IT IS WHAT IT IS

— is my human suffering enough for you, god? is it getting you off, king?

.

“You don’t get it, Levi,” Yana started, her voice thinning with barely concealed distress. “We don’t have the time to not start taking legitimate and tangible steps to leave. I can’t do flimsy ideas, I need to do something real right now. And I thought about it and this is the first one: get my phone to work. And the only way to do that? Get out there.” She gestured toward the door, a sharp and sudden movement then dropped her arm back to her side. “If you don’t think that’s smart, then… then I can just live with that.” Her mind was a jumbled-up mess of knots and worry and repetitive threats made by something invisible. Disembodied laughter and directionless footsteps. Sensibility was drowned out and turned foggy. This seemed sensible. She couldn’t understand why Levi didn’t think it was. Not right then.

Her fingers twitched as he continued, more emotive than she’d seen him in a long time. She knew Levi cared about his friends, even when he was even-toned and reserved. Logically, she knew that. She could always see that. She would’ve never labeled him as uncaring, but the way he spoke still struck her still for a moment. Yana swallowed, then shook her head. “I’m not going to get hurt,” she continued slowly, not entirely sure of her words even as she said them. It wasn’t a worry on her mind until he posited the possibility. “But I do… I need you to understand that I need to do this. As my friend, I need you to get it and to, like—” She stopped short, her hands curling and uncurling before she reached up to push an errant strand of hair out of her face. “I’m going to tell you something and I need you to listen with an open mind and the knowledge that I won’t — I wouldn’t lie to you. Not about this, not about… God, not about anything. Okay? Can you promise to just listen?”

-

Frustration met Levi at Yana’s words, a sharp sigh leaving him as he listened to her insist that things had to happen now, now, now. What was this urgency? Was there some giant timer counting down that only Levi couldn’t see? Defeat was written all over him when Yana declared she could live with his opinion. Evident in the slump of his shoulders and his downward stare. It was clear to him that Yana was going to do this no matter what. Pleading wouldn’t make a difference.

Are you sure about that? The bitter thought rung in his head, itching to jump off of his tongue when Yana assured him – not so confidently – that she wouldn’t be harmed if she attempted her plan. He watched her, silent now knowing his words wouldn’t make a dent. He thought it was unfair of her to pull the friend card but he supposed if there was a situation that warranted it, this particular moment could use its power. Fine, he’d let this happen. But he wasn’t happy about it.

Though it appeared there may have been more to Yana’s desperation than Levi assumed. This wasn’t just finnicky panic for no reason at all. The possibility that there was something more beneath this soothed Levi’s prickliness some, uncrossing his arms and unscrewing the twist his face was in. “I... Yes,” he agreed. “I promise.” If there was an explanation that would make Yana’s willingness to brave a downpour make sense, Levi was keen to hear it.

.

Yana heard the disappointment in Levi’s voice when he said her name; it sounded so different from the way he said it yesterday. A little embarrassed on her behalf for her misunderstanding of an idiom, but not disappointed. She tried to steel herself against it, and moved to finish zipping up her jacket. “We need to make plans, not just—sit around and wait,” she started, the thought of which made her whole body go itchy and uncomfortable. Even if she wasn’t as freaked out as she was, doing nothing was never her M.O. “Sticking around clearly isn’t an option anymore. You saw Dev, Levi. You saw what’s on the table. And I… I don’t want to be here, between this morning and last night and… literally like half an hour ago. It’s getting out of hand.” Yana pulled her hair up and out of her face, tying it into low bun. “We can’t stay, and someone needs to sus out when and how we can leave.” She pulled her hood over head. “You might not like it, but it has to happen.”

-

“Listen, it’s not like this place is my favorite either but going out, right now, while it’s pouring sheets, it’s not the safest decision.” No surprise Levi held that opinion. He wasn’t the biggest risk-taker. “Like I get what you mean, I’m concerned about Dev too, and this place creeps me the fuck out–” Not that he was generous with his negative feelings about the cabin, keeping those concerns close to his chest. “–but I think going out in this condition, putting yourself and I don’t know, maybe me at risk because if you’re dead-set on going there’s no way I’m letting you go alone, is not a smart decision.” He hoped Yana could at least see that, trying to appease to the part of her that was practical. “Making plans? Yeah sure, let’s think of something and put things in motion to make getting out of dodge as soon as the rain lets up as fast as possible. But trying to do something out there while it’s happening...“ His words trailed off, a defeated sigh following. “Please just– don’t go out there,” he said. Was it begging? He hoped not. He’s been pretty pathetic recently as is. Levi couldn’t remember the last time he’s ever spoken so much and so quickly but the deep concern he felt for Yana right now was pummeling through his quiet demeanor and making itself known whether he wanted it to or not. “We can make plans. We can do what we can in here, just... Please, I don’t want any more people getting hurt.”

