& | 𝐈𝐍𝐕𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐆𝐀𝐓𝐎𝐑

“Oh no, mum and dad are handling things too. I like to help however I can though,” they didn’t really need her on most days but with Easter approaching, they had a surplus of people looking for produce and things to do with the kids. It always happened and she always looked forward to it. “And David, he helps out when he’s around but that’s not too often.” Though, technically he was around now. Watching him for a brief moment as he started to set things up, Lillian had a very brief recollection of already knowing him but something was different this time. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Nodding at him, she made her way to the kitchen and busied herself with pouring them both hot water from the kettle that’d been on before returning with fresh tea. 

“Here you are,” Lil mused, handing over the mug to him before settling on the opposite end of the couch, curling her legs back underneath her as she got comfortable. Her head tilted to the side a smidge, his face familiar, why this situation seemed off just on the very edge of her memory until - “you’re early. That’s it, isn’t it?” To anyone outside of Darkwood and the events that occurred there, it might have seemed like a question from someone off their rocker, but Lillian didn’t have a doubt that he knew what she meant. “Last time you came…we’ve met before, haven’t we?” God, she hoped he remembered or else this would turn into a very strange conversation. Was he recording this?

“That’s nice of you. It’s good to see families sticking together and helping each other out every here and there.“ Ravi is a big advocator for lessening the burden on his family, still in constant contact with them. He makes a mental note that David doesn’t seem to pitch in that much around the barn, but doesn’t comment on it outwardly. With just coming back into town, he’s not really in a place to judge people’s personal lives. The only thing he can judge is if they have any connection to the fires. He smiles softly when Lillian returns with the cup of tea and blows on it softly. “Thank you.” After it’s cool enough, he takes a small sip and then sets it down on the table. He cracks his neck by twisting his head to the right and left, loosening some of the tension as he gets into his agent mindset. 

As he’s writing the day and time on top of a blank page in his notebook, along with Lillian’s name that he’s already aware of even before the introductions, it’s noticeable that his hand pauses. The question makes Ravi’s head jerk up to look at her, so she knows that they’ve lived through this too. He doesn’t find it in himself to lie, but thankfully this wasn’t an official interview that’s being recorded. “Yes, I am. After waking up after, well that’s not important, I felt like I couldn’t wait to be called by the police department so I started putting some things into motion and make sure they knew they needed me.” Thankfully, it wasn’t that hard. He sets his pen down in the center of his book. “We have, yes, I wasn’t aware that others knew.” Slowly, it was more and more clear that some of them did.

She’d been all over the place lately. Brooklyn had been all over the place since the day David died, to be fair, but more so now. She had never felt so alone. When she was growing up, she had her parents; maybe she’d felt like their least favorite, but she still felt loved. Then she’d had her friends; maybe she felt like she would be the first edged out, but they were still good friends. Then she’d had David, and the day she lost him she’d been pregnant with their child so at least she had him. Now she had parents that didn’t even realize what was going on, she had no friends, the uncertainty of her ex? boyfriend and her child didn’t exist. It was enough to make her dread going home, even with the wind and the rain.

Her eyes narrowed at the man’s hand, hesitating before she reached out to shake it. “What do you mean?” She demanded, less than friendly — she wasn’t trying to be intimidating to a newcomer, but a ‘weird time’ could mean anything. It could mean in the middle of an awful storm, it could mean years in the past. She didn’t offer an introduction yet, maybe he was supposed to be the one grilling people but she had more questions for him. “What are you investigating?”

Normally he’s not on the other end of so many questions. Of course, whenever he strolls into a town for the first time a couple of the locals are put on high alert. Ravi isn’t here to drastically change anything though, well he is, but it’s for the better. After being granted a second chance, he has to make sure that no one else gets hurt. Otherwise, he feels like he’s just going to have to repeat the same down spiral of events as last time. He takes note of the lack of introduction but all of the questions carefully. A part of him wonders if the woman has something to hide. Should someone not be looking into her life? Not that Ravi is, but now he’s all the more curious about her. 

