#acreepqueen

A/N: This is the re-vamp of Servio's story, but the old one (1, 2) is still up if you prefer to read that one! I hope this is an adequate way of returning to posting after such a long time.

You ran barefooted through the treeline, laughing maniacally. Was this one of the most rejuvenating, awe-inspiring, joyous moments of your life? Quite possibly, even if that was a little sad. Sneakers--not your own--in hand you sprinted away from Fred's shouts. If he didn't want to have his shoes stolen and left in some long forgotten spot in the middle of the forest, he should not have called you a whore for kissing the cute new owner of the cafe near your house. Not only did he bring up one of your idiotic alcohol-fueled moments, he did so disparagingly and not for a laugh. Absolutely unforgivable!

You weren’t really sure what you were doing here. Anyone else on the ship being called to the main control room? Sure, that would make sense. Everyone else was basically a super genius. The crew was made up of the top experts in their respective fields; artificial advancement, extra-planetary biology, robotic engineering, universal travel, and so many more complicated fields you couldn’t hope to possibly grasp. But you? You were the ship’s gardener, in charge of keeping all the plants in the greenhouse room alive. Sure, you could name practically every single species of plant on Earth and otherwise and how to care for it, but it was never difficult for you to memorize information. In fact, because of your difference in field from literally every single other person on the ship, you hadn’t made any real friends. Which, after being on board for nearly two months, had made you lonely.

 In the past week or so, you’d often found yourself rambling to the ship’s AI. It’d made you feel more sad and lonely at first as they never really responded or offered up any sort of conversation. Although, by now it made you feel better. It was almost like writing in a diary; a daily ritual that kept you from falling apart at the seams. Speaking of falling apart at the seams, you hadn’t had a chance to check the garden this morning and were slightly worried some of the plants might start fighting each other if they weren’t fed soon. You shuffled nervously outside the control room, the air a little too cold and stale for your liking. Most of your time was spent in the greenhouse which always was kept relatively warm and smelt like walking outside. If you were being honest, you were starting to get a little homesick.

The pleasant little ding of control room doors stirred you from your thoughts. With a slight hesitancy you peered inside.Crew members were not really supposed to be in here. The main control room was only there for emergency use if the AI malfunctioned or something within the ship needed to be fixed. After all, the AI was fully capable of running everything on its own. You shuffled nervously unable to bring yourself to walk through the sliding doors. Why exactly had you been called? No matter how you looked at it, it didn’t make sense. Perhaps there had been a mix up and you weren’t meant to be called at all. Just as you were getting ready to walk away the familiar voice of the AI spoke out.

“Come in human. Do not touch anything,” it said. You stepped inside a little confused by its warning, though that didn’t last for long. You paled slightly as you looked around you. Bulky machinery lined the walls and parts were strewn across every table. Wires stuck out here and there some of which still seemed to be live. There was a narrow path where the floor was clear you could walk along. Whatever you’d expected the main control room to look like, it was not this! This place was practically a death trap! As slowly and as carefully as you could you shuffled along trying your best not to accidentally snag a live wire and electrocute yourself. All the while, you were being driven to madness by the constant barrage of noises; the whirring of countless fans trying desperately to keep the machinery intact, a suspicious beep that you didn’t want to know where or what it came from, and the alarming sound of sparks. Honestly, you’d rather be dealing with the lava-spewing plants in the greenhouse right now.

“Hello?” you called out nervously. You wanted to leave as soon as possible. It felt like every second you spent in this room was only increasing your likelihood of an untimely death. The lack of response was worrying, but it didn’t last for long.

“...To your left. On the table.” the AI stated without any sort of explanation. You glanced over to see something so incredibly out of place you couldn’t stifle a laugh. One of your flowered mugs was sitting on the clearest table in the room, filled with god knows what.

“...Is this for me? Can I pick it up?” you asked more than a bit befuddled. You glared slightly at the hazardous looking coil of wire sitting beside the cup. 

