Creepypasta: A Cautionary Tale

[Astaroth]

I had been up early this morning. My sleep schedule was off again; waaay off. At least I had Iwaku to keep me company. Since joining five weeks ago, the place has already come to feel like home. And the roleplaying. Oh man, the roleplaying. Speaking of which, as I checked my Skype, I noticed a certain name on the list I'd been keeping an eye out for. We'd spoken earlier in the morning (for me)/evening (for him), but he'd since dozed off. Now, though, he was mine to hassle. And I had a very particular thing to hassle him about...
​

[10:43:08 AM] Eri: Hey Vay. You know the onexone thing we've been discussing?
[10:44:57 AM] Vay: The one we mentioned, fleshed out a bit and they stared talking about WoD and forgot about?
[10:45:18 AM] Eri: Yeeeah, that's the one, haha.
[10:45:48 AM] Vay: YEah I rememeber, your got new ideas?
[10:48:26 AM] Eri: Welll. Sort of. Maybe?
[10:49:14 AM] Eri: I was poking around looking for inspiration, and started thinking about internet creepypasta.
[10:50:01 AM] Vay: Hurm...
[10:50:15 AM] Eri: Are you familiar?
[10:50:42 AM] Vay: a bit, just the main ones like slenderman
[10:51:16 AM] Vay: mine mincraft one about odsidian being evil
[10:51:24 AM] Eri: Gotcha.
[10:53:16 AM] Eri: Well, I was looking up some creepypasta and came across this post on some chick's private forum. I only looked at it 'cause the site theme reminded me of Rose.

One of the many interests which Vay and I seemed to have in common- and in fact, the first we discovered- was MSPA, a webcomic which I highly recommend. His Skype icon is a picture of Karkat, from the Homestuck arc, of which Rose Lalonde is also a character.
​

​

[10:53:30 AM] Eri: Check it out.
[10:53:31 AM] Eri: http://lovegoodhorror.forumotion.com/t1-something-interesting-i-found-early-this-morning
[10:57:37 AM] Vay: He should have shared the link :P but sounds interesting, rpable even
[10:58:40 AM] Eri: Yeah, that's what I was thinking. I'm going to see if I can track down the original. It can't be the only time someone's posted it, or if it is I'm sure it's up on one of the blogs somewhere.
[11:00:35 AM] Vay: Link me if you do find it.. though hmmm.... mindpowers through embedded video? Sounds far fetched, though ims and forums though, doable.
[11:01:14 AM] Eri: Well, maybe it was the IM in the first place. : P
[11:01:36 AM] Eri: Anyway, I will let you know.
[11:02:30 AM] Vay: the search might give you ideas, I know I'll be looking at my ito folder
[11:02:48 AM] Eri: Eeexcellent.
[11:03:53 AM] Vay: Then you have studied master Junji's work?
[11:04:06 AM] Eri: But of course.
[11:04:16 AM] Vay: Another thing for the list!
[11:04:20 AM] Eri: Indeed!
[11:04:41 AM] Vay: Hold on..
[11:04:50 AM] Vay: look at the time this was posted
[11:05:00 AM] Eri: What?
[11:05:34 AM] Vay: Not even an hour ago...
[11:05:48 AM] Eri: Whoa, really?

I blinked and sat up straighter, going to check the forum post again. Just as he said, the timestamp read "Today at 9:43".

