A very merry Halloween! [Mingle]

[ourearth]

Date: 31st of October
Characters: Open!
Warning: Non-sexual desecration of formerly buried corpses

---

On the morning of Halloween, when people first step out of their houses, they will almost step into something.

A bucket of water. Every flat and every house in the Mossgate Boundary has a bucket placed in front of its entrance door (and sometimes, especially in Folkton and Moss Manor, the back door too), in which scary apples are floating. A little sign taped to the bucket reads: Have fun bobbing!.

But that's not the only thing that happened. The second thing that people will notice is that there are billions of spiders of all sizes crawling all over the town and villages, the military base, the Manor House... everywhere. And they certainly did their job - trees, lanterns, the higher attractions on the pier, and everything else that is high all over Mossgate Council is covered in thick layers of cobweb.

And lastly... those who pass by a church will notice something about the graveyards around them. Namely, that someone placed skeletons on top of most of the graves... Awfully real looking ones. Really, really awfully real looking ones. To some of them, the soil of the graveyard still clings, and the graves underneath them are in a state that betrays that they were dug up during the night. DNA tests would show that, indeed, the skeletons belong to the individuals buried in the graves.

Comments

[dragoonrouge]

Sadie eyes the photo and grimaces, she'd gotten so used to wearing her glasses or her contacts that she'd forgotten that that would happen in the photo. It was lucky that Nel had been the one to take the photo.

"Ah if you could, I'm trying to keep my eyes a secret. I normally hide them but for today people just think that they're a part of my costume." Sadie explains to Nel.

"What do you think about this Number stuff Nel?" Sadie asks, curious as to what the young girl thought about the strange circumstances she now found herself involved in.

[vernal_miss]

The grimace is all the confirmation she needs from Sadie. Nel turns the camera around to herself and clicks the appropriate buttons to select the shot of Sadie with Tigger then deletes it from the memory, “Aaand done. Your eyes do make your costume way better.” As much of a shame as it is to have to lose the picture, spending a minute or two with Sadie will be all she needs to remember more of the details of the costume later. Her camera is shuttered and tucked back into her candy bag right after the evidence is erased.

Asked regarding her opinion of the Numbers and all that it entails, she isn’t nearly as enthusiastic as she had been initially when speaking on the Network the first time, “I think it could be good maybe, but I don’t like keeping it secret at home and I don’t like how worried it makes everyone.” Her grandfather in particular had a nasty shock only hours ago. “I hope when I do get an Echo it’ll be something that can help.”

“But you’ve had a Number longer than me. Do you think it’s going to be bad?”

[dragoonrouge]

"Thanks!" Sadie grins, "It's almost a shame it wouldn't be possible outside of Mossgate but I might as well take advantage of it whilst I can."

Sadie sighs, nodding at Nel's explanation. "It's never nice keeping secrets from family. My parents don't know about it, my brother found out by accident but it's hard, especially some of the changes like my eyes. But it's not all bad!" She blushes, a shy smile slowly pulling at her lips, "My boyfriend and I started going out because of the Numbers, he's wonderful and I'm very lucky to have him."

[vernal_miss]

Right, the barrier keeps the magic local. Nel has not travelled much in her life and has always lived here in Mossgate, so thinking about beyond home is not as readily done.

Being able to empathize over the matter of keeping a secret with someone outside the family is rather nice. That Sadie's brother found out by accident is a little troubling as Nel feels safe to assume Sadie has her own bedroom, and for a brief second, her face shows that worry. Nel shares her room with her youngest sibling at home. If she has a visible change that she has to hide, that will complicate matters. Would her Mum have to move her off to stay with one of her grandfathers instead...?

Before she can dwell too much on that notion, the tone changes as Sadie continues on with something positive. Nel actually leans forward with interest at the reveal, expression brightening, "How come? Is it cause he has a number too?" Story! She knows there's a story here and she wants to hear!

[dragoonrouge]

Sadie blushes deeper as she nods, "He does, he got his Number at the same time as me." She tucks some loose strands of hair behind her ears, "He became my first friend when I moved to Mossgate and he's my best friend."