closed starter @levitowsley​ where: entryway when: mid day, after things have settled down

the rain has picked up quite a bit since last night. em had braved it a couple times since it started, squatting by the back door under what little cover she could find with her leather jacket pulled up over her head as she took quick hits of a cigarette. today she was opting for her vape since the rain has gotten worse. but right now, she wasn’t thinking of a cigarette as she dug through the entryway looking for a rain coat or umbrella. there were a few hanging up on some hooks so em picked one that looked like it would protect her the best without soaking all the way through. there was something she needed to look for outside and she wasn’t sure how long it would take or if she would even be able to find it. reaching for one of the umbrellas from the stand, she felt like someone was watching her. though, she’s had that feeling ever since she saw the eyes in the woods the day before. looking up, she nearly yelped when she saw levi. clutching her chest, she let out a weak chuckle. “jesus christ, you scared the shit out of me.”

-

“Whoa, hey–” Though Levi was already looking at Em, her reaction startled him as much as his presence seemed startle her. “Sorry,” he said once his heart had settled back into his chest after jumping to his throat, watching Em with tense shoulders. “You alright?” He couldn’t help but be curious. Everyone was their own version of on edge this morning. He wanted to do what he could to keep everyone relatively sane given the chaos of how their day had started. He took notice of the umbrella in her hand. “Are you going out in that?” He asked, chucking a thumb over his shoulder to gesture to the horrible weather they were suffering. Though it was a question, his tone was already a clear indicator that he didn’t think it was a good idea  – a slight judgy-ness in his cadence.

-

“What do you mean who? The board said it last night…wasn’t that –” she furrows her brows and finally she feels like there might be an explanation in sight. “Wait, who mentioned a Mary? When was this?” she looks at Levi now, calmer than usual, high, and places a hand on his shoulder. “If we figure out who Mary is, then we can figure out who…subconsciously moved the little arrow thingy on the Ouija board.” it wasn’t much but it was something. “Maybe someone has some like, unfinished business with a Mary and as good friends…we should help them figure it out and resolve it, right?” a good way to justify poking her nose in other people’s business. 

When he agrees to go, she feels slight unease and maybe a bit of laziness. But she’ll head to the door. She had to do this. Especially after pissing off Dev. “What I’m expecting to find is …just some clues, I guess. I mean, if we pay attention maybe we can figure out what’s causing this. Maybe there’s some sort of gas leak or…God, I don’t know…I just wanna check it out let’s just go…”

-

Levi made a face. “Dev,” he answered. “Last night. When she was sleepwalking. I stopped her and told her to go back to bed.” God, did he wish terribly that Dev just stayed in her room and never left. Finding her in the state she was in this morning... It made Levi’s stomach feel like it was in knots. 

A sigh left Levi. Everything Jo was saying felt... drug-induced and lacked any substance. He couldn’t help but feel like he was wasting his time entertaining her but he also felt like she wasn’t in any state to be left alone. “Wait, so you believe in a ghost being here now? What about thinking Amari did it?” Because Levi was still on that train. In fact he was driving it.

“Clues...” If he could sigh a second time and not make it totally obvious he was feeling a little frustrated right now, he would. But Levi didn’t feel like getting into an argument. Especially since the morning already started off so chaotic. He didn’t want to add to the dissonance of the group. “Gas leak...” He shook his head but followed along anyway.

who: open @phantasmhq​​ where: entryway when: day 2, mid-morning

With her phone white-knuckled in her hand, Yana stood shift-eyed by the front door. She quickly figured her worn sneakers weren’t exactly suited for the heavy rainfall, so she layered up two pairs of socks and now her toes felt a little pinched. And no matter how many times she looked down at the screen, the facts didn’t change: she couldn’t make any calls, she couldn’t check the weather report, she couldn’t frantically google for answers. Not that she thought there could be any real, solid answers for the questions she had—but at least there’d be ideas, theories, unhinged reddit threads. Something.

With her free hand, she grabbed for the raincoat she’d hung on one of the wall pegs the day before. Back when they first arrived, back when she liked the thought of settling in and making the cabin homey and familiar to her. Yana caught movement from the corner of her eye, and she turned sharply. Then she let out a sigh of relief. “Hi,” she breathed out, and started to pull on her coat. “There’s no way in hell we’re going to miraculously get reception in here anytime soon, so I’m — Yeah, I’m gonna head out.” She stuck her second arm through, then shrugged it over her shoulders as she tucked her phone into her pocket. “You don’t have to come with me or anything.” Yana fumbled with the zipper for a moment before it finally caught. “I just really need to see if this rain’s going to let up.”