“Yes,” the AI replied. Were you curious enough to risk electrocution? Yes, yes you were. With not nearly enough contemplation you reached over and picked up the cup. You panicked slightly at the temperature of the cup; it was warm. Moving slowly as to not spill the dark liquid, you brought it towards you. You knit your brows at the familiar smell.

“Humans like coffee, yes?” the AI questioned. At that you let out a snort and couldn’t help the grin that spread across your face. Was this what you’d been called for? To pick up a cup of coffee? It was oddly cute and incredibly unexpected.

“I do, yes,” you responded sniffing the liquid before bringing it to your lips. Was it a smart idea to drink the coffee? No, absolutely not. Was it surprisingly delicious? Somehow, yeah. It didn’t taste like the instant coffee that was in the breakroom.

“I preordered coffee beans and needed human approval before removing the instant coffee. This is more nutritious. Is it acceptable?” the AI asked. You nodded and took another sip of the coffee.

“Was that all you needed from me?” you asked finally, feeling a bit awkward. After a slight pause the AI responded.

“Yes.”

You bid the AI goodbye and stumbled back through the mess of a control room, now feeling much better. Maybe your luck was starting to turn around. Hurriedly, you rushed over to the greenhouse to start your morning routine. At this point, you were just praying that the plants hadn’t started to eat each other. Though, even through your worries you couldn’t help the slight smile that spread across your face. It was a small gesture, but it meant bounds more than the AI could possibly comprehend. After all, it was probably selecting the least busy human of the group to do the taste-testing, not you specifically.

Eek! Guess I’m doing Inktober this year! This isn’t the best thing I’ve ever written but, I really hope you guys enjoy this.

Word Count: 1,679

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You had never been much of a believer in anything you couldn’t see or prove. Even then, you were prone to doubt something you couldn’t explain. That was why, when the aquarium in town had announced it was revealing a newly discovered species, you were skeptical to say the least. The information they had released to the public was limited, but there was talk in the town of it being something monstrous. You’d scoffed at the idea but your curiosity was peaked. It certainly wouldn’t hurt to take a trip to the aquarium. You knew you’d enjoy the species they for sure had even if this new thing turned out to be a bust. 

The crowds at the exhibit’s debut were surprisingly large, though not entirely unexpected. After all, it had been the talk of the town since it was announced. You slipped through the hoard with only slight difficulty. Before long, you were able to see the exhibit. It was odd that there was a barrier put up to keep people away from the glass. The enclosure itself was rather ominous. It wasn’t as well lit as the other tanks and it was huge. You were pretty sure it could comfortably house a whale. Still, it was unnerving that you didn’t see anything but a couple small fish and a manta ray. You eyes scanned the crowd around you for any workers, but you didn’t have time to find anyone. 

Murmurs from the people around you suddenly quieted and you glanced back at the tank in slight confusion. You gasped as your eyes met a pair startlingly similar to yours. Although, with a start, you realized that the face of what ever you were looking at was much bigger than yours. You froze unsure what to do or feel as you watched the creature. Never had you seen something quite like it. It looked humanoid, the biggest difference being the giant fish tail in place of legs. On the tail, the scales were a murky black and sharp looking spines ran down it. What at first you had thought was hair you soon realized was a mass of tentacles on the creature’s head. Its eyes were pitch black voids which made it impossible to tell where, if at all, it was looking. Though, the your main concern lay with the creature’s mouth. Teeth that made shards of broken glass look soft sat in its mouth. You gulped slightly as you watched the thing move. It looked agitated to say the least.

Within moments the silence of the crowd was broken by jeering and the sounds of cameras clicking. Many had neglected to see or follow the many posted signs stating to turn off your camera flash. You winced as the creature bared its teeth. Something in your gut churned as people continued to ignore the rules. One young girl ducked under the banister and walked up to the glass. She stood about a foot away and turned her back to the tank. She smiled, posing briefly for a picture. 