“The fact that I strolled in during a storm and blackout. Reads like a bad omen to me, so I know it’s a weird time for some people to have me start looking around.“ Although he also means the fact that he’s already done this. Ravi has come to Darkwood for the first time more than once, but it has to be like this is his first time here. He can’t exactly put that into words. “The fires. I’m a forensic fire investigator. Do you need to see my credentials or something? The police themselves have already had a chat with me.“

Fawna was getting downright sick of this storm. She wasn’t the kind of person that enjoyed the sound of thunder, she could appreciate a light drizzle on her window at night but that was it, she didn’t want to have to walk in it, she didn’t want to have to wring her hair out when it ended up getting soaked even with an umbrella, and she didn’t want to worry about getting struck by lightning for simply going out to get a cold drink in the midst of this weather since the blackout had obviously taken their refrigerator down with it.

Hearing the voice, she stopped, uncertain if he was talking to her or not but turning anyway. It didn’t take long to confirm that he was indeed talking to her. “Oh, hi,” she offered the best smile she could, reminding herself it wasn’t his fault the wind was blowing wet hair in her face and water had dripped down into her boots making it uncomfortable to take another step.

“You’re here to investigate the fire?” She repeated, at least someone was doing something about it. Strange they had to bring in backup from somewhere else, but maybe the Darkwood PD had their hands tied. Or maybe they really were completely useless. “Sure, it’s not far if you’d like to walk together — you can share my umbrella,” she offered. It wasn’t like it would take her five minutes out of way, and that would be five more minutes she didn’t have to spend in her pitch black bedroom with a dead cellphone and nothing to do. “I’m Fawna, by the way.”

Even though forensic fire investigators normally just have to deal with fires, since he did his training with Europol first he had to be put through certain weather conditions. This storm that was crossing through Darkwood is still something that he never really has the pleasure of dealing with. There’s a first time for everything though and he finds himself having to hold the hood of his raincoat with one hand so that it won’t just blow back down. For a man that hardly never slouches, he’s been doing a lot more of it today to protect himself. 

In some way, this was a gift to Ravi. Sure, the storm is uncomfortable to dread through, but maybe people are more willing to blow up when nature is against them. The angrier that someone got, the more of a chance that they would let the truth spill. He isn’t holding his breath though, because if history serves him right then he knows it’s all too complicated to be solved during a storm.

“Yeah, it’s my expertise so I guess that they decided to bring in someone with a little bit more knowledge about it.“ Although Ravi still thinks that the police department could definitely be doing more about it. Maybe that’s just his work ethic though, he’s super critical about how other people handle their own. “Thank you, that’s too kind of you.“ The agent goes down with her, slouching a bit more, but grateful that he can finally stop holding onto his hood so hard. “It’s nice to meet you Fawna. I wish it wasn’t during a storm, but the sentiment still lies the same.“ 

for the first time in what felt like a long time, nik was completely by himself. it wasn’t something he often liked to be, highly preferring the company of others… but, in this town ? in a new timeline ? it was welcomed. being alone was slightly better than being harassed, and at least he had all of these flyers posted to light posts to distract him as he attempted to make out what they once said. there was clearly something about a lost animal, but the image had grown blurry and the name was illegible. good luck to… stop ? that couldn’t be its name…

so invested in the mystery of stop the catdogbunny, he was startled when a voice addressed him from behind. agent karim… new to town… asking him a regular question… thank god. no longer alone but also not someone he’d have to argue with. “ agent karim ? nik marcus, nice to meet you, ” he spoke, extending a hand. “ so i’m assuming you’ve already snapped some pictures of the remains of holy cannoli, yeah ? and reggie’s ? ”

being twenty-seven for a second time is strange. there are now fears that he’s filled with that he wasn’t the first time he turned twenty-seven. new emotions that darkwood brought out in another timeline that he has to deal with in this one. work has been his life passion for a long time, but now it’s something that he can focus on without having to worry too much about himself. trying to solve the mystery of the fires within two years at least gives him a time limit. ravi doesn’t know if that’s the only time that he has, if there’s a clock ticking somewhere that cannot be seen. 

turning around, he finds himself face to face with yet another person he’s pretty sure wasn’t in town right then. boy, if he hadn’t been so buzzed then it might have been clearer whether he was imagining it or things really were just totally different. it was turning into a fight to understand what was fact or fiction, was this even a real second chance or just a test ? hospital visit fresh in his mind he finally clicked on to who was standing in front of him, a slow materialised memory of one of his many conspiracy theory articles.