-

“Hey...” Levi’s brows tugged together at the sight of Yana as he approached her. Concerned and a bit curious. She looked like she was prepping to go out, and soon enough she confirmed as such. “Yana...” There was a tinge of disappointment in the way he’d said her name. “It’s pouring out,” he reminded her. Not that it was necessary. The incessant pound of rain against the cabin’s windows and roof was ever present, the soundtrack to their chaotic morning. It was the kind of downpour that made the phrase ‘sheets of rain’ make sense to him. Looking at Yana struggle with the zipper of her coat, he couldn’t help but register this sort of... unease in her. A jitteriness? Whatever it was, it made concern creep up the back of his neck. “Don’t you think we’d be able to tell from the inside?” A gentle request for her to not go through with this. “It’s–” He briefly turned, catching a glimpse of the angry downpour from the window closest to them. “–probably not the best idea.”

-

Her head tilted as she observed the nest. A faint smile tugging at corners  of her lips. Maybe it was a pest, and maybe she’d feel differently if the creature were actually present – but she liked the idea that something had made a home here. That this place wasn’t completely wasted over the years. She gave a soft huff of a laugh, glancing over at Levi with approving smile at his joke before she looked back up again. She wondered what would happen when it rained. Was the nest protected or was it hiding a hole that she couldn’t see from where she was? All thoughts that ran through her head as she stood with pot and wooden spoon still in hand in the doorway to the shed. She left Levi to gather what he needed, she wouldn’t be much help beyond identifying the absolute basics and in the small space would likely just get in the way. She looked back to him when he spoke again, “ Yeah, for sure, ” She nodded, stepping backwards so she was no longer blocking the doorway. “ You got all you need? ” She hoped so. The shed was so full of junk, she had to assume the right stuff was in there with it all.

-

“Yup,” Levi answered as he approached Dev, shaking the toolbox a little, its handle in his grip. “This should have everything.” To have a shed full of tools, Levi expected Amon’s toolbox to contain all of the essentials. Though if something was missing, he’d just come back in here and poke around till he found what he needed. Since they’ve discovered it was possum-free, he wasn’t afraid of making a return. Worst case if the shed didn’t have what was needed for a sink repair, the DO NOT TURN ON sign stayed near the tap where he left it until he could go over to the closest hardware store tomorrow. It’d be a bit of a hassle but he didn’t want Dev to have explain a leaking bathroom sink to her family, especially if the cabin was being sold. “Let’s go.”

who: open starter @phantasmhq​​ where: the toilet, jo is smoking at the window and the water is running (steam takes away the smell) when: day two, morning (after dev’s scream)

Jo couldn’t sleep, which seemed to be a bit of a theme following last night. She gave it her best shot though, for the vast majority of the night, she pretended to sleep. She’d close her eyes, try to relax, try to let herself sink into the warm mattress and doze off to the sounds of rain hitting the shaky windows. But with every unknown sound, every step or whisper, she went back to square one. So eventually, she’d given up, took her cigarettes and rolling equipment and was about to head outside before noticing some of her pills were missing. But before she could take a better look or worry about it, a scream echoed through the house from it’s foundation and Jo froze. 

The rest happened fast, people were running, there was blood and that weird fucking symbol. Nothing was adding up, nothing they’d experienced so far, and Jo was hell-bent on this all having some sort of reasonable and logical explanation. She just couldn’t see it yet. “All I’m saying is, while some things do happen for absolutely no reason, there’s usually an underlying cause. Like, I don’t know, there’s no real reason why my fish had to die in 3rd grade, but the cause was definitely my brother. So, as long as we know the how, we don’t really have to concern ourselves with the why.” 

But they didn’t know the how, they didn’t even know the what. “I think we need to have a proper look at this place. Maybe we can figure out this symbol, o-or who the fuck Mary is or, literally…if we find out what type of animal has human footsteps and lives in these walls, it will be enough for me.” she exhales through the small bathroom window, and looks over her shoulder at the person she’d manage to rope into her tangent. “So do you want to come with me? Down to the basement?”