​

[11:05:56 AM] Eri: Hey, you're right.
[11:06:01 AM] Vay: nor chance of you finding the original >=)
[11:06:47 AM] Eri: Hang on. I'm pulling up /x/.
[11:13:03 AM] Eri: Yeah, like she said, it's been bumped if it was there. I'll see if anyone on the board remembers it, though. If it's only been gone since this morning...
[11:14:40 AM] Vay: Alright, though we have the story not sure what the original would give us other than a shot at the vid
[11:15:37 AM] Eri: The OP might be a regular. Or he might have linked it in the thread somewhere and someone else has the link.
[11:15:44 AM] Eri: It's worth checking.
[11:16:30 AM] Vay: indeed
[11:16:42 AM] Eri: This could be the next Slenderman, haha.
[11:17:16 AM] Vay: nothing replaces slenderman, nothing *fist over heart*
[11:17:23 AM] Eri: True.
[11:18:17 AM] Eri: A girl can dream. >: D
[11:19:03 AM] Vay: this is giving me "the ring" vibe.. hope I don't have to go looking for a well
[11:19:36 AM] Eri: It does kind of have that vibe, yeah. I bet the OP is a fan.
[11:21:11 AM] Vay: Well I hope you find it, if only to stalk them and find more good stories
[11:21:19 AM] Eri: Indeed!
[11:21:34 AM] Eri: There are some other classics I can link you to, if you want/
[11:21:36 AM] Eri: *.
[11:21:54 AM] Vay: I'd love you forever if you did
[11:22:42 AM] Eri: I love this one. The setup is perfect. http://www.creepypasta.com/candle-cove/
[11:23:57 AM] Vay: you know i was just on this site while we were talkign WoD
[11:24:16 AM] Eri: Oh yeah?
[11:28:46 AM] Vay: thats a good one
[11:29:52 AM] Eri: This one is pretty famous for people actually buying it. http://www.falconchurch.com/showthread.php?180-Lavender-Town-Tone(Pokemon-Red-Green)-THIS-IS-VERY-VERY-LONG
[11:30:28 AM] Vay: its long apparently
[11:31:20 AM] Eri: Indeed. Not as long as it claims. : P
[11:31:57 AM] Vay: I scrolled down and looked
[11:34:13 AM] Vay: i played those games
[11:34:26 AM] Vay: I'm still alive ... i hope
[11:35:08 AM] Eri: Haha, yeah. I dunno why people fell for that one.
[11:35:40 AM] Vay: because there no glarign red text saying its not real
[11:36:07 AM] Eri: Right. >>
[11:36:40 AM] Vay: let us not forget war of the worlds
[11:37:07 AM] Eri: The original creepypasta. *Nods*
[11:37:50 AM] Vay: had the musical ersion of cassette as a hid.. great bedtime story for a little todler vay
[11:38:02 AM] Eri: Awesome.
[11:38:09 AM] Eri: Orson Welles is so fucking cool.
[11:39:26 AM] Vay: yes, yes he is, sparked both tmy interest in sci-fi and horror >=)
[11:40:02 AM] Eri: Nice. >: D
[11:40:26 AM] Eri: This is another classic, for slightly different reasons: "So ur with ur honey and yur making out wen the phone rigns. U anser it n the vioce is "wut r u doing wit my daughter?" U tell ur girl n she say "my dad is ded". THEN WHO WAS PHONE?"
[11:40:53 AM] Vay: Her mum
[11:41:06 AM] Eri: Good answer.
[11:41:52 AM] Eri: One more: http://www.creepypasta.com/the-bad-dream/
[11:42:54 AM] Vay: yeah you've completely distracted me from coding now an its almost 1am =D
[11:43:07 AM] Eri: Oops. 8D
[11:43:27 AM] Vay: holy....
[11:43:41 AM] Vay: that one is
[11:43:54 AM] Eri: It's one of my favorites.
[11:43:56 AM] Vay: good thing i have a sword next to my bed
[11:44:03 AM] Eri: >:]
[11:44:28 AM] Vay: thansk for sharing that right before i sleep, you're too kind
[11:44:42 AM] Eri: No problem! 8D
[11:45:35 AM] Vay: ahh my tortured screams will reach your ears on your far shores ere the sun rises, an you will know you have done yout job well
[11:46:02 AM] Eri: Indeed. *Rubs hands together*
[11:46:47 AM] Vay: i only hope when you clain my shattered soul that it's pittiful remnants please you. :P
[11:47:15 AM] Eri: We shall see.
[11:49:11 AM] Vay: in all seriousness though, i should sleep, work in the morn
[11:49:34 AM] Eri: Of course, of course.
[11:49:44 AM] Eri: Sleep well. Don't let the skin-takers bite.
[11:50:25 AM] Vay: in they bite let them have my skin, but for the sake of oue list, do not let them have my heart.
[11:50:42 AM] Eri: I will send them a memo.
[11:51:02 AM] Vay: good, that will surely get the job done
[11:51:09 AM] Eri: Night Vay. :]
[11:51:25 AM | Edited 11:52:18 AM] Vay: night ozzie, good luck with your search

