that the touch may not be wanted in her grief. “  I can’t begin to imagine the world of -  ” she stopped herself from finishing the sentence. Nothing that she said could help ease the pain Rylee felt, but she understood well the strength of a mother pushing through hell. “  If you ever need anything - anything at all - do feel free to approach me. I won’t claim to feel your pain, I don’t think anybody really can, but you’re not alone. You know? In a place like this, we have to help each other any way we can. If anything for the children.  ”

Tessa needed a cigarette. Or a joint. Perhaps something stronger. Or maybe just to not be here anymore. Surely she was losing her mind. This wasn't how the world worked. The sun didn't simply not rise in the morning. Tessa was no fucking scientist, but at least that much seemed clear. Unless the whole entire planet decided to stop rotating for some reason, and that was a whole different issue. Somehow that seemed even more unlikely than just this one black hole of a town being sucked into eternal darkness. Given what she knew about the town already, it didn't seem that farfetched.

Maybe she should've taken the unnatural quiet of the evening (morning? afternoon? midnight? At this point it was anyone's best guess) as a sign while walking slowly down the path. She was on high alert - that much she'd learned from the past few days of darkness. Then the silence was punctuated with racing footsteps, and she turned around to see what the commotion was. Whatever it was, it couldn't be good.

'Run!' The other person had shouted, hands waving frantically through the air. They didn't have to tell Tessa twice - she took off without a second thought, only sparing a glance over her shoulder to spot the hoard of them not far from the person who had yelled.

She’d never been afraid of the darkness, but the fear coursing through her veins as she walked through the thickening woods made it almost impossible to not picture sinister smiles everywhere she glanced. Somehow the realization that she was not the only person outside made it a worse experience entirely. How would she know what was real and what was not? Who she could trust and if she’d be able to tell who she could not. The deeper into the tree’s she went, the louder it became. Turning back now, Dilara would find herself unable to find her path back to the settlement house so she pushed forward where she hoped the town was. 

A scream escaped her lips during the collision, and instead of listening to anything the other said Dilara pushed away from her - heart thundering in her ears. Had it not been for the fear reflected back at her in the other woman’s face, Dilara would have pushed past her. Instead, she glanced over her shoulders at the blinding darkness and swallowed hard. “  I don’t know where to go. I think the town’s where you were coming from.  ” she said, half stumbling through her words, “  How many?  ” There was no way that turning back to the trees was their only safe passage. Being as close to the town as they were, it felt only right for them to attempt to pry a door or two open. As far as she knew, the creatures were slow and steady. They walked - not ran - so if they gathered enough courage to zoom past them, they should be able to get away. “  Do you think we can outrun them?  ”

“  What kind of stew?  ” she asked curiously, no longer walking towards the door but also not approaching her either. Dee kept a comfortable distance, having already witnessed the quickness of the dog. In all of her life she’s never had a pet. With her parents always off working, and her taking care of her siblings over the years, there was never a need to add more to their plate. Her sisters always wanted a cat, but Dilara could have cared less. Her irrational fear of animals and their loyalty to humans went deeper than she’d admit. While she understood most pets could be harmless, it didn’t stop her brain from thinking up scenarios where she’d be attacked. “  Maybe I can help.  ”

He shared a dubious look with Dilara, even as she laughed with him (an important distinction, to be sure, many people had laughed at him when he'd been younger, and smaller —when his stature hadn't been so imposing), and nodded. Mav swallowed and extended his arm out for her to take. "Okay, aah trust ya," he settled on saying. It was almost comical to him that she could be thinking of food at a time like this, but the idea of a fruit did sound appetizing. "Ya got any apples? One fo-wah meh 'n one fo-wah Milk?"

"Ya should see the young cow now, almost a big as them other cows." He said it with a hint of pride, but underneath it there grew concern that one day that cow might be big enough and needed enough to be put down.

Gathering blood was something that always reminded her of her early resident years. Going from almost no sleep to breaking her neck over the pages of a book to then spending hours and hours working at her family’s clinic in order to get some extra experience in. It perhaps wasn’t healthy for many people to do, but her field of work required a specific mindset and dedication that Dilara was only too willing to embrace. Her dream had always been to follow in her family’s footsteps. Doctors after doctors, going back at least six generations in the time they have immigrated to the states. 