You saw what was going to happen moments before it did. Without thinking you slid under the banister and pushed the girl often the side as it slammed into the glass baring its teeth once more. No one in the crowd behind you missed the loud smash, but with the blood rushing in your ears you didn’t hear it at first. You turned to the tank only to see two huge cracks stretching out from the places where the creatures hands had smacked into the glass. You felt a chill run through you. The glass was a couple of inches thick and it had been cracked as if it were nothing. 

Most everyone had run away by now, but you couldn’t make your legs move. You stood frozen in place making direct eye contact with a humanoid sea monster twice your size. Okay, yeah. This is not how you had planned your day to go. To your surprise it didn’t continue breaking the glass, instead it put its hands on it looking at you in a way you could only describe as curious. Still, you didn’t trust the look in its eyes. It blinked and that was all you needed to snap out of it. You slipped back behind the banister but continued to watch the creature. It was still watching you with interest, hands pressed up against the glass. You took some time to study it more closely. Its skin was a dark greyish blue hue that reminded you vaguely of the deep deep ocean. The more you looked at it the more it looked emaciated and even a bit sickly. Though, maybe that was just how this species typically looked. Afterall, this was the first time you’d ever seen one. 

Hesitantly you waved at the creature. With its sharp, boney fingers it waved back mimicking you. You couldn’t help the smile that slipped onto your face. It once again copied you, smiling back. Feeling more than a little amused you stretched backwards with your arms behind your head and it copied you again. You were getting ready to try something else when a voice behind you caused you to jump.

“Amazing. I’ve never seen em’ do that. Typically he’s pretty damn mean, that one,” a worker stated, looking at you incredulously. You weren’t sure what to say but the creature bared its fangs at the worker beside you and swam away. Only peeking out at you briefly from behind a large piece of coral behind ducking down again.

“He don’t like me one bit, I tell ya. Won’t take nothin’ I give em’. Spiteful lil’ retch would rather starve to death than eat the food I’ve got!” He ranted. You grimaced but listened on politely. So you were right about the creature looking unhealthy. 

“We’re gettin’ real desperate now. Everyone’s had a go at takin’ care of em’ but he’s just hateful. Ricky had to get stitched up after he got a little too close to em’.”

You weren’t sure you liked where this conversation was going. If you were about to be asked to do what you thought you were going to, you weren’t sure if you could refuse. You didn’t want the creature to starve to death and it would probably be a once in a lifetime opportunity. Although, you didn’t really have a death wish either.

“Maybe you’d like to give it a go?” the worker asked hopefully. You frowned slightly and he piped up.

“I’m sure they’d pay ya good money if they know he’ll take food from ya!” he encouraged. You glanced back at the tank, more specifically the large cracks in the glass. Looking back towards the coral your eyes locked with a pair of sunken black ones. To hell with it.

“Okay, fine. But I’ll for sure sue if I get seriously hurt,” you agreed staring down the worker. He clapped his hands excitedly and thanked you, before he practically dragged you along.

The nerves hit you like a trainwreck the moment a bucket of dead fish was placed at your feet. You stood a couple of feet away from the open tank absolute terrified. This was such a bad idea and you were totally going to get yourself killed.

“Now, just scootch a lil bit closer to the tank and call for em’,” the man instructed. You inched forward on trembling legs with the bucket in your hand. Dead fish was certainly not a pleasant smell. 

“H-hey,” you called softly. Your voice was barely above a whisper. 

“He’s not gonna hear ya if-” the man cut himself off when a head peeked out of the water. God, up close he seemed so much bigger. You wanted nothing more than to bolt in that moment but you kept your feet planted firmly.

“Hi, I have food,” you stately lamely gesturing towards the fish. The creature upturned his nose at the bucket and you couldn’t help but let out a nervous laugh.

“M-maybe something fresher would be better...?” you inquired towards the worker. He shook his head.

“Nah, his kind clean off carcasses normally. We can’t feed em’ rotten fish though, they’re afraid it might hurt em’,” the worker explained. Your eyes widened a smidge, but that would certainly explain the teeth. You picked up a fish from the bucket and took a step towards the creature.