"Hes just so very kind, and fun, and intelligent, and I think he's very handsome." She gushes to the younger girl, her shy smile now a beaming grin.

[vernal_miss]

Biting at her lower lip with a teensy squee at Sadie revealing her boyfriend not only has a Number but that he was her first then best friend, Nel is delighted by that beginning. She puts forward a more direct prompt to move passed the beginning, “So you already thought he was great. When did you realize you like him like him?”

Nel adores these sorts of stories. She has asked her mothers similar questions once and realized they are much better than fairytale romances.

[dragoonrouge]

"It was at the Pride Ball. He turned up in his suit and he'd brought me flowers, and then he stayed and kept me company even though he doesn't like crowds." Sadie confides in Nel, "It was like all the puzzle-pieces had fit together, it just felt right." She sighs happily.

[vernal_miss]

“Aww! That sounds like a perfect night,” she gleefully concurs. Such a whimsical setting to bring the last connection with a solid foundation beneath makes it far more romantic than a prince and a princess falling in love meeting the first time at a dance. Especially with a very human aversion to crowds clarifying how much she must mean to him to stay.

“I’m so glad you have him! I feel very lucky that my Mum and grandpa have Numbers too.”

[dragoonrouge]

Sadie's blush returns, "It... It really was perfect." The fact that it had been the Pride Ball of all things just made it more precious to Sadie.

"Thank you Nel, that's very kind of you, I'm glad you have your Mum and Grandad too. It's nicer to have family to help than strangers isn't it?"

[vernal_miss]

Such a cute response gets a soft giggle from Nel. She’s falling hard!

A light shrug is given when complimented, not really thinking anything is special about appreciating other people being happy. The contrast of family to strangers is not quite so clear cut in her mind, “I guess so. Everyone we talked to was super duper nice and wanted to help, like you did! And I like that my Mum is really close, and my Mum and Grandpa make me feel safe but...I think they would rather I didn’t have a Number at all.”

[dragoonrouge]

Sadie sighs, "I think they're worried for you." Sadie crouches so that she's eye level with Nel, "There's some cool stuff about this Nel but... it can hurt, and some of the changes need to be hidden, like my eyes. They're probably concerned that you won't be able to continue living normally because we don't know what sort of changes people might get."

[vernal_miss]

Her gaze follows Sadie as she comes down to her level, giving the child a sign of something serious to discuss. Listening closely, she frowns mildly as she is given warning about the potential for pain with changes as well as limitations from hiding those that affect appearance. Nel looks down briefly, voice lowered to murmur, "Normal is boring anyway..."

Doing what she can to wrap her head around it, she looks back to Sadie directly to ask, "When you say it can hurt, do you mean like 'stub your toe' ouch, or 'fall down the stairs' hurt?" Both of which she can readily relate to after having experienced each first hand.

[dragoonrouge]

Sadie cannot help but smile at Nel's proclamation about Normality, although it does not last long.

"It can depend, Nel, on what the change is. But it doesn't just hurt like that. It can hurt here," She taps her head, "And here." She taps her chest over her heart. "And you could argue that those hurts hurt more."

[vernal_miss]

The hurt of a change can bring not only physical pain of varied intensity, but to the mind and spirit. Pressing her lips in a thin line with brows furrowing for a moment, she tries to reach a better understanding and ventures, "...that might be if you remember something bad, right? Or if a change isn't pretty like your eyes?" Rather, a nasty change that aesthetically conflicts with the personal image of a Numbered too severely.

[dragoonrouge]

Sadie nods, Nel's clearly a smart kid. "Right, some people have already had that happen to them. It's...horrible. My eyes are useful, and they are kind of pretty...but some might see them as scary. Not too long ago I got claws and a bad memory to go along with them, and now I need to be careful not to hurt people."

She does slide her claws out, showing Nel her hand so that she can understand what she means, the claws being large and sharp could cause some damage.