-

It was a rough night. And the morning? Somehow even worse. Levi’s eyes ached but his body refused to surrender to his exhaustion, drooping eyelids always blinking open the second his lashes touched. After seeing the state of Dev,  it was impossible to go to sleep. Levi busied himself with trying to be helpful, productive in one way or another. Be it by removing the knife from where it was stabbed into the table in the dining room or trying to clean up the mess carved on it. Some sort of drawing. A circle with a diamond inside, lines jutting out from each point of the diamond. Weird. Dev’s sleepwalking was seriously out of hand.

“Mary?” Levi asked. He’d gone into the bathroom with the intention of washing his face, not expecting to find Jo there. Of course, they fell into conversation quickly. It was difficult to avoid what had gone on this morning. “She said that to you too?” When he stopped a sleepwalking Dev the night before, he heard the name. It was strange. He figured it was a family member or something along those lines.

The idea of going poking around in the basement made Levi feel uneasy. He doubted they’d figure much of anything out, not of the belief that there was anything nefarious going on, but it also couldn’t hurt. It would at least satiate Jo’s curiosity. Her growing paranoia was becoming a bit of a concern for him. “I mean, I’ll go with you. I don’t know what you’re expecting to find.” 

-

If curiosity killed the cat then Devlin was down a life on this one. Almost immediately after Levi opened the door she was on her tip toes to try and see into the shed. If her cousin hadn’t told them to avoid it she’d have absolutely no interest in what was inside, but as things stood, with both his warning and the build up Dev and Levi had provided themselves, it captured her intrigue. She couldn’t see much, but it seemed it was just … a shed. But! Mission successful! “ Nice. ” She said, smile spreading on her features. “ Any signs of a possum or was Amon just lying? ” She asked, poking her head to the side a little more to try and get a better view of the inside. Then she spotted something, in the corner. “ Hey, ” She said to grab his attention, voice low again as she reached for his shoulder in the same breath. Fingertips lightly tapping it before she pointed to what she had spotted. “ Look, ” A collection of twigs and dried up leaves up against the roof. Using a support beam to keep it in place. Based on the lack of noise upon their entrance she had to assume the possum wasn’t in it’s home right now. Because of her valiant efforts or not she wasn’t sure. “ Found the possum. Or it’s nest, at least. ”

-

Levi’s stare had zeroed in on the work bench in front of him, wondering if the toolbox on it had everything he’d need. He hoped so. Any self-respecting homeowner with a shed set-up like this, it’d be a shame if there were basics it lacked. His focus was slow to switch, staggering to Dev when she questioned her cousin’s honesty. Looking around on the ground, he didn’t seem to spot anything that said a-possum-was-totally-living-here. But then Dev spoke again, a repeated touch to his shoulder to get his attention. He turned to the direction she was pointing in. “Huh.” Levi’s mouth pushed into a pout. So Amon wasn’t lying. “Guess Amon’s a truther after all.” Drake and Josh reference. He hoped Dev would get it. Seeing as the possum didn’t seem to be home, Levi strode over to the work bench on the northernmost wall to retrieve the toolbox. There were some other things on the table. A mess of twigs, dirt or whatever. Junk. A big believer in leaving things better than how he found it, Levi gathered the clutter and chucked it into the toolbox to toss into a bin when they got back inside. Toolbox closed shut and secure now, he started back towards Dev. “Ready to head out?” He asked.

.

Yana loved when Levi laughed like that. Admittedly, she loved making any of her friends laugh—on purpose, by accident, or at her own expense. But there was something really special in getting a laugh like that out of him, not stifled or snuffed out. Your brother, huh? Yana huffed a little laugh of her own. “Yeah, my brother,” she repeated, gently half-mocking in amusement at the way the question was worded and delivered. In one of her freshman year Psych classes, one of their icebreakers was guessing who was an oldest, middle, youngest, or only child. Overwhelmingly, her classmates assigned her as the latter. Yana always found that interesting. “As an only child, are you jealous?”

She hummed in response. “That’s not a bad guess, actually. At first, I thought they were just some fairytale object. Same with the spinning wheel in Sleeping Beauty. I had absolutely zero frame of reference for what any of those things were, so I just assumed they were totally made up.” She picked the thimble off from her pinky then reached over to take hold of his wrist and tug his hand across the table. Yana arranged his fingers, then placed the thimble on his pointer finger. It sat atop it like a little hat, too small to go any further. “Or that maybe it was a token of affection. It’s just so cute, is the thing,” she said, smiling indulgently, then moved to continue poking around the box. She waited a beat, then revealed: “But it actually protects your finger from getting pricked by a sewing needle, so it’s very practical.”