And that concluded Vay and Ozzie time for the day, at least until late tonight for me. Humming to myself, I pulled /x/ back up in a new Firefox tab. Time to see what Anonymous could tell me...

​

***​

 

[Vay]

Vay sighed and looked at the time. He was more antsy to hear news. It wad been all too long since he had had a good mind twisting horror and despite himself he was curious to see the flash file. Morbid curiosity it might b called. Most of him doubted it really existed, the file had never been made. It was another compelling once off traveling around the internet but dammit, he wanted to know.

Her name was still yellow, away.. still....

[12:02:54 AM] Vay: *pokes with the blunt end of a powermaul*
[12:03:00 AM] Eri: Ow
[12:03:06 AM] Eri: What's up, Vay?
[12:03:29 AM] Vay: you've been unresponsive. havn't you seen my messages?
[12:03:54 AM] Eri: No... Haven't been feeling so hot.
[12:04:35 AM] Vay: damn, I'd make you soup but I don't have any stock (or anything else cookable)
[12:05:11 AM] Eri: I had a really bad headache... threw up. Apparently I have a fever.
[12:06:27 AM | Edited 12:07:14 AM] Vay: eesh, sounds like you need a backrub, meds and a lap to lean your head on
[12:06:48 AM] Eri: I will survive somehow.
[12:07:19 AM] Eri: Have you been thinking any more on our RP?
[12:09:07 AM] Vay: i was reading your links, and some of my own... especially lurker at the threshold >=)
[12:09:25 AM] Eri: Oooh.
[12:09:58 AM] Vay: i was also poking jinx about ito, seems he likes picking your brain as much as i do
[12:10:21 AM] Eri: Hehe.
[12:11:00 AM | Edited 12:11:12 AM] Vay: i'm tempted to start calling you rose, you know who after
[12:11:21 AM] Eri: I seem like a Rose, huh?
[12:11:26 AM] Eri: I can live with that.
[12:11:31 AM] Vay: come on
[12:12:03 AM] Eri: You have a point. :]
[12:13:19 AM | Edited 12:13:40 AM] Vay: smart, sexy, verbose, with your own copy of the necronomicon (i don't doubt) YOU ARE ROSE! All you need is the cat mausoleum
[12:13:55 AM] Eri: Indeed.
[12:14:06 AM] Eri: Eri hides her cat mausoleum.

Their shared interests and inside jokes, if anyone were to look into thier chats they'de become instantly lost in two like minds sharing thoughts few could catch the references of.

