⛧ ░ THANKS, SATAN!

          When he sees the other , his brow furrows like he’s trying to recognize the face next to him. He’s seen it before - can’t exactly pinpoint where , but he swears it’s more familiar than different. And then suddenly , ❝ You. ❞ He points a finger , lips parted. ❝ . . . Aren’t you the guy that tweeted out the Lockwood Killer looks like David Schwimmer ?? ❞

           ❝ I dunno. I think I should stop holding onto things so much ; might be pulling me back a bit. I’ve got a habit of living in the past and not really focusing on the NOW. Kind of sucks , so maybe I should work on it. ❞

           ❝ Dude. No. ❞

          Cigarette is shakily held as he takes a tired drag , Dakota leaning on a table for support. Processing the vote beforehand , dead sure his name would be the one with the most votes. He’d mentally prepared himself for it - ready to accept any fate that the dreaded app would give him. But instead , an innocent girl was picked , and her life was probably hell at the moment. He was thankful it wasn’t him , but at the same time . . . he wasn’t. Upon seeing his sister , he perked up and extinguished the cig in the ash tray , straightening himself up. ❝ I must be part cat or something. Because I think I definitely just spent one of my nine lives tonight , Jacks. ❞ He tries to coat an exhausted tone with lighthearted relief , despite the horror of the situation. ❝ . . . Are you doing okay ?? At least ?? ❞

            ❝ Yeah , I’m hearing that more and more often tonight . . . ❞ A grumble as he rests his head on the table for a quick second. A small sigh before sitting back up about a minute later. ❝ See - I’m not - I’m not big into the gods and that shit. I find it so fucking BORING - the monsters are fucking cool. That’s why I was like , hey , bet nobody else is gonna go as Cerberus , but now . . . ❞ A long , tired sigh. ❝ I see why. ❞

            ❝ You say that like you expect me to go hip-hip-hooray because her name was picked. I’m not happy , for starters. And I’m a little unpleasantly surprised - I was dead CONVINCED I was going to be voted off the island there. ❞

            His response is a visible eyeroll ; Dakota huffs , but that doesn’t do any good for the people drawing comparisons to him and an actual dog. ❝ I wanted to be CREATIVE and obscure , alright ?? Didn’t want to pick an obvious choice - almost went as Neptune , but then I got an idea. An idea that lets me flex - ❞ He pointed to the SFX makeup of teeth and eyes around his mouth , replicating the maws of the three-headed dog and his head being the middle of the triad. ❝ - this. If I wanted to be a god , I’d just throw on a sheet and call it a day. ❞

            Dakota wasn’t amused in the slightest , but in truth , he did walk into this. All attempts to be DIFFERENT were executed well , yes - but he should’ve seen the slieu of opportunities that were tossed in the directions of comedic-minded individuals. And although he couldn’t do anything to stop them , and ALTHOUGH he’d acknowledge it was his fault ( partially though , he’d insist ) , he’d still very much voice his concern. ❝ I’m just saying that MAYBE the rest of you can find more creative ways to make fun of me than making the same damn joke over & over again. I won’t like any of them , but I hate THOSE the most especially. ❞ Then came the remark , and Dakota made a face. ❝ . . . The sad part is , I can VISIBLY picture that in my head. And I don’t like it. I can respect it , but I don’t like it. ❞

               ❝ Maybe I caught wind you were planning on the god of the Underworld. Maybe I wanted to coordinate a surprise. ❞ He says , sighing loudly but maybe a tone softer. Maple’s smiling ; it’s not that he doesn’t believe they aren’t capable of it , but he just isn’t used to it. A small shrug as he leans back. ❝ I’m not really into all the fancy gods and stuff of all this shit. I just like the MONSTERS. The urban legends , the beasts that hunt down the heroes n’ all. So . . . figured Cerberus was an obscure idea. Even if people keep making kink and furry jokes. ❞ But the fact they’re complimenting his skills in makeup and special effects means a lot ; that’s always been his dream , to be a part of a team behind the scenes of HORROR MOVIES and the like , doing just that. ❝ Next time one of these things happens , I actually wouldn’t mind coordinating with you. Just - don’t expect me to always dress as your costume’s guard dog. ❞

           ❝ Jesus Christ - let people enjoy things and be pretentious about what they wanna be pretentious about. You know what you sound like ?? You sound like that edgy I’m a weirdo speech or whatever from that - that Jar guy or whatever from that one show with the annoying kids about the RIVER. You know what I’m talking about , right ?? ❞ Deadpan tone asked , Dakota not really looking in Blake’s direction - but looking past him , at the other clubgoers and the costumes they decided to display tonight. And the brown eyes diverted back to Blake , hand motioning to present his form. ❝ Cerberus. Guard dog of the Underworld. I’m actually not asking for furry jokes and kink implications , but APPARENTLY everyone wants to be a comedian tonight.❞