-

Levi’s mouth twitched in amusement at the way Yana parroted his words back to him. “Totally. Green with envy,” he answered flatly. He didn’t have strong feelings about the fact that he was an only child. To him, it was just the way things were. He held no attachment to the idea of someone sharing his blood. His parents didn’t seem eager to have more kids after they had him either. Seeing as they didn’t even live under the same roof anymore, nor were they married, it was probably a good thing they decided to start and end their procreating with him.

Predictably, his heart jumped in his chest when Yana took hold of his wrist. Idiot, he thought to himself. With the exception of a split second, his expression remained neutral as she drew part of him closer to her. He tried to not make it obvious that heat was starting to build at his cheeks when she was messing about with his hand, positioning his fingers a certain way. Then came the thimble, now sitting on his index finger like a crown. He stared at it a beat, head cocking to the side a degree as he observed it. Okay, so it had use. Got it. “Cute. And practical. Very you, makes sense.”

-

Dev watched him, waiting to see if he heard something she didn’t. Totally captured in their little mission. And then he shook her head. She wondered if that meant there was no possum at all, or if it was simply too quiet for them to hear. She looked down at the pot when he did, a mischievous sort of smirk threatening to pull at her lips. She straightened up, flicked some hair over her shoulder, took a breath, and then– 

She banged the spoon loudly against the bottom of the pan. Her features grimacing a little at the loud noise but she continued for a good few moments. Long enough to wake the possum and give it time to get outta there if it was in there to begin with. She felt ridiculous. But that didn’t mean she felt bad. As she stopped she even laughed. A soft chuckle, at herself and what she’d done. “ Go on, ” She encouraged Levi, nodding her head towards the door of the shed. “ Check if it worked. ” 

-

The sound of the pot being struck against made Levi wince, never having been a fan of loud noises. But he suffered through it for the sake of what they were trying to achieve. Nothing seemed to happen within the shed. Not scurrying nor any sort of racket. They should have heard something like that had a possum been in there, right? Possum noises? But it was quiet. At Dev’s prompt, Levi swallowed –  a bit nervous – before bobbing his head and moving to approach the door. Man, he really hoped this place was void of anything that could give him rabies... He pulled out his phone, turning on its flash as he reached for the handle of the shed. His hand hovered over it for a moment, taking in a deep breath. Don’t embarrass yourself, he thought. Then on his exhale, he twisted the handle and pushed open the door. It made an unpleasant screech when he moved it, likely due to rusty hinges. But thankfully, nothing launched at him. He took that as a sign to step in further.

-

Devlin tried to ignore it but she felt it each time she stepped outside. The feeling of something lifting. A clouding, leaving her mind. A weight from her shoulders. Only she didn’t understand it. So she tried to ignored it. Wrote it off to sunshine and open air versus an old cabin that hadn’t been properly lived in for the last twenty years. However Levi spoke again and drew her attention. A slight rise to her brows as she looked over at him. Curiosity, or something close. Judging for a brief moment how genuine it was. She figured it was genuine in a sort of way, the same way she’d jump in the line of fire of her friends too– but perhaps not the literal jumping in front of an angered possum. “ Where is your faith in me, good squire? ” She questioned in return, her words definitely a joke. A joke to avoid a thank you. Leave it as unsaid as the genuine notion behind Levi’s words. The two of them seemed to do a bit of that, hide what they meant in other words. Leave things unsaid. Another thing Dev had taught herself to ignore. Definitely ignore any feelings she might have about it. “ I’ve got this. ” She continued, confident though still jestful.

As they drew closer, Dev made sure to take her steps a little lighter. Approaching the shed like it were a sleeping baby. When a twig snapped under her shoe she stopped and looked down, making sure not to step on another until they were beside the shed. Unlike the cabin, that largely relied on the inside to show its age, the shed’s age could be seen from the exterior. Weather had stained it over the years and it hadn’t been given the same care as the cabin. She looked to Levi, and silently pressed her finger to her lips in the universal sign for ‘quiet’. Then she leaned close to the shed, ear hovering against it. Listening for a moment. Trying to drown out the sound of the surrounding forest, the cabin not far off, the garden between. Just the shed. “ I don’t hear anything. Do you? ” She asked in a whisper, eyes flicking up to Levi.

-

I’ve got this. Levi nodded his head, surrendering to her confidence. If anyone had this, it was Dev. He just followed her. Tried to keep his footsteps light. Not wanting to be the reason this ‘mission’ of theirs didn’t succeed. It felt like they were two kids playing make-believe with the way the snuck through her garden. A pair of spies on their way to steal a sacred jewel. On instinct, he drew a sharp breath through his teeth when Dev crushed a twig beneath her shoe. Shit, he thought. Like a sound like that was the end of the world. It wasn’t. They carried on.