“I know it’s not what you normally eat, but you have to eat something. I don’t want you to die...” you trailed off, unsure why you were trying to converse with it in the first place. To your surprise it placed its hands onto the side and laid its head down on top of it. It still watched you warily but it didn’t seem malicious. Slowly, you set the bucket down and pulled out a fish watching it all the while for any sort of sign it might want to hurt you. You cautiously walked over to it and held out the fish. It snarled and you flinched, but stayed rooted in place. With what sounded like a heavy sigh it took the fish and plunged back into the tank with it. You let out a breath you didn’t realize you’d been holding and turned back to look at the caretaker. His mouth was agape and he looked stunned. 

Okay, so it’s pretty late but I swear I’m going to get caught back up!!

Word Count: 1,125

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For most following the little twinkling blue lights through the trees would be a death sentence. You weren’t sure why you were the exception. They had always led you exactly where you needed to be. Though, often you felt rather odd following the wisps. The hair on the back of your neck would stand up and you’d find yourself subconsciously scanning your surroundings. You’d never actually seen anything but you just had this unwavering feeling that there was something you were missing. 

Though, today it was worse than it ever had been before. Perhaps it was the fact that you hadn’t been back into these woods in ages that was making your nerves run haywire. You hadn’t been back in the area since your great aunt was alive and living in the cottage near the edge of the forest. She had passed long ago when you were still a small child. Recently, to both your delight and surprise your great aunt’s daughter was putting the cottage up for sale after deciding to start her own family. You snatched it up as soon as it had been put on the market and had moved all of your boxes into the house within a week. Moments before now, you had been putting off packing and were relaxing in the back garden. The smell of the forest and somehow always chilly breeze never failed to settle you down.

That was when you’d spotted one at the edge of the garden. The blue flame flickered tauntingly as you stared at it from your comfortable spot. You didn’t really want to get up, but the wisps always had something cool to show you. You had found memories of the little things lighting your way through the dark forest, bringing you to patches of glowing mushrooms, little waterfalls, and fields of white flowers that only bloomed in the dead of night. Your fondest memories of this place consisted of you sneaking out in the dead of night to go chasing after a wisp you’d seen from your window. For the longest time you’d felt guilty about going behind your great aunt’s back. That was, until you’d found her journal detailing her daily life after she’d passed. You hadn’t understood some of the things she wrote or talked about in it, but she knew you were sneaking out to follow the wisps at night. She’d called you ‘touched’ in the journal but you’d never quite figured out what she meant by that. 

Anyhow, you’d begun to follow the wisp. The sense of familiarity that flooded you when you took a step into the treeline was overwhelming. Crickets and the occasional hoot of an owl or rustling in the underbrush brought back such nostalgia towards your childhood. You remembered the path you were following until suddenly, you didn’t. The part of the forest you were in now you were sure you’d never been in before. Above you the canopy thickened to the point where you were sure if the wisps were not lighting your way you would not be able to see. The nostalgia you’d been feeling as you’d reminisced was replaced by that odd paranoia. Sure, it was alarming but you didn’t really want to turn back. You were curious to see where they were taking you and also didn’t think you could find your way back without them at this point. 

Before you had a chance to panic again you came upon the largest tree you’d ever seen. It dwarfed the oaks and even the evergreens around you, but didn’t provide more than a small gap for moonlight to seep in. Like they always did, the wisps disappeared as you began to explore where they’d led you. You thought you’d be tripping over roots as you struggled in the dim light until as if on cue what had to be thousands of fireflies lit up the area. Or at least, that’s what you had assumed they were before one landed on your outstretched palm. You blinked slowly before you could ever begin to process the small creature in your hand. 