“wouldn’t worry too much about that, dude. those guys barely work themselves,” mx chuckles, a genuine sense of humour, something light and attractive that conflicts with all those other dreary thoughts. it’s genuine. it’s honest. when he looks at the other man he wonders what he thinks about being brought back to life. does he think nobody else knows ? “so, what’s it to you… purgatory ?”

in his mind, the conversation was going to lead in a totally different direction. for the most part, ravi is hellbent on making sure that he doesn’t get knocked off course when it comes to the fires this time. yet, when mx asks the question he’s brought back to his new reality. the one where he’s already died and gotten a second chance to live. if that wasn’t enough, he’s now two years younger and the last two years of memory in his life haven’t happened in this world. on his board, the bottom right portion is dedicated solely to people that have been brought back to life and time loops. something always seems to trigger it. 

Logically, Rachel knew that the police department (and other emergency services) would be busier than usual given the blackout. She also knew that because of that, she should give them a moment of respite from her questioning. However, given that the stakes were so high, the redhead was still in the habit of stopping in every day or so just to give a bit of prompting. They couldn’t blame her for being a concerned citizen, could they? 

Or perhaps they could. When she’s asked to speak with someone, an agent at that, she’s more pleased to hear that they’ve brought in additional help than worry that she might be caught up in the investigation itself. She knew that she hadn’t set those fires, and if she had (which, of course, she wouldn’t  because of morals and the simple fact that even lighting up to smoke was too much for her to handle since the fire), the redhead feels quite confident that they wouldn’t be able to pin it back to her anyway.

“Of course. If it helps with the investigation, then I’m happy to speak with you.” The man in front of her doesn’t exactly look the part, his smile brighter than most of the people she’s dealt with, almost friendly. Maybe he just figured that he’d get further if he wasn’t as stiff as some of the others. “It’s a bit difficult given the blackout and the weather, but I can come down to the station if that works best for you.” 

Arriving in Darkwood for the first time a second time is strange, but he already has a feel for how the police department is. He understands that they have other things to worry about which is why he doesn’t want to rely on them too much, but that just means that he has to take this even more seriously. Last time he had 2 years and he was thrown off of his course to the point that another fire broke out. This time, that won’t happen.

If he’s been brought back to before he even arrived then it has to be to make sure that he solves the fires this time. That’s why Ravi thinks he’s back and he’s hellbent on making sure that he at least lowers the number of suspects on his list. Although, with coming back he’s only just managed to increase it more and more. That’s why instead of just working out of the small corner the police department gave him, he’s built an entirely movable wall in his room that allows him to pin parts of the investigation. 

“Truth be told, I’m going to try to do my best to keep anything that isn’t official out of the station.“ Ravi shrugs his shoulders a bit. He knows it’s a good place to work out of, but for all he knows the police are involved in this too. Why else has it taken them so long? “We can go there for the initial conversation though, just to be able to have things on record. They just gave me your name and told me I should introduce myself, said you’re motivated to seeing this solved.“ 

And just like that her qualms are settled about letting a quasi-stranger into her house. With his identification presented, Lillian felt a bit more comfortable with the situation as she closed the door behind him. “Not at all, just doing some light reading before I go back out to check on the horses and sheep, leeks, carrots, and - and none of that is really why you’re here,” she cut herself off with a laugh. She could go on and on about the farm and what produce they were starting to harvest this month but that probably wasn’t of any interest to an agent investigating a fire. A fire that Lillian herself had been trying to find more about recently - especially if it would help her clear Eddie’s name and hopefully drive them in the direction of her brother. The one she knew had something to do with it ( and the ones that hadn’t happened yet ). If she could find out what he knew, maybe she’d be able to do more. Maybe she’d be able to help him with what she knew. “Here, take a seat, make yourself comfortable,” she offered, pointing to the couch where she’d just been sitting with her book. “Want any tea or coffee? I was just going to grab myself a cup, happy to grab you one before we dive in.” 