.

“Laissez-faire McLawless… Okay, now I know what to do with the puffy paint and blank t-shirt from the Dollar Tree I have back in my dorm. All together now, can we say ‘highly personalized graduation gift’?” Yana smiled like it was 100% a joke, but she was not without her history of gifting both homemade presents and also stupid ones. Levi had been on the receiving end of them on more than one occasion; the necklace he wore was case in point. She twisted the thimble around the top of her pinky as she listened to him, an eyebrow quirking up as his opinion became clear. “Wow. Nietzsche found dead in a ditch,” she said solemnly, then wondered how seriously she could take the discussion in the limits of their interaction. In the warm afternoon light, in the dusty air of an old cabin. She supposed she subjected him to worse in the small confines of her RA dorm. “For something to truly not have value or meaning it would have to just not exist at all, you think? Hmm…” She smiled again. “What I will say with certainty, is that my brother’s really into it. He thought the ‘God is Dead’ thing was super metal.” Not that Misha even ever believed in a god. Yana knocked the thimble against the tabletop, then perked up as Levi’s following words. Can I be honest? “Always,” she said in earnest, then awaited with poorly-concealed eagerness for his revelation. When it finally came, she exhaled sharply—then looked down at the thimble still on her finger. A second passed and then she broke out into a laugh, short and effusive. It made her curl in on herself a bit, her shoulders momentarily hunched as she looked at Levi through squinted eyes. “Go on, give it a guess.”

-

A laugh – one that wasn’t subdued by his innate bashfulness – fell from him. Levi could picture it. A shirt with those words on it in puffy paint. So quintessentially Yana. The worst part was that he’d love that shirt if she gave it to him. Would cherish it even. Especially if it was a graduation gift and possibly the last DIY thing she ever gave him. Sure, he wouldn’t opt for that for everyday wear but not all shirts were meant to be worn, right? That’s why some people framed jerseys from their favorite athletes. Some things were simply kept to be admired. 

Wow. Nietzsche found dead in a ditch. It amused him, mouth twisting into a half-moon shape. “Your brother, huh?” Levi didn’t know much about Yana’s brother. Or much about her family at all, really.

The confession entertained Yana. That was all he could ask for.  He was no stranger to embarrassing himself for... whatever this was. This hopeless fondness for her that he couldn’t quite squash. “I mean, I know it has something to do with sewing. Is it like, a medieval needle holder? Like a pin cushion but a cup?”

-

Levi could be trusted, he could. He was her closest friend. She’d never hid a thing from him and she wasn’t gonna start now. But how the fuck was she supposed to word this in a way that would not make him worry, and would make him totally a 110% believe everything she’s saying? No way to do that Jo. But, you know Jo, Levi already knows you ain’t all right in the head, so just go ahead and say it. Maybe if it goes wrong you can play it off real cool like, maybe you ate some funny shrooms or something. Yeah, do that Jo. If truth don’t work, a shit lie will get him off your dick. 

She takes in a deep breath, her hands still shaking beyond her control as she lights a cigarette. “Okay so, so like I’m gonna sound a bit coo-coo right now…trust me, I know.” she tries to think back, the eerie feelings the heavy presence, that creepy fucking giggle. But something was off from the moment they got here, before any of that. “So when we first pulled up I kind of…I don’t know, I just had a feeling. And you know I’m not the most intuitive bitch right, I’m really not but even I could feel it this…I don’t know, just a feeling. So I did what any sane person would do and I ignored it. – I’m probably tired, I thought, maybe too high or like not high enough or whatever so…I went behind the house and smoked a joint and then I took my shit in and somehow I ended up in the kitchen with Dev and this is when it started Levi. I didn’t think much of it, but now…I don’t know man…anyway — I was gonna fill up some water but the pipes got all fucked and then this, this dirt came out and I dropped the glass but when I looked down at the sink it was spotless. Dev didn’t see nothing, I thought I was trippin’ I mean, maybe the pipes was just fucked ya know? Bottom line…I let it go. Fast-forward to 20 minutes ago…” 

She gets up on her feet now, inhaling a long…long hit of smoke before she continues. “I was in my room doing some unpacking, looking up these weird ass pictures just minding my business and the door slams shut. No wind, the windows closed, none of you guys around. I get up and try to open it and shit won’t budge! It’s like it was locked! So I get freaked out, doors don’t just close on their own, right? That’s not how doors work, unless they’re like automatic a-and have special features but not these doors these are old these still, like they need outside force to fucking close Levi. A-anyways then, oh then…” she laughs, a nervous manic chuckle. “Then I hear a giggle. There’s a giggle behind me. Not outside the door, behind. Like it’s, like you know in horror movies when the person opens the toilet cabinet, and then when they close there’s someone standing behind them? It was like that. I could feel someone o-or something was there. With me. I didn’t know what to do, I couldn’t move so I opened the closet door and then I got freaked out because this is not what a smart person would do, ya know? Go digging for more? Oh hell nah. Then I ran to find you and…now, well, here we are. And I am fucking not okay.”

