soul-poor.

         ‘ honey. ’ roberta is balanced precariously between amusement and exhaustion (both of which read plain as day in her tone, body language) and hopes with all of her might that basil is able to read between the lines. her shift is coming to a close, so she’s scheduled to start unwinding within the hour. but for now— ‘ you know you been hummin’ and singin’ the same two lines’a that ditty since you got here? ’

            ❝ huh? ❞ truth be told, v had been focused on the tarantula crawling up their arm, and the snake resting on the crown of their head in the mockery of a halo. they blink up at merry and they look reasonably human ( purple haired, sure, and eyes like opals, but still human ). they grin. it’s all human, no inhuman sharp teeth.

          ❝ kinda took these creatures off someone b'cause the snake wasn’t shedding. ❞

the realization that none of this bothers him as it used to is, funnily enough, a little bothersome. merry folds his arms over his chest, slouches further into his seat, and pushes gently outward with the toe of his shoe at something small and skittery that’s been trying to climb a leg.

          it hears that, and turns to look at him as it does. it’s eery, invokes the sort of spine-chilling sensation that one might feel if someone turned to look at you after you’d said something behind a two-way mirror with all the microphones off  —  there’s no way it could have heard with these ears. the bird perched atop the truck stop flies away, as though its business here is complete. khthonios approaches, head tilted.

          ‘ american? ’

he stiffens, all capacity for rational thought and reasonable reaction sapped from him in an instant, and knows before he’s tried it that he’ll have lost his ability to speak a full, smooth sentence. did it hear that, or is the timing coincidental? has it assessed him, or is he an easy read?

            ❝ definitely. ❞ a light, almost sincere sounding, quip. the tree’s only half decorated— he’d claim it was so his wolfdog didn’t snatch ornaments, but wichita is better behaved than that. his returning smile is sheepish, a bit sad. ❝ would you really? i'd– i’d appreciate it. ❞

❛ @ryfts​ ; ❄️.  ( for beloved roberta. )

Bertie. Bertie, look a’ me, a mhuirnín. ( Brighid relinquishes her pick-up tool onto the tabletop. ) I can see– it’s okay t’be frustrated. ( She says, evenly, eyes as gentle as she can make them. She never remembers how much she needs to de-escalate until someone in her inner circle is….escalating. ) 

I know tissue paper and Mod Podge– it’s– it’s hard. I know. You have t’work very fast, and. It’s sticky. ( Brighid looks at the thin strips of green and grey, ripped up and stuck to the table, then at her own barely-begun luminary in front of her. Flat-backed glass marbles form two uniform rings underneath the jar’s lip, one red, one clear. ) 

Would you like to– ( She smooths a single marble between her shredded thumb and pointer finger and smiles her kindest, gentlest smile– one last attempt to nip the rising tensions in the bud. ) I think we should switch jars. I can help you, with the quick-dry.

bertie doesn’t raise her voice — it isn’t her wont to begin with, but the perpetually brighid-focused portion of her brain knows better than to break pattern and back her into a corner. her temper, which has cooled from hot to below tepid since they met, only bears itself by way of a playful-angry noise. half grunt, half whine, and accompanied by a pair of mod-podged, gift-wrapped, and airborne hands.

         ‘ i was workin’ fast, wudn’t i? ’ she points at brighid’s area. the paper (amongst other supplies into which roberta has leaned) hanging off of her from her fingers to her elbows lends more comedic effect to the gesture than intended. ‘ i am not touchin’ that, baby. i won’t ruin a perfect thing if i can help it. ’

         ‘ you find tinsel distracting, billy? ’ ernie picks at one of the branches of his christmas tree, turns the artificial pine between his fingers, and offers a sweet, small smile to express his understanding. he couldn’t, wouldn’t, won’t judge for the abandoned effort. ‘ i can help you make it less— sad, if you want. ’

          ❝ not a day over 25, my dear, ❞ asa is quick to grin, pearly whites and amusement. she studies merry after she’s had her grins and quiet laugh. while she can see people’s age reflected above and around them, whatever v had done to take him away from the mortal coil was muddying her efforts. her smile is sad. ❝ i’m afraid i can’t tell you that. v’s messed with that part of being able to tell. i’m sorry, merry. ❞

he waves her off, his smile polite but twisted on one side with a little embarrassment, a little melancholy. it’s the answer he’d wished against and anticipated in equal measure. i’m sorry, merry. well, who isn’t when they know his story?

@ryfts ; 🐾.

–The doodle-lookin’ dog is back. ( Brighid is practically vibrating with excitement. ) I was on my way over– over from work and he just– he just jumps out from a snowdrift an’ barrels into me with all he’s got!! To tell me hello!! ( She enthuses, beaming. It’s a wonder she hasn’t dragged her long-suffering best friend Melo into helping her steal him already, but the playful glint in her eye seems to suggest she might wheedle this polished young gentleman into her scheme instead.

Her tone sobers. ) I do worry about him, though. He always looks so lost and– and alone. No collar or anyt’ing. And-and-and it’s gettin’ so cold out. ( She shakes her head. ) Ought t’just. Take him home sometime. ( She casts a sidelong look out of the window as though the dog in question were waiting there. ) 

Talkin’ of which. Sure y’don’t need a lift home? ( One last glance, just in case. Nope. ) Supposed t’snow. 

as unsubtle as she is — and a dominant part of merrill figures he’s meant to see right through — he finds himself terribly endeared by the effort. he folds his paper, saving an article on the prohibition for when he’s cozy at home with a snifter of legal-but-is-it? hooch, and fixes her with a smile as kind and understanding as his rubber (and theatrically-trained) face will allow.

         ‘ i didn’t factor the snow, ’ he says, because he hadn’t heard there’d be any. he wrinkles around the eyes. ‘ i might take you up on it, after all. i live— ’ 

what’s more in the way of betraying his not-quite-snuffed humanity, merry has been hissing curses as he’s pricked and snipped and stapled himself instead of the pinstriped suit he’s attempting to patch.

         ‘ what atrocities have you committed today? ’

ernesto has only been here since early 2018.