[12:14:10 AM] Vay: OHO@
[12:14:12 AM] Vay: !
[12:14:52 AM] Vay: Oh
[12:14:56 AM] Vay: While i rememebr
[12:15:13 AM] Vay: find anything about the creeeeeepepaastsaaa mhaaahjahahahahhahahaha *thunder*
[12:15:44 AM] Eri: Well... I started that thread on /x/... But not a lot of response.
[12:15:54 AM | Edited 12:15:58 AM] Vay: crud
[12:15:58 AM] Eri: http://boards.4chan.org/x/res/9058202 As you can see.
[12:17:04 AM] Vay: O_O @ 1st reply
[12:17:28 AM] Vay: oh thats the pasta
[12:17:35 AM] Vay: thats what i get for skimming
[12:17:45 AM] Eri: Haha.
[12:18:03 AM | Edited 12:18:09 AM] Vay: face has met with palm in a stunning display of raw emotion
[12:18:30 AM] Vay: disappointing
[12:19:08 AM] Eri: Yeah. You'd think someone would remember...
[12:19:16 AM] Vay: indeed
[12:19:19 AM] Eri: Then again, /x/ can be kind of slow.
[12:20:34 AM] Vay: but may I say it adds to the creepy that no one does... only out dear love saw it and it was meant for her until she passed it on... hand is in constant contact with wood
[12:20:53 AM] Vay: that last part sounded dirty didn't it
[12:21:01 AM] Eri: Yes. Yes it did.
[12:21:29 AM] Vay: (thats is here)(point is here)
[12:21:34 AM] Eri: Well, the thread is young yet. Maybe something will turn up.
[12:21:55 AM] Vay: maybe traking down this forumer is the key
[12:22:21 AM] Eri: Hmm, true. I'll see if I can get a hold of her.
[12:22:57 AM] Vay: i fi had the tools there i have on iwaku i'd have her for you in no time, but sadly...
[12:23:13 AM] Eri: I have my ways!
[12:23:25 AM] Vay: i'm sure you do!
[12:23:43 AM] Eri: I'll let you know if I find anything.
[12:23:58 AM] Eri: In the meantime, I need to get some soup.
[12:24:10 AM] Vay: smart move
[12:24:25 AM] Eri: Catch you in a bit, maybe?
[12:24:57 AM] Vay: i'll be here, unless i'm dragger off to the land of nod
[12:25:08 AM] Eri: Sounds good then.
[12:25:12 AM] Eri: See you~
[12:25:17 AM] Vay: see ya Oz

He looked at the time again and groaned. He had work in the morning. Looked like he would slip into the land of nod after all.

Start button.

Right arrow.

Enter.

All over in less that a second, the laptop took care of the rest shutting itself down and plunging the room into darkness.

 

[Astaroth]

My luck had just been shitty lately. First that migraine from hell, then family issues, and now today had been the icing on the cake. No internet for SIXTEEN FULL HOURS thanks to the massive internet outage in my area (for reasons unexplained). Thank god it finally came back up, or I would probably have killed something.
​

[10:28:25 AM] Eri: *EXTERMINATUS*
[9:29:55 PM] Vay: *fells the planet die beneath his feet*
[9:30:23 PM] Eri: SIXTEEN HOURS.
[9:30:36 PM] Eri: THAT IS HOW LONG IT WAS OUT.
[9:31:10 PM] Vay: Hereby most foul
[9:31:22 PM] Vay: WTF autocorrect
[9:31:30 PM] Vay: Herecy
[9:32:09 PM] Eri: Psst. It's heresy.
[9:32:44 PM] Vay: I don't have time for spelling. There heretics about
[9:33:01 PM] Vay: And typing on an iPod sucks
[9:33:16 PM] Eri: This is true.
[9:33:41 PM] Vay: So it's back?
[9:33:59 PM] Eri: Finally.
[9:34:10 PM] Vay: Excellent
[9:34:14 PM] Eri: I have no idea how I still had Skype.
[9:34:24 PM] Eri: My only explanation is voodoo.

Seriously, that had been obnoxious. Idly chatting and venting my spleen to Vay, I went about my business, catching up on RPs and checking threads. Then, about half an hour later, it happened.