-

It was never a good thing to hear someone start with I’m gonna sound a bit coo-coo right now but Levi did his best to keep his expression unchanged. He was going into this with an open mind, as he always did with Jo. He’s been the listening ear to her troubles and stories for four years now. There was little she could say to turn him away.

A feeling upon arrival. Seeing something others didn’t. A door shutting and locking with no explanation. And then: a giggle. Not from outside. From behind her. While she was in a room. Alone.

“Okay...” He said. Not judging her or what she was saying. Simply a word of acknowledgement as he tried to process what she just told him. It was weird. Bat shit crazy, honestly. But he wasn’t going to say that outright. There were steps to this. Things to try before conclusions were drawn. As much as he wanted to write this off as a bad trip, the result of a cocktail of illicit things and poor habits, his patience had to count for more.

“Alright,” he said again after a moment, putting a hand over Jo’s shoulder in a gesture of comfort. She did say she wasn’t okay after all. “Why don’t we... check your room?” He suggested. “See what’s going on in there. Maybe try and make sense of what you experienced.” Investigate first. “Because... there has to be an explanation, right? Things like that don’t just... happen.”

-

Well, that was an easy smile earned. A little silliness. As serious as she could seem, as serious as Levi could seem, as serious as any of them could seem given everything, Dev most appreciated the foolishness that came out in moments together. A chuckled passed through her lips as he mentioned armoury, gesturing forward for him to lead the way. She followed after him with lips pressed together to try and avoid that smile growing any further. She intended on grabbing at least one of the things herself but he beat her to it. Leaving her to stand uselessly, only offering company for repayment. “ Here I was thinking you were my liege lord or something, but you’re giving serious squire vibes right now. ” She teased, as he ‘polished’ the pot. “ Not that I’m against it, ” Holding hand to her chest for a second before moving forward and reaching for extended pot. “ There’s some great squires out there. Podrick Payne, Merlin, even Samwise Gamgee kind of, ” And that was all she could think of in the moment though certainly more existed. She positioned the Pot under her one arm, holding it in the nook of her waist, then reaching out hand for the spoon. Once she had it, she struck a little pose, trying to look tough while equally trying contain her smile again. “ Do I look the part? That possum’s not gonna know what hit him. ” She joked, holding it for a beat longer before she let it fall. Pointing spoon towards the dining room, towards the back door, “ C’mon, my loyal squire, to battle, ” She grinned as she moved.

-

Levi let out a small snort. “Me? A liege lord? Dev, you’ve met me, right?” The thought of him in such a position made him shake his head. “Squire is definitely more my speed.” He was often being dragged around, carrying things, following after someone. If there was such a thing as modern day squire, Levi was it. A personal assistant without the paycheck. “The fact that I know who all of those characters are definitely says something about me,” he commented when Dev listed notable squires off the top of her head. He was a nerd by osmosis thanks to this friend group. He handed her the wooden spoon, an amused huff leaving him at the sight of her pose. “If I was that possum, I’d be shaking in my boots,” he said. He meant it. But Levi had this thing about him. As sincere as he felt about something, conveying it was another story. His expression was usually lackluster. His voice would hardly change in intonation despite how he felt. Call it laziness, call it emotional constipation, whatever it was, he was just glad the group learned not to take it personally over the years and considered it part of his ‘brand’. “To battle...” He echoed, hands flexing at his side. Was he nervous? Well yeah, a little bit. There was a 40% chance he might have to break into an embarrassing run to avoid rabies.

Once in the backyard, Levi was staring hard at the shed. It only seemed to grow more daunting the closer they got to it. It was no secret that he wasn’t the bravest person. He left that to people more capable. But part of him felt uneasy about letting Dev do this for him. “Um, you know, in the name of squires and everything, if this goes south, I can throw myself in the line of fire for you.” It was a joke. Mostly. Kind of. If Levi got rabies and died, it wouldn’t be a big deal. At least it would have been for something. Dev had plans after graduation. It’d be a serious loss if rabies and death got in the way of that.

