#sam. closed

THE WHITE OLEANDER STAFF WAS FAMILIAR WITH SAM OVER THE YEARS, a regular who loved to buy flowers whenever his expenses allowed. he loved flowers, and loved surrounding himself when them ⸺ especially during though times like they were facing now. their abilities might be back, but anxiety still plagued the town even with the annual bonfire going off without a hitch, and sam needed a little pick-me-up. he placed the order earlier this week, and was on route to grab a medium-sized arrangement for his home with chocolate pretzels in tow.

“hey, adelaide. how is your shift going?”

"HEY BINXY, HOW ARE YOU DOING PRECIOUS?" sam cooed towards the black cat. kareem was one of his oldest friends, someone who befriended him early on into his life in portum, and sam knew exactly what kind of gift to make him and his cat, binx, for their gotcha day. the shifter spent hours crocheting red yarn into a pair of matching hats: one for kareem and one for binx. the magpie shifter his attention towards the witch, presenting the items in a small gift bag. "i got something for you both for binx's gotcha day, something silly but i thought would make you smile."

IT WAS A BRIGHT AND SUNNY AFTERNOON IN PORTUM, something sam cherished after the suffocating fog creeped from the forest into the town. on days like this sam would usually spread his wings, flying around portum and the surrounding forest to feel the sunlight against his feathers and the wind under him. shifting was simpler then, something he would do without a care in the world, but now he had to worry about not being able to shift into his bird or worse not ⸺ be able to shift back. the thought alone scared him, something that used to be second nature made him nervous to even attempt. his gaze was stuck on the blue sky, fluffy clouds calling his name, before he heard his name being said closer to home. "what was that? sorry i'm a bit distracted today."

"HEY, I GOT A COUPLE DEMO PIECES IF YOU HAVE TIME TO LOOK," sam greeted as he entered build-a-ghoul. build-a-ghoul was one of sam's favorite portum establishments since he first found the safe haven in the fog, and somewhere sam had given a lot of money to over the years through his purchasing of different stuffed friends. when orisa reached out to him about collaborating he was ecstatic, making crocheted clothing items for the ghouls to wear and match with their owners was a fun idea and sam was quick to say yes. he grabbed his satchel and pulled the two sweaters out: one teddybear sized and one orisa's size. "what do you think? i can try different colors and patterns, too."

IT WASN’T UNCOMMON FOR SAM AND MAREN TO GET TOGETHER TO BOND OVER THEIR SHARED HOBBY, but even the optimistic shifter couldn’t help the unease that lurked around every corner. the bonfire went off without a hitch ⸺ no issues or alarms raised as far as he was aware ⸺ but with all of the excitement as of late, who knew what secrets lurked within the shadows . . . sam tried to believe he wasn't affected by the issues plaguing his hometown, but when he missed yet another stitch on his project he sighed heavily, placing the yarn in his lap and rubbing his face with tired hands before peeking over at his companion. "that's coming along nicely, mare."

SAM'S LEGS BROUGHT HIM FROM THE MIDNIGHT STEEP TOWARDS SECOND CHANCES ON AUTOPILOT, to-go cups secured in his gentle grasp. he and ester planned to meet after work and catch up at the portum art gallery, one of the pair’s favorite pastimes. the shifter entered the thrift store with a smile on his face, nodding at the employee at the entrance. most of the staff knew sam fairly well, which is how he and ester first met and grew to become friends. sam had seen a new exhibit being shown at the gallery and invited ester to accompany him to the opening ceremony but he, of course, couldn’t arrive empty handed. and so there he was, a cup of white tea in one hand and ester’s favorite blend in the other, when he spotted a familiar head of hair. “hey, es~ how's your shift coming along?"