http://tinyurl.com/7yl2bgm

​

[10:17:52 PM] Eri: Hey...
[10:18:13 PM] Vay: Yes?
[10:18:27 PM] Eri: Has anyone on Iwaku been getting any funny PMs?
[10:19:22 PM] Vay: not that i know of.. funny how?
[10:20:18 PM] Eri: Like. Well.
[10:20:26 PM] Eri: From a blank user.
[10:20:36 PM] Eri: It kind of looks hacked.
[10:21:05 PM] Vay: when did you get it?
[10:21:30 PM] Eri: About twenty minutes ago.
[10:21:35 PM] Vay: because we deleted a spambot yesterday.. deleting the account would blank the unername
[10:21:40 PM] Vay: huh
[10:21:54 PM] Vay: report it so it shows int he staff section?
[10:22:44 PM] Eri: What the fuck, it's gone.
[10:22:56 PM] Eri: I didn't delete it.
[10:23:08 PM] Eri: Wtf, first my internet and now this?
[10:23:27 PM] Eri: I swear if this is some kind of account hacking I am gonna be so pissed.
[10:23:36 PM] Vay: do you remember the contents?
[10:24:08 PM] Eri: Well
[10:24:17 PM] Eri: Okay, here's the thing.
[10:24:25 PM] Eri: I'm kind of creeped out.
[10:25:09 PM] Eri: The title was just "BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU ASK FOR."
[10:25:27 PM] Eri: And then there was a link.
[10:25:54 PM] Eri: And I didn't click it because it was a tinyurl from an obviously hacked account and I'm not stupid.
[10:26:10 PM] Eri: But it sort of opened anyway.
[10:27:38 PM] Vay: Well I'll get Diana to look at the server logs but I doubt that will turn up much, if it is a hacked account then we'll have to reset the passwird or delete it. But the link.. it opened itself?
[10:27:51 PM] Eri: Yeah.
[10:28:36 PM] Eri: Does that sound like anything you're familiar with?
[10:30:29 PM] Vay: It sounds like something i could put together with javascript but that it not parsed in PMs and a blank user name, I have no explination but i am curious
[10:37:11 PM] Eri: Okay, I'm really freaked out, frankly.
[10:38:06 PM] Eri: The link opened a video.
[10:39:31 PM] Vay: you watched it? I prolly would have closed the tab before it started, i don't like being rick rolled or advert spammed
[10:40:00 PM] Eri: It didn't let me close it.
[10:40:27 PM] Vay: O_O
[10:41:29 PM] Vay: one of those "are you sure you wanna leave this page" popups?
[10:41:57 PM] Eri: No, it just wouldn't close. At all.
[10:42:46 PM] Eri: I tried xing out of the browser, hitting ESC, CTRL+ALT+DEL, start button, everything.
[10:43:31 PM] Vay: aaaaaaaand i'm reminded of the hunter vidoe.. another youtube
[10:44:15 PM] Vay: could it have been a virus?
[10:44:30 PM] Eri: That's what I thought too.
[10:44:36 PM] Eri: So I ran a scan.
[10:44:43 PM] Eri: Avast didn't find anything.
[10:45:22 PM] Vay: any symptoms after that?
[10:46:04 PM] Eri: Other than me being seriously uncomfortable and that PM disappearing? No.
[10:46:58 PM] Eri: It wasn't even a popup. It opened in a new tab.
[10:47:21 PM] Eri: And the address bar was blank.
[10:47:48 PM] Vay: so you don't know the domain?
[10:48:08 PM] Eri: No.
[10:48:41 PM | Edited 10:48:52 PM] Vay: damn i would have liked to have seen it myself
[10:48:48 PM] Eri: No.
[10:49:08 PM] Vay: so... what WAS the video?
[10:50:14 PM] Eri: You remember that creepypasta I was looking for?
[10:51:56 PM] Eri: It looked a hell of a lot like what that guy was describing.
[10:54:04 PM] Vay: oh that one with the boyfriend?
[10:54:11 PM] Eri: Yeah.
[10:54:44 PM] Vay: maybe it was sent by one of the people you asked about it?
[10:55:00 PM] Eri: Yeah, maybe.
[10:55:21 PM] Eri: But how did they find my Iwaku?
[10:56:35 PM] Vay: there are some sites that can telll you what sites a person visit based on thier email.. but iwaku does not have a search user by email feature...

Knock knock.

What the fuck? It's 11PM. Who is that?