.

Yana’s smile widened when Levi trailed off after he said her name. She liked that reaction—and that probably said something about her. “Dog eat dog? Archaic, boring, sad, been done before. Let’s usher in a new era, you and me.” As she sifted around in the Monopoly box, she was halfway pleased to see that whoever had last used it put it back in a mostly organized manner. Beggars couldn’t be choosers, after all, and she was not without her own hurried slip-ups when it came to boardgame cleanup. But as far as she could tell, most of the game pieces were there—racecar, top hat, iron… She scratched a fingernail at her bottom lip. She couldn’t see the dog. Well. They’d have to replace it with something. They could get creative. Yana glanced back at Levi as she awaited his answer, her eyes narrowing amiably as he stretched it out. Decent. Her face lit up and she lifted a finger to point toward him, poised to dole out some statement of celebratory success when he continued. Her finger dropped down to the edge of the box, where she tapped it a few times. Her eyes stayed narrowed for a moment, and then she snorted a laugh—a sudden, unflattering sound. “First you tell me you’d aid and abet and now this. You’re lawless… and you’ve made me curious with your laissez-faire attitude.” She spotted the thimble and plucked it up, placing it over her pinky. “So I ask, nihilism: you a fan? That great debate of human existence. Is there a point to navigating this boardgame called The Universe with any kind of strategy?” Yana wiggled her pinky. “And by the way, this piece is my favorite. Because it entertains me.” She wiggled her finger again, then touched it to the tip to her nose. “Multipurpose. Not that you asked.”

-

“I’m a regular... Laissez-faire McLawless,” Levi decided to say, knowing absolutely no one said that but in the heat of the moment, he couldn’t think of anything better. “I don’t know what to tell you.” The words were followed by a short raise and drop of his shoulder. He watched as Yana took a game piece from the box and fitted it over her pinky. The thimble. Of course. His mouth pulled to the side softly, taking the shape of a gentle curve. Then she started talking about Nihilism and Levi couldn’t help the small swell of amusement he felt. Would Yana ever bore of asking him questions? Of wanting to know his mind? It’s been four years. How many more questions could there be? Sometimes he wondered if whatever question she just asked would be the last, and in a way, he thought that would one day be true. Since they were graduating and all. Moving on with their lives soon enough. “Hmm...” He hummed in thought, considering Yana’s question. “I think my beef with Nihilism is Nihilism itself. How can you believe in nothing if you believe in Nihilism you know? Kind of... contradictory, don’t you think? People put meaning into anything, even nothing. So like...” He lifted a shoulder and made a vague gesture. As if to ask: what’s the point? “I see that,” he remarked, bobbing his head and looking at her with gentle delight. “Can I be honest? Since you told me the doggy dog world thing.” He paused for a beat, letting the anticipation in the room bubble before he leaned over and whispered, “I have no idea what a thimble is used for.”

-

Dev nodded and hummed a quick note of agreement. The shed. Because Amon didn’t like the basement. She didn’t bother to share that though. She couldn’t explain it, she just knew it. Not that keeping things to herself was new territory for Devlin. Her nose crinkled in thought for a second at Levi’s question and subsequent point raised. “ Like, sixty-forty? ” She replied, her head tilting just a fraction. But a beat later the corner of her lips pulled up into a small smirk. One she was trying (and failing) to not let show. “ But, ” She started, smirk immediately becoming more obvious once she spoke. “ I am willing to take a pot and a spoon down, make a bunch of noise to scare it off. Just in case there is one in there. ” Sure, banging a pot didn’t exactly fit into the nice, relaxing weekend Dev had an image of in her mind either, but it definitely beat a rabies outbreak amongst her friends. 

-

“Well, as long as you’re willing to be the shining Knight with Pot and Spoon, I’ll check it out with you.” Yes, Levi had absolutely no shame in letting Dev take the lead with this one. He decided he’d make up for the caution he was practicing by being the first to step in the shed. But only after Dev made sure there wasn’t anything living and angry in there. Between the both of them, he was the slower runner after all. “Should we go to the armory?” He asked, chucking a thumb in the direction of the kitchen. “I can polish your pot for you. Make sure it’s battle ready.” He started toward the kitchen. He could at least be helpful in getting the pot and spoon for Dev. Being in the kitchen with her earlier and a couple more times throughout the afternoon for snacks and beverages, he was able to locate the items with no trouble. He even took a rag and rubbed down the pot as promised. “Madam.” He handed her the pot first, still holding onto the spoon.