Their wings emitted a gentle yellow light, and they smiled up at you revealing a mouth full of strangely pointed teeth. The skin on their shoulders and face was a pale grey dappled with freckles. Light auburn hair fell past their hips, though for you it was merely a few inches long. With a striking determination they grabbed at your hair. Huffing in annoyance when the wind blew it from their grasp. The tiny snow white fur coat that they wore drew your attention momentarily. Compared to the rest, this one was also decked in far more jewelry. It was a bit odd, but you didn’t think much of it as you placed your hair back into their hands. They made what you could only describe as an excited cooing noise before twirling your hair and wrapping it around themself like a giant scarf. 

Never before had you felt such a strange sense of familiarity for something you’d never seen before. Something about their presence brought such a strong feeling of nostalgia that crashed over you like a wave. Then, it clicked. How you’d always felt while following the wisps through the forest as a child is how you felt in this very moment. A gentle, comforting warmth that permeated around you as though you were the source of it made you more relaxed than you should have been in that moment.

“It was you, was it not? All these years, you’ve been the one leading me through the forest, haven’t you?” you questioned, looking down at what you could only call a faery. The faery looked up at you from the palm of your hand. Mischief gleamed in its eyes as it grinned, showing of those pointy inhuman teeth. The words were not spoken out loud, but you heard the confirmation in their expression. Still, that only left you with more questions to be answered.

Thanks everyone for being so very patient with my inconsistent schedule!

Word Count: 1,513

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The next few days in the cottage weren’t nearly as eventful as the first few and you settled into your usual routine of relaxing. It wasn’t very often that you managed to get away from the bustle and noise of the city, but you were certainly going to enjoy every second of it. The steady drizzle of rain on your roof only made the small fire that roared in front of you all the more relaxing. You sat curled up on the floor with a book in front of a small heating stove. Unbeknownst to you before today, the house didn’t have a heating system, only AC. It had never crossed your mind as you only stayed in the house during the summer, but it had suddenly gotten rather cold and stormy. The weather felt more like a cool fall morning than a summer afternoon. Although, you weren’t complaining too much. The smell and warmth of the fire was only made more cozy by the chill.

After a couple of hours the rain came to slow stop, but the dark, murky clouds still blanketed the sky. The grasps of sleep settled on the fringes of your mind, but after the sun had set it had suddenly gotten frigid inside the cabin. You shivered and shuffled around in front of the fire, unable to truly get warm and comfortable. The thin blanket you had swiped from the bed wasn’t doing much for you at all. You supposed you would have to go into town tomorrow to get-

Your thoughts were abruptly cut off by a loud pounding on your door. Startled, you jumped to your feet. Hastily, you made your way over to it. You locked the deadbolt on the door and hesitated before opening it a little to peer out. A relieved sigh fell from your lips at the sight of familiar face. His usually fluffy blonde hair clung to his face and gave off the impression of a wet dog. You had to stifle a laugh at that thought.

“Errol? Did you need something?” you asked him as politely as you could, trying to ignore the cold wafting into the house from the front door. You were silently weeping as what little warmth you had escaped into the night. He grimaced and began to apologize.

“I am so sorry I didn’t come by earlier. I meant to give this to ya, seeing as it’s been so cold, but the storm hit before I could,” he explained, holding something out to you. In his hands was a space heater covered in plastic wrap. You couldn’t help the grin that spread across your face. 

“You have no idea how much of a lifesaver you are!!” you exclaimed, giddily taking the heater from him. He grimaced slightly at that.

“I don’t know about that. I didn’t even explain that ya have to unplug both lamps in the front room before ya use it. Otherwise the power’ll short-circuit,” he said rather sheepishly. You chuckled at that and were getting ready to thank him again when a loud crack of thunder interrupted your train of thought. As if waiting for a signal, the skies opened up once again and a torrential downpour began. Without any sort of hesitation you ushered Errol inside and he obliged gratefully. As you rushed to close the door and snuggle back up to the fire, Errol insisted on setting up the space heater. While he tinkered with it, muttering to himself in frustration when it wouldn’t turn on, you couldn’t focus on him at all. Instead, your attention lay with the sopping wet seal skin that was draped across the small kitchen table. 