           ❝ Listen - it’s JUST a costume , so don’t read too much into it. If you’re planning on doing that and you’re damn near ready to spread some rumors or shit about it - BE MY GUEST , but also kindly fuck off. Or not so kindly - I don’t know the shit you’re into. ❞ Negative conversation leads one to walk away and Dakota to sit down at the bar again , horrific makeup thankfully staying upon his face untouched as he downs another shot. Outfit’s simple ; horrific canine teeth painted on both sides of his mouth , pairs of eyes along the temples , a spiked collar. As another sits down and prepares to converse , Dakota breaks in ,  ❝ If it’s a furry joke , please please please stop right there because you’ve no fucking IDEA how many furry and who’s a good boy cracks I’ve heard tonight. Chose CERBERUS because it was original - I didn’t - i didn’t think about how many weirdos would laugh about it. ❞

           Okay , YES , all-in-all , Dakota was not expecting an answer like that. But nevertheless he sat , eyebrow perked. ❝ Don’t worry about it - I lost my sense of smell ten years ago. Sinus surgery. ❞ He lied as well , turning his head away with a small sigh. He felt tired. Wondering why he even bothered being here if he was only going to sit in the corner and sulked. But then , he asked , ❝ With all due respect , the fuck are you supposed to be ?? ❞ Not that his costume was any clearer ; he was aiming for CERBERUS , with sharp canine teeth painted on both sides of his mouth with makeup , and then costume fangs of his own.  ❝ Just asking. ❞     

         At Flynn asking if he knew how to make fake blood , Dakota’s lips curled into a rare grin ( he had a tendency to appear rather deadpan ; his parents often knocked on him for it as a child. ) ❝ Hey , ❞ a thin and bony hand reached to touch Flynn’s shoulder , ❝ I can do pretty much anything in that department. SFX makeup ?? I fucking love it. ❞ Letting his hand hang loose , he pulled out his phone and opened his gallery , selecting a folder containing numerous works of makeup he’d done on himself. They ranged from artsy to horrifying , obviously all taking more than ten minutes of his time to create. ❝ The closest I have to a portfolio - but that’s why I’m begging us to do more . . . GORY shit. So after this little mourning window we’ve made , ❞ and that was including his own mourning , since it’d been months but he still hadn’t really fully come to terms with Tati’s death , ❝ we start up a production of Sweeney Todd. And I don’t even care if I don’t get a part ; I’m DOING the makeup and the fake blood and that shit. ❞

            It’s ironic when you catch people demonstrating the same habits and mannerisms as you do ; he was on his OWN walk of shame , and maybe it was some sixth sense shared between the people taking part in it , but the moment he looked at her he knew she was on the same path. Hair pulled back into a messy ponytail but the rings under his eyes a surefire sign of EXHAUSTION , he loosely leaned on the side. Opened his mouth , standing agape for a few seconds , and Dakota’s eyes stared into space before looking straight at she in front of him. ❝ Deadass , ❞ a long pause as his hand hung loosely from a belt loop of his washed jeans , ❝ I don’t even fucking know. ❞ Lovely and helpful response. A small sigh slipped from his lips , throwing his arms at his sides until they hit his body again with a small ‘flap’ noise. ❝ Guess that’s for us to find out later ?? ❞

           Inhale of a cigarette and a brief stare forward , Dakota doesn’t pay much attention to the step close by until they reach. Catching the owner’s hues , he focuses on the piercing brown irises before darting his own away. A small sigh , since he’s yet to talk to them for quite some time. Never really knowing his stance with them , never really knowing what they’re thinking. GRANTED , he’s not much of a people-reader , but . . . it still irks him. ❝ Maple Leaf. ❞ He notes , deadpan tone ever the same as he turns around. ❝ To what do I owe the honor ?? - You look great. Still like you’re about to cut me in half - you know , as it should be. ❞ He sounds tired. He hasn’t been sleeping well , it’s evident. As much as he wants to sound smooth , it can’t be translated in his tone of voice. He motions out to the pouring rain , cold and damp and reflective on his current state of mind. ❝ Come out to gaze at the wonderful weather we’re having tonight ?? ❞

            He gave a double pop of the eyebrows to the brunette , arms crossed. His expression would clearly on read “and what about it” as a reply to hers , then disregarding her displeased reaction in order to focus on Flynn again. Perhaps one of the only people in their department who seemed to latch onto Dakota’s naturally morbid and dry sense of humor , where most people would find it . . . insensitive and tactless. But it’s how he coped with losing perhaps one of the people he loved the most , as well as potentially being a target of both the police and a sadistic serial killer. ❝ See , that’s what I think would be great. I’d love to doll up some people with some gory makeup and that shit , definitely would make all the fake blood myself , but . . . I know some people don’t get me as much as you do so , figured that might not be a great idea. ❞ A pause. ❝ We should wait a few months. I was thinking maybe something like SWEENEY TODD. ❞ Like that would make it any better.