If he could be honest with them he would tell them that even before talking to the police department, he already made a list of people that he needs to talk to. Ravi isn’t entirely sure if he’s the only one that remembers the timeline, but he has two years to make up for and that means having to go through all of the interviews again. This time, he’s going to try his hardest not to get distracted, but it’s hard. At least Lillian seems willing to help him get back on track. “It does sound like you have to manage a lot though, so I’ll try to be quick. Is it only you tending to everything right now?” He smiles at her hospitality and takes a seat on the couch, deciding to go to the corner farthest from the entrance. That way he gets a better view of the whole room and of anyone that could walk through from the front door. Maybe it’s just something he’s picked up through all of his investigations. “Thank you, you’re already so kind and I’m probably just intruding on everything.” Ravi knows that he has to do this though. It’s not always easy being the good or bad cop, but if he doesn’t ask the questions then history is bound to repeat itself. “I would love some tea actually, whichever one you have is fine with me. I’ll set up in the mean time if that’s okay with you.”

𝘾𝙇𝘼𝘿 𝙄𝙉 𝘽𝙇𝘼𝘾𝙆 𝙇𝙀𝘼𝙏𝙃𝙀𝙍, honey really ought to reconsider her fashion choices, especially when the weather seems to be unforgiving ━ it rages, like a grieving mother. perhaps she needs to buy new things too, more jackets and sweaters for sure, maybe even a warmer coat. but the black leather jacket holds almost sentimental value; she still has a couple of crumpled up receipts from her hometown and a lighter in her side pockets. all useful things for sure. 

but when you’re born with an innate inability to sit still for longer than an hour and find yourself in a town like darkwood, you really have no other option than to wander around until you find something better to do. she doesn’t even know where she’s heading. she usually never does. but anything surpasses the notion of being stuck in a home that’s not your own. 

❝ hey,❞ she finally turns around, unsure of why anyone would be calling her. ❝ i’m afraid that’ll be impossible, ❞ honey quips, toying with the idea of lying and giving him utterly made up directions. but in the end, she refuses, aware that there should be some sort of solidarity between newcomers.  ❝ravi huh? it’s nice to meet you,❞ but she does not offer her name in return, giving him only a slight smile.  ❝well i’m new too, you know. that’s why i can’t really help you. but hey, maybe we could go together? two heads are better than one, that sort of deal. more eyes at least. oh and i’m honey, ❞ great work honey. you might as well give him your address too. 

𝙃𝙀 𝙇𝘼𝙎𝙏𝙀𝘿 𝙏𝙒𝙊 𝙔𝙀𝘼𝙍𝙎. this town marks more than just a job with the old memories in another life, but now ravi doesn’t know where he lies. he hugs his peacoat comfortable against his torso and remembers the new clothing he had purchased in darkwood. this was a new beginning, but one that he had already lived. the part of him that died isn’t the part of him that’s walking these streets again. if anything, this time he’s just more of an extreme version of who he was before. 

with his mind split into the man that he was becoming and the man he has been brought back to, it’s easy for his investigative side to take control. that’s why he notices that the woman doesn’t give her name until the end. while it’s nothing to immediately feel concerned about, at least he can now put a name to the face, it’s just something that he takes note of. some people take more time than others. 

Lillian was busy re-reading one of her favorite books after working out in the stables, taking advantage of the natural light while it lasted. What with the storm and night ( eventually ) approaching, she wasn’t going to use up any battery for light if she could help it. Hearing three knocks on the door she can’t help but think that’s a very specific number as she rises from the couch, unfolding her legs from underneath her and walking over to the door.