Why did he always seem to be carrying it? It was incredibly odd to say the least. If the skin was a precious heirloom why did he tote it around like it was just another old coat? Once again, it was also soaked with water, practically flooding the floor beneath it. Surely, he would take better care of something that was supposed to be priceless! You didn’t have long to dwell on those thoughts, as a quiet noise of triumph stirred you from them. Your attention refocused to Errol and the heater, it seemed he had finally gotten the thing to turn on. He shot you a small smile before standing up. As you grinned back you swore something danced across his face for a moment, but it could’ve easily been a trick of the firelight. Like when you had first met, he wrung his hands out nervously as he spoke.

“Thank you for being so patient. Hopefully, ya should be warmer. I should get going...” he announced heading towards the table where the sealskin was. You stood up swiftly and grabbed his wrist as he passed by.

“You can’t be serious! At least wait a little while for the storm to clear a bit, it’s dangerous out there!” you pleaded. He looked hesitant, though as the sky lit up once more with lightning he conceded. 

“...If it wouldn’t bother ya, I guess I could,” he agreed finally. You assured him that it was completely fine and he sat down at the kitchen table next to his sealskin. You were curious, but decided to wait until he settled in a bit to pry. After all, you didn’t want to scare him off and into the storm. First, you decided to put the kettle on the stove to boil some water for some hot chocolate. 

“Would you like some hot chocolate?” you asked, watching him avoid eye contact with you as you stood over by the counter. When you really looked at him he was rather cute. He looked far younger than his demeanor suggested. You would guess he was somewhere in his twenties, though you weren’t sure. He reminded you a bit of sailor, his face youthful but weathered by the wind and spray of the sea. Was he a sailor? Or perhaps a surfer? They both seemed to fit his aesthetic nicely.

“I was wondering, what do you do for a living out here? There doesn’t seem to be much of anything except small businesses and the like,” you questioned, turning off the stove as the kettle whistled. You grabbed two mugs and the box of hot cocoa packets you’d stashed away earlier. By the time he finally answered you had already prepared the drinks and were busy lamenting the fact you forget to buy marshmallows.

“I’m...a diver?” he said. The uncertainty in his tone didn’t go unnoticed by you and you quirked an eyebrow at him as you handed him his hot chocolate. You couldn’t imagine being a diver. You loved the ocean, but something about being alone and out in the open in such a foreign place made you jittery. It was almost like something would reach from below you and drag you down deep into the watery depths. You shivered slightly and tried to shake the thought from you mind. 

“That’s really cool! Honestly, I don’t think I could do something like that,” you exclaimed, ignoring his tone. Perhaps he was just nervous around you. You had only met him recently after all. He hummed in response and took a sip of his cocoa. 

“How long have you lived here?” you asked trying to keep the conversation afloat.

“Since I was born,” he answered. Your eyes widened slightly at the statement. Not that you were doubting him, he just didn’t look or act like any of the other locals you’d seen. Everyone you’d met had been standoffish and a bit more gloomy looking. His very being reminded you of the sea, while the other locals reminded you more of the murky cliffs surrounding it. Also, everyone was much much older.

“Really now? You must know everyone in town then. They don’t seem to like strangers very much,” you said a bit more ruefully than you meant to. He chuckled slightly at this and swept a piece of blonde hair from his face.

“Not exactly, though I would say I know everything about this place,” he retorted with a grin. You couldn’t help but return his smile, it was infectious. For the first time he seemed to be comfortable around you. You didn’t want to ruin it, but you also weren’t one to pass up a perfect opportunity when it felt right into your lap. Sensing a chance to ask the real question you’d wanted answered, you took it.

“Everything? If I had a question, you swear on your honor you could answer it if it was about this place?” you challenged, unable to keep the devious smirk from your face. Errol played along and matched your expression.

“Of course,” Errol replied with faux nonchalance, taking a sip of his cocoa. You only hesitated briefly, before poking the damp seal skin on the table between both of you.