[vernal_miss]

Nel has had the benefit of spending time in a community of people who are not accepted by everyone and sometimes have to seek medical assistance to look the way they feel inside. Imagining something akin to a reversal is not difficult for her.

Having caught onto the idea, she listens carefully as Sadie explains about her own experiences. Her eyes widen at the sight of her claws coming out, but rather than showing any shyness about them, she’s immediately reaching for Sadie’s hand. She stops short, looking to Sadie for permission before she makes contact, and if given it, delicately touches the claws to feel the shape and hardness of them.

“...I don’t get mad when the cats at home scratch me cause I know they don’t really mean it. And if they get too long we trim them,” she states before she manages a half smile, “Besides, now you don’t have to go looking for scissors as much.” Sobering quickly from the attempt at humor, her voice quiets, “It’s not fair you got a bad memory with them…”

The child prefers to look on the positive side of things, but she’s struggling to think of a good thing about a traumatizing memory.

[dragoonrouge]

Sadie is more than happy to let Nel examine her claws while there is no one else about. there are some noticeable differences between what Nel might be familiar with from the cats in her house and what she might have seen of larger species of felines from nature documentaries. Sadie's claws are far wider than those of a normal feline, being the same width as her nails had once been, and the claws are not quite as hooked either, although both of these differences are clearly the result of Sadie having actual fingers. They aren't as sharp as cats claws but it is clear that this has been done by Sadie to make her claws a little safer.

Sadie can't help but laugh at Nel's comment on the scissors, thinking back to having to cut Ben's gloves open back in the junkyard. "That is very true, but there is a difference to me hurting someone and a cat hurting someone. I have a responsibility to make sure that I can't harm someone even if it's accidentally. It's why I've filed the ends to make them less sharp."

"So, have you got anything interesting from the Echoes yet Nel?"

[vernal_miss]

Allowed to examine with both her eyes and hands, Nel is quick to key in on the differences from other claws. In the end, they are simply considered unique to her new friend. Unique, and therefore a little more amazing. When she feels satisfied with the look, she lets go of that hand and raises a brow, clearly not convinced Sadie has a duty to prevent all possible harm, “I guess, but accidents happen even when you try. I have four siblings, and we would never try to hurt each other, but we do sometimes on accident. In really stupid ways.” There’s a clear tick of humor at the last part, but she’ll save the stories for another time.

Asked about her Echoes, Nel knits her brow in thought with lips pressing together, “I dunno if interesting is the right word...” Nothing so cool as cat eyes or special claws at least. She reaches over her shoulder and grabs a whole chunk of her long, wavy red hair, “Before I got to talk to everyone, I didn’t know why, but my hair grows really fast. My mum and I think it’s my first Echo. I have to have a haircut every week to keep it this long. More often if I want it shorter.” Currently hanging to her waist, the girl has an impressive amount of hair in length and volume alike.

[dragoonrouge]

"True, James and I have got into situations like that before." Sadie shrugs with a grin, "Siblings right?"

"You hair is very pretty though, especially the colour. That does seem interesting, and your Mum did confirm that Echoes have been around for longer than we initially thought..." Sadie trails off thoughtfully. "So rapid hair growth? I wonder what Echoes you'll get in the future."

[vernal_miss]

A slow nod with a wider-eyed look downwards is given in complete agreement. Siblings indeed.

When she receives the compliment to her hair, she releases the locks to instead brush her fingers through it to sweep it back with a pleased smile, "Thank you! It is fun when my siblings try to style my hair in a special way." After all, there is no agonizing wait for hair to grow back when mistakes are made, and having no memories without long hair, Nel deeply appreciates the care and attention her family members give her to keep it manageable. Nothing gets her to settle down like a brushing session.

At the question of what other Echoes she may receive, she shrugs to begin with, "Dunno, I-"only to pause as she hears her friend call her attention far further down the sidewalk. They need to go around the corner and the adult in charge won't let them move on without her. Nel waves to them then smiles broadly to Sadie, "Sorry I have to get back to trick or treating, but it was so nice to see you!" Reaching into her bag, she'll fish out a handful of candy to offer Sadie before she scampers off on her way.