She paused mid-step when he mentioned the barn house fire, the fire that had changed their lives seven years ago. An agent was coming around asking questions? Maybe the first time around Lillian would have ignored it and not gotten involved, she couldn’t lie straight to someone’s face - she couldn’t do it. This time though, she wanted to help. She wanted to solve this and prove Eddie’s innocence. So she kept walking. Opening the door, Lilian smiled widely up at the agent. “Hi, welcome. I’m Lillian, which you might already know, Agent Karim. Come in.” Maybe she should have asked for some kind of identification but that thought was a small little mumble on the side of her brain that was easy to ignore. 

For some reason Ravi feels like he has a time bomb ticking in the back of his mind. The police never told him that he needs to rush all of this, but he knows what happens when he takes his time with something. Worse, when he gets distracted and lets his personal life go first while his work life takes a backseat. He cannot let that happen again, so he’s going to go as hard as he can right from the start. 

Thankfully the door opens without a problem as he’s met by Lillian. With the woman now in front of him, he fishes out his wallet from the inside of his coat to take out a leather case. He opens it to flash both his professional identification card along with his badge. “Yes, thank you for letting me in.” Ravi steps through the door and then turns around, shifting on his heels to face Lillian. “I hope I’m not intruding in anything. With the storm brewing, I just want to make sure that I’m home by nightfall. I just have some baseline questions to compare to the notes of the initial accident, make sure that I have all of my information correct.” He smiles softly while sliding the case back into his coat pocket.

no one in the town is really safe. ravi knows that from the first time he started this investigation, things have to change if he doesn’t want to repeat the same mistakes. that’s why instead of operating under his innocent until proving guilty, he would go for suspect until proving innocent. at least now he’s convinced these are accidental fires. 

the forensic fire investigator has been going through a couple of the files and names that the police department handed to him. with the blackout he has to get creative, but he manages to track down one of the names. rachel appears a lot in the records, but simply because of how hard she’s pressing the local law enforcement. he has to know why. 

maybe this was a bit unconventional for how things were supposed to be done, but ravi’s already experienced being too distracted. as soon as he lands in darkwood, he wants to get the ball rolling. even with the storm brewing outside and most of the power cut out, he went seeking his first suspect. 

now it was a bit extreme to bring cyrelle in for questioning simply because of the fact that she has no alibi, but he’s going with it for now. “there’s a lot of things on the record that point the finger to you.” those things are substantial at best, but the agent doesn’t feel like going too deep into that. 

starting the investigation from scratch seems to give ravi a different perspective on things. the last time that he had arrived in darkwood, there was someone producing a movie about the events that happened. he didn’t focus too much on it because there was a lot to wrap his mind around, but this time it’s one of the first people he tries to track down. 

he knows that he has to tread lightly. he’s supposed to be completely new to the town and he doesn’t know how many others have kept their memories. for now he takes his camera and heads outside. even though it’s a storm, some of the most beautiful pictures can be captured during it. 

some of the information about the accident has already been sent to him. yet, there was only so much that he could tell from the pictures. ravi is back in darkwood for a second time, feeling like this time there’s an actual time limit. he doesn’t want to waste any time even with the storm that’s brewing up in the sky. 

carefully he makes his way over to lillian’s house, having a file in his messenger bag along with a couple of other things. he travels through the storm while clutching onto the strap of his bag, making sure that he’s headed the right way. finally, when it comes up to the front door he knocks three times. 

𝙊𝙁 𝘾𝙊𝙐𝙍𝙎𝙀 𝙃𝙄𝙎 𝙋𝙃𝙊𝙉𝙀 𝘿𝙄𝙀𝙎 𝙉𝙊𝙒. ravi really cannot be that surprised. maybe he was karmically paying for leaving tal behind the last time and upon getting into the town, everything is just off. he knows that he has a job to do, but he needs his equipment. he needs to make sure that he can put everything together to. 

he grabs his windbreaker and heads out, but with a hazy memory he’s wandering aimlessly until he bumps into someone. he notices the blonde and smiles in her direction, putting his phone into his pocket and trying to not let the wind blow him over. “excuse me!” he calls out before jogging over.