Thanks for being so patient with me on monster matches, everyone! And thanks especially to the anon that requested this!

“Hi! I don't know if you're still doing the monster matches. But I'm a cis female 24. I'm average height, towards the chubby side. I love sweets (I've been called the candy monster), extreme spice and tea. I'm an artist, avid music listener, movie addict, cat lover, loyal person and I have trust issues which effects me a lot. I try my best to look at the brighter side of things. I'm a ride or die type of person as well.”

Word Count: 970 words

Next Monster Match: @screechinginthevoid​

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Perhaps you’d stumble upon him by chance. The smell of sweets drawing you to his workplace.

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Today hadn’t been a very productive day for you. You just couldn’t seem to create something that was up to your standards. You were just about to hit your breaking point when you decided to try something else. In a last ditch effort to churn up some inspiration, you decided to take a stroll around downtown. Although you lived relatively close, you had never really stopped to explore the place. Small shops lined the streets as you walked, though none grabbed your interest. You were just about to give up and head back home when you stopped dead in your tracks.

The smell practically slapped you in the face. The aroma of what you could only describe as a fusion of warm cookies and heaven wafted all around you and you followed it, determined to find the source of the smell. You felt your excitement swell when you finally approached the small glass door leading into a café. Though, it wasn’t just any café. It was a cat café. Above the doors was a small purple sign that had ‘The Kitten’s Teacup’ scrawled across it. Even from outside, you could see that the place was mostly empty except for the cats and a bored looked employee behind the counter. You figured that it couldn’t hurt to walk in. After all, if the place wasn’t clean or wasn’t up to your standards you could just walk out.

The bell let out a soft ding when you opened the door causing the employee behind the counter to look up at you. His eyes were a sharp, bright green that made your heart stop for a moment. He shot you a grin and you regained your composure and smiled back. You glanced down at the nametag on his apron. It read, ‘Quill’. As you relaxed and took a deep breath in, you once again inhaled that heavenly scent. It smelled strongly of cookies, tea, and something else you couldn’t quite put your finger on.

“Been here before?” his voice was deeper than you’d thought it’d be based on his stature. He was lithe to the point where you wouldn’t be surprised if he was an acrobatic or figure skater.

“No, I’ve never even seen the place before,” you admitted with a small chuckle. He grinned and handed you a menu before explaining the rules of the cafe. It was all pretty standard stuff; don’t feed the cats, don’t pick them up, etc. Though, there was something that struck you as odd.

“...and make sure you’re out of here by five. Sometimes it changes, but today its five,” he finished. Your brows furrowed slightly, but you brushed it off for the time being. Excitedly, you ordered a smoothie and some of the cute cat-shaped cookies on display. Their were only a couple of tables in the cafe, but all of them were completely empty of people. You settled down in the corner of the cafe at a small table and waited for the barista to finish making your smoothie.You couldn’t help but watch him. He moved quickly and gracefully as he worked and it was hard to tear your eyes from him. Half of his hair was long, the other half was shaved close to his head. If you paid close attention you could make out small darker patches of deep black in his raven colored hair. His skin was a rich almond and a traditional looking tattoo poked out slightly from underneath his long-sleeved shirt.

Soft fur in your lap startled you enough to look down. A large white cat had made itself at home right in your lap. It looked very regale, that was until you same its face. You had to withhold a laugh. The cat’s face was smushed, giving it a sour expression constantly. You stroked the cat and it purred and closed its eyes. It seemed like you weren’t going to be able to move anytime soon. The sound of clinking glass made you look up. The barista had already brought you your smoothie and cookie. Weird, you hadn’t heard him walk over at all. His eyes widened slightly at the cat in your lap.

“That’s certainly odd,” he stated. You shot him a puzzled look and he gestured towards the cat in your lap.

“Queenie doesn’t tend to be very friendly. She seems to be at home in your lap. I guess she’s a better judge of character than I thought,” he chuckled. You flushed as he walked back to the counter and tried to focus on drinking your smoothie.