​

[10:57:13 PM] Eri: Someone's knocking on my door.
[10:57:18 PM] Eri: I have to go.
[10:57:53 PM] Vay: alright, well... good luck getting to the bottom of this
[10:58:01 PM] Vay: i'll tell you if the logs show anything
[10:58:06 PM] Eri: Bye.
[10:58:12 PM] Vay: bye

Abandoning my laptop, I went to answer the door...


​

 

[Vay]

[09:09:48 AM] Vay: hmmm
[09:29:03 AM] Vay: you there?
[10:27:39 AM] Vay: crud i guess I'll catch you later

The blinking cursor marked the passing seconds. There had bee a lot of them, almost a week's worth. Vay had He had ideas to share and characters to plot, but most of all he was worried. The last conversation they had had had been less than reassuring, strange disappearing PMs and self opening links.

Vay however was sure she would have come to the same conclusion he had.

[10:30:23 AM] Vay: Just wanted to tell you logs didn't show anything
[10:30:31 AM] Vay: I... message me alright?

Trackpads.. fiddly things make you click things without meaning to. Still a week away was worrying, wouldn't have been the first person to show up, be friendly and involved then disappear. Still Ozzie hadn't seemed the type and would be the first Vay would actually miss.

However he couldn't sit around and think about it, he was at work, and the yellow shirt he disliked, screwdriver in hand and another seven hours to get through on top of the rest of the forum to keep an eye on, still he couldn't shake her and their last conversation completely from his thoughts, it was like something he should write down and post somewhere, make it into a creepy pasta of his own, then like so many characters in horror written throughout the ages, search for the video himself.

He shook the thoughts from his mind reminding himself this was the internet and real life. Ozzie was fine, he'd hear from her again and she'd explain what happened, maybe drama homeside or internet difficulties or maybe college. There were a million possible reasons and he managed to push her from his thoughts until the end of the day then he pushed his key into the lock and turned it, dropping his bag on the chair and scooping up his cat as she made her bid for freedom.

With a sigh he removed his jacket and dropped it and the cat onto the chair, a routine he followed 6 days a week, all of which led to his room, a room the reflected his may interests from the boxed telescope under the windows to the dozen half painted models at the foot of his bed and the packets of tabletop books in his desk. It was his untidy sanctuary, and where he relaxed and was himself.

Only this time he wouldn't remain that way.

 

[Astaroth]

What was I doing here?

I found myself standing on the doorstep of a strange apartment, my sweater sticking to my skin in the overwhelmingly sultry night air. The temperature baffled me; it was the middle of December, and even were I was from, it shouldn't have been 80 freaking degrees outside. Especially not when the sun was almost finished setting. For that matter, I shouldn't even have been outside. How had I gotten here? I looked around me for signs of my Saturn, but I didn't even have my purse with me. Not my wallet, not anything. Had I been sleep-walking again? How far had I gone? This definitely wasn't anywhere in my area, and it was a long walk between neighborhoods in San Antonio.

Frankly, this didn't look anything like San Antonio.

I didn't have my cell, either, so I was majorly screwed. The street was abandoned, and I couldn't see anything resembling a payphone. My sweater was unbearable, itchy and sweaty on my arms, and my head was pounding. I needed help, and my best bet at the moment was to just knock on the door of whomever it was that lived here and hope they weren't a serial killer. Scared, really and truly, for the first time in a long while, I lifted my fist.

Knock. Knock.

I had no idea that I would recognize the person who answered.

​

 

[Vay]

Across the lounge and to the right ther was the sound of someone chuckling. Someone who should have been asleep. The reason for the chuckling was the image splashed across the screen. It would take someone familiar with the webcomic to know why is made Vay chuckle so badly.

But he was cut off by a sound at the door, a knocking. His eyes darted to the bottom right.

01:24

Who could it be? The only other person it could be had his own damn key so why the knocking.

There was a knock again and he stood.

bang his leg hit the small table his laptop rested on and he cursed hopping on one foot.