For her, making the decision had been as easy as breathing. She was the eldest of her siblings - first of three daughters - and a good four years to separate her from the rest, so she spent a good deal of time hanging out and learning from her parents whenever they could afford her their time. Watching their video taped surgeries became an addiction. In a place like Arcadia, where tomorrow was not promised, all of these memories seemed to surface out of thin air. Guiding her day to day and keeping her from wallowing in her current misfortune. 

“    Uhh, yeah. I believe we have some out back from yesterday, I’m sure we can afford to get you two.  ” she said, nodding as she diligently worked through setting up the bag. Cleansing the area before prickling him - all the while continuing to speak in an attempt to distract him from the pinching feeling of the injection. “ Could you remind me, how old is she? I don’t know much about cows, but once when I was younger - I had a nanny who took me to a farm where a baby calf was being born. It was my first time being so close to such a thing and I was elated, but my parents absolutely hated it. Crazy because I was allowed to watch their medical tapes, but for some reason a birthing cow was too much for my sweet innocent eyes.  ”

Mother and son, their first outing together without his father… probably ever. And it was here.

The stress of the place meant that Ben hadn’t been eating too much, even when he knew he should have been keeping up his strength given his chosen profession here. Nevertheless, he found himself ravenous over the food, picking and picking and never settling with an actual plate, just moving along the spreads until he felt he was satisfied. Or until he felt a hand on his back and glanced up, frowning immediately in confused recognition. “Mrs. Kaplan?” he asked, swallowing down the crumbs of food still on his tongue. He gave her a smile and an awkward hug befitting their tertiary relationship. Seen through the years, surely, but during the games he was always clean cut and clean shaven - now his curls had some room to grow, his dark beard coming in nicely, given the circumstances. No more a boy. “Yeah, they know. I don’t know where– we came together, but I guess I got lost,” he attempted to joke, realizing too late that it was probably in poor taste - they were all lost, weren’t they? “How are you?”

“  I think we’re beyond Mrs. Kaplan now, no?  ” she teased, doing her best to maintain a level of ease in her surprise, “  Dee is more than fine, Ben.  ” At his words, she glanced around in an attempt to locate them before giving up entirely and returning her gaze to Ben. Each day that went by Dilara couldn’t help but wonder about their whereabouts more and more. At first she had been convinced she was in some sort of coma. That in their drive to the restaurant, Dee must have slid off the road and gotten into a vehicular accident that left her close to death and this was all playing in her mind. What’s the worst thing that could happen to her beyond being ripped from her family? Add on that extra layer of supernatural - the things hiding out in the woods until nightfall - and you had your own personal hell. “  Do-...  ” she began, but paused, thoroughly unsure of how to even ask the question or whether it’d even matter at this point. So instead she focused on enjoying the night as if their being here was as normal as day. “  I’m doing alright - for the most part. A little unsure of all of this, but what can we really do - right? How about you? How long have you been here?  ”

Until she turned around to a man, cup extended in her hand. A pang of disappointment thrummed in his chest - that would have been one nice thing, to see a face that he recognized. There were so few people in the world he knew, that he spent his day to day life with. He forgot faces in the crowd the instant the performance nights were over. Still, thinking how nice that fortune teller was gave him the confidence (not that he needed it) to approach the red haired lady after the man turned down the offer and turned away. “Can I have that?” he blurted, pointing to the cup. “I was thirsty earlier. I still am. Unless you’re drinking it, then I’ll get my own.”

She turned, coming face to face with a young man who she’d yet to encounter. Not that she knew much of the people around still, but aside from the children in town, he seemed like one of the  younger ones around. He had kind eyes, she noted - and an air of cluelessness that didn’t differ from the rest of them. Dilara had always been a people person, oftentimes going out of her way to learn whatever she could about them and offering help in any way she could. 

Arcadia wasn’t a place where her help meant much beyond the clinic - and she wasn’t sure she was properly equipped to function in the same manner she would have back home, but something about him beckoned her to smile and nod. To engage in conversation. “  Of course.  ” she replied, turning her attention completely towards him and offering the cup. “  No, you can totally have it. I have my own.  ” And to assure him further, she raised the other cup to cheer. “  I can’t exactly guarantee it’s the best for hydration, most definitely doesn’t go down like it, but I’m sure we could find you some water somewhere around here?  ”