The smoothie you had was good and the cookies you ate were fantastic and easily one of the best things you had ever tried. When you got home that night you did feel inspired and were able to finish your project. In hopes of helping out the cafe in some manner you searched it to leave a good review. Only, nothing popped up. Thinking you’d misspelled it, you grabbed your receipt from your purse only to see that you hadn’t. You checked the map app on your phone and it wasn’t even present there. Perhaps it was new? That would certainly explain how empty it was. Something about it just didn’t sit right with you though. It was odd enough that the cafe didn’t seem to have set opening and closing times,  but not being able to find anything about it online was weird. It wasn’t like you lived in a small town, this city had over ten thousand residents. Surely, someone was bound to find it and want to share the place. For now, you decided to let it go. You would certainly head back once you needed more inspiration though.

Sorry it took so long to get this match-up out! It’s a little short, but I hope you enjoy it! Thanks for the request, @nightrainn2​

Word Count: 645

Next Monster Match: An anon!

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Perhaps you’d meet in a quaint café, your academic prowess landing you the misfortune of being paired together.

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Once again you found your eyes drifting to the clock above the counter. You had been sitting and waiting for your partner for about twenty minutes and were beginning to get a bit irritated. The sweet smells wafting through the café were torturous and only helped make you more impatient to sit down, order, and start working on this project. From what you knew, which was admittedly very little, your partner was the flaky sort and tended to bail on group meet-ups last minute. It also didn’t help your impression that you had never once seen him attend class. Honestly, you had tried to go into this with an open mind but as the minutes ticked away you were becoming more sure he wasn’t going to show up. After fifteen more minutes of waiting you had made up your mind to leave when you heard someone say your name. You turned around and to meet amber eyes, that startled you a bit. His face was pale, and he looked incredibly sickly. Heavy bags rested under his eyes and only made him look more ghoulish. You shook yourself out of your momentary silence and hurriedly introduced yourself.

“It’s nice to meet you, I apologize for being late. I should’ve texted you, but I wasn’t feeling too great,” he explained, seeming a bit nervous. He surprised as you divided the material and began to work. It seemed like he actually knew what he was doing. Sure, grade wise he may have been flunking, but he certainly was efficient. You paused for a moment to stretch and take a sip from the drink you had ordered earlier. For the life of you, you couldn’t figure out why he would be failing. As you skimmed his work it was all correct.

“How the hell are you failing?” you muttered quietly. You hadn’t really meant for the words to spill out , but you were perplexed. The pen he was using skid slightly across his page at your voice, as though you had startled him. He looked up at you and grimaced.

“I…um, missed the midterm?” he admitted sheepishly. Horrified, you stared him wide-eyed. He missed the midterm?! How do you miss a midterm?! He seemed to flush slightly and looked back down at his work. You sighed heavily and glanced at the time. It was nearly 7:30 PM. You should have gone home thirty minutes ago. Would it be alright to trust him to do the work and leave? It did look like he was almost done. Making up your mind, you stood to leave, but he stopped you for a moment.

“Ah! Wait, let’s exchange numbers. I don’t think I’ll be able to meet up again anytime soon…” he confessed handing his phone to you. You pushed back the urge to roll your eyes and put your contact information into his phone. He shot you an infectious grin and you couldn’t help but smile back.

As soon as you got home, you face planted into your comforter. Your phone buzzed in your pocket and you groaned, sitting up to check it.

‘hi, this is Chase. sorry again i was late, hopefully i didn’t make too bad of a first impression!!! (ಥ﹏ಥ) anyway i’ll send my part of the project asap, ttyt’

You hadn’t even realized he hadn’t given you his name. Chase definitely fit him, somehow. Even though he seemed like a lovely person, you were still worried about the project. Hopefully, he’d complete it sooner rather than later so you wouldn’t have to stress so much about it. Although, you wouldn’t worry about the project right now. You begrudgingly got up and ready for bed before laying back down. Finally, you were able to relax and go to sleep.