"On my way." he called not really worry that the whoever it was most likely couldn't understand english. "Ugh.." he paused and bent down pullign a shirt from the washing basket and pulled it over her head then stepped noisily towards the door, he grabbed the grate handle and slid it back with a clang, pulled it open then pushed the door his hand reaching for the light switch in the same moment. The face the greeted him made him blink.

"Hello?" he said "Can I help you..."

He her oddly familiar face teasing him that he knew her name, one of the them anyway...

"Ozzie?" He stepped back looking for bags, a car, wracking his memory to see if this had been arranged.

"Shit.. er.. come in" Shit was a word he used often when he didn't know which other to use.

The lounge was a mess as was the rest of the house and he moved to clear off one of the chairs and. He was acting without thinking but there were questions he needed answers to.

"What are you doing here?"

He didn't want to sound rude so he added, "Did I tell you my address? I mean shit.... tea?"

 

[Astaroth]

This was... surreal, to say the least. I was standing on a strange street in the middle of night with nothing, no memory of how I got here, and if I wasn't hallucinating, my friend from Iwaku had just opened the door. I'd only seen Vay once or twice on webcam over Skype, but I didn't forget faces easily, and I'd heard his distinctive voice enough to be familiar when he started to talk to me.

Last I checked, Vay lived in Thailand.

My head felt light, and my vision went black, swimming for a few seconds as I grabbed onto the door frame so hard I was sure I'd give myself splinters. Somehow I managed to pick up my feet and walk inside, darting glances around the apartment as I tried to get my bearings. Okay, so I was in Vay's apartment. I had to be in Nakhon Sri Thammarat, then, which meant I'd been on an airplane. I must have had bags, right? Where were they? Had I taken a cab from the airport? Why didn't I remember? What did I remember? It occurred to me, then and there, that I couldn't answer what day it was, what time, or even what I'd done last. Everything was muddled, blurry, as if I'd slept too long and lost pieces of my memories.

"Hi," I answered shakily as I wiped sweat off the back of my neck with my sleeve. "I... was going to a- ask if I could use your phone to call the cops, b-but... I'm sorry. I'm a little- a little mixed up- Um-"

I was stammering. It was something that happened when I was out of my comfort zone, when I had to speak without a plan. Not quite bad enough to be classified as a true stutter, but enough for people to stare at me like I was a freak. I didn't look at Vay to see if he was doing the same. "Tea- Tea sounds, ah, good."

I felt like I was losing my mind. Fuck, maybe I was.

​

 

[Vay]

He plugged the kettle in and fished two mugs from the shelf. "Are you alright?" he asked, she was obviously confused, his mind flashed on that maybe she had been drugged, foreign girls were sought after around here and if she had been wondering around alone..

"When did you arrive?" he asked, the questions were coming faster. "I haven't heard form you all week and... showing up on my doorstep was the last thing I expected. I'll get my brother to talk to his girlfriend tomorrow, she a lawyer and his thai is a lot better than mine when it comes to talking to the cops."

He was hovering next to the fridge, the closest to the kettle he could be and still see her, she looked a mess and he was worried, after tea he'd make sure she got some sleep. He figured that was the best first step. The kettle clicked and he ducked out of sight poring stealing liquid into the two mugs and bringing then out before returning to the fridge for milk and to grab sugar, not that he took any in tea himself.

Sitting down he looked at her, wondering what he could say cursing being useless in heavy situations like this could possibly be.

 

[Astaroth]

All week? I could have sworn I'd only just talked to him... I didn't know why I thought that, only that I did. My skull felt like it was in a vise grip.

"I... c-can't remember," I told him, stumbling over the words, much like I fumbled with the tea he served me, nearly spilling milk all over my lap. I noticed he'd brought sugar, too, but I didn't touch it. Hopefully he wouldn't think that was rude, but I was so wound up that maybe he'd forgive me. "Sorry."

The tea helped. Tea always helped; it was the go-to drink when you were upset. It felt good going down, too; my throat seemed to be made out of sandpaper, like I hadn't had anything to drink for days. I gulped it down a little too quickly, and it scalded my tongue, but I couldn't bring myself to care. The hot liquid hit my stomach hard. I could practically hear a hollow plunk. When was the last time I'd eaten?

"C-Can I borrow a- a shirt?" At the rate I was perspiring, I would be as dehydrated as I'd been before the tea in about five minutes. This was not sweater weather.

​

 

[Vay]

"Sure." he walked over to the rack where they hung on coat hangers waiting to be folded and put away. "Any particular colour or... I need to do washing." He pulled a green one from the rack and removed the hanger before handing it to her. One glance around the curtainless room and he realized she'd want privacy.

"Bathroom is through there middle door, Ignore the one on the right its a bit messy." His room was the only other one with the door open and the light on, and it really was a mess. "I'll make you another mug while you change."

He was hide awake now. Grabbing her mug and darting back into the kitchen. Still confused and curious but holding off the interrogation until she was ready to answer questions. He also popped two slices of bread into the toaster and took butter, two eggs and a large sausage from the fridge and began slicing, soon the kitchen was filling with the smell and sounds of frying and toast.

A bottle of orange marmalade, a fried egg, sausage slices and toast would start breakfast, leftover pasta would fill up any gaps that left and focusing on a mundane task would keep his mind wandering.

The kettle clicked and he pored the water into her mug before finishing the frying and putting more bread into the toaster. He had always been a awkward host but tea and food were never amiss. If needs be he'd eat the lot, he was pretty hungry himself and it was only with the smells of cooking that he realized it.

 

[Astaroth]

My stomach howled in reaction to the smell of hot grease as I locked myself inside of Vay's bathroom and stripped my sweater off. I could have sworn a layer of skin came away with it. Grimacing, I balled up the damp wool mess and tossed it onto the floor as I reached for the sink faucet. The water cut on with an obscene-sounding gush. I splashed some on my face and shoulders, letting out a shaky exhalation.

As I glanced at the mirror directly above the sink, I caught my reflection's eye.

Something rose, unbidden, in the back of my mind.

<a href="#" onClick="MyWindow=window.open('http://fc06.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2011/110/3/5/restless_mind_by_worlockmolly-d3efhhk.gif','MyWindow','toolbar=no,location=no,directories=no,status=no, menubar=no,scrollbars=no,resizable=no,width=652,height=555'); return false;">What...?</a>

Gasping, I jerked backwards. The images were gone, though; nothing but my own face, pale and drawn behind the frames of my glasses. I was obviously tired, overheated, disoriented; I just needed to get something to eat. Everything would be fine.

Turning the water off, I shrugged into the borrowed green shirt. My favorite color; had I told him that? Swiping my sweater off the floor, I took another deep breath and headed back toward the kitchen. I poked my head in tentatively. "Uh- Um. Where should I- I mean...?"

I wiggled the sweater awkwardly.
​

 

[Vay]

He was just fishing out the last two pieces of toast. "Behind you at the corner, basket/chest thing." he said pointing to the rectangular basket past the bookcase that was filled with a collection of wartime non-fiction, high fantasy, and maritime fiction as well as a small collection of cook books. If you're hungry I have breakfast."

He moved to clear as much of the table as he could of clean washing, enough to lay all the food on the it's surface and complete the spread with the tea that had just finished brewing. Back in his seat it was hard to contain his questions let alone think of ways to make them sound anything but rude.

"I'm surprised to see you." he said finally taking a bite out of a piece of toast with marmalade liberally spread over it. "Very surprised. I don't remember telling you where I live.." His eyes were on her, she looked terrible, worse than could be explained by jet lag. "But you can use my bed if you need it, theres enough cushions in the spare room for me to make myself comfortable. Just be careful of the cat, shes very territorial... sausage? My friend got it in Hawaii, its really good."